Speaking of Prophets (23:9-40) 219eral principle in 23:28 (see Note there). It is not necessary, then, to emend to a
second plural with the LXX and S (pace Duhm; Cornill; Holladay).- But if 'the burden of Yahweh' you say. Mezudath Davidb paraphrases: "If
after all these warnings, you still say ... " (Rosenberg). The LXX omits these
words, but most commentators retain. McKane deletes, saying that the LXX
reads more easily. But this is debatable. After a statement of general principle,
a phrase such as the present one is almost required to resume the direct address
and introduce the oracle following, which states the consequences in the event
of noncompliance. The omission could also be due to haplography, since the
end of LXX v 37 has ho theos hymon ("our God"), which presupposes Heb >elo-
henu (homoeoteleuton: w ... w). - Therefore look I, yes I will surely lift you up. Harsh judgment comes in
subtle language, for which reason the Hebrew here is uncertain, and transla-
tion difficulties were experienced early. The MT takes the two verbs as coming
from the root nsh = ns> (with a shin), which could be the verb meaning "to for-
get." The infinitive absolute, naso>, has a final >aleph, reflecting Aramaic and
later Hebrew spelling (GKC §23 1). The words wenasftf >etkem naso> might
then translate, "yes, I will forget you continually," or "yes, I will forget you ut-
terly" (the infinitive absolute after a verb can be to intensify; cf. GKC § l l 3r).
The former reading would scarcely have been acceptable in later Judaism. The
latter is bad enough, which may be why the Mandelkern Lexicon does not list
the verb under nsh, "to forget," but rather under nsh, "to lend" (Cornill, citing
Hitzig, suggests the translation: "I will loan you out"). Kimi.ii interprets the
verb to mean "I will forget." The AV has "I will utterly forget you" and is fol-
lowed by the NJV and NIV but by no other English translation. Most commen-
tators and modern Versions read the first or both verbs as emanating from ns>
(with a sin), "to lift up;' which appear in a few Heb MSS and find support
more or less in the translations of LXX, Aq, Symm, S, and Vg. The LXX trans-
lates the first verb with lambano ("I will seize"), omitting "you" +the infinitive
absolute. The advantage of this reading is that it repeats the play on massa> in
v 33. We can, however, retain "you"+ the infinitive absolute, simply repaint-
ing naso> ("forget") to naso> ("lift up").
and cast you out-also the city that I gave to you and to your fathers-from
my presence. The verb nts ("cast out") is the same verb that occurs in v 33.
Calvin thinks that reference here is to exile, although noting that the verb "cast
out" ill suits stones of a city. His solution is to give the phrase figurative mean-
ing: God will take away the city and its inhabitants as if they were driven away
by the wind. But McKane points out that nts in the sense of "abandon" does fit
the image of a city-i.e., Yahweh will abandon Jerusalem. We have then nts
being used in two senses: the people will be "cast out (into exile)," and the city
will be "abandoned." Kimi.ii says that Yahweh will forsake the people and the
b Mezudath David ("Fortress of David") is the second part of a two-part commentary on the
Prophets and Hagiographa written by the eighteenth-century Jewish biblical exegete David Alt-
schuler of Jaworow, Galicia (modern Poland). It was completed and published by his son, Jehiel
Hillel, in 1780-82 (EncJud 2: 783-84).