Isaiah 7:14

7:14 For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. ¹  Look, this ²  young woman ³  is about to conceive ⁴  and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him ⁵  Immanuel. ⁶ 

Isaiah 19:16

19:16 At that time ⁷  the Egyptians ⁸  will be like women. ⁹  They will tremble and fear because the Lord who commands armies brandishes his fist against them. ¹⁰ 

Isaiah 31:2

31:2 Yet he too is wise ¹¹  and he will bring disaster;

he does not retract his decree. ¹² 

He will attack the wicked nation, ¹³ 

and the nation that helps ¹⁴  those who commit sin. ¹⁵ 

Isaiah 32:7

32:7 A deceiver’s methods are evil; ¹⁶ 

he dreams up evil plans ¹⁷ 

to ruin the poor with lies,

even when the needy are in the right. ¹⁸ 

Isaiah 35:4

35:4 Tell those who panic, ¹⁹ 

“Be strong! Do not fear!

Look, your God comes to avenge!

With divine retribution he comes to deliver you.” ²⁰ 

Isaiah 41:4

41:4 Who acts and carries out decrees? ²¹ 

Who ²²  summons the successive generations from the beginning?

I, the Lord, am present at the very beginning,

and at the very end – I am the one. ²³ 

Isaiah 41:7

41:7 The craftsman encourages the metalsmith,

the one who wields the hammer encourages ²⁴  the one who pounds on the anvil.

He approves the quality of the welding, ²⁵ 

and nails it down so it won’t fall over.”

Isaiah 45:13

45:13 It is me – I stir him up and commission him; ²⁶ 

I will make all his ways level.

He will rebuild my city;

he will send my exiled people home,

but not for a price or a bribe,”

says the Lord who commands armies.

Isaiah 46:4

46:4 Even when you are old, I will take care of you, ²⁷ 

even when you have gray hair, I will carry you.

I made you and I will support you;

I will carry you and rescue you. ²⁸ 

Isaiah 50:9

50:9 Look, the sovereign Lord helps me.

Who dares to condemn me?

Look, all of them will wear out like clothes;

a moth will eat away at them.

Isaiah 51:12

51:12 “I, I am the one who consoles you. ²⁹ 

Why are you afraid of mortal men,

of mere human beings who are as short-lived as grass? ³⁰ 

Isaiah 63:9

63:9 Through all that they suffered, he suffered too. ³¹ 

The messenger sent from his very presence ³²  delivered them.

In his love and mercy he protected ³³  them;

he lifted them up and carried them throughout ancient times. ³⁴ 

[7:14]  ¹ tn The Hebrew term אוֹת (’ot, “sign”) can refer to a miraculous event (see v. 11), but it does not carry this sense inherently. Elsewhere in Isaiah the word usually refers to a natural occurrence or an object/person vested with special significance (see 8:18; 19:20; 20:3; 37:30; 55:13; 66:19). Only in 38:7-8, 22 does it refer to a miraculous deed that involves suspending or overriding natural laws. The sign outlined in vv. 14-17 involves God’s providential control over events and their timing, but not necessarily miraculous intervention.

[7:14]  ² tn Heb “the young woman.” The Hebrew article has been rendered as a demonstrative pronoun (“this”) in the translation to bring out its force. It is very likely that Isaiah pointed to a woman who was present at the scene of the prophet’s interview with Ahaz. Isaiah’s address to the “house of David” and his use of second plural forms suggests other people were present, and his use of the second feminine singular verb form (“you will name”) later in the verse is best explained if addressed to a woman who is present.

[7:14]  ³ tn Traditionally, “virgin.” Because this verse from Isaiah is quoted in Matt 1:23 in connection with Jesus’ birth, the Isaiah passage has been regarded since the earliest Christian times as a prophecy of Christ’s virgin birth. Much debate has taken place over the best way to translate this Hebrew term, although ultimately one’s view of the doctrine of the virgin birth of Christ is unaffected. Though the Hebrew word used here (עַלְמָה, ’almah) can sometimes refer to a woman who is a virgin (Gen 24:43), it does not carry this meaning inherently. The word is simply the feminine form of the corresponding masculine noun עֶלֶם (’elem, “young man”; cf. 1 Sam 17:56; 20:22). The Aramaic and Ugaritic cognate terms are both used of women who are not virgins. The word seems to pertain to age, not sexual experience, and would normally be translated “young woman.” The LXX translator(s) who later translated the Book of Isaiah into Greek sometime between the second and first century b.c., however, rendered the Hebrew term by the more specific Greek word παρθένος (parqenos), which does mean “virgin” in a technical sense. This is the Greek term that also appears in the citation of Isa 7:14 in Matt 1:23. Therefore, regardless of the meaning of the term in the OT context, in the NT Matthew’s usage of the Greek term παρθένος clearly indicates that from his perspective a virgin birth has taken place.

[7:14]  ⁴ tn Elsewhere the adjective הָרָה (harah), when used predicatively, refers to a past pregnancy (from the narrator’s perspective, 1 Sam 4:19), to a present condition (Gen 16:11; 38:24; 2 Sam 11:5), and to a conception that is about to occur in the near future (Judg 13:5, 7). (There is some uncertainty about the interpretation of Judg 13:5, 7, however. See the notes to those verses.) In Isa 7:14 one could translate, “the young woman is pregnant.” In this case the woman is probably a member of the royal family. Another option, the one followed in the present translation, takes the adjective in an imminent future sense, “the young woman is about to conceive.” In this case the woman could be a member of the royal family, or, more likely, the prophetess with whom Isaiah has sexual relations shortly after this (see 8:3).

[7:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “and you will call his name.” The words “young lady” are supplied in the translation to clarify the identity of the addressee. The verb is normally taken as an archaic third feminine singular form here, and translated, “she will call.” However the form (קָרָאת, qara’t) is more naturally understood as second feminine singular, in which case the words would be addressed to the young woman mentioned just before this. In the three other occurrences of the third feminine singular perfect of I קָרָא (qara’, “to call”), the form used is קָרְאָה (qar’ah; see Gen 29:35; 30:6; 1 Chr 4:9). A third feminine singular perfect קָרָאת does appear in Deut 31:29 and Jer 44:23, but the verb here is the homonym II קָרָא (“to meet, encounter”). The form קָרָאת (from I קָרָא, “to call”) appears in three other passages (Gen 16:11; Isa 60:18; Jer 3:4 [Qere]) and in each case is second feminine singular.

[7:14]  ⁶ sn The name Immanuel means “God [is] with us.”

[19:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “in that day” (so KJV), likewise at the beginning of vv. 18 and 19.

[19:16]  ⁸ tn Heb “Egypt,” which stands by metonymy for the country’s inhabitants.

[19:16]  ⁹ sn As the rest of the verse indicates, the point of the simile is that the Egyptians will be relatively weak physically and will wilt in fear before the Lord’s onslaught.

[19:16]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he will tremble and be afraid because of the brandishing of the hand of the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts], which he brandishes against him.” Since according to the imagery here the Lord’s “hand” is raised as a weapon against the Egyptians, the term “fist” has been used in the translation.

[31:2]  ¹³ sn This statement appears to have a sarcastic tone. The royal advisers who are advocating an alliance with Egypt think they are wise, but the Lord possesses wisdom as well and will thwart their efforts.

[31:2]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and he does not turn aside [i.e., “retract”] his words”; NIV “does not take back his words.”

[31:2]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and he will arise against the house of the wicked.”

[31:2]  ¹⁶ sn That is, Egypt.

[31:2]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and against the help of the doers of sin.”

[32:7]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “as for a deceiver, his implements [or “weapons”] are evil.”

[32:7]  ²⁰ tn Or “he plans evil things”; NIV “he makes up evil schemes.”

[32:7]  ²¹ tn Heb “to ruin the poor with words of falsehood, even when the needy speak what is just.”

[35:4]  ²⁵ tn Heb “Say to the hasty of heart,” i.e., those whose hearts beat quickly from fear.

[35:4]  ²⁶ tn The jussive form וְיֹשַׁעֲכֶם (vÿyosha’akhem), which is subordinated to the preceding imperfect with vav conjunctive, indicates purpose.

[41:4]  ³¹ tn Heb “Who acts and accomplishes?”; NASB “Who has performed and accomplished it.”

[41:4]  ³² tn The interrogative particle is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:4]  ³³ tn Heb “I, the Lord, [am with] the first, and with the last ones I [am] he.”

[41:7]  ³⁷ tn The verb “encourages” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:7]  ³⁸ tn Heb “saying of the welding, ‘It is good.’”

[45:13]  ⁴³ tn Heb “I stir him up in righteousness”; NASB “I have aroused him.” See the note at 41:2. Cyrus (cf. 44:28) is in view here.

[46:4]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “until old age, I am he” (NRSV similar); NLT “I will be your God throughout your lifetime.”

[46:4]  ⁵⁰ sn Unlike the weary idol gods, whose images must be carried by animals, the Lord carries his weary people.

[51:12]  ⁵⁵ tc The plural suffix should probably be emended to the second masculine singular (which is used in v. 13). The final mem (ם) is probably dittographic; note the mem at the beginning of the next word.

[51:12]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, and of the son of man who [as] grass is given up?” The feminine singular forms should probably be emended to the masculine singular (see v. 13). They have probably been influenced by the construction אַתְּ־הִיא (’at-hi’) in vv. 9-10.

[63:9]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “in all their distress, there was distress to him” (reading לוֹ [lo] with the margin/Qere).

[63:9]  ⁶² tn Heb “the messenger [or “angel”] of his face”; NIV “the angel of his presence.”

[63:9]  ⁶³ tn Or “redeemed” (KJV, NAB, NIV), or “delivered.”

[63:9]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “all the days of antiquity”; KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “days of old.”