Isaiah 7:1

Ahaz Receives a Sign

7:1 During ¹  the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel marched up to Jerusalem ²  to do battle, but they were unable to prevail against it. ³ 

Isaiah 33:20

33:20 Look at Zion, the city where we hold religious festivals!

You ⁴  will see Jerusalem, ⁵ 

a peaceful settlement,

a tent that stays put; ⁶ 

its stakes will never be pulled up;

none of its ropes will snap in two.

Isaiah 37:10

37:10 “Tell King Hezekiah of Judah this: ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust mislead you when he says, “Jerusalem will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.”

Isaiah 40:2

40:2 “Speak kindly to ⁷  Jerusalem, ⁸  and tell her

that her time of warfare is over, ⁹ 

that her punishment is completed. ¹⁰ 

For the Lord has made her pay double ¹¹  for all her sins.”

Isaiah 40:9

40:9 Go up on a high mountain, O herald Zion!

Shout out loudly, O herald Jerusalem! ¹² 

Shout, don’t be afraid!

Say to the towns of Judah,

“Here is your God!”

Isaiah 52:1

52:1 Wake up! Wake up!

Clothe yourself with strength, O Zion!

Put on your beautiful clothes,

O Jerusalem, ¹³  holy city!

For uncircumcised and unclean pagans

will no longer invade you.

Isaiah 66:20

66:20 They will bring back all your countrymen ¹⁴  from all the nations as an offering to the Lord. They will bring them ¹⁵  on horses, in chariots, in wagons, on mules, and on camels ¹⁶  to my holy hill Jerusalem,” says the Lord, “just as the Israelites bring offerings to the Lord’s temple in ritually pure containers.

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

[7:1]  ² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[7:1]  ³ tn Or perhaps, “but they were unable to attack it.” This statement sounds like a summary of the whole campaign. The following context explains why they were unable to defeat the southern kingdom. The parallel passage (2 Kgs 16:5; cf. Num 22:11; 1 Sam 17:9 for a similar construction) affirms that Syria and Israel besieged Ahaz. Consequently, the statement that “they were not able to battle against them” must refer to the inability to conquer Ahaz.

[33:20]  ⁴ tn Heb “your eyes” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[33:20]  ⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[33:20]  ⁶ tn Or “that does not travel”; NASB “which shall not be folded.”

[40:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “speak to the heart of Jerusalem.” Jerusalem is personified as a woman.

[40:2]  ⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[40:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “that she is filled [with] her warfare.” Some understand צָבָא (tsavah, “warfare”) as meaning “hard service” or “compulsory labor” in this context.

[40:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “that her punishment is accepted [as satisfactory].”

[40:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “for she has received from the hand of the Lord double.” The principle of the double portion in punishment is also seen in Jer 16:18; 17:18 and Rev 18:6. For examples of the double portion in Israelite law, see Exod 22:4, 7, 9 (double restitution by a thief) and Deut 21:17 (double inheritance portion for the firstborn).

[40:9]  ¹⁰ tn The second feminine singular imperatives are addressed to personified Zion/Jerusalem, who is here told to ascend a high hill and proclaim the good news of the Lord’s return to the other towns of Judah. Isa 41:27 and 52:7 speak of a herald sent to Zion, but the masculine singular form מְבַשֵּׂר (mÿvaser) is used in these verses, in contrast to the feminine singular form מְבַשֶּׂרֶת (mÿvaseret) employed in 40:9, where Zion is addressed as a herald.

[52:1]  ¹³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[66:20]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “brothers” (so NIV); NCV “fellow Israelites.”

[66:20]  ¹⁷ tn The words “they will bring them” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[66:20]  ¹⁸ tn The precise meaning of this word is uncertain. Some suggest it refers to “chariots.” See HALOT 498 s.v. *כִּרְכָּרָה.