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Isaiah 19-23
GOD’S WORD Translation
Isaiah 19-23
GOD’S WORD Translation
Egypt Will Be Punished
19 This is the divine revelation about Egypt.
The Lord is riding on a fast-moving cloud and is coming to Egypt.
Egypt’s idols will tremble in his presence.
Egypt’s courage will fail.
2 “I will turn one Egyptian against another.
They will fight—
brother against brother,
neighbor against neighbor,
city against city,
kingdom against kingdom.
3 The Egyptians will lose courage.
I will unravel their plans.
They will turn to idols, ghosts,
mediums, and fortunetellers.
4 I will hand over the Egyptians to a harsh master.
A strong king will rule them,”
declares the Almighty Lord of Armies.
5 The water in the Nile River will be dried up,[a]
and the river will be dry and empty.
6 The canals will stink.
Egypt’s streams will be emptied and dried up.
The reeds and cattails will wither.
7 The rushes by the Nile, by the edge of the Nile,
and all the fields planted beside the Nile
will dry up, be blown away, and disappear.
8 Fishermen will cry.
All who cast their lines into the Nile will mourn.
Those who spread their nets on the water will sigh.
9 Linenworkers and weavers will be ashamed.
10 Egypt’s weavers will be crushed.
Those who work for money will be distressed.
11 The leaders of Zoan are nothing but fools.
The wisest of Pharaoh’s counselors gives stupid advice.
How can you tell Pharaoh,
“I’m a descendant of wise men,
a descendant of ancient kings”?
12 Where are your wise men now?
Let them tell you.
Let them explain what the Lord of Armies
is planning against Egypt.
13 The leaders of Zoan are acting foolishly.
The leaders of Memphis are led astray.
The leaders who are the cornerstones of its tribes mislead the Egyptians.
14 The Lord mixes up their minds.
So they lead the Egyptians astray
like a drunk who staggers in his vomit.
15 No one—leaders or followers, important or unimportant—
can do anything for Egypt.
16 At that time Egyptians will act like women. They will tremble and be terrified because the Lord of Armies will shake his fist at them. 17 The land of Judah will terrify the Egyptians. Whenever they are reminded of Judah, they will be terrified of it because of what the Lord of Armies is planning against it.
18 When that day comes, five cities in Egypt will have people that speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord of Armies. One of the cities will be called Heliopolis.[b]
19 When that day comes, an altar for the Lord will be in the middle of Egypt, and a stone marker for the Lord will be near its border. 20 These objects will be a sign and a witness that the Lord of Armies is in Egypt. When the people cry to the Lord because of those who oppress them, he will send a savior and defender to rescue them. 21 So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians. The Egyptians will know the Lord when that day comes. They will worship with sacrifices and food offerings. They will make vows to the Lord and carry them out. 22 The Lord will strike Egypt with a plague. When he strikes them, he will also heal them. Then they will come back to the Lord. And he will respond to their prayers and heal them.
23 When that day comes, a highway will run from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will come to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians. 24 When that day comes, Israel will be one-third ⌞of God’s people⌟, along with Egypt and Assyria. They will be a blessing on the earth. 25 The Lord of Armies will bless them, saying, “My people Egypt, the work of my hands Assyria, and my possession Israel are blessed.”
Those Who Were Allied with Egypt Will Be Ashamed
20 In the year when King Sargon of Assyria sent his commander-in-chief to fight against Ashdod, he captured it. 2 At that time the Lord told Isaiah, son of Amoz, “Take off the sackcloth that you are wearing, and take off your sandals!” Isaiah did this and walked around barefoot and naked.
3 Then the Lord said, “My servant Isaiah has gone barefoot and naked for three years as a sign and as an omen to Egypt and Sudan. 4 The king of Assyria will lead away both the young and the old—captives from Egypt and exiles from Sudan. They will be barefoot and naked. Their buttocks will be exposed in order to disgrace Egypt. 5 Then the people will be shattered and ashamed because Sudan was their hope and Egypt was their beauty. 6 When that day comes, those who live on this coastland will say, ‘Look at what has happened to our hope. We ran ⌞to Egypt⌟ for help to be rescued from the king of Assyria. How can we escape?’ ”
Babylon Has Fallen
21 This is the divine revelation about the desert by the sea.
Like a storm sweeping through the Negev,
an invader will come from the desert,
from a terrifying land.
2 I was shown a harsh vision.
The traitor betrays.
The destroyer destroys.
Go to war, Elam!
Surround them, Media!
I will put an end to all the groaning.
3 That is why my body is full of trembling.
Pain grips me like the pain of childbirth.
I’m disturbed by what I hear.
I’m terrified by what I see.
4 I’m confused.
I’m shaking with terror.
The twilight hours I longed for make me tremble.
5 Set the table.
Spread the rugs ⌞by the table⌟.
Eat. Drink.
Get up, you leaders!
Prepare your shields for battle!
6 This is what the Lord says to me:
Post a watchman.
Have him report whatever he sees.
7 He will see chariots, pairs of horsemen,
riders on donkeys, and riders on camels.
Let him watch carefully, very carefully.
8 The watchman [c] called,
“Sir, I stand on the watchtower every day.
Every night, I stand guard at my post.
9 Look! Here come chariots and horsemen in pairs.”
Then he said,
“Babylon has fallen! It has fallen!
All the idols they worship lie shattered on the ground.”
10 You, my people, have been threshed and winnowed.[d]
I make known to you what I heard from the Lord of Armies,
the God of Israel.
Someone Calling from Seir
11 This is the divine revelation about Dumah.[e]
Someone is calling to me from Seir,
“Watchman, how much of the night is left?
Watchman, how much of the night is left?”
12 The watchman answers,
“Morning is coming, and night will come again.
If you need to ask, come back and ask.”
Arabia Will Be Punished
13 This is the divine revelation about Arabia.
You caravan of travelers from the people of Dedan
will spend the night in the forest of Arabia.
14 Bring water for the thirsty,
you inhabitants of the land of Tema.
Bring food to the fugitives.
15 They flee from swords,
from swords ready to kill,
from bows ready to shoot,
and from the thick of battle.
16 This is what the Lord says to me: All of Kedar’s honor will be gone in another year. I will count it like workers count the years left on their contracts. 17 The remaining number of archers, Kedar’s mighty archers, will be few. The Lord God of Israel has spoken.
Judah Will Be Punished
22 This is the divine revelation about the valley of Vision.
What’s the matter with you?
Why do all of you go up on the roofs?
2 You are a city filled with shouting,
a town filled with noise and excitement.
Your people weren’t killed with swords.
Your dead didn’t die in battle.
3 All your leaders fled together
and were captured without their bows and arrows.
All those who were found were taken prisoner
before any of them could get far away.
4 That is why I say,
“Turn away from me
so that I can cry bitterly.
Don’t try to comfort me
because of the destruction brought on my people.”
5 The Almighty Lord of Armies has chosen a special day.
It will be a day of confusion and trampling
in the valley of Vision,
⌞a day of⌟ tearing down walls and crying for help
in the mountains.
6 Elam takes its quiver of arrows,
manned chariots, and horsemen.
Kir uncovers its shields.
7 Then your fertile valleys will be filled with chariots,
and horsemen will stand ready in front of the gate.
8 On that day the Lord will remove the defenses of Judah.
You will look for weapons in the House of the Forest.[f]
9 You will see how many places in David’s wall are broken.
You will store water in the Lower Pool.
10 You will count the houses in Jerusalem.
You will tear down those houses in order to fortify the walls.
11 You will build a reservoir between the two walls
to hold the water of the Old Pool.
You didn’t look to Jerusalem’s maker.
You didn’t see the one who formed it long ago.
12 On that day the Almighty Lord of Armies
will call for crying and for mourning,
for shaving your heads and for wearing sackcloth.
13 Instead, you will rejoice, celebrate,
slaughter cattle, and butcher sheep.
You will eat meat, drink wine, and say,
“Let’s eat and drink because tomorrow we’re going to die.”
14 The Lord of Armies revealed this to me: “Certainly, this wrong will not be forgiven even when you die,” says the Almighty Lord of Armies.
Shebna’s Position Will Be Given to Eliakim
15 This is what the Almighty Lord of Armies says:
Go to Shebna, the man in charge of the palace, and say ⌞to him⌟,
16 “What are you doing here?
What right do you have to dig a tomb for yourself?
What right do you have to cut it out in a prominent place?
What right do you have to carve out
a resting place for yourself in the rock?
17 Look, mighty man!
The Lord will throw you out.
He will grab you.
18 He will wrap you up tightly like a turban.
He will throw you far away into another land.
There you will die.
There your splendid chariots will remain.
There you will become a disgrace to your master’s household.
19 “I will remove you from your office
and do away with your position.
20 When that day comes, I will call my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah.
21 I will dress him in your linen robe
and fasten it with your belt.
I will give him your authority,
and he will be like a father to those who live in Jerusalem
and to the nation of Judah.
22 I will place the key of the house of David around his neck.
What he opens no one will shut.
What he shuts no one will open.
23 I will fasten him firmly in place like a peg,
and he will be a source of honor for his father’s household.
24 They will hang on him the whole weight of his father’s household,
descendants and offspring and all the little utensils,
from bowls to jars of every kind.”
25 The Lord of Armies declares,
“On that day the peg which I firmly fastened in place will be removed.
It will be cut off and will fall,
and everything hanging on it will be destroyed.”
The Lord has spoken.
Tyre Will Be Punished
23 This is the divine revelation about Tyre.
Cry loudly, you ships of Tarshish!
Your port at Tyre is destroyed.
Word has come to the ships from Cyprus.
2 Be silent, you inhabitants of the coastland, you merchants from Sidon.
Your messengers have crossed the sea.
3 The grain of Shihor is on the Mediterranean.
The harvest of the Nile River is brought to Tyre.
Tyre became the marketplace for the nations.
4 Be ashamed, Sidon, because the stronghold by the sea has spoken,
“I’ve never been in labor or given birth.
I’ve raised no sons.
I’ve brought up no daughters.”
5 When the news reaches Egypt,
the Egyptians will shudder over the news about Tyre.
6 Travel to Tarshish!
Cry loudly, you inhabitants of the seacoast!
7 Is this your bustling city founded in the distant past?
Is this the city that sent its people to settle in distant lands?
8 Who planned such a thing against Tyre, the city that produced kings?
Its merchants are princes.
Its traders are among the honored people of the world.
9 The Lord of Armies planned this
in order to dishonor all arrogant people
and to humiliate all the honored people of the world.
10 Travel through your country like the Nile, people of Tarshish.
You no longer have a harbor.
11 The Lord has stretched his hand over the sea to shake kingdoms.
He has commanded that Canaan’s fortifications be destroyed.
12 He says, “You will no longer be joyful,
my dear abused people Sidon.”
Get up, and travel to Cyprus.
Even there you will find no rest.
13 Look at the land of the Babylonians.
These people will be gone.
Assyria gave this land to the desert animals.
Assyria set up battle towers,
stripped palaces bare,
and turned these places into ruins.
14 Cry loudly, you ships of Tarshish, because your fortress will be destroyed. 15 When that day comes, Tyre will be forgotten for 70 years, the lifetime of one king. At the end of the 70 years, Tyre will be like the prostitute in this song:
16 “Take your lyre.
Go around in the city, you forgotten prostitute.
Make sweet music.
Sing many songs so that you’ll be remembered.”
17 At the end of 70 years the Lord will come to help Tyre. Then she will go back to earning money as a prostitute. She will become a prostitute for all the world’s kingdoms. 18 Her profits and her earnings will be turned over to the Lord for his holy purpose. It won’t be stored or hoarded. Her merchandise will belong to those who live in the presence of the Lord so that they will have plenty of food and expensive clothing.
Footnotes
- 19:5 Or “Then the water of the sea will be dried up.”
- 19:18 Dead Sea Scrolls, some Hebrew manuscripts, Greek, Targum, Latin, Egyptian; Masoretic Text “City of Destruction.”
- 21:8 Syriac, Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text, Targum “lion”; Greek “Uriah.”
- 21:10 Threshing is the process of beating stalks to separate them from the grain. Winnowing is the process of separating husks from grain.
- 21:11 The exact location of Dumah is unknown.
- 22:8 “The House of the Forest” is a storehouse for weapons and other items. It was built by Solomon as part of the temple complex.
Isaiah 19-23
New International Version
Isaiah 19-23
New International Version
A Prophecy Against Egypt
19 A prophecy(A) against Egypt:(B)
See, the Lord rides on a swift cloud(C)
and is coming to Egypt.
The idols of Egypt tremble before him,
and the hearts of the Egyptians melt(D) with fear.
2 “I will stir up Egyptian against Egyptian—
brother will fight against brother,(E)
neighbor against neighbor,
city against city,
kingdom against kingdom.(F)
3 The Egyptians will lose heart,(G)
and I will bring their plans(H) to nothing;(I)
they will consult the idols and the spirits of the dead,
the mediums and the spiritists.(J)
4 I will hand the Egyptians over
to the power of a cruel master,
and a fierce king(K) will rule over them,”
declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
5 The waters of the river will dry up,(L)
and the riverbed will be parched and dry.(M)
6 The canals will stink;(N)
the streams of Egypt will dwindle and dry up.(O)
The reeds(P) and rushes will wither,(Q)
7 also the plants(R) along the Nile,
at the mouth of the river.
Every sown field(S) along the Nile
will become parched, will blow away and be no more.(T)
8 The fishermen(U) will groan and lament,
all who cast hooks(V) into the Nile;
those who throw nets on the water
will pine away.
9 Those who work with combed flax(W) will despair,
the weavers of fine linen(X) will lose hope.
10 The workers in cloth will be dejected,
and all the wage earners will be sick at heart.
11 The officials of Zoan(Y) are nothing but fools;
the wise counselors(Z) of Pharaoh give senseless advice.(AA)
How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I am one of the wise men,(AB)
a disciple of the ancient kings”?
12 Where are your wise men(AC) now?
Let them show you and make known
what the Lord Almighty
has planned(AD) against Egypt.
13 The officials of Zoan(AE) have become fools,
the leaders of Memphis(AF) are deceived;
the cornerstones(AG) of her peoples
have led Egypt astray.
14 The Lord has poured into them
a spirit of dizziness;(AH)
they make Egypt stagger in all that she does,
as a drunkard staggers(AI) around in his vomit.
15 There is nothing Egypt can do—
head or tail, palm branch or reed.(AJ)
16 In that day(AK) the Egyptians will become weaklings.(AL) They will shudder with fear(AM) at the uplifted hand(AN) that the Lord Almighty raises against them. 17 And the land of Judah will bring terror to the Egyptians; everyone to whom Judah is mentioned will be terrified,(AO) because of what the Lord Almighty is planning(AP) against them.
18 In that day(AQ) five cities(AR) in Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance(AS) to the Lord Almighty. One of them will be called the City of the Sun.[a](AT)
19 In that day(AU) there will be an altar(AV) to the Lord in the heart of Egypt,(AW) and a monument(AX) to the Lord at its border. 20 It will be a sign and witness(AY) to the Lord Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior(AZ) and defender, and he will rescue(BA) them. 21 So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge(BB) the Lord. They will worship(BC) with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and keep them.(BD) 22 The Lord will strike(BE) Egypt with a plague;(BF) he will strike them and heal them. They will turn(BG) to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal(BH) them.
23 In that day(BI) there will be a highway(BJ) from Egypt to Assyria.(BK) The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship(BL) together. 24 In that day(BM) Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria,(BN) a blessing[b](BO) on the earth. 25 The Lord Almighty will bless(BP) them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people,(BQ) Assyria my handiwork,(BR) and Israel my inheritance.(BS)”
A Prophecy Against Egypt and Cush
20 In the year that the supreme commander,(BT) sent by Sargon king of Assyria, came to Ashdod(BU) and attacked and captured it— 2 at that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz.(BV) He said to him, “Take off the sackcloth(BW) from your body and the sandals(BX) from your feet.” And he did so, going around stripped(BY) and barefoot.(BZ)
3 Then the Lord said, “Just as my servant(CA) Isaiah has gone stripped and barefoot for three years,(CB) as a sign(CC) and portent(CD) against Egypt(CE) and Cush,[c](CF) 4 so the king(CG) of Assyria will lead away stripped(CH) and barefoot the Egyptian captives(CI) and Cushite(CJ) exiles, young and old, with buttocks bared(CK)—to Egypt’s shame.(CL) 5 Those who trusted(CM) in Cush(CN) and boasted in Egypt(CO) will be dismayed and put to shame.(CP) 6 In that day(CQ) the people who live on this coast will say, ‘See what has happened(CR) to those we relied on,(CS) those we fled to for help(CT) and deliverance from the king of Assyria! How then can we escape?(CU)’”
A Prophecy Against Babylon
21 A prophecy(CV) against the Desert(CW) by the Sea:
Like whirlwinds(CX) sweeping through the southland,(CY)
an invader comes from the desert,
from a land of terror.
2 A dire(CZ) vision has been shown to me:
The traitor betrays,(DA) the looter takes loot.
Elam,(DB) attack! Media,(DC) lay siege!
I will bring to an end all the groaning she caused.
3 At this my body is racked with pain,(DD)
pangs seize me, like those of a woman in labor;(DE)
I am staggered by what I hear,
I am bewildered(DF) by what I see.
4 My heart(DG) falters,
fear makes me tremble;(DH)
the twilight I longed for
has become a horror(DI) to me.
5 They set the tables,
they spread the rugs,
they eat, they drink!(DJ)
Get up, you officers,
oil the shields!(DK)
6 This is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, post a lookout(DL)
and have him report what he sees.
7 When he sees chariots(DM)
with teams of horses,
riders on donkeys
or riders on camels,(DN)
let him be alert,
fully alert.”
8 And the lookout[d](DO) 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(DP)
with a team of horses.
And he gives back the answer:
‘Babylon(DQ) has fallen,(DR) has fallen!
All the images of its gods(DS)
lie shattered(DT) on the ground!’”
10 My people who are crushed on the threshing floor,(DU)
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[e]:(DV)
Someone calls to me from Seir,(DW)
“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(DX) against Arabia:(DY)
You caravans of Dedanites,(DZ)
who camp in the thickets of Arabia,
14 bring water for the thirsty;
you who live in Tema,(EA)
bring food for the fugitives.
15 They flee(EB) from the sword,(EC)
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(ED) would count it, all the splendor(EE) of Kedar(EF) will come to an end. 17 The survivors of the archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.(EG)” The Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.(EH)
A Prophecy About Jerusalem
22 A prophecy(EI) against the Valley(EJ) of Vision:(EK)
What troubles you now,
that you have all gone up on the roofs,(EL)
2 you town so full of commotion,
you city of tumult(EM) and revelry?(EN)
Your slain(EO) were not killed by the sword,(EP)
nor did they die in battle.
3 All your leaders have fled(EQ) together;
they have been captured(ER) without using the bow.
All you who were caught were taken prisoner together,
having fled while the enemy was still far away.
4 Therefore I said, “Turn away from me;
let me weep(ES) bitterly.
Do not try to console me
over the destruction of my people.”(ET)
5 The Lord, the Lord Almighty, has a day(EU)
of tumult and trampling(EV) and terror(EW)
in the Valley of Vision,(EX)
a day of battering down walls(EY)
and of crying out to the mountains.
6 Elam(EZ) takes up the quiver,(FA)
with her charioteers and horses;
Kir(FB) uncovers the shield.
7 Your choicest valleys(FC) are full of chariots,
and horsemen are posted at the city gates.(FD)
8 The Lord stripped away the defenses of Judah,
and you looked in that day(FE)
to the weapons(FF) in the Palace of the Forest.(FG)
9 You saw that the walls of the City of David
were broken through(FH) in many places;
you stored up water
in the Lower Pool.(FI)
10 You counted the buildings in Jerusalem
and tore down houses(FJ) to strengthen the wall.(FK)
11 You built a reservoir between the two walls(FL)
for the water of the Old Pool,(FM)
but you did not look to the One who made it,
or have regard(FN) for the One who planned(FO) it long ago.
12 The Lord, the Lord Almighty,
called you on that day(FP)
to weep(FQ) and to wail,
to tear out your hair(FR) and put on sackcloth.(FS)
13 But see, there is joy and revelry,(FT)
slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep,
eating of meat and drinking of wine!(FU)
“Let us eat and drink,” you say,
“for tomorrow we die!”(FV)
14 The Lord Almighty has revealed this in my hearing:(FW) “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned(FX) for,” says the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
15 This is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:
“Go, say to this steward,
to Shebna(FY) the palace(FZ) administrator:(GA)
16 What are you doing here and who gave you permission
to cut out a grave(GB) for yourself(GC) here,
hewing your grave on the height
and chiseling your resting place in the rock?
17 “Beware, the Lord is about to take firm hold of you
and hurl(GD) you away, you mighty man.
18 He will roll you up tightly like a ball
and throw(GE) you into a large country.
There you will die
and there the chariots(GF) you were so proud of
will become a disgrace to your master’s house.
19 I will depose you from your office,
and you will be ousted(GG) from your position.(GH)
20 “In that day(GI) I will summon my servant,(GJ) Eliakim(GK) son of Hilkiah. 21 I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash(GL) around him and hand your authority(GM) over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah. 22 I will place on his shoulder(GN) the key(GO) to the house of David;(GP) what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.(GQ) 23 I will drive him like a peg(GR) into a firm place;(GS) he will become a seat[f] of honor(GT) for the house of his father. 24 All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars.
25 “In that day,(GU)” declares the Lord Almighty, “the peg(GV) driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.” The Lord has spoken.(GW)
A Prophecy Against Tyre
23 A prophecy against Tyre:(GX)
Wail,(GY) you ships(GZ) of Tarshish!(HA)
For Tyre is destroyed(HB)
and left without house or harbor.
From the land of Cyprus
word has come to them.
2 Be silent,(HC) you people of the island
and you merchants(HD) of Sidon,(HE)
whom the seafarers have enriched.
3 On the great waters
came the grain of the Shihor;(HF)
the harvest of the Nile[g](HG) was the revenue of Tyre,(HH)
and she became the marketplace of the nations.
4 Be ashamed, Sidon,(HI) and you fortress of the sea,
for the sea has spoken:
“I have neither been in labor nor given birth;(HJ)
I have neither reared sons nor brought up daughters.”
5 When word comes to Egypt,
they will be in anguish(HK) at the report from Tyre.(HL)
6 Cross over to Tarshish;(HM)
wail, you people of the island.
7 Is this your city of revelry,(HN)
the old, old city,
whose feet have taken her
to settle in far-off lands?
8 Who planned this against Tyre,
the bestower of crowns,
whose merchants(HO) are princes,
whose traders(HP) are renowned in the earth?
9 The Lord Almighty planned(HQ) it,
to bring down(HR) her pride in all her splendor
and to humble(HS) all who are renowned(HT) on the earth.
10 Till[h] your land as they do along the Nile,
Daughter Tarshish,
for you no longer have a harbor.
11 The Lord has stretched out his hand(HU) over the sea
and made its kingdoms tremble.(HV)
He has given an order concerning Phoenicia
that her fortresses be destroyed.(HW)
12 He said, “No more of your reveling,(HX)
Virgin Daughter(HY) Sidon, now crushed!
“Up, cross over to Cyprus;(HZ)
even there you will find no rest.”
13 Look at the land of the Babylonians,[i](IA)
this people that is now of no account!
The Assyrians(IB) have made it
a place for desert creatures;(IC)
they raised up their siege towers,(ID)
they stripped its fortresses bare
and turned it into a ruin.(IE)
15 At that time Tyre(II) will be forgotten for seventy years,(IJ) the span of a king’s life. But at the end of these seventy years, it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the prostitute:
16 “Take up a harp, walk through the city,
you forgotten prostitute;(IK)
play the harp well, sing many a song,
so that you will be remembered.”
17 At the end of seventy years,(IL) the Lord will deal with Tyre. She will return to her lucrative prostitution(IM) and will ply her trade with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.(IN) 18 Yet her profit and her earnings will be set apart for the Lord;(IO) they will not be stored up or hoarded. Her profits will go to those who live before the Lord,(IP) for abundant food and fine clothes.(IQ)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 19:18 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls, Symmachus and Vulgate; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text City of Destruction
- Isaiah 19:24 Or Assyria, whose names will be used in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or Assyria, who will be seen by others as blessed
- Isaiah 20:3 That is, the upper Nile region; also in verse 5
- Isaiah 21:8 Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac; Masoretic Text A lion
- Isaiah 21:11 Dumah, a wordplay on Edom, means silence or stillness.
- Isaiah 22:23 Or throne
- Isaiah 23:3 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls Sidon, / who cross over the sea; / your envoys 3 are on the great waters. / The grain of the Shihor, / the harvest of the Nile,
- Isaiah 23:10 Dead Sea Scrolls and some Septuagint manuscripts; Masoretic Text Go through
- Isaiah 23:13 Or Chaldeans
Isaiah 19-23
King James Version
Isaiah 19-23
King James Version
19 The burden of Egypt. Behold, the Lord rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it.
2 And I will set the Egyptians against the Egyptians: and they shall fight every one against his brother, and every one against his neighbour; city against city, and kingdom against kingdom.
3 And the spirit of Egypt shall fail in the midst thereof; and I will destroy the counsel thereof: and they shall seek to the idols, and to the charmers, and to them that have familiar spirits, and to the wizards.
4 And the Egyptians will I give over into the hand of a cruel lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them, saith the Lord, the Lord of hosts.
5 And the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall be wasted and dried up.
6 And they shall turn the rivers far away; and the brooks of defence shall be emptied and dried up: the reeds and flags shall wither.
7 The paper reeds by the brooks, by the mouth of the brooks, and every thing sown by the brooks, shall wither, be driven away, and be no more.
8 The fishers also shall mourn, and all they that cast angle into the brooks shall lament, and they that spread nets upon the waters shall languish.
9 Moreover they that work in fine flax, and they that weave networks, shall be confounded.
10 And they shall be broken in the purposes thereof, all that make sluices and ponds for fish.
11 Surely the princes of Zoan are fools, the counsel of the wise counsellors of Pharaoh is become brutish: how say ye unto Pharaoh, I am the son of the wise, the son of ancient kings?
12 Where are they? where are thy wise men? and let them tell thee now, and let them know what the Lord of hosts hath purposed upon Egypt.
13 The princes of Zoan are become fools, the princes of Noph are deceived; they have also seduced Egypt, even they that are the stay of the tribes thereof.
14 The Lord hath mingled a perverse spirit in the midst thereof: and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit.
15 Neither shall there be any work for Egypt, which the head or tail, branch or rush, may do.
16 In that day shall Egypt be like unto women: and it shall be afraid and fear because of the shaking of the hand of the Lord of hosts, which he shaketh over it.
17 And the land of Judah shall be a terror unto Egypt, every one that maketh mention thereof shall be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts, which he hath determined against it.
18 In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan, and swear to the Lord of hosts; one shall be called, The city of destruction.
19 In that day shall there be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the Lord.
20 And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt: for they shall cry unto the Lord because of the oppressors, and he shall send them a saviour, and a great one, and he shall deliver them.
21 And the Lord shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and perform it.
22 And the Lord shall smite Egypt: he shall smite and heal it: and they shall return even to the Lord, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them.
23 In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians.
24 In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land:
25 Whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance.
20 In the year that Tartan came unto Ashdod, (when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him,) and fought against Ashdod, and took it;
2 At the same time spake the Lord by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, Go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put off thy shoe from thy foot. And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.
3 And the Lord said, Like as my servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot three years for a sign and wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia;
4 So shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians prisoners, and the Ethiopians captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, even with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.
5 And they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation, and of Egypt their glory.
6 And the inhabitant of this isle shall say in that day, Behold, such is our expectation, whither we flee for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria: and how shall we escape?
21 The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
2 A grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth. Go up, O Elam: besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof have I made to cease.
3 Therefore are my loins filled with pain: pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman that travaileth: I was bowed down at the hearing of it; I was dismayed at the seeing of it.
4 My heart panted, fearfulness affrighted me: the night of my pleasure hath he turned into fear unto me.
5 Prepare the table, watch in the watchtower, eat, drink: arise, ye princes, and anoint the shield.
6 For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman, let him declare what he seeth.
7 And he saw a chariot with a couple of horsemen, a chariot of asses, and a chariot of camels; and he hearkened diligently with much heed:
8 And he cried, A lion: My lord, I stand continually upon the watchtower in the daytime, and I am set in my ward whole nights:
9 And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.
10 O my threshing, and the corn of my floor: that which I have heard of the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you.
11 The burden of Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?
12 The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night: if ye will enquire, enquire ye: return, come.
13 The burden upon Arabia. In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye travelling companies of Dedanim.
14 The inhabitants of the land of Tema brought water to him that was thirsty, they prevented with their bread him that fled.
15 For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, and from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war.
16 For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Within a year, according to the years of an hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail:
17 And the residue of the number of archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished: for the Lord God of Israel hath spoken it.
22 The burden of the valley of vision. What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up to the housetops?
2 Thou that art full of stirs, a tumultuous city, joyous city: thy slain men are not slain with the sword, nor dead in battle.
3 All thy rulers are fled together, they are bound by the archers: all that are found in thee are bound together, which have fled from far.
4 Therefore said I, Look away from me; I will weep bitterly, labour not to comfort me, because of the spoiling of the daughter of my people.
5 For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains.
6 And Elam bare the quiver with chariots of men and horsemen, and Kir uncovered the shield.
7 And it shall come to pass, that thy choicest valleys shall be full of chariots, and the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.
8 And he discovered the covering of Judah, and thou didst look in that day to the armour of the house of the forest.
9 Ye have seen also the breaches of the city of David, that they are many: and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool.
10 And ye have numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall.
11 Ye made also a ditch between the two walls for the water of the old pool: but ye have not looked unto the maker thereof, neither had respect unto him that fashioned it long ago.
12 And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call to weeping, and to mourning, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth:
13 And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink; for to morrow we shall die.
14 And it was revealed in mine ears by the Lord of hosts, Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you till ye die, saith the Lord God of hosts.
15 Thus saith the Lord God of hosts, Go, get thee unto this treasurer, even unto Shebna, which is over the house, and say,
16 What hast thou here? and whom hast thou here, that thou hast hewed thee out a sepulchre here, as he that heweth him out a sepulchre on high, and that graveth an habitation for himself in a rock?
17 Behold, the Lord will carry thee away with a mighty captivity, and will surely cover thee.
18 He will surely violently turn and toss thee like a ball into a large country: there shalt thou die, and there the chariots of thy glory shall be the shame of thy lord's house.
19 And I will drive thee from thy station, and from thy state shall he pull thee down.
20 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah:
21 And I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand: and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.
22 And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.
23 And I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father's house.
24 And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups, even to all the vessels of flagons.
25 In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, shall the nail that is fastened in the sure place be removed, and be cut down, and fall; and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off: for the Lord hath spoken it.
23 The burden of Tyre. Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in: from the land of Chittim it is revealed to them.
2 Be still, ye inhabitants of the isle; thou whom the merchants of Zidon, that pass over the sea, have replenished.
3 And by great waters the seed of Sihor, the harvest of the river, is her revenue; and she is a mart of nations.
4 Be thou ashamed, O Zidon: for the sea hath spoken, even the strength of the sea, saying, I travail not, nor bring forth children, neither do I nourish up young men, nor bring up virgins.
5 As at the report concerning Egypt, so shall they be sorely pained at the report of Tyre.
6 Pass ye over to Tarshish; howl, ye inhabitants of the isle.
7 Is this your joyous city, whose antiquity is of ancient days? her own feet shall carry her afar off to sojourn.
8 Who hath taken this counsel against Tyre, the crowning city, whose merchants are princes, whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth?
9 The Lord of hosts hath purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth.
10 Pass through thy land as a river, O daughter of Tarshish: there is no more strength.
11 He stretched out his hand over the sea, he shook the kingdoms: the Lord hath given a commandment against the merchant city, to destroy the strong holds thereof.
12 And he said, Thou shalt no more rejoice, O thou oppressed virgin, daughter of Zidon: arise, pass over to Chittim; there also shalt thou have no rest.
13 Behold the land of the Chaldeans; this people was not, till the Assyrian founded it for them that dwell in the wilderness: they set up the towers thereof, they raised up the palaces thereof; and he brought it to ruin.
14 Howl, ye ships of Tarshish: for your strength is laid waste.
15 And it shall come to pass in that day, that Tyre shall be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king: after the end of seventy years shall Tyre sing as an harlot.
16 Take an harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered.
17 And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, that the Lord will visit Tyre, and she shall turn to her hire, and shall commit fornication with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth.
18 And her merchandise and her hire shall be holiness to the Lord: it shall not be treasured nor laid up; for her merchandise shall be for them that dwell before the Lord, to eat sufficiently, and for durable clothing.
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
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