Isaiah 21
21
A Judgment on Babylon
1An oracle # Is 13:1 against the desert by the sea: # Is 13:20-22; 14:23; 21:9; Jr 51:41-44
Like storms that pass over the Negev,
it comes from the desert, from the land of terror.
2A troubling vision is declared to me:
“The treacherous one acts treacherously, # Is 24:16; 33:1
and the destroyer destroys.
Advance, Elam! Lay siege, you Medes!
I will put an end to all her groaning.”
3Therefore I am # Lit Therefore my loins are filled with anguish.
Pain grips me, like the pain of a woman in labor. # Ps 48:6; Is 13:8; 16:11; 26:17-18; Jr 4:31; 6:24; 22:23; 30:6; 50:43; Mc 4:9-10; 1Th 5:3
I am too perplexed to hear,
too dismayed to see.
4My heart staggers;
horror terrifies me.
He has turned my last glimmer of hope # Lit my twilight
into sheer terror. # Dt 28:67
5Prepare a table, # Jr 51:39,57; Dn 5:1-4 and spread out a carpet!
Eat and drink!
Rise up, you princes, and oil the shields!
6For the Lord has said to me,
“Go, post a lookout;
let him report what he sees.
7When he sees riders —
pairs of horsemen,
riders on donkeys,
riders on camels —
he must pay close attention.”
8Then the lookout # DSS, Syr; MT reads Then a lion reported,
“Lord, I stand on the watchtower all day, # Hab 2:1
and I stay at my post all night.
9Look, riders come —
horsemen in pairs.”
And he answered, saying,
“Babylon has fallen, # 2Sm 1:19; Is 3:8; 14:12; Jr 51:8; Ezk 32:22; Rv 14:8; 18:2 has fallen.
All the images of her gods
have been shattered on the ground.” # Is 46:1; Jr 50:2; 51:44
10My people who have been crushed
on the threshing floor, # Jr 51:33; Mc 4:13
I have declared to you
what I have heard from the Lord of Hosts,
the God of Israel.
An Oracle against Dumah
11An oracle # Is 21:1 against Dumah: # Some Hb mss, LXX read Edom # Gn 25:14
One calls to me from Seir, # Dt 2:8; Ezk 35:2
“Watchman, what is left of the night?
Watchman, what is left of the night? ”
12The watchman said,
“Morning has come, and also night.
If you want to ask, ask!
Come back again.”
An Oracle against Arabia
13An oracle against Arabia: # Jr 25:23-24; 49:28
In the desert # LXX, Syr, Tg, Vg read desert at evening brush
you will camp for the night,
you caravans of Dedanites. # Gn 10:7; Jr 25:23; 49:8; Ezk 27:15
14Bring water for the thirsty.
The inhabitants of the land of Tema # Gn 25:15; Jb 6:19
meet # LXX, Syr, Tg, Vg read meet as a command the refugees with food.
15For they have fled from swords,
from the drawn sword,
from the bow that is strung,
and from the stress of battle.
16For the Lord said this to me: “Within one year, # Is 16:14 as a hired worker counts years, all the glory of Kedar # Ps 120:5; Sg 1:5; Is 42:11; 60:7; Jr 2:10; Ezk 27:21 will be gone. 17The remaining Kedarite archers will be few in number.” For the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.
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Isaiah 21: HCSB
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© 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 21
21
A Message about Babylon
1This message came to me concerning Babylon—the desert by the sea#21:1 Hebrew concerning the desert by the sea.:
Disaster is roaring down on you from the desert,
like a whirlwind sweeping in from the Negev.
2I see a terrifying vision:
I see the betrayer betraying,
the destroyer destroying.
Go ahead, you Elamites and Medes,
attack and lay siege.
I will make an end
to all the groaning Babylon caused.
3My stomach aches and burns with pain.
Sharp pangs of anguish are upon me,
like those of a woman in labor.
I grow faint when I hear what God is planning;
I am too afraid to look.
4My mind reels and my heart races.
I longed for evening to come,
but now I am terrified of the dark.
5Look! They are preparing a great feast.
They are spreading rugs for people to sit on.
Everyone is eating and drinking.
But quick! Grab your shields and prepare for battle.
You are being attacked!
6Meanwhile, the Lord said to me,
“Put a watchman on the city wall.
Let him shout out what he sees.
7He should look for chariots
drawn by pairs of horses,
and for riders on donkeys and camels.
Let the watchman be fully alert.”
8Then the watchman#21:8 As in Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac version; Masoretic Text reads a lion. called out,
“Day after day I have stood on the watchtower, my lord.
Night after night I have remained at my post.
9Now at last—look!
Here comes a man in a chariot
with a pair of horses!”
Then the watchman said,
“Babylon is fallen, fallen!
All the idols of Babylon
lie broken on the ground!”
10O my people, threshed and winnowed,
I have told you everything the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has said,
everything the God of Israel has told me.
A Message about Edom
11This message came to me concerning Edom#21:11a Hebrew Dumah, which means “silence” or “stillness.” It is a wordplay on the word Edom.:
Someone from Edom#21:11b Hebrew Seir, another name for Edom. keeps calling to me,
“Watchman, how much longer until morning?
When will the night be over?”
12The watchman replies,
“Morning is coming, but night will soon return.
If you wish to ask again, then come back and ask.”
A Message about Arabia
13This message came to me concerning Arabia:
O caravans from Dedan,
hide in the deserts of Arabia.
14O people of Tema,
bring water to these thirsty people,
food to these weary refugees.
15They have fled from the sword,
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow
and the terrors of battle.
16The Lord said to me, “Within a year, counting each day,#21:16 Hebrew Within a year, as a servant bound by contract would count it. Some ancient manuscripts read Within three years, as in 16:14. all the glory of Kedar will come to an end. 17Only a few of its courageous archers will survive. I, the Lord, the God of Israel, have spoken!”
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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