Isaiah 63:4-6 New English Translation

⁴For I looked forward to the day of vengeance,
and then payback time arrived.^[a]
⁵I looked, but there was no one to help;
I was shocked because there was no one offering support.^[b]
So my right arm accomplished deliverance;
my raging anger drove me on.^[c]
⁶I trampled nations in my anger;
I made them drunk^[d] in my rage;
I splashed their blood on the ground.”^[e]

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Footnotes

Isaiah 63:4 tn Heb “for the day of vengeance was in my heart, and the year of my revenge came.” The term גְּאוּלַי (g^eʾulay) is sometimes translated here “my redemption,” for the verbal root גאל often means “deliver, buy back.” A גֹּאֵל (goʾel, “kinsman-redeemer”) was responsible for protecting the extended family’s interests, often by redeeming property that had been sold outside the family. However, the responsibilities of a גֹּאֵל extended beyond financial concerns. He was also responsible for avenging the shed blood of a family member (see Num 35:19-27; Deut 19:6-12). In Isa 63:4, where vengeance is a prominent theme (note the previous line), it is probably this function of the family protector that is in view. The Lord pictures himself as a blood avenger who waits for the day of vengeance to arrive and then springs into action.
Isaiah 63:5 sn See Isa 59:16 for similar language.
Isaiah 63:5 tn Heb “and my anger, it supported me”; NIV “my own wrath sustained me.”
Isaiah 63:6 sn See Isa 49:26 and 51:23 for similar imagery.
Isaiah 63:6 tn Heb “and I brought down to the ground their juice.” “Juice” refers to their blood (see v. 3).

New English Translation (NET)