meaning of this difficult text. The opening verse presents the first problem: Comfort, comfort my people, says your God נַחֲמוּ נַחֲמוּ עַמִּי יֹאמַר אֱלֹהֵיכֶם׃ Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and cry to her דַּבְּרוּ עַל לֵב יְרוּשָׁלַיִם וְקִרְאוּ אֵלֶיהָ Plural imperatives (naḥămû; dabbĕrû; qirʾû) and plural possessive suffix (ʾĕlōhêkem) beg the question: Who is being addressed here, by whose God? The targums offer “O ye prophets” (nebiyayaʾ) prefacing the verb (ʾitnabbiʾu). Proving that translations