Psalms 107:10-14

107:10 They sat in utter darkness, ¹ 

bound in painful iron chains, ² 

107:11 because they had rebelled against God’s commands, ³ 

and rejected the instructions of the sovereign king. ⁴ 

107:12 So he used suffering to humble them; ⁵ 

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, ⁶ 

and tore off their shackles.

Isaiah 42:6-7

42:6 “I, the Lord, officially commission you; ⁷ 

I take hold of your hand.

I protect you ⁸  and make you a covenant mediator for people, ⁹ 

and a light ¹⁰  to the nations, ¹¹ 

42:7 to open blind eyes, ¹² 

to release prisoners ¹³  from dungeons,

those who live in darkness from prisons.

Isaiah 60:1-3

Zion’s Future Splendor

60:1 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!

The splendor ¹⁴  of the Lord shines on you!

60:2 For, look, darkness covers the earth

and deep darkness covers ¹⁵  the nations,

but the Lord shines on you;

his splendor ¹⁶  appears over you.

60:3 Nations come to your light,

kings to your bright light.

Micah 7:8

Jerusalem Will Be Vindicated

7:8 My enemies, ¹⁷  do not gloat ¹⁸  over me!

Though I have fallen, I will get up.

Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light. ¹⁹ 

Luke 1:78-79

1:78 Because of ²⁰  our God’s tender mercy ²¹ 

the dawn ²²  will break ²³  upon us from on high

1:79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, ²⁴ 

to guide our feet into the way ²⁵  of peace.”

Luke 2:32

2:32 a light, ²⁶ 

for revelation to the Gentiles,

and for glory ²⁷  to your people Israel.”

[107:10]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ tn Heb “the words of God.”

[107:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “the counsel of the Most High.”

[107:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “and he subdued with suffering their heart.”

[107:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “darkness and deep darkness.” See the note on the word “darkness” in v. 10.

[42:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “call you in righteousness.” The pronoun “you” is masculine singular, referring to the servant. See the note at 41:2.

[42:6]  ⁸ tn The translation assumes the verb is derived from the root נָצַר (natsar, “protect”). Some prefer to derive it from the root יָצַר (yatsar, “form”).

[42:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “a covenant of people.” A person cannot literally be a covenant; בְּרִית (bÿrit) is probably metonymic here, indicating a covenant mediator. The precise identity of עָם (’am, “people”) is uncertain. In v. 5 עָם refers to mankind, and the following reference to “nations” also favors this. But in 49:8, where the phrase בְּרִית עָם occurs again, Israel seems to be in view.

[42:6]  ¹⁰ sn Light here symbolizes deliverance from bondage and oppression; note the parallelism in 49:6b and in 51:4-6.

[42:6]  ¹¹ tn Or “the Gentiles” (so KJV, ASV, NIV); the same Hebrew word can be translated “nations” or “Gentiles” depending on the context.

[42:7]  ¹² 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]  ¹³ 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.

[60:1]  ¹⁴ tn Or “glory” (so most English versions).

[60:2]  ¹⁵ tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[60:2]  ¹⁶ tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.”

[7:8]  ¹⁷ tn The singular form is understood as collective.

[7:8]  ¹⁸ tn Or “rejoice” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NCV “don’t laugh at me.”

[7:8]  ¹⁹ sn Darkness represents judgment; light (also in v. 9) symbolizes deliverance. The Lord is the source of the latter.

[1:78]  ²⁰ tn For reasons of style, a new sentence has been started in the translation at this point. God’s mercy is ultimately seen in the deliverance John points to, so v. 78a is placed with the reference to Jesus as the light of dawning day.

[1:78]  ²¹ sn God’s loyal love (steadfast love) is again the topic, reflected in the phrase tender mercy; see Luke 1:72.

[1:78]  ²² sn The Greek term translated dawn (ἀνατολή, anatolh) can be a reference to the morning star or to the sun. The Messiah is pictured as a saving light that shows the way. The Greek term was also used to translate the Hebrew word for “branch” or “sprout,” so some see a double entendre here with messianic overtones (see Isa 11:1-10; Jer 23:5; 33:15; Zech 3:8; 6:12).

[1:78]  ²³ tn Grk “shall visit us.”

[1:79]  ²⁴ sn On the phrases who sit in darkness…and…death see Isa 9:1-2; 42:7; 49:9-10.

[1:79]  ²⁵ tn Or “the path.”

[2:32]  ²⁶ tn The syntax of this verse is disputed. Most read “light” and “glory” in parallelism, so Jesus is a light for revelation to the Gentiles and is glory to the people for Israel. Others see “light” (1:78-79) as a summary, while “revelation” and “glory” are parallel, so Jesus is light for all, but is revelation for the Gentiles and glory for Israel. Both readings make good sense and either could be correct, but Luke 1:78-79 and Acts 26:22-23 slightly favor this second option.

[2:32]  ²⁷ sn In other words, Jesus is a special cause for praise and honor (“glory”) for the nation.