8:8a–b
This verse describes Israel’s destruction by foreign nations (8:8a) and its lack of value as a result (8:8b).
8a Israel is swallowed up!
8b Now they are among the nations like a worthless vessel.
There is an obvious connection with the previous verse. In 8:7e foreigners literally swallow grain or flour. In 8:8a foreigners figuratively swallow Israel.
8:8a
Israel is swallowed up: This line is a metaphor. It compares the destruction of Israel by foreign nations to a person who swallows all the food in a dish. The similarity is that Israel and the food are no longer there. The tense of the verb indicates either that the destruction has already begun or that it is certain to happen.
Here are some other ways to translate this metaphor:
• Keep the metaphor. For example:
Israel is eaten up. (New Century Version)
-or-
Israel will be swallowed up. (God’s Word)
• Change the metaphor to a simile. For example:
⌊ It is as if⌋Israel is being swallowed ⌊by other nations ⌋.
-or-
⌊ Foreigners will destroy⌋the nation of Israel ⌊like a person ⌋ swallows ⌊the food on a plate ⌋.
• Translate the meaning without using a figure of speech. For example:
Israel, you are ruined (Contemporary English Version)
8:8b
Now they are among the nations like a worthless vessel: This statement describes the condition of Israel when it is swallowed up by foreign nations. It has lost its value as an independent nation. There are three ways to interpret this statement:
(1) It describes the worthless status of Israel when its people no longer live in their land. They are now scattered among foreign people. For example:
It has already mixed in with the other nations. It has become worthless. (God’s Word)
(2) It does not speak about whether the people live in the land of Israel or not. It describes the worthless status of Israel a) in the viewpoint of other nations or b) in comparison with other nations. For example:
and now the nations consider you worthless (Contemporary English Version)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). This interpretation is similar to 7:8, which says that Israel mixes with the nations and is like a worthless cake of bread. It is also an accurate description of Israel’s history. Historically, the Assyrians conquered Israel and sent the people to live in other nations.
Now: In this context the word Now probably indicates present time.
Here is another way to translate it:
already they are among the nations (Revised Standard Version)
In some languages, it may not be necessary to translate this word explicitly if the meaning is implied from the context.
like a worthless vessel: In Hebrew, this phrase is literally “like a vessel [that has] not pleasure in it.” In this phrase the word vessel can refer to a utensil, tool, or pot. This phrase is a simile in which the nation of Israel is compared to a piece of pottery that no one wants. The similarities are that both are destroyed and useless.
Here are some other ways to translate this simile:
• Keep the specific simile and make explicit one or more of the similarities. For example:
like a worthless piece of pottery (NET Bible)
-or-
as useless as a broken pot (Good News Translation)
-or-
like an old discarded pot (New Living Translation (2004))
• Translate the simile more generally. For example:
like something no one wants (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
like a thing of no value (Revised English Bible)
• Translate the meaning without a figure of speech. For example:
It has become worthless. (God’s Word)
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