Isaiah 29
29
Woe to the City of David
1#2Sa 5:9 Woe to Ariel, to Ariel,
the city where David lived!
Add year to year,
observe your feasts on schedule.
2Yet I will distress Ariel,
and she shall be a city of lamenting and sorrow,
and she shall be as an Ariel to me.
3#Lk 19:43–44; Eze 21:22 I will encamp against you all around,
and will lay siege against you with a mound,
and I will raise forts against you.
4#Isa 8:19 You shall be brought down, and shall speak from the ground,
and from the dust where you are prostrate your speech shall come;
your voice shall also be as that of a ghost from the ground;
and your speech shall whisper from the dust.
5#1Th 5:3; Isa 17:13–14 Moreover the multitude of your enemies shall become like fine dust,
and the multitude of the ruthless ones as chaff which blows away;
and it shall happen in an instant, suddenly.
6#Mt 24:7; Mk 13:8 You shall be punished from the Lord of Hosts
with thunder and earthquake and loud noise,
with storm and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.
7#Job 20:8; Ps 73:20 The multitude of all the nations who fight against Ariel,
even all who fight against her and her stronghold, and who distress her,
shall be as a dream
of a night vision.
8It shall even be as when a hungry man dreams, and he eats;
but when he awakens, his hunger is not satisfied;
or as when a thirsty man dreams, and he is drinking;
but when he awakens, he is faint, and his thirst is not quenched;
so shall the multitude of all the nations be
who fight against Mount Zion.
9#Isa 51:21–22; 19:14 Be delayed and wait,
blind yourselves and be blind.
They are drunk, but not with wine.
They stagger, but not with strong drink.
10#Ro 11:8; Ps 69:23 For the Lord has poured out on you the spirit of deep sleep
and has closed your eyes, the prophets;
and He has covered your heads, the seers.
11#Isa 8:16; Da 12:4The whole vision will be to you as the words of a book that is sealed, which when they deliver it to one who is learned, saying, “Read this, please,” he shall say, “I cannot, for it is sealed.” 12Then the book shall be delivered to him who is not learned, saying, “Read this, please.” And he shall say, “I cannot read.”
13#Col 2:22Therefore, the Lord said:
Because this people draw near with their mouths
and honor Me with their lips,
but have removed their hearts far fromMe,
and their fear toward Me
is tradition by the precept of men,
14#Hab 1:5; Jer 49:7; Isa 6:9–10 therefore I will once again do a marvelous work among this people,
even a marvelous work and a wonder;
for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.
15#Isa 30:1; Eze 8:12 Woe to those who deeply
hide their counsel from the Lord
and whose works are done in the dark, and they say,
“Who sees us?” and “Who knows us?”
16Surely you turn things upside down!
Shall the potter be esteemed as the potter’s clay?
Shall what is made say to its maker,
“He did not make me”?
Or shall the thing formed say to him who formed it,
“He has no understanding”?
17#Isa 32:15 Is it not yet a very little while before Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field,
and the fruitful field shall be counted as a forest?
18#Isa 35:5; Mt 11:5; Mk 7:37 And on that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book,
and the eyes of the blind shall see
out of obscurity and darkness.
19#Jas 2:5; Isa 61:1; Mt 5:5 The meek also shall increase their joy in the Lord,
and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20#Mic 2:1; Isa 29:5 For the ruthless shall come to nothing,
and the scorner will be consumed,
and all who are intent on doing iniquity shall be cut off—
21#Am 5:10–12 those who cause a man to be indicted by a word,
and lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate,
and turn aside the righteous with meaningless arguments.
22#Isa 51:2; 45:17Therefore thus says the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob:
Jacob shall not now be ashamed,
nor shall his face now turn pale;
23#Isa 8:13; 19:25 but when he sees his children,
the work of My hands, in his midst,
they shall sanctify My name
and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob,
and fear the God of Israel.
24#Isa 28:7 Those also who err in spirit shall know the truth,
and those who murmured shall accept instruction.
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Isaiah 29: MEV
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Military Bible Association
Isaiah 29
29
Ariel is Besieged
1 Ariel is as good as dead#tn Heb “Woe [to] Ariel.” The meaning of the name “Ariel” is uncertain. The name may mean “altar hearth” (see v. 2) or, if compound, “lion of God.” The name is used here as a title for Mount Zion/Jerusalem (see v. 8). –
Ariel, the town David besieged!#tn Heb “the town where David camped.” The verb חָנָה (khanah, “camp”) probably has the nuance “lay siege to” here. See v. 3. Another option is to take the verb in the sense of “lived, settled.”
Keep observing your annual rituals,
celebrate your festivals on schedule.#tn Heb “Add year to year, let your festivals occur in cycles.” This is probably a sarcastic exhortation to the people to keep up their religious rituals, which will not prevent the coming judgment. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:527.
2 I will threaten Ariel,
and she will mourn intensely
and become like an altar hearth#tn The term אֲרִיאֵל (’ari’el, “Ariel”) is the word translated “altar hearth” here. The point of the simile is not entirely clear. Perhaps the image likens Jerusalem’s coming crisis to a sacrificial fire. before me.
3 I will lay siege to you on all sides;#tc The Hebrew text has כַדּוּר (khadur, “like a circle”), i.e., “like an encircling wall.” Some emend this phrase to כְּדָוִד (kÿdavid, “like David”), which is supported by the LXX (see v. 1). However, the rendering in the LXX could have arisen from a confusion of the dalet (ד) and resh (ר).
I will besiege you with troops;#tn The meaning of מֻצָּב (mutsav) is not certain. Because of the parallelism (note “siege works”), some translate “towers.” The noun is derived from נָצַב (natsav, “take one’s stand”) and may refer to the troops stationed outside the city to prevent entrance or departure.
I will raise siege works against you.
4 You will fall;
while lying on the ground#tn Heb “from the ground” (so NIV, NCV). you will speak;
from the dust where you lie, your words will be heard.#tn Heb “and from the dust your word will be low.”
Your voice will sound like a spirit speaking from the underworld;#tn Heb “and your voice will be like a ritual pit from the earth.” The Hebrew אוֹב (’ov, “ritual pit”) refers to a pit used by a magician to conjure up underworld spirits. See the note on “incantations” in 8:19. Here the word is used metonymically for the voice that emerges from such a pit.
from the dust you will chirp as if muttering an incantation.#tn Heb “and from the dust your word will chirp.” The words “as if muttering an incantation” are supplied in the translation for clarification. See the parallelism and 8:19.
5 But the horde of invaders will be like fine dust,
the horde of tyrants#tn Or “violent men”; cf. NASB “the ruthless ones.” like chaff that is blown away.
It will happen suddenly, in a flash.
6 Judgment will come from the Lord who commands armies,#tn Heb “from the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, the Lord of hosts] there will be visitation.” The third feminine singular passive verb form תִּפָּקֵד (tippaqed, “she/it will be visited”) is used here in an impersonal sense. See GKC 459 §144.b.
accompanied by thunder, earthquake, and a loud noise,
by a strong gale, a windstorm, and a consuming flame of fire.
7 It will be like a dream, a night vision.
There will be a horde from all the nations that fight against Ariel,
those who attack her and her stronghold and besiege her.
8 It will be like a hungry man dreaming that he is eating,
only to awaken and find that his stomach is empty.#tn Or “that he [or “his appetite”] is unsatisfied.”
It will be like a thirsty man dreaming that he is drinking,
only to awaken and find that he is still weak and his thirst unquenched.#tn Or “that he is faint and that he [or “his appetite”] longs [for water].”
So it will be for the horde from all the nations
that fight against Mount Zion.
God’s People are Spiritually Insensitive
9 You will be shocked and amazed!#tn The form הִתְמַהְמְהוּ (hitmahmÿhu) is a Hitpalpel imperative from מָהַהּ (mahah, “hesitate”). If it is retained, one might translate “halt and be amazed.” The translation assumes an emendation to הִתַּמְּהוּ (hittammÿhu), a Hitpael imperative from תָּמַה (tamah, “be amazed”). In this case, the text, like Hab 1:5, combines the Hitpael and Qal imperatival forms of תָּמַה (tamah). A literal translation might be “Shock yourselves and be shocked!” The repetition of sound draws attention to the statement. The imperatives here have the force of an emphatic assertion. On this use of the imperative in Hebrew, see GKC 324 §110.c and IBHS 572 §34.4c.
You are totally blind!#tn Heb “Blind yourselves and be blind!” The Hitpalpel and Qal imperatival forms of שָׁעַע (sha’a’, “be blind”) are combined to draw attention to the statement. The imperatives have the force of an emphatic assertion.
They are drunk,#tc Some prefer to emend the perfect form of the verb to an imperative (e.g., NAB, NCV, NRSV), since the people are addressed in the immediately preceding and following contexts. but not because of wine;
they stagger,#tc Some prefer to emend the perfect form of the verb to an imperative (e.g., NAB, NCV, NRSV), since the people are addressed in the immediately preceding and following contexts. but not because of beer.
10 For the Lord has poured out on you
a strong urge to sleep deeply.#tn Heb “a disposition [or “spirit”] of deep sleep.” Through this mixed metaphor (sleep is likened to a liquid which one pours and in turn symbolizes spiritual dullness) the prophet emphasizes that God himself has given the people over to their spiritual insensitivity as a form of judgment.
He has shut your eyes (the prophets),
and covered your heads (the seers).
11 To you this entire prophetic revelation#tn Heb “vision” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV). is like words in a sealed scroll. When they hand it to one who can read#tn Heb “one who knows a/the scroll.” and say, “Read this,” he responds, “I can’t, because it is sealed.” 12 Or when they hand the scroll to one who can’t read#tn Heb “and if the scroll is handed to one who does not know a scroll.” and say, “Read this,” he says, “I can’t read.”#tn Heb “I do not know a scroll.”
13 The sovereign master#tn The Hebrew term translated “sovereign master” here is אֲדֹנָי (’adonai). says,
“These people say they are loyal to me;#tn Heb “Because these people draw near to me with their mouth.”
they say wonderful things about me,#tn Heb “and with their lips they honor me.”
but they are not really loyal to me.#tn Heb “but their heart is far from me.” The heart is viewed here as the seat of the will, from which genuine loyalty derives.
Their worship consists of
nothing but man-made ritual.#tn Heb “their fear of me is a commandment of men that has been taught.”
14 Therefore I will again do an amazing thing for these people –
an absolutely extraordinary deed.#tn Heb “Therefore I will again do something amazing with these people, an amazing deed, an amazing thing.” This probably refers to the amazing transformation predicted in vv. 17-24, which will follow the purifying judgment implied in vv. 15-16.
Wise men will have nothing to say,
the sages will have no explanations.”#tn Heb “the wisdom of their wise ones will perish, the discernment of their discerning ones will keep hidden.”
15 Those who try to hide their plans from the Lord are as good as dead,#tn Heb “Woe [to] those who deeply hide counsel from the Lord.” This probably alludes to political alliances made without seeking the Lord’s guidance. See 30:1-2 and 31:1.
who do their work in secret and boast,#tn Heb “and their works are in darkness and they say.”
“Who sees us? Who knows what we’re doing?”#tn The rhetorical questions suggest the answer, “no one.” They are confident that their deeds are hidden from others, including God.
16 Your thinking is perverse!#tn Heb “your overturning.” The predicate is suppressed in this exclamation. The idea is, “O your perversity! How great it is!” See GKC 470 §147.c. The people “overturn” all logic by thinking their authority supersedes God’s.
Should the potter be regarded as clay?#tn The expected answer to this rhetorical question is “of course not.” On the interrogative use of אִם (’im), see BDB 50 s.v.
Should the thing made say#tn Heb “that the thing made should say.” about its maker, “He didn’t make me”?
Or should the pottery say about the potter, “He doesn’t understand”?
Changes are Coming
17 In just a very short time#tn The Hebrew text phrases this as a rhetorical question, “Is it not yet a little, a short [time]?”
Lebanon will turn into an orchard,
and the orchard will be considered a forest.#sn The meaning of this verse is debated, but it seems to depict a reversal in fortunes. The mighty forest of Lebanon (symbolic of the proud and powerful, see 2:13; 10:34) will be changed into a common orchard, while the common orchard (symbolic of the oppressed and lowly) will grow into a great forest. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:538.
18 At that time#tn Or “In that day” (KJV). the deaf will be able to hear words read from a scroll,
and the eyes of the blind will be able to see through deep darkness.#tn Heb “and out of gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.”sn Perhaps this depicts the spiritual transformation of the once spiritually insensitive nation (see vv. 10-12, cf. also 6:9-10).
19 The downtrodden will again rejoice in the Lord;
the poor among humankind will take delight#tn Or “will rejoice” (NIV, NCV, NLT). in the Holy One of Israel.#sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
20 For tyrants will disappear,
those who taunt will vanish,
and all those who love to do wrong will be eliminated#tn Heb “and all the watchers of wrong will be cut off.” –
21 those who bear false testimony against a person,#tn Heb “the ones who make a man a sinner with a word.” The Hiphil of חָטָא (khata’) here has a delocutive sense: “declare a man sinful/guilty.”
who entrap the one who arbitrates at the city gate#sn Legal disputes were resolved at the city gate, where the town elders met. See Amos 5:10.
and deprive the innocent of justice by making false charges.#tn Heb “and deprive by emptiness the innocent.”
22 So this is what the Lord, the one who delivered Abraham, says to the family of Jacob:#tn Heb “So this is what the Lord says to the house of Jacob, the one who ransomed Abraham.” The relative pronoun must refer back to “the Lord,” not to the immediately preceding “Jacob.” It is uncertain to what event in Abraham’s experience this refers. Perhaps the name “Abraham” stands here by metonymy for his descendants through Jacob. If so, the Exodus is in view.
“Jacob will no longer be ashamed;
their faces will no longer show their embarrassment.#tn Heb “and his face will no longer be pale.”
23 For when they see their children,
whom I will produce among them,#tn Heb “for when he sees his children, the work of my hands in his midst.”
they will honor#tn Or “treat as holy” (also in the following line); NASB, NRSV “will sanctify.” my name.
They will honor the Holy One of Jacob;#sn Holy One of Jacob is similar to the phrase “Holy One of Israel” common throughout Isaiah; see the sn at Isa 1:4.
they will respect#tn Or “fear,” in the sense of “stand in awe of.” the God of Israel.
24 Those who stray morally will gain understanding;#tn Heb “and the ones who stray in spirit will know understanding.”
those who complain will acquire insight.#tn Heb “will learn instruction”; cf. NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “will accept instruction.”
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