Isaiah 57:9

57:9 You take olive oil as tribute ¹  to your king, ² 

along with many perfumes. ³ 

You send your messengers to a distant place;

you go all the way to Sheol. ⁴ 

Isaiah 1:6

1:6 From the soles of your feet to your head,

there is no spot that is unharmed. ⁵ 

There are only bruises, cuts,

and open wounds.

They have not been cleansed ⁶  or bandaged,

nor have they been treated ⁷  with olive oil. ⁸ 

[57:9]  ¹ tn Heb “you journey with oil.”

[57:9]  ² tn Heb “the king.” Since the context refers to idolatry and child sacrifice (see v. 5), some emend מֶלֶך (melekh, “king”) to “Molech.” Perhaps Israel’s devotion to her idols is likened here to a subject taking tribute to a ruler.

[57:9]  ³ tn Heb “and you multiply your perfumes.”

[57:9]  ⁴ sn Israel’s devotion to her idols is inordinate, irrational, and self-destructive.

[1:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “there is not in it health”; NAB “there is no sound spot.”

[1:6]  ⁶ tn Heb “pressed out.”

[1:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “softened” (so NASB, NRSV); NIV “soothed.”

[1:6]  ⁸ sn This verse describes wounds like those one would receive in battle. These wounds are comprehensive and without remedy.