Texts in Conversation
Isaiah 51 and Zechariah 12 share a rare phrase describing the divine act of stretching out the heavens and founding the earth, linking the two texts through distinct language. This phrase appears only in these passages, but its broader use across Isaiah suggests that Zechariah is the one that is dependent on Isaiah.
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Isaiah 51:13
Hebrew Bible
12 “I, I am the one who consoles you. Why are you afraid of mortal men, of mere human beings who are as short-lived as grass? 13 Why do you forget the Lord, who made you, who stretched out the sky and founded the earth? Why do you constantly tremble all day long at the anger of the oppressor, when he makes plans to destroy? Where is the anger of the oppressor? 14 The one who suffers will soon be released; he will not die in prison, he will not go hungry.
Date: 7th-5th Centuries B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Zechariah 12:1
Hebrew Bible
1 This is an oracle, the Lord’s message concerning Israel: The Lord—he who stretches out the heavens and lays the foundations of the earth, who forms the human spirit within a person—says, 2 “I am about to make Jerusalem a cup that brings dizziness to all the surrounding nations; indeed, Judah will also be included when Jerusalem is besieged. 3 Moreover, on that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy burden for all the nations, and all who try to carry it will be seriously injured; yet all the peoples of the earth will be assembled against it.
Date: 5th Century B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... The phrase ('the one who stretches out the heavens and establishes the earth') occurs in Zechariah 12:1 and Isaiah 51:13, and nowhere else in the Old Testament. This terminology, however, is very typical of Deutero-Isaiah (compare Isaiah 40:22; 42:5; 44:24; 45:12; 48:13; 51:16). There is thus no reason to think that Isaiah 51:13 is dependent on Zechariah 12:1, and not the other way around ..."
Nurmela, Risto
"The Growth of the Book of Isaiah Illustrated by Allusions in Zechariah" in Boda, Mark J., and Michael H. Floyd, (ed.) Bringing out the Treasure: Inner Biblical Allusion in Zechariah 9-14
(p. 256) Sheffield Academic Press, 2003
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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