Isaiah 21
21
God’s Message About Babylon
1This is a message#21:1 message Or “burden.” Also in verses 11, 13. about the “desert by the sea”#21:1 the desert by the sea Probably Babylon.:
It is coming like a storm blowing through the Negev.
It is coming in from the desert, from a frightening nation.
2I was given a vision of the hard times to come.
I see traitors turning against you.
I see people taking your wealth.
Elam, go against them!
Media, surround the city!
I will put an end to all their moaning.
3I saw those terrible things, and now I am afraid.
My fear makes my stomach hurt like the pain of giving birth.
What I hear frightens me.
What I see makes me shake with fear.
4I am worried and shaking with fear.
My pleasant evening has become a nightmare.
5People are rushing around shouting their orders:
“Set the table!
Post the guard!
Get something to eat and drink!
Officers, get up!
Polish your shields!”
6The Lord said to me, “Go find someone to guard this city. He must report whatever he sees. 7Whether he sees a chariot and a team of horses or men riding donkeys or camels, he must listen carefully.”#21:7 Or “Whether he sees a column of teams of horsemen, columns of donkeys, or columns of camels, he must listen carefully.”
8Then one day the watchman#21:8 the watchman “the seer,” an ancient title for a prophet. The standard Hebrew text has “a lion.” called out,
“My master, every day I have been in the watchtower#21:8 watchtower A tall building where guards stood and watched to see if anyone was coming near their city. watching.
Every night I have been standing on duty.
9Look! I see a man in a chariot
with a team of horses.#21:9 a man … horses Or “a column of teams of horsemen.” This might be a team of horses pulling a war chariot or mounted archers in the Assyrian army who often worked in pairs.”
The messenger said,
“Babylon has been defeated!
It has fallen to the ground!
All the statues of her false gods
were thrown to the ground and broken to pieces.”
10My people, you will be like the grain crushed on my threshing floor. I have told you everything I heard from the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel.
God’s Message About Dumah
11This is a message about Dumah#21:11 Dumah This Hebrew word means “silence.” It may refer to Edom or to a city in Arabia.:
There is someone calling to me from Seir,#21:11 Seir A mountain in Edom or a city in Arabia.
“Guard, how much of the night is left?
How much longer will it be night?”
12The guard answered,
“Morning is coming, but then night will come again.
If you have something else to ask,
then come back#21:12 come back This can also mean “change your heart” or “repent.” later and ask.”
God’s Message About Arabia
13This is a message about Arabia:
A caravan from Dedan spent the night
near some trees in the Arabian Desert.
14They gave water to some thirsty travelers.
The people of Tema gave them food.
15They were running from swords
that were ready to kill.
They were running from bows
that were ready to shoot.
They were running from a hard battle.
16The Lord told me this would happen. He said, “In one year, the way a hired helper counts time, all Kedar’s glory will be gone. 17Only a few of the archers, the great soldiers of Kedar, will be left alive.” The Lord, the God of Israel, told me this.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Isaiah 21
21
Babylon Is Fallen
(Revelation 18:1–8)
1This is the burden against the Desert by the Sea:
Like whirlwinds sweeping through the Negev,
an invader comes from the desert,
from a land of terror.
2A dire vision is declared to me:
“The traitor still betrays,
and the destroyer still destroys.
Go up, O Elam! Lay siege, O Media!
I will put an end to all her groaning.”
3Therefore my body is filled with anguish.
Pain grips me, like the pains of a woman in labor.
I am bewildered to hear,
I am dismayed to see.
4My heart falters;
fear makes me tremble.
The twilight of my desire
has turned to horror.
5They prepare a table, they lay out a carpet,
they eat, they drink!
Rise up, O princes, oil the shields!
6For this is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, post a lookout
and have him report what he sees.
7When he sees chariots with teams of horsemen,
riders on donkeys, riders on camels,
he must be alert, fully alert.”
8Then the lookout #21:8 DSS and Syriac; MT lion shouted:
“Day after day, my lord,
I stand on the watchtower;
night after night
I stay at my post.
9Look, here come the riders,
horsemen in pairs.”
And one answered, saying:
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon!#21:9 See Revelation 14:8 and Revelation 18:2.
All the images of her gods
lie shattered on the ground!”
10O my people, crushed on the threshing floor,
I tell you what I have heard
from the Lord of Hosts,
the God of Israel.
The Burden against Edom
(Isaiah 34:5–17)
11This is the burden against Dumah:#21:11 Dumah is a wordplay on Edom, meaning silence.
One calls to me from Seir,#21:11 Seir is another name for Edom.
“Watchman, what is left of the night?
Watchman, what is left of the night?”
12The watchman replies,
“Morning has come, but also the night.
If you would inquire, then inquire.
Come back yet again.”
The Burden against Arabia
13This is the burden against Arabia:
In the thickets of Arabia you must lodge,
O caravans of Dedanites.
14Bring water for the thirsty,
O dwellers of Tema;
meet the refugees with food.
15For they flee from the sword—
the sword that is drawn—
from the bow that is bent,
and from the stress of battle.
16For this is what the Lord says to me: “Within one year, as a hired worker would count it, all the glory of Kedar will be gone. 17The remaining archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.”
For the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.
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The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible, BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee. This text of God's Word has been dedicated to the public domain.