Isaiah 9:9-10

Context

9:9 All the people were aware¹ of it,

the people of Ephraim and those living in Samaria.²

Yet with pride and an arrogant attitude, they said,³

9:10 “The bricks have fallen,

but we will rebuild with chiseled stone;

the sycamore fig trees have been cut down,

but we will replace them with cedars.”⁴

James 4:13-16

Context

4:13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into this or that town⁵ and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.” 4:14 You⁶ do not know about tomorrow. What is your life like?⁷ For you are a puff of smoke⁸ that appears for a short time and then vanishes. 4:15 You ought to say instead,⁹ “If the Lord is willing, then we will live and do this or that.” 4:16 But as it is,¹⁰ you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

[9:9] ¹tn The translation assumes that vv. 9-10 describe the people’s response to a past judgment (v. 8). The perfect is understood as indicating simple past and the vav (ו) is taken as conjunctive. Another option is to take the vav on the perfect as consecutive and translate, “all the people will know.”

[9:9] ²tn Heb “and the people, all of them, knew; Ephraim and the residents of Samaria.”

[9:9] ³tn Heb “with pride and arrogance of heart, saying.”

[9:10] ⁴sn Though judgment (see v. 8) had taken away the prosperity they did have (symbolized by the bricks and sycamore fig trees), they arrogantly expected the future to bring even greater prosperity (symbolized by the chiseled stone and cedars).

[4:13] ⁵tn Or “city.”

[4:14] ⁶tn Grk “who” (continuing the description of the people of v. 13). Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[4:14] ⁷tn Or “you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow.”

[4:14] ⁸tn Or “a vapor.” The Greek word ἀτμίς (atmis) denotes a swirl of smoke arising from a fire (cf. Gen 19:28; Lev 16:13; Joel 2:30 [Acts 2:19]; Ezek 8:11).

[4:15] ⁹tn Grk “instead of your saying.”

[4:16] ¹⁰tn Grk “but now.”