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LXX Isaiah

Septuagint

About this book
Chapter 61

1 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me; he has sent me to preach glad news to the poor, to heal the broken in heart, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind;⁠ 2 to declare the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of retribution; to comfort all that mourn; 3 that there should be given to those who mourn in Zion glory instead of ashes, the oil of joy to the mourners, the garment of glory for the spirit of heaviness: and they shall be called generations of righteousness, the planting of the Lord for glory. 4 And they shall build the old waste places, they shall raise up those that were before made desolate, and shall renew the desert cities, even those that had been desolate for many generations. 5 And strangers shall come and feed your flocks, and aliens shall be your plowmen and vine-dressers. 6 But you shall be called priests of the Lord, the ministers of God: you shall eat the strength of nations,⁠ and shall be admired because of their wealth. 7 Thus they will inherit the land a second time, and everlasting joy shall be upon their head.⁠ 8 For I am the Lord who love righteousness, and hate robberies of injustice; and I will give their labor to the just, and will make an everlasting covenant with them. 9 And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring in the midst of peoples: every one that sees them shall take notice of them, that they are a seed blessed of God; 10 and they shall greatly rejoice in the Lord. Let my soul rejoice in the Lord; for he has clothed me with the robe of salvation, and the garment of joy: he has put a turban on me as on a bridegroom, and adorned me with ornaments as a bride. 11 And as the earth putting forth her flowers, and as a garden its seed; so the Lord will cause righteousness to spring forth, and exultation before all nations.

Texts in conversation

Compare Isaiah 61:6 and LXX Isaiah 61:6

Hebrew Bible · Septuagint

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Summary

Isaiah 61 describes Israel consuming the “wealth of the nations,” implying conquest. The Greek Septuagint translation softens this by saying “strength” instead of “wealth,” interpreting the Hebrew in a less literal sense.

Passages

Isaiah 61:6

Hebrew Bible
5 “Foreigners will take care of your sheep; foreigners will work in your fields and vineyards. 6 You will be called, ‘the Lord’s priests, servants of our God.’ You will enjoy the wealth of nations and boast about the riches you receive from them. 7 Instead of shame, you will get a double portion; instead of humiliation, they will rejoice over the land they receive. Yes, they will possess a double portion in their land and experience lasting joy. 8 For I, the Lord, love justice and hate robbery and sin. I will repay them because of my faithfulness; I will make a permanent covenant with them.
740–450 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Isaiah

LXX Isaiah 61:6

Septuagint
5 And strangers shall come and feed your flocks, and aliens shall be your plowmen and vine-dressers. 6 But you shall be called priests of the Lord, the ministers of God: you shall eat the strength of nations, and shall be admired because of their wealth. 7 Thus they will inherit the land a second time, and everlasting joy shall be upon their head. 8 For I am the Lord who love righteousness, and hate robberies of injustice; and I will give their labor to the just, and will make an everlasting covenant with them.
100–1 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in LXX Isaiah

References

"... Two passages toward the end of Isaiah contain the phrase “wealth of the nations.” Isaiah 61:6 uses it as something Israel is to eat, perhaps conveying the idea that Israel will plunder ('consume') the nations’ riches. The LXX translators, though, chose to render it using its more common gloss ἰσχὺν ('strength') rather than πλοῦτος. Isaiah 66:12 uses the phrase 'glory of the nations', which may be translated as 'wealth of the nations.' The picture, however, is one of foreign wealth flowing toward Jerusalem like a river, not of Gentiles carrying it as tribute. Rather, the Gentiles escort the Jewish remnant, a repatriation which is seen in verse 20 as an act of 'offering'. Therefore, despite the idea of Gentile wealth being destined for Jerusalem, neither passage here pictures that wealth being carried in a pilgrimage as tribute to King Yahweh ..."
Charles E. Cruise, “The 'Weath of the Nations': A Study in the Intertextuality of Isaiah 60:5,11,” JETS 5.8 (2015): 283–297.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Isaiah 61:6 and LXX Isaiah 61:6

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