Joel 1:12

1:12 The vine has dried up;

the fig tree languishes –

the pomegranate, date, and apple ¹  as well.

In fact, ²  all the trees of the field have dried up.

Indeed, the joy of the people ³  has dried up!

Exodus 10:15

10:15 They covered ⁴  the surface ⁵  of all the ground, so that the ground became dark with them, ⁶  and they ate all the vegetation of the ground and all the fruit of the trees that the hail had left. Nothing green remained on the trees or on anything that grew in the fields throughout the whole land of Egypt.

Psalms 105:33

105:33 He destroyed their vines and fig trees,

and broke the trees throughout their territory.

Isaiah 5:6

5:6 I will make it a wasteland;

no one will prune its vines or hoe its ground, ⁷ 

and thorns and briers will grow there.

I will order the clouds

not to drop any rain on it.

Isaiah 24:7

24:7 The new wine dries up,

the vines shrivel up,

all those who like to celebrate ⁸  groan.

Jeremiah 8:13

8:13 I will take away their harvests, ⁹  says the Lord.

There will be no grapes on their vines.

There will be no figs on their fig trees.

Even the leaves on their trees will wither.

The crops that I gave them will be taken away.’” ¹⁰ 

Hosea 2:12

2:12 I will destroy her vines and fig trees,

about which she said, “These are my wages for prostitution ¹¹ 

that my lovers gave to me!”

I will turn her cultivated vines and fig trees ¹²  into an uncultivated thicket,

so that wild animals ¹³  will devour them.

Habakkuk 3:17

3:17 When ¹⁴  the fig tree does not bud,

and there are no grapes on the vines;

when the olive trees do not produce, ¹⁵ 

and the fields yield no crops; ¹⁶ 

when the sheep disappear ¹⁷  from the pen,

and there are no cattle in the stalls,

[1:12]  ¹ tn This Hebrew word וְתַפּוּחַ (vÿtappuakh) probably refers to the apple tree (so most English versions), but other suggestions that scholars have offered include the apricot, citron, or quince.

[1:12]  ² tn These words are not in the Hebrew text but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[1:12]  ³ tn Heb “the sons of man.”

[10:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “and they covered.”

[10:15]  ⁵ tn Heb “eye,” an unusual expression (see v. 5; Num 22:5, 11).

[10:15]  ⁶ tn The verb is וַתֶּחְשַׁךְ (vattekhshakh, “and it became dark”). The idea is that the ground had the color of the swarms of locusts that covered it.

[5:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “it will not be pruned or hoed” (so NASB); ASV and NRSV both similar.

[24:7]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “all the joyful in heart,” but the context specifies the context as parties and drinking bouts.

[8:13]  ⁹ tn Or “I will completely destroy them.” The translation which is adopted is based on the revocalization of the MT which appears to mean literally “gathering I will sweep them away,” a rather improbable grammatical combination. It follows the suggestion found in HALOT 705 s.v. סוּף (Hiph) of reading אֹסֵף אֲסִיפָם (’ose, a first singular Qal imperfect of אָסַף [’asaf] followed by a noun אָסִיף [’asif] with possessive suffix) instead of the MT’s אָסֹף אֲסִיפֵם (’aspf ’asifem, a Qal infinitive absolute of אָסַף [’asaf] followed by the Hiphil imperfect of סוּף [suf] plus suffix). For parallel usage of the verb אָסַף (asaf) see BDB 62 s.v. אָסַף Qal.4, and for a similar form of the verb see Mic 4:6. The alternate translation follows the suggestion in BDB 692 s.v. סוּף Hiph: אָסֹף (’asof) is to be interpreted as a form of the Hiphil infinitive absolute (הָסֵף [hasef] would be expected) chosen for assonance with the following form. This suggestion would gain more credence if the MT is to be retained in Zeph 1:2 where parallel forms are found. However, that text too has been questioned on lexical and grammatical grounds. The translation adopted fits the following context better than the alternate one and is based on less questionable lexical and grammatical parallels. The Greek translation which reads “they shall gather their fruits” supports the translation chosen.

[8:13]  ¹⁰ tn The meaning of this line is very uncertain. A possible alternate translation is: “They have broken the laws that I gave them.” The line reads rather literally “And I gave them they passed over them.” The translation adopted treats the first expression as a noun clause (cf. GKC 488-89 §155.n) which is the subject of the following verb, i.e., “the things I gave them [contextually, the grapes, etc.] passed over from them.” The alternate translation treats the expression as a dangling object (a Hebrew casus pendens) resumed by the pronoun “them” and understands “the things that I gave them” to be the law or some related entity which is often the object of this verb (see BDB 717 s.v. עָבַר Qal.1.i). Neither of these translations is without its weakness. The weakness of the translation which has been adopted is the unusual use it assigns to the object suffix of the verb translated “pass over.” The weakness of the alternate translation is the rather abrupt and opaque introduction of a new topic of reference (i.e., the laws) into the context. On the whole the latter weakness would appear to outweigh the former. This line is missing from the Greek version and J. Bright (Jeremiah [AB]) and J. A. Thompson (Jeremiah [NICOT]) despair of giving a translation. For other possible suggestions see, W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 1:285-86.

[2:12]  ¹¹ tn Heb “my wages.” The words “for prostitution” are not in the Hebrew text but are supplied for clarity; cf. CEV “gave…as payment for sex.”

[2:12]  ¹² tn Heb “I will turn them”; the referents (vines and fig trees) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:12]  ¹³ tn Heb “the beasts of the field” (so KJV, NASB); the same expression also occurs in v. 18).

[3:17]  ¹⁴ tn Or “though.”

[3:17]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the produce of the olive disappoints.”

[3:17]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “food.”

[3:17]  ¹⁷ tn Or “are cut off.”