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
21
A Judgment on Babylon
1A pronouncement#Is 13:1 concerning 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 the groaning.”
3Therefore I am#21:3 Lit my waist is, or my insides 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#21:4 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#21:8 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 Armies,
the God of Israel.
A Pronouncement against Dumah
11A pronouncement#Is 21:1 concerning Dumah:#21:11 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.”
A Pronouncement against Arabia
13A pronouncement concerning Arabia:#Jr 25:23–24; 49:28
In the desert#21:13 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#21:14 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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