Isaiah 63:10-14

63:10 But they rebelled and offended ¹  his holy Spirit, ² 

so he turned into an enemy

and fought against them.

63:11 His people remembered the ancient times. ³ 

Where is the one who brought them up out of the sea,

along with the shepherd of ⁴  his flock?

Where is the one who placed his holy Spirit among them, ⁵ 

63:12 the one who made his majestic power available to Moses, ⁶ 

who divided the water before them,

gaining for himself a lasting reputation, ⁷ 

63:13 who led them through the deep water?

Like a horse running on flat land ⁸  they did not stumble.

63:14 Like an animal that goes down into a valley to graze, ⁹ 

so the Spirit of the Lord granted them rest.

In this way ¹⁰  you guided your people,

gaining for yourself an honored reputation. ¹¹ 

[63:10]  ¹ tn Or “grieved, hurt the feelings of.”

[63:10]  ² sn The phrase “holy Spirit” occurs in the OT only here (in v. 11 as well) and in Ps 51:11 (51:13 HT), where it is associated with the divine presence.

[63:11]  ³ tn Heb “and he remembered the days of antiquity, Moses, his people.” The syntax of the statement is unclear. The translation assumes that “his people” is the subject of the verb “remembered.” If original, “Moses” is in apposition to “the days of antiquity,” more precisely identifying the time period referred to. However, the syntactical awkwardness suggests that “Moses” may have been an early marginal note (perhaps identifying “the shepherd of his flock” two lines later) that has worked its way into the text.

[63:11]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew text has a plural form, which if retained and taken as a numerical plural, would probably refer to Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite tribal leaders at the time of the Exodus. Most prefer to emend the form to the singular (רָעָה, ra’ah) and understand this as a reference just to Moses.

[63:11]  ⁵ sn See the note at v. 10.

[63:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “who caused to go at the right hand of Moses the arm of his splendor.”

[63:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “making for himself a lasting name.”

[63:13]  ⁸ tn Heb “in the desert [or “steppe”].”

[63:14]  ⁹ tn The words “to graze” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[63:14]  ¹⁰ tn Or “so” (KJV, ASV), or “thus” (NAB, NRSV).

[63:14]  ¹¹ tn Heb “making for yourself a majestic name.”