Isaiah 21
21
1The burden of the wilderness of the sea. ‘Like hurricanes in the south for passing through, From the wilderness it hath come, From a fearful land.
2A hard vision hath been declared to me, The treacherous dealer is dealing treacherously, And the destroyer is destroying. Go up, O Elam, besiege, O Media, All its sighing I have caused to cease.
3Therefore filled have been my loins [with] great pain, Pangs have seized me as pangs of a travailing woman, I have been bent down by hearing, I have been troubled by seeing.
4Wandered hath my heart, trembling hath terrified me, The twilight of my desire He hath made a fear to me,
5Arrange the table, watch in the watch-tower, Eat, drink, rise, ye heads, anoint the shield,
6For thus said the Lord unto me: ‘Go, station the watchman, That which he seeth let him declare.’
7And he hath seen a chariot — a couple of horsemen, The rider of an ass, the rider of a camel, And he hath given attention — He hath increased attention!
8And he crieth — a lion, ‘On a watch-tower my lord, I am standing continually by day, And on my ward I am stationed whole nights.
9And lo, this, the chariot of a man is coming, A couple of horsemen.’ And he answereth and saith: ‘Fallen, fallen hath Babylon, And all the graven images of her gods He hath broken to the earth.
10O my threshing, and the son of my floor, That which I heard from Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, I have declared to you!’
11The burden of Dumah. Unto me is [one] calling from Seir ‘Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?’
12The watchman hath said, ‘Come hath morning, and also night, If ye inquire, inquire ye, turn back, come.’
13The burden on Arabia. In a forest in Arabia ye lodge, O travellers of Dedanim.
14To meet the thirsty brought water have Inhabitants of the land of Tema, With his bread they came before a fugitive.
15For from the face of destructions they fled, From the face of a stretched-out sword, And from the face of a trodden bow, And from the face of the grievousness of battle.
16For thus said the Lord unto me: ‘Within a year, as years of a hireling, Consumed hath been all the honour of Kedar.
17And the remnant of the number of bow-men, The mighty of the sons of Kedar are few, For Jehovah, God of Israel, hath spoken!’
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Isaiah 21: YLT98
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
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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