Jeremiah 50:33-34

50:33 The Lord who rules over all ¹  says,

“The people of Israel are oppressed.

So too are the people of Judah. ² 

All those who took them captive are holding them prisoners.

They refuse to set them free.

50:34 But the one who will rescue them ³  is strong.

He is known as the Lord who rules over all. ⁴ 

He will strongly ⁵  champion their cause.

As a result ⁶  he will bring peace and rest to the earth,

but trouble and turmoil ⁷  to the people who inhabit Babylonia. ⁸ 

Psalms 140:12

140:12 I know ⁹  that the Lord defends the cause of the oppressed

and vindicates the poor. ¹⁰ 

Proverbs 22:23

22:23 for the Lord will plead their case ¹¹ 

and will rob those who are robbing ¹²  them.

Proverbs 23:11

23:11 for their Protector ¹³  is strong;

he will plead their case against you. ¹⁴ 

Isaiah 43:14

The Lord Will Do Something New

43:14 This is what the Lord says,

your protector, ¹⁵  the Holy One of Israel: ¹⁶ 

“For your sake I send to Babylon

and make them all fugitives, ¹⁷ 

turning the Babylonians’ joyful shouts into mourning songs. ¹⁸ 

Isaiah 47:6-9

47:6 I was angry at my people;

I defiled my special possession

and handed them over to you.

You showed them no mercy; ¹⁹ 

you even placed a very heavy burden on old people. ²⁰ 

47:7 You said,

‘I will rule forever as permanent queen!’ ²¹ 

You did not think about these things; ²² 

you did not consider how it would turn out. ²³ 

47:8 So now, listen to this,

O one who lives so lavishly, ²⁴ 

who lives securely,

who says to herself, ²⁵ 

‘I am unique! No one can compare to me! ²⁶ 

I will never have to live as a widow;

I will never lose my children.’ ²⁷ 

47:9 Both of these will come upon you

suddenly, in one day!

You will lose your children and be widowed. ²⁸ 

You will be overwhelmed by these tragedies, ²⁹ 

despite ³⁰  your many incantations

and your numerous amulets. ³¹ 

Isaiah 49:25-26

49:25 Indeed,” says the Lord,

“captives will be taken from a warrior;

spoils will be rescued from a conqueror.

I will oppose your adversary

and I will rescue your children.

49:26 I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh;

they will get drunk on their own blood, as if it were wine. ³² 

Then all humankind ³³  will recognize that

I am the Lord, your deliverer,

your protector, ³⁴  the powerful ruler of Jacob.” ³⁵ 

Micah 7:8-10

Jerusalem Will Be Vindicated

7:8 My enemies, ³⁶  do not gloat ³⁷  over me!

Though I have fallen, I will get up.

Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light. ³⁸ 

7:9 I must endure ³⁹  the Lord’s anger,

for I have sinned against him.

But then ⁴⁰  he will defend my cause, ⁴¹ 

and accomplish justice on my behalf.

He will lead me out into the light;

I will experience firsthand ⁴²  his deliverance. ⁴³ 

7:10 When my enemies see this, they will be covered with shame.

They say ⁴⁴  to me, “Where is the Lord your God?”

I will gloat over them. ⁴⁵ 

Then they will be trampled down ⁴⁶ 

like mud in the streets.

Habakkuk 2:8-17

2:8 Because you robbed many countries, ⁴⁷ 

all who are left among the nations ⁴⁸  will rob you.

You have shed human blood

and committed violent acts against lands, cities, ⁴⁹  and those who live in them.

2:9 The one who builds his house by unjust gain is as good as dead. ⁵⁰ 

He does this so he can build his nest way up high

and escape the clutches of disaster. ⁵¹ 

2:10 Your schemes will bring shame to your house.

Because you destroyed many nations, you will self-destruct. ⁵² 

2:11 For the stones in the walls will cry out,

and the wooden rafters will answer back. ⁵³ 

2:12 The one who builds a city by bloodshed is as good as dead ⁵⁴  –

he who starts ⁵⁵  a town by unjust deeds.

2:13 Be sure of this! The Lord who commands armies has decreed:

The nations’ efforts will go up in smoke;

their exhausting work will be for nothing. ⁵⁶ 

2:14 For recognition of the Lord’s sovereign majesty will fill the earth

just as the waters fill up the sea. ⁵⁷ 

2:15 “You who force your neighbor to drink wine ⁵⁸  are as good as dead ⁵⁹  –

you who make others intoxicated by forcing them to drink from the bowl of your furious anger, ⁶⁰ 

so you can look at their genitals. ⁶¹ 

2:16 But you will become drunk ⁶²  with shame, not majesty. ⁶³ 

Now it is your turn to drink and expose your uncircumcised foreskin! ⁶⁴ 

The cup of wine in the Lord’s right hand ⁶⁵  is coming to you,

and disgrace will replace your majestic glory!

2:17 For you will pay in full for your violent acts against Lebanon; ⁶⁶ 

terrifying judgment will come upon you because of the way you destroyed the wild animals living there. ⁶⁷ 

You have shed human blood

and committed violent acts against lands, cities, and those who live in them.

[50:33]  ¹ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of this title see the study note on 2:19.

[50:33]  ² tn Heb “Oppressed are the people of Israel and the people of Judah together,” i.e., both the people of Israel and Judah are oppressed. However, neither of these renderings is very poetic. The translation seeks to achieve the same meaning with better poetic expression.

[50:34]  ³ sn Heb “their redeemer.” The Hebrew term “redeemer” referred in Israelite family law to the nearest male relative who was responsible for securing the freedom of a relative who had been sold into slavery. For further discussion of this term as well as its metaphorical use to refer to God as the one who frees Israel from bondage in Egypt and from exile in Assyria and Babylonia see the study note on 31:11.

[50:34]  ⁴ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies is his name.” For the rendering of this title see the study note on 2:19.

[50:34]  ⁵ tn Or “he will certainly champion.” The infinitive absolute before the finite verb here is probably functioning to intensify the verb rather than to express the certainty of the action (cf. GKC 333 §112.n and compare usage in Gen 43:3 and 1 Sam 20:6 listed there).

[50:34]  ⁶ tn This appears to be another case where the particle לְמַעַן (lÿma’an) introduces a result rather than giving the purpose or goal. See the translator’s note on 25:7 for a listing of other examples in the book of Jeremiah and also the translator’s note on 27:10.

[50:34]  ⁷ tn Heb “he will bring rest to the earth and will cause unrest to.” The terms “rest” and “unrest” have been doubly translated to give more of the idea underlying these two concepts.

[50:34]  ⁸ tn This translation again reflects the problem often encountered in these prophecies where the Lord appears to be speaking but refers to himself in the third person. It would be possible to translate here using the first person as CEV and NIrV do. However, to sustain that over the whole verse results in a considerably greater degree of paraphrase. The verse could be rendered “But I am strong and I will rescue them. I am the Lord who rules over all. I will champion their cause. And I will bring peace and rest to….”

[140:12]  ⁹ tc The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew mss in reading a first person verb form here. The Kethib reads the second person.

[140:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and the just cause of the poor.”

[22:23]  ¹¹ tn The construction uses the verb יָרִיב (yariv) with its cognate accusative. It can mean “to strive,” but here it probably means “to argue a case, plead a case” (cf. KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV). How the Lord will do this is not specified – either through righteous people or by direct intervention.

[22:23]  ¹² tn The verb קָבַע (qava’, “to rob; to spoil; to plunder”) is used here in both places to reflect the principle of talionic justice. What the oppressors did to the poor will be turned back on them by the Lord.

[23:11]  ¹³ tn The participle גֹּאֵל (go’el) describes a “kinsman redeemer.” Some English versions explicitly cite “God” (e.g., NCV, CEV) or “the Lord” (e.g. TEV).

[23:11]  ¹⁴ sn This is the tenth saying; once again there is a warning not to encroach on other people’s rights and property, especially the defenseless (see v. 10; 22:22-23, 28).

[43:14]  ¹⁵ tn Or “kinsman redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[43:14]  ¹⁶ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[43:14]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and I bring down [as] fugitives all of them.”

[43:14]  ¹⁸ tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “as for the Babylonians, in ships their joyful shout.” This might be paraphrased, “even the Babylonians in the ships [over which] they joyfully shouted.” The point would be that the Lord caused the Babylonians to flee for safety in the ships in which they took such great pride. A slight change in vocalization yields the reading “into mourning songs,” which provides a good contrast with “joyful shout.” The prefixed bet (בְּ) would indicate identity.

[47:6]  ¹⁹ tn Or “compassion.”

[47:6]  ²⁰ tn Heb “on the old you made very heavy your yoke.”

[47:7]  ²¹ tn Heb “Forever I [will be] permanent queen”; NIV “the eternal queen”; CEV “queen forever.”

[47:7]  ²² tn Heb “you did not set these things upon your heart [or “mind”].”

[47:7]  ²³ tn Heb “you did not remember its outcome”; NAB “you disregarded their outcome.”

[47:8]  ²⁴ tn Or perhaps, “voluptuous one” (NAB); NAB “you sensual one”; NLT “You are a pleasure-crazy kingdom.”

[47:8]  ²⁵ tn Heb “the one who says in her heart.”

[47:8]  ²⁶ tn Heb “I [am], and besides me there is no other.” See Zeph 2:15.

[47:8]  ²⁷ tn Heb “I will not live [as] a widow, and I will not know loss of children.”

[47:9]  ²⁸ tn Heb “loss of children and widowhood.” In the Hebrew text the phrase is in apposition to “both of these” in line 1.

[47:9]  ²⁹ tn Heb “according to their fullness, they will come upon you.”

[47:9]  ³⁰ tn For other examples of the preposition bet (בְּ) having the sense of “although, despite,” see BDB 90 s.v. III.7.

[47:9]  ³¹ sn Reference is made to incantations and amulets, both of which were important in Mesopotamian religion. They were used to ward off danger and demons.

[49:26]  ³² sn Verse 26a depicts siege warfare and bloody defeat. The besieged enemy will be so starved they will their own flesh. The bloodstained bodies lying on the blood-soaked battle site will look as if they collapsed in drunkenness.

[49:26]  ³³ tn Heb “flesh” (so KJV, NASB).

[49:26]  ³⁴ tn Heb “your redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[49:26]  ³⁵ tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Jacob.” See 1:24.

[7:8]  ³⁶ tn The singular form is understood as collective.

[7:8]  ³⁷ tn Or “rejoice” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NCV “don’t laugh at me.”

[7:8]  ³⁸ sn Darkness represents judgment; light (also in v. 9) symbolizes deliverance. The Lord is the source of the latter.

[7:9]  ³⁹ tn Heb “lift, bear.”

[7:9]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “until.”

[7:9]  ⁴¹ tn Or “plead my case” (NASB and NIV both similar); NRSV “until he takes my side.”

[7:9]  ⁴² tn Heb “see.”

[7:9]  ⁴³ tn Or “justice, vindication.”

[7:10]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “who say.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[7:10]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “My eyes will look on them.”

[7:10]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “a trampled-down place.”

[2:8]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “nations.”

[2:8]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “peoples.”

[2:8]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “because of the shed blood of humankind and violence against land, city.” The singular forms אֶרֶץ (’erets, “land”) and קִרְיָה (qiryah, “city”) are collective, referring to all the lands and cities terrorized by the Babylonians.

[2:9]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “Woe [to] the one who profits unjustly by evil unjust gain for his house.” On the term הוֹי (hoy) see the note on the word “dead” in v. 6.

[2:9]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “to place his nest in the heights in order to escape from the hand of disaster.”

[2:10]  ⁵² tn Heb “you planned shame for your house, cutting off many nations, and sinning [against] your life.”

[2:11]  ⁵³ sn The house mentioned in vv. 9-10 represents the Babylonian empire, which became great through imperialism. Here the materials of this “house” (the stones in the walls, the wooden rafters) are personified as witnesses who testify that the occupants have built the house through wealth stolen from others.

[2:12]  ⁵⁴ tn On the term הוֹי (hoy) see the note on the word “dead” in v. 6.

[2:12]  ⁵⁵ tn Or “establishes”; or “founds.”

[2:13]  ⁵⁶ tn Heb “Is it not, look, from the Lord of hosts that the nations work hard for fire, and the peoples are exhausted for nothing?”

[2:14]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, just as the waters cover over the sea.”

[2:15]  ⁵⁸ tn No direct object is present after “drink” in the Hebrew text. “Wine” is implied, however, and has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[2:15]  ⁵⁹ tn On the term הוֹי (hoy) see the note on the word “dead” in v. 6.

[2:15]  ⁶⁰ tc Heb “pouring out your anger and also making drunk”; or “pouring out your anger and [by] rage making drunk.” The present translation assumes that the final khet (ח) on מְסַפֵּחַ (misapeakh, “pouring”) is dittographic and that the form should actually be read מִסַּף (missaf, “from a bowl”).

[2:15]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “their nakedness,” a euphemism.

[2:16]  ⁶² tn Heb “are filled.” The translation assumes the verbal form is a perfect of certitude, emphasizing the certainty of Babylon’s coming judgment, which will reduce the majestic empire to shame and humiliation.

[2:16]  ⁶³ tn Or “glory.”

[2:16]  ⁶⁴ tc Heb “drink, even you, and show the foreskin.” Instead of הֵעָרֵל (he’arel, “show the foreskin”) one of the Dead Sea scrolls has הֵרָעֵל (hera’el, “stumble”). This reading also has support from several ancient versions and is followed by the NEB (“you too shall drink until you stagger”) and NRSV (“Drink, you yourself, and stagger”). For a defense of the Hebrew text, see P. D. Miller, Jr., Sin and Judgment in the Prophets, 63-64.

[2:16]  ⁶⁵ sn The Lord’s right hand represents his military power. He will force the Babylonians to experience the same humiliating defeat they inflicted on others.

[2:17]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “for the violence against Lebanon will cover you.”

[2:17]  ⁶⁷ tc The Hebrew appears to read literally, “and the violence against the animals [which] he terrified.” The verb form יְחִיתַן (yÿkhitan) appears to be a Hiphil imperfect third masculine singular with third feminine plural suffix (the antecedent being the animals) from חָתַת (khatat, “be terrified”). The translation above follows the LXX and assumes a reading יְחִתֶּךָ (yÿkhittekha, “[the violence against the animals] will terrify you”; cf. NRSV “the destruction of the animals will terrify you”; NIV “and your destruction of animals will terrify you”). In this case the verb is a Hiphil imperfect third masculine singular with second masculine singular suffix (the antecedent being Babylon). This provides better symmetry with the preceding line, where Babylon’s violence is the subject of the verb “cover.”