Isaiah 60
60
The Dawning of Divine Glory for Zion
1#The light the prophet proclaims to Zion symbolizes the blessing to come to her: the glory of the Lord, the return of her children, the wealth of nations who themselves will walk by her light. The passage is famous from its use in the Latin liturgy for the feast of Epiphany. Arise! Shine, for your light has come,
the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.#Is 40:5; 49:14–26; 51:17–23.
2Though darkness covers the earth,
and thick clouds, the peoples,
Upon you the Lord will dawn,
and over you his glory will be seen.
3Nations shall walk by your light,
kings by the radiance of your dawning.#Is 42:6; 45:14; 49:6.
The Nations Come to Zion
4Raise your eyes and look about;
they all gather and come to you—
Your sons from afar,
your daughters in the arms of their nurses.#Is 49:18.
5Then you shall see and be radiant,
your heart shall throb and overflow.
For the riches of the sea shall be poured out before you,
the wealth of nations shall come to you.
6Caravans of camels shall cover you,
dromedaries of Midian and Ephah;
All from Sheba shall come
bearing gold and frankincense,
and heralding the praises of the Lord.
7All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered for you,
the rams of Nebaioth shall serve your needs;
They will be acceptable offerings on my altar,
and I will glorify my glorious house.
8Who are these that fly along like a cloud,
like doves to their cotes?
9The vessels of the coastlands are gathering,
with the ships of Tarshish in the lead,
To bring your children from afar,
their silver and gold with them—
For the name of the Lord, your God,
for the Holy One of Israel who has glorified you.
Honor and Service for Zion#The glorious promises for the future continue: the wealth of the nations (vv. 5, 10), tribute from kings, glorification of the Temple, peace and justice (cf. Ps 85:11).
10Foreigners shall rebuild your walls,
their kings shall minister to you;
Though in my wrath I struck you,
yet in my good will I have shown you mercy.#Is 54:11–12.
11Your gates shall stand open constantly;
day and night they shall not be closed
So that they may bring you the wealth of nations,
with their kings in the vanguard.#Rev 21:25.
12For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you shall perish;
such nations shall be utterly destroyed!#Is 61:2.
13The glory of Lebanon shall come to you—
the juniper, the fir, and the cypress all together—
To bring beauty to my sanctuary,
and glory to the place where I stand.#Is 35:2; 66:1.
14The children of your oppressors shall come,
bowing before you;
All those who despised you,
shall bow low at your feet.
They shall call you “City of the Lord,”
“Zion of the Holy One of Israel.”
15No longer forsaken and hated,
with no one passing through,
Now I will make you the pride of the ages,
a joy from generation to generation.
16You shall suck the milk of nations,
and be nursed at royal breasts;
And you shall know that I, the Lord, am your savior,
your redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
17Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
instead of iron I will bring silver;
Instead of wood, bronze;
instead of stones, iron.
I will appoint peace your governor,
and justice your ruler.#Ps 85:11.
18No longer shall violence be heard of in your land,
or plunder and ruin within your borders.
You shall call your walls “Salvation”
and your gates “Praise.”
Eternal Light for Zion
19#The theme of light is taken up again, but in an apocalyptic vein: the Lord’s radiant presence replaces physical light. No longer shall the sun
be your light by day,
Nor shall the brightness of the moon
give you light by night;
Rather, the Lord will be your light forever,
your God will be your glory.#Is 2:5; Rev 21:23; 22:5.
20No longer will your sun set,
or your moon wane;
For the Lord will be your light forever,
and the days of your grieving will be over.
21Your people will all be just;
for all time they will possess the land;
They are the shoot that I planted,
the work of my hands, that I might be glorified.#Is 57:13c.
22The least one shall become a clan,
the smallest, a mighty nation;
I, the Lord, will swiftly accomplish
these things when the time comes.#Gn 12:2; 17:6.
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Isaiah 60
60
Zion’s Future Splendor
1 “Arise! Shine! For your light arrives!
The splendor#tn Or “glory” (so most English versions). of the Lord shines on you!
2 For, look, darkness covers the earth
and deep darkness covers#tn The verb “covers” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line). the nations,
but the Lord shines on you;
his splendor#tn Or “glory” (so most English versions); TEV “the brightness of his presence.” appears over you.
3 Nations come to your light,
kings to your bright light.
4 Look all around you!#tn Heb “Lift up around your eyes and see!”
They all gather and come to you –
your sons come from far away
and your daughters are escorted by guardians.
5 Then you will look and smile,#tn Or “shine,” or “be radiant” (NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
you will be excited and your heart will swell with pride.#tn Heb “and it will tremble and be wide, your heart.”
For the riches of distant lands#tn Heb “the wealth of the sea,” i.e., wealth that is transported from distant lands via the sea. will belong to you
and the wealth of nations will come to you.
6 Camel caravans will cover your roads,#tn Heb “an abundance of camels will cover you.”
young camels from Midian and Ephah.
All the merchants of Sheba#tn Heb “all of them, from Sheba.” will come,
bringing gold and incense
and singing praises to the Lord.#tn Heb “and they will announce the praises of the Lord.”
7 All the sheep of Kedar will be gathered to you;
the rams of Nebaioth will be available to you as sacrifices.#tn Heb “will serve you,” i.e., be available as sacrifices (see the next line). Another option is to understood these “rams” as symbolic of leaders who will be subject to the people of Zion. See v. 10.
They will go up on my altar acceptably,#tc Heb “they will go up on acceptance [on] my altar.” Some have suggested that the preposition עַל (’al) is dittographic (note the preceding יַעֲלוּ [ya’alu]). Consequently, the form should be emended to לְרָצוֹן (lÿratson, “acceptably”; see BDB 953 s.v. רָצוֹן). However, the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa has both לרצון followed by the preposition על, which would argue against deleted the preposition. As the above translation seeks to demonstrate, the preposition עַל (’al) indicates a norm (“in accordance with acceptance” or “acceptably”; IBHS 218 §11.2.13e, n. 111) and the “altar” functions as an objective accusative with a verb of motion (cf. Gen 49:4; Lev 2:2; Num 13:17; J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:534, n. 14).
and I will bestow honor on my majestic temple.
8 Who are these who float along#tn Heb “fly” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NAB, NIV “fly along.” like a cloud,
who fly like doves to their shelters?#tn Heb “to their windows,” i.e., to the openings in their coops. See HALOT 83 s.v. אֲרֻבָּה.
9 Indeed, the coastlands#tn Or “islands” (NIV); CEV “distant islands”; TEV “distant lands.” look eagerly for me,
the large ships#tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” See the note at 2:16. are in the lead,
bringing your sons from far away,
along with their silver and gold,
to honor the Lord your God,#tn Heb “to the name of the Lord your God.”
the Holy One of Israel,#sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4. for he has bestowed honor on you.
10 Foreigners will rebuild your walls;
their kings will serve you.
Even though I struck you down in my anger,
I will restore my favor and have compassion on you.#tn Heb “in my favor I will have compassion on you.”
11 Your gates will remain open at all times;
they will not be shut during the day or at night,
so that the wealth of nations may be delivered,
with their kings leading the way.#tn Or “led in procession.” The participle is passive.
12 Indeed,#tn Or “For” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); TEV “But.” nations or kingdoms that do not serve you will perish;
such nations will be totally destroyed.#tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
13 The splendor of Lebanon will come to you,
its evergreens, firs, and cypresses together,
to beautify my palace;#tn Or “holy place, sanctuary.”
I will bestow honor on my throne room.#tn Heb “the place of my feet.” See Ezek 43:7, where the Lord’s throne is called the “place of the soles of my feet.”
14 The children of your oppressors will come bowing to you;
all who treated you with disrespect will bow down at your feet.
They will call you, ‘The City of the Lord,
Zion of the Holy One of Israel.’#sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
15 You were once abandoned
and despised, with no one passing through,
but I will make you#tn Heb “Instead of your being abandoned and despised, with no one passing through, I will make you.” a permanent source of pride
and joy to coming generations.
16 You will drink the milk of nations;
you will nurse at the breasts of kings.#sn The nations and kings are depicted as a mother nursing her children. Restored Zion will be nourished by them as she receives their wealth as tribute.
Then you will recognize that I, the Lord, am your deliverer,
your protector,#tn Or “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14. the powerful ruler of Jacob.#sn See 1:24 and 49:26.
17 Instead of bronze, I will bring you gold,
instead of iron, I will bring you silver,
instead of wood, I will bring you#tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding lines). bronze,
instead of stones, I will bring you#tn The words “I will bring you” are supplied in the translation; they are understood by ellipsis (see the first two lines of the verse). iron.
I will make prosperity#tn Or “peace” (KJV and many other English versions). your overseer,
and vindication your sovereign ruler.#tn The plural indicates degree. The language is ironic; in the past Zion was ruled by oppressive tyrants, but now personified prosperity and vindication will be the only things that will “dominate” the city.
18 Sounds of violence#tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. will no longer be heard in your land,
or the sounds of#tn The words “sounds of” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. destruction and devastation within your borders.
You will name your walls, ‘Deliverance,’
and your gates, ‘Praise.’
19 The sun will no longer supply light for you by day,
nor will the moon’s brightness shine on you;
the Lord will be your permanent source of light –
the splendor of your God will shine upon you.#tn Heb “and your God for your splendor.”
20 Your sun will no longer set;
your moon will not disappear;#sn In this verse “sun” and “moon” refer to the Lord’s light, which will replace the sun and moon (see v. 19). Light here symbolizes the restoration of divine blessing and prosperity in conjunction with the Lord’s presence. See 30:26.
the Lord will be your permanent source of light;
your time#tn Heb “days” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT). of sorrow will be over.
21 All of your people will be godly;#tn Or “righteous” (NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NAB “just.”
they will possess the land permanently.
I will plant them like a shoot;
they will be the product of my labor,
through whom I reveal my splendor.#tn Heb “a shoot of his planting, the work of my hands, to reveal splendor.”
22 The least of you will multiply into#tn Heb “will become” (so NASB, NIV). a thousand;
the smallest of you will become a large nation.
When the right time comes, I the Lord will quickly do this!”#tn Heb “I, the Lord, in its time, I will quickly do it.”
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