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Isaiah Chapter 25

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:30 pm
by Ken M. Penner
140. A song glorifying Lord (25:1-2)
25.1 Κύριε ὁ θεός μου, δοξάσω σε, ὑμνήσω τὸ ὄνομά σου, ὅτι ἐποίησας θαυμαστὰ πράγματα, βουλὴν ἀρχαίαν ἀληθινήν· γένοιτο, Κύριε. 2 ὅτι ἔθηκας πόλιν εἰς χῶμα, πόλεις ὀχυρὰς τοῦ πεσεῖν αὐτῶν τὰ θεμέλια· τῶν ἀσεβῶν πόλις τὸν αἰῶνα οὐ μὴ οἰκοδομηθῇ.
141. The poor will praise you for your help (25:3-5)
3 διὰ τοῦτο εὐλογήσει σε ὁ λαὸς ὁ πτωχός, καὶ πόλεις ἀνθρώπων ἀδικουμένων εὐλογήσουσίν σε· 4 ἐγένου γὰρ πάσῃ πόλει ταπεινῷ βοηθὸς καὶ τοῖς ἀθυμήσασιν διὰ ἔνδειαν σκέπη, ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπων πονηρῶν ῥύσῃ αὐτούς, σκέπη διψώντων καὶ πνεῦμα ἀνθρώπων ἀδικουμένων. 5 εὐλογήσουσίν σε ὡς ἄνθρωποι ὀλιγόψυχοι διψῶντες ἐν Σιών ὅτι ῥύσῃ αὐτοὺς.
142. Lord will act on this mountain for all nations (25:5-7)
ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπων ἀσεβῶν, οἷς ἡμᾶς παρέδωκας 6 καὶ ποιήσει Κύριος Σαβαώθ πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦτο. πίονται εὐφροσύνην, πίονται οἶνον. 7 χρίσονται μύρον ἐν τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ. παράδος πάντα ταῦτα τοῖς ἔθνεσιν· ἡ γὰρ βουλὴ αὕτη ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη.

143. Lord took away every tear (25:8)
8 Κατέπιεν ὁ θάνατος ἰσχύσας, καὶ πάλιν ἀφεῖλεν Κύριος ὁ θεὸς πᾶν δάκρυον ἀπὸ παντὸς προσώπου· τὸ ὄνειδος τοῦ λαοῦ ἀφεῖλεν ἀπὸ πάσης τῆς γῆς, τὸ γὰρ στόμα Κυρίου ἐλάλησεν.
144. God will provide rest on this mountain (25:9-10)
9 καὶ ἐροῦσιν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ Ἰδοὺ Κύριος ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν, ἐφʼ ᾧ ἠλπίζομεν καὶ ἠγαλλιώμεθα, ἐπὶ τῷ σωτῆρι ἡμῶν καὶ εὐφρανθησόμεθα. 10 ὅτι ἀνάπαυσιν δώσει ὁ θεὸς ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦτο.
145. Moabitis will be brought down (25:10-12)
καὶ καταπατηθήσεται ἡ Μωαβῖτις, ὃν τρόπον πατοῦσιν ἅλωνα ἐν · 11 καὶ ἀνήσει τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ, ὃν τρόπον καὶ αὐτὸς ἐταπείνωσεν τοῦ ἀπολέσαι, καὶ ταπεινώσει τὴν ὕβριν αὐτοῦ ἐφʼ ᾗ τὰς χεῖρας ἐπέβαλεν· 12 καὶ τὸ ὕψος τῆς καταφυγῆς τοῦ τοίχου σου ταπεινώσει, καὶ καταβήσεται ἕως τοῦ ἐδάφους.

Notes on Isaiah 25:1-2

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:31 pm
by Ken M. Penner
140. A song glorifying Lord (25:1-2)
25.1 Κύριε ὁ θεός μου, δοξάσω σε, ὑμνήσω τὸ ὄνομά σου, ὅτι ἐποίησας θαυμαστὰ πράγματα, βουλὴν ἀρχαίαν ἀληθινήν· γένοιτο, Κύριε. 2 ὅτι ἔθηκας πόλιν εἰς χῶμα, πόλεις ὀχυρὰς τοῦ πεσεῖν αὐτῶν τὰ θεμέλια· τῶν ἀσεβῶν πόλις τὸν αἰῶνα οὐ μὴ οἰκοδομηθῇ.
1
μου] with Rahlfs, Ziegler; lacking in B
γένοιτο] translating אמן, “amen.” This does not end the address to God, since the second person continue.
2
πόλιν] singular accusative; changed by cb3 to the plural πόλεις, with B (Rahlfs, Ziegler).
χῶμα] normally refers to earthworks, a pile of soil.
ὀχυρὰς] “strong,” often used as a military term, “secure.”
τοῦ πεσεῖν] with Rahlfs; B (Ziegler) has τοῦ μὴ πεσεῖν. Note the difference between Rahlfs and Ziegler. Here the infinitive conveys the result rather than the purpose.
πόλις] with B, changed by ca to πόλις εἰς, with Rahlfs, Ziegler.
τὸν αἰῶνα] even without the preposition εἰς, the construction is comprehensible as an adverbial accusative: “forever.”

Reception
Methodius (Oration Concerning Simeon and Anna 6) prayed “O Lord my God, I will glorify Thee, I will praise Thy name; for Thou hast done wonderful things; Thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth” from 25:1.

Notes on Isaiah 25:3-5

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:32 pm
by Ken M. Penner
141. The poor will praise you for your help (25:3-5)
3 διὰ τοῦτο εὐλογήσει σε ὁ λαὸς ὁ πτωχός, καὶ πόλεις ἀνθρώπων ἀδικουμένων εὐλογήσουσίν σε· 4 ἐγένου γὰρ πάσῃ πόλει ταπεινῷ βοηθὸς καὶ τοῖς ἀθυμήσασιν διὰ ἔνδειαν σκέπη, ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπων πονηρῶν ῥύσῃ αὐτούς, σκέπη διψώντων καὶ πνεῦμα ἀνθρώπων ἀδικουμένων. 5 εὐλογήσουσίν σε ὡς ἄνθρωποι ὀλιγόψυχοι διψῶντες ἐν Σιών ὅτι ῥύσῃ αὐτοὺς.
3
διὰ τοῦτο] typical translation of על כן
4
ἐγένου] second person singular aorist middle indicative of γίνομαι.
ταπεινῷ] masculine, corrected by ca to the feminine ταπεινῇ, with B (Rahlfs, Ziegler), to match the feminine πόλει. The masculine form here would indicate a humble man in every city; the feminine would indicate every humble city.
εὐλογήσουσίν σε] with Rahlfs; lacking in B (Ziegler). Note the difference between Rahlfs and Ziegler.
ἀθυμήσασιν] those lacking θυμός, passion.
ἔνδειαν] ἔνδεια refers to deficiency or lack.
σκέπη] another predicate nominative for the verb ἐγένου, parallel to βοηθὸς.
5
Σιών] The Hebrew ṣywn means “parched land”
ὅτι ῥύσῃ αὐτοὺς] deleted by ca, with B (Rahlfs, Ziegler). ῥύσῃ αὐτοὺς is repeated from verse 4. ῥύσῃ is future middle of ῥύομαι, “rescue.”

Reception
Ambrose, De fide 3.5.40 and John Cassian, Collat. 2.13.12 both quote from this paragraph.

Notes on Isaiah 25:5-7

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:34 pm
by Ken M. Penner
142. Lord will act on this mountain toward all nations (25:5-7)
ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπων ἀσεβῶν, οἷς ἡμᾶς παρέδωκας 6 καὶ ποιήσει Κύριος Σαβαώθ πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦτο. πίονται εὐφροσύνην, πίονται οἶνον. 7 χρίσονται μύρον ἐν τῷ ὄρει τούτῳ. παράδος πάντα ταῦτα τοῖς ἔθνεσιν· ἡ γὰρ βουλὴ αὕτη ἐπὶ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη.
ἀπὸ ἀνθρώπων ἀσεβῶν] the marginal paragraph marker certainly points to a break here, in the middle of a sentence. It is hard to construe this phrase with the following sentence.
6
πᾶσι τοῖς ἔθνεσιν] the dative could express benefit “for” or detriment “against.”
ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦτο] presumably Zion, with the implication that the oracle was delivered at Jerusalem. The prepositional phrase without a preceding article indicates where the action will take place, not where the nations are located.
7
χρίσονται μύρον] in verse 7, with Swete and Ziegler; Rahlfs places these words at the end of verse 6. The middle of χρίω here implies self-anointing.
παράδος] the addressee of this imperative is not obvious, but presumably is the prophet.
πάντα ταῦτα] with B; Rahlfs, Ziegler have ταῦτα πάντα
ἐπὶ] in G, this preposition tends to indicate opposition rather than benefit.

Reception
1 Enoch 10:18-19 alludes to the abundance of wine after the day of judgement.
Rufinus wrote, “First, therefore, hear how this very thing is prophetically declared by Isaiah, that the Jews, to whom the Prophets had foretold these things, would not believe, bat that they who had never heard them from the Prophets, would believe them. … Moreover, this same Isaiah foretells that, while those who were engaged in the study of the Law from childhood to old age believed not, to the Gentiles every mystery should be transferred,” and quoted 25:6-7 in support, with its “deliver all these things to the nations” (παράδος πάντα ταῦτα τοῖς ἔθνεσιν) (Commentary on the Apostles’ Creed 19).
Cyril of Jerusalem (Lecture 21.7) interprets the “mountain” as the Church, and the ointment is mystically the Unction (anointing on the forehead).

Notes on Isaiah 25:8

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:36 pm
by Ken M. Penner
143. Lord took away every tear (25:8)
8 Κατέπιεν ὁ θάνατος ἰσχύσας, καὶ πάλιν ἀφεῖλεν Κύριος ὁ θεὸς πᾶν δάκρυον ἀπὸ παντὸς προσώπου· τὸ ὄνειδος τοῦ λαοῦ ἀφεῖλεν ἀπὸ πάσης τῆς γῆς, τὸ γὰρ στόμα Κυρίου ἐλάλησεν.
8
Κατέπιεν ὁ θάνατος ἰσχύσας] Paul in 1 Cor 15:54 understood death to be the object, which matches the Hebrew. G, however, understood המות, death, to be the subject of the verb rather than the object. Most early interpreters of G took this verse to refer to death’s struggle to become victorious. In this context, death fails, since tears, the sign of mourning, will be no more.
ἀφεῖλεν] this verb is used for the removal of both the tears and the reproach of the people.

Reception
Because 25:8 is quoted in the New Testament, it gets relatively more attention than the rest of this chapter.
1 Cor 15:54 has Κατεπόθη ὁ θάνατος εἰς νῖκος; Rev 7:17has καὶ ἐξαλείψει ὁ θεὸς πᾶν δάκρυον ἐκ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν; 21:4 has the same, but without ὁ θεὸς.
Irenaeus (Adv. Haer. 5.12.1) quoted 25:8 in support of his claim that the flesh is capable of incorruption, when life drives out death.
Tertullian, Against Marcion 5.10 wrote of death’s “struggle,” alluding to the ἰσχύσας of 25:8.
Origen (De princ. 2.3.2) likewise connects 25:8 with 1 Cor 15:53-56, speaking of the “strength” of sin, which is the law. In Comm. Matt. 12.35, Origen collected scriptural references to death, and wrote: “Now in these passages it appears to me that it is one thing to taste of death, but another thing to see death, and another thing for it to come upon some, and that a fourth thing, different from the aforesaid, is signified by the words, “Death becoming mighty has swallowed them up,” and a fifth thing, different from these, by the words, Death and Hades follow them.” ”
Theodoret of Cyrrhus (Counter-statement Against 10) quoted 25:8 in reference to Jesus’ tears, showing that Jesus could suffer.
Athanasius (Discourse 2 against the Arians, 15.16) connected the raising of the ancient dead at Jesus’ death with 25:8.
Gregory of Nyssa said childbirth no longer carries sorrow, quoting 25:8.
See also Cyril of Alexandria, Lecture 19; Basil the Great, Letter 46;

Notes on Isaiah 25:9-10

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:38 pm
by Ken M. Penner
144. God will provide rest on this mountain (25:9-10)
9 καὶ ἐροῦσιν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ Ἰδοὺ Κύριος ὁ θεὸς ἡμῶν, ἐφʼ ᾧ ἠλπίζομεν καὶ ἠγαλλιώμεθα, ἐπὶ τῷ σωτῆρι ἡμῶν καὶ εὐφρανθησόμεθα. 10 ὅτι ἀνάπαυσιν δώσει ὁ θεὸς ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦτο.
9
Κύριος] lacking in B (Rahlfs, Ziegler)
καὶ ἠγαλλιώμεθα] with Ziegler, changed by ca from ηκαλιωμεθα; B has καὶ σώσει ἡμᾶς• οὗτος Κύριος, ὑπεμείναμεν αὐτῷ καὶ ἠγαλλιώμεθα, καὶ εὐφρανθησόμεθα; Rahlfs has καὶ ἠγαλλιώμεθα, καὶ εὐφρανθησόμεθα. S has καὶ εὐφρανθησόμεθα at the end of the verse. Note the difference between Rahlfs and Ziegler.
τῷ σωτῆρι] a noun referring to a person, changed by ca to an abstract noun, τῇ σωτηρίᾳ, with B (Rahlfs, Ziegler).
καὶ εὐφρανθησόμεθα] lacking in B (Rahlfs, Ziegler), but see note on καὶ ἠγαλλιώμεθα.
10
ὅτι] with Rahlfs, Ziegler; lacking in B
ἐπὶ τὸ ὄρος τοῦτο] recalls 25:6.

Reception

Irenaeus (Adv. Haer. 4.9.2) interpreted 25:9 in reference to Christ, in whom trust was placed.

Notes on Isaiah 25:10-12

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:39 pm
by Ken M. Penner
145. Moab will be brought down (25:10-12)
καὶ καταπατηθήσεται ἡ Μωαβῖτις, ὃν τρόπον πατοῦσιν ἅλωνα ἐν · 11 καὶ ἀνήσει τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ, ὃν τρόπον καὶ αὐτὸς ἐταπείνωσεν τοῦ ἀπολέσαι, καὶ ταπεινώσει τὴν ὕβριν αὐτοῦ ἐφʼ ᾗ τὰς χεῖρας ἐπέβαλεν· 12 καὶ τὸ ὕψος τῆς καταφυγῆς τοῦ τοίχου σου ταπεινώσει, καὶ καταβήσεται ἕως τοῦ ἐδάφους.
Μωαβῖτις] with Rahlfs, Ziegler; Swete spells it Μωαβεῖτις. The sudden introduction of a specific nation is unexpected.
ἅλωνα] ἅλων can refer to a threshing floor, or to the grain on such a floor.
ἁμάξαις] wagons
11
ἀνήσει] future of ἀνίημι, which usually means releasing restrictions, letting go. Here it translates פָּרַשׂ, “spread.” The image of stretching out one’s hands recurs in 65:2.
ᾗ] referring to the insolence; B (Rahlfs, Ziegler) has ἃ, referring to things as yet unspecified.
12
καταφυγῆς] a place of refuge
καταβήσεται] with Rahlfs, Ziegler; B has καταβήσονται
ἐδάφους] ἔδαφος is the bottom surface, “floor,” “ground.”

Isaiah Chapter 25 translation

Posted: October 5th, 2011, 1:42 pm
by Ken M. Penner
140. A song glorifying Lord (25:1-2)
25.1 O Lord my God, I will glorify you; I will sing of your name, because you have done wondrous deeds, an ancient, true plan. So be it, Lord, 2 because you have turned a city into a pile of dirt, secure cities, so that their foundations fall. A city of the impious certainly will not be built, for eternity.
141. The poor will praise you for your help (25:3-5)
3 Because of this, the poor people will praise you, and cities of mistreated people will praise you. 4 For you became a helper for a humble man in every city and a shelter for those disheartened because of need; you will rescue them from evil people, a shelter for the thirsty and a breath for mistreated people. 5 They will praise you like faint-hearted people thirsting in Sion, because you will save them.
142. Lord will act on this mountain toward all nations (25:5-7)
From impious people, to whom you handed us over, 6 Lord Sabaoth will also act on this mountain toward all the nations. They will drink happiness; they will drink wine. 7 They will anoint themselves with perfume on this mountain; deliver all these things to the nations, for this plan is against all the nations.

143. Lord took away every tear (25:8)
8 Having power, death swallowed; and again Lord God took away every tear from every face; he took away the reproach of the people from all the land, for the mouth of Lord has spoken.
144. God will provide rest on this mountain (25:9-10)
9 And they will say on that day, Look, Lord our God on whom we were hoping and rejoicing; we will also delight over our saviour. 10 Because God will provide rest on this mountain.
145. Moabitis will be brought down (25:10-12)
And Moabitis will be trampled down in the same way that they tread grain to be threshed with wagons. 11 And he will send out his hands; in the same way that even he himself lowered himself to destroy, also he will lower his pride, upon which he set his hands. 12 And he will lower the height of the refuge of your wall, and it will go down to the ground.