Isaiah 66:5

66:5 Hear the word of the Lord,

you who respect what he has to say! ¹ 

Your countrymen, ²  who hate you

and exclude you, supposedly for the sake of my name,

say, “May the Lord be glorified,

then we will witness your joy.” ³ 

But they will be put to shame.

Jeremiah 5:12-13

5:12 “These people have denied what the Lord says. ⁴ 

They have said, ‘That is not so! ⁵ 

No harm will come to us.

We will not experience war and famine. ⁶ 

5:13 The prophets will prove to be full of wind. ⁷ 

The Lord has not spoken through them. ⁸ 

So, let what they say happen to them.’”

Jeremiah 17:15

17:15 Listen to what they are saying to me. ⁹ 

They are saying, “Where are the things the Lord threatens us with?

Come on! Let’s see them happen!” ¹⁰ 

Ezekiel 12:22

12:22 “Son of man, what is this proverb you have in the land of Israel, ‘The days pass slowly, and every vision fails’?

Ezekiel 12:27

12:27 “Take note, son of man, the house of Israel is saying, ‘The vision that he sees is for distant days; he is prophesying about the far future.’

Amos 5:18-19

The Lord Demands Justice

5:18 Woe ¹¹  to those who wish for the day of the Lord!

Why do you want the Lord’s day of judgment to come?

It will bring darkness, not light.

5:19 Disaster will be inescapable, ¹² 

as if a man ran from a lion only to meet a bear,

then escaped ¹³  into a house,

leaned his hand against the wall,

and was bitten by a poisonous snake.

Amos 5:2

5:2 “The virgin ¹⁴  Israel has fallen down and will not get up again.

She is abandoned on her own land

with no one to help her get up.” ¹⁵ 

Amos 3:3-4

3:3 Do two walk together without having met? ¹⁶ 

3:4 Does a lion roar in the woods if he has not cornered his prey? ¹⁷ 

Does a young lion bellow from his den if he has not caught something?

[66:5]  ¹ tn Heb “who tremble at his word.”

[66:5]  ² tn Heb “brothers” (so NASB, NIV); NRSV “Your own people”; NLT “Your close relatives.”

[66:5]  ³ tn Or “so that we might witness your joy.” The point of this statement is unclear.

[5:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “have denied the Lord.” The words “What…says” are implicit in what follows.

[5:12]  ⁵ tn Or “he will do nothing”; Heb “Not he [or it]!”

[5:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “we will not see the sword and famine.”

[5:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “will be wind.”

[5:13]  ⁸ tc Heb “the word is not in them.” The MT has a highly unusual form here, the Piel perfect with the definite article (הַדִּבֵּר, haddibber). It is undoubtedly best to read with the LXX (Greek version) and one Hebrew ms the article on the noun (הַדָּבָר, haddavar).

[17:15]  ⁹ tn Heb “Behold, they are saying to me.”

[17:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Where is the word of the Lord. Let it come [or come to pass] please.”

[5:18]  ¹¹ tn The term הוֹי (hoy, “woe”) was used when mourning the dead (see the note on the word “dead” in 5:16). The prophet here either engages in role playing and mourns the death of the nation in advance or sarcastically taunts those who hold to this misplaced belief.

[5:19]  ¹² tn The words “Disaster will be inescapable” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:19]  ¹³ tn Heb “went” (so KJV, NRSV).

[5:2]  ¹⁴ tn Or “young lady.” The term “Israel” is an appositional genitive.

[5:2]  ¹⁵ tn Or “with no one to lift her up.”

[3:3]  ¹⁶ sn The rhetorical questions in vv. 3-5 expect the answer, “No, of course not!” Those in v. 6 anticipate the answer, “Yes, of course they do/he is.” They all draw attention to the principle of cause and effect and lay the logical foundation for the argument in vv. 7-8. Also note the progression from a general question in v. 3 to the “meetings” of two animals (v. 4), to that of an animal and a human trap (v. 5), to a climax with the confrontation with the Lord (v. 6). Each of these meetings is disastrous.

[3:4]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “without having prey [or “food”].”