Isaiah 1:24-26
New English Translation
24 Therefore, the Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies,[a]
the Powerful One of Israel,[b] says this:
“Ah, I will seek vengeance[c] against my adversaries,
I will take revenge against my enemies.[d]
25 I will attack you;[e]
I will purify your metal with flux.[f]
I will remove all your slag.[g]
26 I will reestablish honest judges as in former times,
wise advisers as in earlier days.[h]
Then you will be called, ‘The Just City,
Faithful Town.’”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 1:24 tn Heb “the master, the Lord who commands armies [traditionally, “the Lord of hosts”].” On the title “the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,” see the note at v. 9.
- Isaiah 1:24 tn Or “the Mighty One of Israel.”
- Isaiah 1:24 tn Heb “console myself” (i.e., by getting revenge); NRSV “pour out my wrath on.”
- Isaiah 1:24 sn The Lord here identifies with the oppressed and comes as their defender and vindicator.
- Isaiah 1:25 tn Heb “turn my hand against you.” The second person pronouns in vv. 25-26 are feminine singular. Personified Jerusalem is addressed. The idiom “turn the hand against” has the nuance of “strike with the hand, attack,” in Ps 81:15 HT (81:14 ET); Ezek 38:12; Amos 1:8; Zech 13:7. In Jer 6:9 it is used of gleaning grapes.
- Isaiah 1:25 tn Heb “I will purify your dross as [with] flux.” “Flux” refers here to minerals added to the metals in a furnace to prevent oxides from forming. For this interpretation of II בֹּר (bor), see HALOT 153 s.v. II בֹּר and 750 s.v. סִיג.
- Isaiah 1:25 sn The metaphor comes from metallurgy; slag is the substance left over after the metallic ore has been refined.
- Isaiah 1:26 tn Heb “I will restore your judges as in the beginning, and your counselors as in the beginning.” In this context, where social injustice and legal corruption are denounced (see v. 23), the “judges” are probably government officials responsible for making legal decisions, while the “advisers” are probably officials who helped the king establish policies. Both offices are also mentioned in 3:2.
Isaiah 1:24-26
New International Version
24 Therefore the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
the Mighty One(A) of Israel, declares:
“Ah! I will vent my wrath on my foes
and avenge(B) myself on my enemies.(C)
25 I will turn my hand against you;[a](D)
I will thoroughly purge(E) away your dross(F)
and remove all your impurities.(G)
26 I will restore your leaders as in days of old,(H)
your rulers as at the beginning.
Afterward you will be called(I)
the City of Righteousness,(J)
the Faithful City.(K)”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 1:25 That is, against Jerusalem
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