Isaiah 15
15
The Lord Will Judge Moab
1 Here is a message about Moab:
Indeed, in a night it is devastated,
Ar of Moab is destroyed!
Indeed, in a night it is devastated,
Kir of Moab is destroyed!
2 They went up to the temple,#tn Heb “house.”
the people of Dibon went up to the high places to lament.#tn Heb “even Dibon [to] the high places to weep.” The verb “went up” does double duty in the parallel structure.
Because of what happened to Nebo and Medeba,#tn Heb “over [or “for”] Nebo and over [or “for”] Medeba.” Moab wails.
Every head is shaved bare,
every beard is trimmed off.#sn Shaving the head and beard were outward signs of mourning and grief.
3 In their streets they wear sackcloth;
on their roofs and in their town squares
all of them wail,
they fall down weeping.
4 The people of#tn The words “the people of” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Heshbon and Elealeh cry out,
their voices are heard as far away as Jahaz.
For this reason Moab’s soldiers shout in distress;
their courage wavers.#tc The Hebrew text has, “For this reason the soldiers of Moab shout, his inner being quivers for him.” To achieve tighter parallelism, some emend the first line, changing חֲלֻצֵי (khalutse, “soldiers”) to חַלְצֵי (khaltse, “loins”) and יָרִיעוּ (yari’u, “they shout,” from רוּעַ, rua’) to יָרְעוּ (yor’u, “they quiver”), a verb from יָרַע (yara’), which also appears in the next line. One can then translate v. 4b as “For this reason the insides of the Moabites quiver, their whole body shakes” (cf. NAB, NRSV).
5 My heart cries out because of Moab’s plight,#tn Heb “for Moab.” For rhetorical purposes the speaker (the Lord?, see v. 9) plays the role of a mourner.
and for the fugitives#tn The vocalization of the Hebrew text suggests “the bars of her gates,” but the form should be repointed to yield, “her fugitives.” See HALOT 156-57 s.v. בָּרִחַ, and BDB 138 s.v. בָּרִיהַ. stretched out#tn The words “are stretched out” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. as far as Zoar and Eglath Shelishiyah.
For they weep as they make their way up the ascent of Luhith;
they loudly lament their demise on the road to Horonaim.#tn Heb “For the ascent of Luhith, with weeping they go up it; for [on] the road to Horonaim an outcry over shattering they raise up.”
6 For the waters of Nimrim are gone;#tn Heb “are waste places”; cf. NRSV “are a desolation.”
the grass is dried up,
the vegetation has disappeared,
and there are no plants.
7 For this reason what they have made and stored up,
they carry over the Stream of the Poplars.
8 Indeed, the cries of distress echo throughout Moabite territory;
their wailing can be heard in Eglaim and Beer Elim.#tn Heb “to Eglaim [is] her wailing, and [to] Beer Elim [is] her wailing.”
9 Indeed, the waters of Dimon#tc The Qumran scroll 1QIsaa reads “Dibon” instead of “Dimon” in this verse. are full of blood!
Indeed, I will heap even more trouble on Dimon.#tn Heb “Indeed I will place on Dimon added things.” Apparently the Lord is speaking.
A lion will attack#tn The words “will attack” are supplied in the translation for clarification. the Moabite fugitives
and the people left in the land.
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Isaiah 15: NET
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1996 - 2007 by Biblical Studies Press, LLC
Isaiah 15
15
A Message about Moab
1This message came to me concerning Moab:
In one night the town of Ar will be leveled,
and the city of Kir will be destroyed.
2Your people will go to their temple in Dibon to mourn.
They will go to their sacred shrines to weep.
They will wail for the fate of Nebo and Medeba,
shaving their heads in sorrow and cutting off their beards.
3They will wear burlap as they wander the streets.
From every home and public square will come the sound of wailing.
4The people of Heshbon and Elealeh will cry out;
their voices will be heard as far away as Jahaz!
The bravest warriors of Moab will cry out in utter terror.
They will be helpless with fear.
5My heart weeps for Moab.
Its people flee to Zoar and Eglath-shelishiyah.
Weeping, they climb the road to Luhith.
Their cries of distress can be heard all along the road to Horonaim.
6Even the waters of Nimrim are dried up!
The grassy banks are scorched.
The tender plants are gone;
nothing green remains.
7The people grab their possessions
and carry them across the Ravine of Willows.
8A cry of distress echoes through the land of Moab
from one end to the other—
from Eglaim to Beer-elim.
9The stream near Dibon#15:9 As in Dead Sea Scrolls, some Greek manuscripts, and Latin Vulgate; Masoretic Text reads Dimon; also in 15:9b. runs red with blood,
but I am still not finished with Dibon!
Lions will hunt down the survivors—
both those who try to escape
and those who remain behind.
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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