Isaiah Chapter 41

This is a B-Greek reading Group for the LXX Isaiah. This reading group is going through two chapters of the LXX Isaiah per week. Ken Penner, the B-Greek moderator for the "Septuagint and Pseudepigrapha Forum" is writing a commentary on the LXX Isaiah and is sharing his notes with those who wish to read the Isaiah LXX. Dive in, if you dare!
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Ken M. Penner
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Isaiah Chapter 41

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255. Who has renewed righteousness? (41:1-4)
40.1 Ἐγκαινίζεσθε πρός με, νῆσοι, οἱ γὰρ ἄρχοντες ἀλλάξουσιν ἰσχύν· ἐγγισάτωσαν καὶ λαλησάτωσαν ἅμα, τότε κρίσιν ἀναγγειλάτωσαν. 2 τίς ἐξήγειρεν ἀπὸ ἀνατολῶν δικαιοσύνην, ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὴν κατὰ πόδας αὐτοῦ, καὶ πορεύσεται; δώσει ἐναντίον ἐθνῶν καὶ βασιλεῖς ἐκστήσει καὶ δώσει εἰς γῆν τὰς μαχαίρας αὐτῶν καὶ ὡς φρύγανα ἐξωσμένα τὰ τόξα αὐτῶν· 3 καὶ διώξεται αὐτοὺς καὶ διελεύσεται ἐν εἰρήνῃ ἡ ὁδὸς τῶν ποδῶν αὐτοῦ.

4 Τίς ἐνήργησεν καὶ ἐποίησεν ταῦτα; ἐκάλεσεν αὐτὴν ὁ καλῶν αὐτὴν ἀπὸ γενεῶν ἀρχαίων,

256. Craftsmen work well (41:4-7)
Ἐγὼ θεὸς πρῶτος καὶ εἰς τὰ ἐπερχόμενα ἐγώ εἰμι. 5 εἴδοσαν ἔθνη καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν, τὰ ἄκρα τῆς γῆς ἤγγισαν καὶ ἤλθοσαν ἅμα 6 κρίνων ἕκαστος τῷ πλησίον καὶ τῷ ἀδελφῷ βοηθῆσαι καὶ ἐρεῖ 7 Ἴσχυσεν ἀνὴρ τέκτων καὶ χαλκεὺς τύπτων σφύρᾳ ἅμα ἐλαύνων· ποτὲ μὲν ἐρεῖ Σύμβλημα καλόν ἐστιν· ἰσχύρωσαν αὐτὰ ἐν ἥλοις, θήσουσιν αὐτὰ καὶ οὐ κινηθήσονται.

257. I have chosen you, servant Israel (41:8-11)
8 Σὺ δέ, Ἰσραήλ, παῖς μου Ἰακώβ, ὃν ἐξελεξάμην, σπέρμα Ἀβραάμ, ὃν ἠγάπησα, 9 οὗ ἀντελαβόμην ἀπʼ ἄκρων τῆς γῆς καὶ ἐκ τῶν σκοπιῶν αὐτῆς ἐκάλεσά σε καὶ εἶπά σοι Παῖς μου εἶ, ἐξελεξάμην σε καὶ οὐκ ἐγκατέλιπόν σε, 10 μὴ φοβοῦ, μετὰ σοῦ γάρ εἰμι· μὴ πλανῶ, ἐγὼ γάρ ὁ θεός, ἐνισχύσα σε καὶ ἐβοήθησά σοι καὶ ἠσφαλισάμην σε τῇ δεξιᾷ τῇ δικαίᾳ μου.
258. Your opponents will vanish (41:11-14)
11 ἰδοὺ αἰσχυνθήσονται καὶ ἐντραπήσονται πάντες οἱ ἀντικείμενοί σοι· ἔσονται γὰρ ὡς οὐκ ὄντες καὶ ἀπολοῦνται πάντες οἱ ἀντίδικοί σου. 12 ζητήσεις αὐτοὺς καὶ οὐ μὴ εὕρῃς τοὺς ἀνθρώπους, οἳ παροινήσουσιν εἰς σέ· ἔσονται γὰρ ὡς οὐκ ὄντες καὶ οὐκ ἔσονται οἱ ἀντιπολεμοῦντές σε. 13 ὅτι ἐγὼ ὁ θεός ὁ κρατῶν τῆς δεξιᾶς σου, ὁ λέγων σοι Μὴ φοβοῦ, 14 Ἰακώβ, ὀλιγοστὸς Ἰσραήλ· ἐγὼ ἐβοήθησά σοι, λέγει ὁ θεὸς ὁ λυτρούμενός σε, Ἰσραήλ.

259. You will pulverize them (41:15-16)

15 Ἰδοὺ ἐποίησά σε ὡς τροχοὺς ἁμάξης καινοὺς πριστηροειδεῖς, καὶ ἀλοήσεις ὄρη καὶ λεπτυνεῖς βουνοὺς καὶ ὡς χνοῦν θήσεις· 16 καὶ λικμήσεις, καὶ ἄνεμος λήμψεται αὐτοῖς, καὶ καταιγὶς διασπερεῖ αὐτούς,
260. The holy one of Israel will water the thirsty land (41:16-20)
σὺ δὲ εὐφρανθήσῃ ἐν τοῖς ἁγίοις Ἰσραήλ. 17 καὶ ἀγαλλιάσονται οἱ πτωχοὶ καὶ οἱ ἐνδεεῖς· ζητήσουσιν γὰρ ὕδωρ, καὶ οὐκ ἔσται, ἡ γλῶσσα αὐτῶν ἀπὸ τῆς δίψης ἐξηράνθη.

Ἐγὼ Κύριος ὁ θεός, ἐγὼ ἐπακούσομαι, ὁ θεὸς Ἰσραήλ, καὶ οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψω αὐτούς, 18 ἀλλὰ ἀνοίξω ἐπὶ τῶν ὀρέων ποταμοὺς καὶ ἐν μέσῳ πεδίων πηγάς, ποιήσω τὴν ἔρημον εἰς ἕλη ὑδάτων καὶ τὴν διψῶσαν γῆν ἐν ὑδραγωγοῖς, 19 θήσω εἰς τὴν ἄνυδρον γῆν κέδρων καὶ πύξον μυρσίνην καὶ κυπάρισσον καὶ λεύκην, 20 ἵνα ἴδωσιν καὶ γνῶσιν καὶ ἐννοηθῶσιν καὶ ἐπιστῶνται ἅμα ὅτι χεὶρ Κυρίου ἐποίησεν ταῦτα καὶ ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ Ἰσραήλ κατέδειξεν.

261. Tell us the future (41:21-24)
21 Ἐγγίζει ἡ κρίσις ὑμῶν, λέγει Κύριος ὁ θεός· ἤγγισαν αἱ βουλαὶ ὑμῶν, λέγει ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἰακώβ. 22 ἐγγισάτωσαν καὶ ἀναγγειλάτωσαν ὑμῖν ἃ συμβήσεται, ἢ τὰ πρότερα τίνα ἦν εἴπατε, καὶ ἐπιστήσατε τὸν νοῦν καὶ γνωσόμεθα τί τὰ ἔσχατα, καὶ τὰ ἐπερχόμενα εἴπατε ἡμῖν. 23 ἀναγγείλατε ἡμῖν τὰ ἐπερχόμενα ἐπʼ ἐσχάτου, καὶ γνωσόμεθα ὅτι θεοί ἐστε· εὖ ποιήσατε καὶ κακώσατε, καὶ θαυμασόμεθα καὶ ὀψόμεθα ἅμα· 24 ὅτι πόθεν ἐστὲ ὑμεῖς καὶ πόθεν ἡ ἐργασία ὑμῶν; ἐκ γῆς· βδέλυγμα ἐξελέξαντο ὑμᾶς.
262. Who will foretell the future? (41:25-26)
25 ἐγὼ δὲ ἤγειρα τὸν ἀπὸ βορρᾶ καὶ τὸν ἀφʼ ἡλίου ἀνατολῶν, κληθήσονται τῷ ὀνόματί μου· ἐρχέσθωσαν ἄρχοντες, καὶ ὡς πηλὸς κεραμέως καὶ ὡς κεραμεὺς καταπατῶν τὸν πηλόν, οὕτως καταπατηθήσεται. 26 τίς γὰρ ἀναγγελεῖ τὰ ἐξ ἀρχῆς, ἵνα γνῶμεν, καὶ τὰ ἔμπροσθεν, καὶ ἐροῦμεν ὅτι ἀληθῆ ἐστιν; οὐκ ἔστιν ὁ προλέγων οὐδὲ ὁ ἀκούων ὑμῶν τοὺς λόγους.

263. No one else can do this (41:27-29)
27 Ἀρχὴν Σειὼν δώσω καὶ Ἰερουσαλὴμ παρακαλέσω εἰς ὁδόν. 28 ἀπὸ γὰρ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἰδοὺ οὐδείς, καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν εἰδώλων ἄτων οὐκ ἦν ὁ ἀναγγέλλων· καὶ ἐὰν ἐρωτήσω αὐτούς Πόθεν ἐστέ, οὐ μὴ ἀποκριθῶσίν μοι. 29 εἰσὶν γὰρ οἱ ποιοῦντες ὑμᾶς, καὶ μάτην οἱ πλανῶντες ὑμᾶς.
Ken M. Penner
Professor and Chair of Religious Studies, St. Francis Xavier University
Co-Editor, Digital Biblical Studies
General Editor, Lexham English Septuagint
Co-Editor, Online Critical Pseudepigrapha pseudepigrapha.org
Ken M. Penner
Posts: 881
Joined: May 12th, 2011, 7:50 am
Location: Antigonish, NS, Canada
Contact:

Isaiah Chapter 41 Translation

Post by Ken M. Penner »

255. Who has renewed righteousness? (41:1-4)
41.1 Renew to me, o islands, for the leaders will exchange strength, let them draw near and speak together, then let them announce judgment. 2 Who has raised righteousness up from the east, called it under his feet and it will go? He will present it before nations and will amaze kings and will send their swords to the land, and their bows like discarded sticks. 3 And he will pursue them and the way of his feet will pass through in peace.

4 Who has produced and made these things? The one who called her from the beginning of generations has called her.

256. Craftsmen work well (41:4-7)
I am God, the first, and I am in what is to come. 5 Nations have seen and were frightened; the ends of the earth have approached and come together. 6 Each judges his neighbour and his brother to help and say, 7 A woodworking man has become strong, and a smith who beats with a hammer, forging together. Some time he will say, It is a good seam. They reinforce them with nails; they set them and they will not be moved.

257. I have chosen you, servant Israel (41:8-11)

8 But you, Israel, my child Iakob, whom I have chosen, seed of Abraham, whom I have loved, 9 whom I have taken hold of from the corners of the land, and called you from its heights, and said to you, You are my servant, I have chosen you and I have not forsaken you. 10 Do not be frightened, for I am with you; do not be deceived, for I am God, strengthening you, and I have helped you and have established you with my righteous right hand.
258. Your opponents will vanish (41:11-14)
11 Look, all who oppose you will be dishonoured and will feel shame, for they will be as those who are not, and all your adversaries will be destroyed. 12 You will look for them and not you will not find the people who rage against you, for they will be as those who are not, and there will not be any who wage war against you 13 for I am God, who holds your right hand, who says to you, Do not be afraid. 14 Iakob, little Israel, I have helped you, says the god who ransoms you, Israel.

259. You will pulverize them (41:15-16)
15 Look, I have made you new like wheels of a wagon, like a saw, like a saw, moths, and you will thresh mountains and grind hills to powder and make them like dust. 16 And you will winnow them, and the wind shall take them away, and a storm will scatter them.
260. The holy one of Israel will water the thirsty land (41:16-20)
But you will be glad among the holy ones of Israel. And 17 the poor and the needy will rejoice, for they will look for water and there will not be any; their tongue will dry up from thirst.

I am Lord God; I, the God of Israel, will hear and not forsake them. 18 Instead, I will open rivers upon the mountains and springs in the middle of the plains; I will turn the desert into marshlands of waters, and the thirsty land into water channels. 19 I will plant some cedars and a myrtle boxwood and a cypress and a white poplar in the waterless land, 20 so that they may see and know and think and understand together that the hand of Lord has done all these things; and the holy one of Israel has brought them to light.

261. Tell us the future (41:21-24)
21 Your judgment approaches, says Lord God. Your counsels have approached, says the king of Iakob. 22 Let them approach and announce the things that will happen, or say what the former things were. And set on the mind and we will know what the last things were, and tell us the things that are. 23 Announce to us the things to come at the end, and we will know that you are gods. Do good and do evil, and we shall wonder and see together. 24 For where are you from and where is your work from? They have chosen you from the land as an abomination.
262. Who will foretell the future (41:25-26)
25 I have roused the one from the North and the one from the rising of the sun; they will be called by my name. Let leaders come, and he will be trampled down like potter’s clay and like a potter trampling down the mud. 26 For who will announce the things from the beginning, so that we might know them, and the things before, and we will say that it is true. There is no-one who foretells or one listens to your words.

263. No one else can do this (41:27-29)

27 I will give dominion to Zion and I will comfort Jerusalem on the way. 28 For look, there is no-one from the nations, and there is no-one from the idols, delusions, who proclaims it, and if I ask them, Where are you from? They do not answer me. 29 For they are those who make you, and deceive you pointlessly.
Ken M. Penner
Professor and Chair of Religious Studies, St. Francis Xavier University
Co-Editor, Digital Biblical Studies
General Editor, Lexham English Septuagint
Co-Editor, Online Critical Pseudepigrapha pseudepigrapha.org
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