Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts!: Look upon renders the same Hebrew verb as “see” in verse 17. Look upon Zion does not merely call on the people of Judah to look at the city. Rather, it calls on them to rely on the city as the place where God dwells. “Look to Zion” expresses this well in English. The city of our appointed feasts is literally “the city of our gathering” (see 1.14). Such gatherings were usually for religious purposes as indicated in many English translations (so Good News Translation), but here we can also say simply “the city where we gather.” New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “our city of assembly.” Bible en français courant says “the city where we celebrate our feasts” (similarly Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch), without an explicit reference to religion.

Your eyes will see Jerusalem may be rendered as an imperative to match the opening call (so Good News Translation, Revised English Bible). It can also be translated as a declarative, as in Revised Standard Version. What the people will see is that Jerusalem is a place of security. This is detailed in the following lines. See renders the same Hebrew verb as “behold” in verse 17.

A quiet habitation refers to a place where the residents live at ease and in peace (see 32.18). This is a general and positive description of Jerusalem’s security in the future.

An immovable tent …: The rest of the verse uses the metaphor of a tent to describe Jerusalem as a secure place. Some languages may need to change this metaphor to a simile (see the examples below). For tent see 13.20. In cultures where tents are not known, this passage may be difficult to translate. Tents were very much part of the Israelite culture that had its roots in a nomadic life style. It will be nearly impossible to translate the Bible without using the word “tent.” If no simple word or a close equivalent is available, translators may use a descriptive phrase, such as “house/hut [made] of cloth.” They should also include an illustration of it and describe it more fully in the glossary.

An immovable tent recalls the Exodus when the Tabernacle, or Tent of Meeting, was put up and taken down throughout the days of wandering in the wilderness. It was a movable sanctuary. Jerusalem is described here as an immovable tent, which means it will be secure and stable. This phrase may be rendered “a tent that cannot be moved.”

Whose stakes will never be plucked up: The stakes are the pegs that hold a tent in place. The stakes refer figuratively to the foundations of Jerusalem, which some languages may need to clarify. This line says the foundations will never be removed.

Nor will any of its cords be broken: The cords are the ropes that anchor the tent poles to the tent pegs. These ropes will not be broken, so the tent will always stand.

For the translation of this verse consider the following examples:

• Look to Zion, the city where we gather!
You will see Jerusalem as a place of peacefulness.
It will be like a tent that cannot be moved,
whose tent pegs cannot be taken up,
and whose ropes cannot be broken.

• Consider Zion, the city where we hold our festivals!
Look at Jerusalem; it will be a place of quietness!
It will be like a tent that can never be taken down,
whose tent pegs cannot be removed,
and whose ropes can never be broken.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Sterk, Jan. A Handbook on Isaiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .