Isaiah 62:8

62:8 The Lord swears an oath by his right hand,

by his strong arm: ¹ 

“I will never again give your grain

to your enemies as food,

and foreigners will not drink your wine,

which you worked hard to produce.

Isaiah 63:5

63:5 I looked, but there was no one to help;

I was shocked because there was no one offering support. ² 

So my right arm accomplished deliverance;

my raging anger drove me on. ³ 

Isaiah 64:5

64:5 You assist ⁴  those who delight in doing what is right, ⁵ 

who observe your commandments. ⁶ 

Look, you were angry because we violated them continually.

How then can we be saved? ⁷ 

Isaiah 66:17

66:17 “As for those who consecrate and ritually purify themselves so they can follow their leader and worship in the sacred orchards, ⁸  those who eat the flesh of pigs and other disgusting creatures, like mice ⁹  – they will all be destroyed together,” ¹⁰  says the Lord.

[62:8]  ¹ tn The Lord’s right hand and strong arm here symbolize his power and remind the audience that his might guarantees the fulfillment of the following promise.

[63:5]  ² sn See Isa 59:16 for similar language.

[63:5]  ³ tn Heb “and my anger, it supported me”; NIV “my own wrath sustained me.”

[64:5]  ³ tn Heb “meet [with kindness].”

[64:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “the one who rejoices and does righteousness.”

[64:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “in your ways they remember you.”

[64:5]  ⁶ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “look, you were angry and we sinned against them continually [or perhaps, “in ancient times”] and we were delivered.” The statement makes little sense as it stands. The first vav [ו] consecutive (“and we sinned”) must introduce an explanatory clause here (see Num 1:48 and Isa 39:1 for other examples of this relatively rare use of the vav [ו] consecutive). The final verb (if rendered positively) makes no sense in this context – God’s anger at their sin resulted in judgment, not deliverance. One of the alternatives involves an emendation to וַנִּרְשָׁע (vannirsha’, “and we were evil”; LXX, NRSV, TEV). The Vulgate and the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a support the MT reading. One can either accept an emendation or cast the statement as a question (as above).

[66:17]  ⁴ tn Heb “the ones who consecrate themselves and the ones who purify themselves toward the orchards [or “gardens”] after the one in the midst.” The precise meaning of the statement is unclear, though it is obvious that some form of idolatry is in view.

[66:17]  ⁵ tn Heb “ones who eat the flesh of the pig and the disgusting thing and the mouse.”

[66:17]  ⁶ tn Heb “together they will come to an end.”