Psalms 102:20

102:20 in order to hear the painful cries of the prisoners,

and to set free those condemned to die, ¹ 

Psalms 107:10-16

107:10 They sat in utter darkness, ² 

bound in painful iron chains, ³ 

107:11 because they had rebelled against God’s commands, ⁴ 

and rejected the instructions of the sovereign king. ⁵ 

107:12 So he used suffering to humble them; ⁶ 

they stumbled and no one helped them up.

107:13 They cried out to the Lord in their distress;

he delivered them from their troubles.

107:14 He brought them out of the utter darkness, ⁷ 

and tore off their shackles.

107:15 Let them give thanks to the Lord for his loyal love,

and for the amazing things he has done for people! ⁸ 

107:16 For he shattered the bronze gates,

and hacked through the iron bars. ⁹ 

Psalms 146:7

146:7 vindicates the oppressed, ¹⁰ 

and gives food to the hungry.

The Lord releases the imprisoned.

Isaiah 42:7

42:7 to open blind eyes, ¹¹ 

to release prisoners ¹²  from dungeons,

those who live in darkness from prisons.

Isaiah 45:13

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

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 49:9

49:9 You will say ¹⁴  to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’

and to those who are in dark dungeons, ¹⁵  ‘Emerge.’ ¹⁶ 

They will graze beside the roads;

on all the slopes they will find pasture.

Isaiah 49:24-25

49:24 Can spoils be taken from a warrior,

or captives be rescued from a conqueror? ¹⁷ 

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.

Isaiah 52:2-3

52:2 Shake off the dirt! ¹⁸ 

Get up, captive ¹⁹  Jerusalem!

Take off the iron chains around your neck,

O captive daughter Zion!

52:3 For this is what the Lord says:

“You were sold for nothing,

and you will not be redeemed for money.”

Zechariah 9:11-12

9:11 Moreover, as for you, because of our covenant relationship secured with blood, I will release your prisoners from the waterless pit. 9:12 Return to the stronghold, you prisoners, with hope; today I declare that I will return double what was taken from you.

Colossians 1:13

1:13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves, ²⁰ 

[102:20]  ¹ tn Heb “the sons of death.” The phrase “sons of death” (see also Ps 79:11) is idiomatic for those condemned to die.

[107:10]  ² tn Heb “those who sat in darkness and deep darkness.” Synonyms are joined here to emphasize the degree of “darkness” experienced by the exiles. The Hebrew term צַלְמָוֶת (tsalmavet, “deep darkness”) has traditionally been understood as a compound noun, meaning “shadow of death” (צֵל + מָוֶת [tsel + mavet]; see BDB 853 s.v. צַלְמָוֶת; cf. NASB). Other authorities prefer to vocalize the form צַלְמוּת (tsalmut) and understand it as an abstract noun (from the root צלם) meaning “darkness.” An examination of the word’s usage favors the latter derivation. It is frequently associated with darkness/night and contrasted with light/morning (see Job 3:5; 10:21-22; 12:22; 24:17; 28:3; 34:22; Ps 107:10, 14; Isa 9:1; Jer 13:16; Amos 5:8). In some cases the darkness described is associated with the realm of death (Job 10:21-22; 38:17), but this is a metaphorical application of the word and does not reflect its inherent meaning. In Ps 107:10 the word refers metonymically to a dungeon, which in turn metaphorically depicts the place of Israel’s exile (see vv. 2-3).

[107:10]  ³ tn Heb “those bound in suffering and iron.” “Suffering and iron” is a hendiadys (like English “good and angry”), where both words contribute to one idea. In this case the first word characterizes the second; the iron (chains) contribute to the prisoners’ pain and suffering.

[107:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “the words of God.”

[107:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “the counsel of the Most High.”

[107:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “and he subdued with suffering their heart.”

[107:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “darkness and deep darkness.” See the note on the word “darkness” in v. 10.

[107:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “and [for] his amazing deeds for the sons of man.” See v. 8.

[107:16]  ⁹ sn The language of v. 16 recalls Isa 45:2.

[146:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “executes justice for the oppressed.”

[42:7]  ¹¹ sn This does not refer to literal physical healing of the blind. As the next two lines suggest, this refers metonymically to freeing captives from their dark prisons where their eyes have grown unaccustomed to light.

[42:7]  ¹² sn This does not refer to hardened, dangerous criminals, who would have been executed for their crimes in ancient Near Eastern society. This verse refers to political prisoners or victims of social injustice.

[45:13]  ¹³ 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.

[49:9]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “to say.” In the Hebrew text the infinitive construct is subordinated to what precedes.

[49:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “in darkness” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NLT “the prisoners of darkness.”

[49:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “show yourselves” (so ASV, NAB, NASB).

[49:24]  ¹⁷ tc The Hebrew text has צָדִיק (tsadiq, “a righteous [one]”), but this makes no sense in the parallelism. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a reads correctly עריץ (“violent [one], tyrant”; see v. 25).

[52:2]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Shake yourself free from the dirt.”

[52:2]  ¹⁹ tc The Hebrew text has שְּׂבִי (shÿvi), which some understand as a feminine singular imperative from יָשַׁב (yashav, “sit”). The LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, and the Targum support the MT reading (the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a does indirectly). Some interpret this to mean “take your throne”: The Lord exhorts Jerusalem to get up from the dirt and sit, probably with the idea of sitting in a place of honor (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:361). However, the form is likely a corruption of שְׁבִיָּה (shÿviyyah, “captive”), which appears in the parallel line.

[1:13]  ²⁰ tn Here αὐτοῦ (autou) has been translated as a subjective genitive (“he loves”).