Psalms 60:4

60:4 You have given your loyal followers ¹  a rallying flag,

so that they might seek safety from the bow. ²  (Selah)

Exodus 17:15

17:15 Moses built an altar, and he called it “The Lord is my Banner,” ³ 

Numbers 10:35-36

10:35 And when the ark traveled, Moses would say, “Rise up, O Lord! May your enemies be scattered, and may those who hate you flee before you!” 10:36 And when it came to rest he would say, “Return, O Lord, to the many thousands of Israel!” ⁴ 

Numbers 10:1

The Blowing of Trumpets

10:1 ⁵ The Lord spoke to Moses:

Numbers 17:1

The Budding of Aaron’s Staff

17:1 ⁶ The Lord spoke to Moses:

Isaiah 11:10

Israel is Reclaimed and Reunited

11:10 At that time ⁷  a root from Jesse ⁸  will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, ⁹  and his residence will be majestic.

Micah 4:5

4:5 Though all the nations follow their respective gods, ¹⁰ 

we will follow ¹¹  the Lord our God forever.

[60:4]  ¹ tn Heb “those who fear you.”

[60:4]  ² tn There is a ray of hope in that God has allowed his loyal followers to rally under a battle flag. The translation assumes the verb is from the root נוּס (nus, “flee”) used here in the Hitpolel in the sense of “find safety for oneself” (HALOT 681 s.v. נוס) or “take flight for oneself” (BDB 630-31 s.v. נוּס). Another option is to take the verb as a denominative from נֵס (nes, “flag”) and translate “that it may be displayed” (BDB 651 s.v. II נסס) or “that they may assemble under the banner” (HALOT 704 s.v. II נסס). Here קֹשֶׁט (qoshet) is taken as an Aramaized form of קֶשֶׁת (qeshet, “bow”; BDB 905-6 s.v. קֶשֶׁת), though some understand the homonymic קֹשְׁטְ (qosht, “truth”) here (see Prov 22:21; cf. NASB). If one follows the latter interpretation, the line may be translated, “so that they might assemble under the banner for the sake of truth.”

[17:15]  ³ sn Heb “Yahweh-nissi” (so NAB), which means “Yahweh is my banner.” Note that when Israel murmured and failed God, the name commemorated the incident or the outcome of their failure. When they were blessed with success, the naming praised God. Here the holding up of the staff of God was preserved in the name for the altar – God gave them the victory.

[10:36]  ⁴ sn These two formulaic prayers were offered by Moses at the beginning and at the end of the journeys. They prayed for the Lord to fight ahead of the nation when it was on the move, and to protect them when they camped. The theme of the first is found in Ps 68:1. The prayers reflect the true mentality of holy war, that it was the Lord who fought for Israel and defended her. The prayers have been included in the prayer book for synagogue services.

[10:1]  ⁵ sn Here we have a short section (10:1-10) dealing with the regulations for blowing trumpets in times of war or in times of peace.

[17:1]  ⁶ sn Num 17:1 in the English Bible is 17:16 in the Hebrew text (BHS). See also the note on 16:36.

[11:10]  ⁷ tn Or “in that day” (KJV). The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[11:10]  ⁸ sn See the note at v. 1.

[11:10]  ⁹ tn Heb “ a root from Jesse, which stands for a signal flag of the nations, of him nations will inquire” [or “seek”].

[4:5]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “walk each in the name of his god.” The term “name” here has the idea of “authority.” To “walk in the name” of a god is to recognize the god’s authority as binding over one’s life.

[4:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “walk in the name of.”