Isaiah 6:11

6:11 I replied, “How long, sovereign master?” He said,

“Until cities are in ruins and unpopulated,

and houses are uninhabited,

and the land is ruined and devastated,

Isaiah 7:23

7:23 At that time ¹  every place where there had been a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels will be overrun ²  with thorns and briers.

Isaiah 34:13

34:13 Her fortresses will be overgrown with thorns;

thickets and weeds will grow ³  in her fortified cities.

Jackals will settle there;

ostriches will live there. ⁴ 

Psalms 107:34

107:34 and a fruitful land into a barren place, ⁵ 

because of the sin of its inhabitants.

Hosea 9:6

No Escape for the Israelites This Time!

9:6 Look! ⁶  Even if ⁷  they flee from the destruction,

Egypt will take hold ⁸  of them,

and Memphis will bury them.

The weeds will inherit the silver they treasure ⁹  –

thorn bushes will occupy their homes. ¹⁰ 

Hosea 10:8

10:8 The high places of the “House ¹¹  of Wickedness” ¹²  will be destroyed;

it is the place where Israel sins.

Thorns and thistles will grow up over its altars.

Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”

and to the hills, “Fall on us!”

[7:23]  ¹ tn Heb “in that day.” The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[7:23]  ² tn Heb “will become” (so NASB); NAB “shall be turned to.”

[34:13]  ³ tn The words “will grow” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[34:13]  ⁴ tc Heb “and she will be a settlement for wild dogs, a dwelling place for ostriches.” The translation assumes an emendation of חָצִיר (khatsir, “grass”) to חָצֵר (khatser, “settlement”). One of the Qumran scrolls of Isaiah (1QIsa^a) supports this emendation (cf. HALOT 344 s.v. II חָצִיר)

[107:34]  ⁵ tn Heb “a salty land.”

[9:6]  ⁶ tn The deictic particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “Behold!”) is used frequently in prophetic announcements, introducing a solemn or important declaration, particularly in threats of judgment (BDB 244 s.v. הִנֵּה b.β). Many modern English versions leave this particle untranslated here.

[9:6]  ⁷ tn The conjunction כִּי (ki) introduces a concessive clause: “Although, when, if, even if” (BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.c.β). It has a force approximating “even if” (so NIV, NCV, NRSV, CEV, NLT), but it represents a situation as more likely to occur than אִם (‘im, “if”). The concessive use of כִּי is normally followed by an imperfect, but occasionally a perfect is used, as is the case here (e.g., Mic 7:8; Nah 1:10; Pss 21:12; 119:83).

[9:6]  ⁸ tn The verb קָבַץ (qavats, “to gather together”) should be nuanced “grab hold” in this context (HALOT 1063 s.v. קבץ). This pictures a personified Egypt taking the fugitives prisoner.

[9:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “the treasured things of their silver”; NASB, NIV, TEV, NLT “treasures of silver.”

[9:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “their tents” (so NIV, NRSV); CEV “your tents.”

[10:8]  ¹¹ tn Alternately, “Aven” (KJV, NAB, NRSV, NLT) for the city name “Beth Aven.” The term “Beth” (house) does not appear in the Hebrew text here, but is implied (e.g., Hos 4:15). It is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[10:8]  ¹² tc The MT reads בָּמוֹת אָוֶן (bamot ’aven, “high places of Aven”); however, several Hebrew mss read בָּמוֹת בֵּית אָוֶן (bamot bet ’aven, “high places of Beth Aven”). In Hos 4:15 the name בֵּית אָוֶן (“Beth Aven”; Heb “house of wickedness”) is a wordplay on “Bethel” (Heb “house of God”). It is possible that בָּמוֹת בֵּית אָוֶן (“high places of Beth Aven”) was original: בֵּית (bet, “house”) dropped out as an unintentional scribal error by haplography due to presence of the consonants בת in the preceding word במות (bamot, “high places”).