Isaiah 56:10-11

56:10 All their watchmen ¹  are blind,

they are unaware. ² 

All of them are like mute dogs,

unable to bark.

They pant, ³  lie down,

and love to snooze.

56:11 The dogs have big appetites;

they are never full. ⁴ 

They are shepherds who have no understanding;

they all go their own way,

each one looking for monetary gain. ⁵ 

Isaiah 56:1

The Lord Invites Outsiders to Enter

56:1 This is what the Lord says,

“Promote ⁶  justice! Do what is right!

For I am ready to deliver you;

I am ready to vindicate you openly. ⁷ 

Isaiah 3:3

3:3 captains of groups of fifty,

the respected citizens, ⁸ 

advisers and those skilled in magical arts, ⁹ 

and those who know incantations.

Isaiah 3:8

3:8 Jerusalem certainly stumbles,

Judah falls,

for their words and their actions offend the Lord; ¹⁰ 

they rebel against his royal authority. ¹¹ 

Isaiah 3:1

A Coming Leadership Crisis

3:1 Look, the sovereign Lord who commands armies ¹² 

is about to remove from Jerusalem ¹³  and Judah

every source of security, including ¹⁴ 

all the food and water, ¹⁵ 

Isaiah 5:2

5:2 He built a hedge around it, ¹⁶  removed its stones,

and planted a vine.

He built a tower in the middle of it,

and constructed a winepress.

He waited for it to produce edible grapes,

but it produced sour ones instead. ¹⁷ 

[56:10]  ¹ sn The “watchmen” are probably spiritual leaders, most likely prophets and priests, responsible for giving the people moral direction.

[56:10]  ² tn Heb “they do not know”; KJV “they are all ignorant”; NIV “they all lack knowledge.”

[56:10]  ³ tn The Hebrew text has הֹזִים (hozim), which appears to be derived from an otherwise unattested verbal root הָזָה (hazah). On the basis of alleged cognates, BDB 223 s.v. הָזָה offers the definition “dream, rave” while HALOT 243 s.v. הזה lists “pant.” In this case the dog metaphor of the preceding lines continues. The reference to dogs at the beginning of v. 11 favors the extension of the metaphor. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a has חזים (“seers”) here. In this case the “watchmen” are directly identified as prophets and depicted as lazy.

[56:11]  ⁴ sn The phrase never full alludes to the greed of the leaders.

[56:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “for his gain from his end.”

[56:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “guard”; KJV “Keep”; NAB “Observe”; NASB “Preserve”; NIV, NRSV “Maintain.”

[56:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “for near is my deliverance to enter, and my vindication [or “righteousness”] to be revealed.”

[3:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “the ones lifted up with respect to the face.” For another example of the Hebrew idiom, see 2 Kgs 5:1.

[3:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “and the wise with respect to magic.” On the meaning of חֲרָשִׁים (kharashim, “magic”), see HALOT 358 s.v. III חרשׁ. Some understand here a homonym, meaning “craftsmen.” In this case, one could translate, “skilled craftsmen” (cf. NIV, NASB).

[3:8]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “for their tongue and their deeds [are] to the Lord.”

[3:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “to rebel [against] the eyes of his majesty.” The word כָּבוֹד (kavod) frequently refers to the Lord’s royal splendor that is an outward manifestation of his authority as king.

[3:1]  ¹² tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts].” On the title “the Lord who commands armies,” see the note at 1:9.

[3:1]  ¹³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “support and support.” The masculine and feminine forms of the noun are placed side-by-side to emphasize completeness. See GKC 394 §122.v.

[3:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “all the support of food, and all the support of water.”

[5:2]  ¹⁶ tn Or, “dug it up” (so NIV); KJV “fenced it.’ See HALOT 810 s.v. עזק.

[5:2]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “wild grapes,” i.e., sour ones (also in v. 4).