Proclamation Against Syria and Israel

17 The (A)burden[a] against Damascus.

“Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city,
And it will be a ruinous heap.
[b]The cities of (B)Aroer are forsaken;
They will be for flocks
Which lie down, and (C)no one will make them afraid.
(D)The fortress also will cease from Ephraim,
The kingdom from Damascus,
And the remnant of Syria;
They will be as the glory of the children of Israel,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

“In that day it shall come to pass
That the glory of Jacob will [c]wane,
And (E)the fatness of his flesh grow lean.
(F)It shall be as when the harvester gathers the grain,
And reaps the heads with his arm;
It shall be as he who gathers heads of grain
In the Valley of Rephaim.
(G)Yet gleaning grapes will be left in it,
Like the shaking of an olive tree,
Two or three olives at the top of the uppermost bough,
Four or five in its most fruitful branches,”
Says the Lord God of Israel.

In that day a man will (H)look to his Maker,
And his eyes will have respect for the Holy One of Israel.
He will not look to the altars,
The work of his hands;
He will not respect what his (I)fingers have made,
Nor the [d]wooden images nor the incense altars.

In that day his strong cities will be as a forsaken [e]bough
And [f]an uppermost branch,
Which they left because of the children of Israel;
And there will be desolation.

10 Because you have forgotten (J)the God of your salvation,
And have not been mindful of the Rock of your [g]stronghold,
Therefore you will plant pleasant plants
And set out foreign seedlings;
11 In the day you will make your plant to grow,
And in the morning you will make your seed to flourish;
But the harvest will be a heap of ruins
In the day of grief and desperate sorrow.

12 Woe to the multitude of many people
Who make a noise (K)like the roar of the seas,
And to the rushing of nations
That make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
13 The nations will rush like the rushing of many waters;
But God will (L)rebuke them and they will flee far away,
And (M)be chased like the chaff of the mountains before the wind,
Like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
14 Then behold, at eventide, trouble!
And before the morning, he is no more.
This is the portion of those who plunder us,
And the lot of those who rob us.

Proclamation Against Ethiopia

18 Woe (N)to the land shadowed with buzzing wings,
Which is beyond the rivers of [h]Ethiopia,
Which sends ambassadors by sea,
Even in vessels of reed on the waters, saying,
“Go, swift messengers, to a nation tall and smooth of skin,
To a people terrible from their beginning onward,
A nation powerful and treading down,
Whose land the rivers divide.”

All inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the earth:
(O)When he lifts up a banner on the mountains, you see it;
And when he blows a trumpet, you hear it.
For so the Lord said to me,
“I will take My rest,
And I will [i]look from My dwelling place
Like clear heat in sunshine,
Like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”
For before the harvest, when the bud is perfect
And the sour grape is ripening in the flower,
He will both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks
And take away and cut down the branches.
They will be left together for the mountain birds of prey
And for the beasts of the earth;
The birds of prey will summer on them,
And all the beasts of the earth will winter on them.

In that time (P)a present will be brought to the Lord of hosts
[j]From a people tall and smooth of skin,
And from a people terrible from their beginning onward,
A nation powerful and treading down,
Whose land the rivers divide—
To the place of the name of the Lord of hosts,
To Mount Zion.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 17:1 oracle, prophecy
  2. Isaiah 17:2 So with MT, Vg.; LXX It shall be forsaken forever; Tg. Its cities shall be forsaken and desolate
  3. Isaiah 17:4 fade
  4. Isaiah 17:8 Heb. Asherim, Canaanite deities
  5. Isaiah 17:9 LXX Hivites; Tg. laid waste; Vg. as the plows
  6. Isaiah 17:9 LXX Amorites; Tg. in ruins; Vg. corn
  7. Isaiah 17:10 refuge
  8. Isaiah 18:1 Heb. Cush
  9. Isaiah 18:4 watch
  10. Isaiah 18:7 So with DSS, LXX, Vg.; MT omits From; Tg. To

17 מַשָּׂ֖א דַּמָּ֑שֶׂק הִנֵּ֤ה דַמֶּ֙שֶׂק֙ מוּסָ֣ר מֵעִ֔יר וְהָיְתָ֖ה מְעִ֥י מַפָּלָֽה׃

עֲזֻב֖וֹת עָרֵ֣י עֲרֹעֵ֑ר לַעֲדָרִ֣ים תִּֽהְיֶ֔ינָה וְרָבְצ֖וּ וְאֵ֥ין מַחֲרִֽיד׃

וְנִשְׁבַּ֤ת מִבְצָר֙ מֵֽאֶפְרַ֔יִם וּמַמְלָכָ֥ה מִדַּמֶּ֖שֶׂק וּשְׁאָ֣ר אֲרָ֑ם כִּכְב֤וֹד בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ יִֽהְי֔וּ נְאֻ֖ם יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת׃ ס

וְהָיָה֙ בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֔וּא יִדַּ֖ל כְּב֣וֹד יַעֲקֹ֑ב וּמִשְׁמַ֥ן בְּשָׂר֖וֹ יֵרָזֶֽה׃

וְהָיָ֗ה כֶּֽאֱסֹף֙ קָצִ֣יר קָמָ֔ה וּזְרֹע֖וֹ שִׁבֳּלִ֣ים יִקְצ֑וֹר וְהָיָ֛ה כִּמְלַקֵּ֥ט שִׁבֳּלִ֖ים בְּעֵ֥מֶק רְפָאִֽים׃

וְנִשְׁאַר־בּ֤וֹ עֽוֹלֵלֹת֙ כְּנֹ֣קֶף זַ֔יִת שְׁנַ֧יִם שְׁלֹשָׁ֛ה גַּרְגְּרִ֖ים בְּרֹ֣אשׁ אָמִ֑יר אַרְבָּעָ֣ה חֲמִשָּׁ֗ה בִּסְעִפֶ֙יהָ֙ פֹּֽרִיָּ֔ה נְאֻם־יְהוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ ס

בַּיּ֣וֹם הַה֔וּא יִשְׁעֶ֥ה הָאָדָ֖ם עַל־עֹשֵׂ֑הוּ וְעֵינָ֕יו אֶל־קְד֥וֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל תִּרְאֶֽינָה׃

וְלֹ֣א יִשְׁעֶ֔ה אֶל־הַֽמִּזְבְּח֖וֹת מַעֲשֵׂ֣ה יָדָ֑יו וַאֲשֶׁ֨ר עָשׂ֤וּ אֶצְבְּעֹתָיו֙ לֹ֣א יִרְאֶ֔ה וְהָאֲשֵׁרִ֖ים וְהָחַמָּנִֽים׃

בַּיּ֨וֹם הַה֜וּא יִהְי֣וּ׀ עָרֵ֣י מָעֻזּ֗וֹ כַּעֲזוּבַ֤ת הַחֹ֙רֶשׁ֙ וְהָ֣אָמִ֔יר אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָזְב֔וּ מִפְּנֵ֖י בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וְהָיְתָ֖ה שְׁמָמָֽה׃

10 כִּ֤י שָׁכַ֙חַתְּ֙ אֱלֹהֵ֣י יִשְׁעֵ֔ךְ וְצ֥וּר מָעֻזֵּ֖ךְ לֹ֣א זָכָ֑רְתְּ עַל־כֵּ֗ן תִּטְּעִי֙ נִטְעֵ֣י נַעֲמָנִ֔ים וּזְמֹ֥רַת זָ֖ר תִּזְרָעֶֽנּוּ׃

11 בְּי֤וֹם נִטְעֵךְ֙ תְּשַׂגְשֵׂ֔גִי וּבַבֹּ֖קֶר זַרְעֵ֣ךְ תַּפְרִ֑יחִי נֵ֥ד קָצִ֛יר בְּי֥וֹם נַחֲלָ֖ה וּכְאֵ֥ב אָנֽוּשׁ׃ ס

12 ה֗וֹי הֲמוֹן֙ עַמִּ֣ים רַבִּ֔ים כַּהֲמ֥וֹת יַמִּ֖ים יֶהֱמָי֑וּן וּשְׁא֣וֹן לְאֻמִּ֔ים כִּשְׁא֛וֹן מַ֥יִם כַּבִּירִ֖ים יִשָּׁאֽוּן׃

13 לְאֻמִּ֗ים כִּשְׁא֞וֹן מַ֤יִם רַבִּים֙ יִשָּׁא֔וּן וְגָ֥עַר בּ֖וֹ וְנָ֣ס מִמֶּרְחָ֑ק וְרֻדַּ֗ף כְּמֹ֤ץ הָרִים֙ לִפְנֵי־ר֔וּחַ וּכְגַלְגַּ֖ל לִפְנֵ֥י סוּפָֽה׃

14 לְעֵ֥ת עֶ֙רֶב֙ וְהִנֵּ֣ה בַלָּהָ֔ה בְּטֶ֥רֶם בֹּ֖קֶר אֵינֶ֑נּוּ זֶ֚ה חֵ֣לֶק שׁוֹסֵ֔ינוּ וְגוֹרָ֖ל לְבֹזְזֵֽינוּ׃ ס

18 ה֥וֹי אֶ֖רֶץ צִלְצַ֣ל כְּנָפָ֑יִם אֲשֶׁ֥ר מֵעֵ֖בֶר לְנַֽהֲרֵי־כֽוּשׁ׃

הַשֹּׁלֵ֨חַ בַּיָּ֜ם צִירִ֗ים וּבִכְלֵי־גֹמֶא֮ עַל־פְּנֵי־מַיִם֒ לְכ֣וּ׀ מַלְאָכִ֣ים קַלִּ֗ים אֶל־גּוֹי֙ מְמֻשָּׁ֣ךְ וּמוֹרָ֔ט אֶל־עַ֥ם נוֹרָ֖א מִן־ה֣וּא וָהָ֑לְאָה גּ֚וֹי קַו־קָ֣ו וּמְבוּסָ֔ה אֲשֶׁר־בָּזְא֥וּ נְהָרִ֖ים אַרְצֽוֹ׃

כָּל־יֹשְׁבֵ֥י תֵבֵ֖ל וְשֹׁ֣כְנֵי אָ֑רֶץ כִּנְשֹׂא־נֵ֤ס הָרִים֙ תִּרְא֔וּ וְכִתְקֹ֥עַ שׁוֹפָ֖ר תִּשְׁמָֽעוּ׃ ס

כִּי֩ כֹ֨ה אָמַ֤ר יְהוָה֙ אֵלַ֔י ׳אֶשְׁקוֹטָה׳ ״אֶשְׁקֳטָ֖ה״ וְאַבִּ֣יטָה בִמְכוֹנִ֑י כְּחֹ֥ם צַח֙ עֲלֵי־א֔וֹר כְּעָ֥ב טַ֖ל בְּחֹ֥ם קָצִֽיר׃

כִּֽי־לִפְנֵ֤י קָצִיר֙ כְּתָם־פֶּ֔רַח וּבֹ֥סֶר גֹּמֵ֖ל יִֽהְיֶ֣ה נִצָּ֑ה וְכָרַ֤ת הַזַּלְזַלִּים֙ בַּמַּזְמֵר֔וֹת וְאֶת־הַנְּטִישׁ֖וֹת הֵסִ֥יר הֵתַֽז׃

יֵעָזְב֤וּ יַחְדָּו֙ לְעֵ֣יט הָרִ֔ים וּֽלְבֶהֱמַ֖ת הָאָ֑רֶץ וְקָ֤ץ עָלָיו֙ הָעַ֔יִט וְכָל־בֶּהֱמַ֥ת הָאָ֖רֶץ עָלָ֥יו תֶּחֱרָֽף׃

בָּעֵת֩ הַהִ֨יא יֽוּבַל־שַׁ֜י לַיהוָ֣ה צְבָא֗וֹת עַ֚ם מְמֻשָּׁ֣ךְ וּמוֹרָ֔ט וּמֵעַ֥ם נוֹרָ֖א מִן־ה֣וּא וָהָ֑לְאָה גּ֣וֹי׀ קַו־קָ֣ו וּמְבוּסָ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר בָּזְא֤וּ נְהָרִים֙ אַרְצ֔וֹ אֶל־מְק֛וֹם שֵׁם־יְהוָ֥ה צְבָא֖וֹת הַר־צִיּֽוֹן׃ ס

17 The burden of Damascus. Lo, Damascus is taken away from [being] a city, And it hath been a heap -- a ruin.

Forsaken are the cities of Aroer, For droves they are, and they have lain down, And there is none troubling.

And ceased hath the fortress from Ephraim, And the kingdom from Damascus, And the remnant of Aram are as the honour of the sons of Israel, The affirmation of Jehovah of Hosts!

And it hath come to pass, in that day, Wax poor doth the honour of Jacob, And the fatness of his flesh doth wax lean.

And it hath come to pass, As the gathering by the reaper of the standing corn, And his arm the ears reapeth, And it hath come to pass, As the gathering of the ears in the valley of Rephaim,

And left in him have been gleanings, As the compassing of an olive, Two -- three berries on the top of a branch, Four -- five on the fruitful boughs, The affirmation of Jehovah, God of Israel!

In that day doth man look to His Maker, Yea, his eyes to the Holy One of Israel look,

And he looketh not unto the altars. The work of his own hands, And that which his own fingers made He seeth not -- the shrines and the images.

In that day are the cities of his strength As the forsaken thing of the forest, And the branch that they have left, Because of the sons of Israel, It also hath been a desolation.

10 Because thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation, And the rock of thy strength hast not remembered, Therefore thou plantest plants of pleasantness, And with a strange slip sowest it,

11 In the day thy plant thou causest to become great, And in the morning thy seed makest to flourish, A heap [is] the harvest in a day of overflowing, And of mortal pain.

12 Wo [to] the multitude of many peoples, As the sounding of seas they sound; And [to] the wasting of nations, As the wasting of mighty waters they are wasted.

13 Nations as the wasting of many waters are wasted, And He hath pushed against it, And it hath fled afar off, And been pursued as chaff of hills before wind, And as a rolling thing before a hurricane.

14 At even-time, lo, terror, before morning it is not, This [is] the portion of our spoilers, And the lot of our plunderers!

18 Ho, land shadowed [with] wings, That [is] beyond the rivers of Cush,

That is sending by sea ambassadors, Even with implements of reed on the face of the waters, -- Go, ye light messengers, Unto a nation drawn out and peeled, Unto a people fearful from its beginning and onwards, A nation meeting out by line, and treading down, Whose land floods have spoiled.

All ye inhabitants of the world, And ye dwellers of earth, At the lifting up of an ensign on hills ye look, And at the blowing of a trumpet ye hear.

For thus said Jehovah unto me, `I rest, and I look on My settled place, As a clear heat on an herb. As a thick cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.

For before harvest, when the flower is perfect, And the blossom is producing unripe fruit, Then hath [one] cut the sprigs with pruning hooks, And the branches he hath turned aside, cut down.

They are left together to the ravenous fowl of the mountains, And to the beast of the earth, And summered on them hath the ravenous fowl, And every beast of the earth wintereth on them.

At that time brought is a present to Jehovah of Hosts, A nation drawn out and peeled. Even of a people fearful from the beginning hitherto, A nation meting out by line, and treading down, Whose land floods have spoiled, Unto the place of the name of Jehovah of Hosts -- mount Zion!'

Prophecy about Damascus

17 The (A)pronouncement concerning (B)Damascus:

“Behold, Damascus is about to be (C)removed from being a city
And will become a (D)fallen ruin.
The cities [a]of (E)Aroer are abandoned;
They will be for (F)herds [b]to lie down in,
And there will be (G)no one to frighten them.
The [c](H)fortified city will disappear from Ephraim,
And [d]sovereignty from Damascus
And the remnant of Aram;
They will be like the (I)glory of the sons of Israel,”
Declares the Lord of armies.

Now on that day the (J)glory of Jacob will [e]fade,
And (K)the fatness of his flesh will become lean.
It will be (L)like the [f]reaper gathering the standing grain,
As his arm harvests the ears,
Or it will be like one gleaning ears of grain
In the (M)Valley of Rephaim.
Yet (N)gleanings will be left in it like the [g]shaking of an olive tree,
Two or three olives on the topmost branch,
Four or five on the branches of a fruitful tree,
Declares the Lord, the God of Israel.
On that day man will (O)look to his Maker
And his eyes will look to the Holy One of Israel.
And he will not look to the (P)altars, the work of his hands,
Nor will he look to that which his (Q)fingers have made,
Even the [h](R)Asherim and incense altars.
On that day [i]their strong cities will be like [j]abandoned places in the forest,
Or like branches which they abandoned before the sons of Israel;
And [k]the land will be a desolation.
10 For (S)you have forgotten the (T)God of your salvation
And have not remembered the (U)rock of your refuge.
Therefore you plant delightful plants
And set them with vine shoots of a strange god.
11 On the day that you plant it you carefully fence it in,
And in the (V)morning you bring your seed to blossom;
But the harvest will (W)flee
On a day of illness and incurable pain.

12 Oh, the uproar of many peoples
(X)Who roar like the roaring of the seas,
And the rumbling of nations
Who rush on like the (Y)rumbling of mighty waters!
13 The (Z)nations rumble on like the rumbling of many waters,
But He will (AA)rebuke them, and they will flee far away,
And be chased (AB)like chaff on the mountains before the wind,
Or like whirling dust before a gale.
14 At evening time, behold, there is terror!
Before morning (AC)they are gone.
This will be the [l]fate of those who plunder us
And the lot of those who pillage us.

Message to Ethiopia

18 Woe, land of whirring wings
Which lies beyond the rivers of [m](AD)Cush,
Which sends messengers by the sea,
Even in (AE)papyrus vessels on the surface of the waters.
Go, swift messengers, to a nation [n](AF)tall and smooth,
To a people (AG)feared [o]far and wide,
A powerful and oppressive nation
Whose land the rivers divide.
(AH)All you who inhabit the world, and live on earth,
As soon as a flag is raised on the mountains, (AI)you will see it,
And as soon as the trumpet is blown, you will hear it.

For this is what the Lord has told me:

“I will quietly look [p]from My (AJ)dwelling place
Like dazzling heat in the [q](AK)sunshine,
Like a cloud of (AL)dew in the heat of harvest.”
For (AM)before the harvest, as soon as the bud [r]blossoms
And the flower becomes a ripening grape,
He will cut off the shoots with pruning knives,
And remove and tear away the spreading branches.
They will be left together for mountain birds (AN)of prey,
And for the animals of the earth;
And the birds of prey will spend the summer feeding on them,
And all the animals of the earth will spend harvest time on them.
At that time a gift of tribute will be brought to the Lord of armies
[s]From a (AO)people [t]tall and smooth,
From a people feared [u]far and wide,
A powerful and oppressive nation,
Whose land the rivers divide—
To the (AP)place of the name of the Lord of armies, to Mount Zion.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 17:2 LXX forever and ever
  2. Isaiah 17:2 Lit and they will lie down
  3. Isaiah 17:3 Or fortification
  4. Isaiah 17:3 Or royal power
  5. Isaiah 17:4 Lit become little
  6. Isaiah 17:5 Lit gathering of the harvest, the standing grain
  7. Isaiah 17:6 Lit striking
  8. Isaiah 17:8 I.e., wooden symbols of a female deity (Asherah)
  9. Isaiah 17:9 Lit his; i.e., mankind’s
  10. Isaiah 17:9 LXX the deserted places of the Amorites and the Hivites which they abandoned
  11. Isaiah 17:9 Lit it
  12. Isaiah 17:14 Lit portion
  13. Isaiah 18:1 Or Ethiopia
  14. Isaiah 18:2 Lit drawn out
  15. Isaiah 18:2 Lit from it and beyond
  16. Isaiah 18:4 Lit in
  17. Isaiah 18:4 Lit light
  18. Isaiah 18:5 Lit is finished
  19. Isaiah 18:7 Some ancient versions and DSS; MT implies Consisting of a people
  20. Isaiah 18:7 Lit drawn out
  21. Isaiah 18:7 Lit from it and beyond