Discovery BoxIsaiah 60:1-21
Context60:1 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!
The splendor 1 of the Lord shines on you!
60:2 For, look, darkness covers the earth
and deep darkness covers 2 the nations,
but the Lord shines on you;
his splendor 3 appears over you.
60:3 Nations come to your light,
kings to your bright light.
They all gather and come to you –
your sons come from far away
and your daughters are escorted by guardians.
60:5 Then you will look and smile, 5
you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride. 6
For the riches of distant lands 7 will belong to you
and the wealth of nations will come to you.
60:6 Camel caravans will cover your roads, 8
young camels from Midian and Ephah.
All the merchants of Sheba 9 will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing praises to the Lord. 10
60:7 All the sheep of Kedar will be gathered to you;
the rams of Nebaioth will be available to you as sacrifices. 11
They will go up on my altar acceptably, 12
and I will bestow honor on my majestic temple.
60:8 Who are these who float along 13 like a cloud,
who fly like doves to their shelters? 14
60:9 Indeed, the coastlands 15 look eagerly for me,
the large ships 16 are in the lead,
bringing your sons from far away,
along with their silver and gold,
to honor the Lord your God, 17
the Holy One of Israel, 18 for he has bestowed honor on you.
60:10 Foreigners will rebuild your walls;
their kings will serve you.
Even though I struck you down in my anger,
I will restore my favor and have compassion on you. 19
60:11 Your gates will remain open at all times;
they will not be shut during the day or at night,
so that the wealth of nations may be delivered,
with their kings leading the way. 20
60:12 Indeed, 21 nations or kingdoms that do not serve you will perish;
such nations will be totally destroyed. 22
60:13 The splendor of Lebanon will come to you,
its evergreens, firs, and cypresses together,
to beautify my palace; 23
I will bestow honor on my throne room. 24
60:14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing to you;
all who treated you with disrespect will bow down at your feet.
They will call you, ‘The City of the Lord,
Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’ 25
60:15 You were once abandoned
and despised, with no one passing through,
but I will make you 26 a permanent source of pride
and joy to coming generations.
60:16 You will drink the milk of nations;
you will nurse at the breasts of kings. 27
Then you will recognize that I, the Lord, am your deliverer,
your protector, 28 the powerful ruler of Jacob. 29
60:17 Instead of bronze, I will bring you gold,
instead of iron, I will bring you silver,
instead of wood, I will bring you 30 bronze,
instead of stones, I will bring you 31 iron.
I will make prosperity 32 your overseer,
and vindication your sovereign ruler. 33
60:18 Sounds of violence 34 will no longer be heard in your land,
or the sounds of 35 destruction and devastation within your borders.
You will name your walls, ‘Deliverance,’
and your gates, ‘Praise.’
60:19 The sun will no longer supply light for you by day,
nor will the moon’s brightness shine on you;
the Lord will be your permanent source of light –
the splendor of your God will shine upon you. 36
60:20 Your sun will no longer set;
your moon will not disappear; 37
the Lord will be your permanent source of light;
your time 38 of sorrow will be over.
60:21 All of your people will be godly; 39
they will possess the land permanently.
I will plant them like a shoot;
they will be the product of my labor,
through whom I reveal my splendor. 40
[60:1] 1 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).
[60:2] 2 tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).
[60:2] 3 tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”
[60:4] 4 tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see!”
[60:5] 5 tn Or “shine,” or “be radiant” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[60:5] 6 tn Heb “and it will tremble and be wide, your heart.”
[60:5] 7 tn Heb “the wealth of the sea,” i.e., wealth that is transported from distant lands via the sea.
[60:6] 8 tn Heb “an abundance of camels will cover you.”
[60:6] 9 tn Heb “all of them, from Sheba.”
[60:6] 10 tn Heb “and they will announce the praises of the Lord.”
[60:7] 11 tn Heb “will serve you,” i.e., be available as sacrifices (see the next line). Another option is to understood these “rams” as symbolic of leaders who will be subject to the people of Zion. See v. 10.
[60:7] 12 tc Heb “they will go up on acceptance [on] my altar.” Some have suggested that the preposition עַל (’al) is dittographic (note the preceding יַעֲלוּ [ya’alu]). Consequently, the form should be emended to לְרָצוֹן (lÿratson, “acceptably”; see BDB 953 s.v. רָצוֹן). However, the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has both לרצון followed by the preposition על, which would argue against deleted the preposition. As the above translation seeks to demonstrate, the preposition עַל (’al) indicates a norm (“in accordance with acceptance” or “acceptably”; IBHS 218 §11.2.13e, n. 111) and the “altar” functions as an objective accusative with a verb of motion (cf. Gen 49:4; Lev 2:2; Num 13:17; J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:534, n. 14).
[60:8] 13 tn Heb “fly” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NAB, NIV “fly along.”
[60:8] 14 tn Heb “to their windows,” i.e., to the openings in their coops. See HALOT 83 s.v. אֲרֻבָּה.
[60:9] 15 tn Or “islands” (NIV); CEV “distant islands”; TEV “distant lands.”
[60:9] 16 tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” See the note at 2:16.
[60:9] 17 tn Heb “to the name of the Lord your God.”
[60:9] 18 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[60:10] 19 tn Heb “in my favor I will have compassion on you.”
[60:11] 20 tn Or “led in procession.” The participle is passive.
[60:12] 21 tn Or “For” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); TEV “But.”
[60:12] 22 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
[60:13] 23 tn Or “holy place, sanctuary.”
[60:13] 24 tn Heb “the place of my feet.” See Ezek 43:7, where the Lord’s throne is called the “place of the soles of my feet.”
[60:14] 25 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
[60:15] 26 tn Heb “Instead of your being abandoned and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you.”
[60:16] 27 sn The nations and kings are depicted as a mother nursing her children. Restored Zion will be nourished by them as she receives their wealth as tribute.
[60:16] 28 tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.
[60:16] 29 sn See 1:24 and 49:26.
[60:17] 30 tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding lines).
[60:17] 31 tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the first two lines of the verse).
[60:17] 32 tn Or “peace” (KJV and many other English versions).
[60:17] 33 tn The plural indicates degree. The language is ironic; in the past Zion was ruled by oppressive tyrants, but now personified prosperity and vindication will be the only things that will “dominate” the city.
[60:18] 34 tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[60:18] 35 tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[60:19] 36 tn Heb “and your God for your splendor.”
[60:20] 37 sn In this verse “sun” and “moon” refer to the Lord’s light, which will replace the sun and moon (see v. 19). Light here symbolizes the restoration of divine blessing and prosperity in conjunction with the Lord’s presence. See 30:26.
[60:20] 38 tn Heb “days” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).
[60:21] 39 tn Or “righteous” (NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “just.”
[60:21] 40 tn Heb “a shoot of his planting, the work of my hands, to reveal splendor.”
