Psalms 107:27

107:27 They swayed ¹  and staggered like a drunk,

and all their skill proved ineffective. ² 

Isaiah 19:14

19:14 The Lord has made them undiscerning; ³ 

they lead Egypt astray in all she does,

so that she is like a drunk sliding around in his own vomit. ⁴ 

Isaiah 24:20

24:20 The earth will stagger around ⁵  like a drunk;

it will sway back and forth like a hut in a windstorm. ⁶ 

Its sin will weigh it down,

and it will fall and never get up again.

[107:27]  ¹ tn Only here does the Hebrew verb חָגַג (khagag; normally meaning “to celebrate”) carry the nuance “to sway.”

[107:27]  ² tn The Hitpael of בָלַע (vala’) occurs only here in the OT. Traditionally the form is derived from the verbal root בלע (“to swallow”), but HALOT 135 s.v. III בלע understands a homonym here with the meaning “to be confused.”

[19:14]  ³ tn Heb “the Lord has mixed into her midst a spirit of blindness.”

[19:14]  ⁴ tn Heb “like the going astray of a drunkard in his vomit.”

[24:20]  ⁵ tn Heb “staggering, staggers.” The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute before the finite verb for emphasis and sound play.

[24:20]  ⁶ tn The words “in a windstorm” are supplied in the translation to clarify the metaphor.