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Isaiah 21
Contemporary English Version
Isaiah 21
Contemporary English Version
The Fall of Babylonia[a]
21 This is a message about a desert beside the sea:[b]
Enemies from a hostile nation
attack like a whirlwind
from the Southern Desert.
2 What a horrible vision
was shown to me—
a vision of betrayal
and destruction.
Tell Elam and Media[c]
to surround and attack
the Babylonians.
The Lord has sworn to end
the suffering they caused.
3 I'm in terrible pain
like a woman giving birth.
I'm shocked and hurt so much
that I can't hear or see.
4 My head spins; I'm horrified!
Early evening, my favorite time,
has become a nightmare.
5 In Babylon the high officials
were having a feast.
They were eating and drinking,
when someone shouted,
“Officers, take your places!
Grab your shields.”
6 The Lord said to me,
“Send guards
to find out
what's going on.
7 When they see cavalry troops
and columns of soldiers
on donkeys and camels,
tell them to be ready!”
8 Then a guard[d] said,
“I have stood day and night
on this watchtower, Lord.
9 (A) Now I see column after column
of cavalry troops.”
At once someone shouted,
“Babylon has fallen!
Every idol in the city
lies broken on the ground.”
10 Then I said, “My people,
you have suffered terribly,
but I have a message for you
from the Lord All-Powerful,
the God of Israel.”
How Much Longer?
11 This is a message about Dumah:
From the country of Seir,[e]
someone shouts to me,
“Guard, how much longer
before daylight?”
12 From my guard post, I answered,
“Morning will soon be here,
but night will return.
If you want to know more,
come back later.”
13 This is a message for Arabs who live in the barren desert in the region of Dedan:[f]
You must order your caravans
14 to bring water for those
who are thirsty.
You people of Tema[g]
must bring food
for the hungry refugees.
15 They are worn out and weary
from being chased by enemies
with swords and arrows.
16 The Lord said to me:
A year from now the glory of the people of Kedar[h] will all come to an end, just as a worker's contract ends after a year. 17 Only a few of their warriors will be left with bows and arrows. This is a promise that I, the Lord God of Israel, have made.
Footnotes
- 21 Title Babylonia: King Cyrus and his army of Medes and Persians captured the city of Babylon in 539 b.c.
- 21.1 This … sea: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. The prophet may be speaking of Babylonia as a desert, because of the terrible punishment God will bring on it. The southern part of Babylonia on the Persian Gulf was sometimes called “the land beside the sea.”
- 21.2 Elam and Media: People from the Iranian highlands; the capital of Elam was Susa, in the hill country east of Babylon.
- 21.8 guard: The Dead Sea Scrolls and one ancient translation; the Standard Hebrew Text has “lion.”
- 21.11 Dumah … Seir: Dumah was an oasis in the Arabian desert. One ancient translation has “Edom,” which may be what is meant. Seir is a mountainous region of Edom southwest of the Dead Sea.
- 21.13 Dedan: A region in northwest Arabia.
- 21.14 Tema: A region in north Arabia.
- 21.16 Kedar: A region in the Arabian desert.
Isaiah 21
New International Version
Isaiah 21
New International Version
A Prophecy Against Babylon
21 A prophecy(A) against the Desert(B) by the Sea:
Like whirlwinds(C) sweeping through the southland,(D)
an invader comes from the desert,
from a land of terror.
2 A dire(E) vision has been shown to me:
The traitor betrays,(F) the looter takes loot.
Elam,(G) attack! Media,(H) lay siege!
I will bring to an end all the groaning she caused.
3 At this my body is racked with pain,(I)
pangs seize me, like those of a woman in labor;(J)
I am staggered by what I hear,
I am bewildered(K) by what I see.
4 My heart(L) falters,
fear makes me tremble;(M)
the twilight I longed for
has become a horror(N) to me.
5 They set the tables,
they spread the rugs,
they eat, they drink!(O)
Get up, you officers,
oil the shields!(P)
6 This is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, post a lookout(Q)
and have him report what he sees.
7 When he sees chariots(R)
with teams of horses,
riders on donkeys
or riders on camels,(S)
let him be alert,
fully alert.”
8 And the lookout[a](T) shouted,
“Day after day, my lord, I stand on the watchtower;
every night I stay at my post.
9 Look, here comes a man in a chariot(U)
with a team of horses.
And he gives back the answer:
‘Babylon(V) has fallen,(W) has fallen!
All the images of its gods(X)
lie shattered(Y) on the ground!’”
10 My people who are crushed on the threshing floor,(Z)
I tell you what I have heard
from the Lord Almighty,
from the God of Israel.
A Prophecy Against Edom
11 A prophecy against Dumah[b]:(AA)
Someone calls to me from Seir,(AB)
“Watchman, what is left of the night?
Watchman, what is left of the night?”
12 The watchman replies,
“Morning is coming, but also the night.
If you would ask, then ask;
and come back yet again.”
A Prophecy Against Arabia
13 A prophecy(AC) against Arabia:(AD)
You caravans of Dedanites,(AE)
who camp in the thickets of Arabia,
14 bring water for the thirsty;
you who live in Tema,(AF)
bring food for the fugitives.
15 They flee(AG) from the sword,(AH)
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow
and from the heat of battle.
16 This is what the Lord says to me: “Within one year, as a servant bound by contract(AI) would count it, all the splendor(AJ) of Kedar(AK) will come to an end. 17 The survivors of the archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.(AL)” The Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.(AM)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 21:8 Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac; Masoretic Text A lion
- Isaiah 21:11 Dumah, a wordplay on Edom, means silence or stillness.
Jesaja 21
Svenska Folkbibeln 2015
Jesaja 21
Svenska Folkbibeln 2015
Babels fall
21 (A) Profetia om Öknen vid havet[a].
Likt en storm som far fram
i Negev
kommer det från öknen,
från det fruktansvärda landet.
2 (B) En hemsk syn
har uppenbarats för mig:
"Bedragaren bedrar,
plundraren plundrar.
Dra upp, Elam!
Träng på, Mediens[b] folk!
På all suckan ska jag göra slut."
3 (C) Därför är mina höfter fulla
av smärta,
jag har gripits av ångest
som en födande kvinnas ångest.
Jag är nertryckt
så att jag inte kan höra,
jag är bestört
så att jag inte kan se.
4 Mitt hjärta är utom sig,
bävan överväldigar mig.
Skymningen som jag längtade efter
får mig att darra.
5 (D) Man dukar bordet, sätter ut vakt,[c]
äter och dricker.
Res er, ni furstar!
Smörj era sköldar!
6 (E) För så har Herren sagt till mig:
"Gå och ställ ut en väktare.
Han ska meddela vad han ser.
7 Ser han ett tåg av ryttare i par,
ryttare på åsnor och på kameler,
ska han ge noga akt,
mycket noga.
8 (F) Han började ryta som ett lejon[d]:
"Herre, här står jag ständigt
på vakt, dagen lång,
jag står här på min post
natt efter natt.
9 (G) Och se, här kommer en vagn
med män och ryttare[e] i par!"
Och han tog till orda och sade:
"Det har fallit! Babel har fallit[f]!
Alla dess avgudabilder
är slagna till marken."
10 Du mitt krossade
och söndertröskade folk,
vad jag har hört från Herren Sebaot,
Israels Gud,
det har jag förkunnat för er.
Profetia om Edom
Man ropar till mig från Seir:
"Väktare, vad är kvar av natten?
Väktare, vad är kvar av natten?"
12 Väktaren svarar:
"Morgon kommer,
ändå är det natt.
Vill ni fråga mer, så fråga.
Kom tillbaka igen."
Profetia om Arabien
13 (I) Profetia om Arabien.
Ni ska bo i Arabiens vildmark,
ni karavaner från Dedan.[h]
14 Möt de törstande med vatten.
De som bor i Temas land
ska möta flyktingarna med bröd,
15 för de flyr undan svärd,
undan draget svärd och spänd båge,
undan krigets tunga börda.
16 (J) För så har Herren sagt till mig:
Inom ett år,
så som daglönaren räknar året,
ska all Kedars[i] härlighet vara borta,
17 och få ska vara kvar
av de många bågskyttarna,
Kedars väldiga krigare.
För så har Herren, Israels Gud, talat.
Footnotes
- 21:1 Öknen vid havet Troligen träsklandet i södra Babylonien nära Persiska viken.
- 21:2 Elam … Medien Folk i västra Iran, allierade med Merodak-Baladan i Babel (vers 9).
- 21:5 vakt Annan översättning: "dynor", kanske en ordlek (jfr vers 6).
- 21:8 ryta som ett lejon Andra handskrifter (Qumran, Peshitta): "ropa, spejaren".
- 21:9 ryttare Annan översättning: "hästar".
- 21:9 Babel har fallit Under Jesajas tid föll Babel 703 f Kr (se även not till 13:1), en motgång för Juda som samtidigt sökt frigöra sig från Assyrien (39:1 med not). När Babel längre fram föll 539 f Kr blev det istället en glädje för gudsfolket (Esra 1:1, Ps 137:8, jfr Upp 14:8, 18:2).
- 21:11 Duma Oas i norra Arabien (1 Mos 25:14). Namnet betyder "tystnad" och anspelar på Edom.
- 21:13f Dedan … Tema Arabstammar i nordvästra Saudiarabien (se Job 6:19, Hes 27:15, 20).
- 21:16 Kedar Nordarabisk herdestam (60:7, Hes 27:21), senare härjad av Nebukadnessar (Jer 49:28f).
Contemporary English Version (CEV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
Svenska Folkbibeln 2015 (SFB15)
Svenska Folkbibeln 2015, Copyright © 2015 by Svenska Folkbibeln Foundation