In the first two lines of this verse Yahweh continues to outline the fate of those who are unfaithful to him, before noting additional blessings for his servants in the last line and verse 16.

You shall leave your name to my chosen for a curse means that God’s chosen people, his servants, will use the names of the disobedient people when cursing others. Good News Translation puts it clearly that they will use the names of the disobedient as curse words. For my chosen, see Isa 65.9.

And the Lord GOD will slay you: Yahweh says he will also kill those who are unfaithful. He refers to himself using the third person. This sudden change in grammatical person is not unusual in Hebrew poetry. Good News Translation changes the third person reference to first person for consistency, saying “I, the Sovereign LORD, will put you to death.” Other languages may find this helpful. However, since there is also a switch with the pronoun you from plural in the previous line to singular here, some versions view this line as an example of an actual curse; for example, Revised English Bible renders the first two lines of this verse as “Your name will be used as a curse by my chosen ones: ‘May the Lord GOD give you over to death!’” (similarly New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). Bible en français courant is similar with “… ‘May the Lord God make you die such as that one or that one!’” In this rendering the words “that one or that one” refer to the name of one of the disobedient people. Translators may choose either understanding for this line.

But his servants he will call by a different name: In contrast to the bad name for those who are unfaithful, God will give his servants a new name that symbolizes their blessed future (compare 62.2). However, it is not clear whether God will refer to them by this new name (so Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible), or whether it will be his name Yahweh that they will use when they pronounce a blessing. Bible en français courant follows the latter sense by rendering this line as “But for them, for my faithful ones, it is an entirely different name that will be pronounced,” and in verse 16|prj:FRC97.Isa 65.16 Bible en français courant explains that the different name is God’s name. A contrast is thus established between using the name of one of the rebellious people in a curse, and using God’s name in the words of a blessing (verse 16). If the Hebrew verb rendered call means “announce,” then it seems Yahweh is providing his people with a new name to use when they wish to bless one another (so NJPSV footnote|prj:NJPS.Isa 65.15). Translators may follow either sense for this line. As in the previous line, Good News Translation changes the third person references to God to first person, saying “But I will give a new name to those who obey me” (similarly Contemporary English Version, New American Bible, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). New American Bible changes the active expression his servants he will call to a passive one, saying “my servants shall be called” (similarly New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), but there is no textual basis for this. As models for this line, de~Waard recommends either Good News Translation or New Revised Standard Version, which reads “but to his servants he will give a different name.”

For the translation of this verse consider the following examples:

• My chosen ones will use your names as a curse,
and the Lord Yahweh will put you to death.
But for his servants he will provide a new name.

• Your names will be used by my chosen ones when they curse, saying
‘May the Lord Yahweh put you to death!’
But he will provide a new name for his servants [to use].

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 .