Isaiah 30:17-19

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Isaiah 30:17 tn Heb “One thousand from before [or “because of”] one battle cry.” גְּעָרָה (g^eʿarah) is often defined as “threat,” but in war contexts it likely refers to a shout or battle cry. See Ps 76:6.
2. Isaiah 30:17 tn Heb “from before [or “because of”] the battle cry of five you will flee.
3. Isaiah 30:17 tn Heb “until you are left” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV).
4. Isaiah 30:18 tn Heb “Therefore the Lord waits to show you mercy, and therefore he is exalted to have compassion on you.” The logical connection between this verse and what precedes is problematic. The point seems to be that Judah’s impending doom does not bring God joy. Rather the prospect of their suffering stirs within him a willingness to show mercy and compassion, if they are willing to seek him on his terms.
5. Isaiah 30:18 tn Heb “Blessed are all who wait for him.”
6. Isaiah 30:19 tn Heb “For people in Zion will live; in Jerusalem, you will weep no more.” The phrase “in Jerusalem” could be taken with what precedes. Some prefer to emend יֵשֵׁב (yeshev, “will live,” a Qal imperfect) to יֹשֵׁב (yoshev, a Qal active participle) and translate “For [you] people in Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more.”
7. Isaiah 30:19 tn Heb “he will indeed show you mercy at the sound of your crying out; when he hears, he will answer you.”