Isaiah 8:21-22
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
21 He will pass through it hard-pressed and hungry,
and when hungry, shall become enraged,
and curse king and gods.
He will look upward,
22 and will gaze at the earth,
But will see only distress and darkness,
oppressive gloom,
murky, without light.[a]
The Promise of Salvation Under a New Davidic King.[b]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 8:22 Oppressive gloom…without light: the meaning of the Hebrew here is quite uncertain.
- 8:23–9:6 The meaning of 8:23 is somewhat uncertain, for example, whether the expressions translated “once” and “now” refer to times or to individuals, and also whether the verbs speak of degrading and glorifying the territories. If this traditional translation is correct, the passage would seem to promise the former Northern Kingdom of Israel deliverance from the Assyrians and might relate to Hezekiah’s program of trying to reincorporate the northern territories into the kingdom of Judah and thus restore the boundaries of the country as it was under David.
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