Discovery BoxIsaiah 56:8-12
Context56:8 The sovereign Lord says this,
the one who gathers the dispersed of Israel:
“I will still gather them up.” 1
56:9 All you wild animals in the fields, come and devour,
all you wild animals in the forest!
56:10 All their watchmen 2 are blind,
they are unaware. 3
All of them are like mute dogs,
unable to bark.
They pant, 4 lie down,
and love to snooze.
56:11 The dogs have big appetites;
they are never full. 5
They are shepherds who have no understanding;
they all go their own way,
each one looking for monetary gain. 6
‘Come on, I’ll get some wine!
Let’s guzzle some beer!
Tomorrow will be just like today!
We’ll have everything we want!’ 8
[56:8] 1 tn The meaning of the statement is unclear. The text reads literally, “Still I will gather upon him to his gathered ones.” Perhaps the preposition -לְ (lamed) before “gathered ones” introduces the object of the verb, as in Jer 49:5. The third masculine singular suffix on both עָלָיו (’alayv) and נִקְבָּצָיו (niqbatsayv) probably refers to “Israel.” In this case one can translate literally, “Still I will gather to him his gathered ones.”
[56:10] 2 sn The “watchmen” are probably spiritual leaders, most likely prophets and priests, responsible for giving the people moral direction.
[56:10] 3 tn Heb “they do not know”; KJV “they are all ignorant”; NIV “they all lack knowledge.”
[56:10] 4 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 1QIsaa has חזים (“seers”) here. In this case the “watchmen” are directly identified as prophets and depicted as lazy.
[56:11] 5 sn The phrase never full alludes to the greed of the leaders.
[56:11] 6 tn Heb “for his gain from his end.”
[56:12] 7 tn The words “each one says” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[56:12] 8 tn Heb “great, [in] abundance, very much,” i.e., “very great indeed.” See HALOT 452 s.v. יֶתֶר.
