Happy are you who sow beside all waters: For the Hebrew word rendered Happy are, see the comments on 30.18, where it is translated “blessed is.” You who sow beside all waters describes farmers who sow seed or plant crops in places that are well watered (see 30.23).

These people are also those who let the feet of the ox and the ass range free. This is another picture of an idyllic pastoral scene in which domestic animals are free to wander and feed at will. Let … range free is literally “send out.” This could imply that the herders do not need to find feed for their cattle and donkeys since there is adequate fodder for them to find themselves. For the ox and the ass, see the comments on 1.3.

Translation examples for this verse are:

• Fortunate are those who can plant their seeds by streams,
who can let their oxen and donkeys find pasture.

• Blessed are those who sow their seeds in well-watered places,
who let their oxen and donkeys range freely.

• Blessed [or, Happy] are the ones who can plant crops by streams,
who can let their animals range and feed freely.

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 .