13 The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see.

Lift ye up a banner upon the high mountain, exalt the voice unto them, shake the hand, that they may go into the gates of the nobles.

I have commanded my sanctified ones, I have also called my mighty ones for mine anger, even them that rejoice in my highness.

The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like as of a great people; a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together: the Lord of hosts mustereth the host of the battle.

They come from a far country, from the end of heaven, even the Lord, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.

Howl ye; for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty.

Therefore shall all hands be faint, and every man's heart shall melt:

And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames.

Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.

10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine.

11 And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.

12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.

13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.

14 And it shall be as the chased roe, and as a sheep that no man taketh up: they shall every man turn to his own people, and flee every one into his own land.

15 Every one that is found shall be thrust through; and every one that is joined unto them shall fall by the sword.

16 Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be spoiled, and their wives ravished.

17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.

18 Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eyes shall not spare children.

19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

20 It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there.

21 But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs shall dance there.

22 And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.

An Oracle against Babylon

13 The oracle of Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz saw:

Raise a signal on a bare hill,
    lift up your voice to them;
    wave the hand and may they enter the gateways of the noblemen.
I myself I have commanded my consecrated ones,
    I have also summoned my mighty warriors concerning my anger,
    the ones who exalt over[a] my majesty.
A sound, a noise is on the mountains,
    the likeness of many people!
A sound of the roar of the kingdoms,
    of nations gathering!
Yahweh of hosts is mustering an army for battle.
They are coming from a distant land,
    from the end of the heavens,
Yahweh and the weapons of his indignation,
    to destroy the whole earth.[b]
Wail, for the day of Yahweh is near;
    it will come like destruction from Shaddai![c]
Therefore all hands will grow slack,
    and every human heart will melt,
    and they will be dismayed.
Pangs and labor pains will seize them;
    they will tremble like a woman giving birth.
They will stare at one another,[d]
    their faces flushing.[e]
Look! The day of Yahweh is coming,
    cruel and wrath and the burning of anger,
to make the earth a desolation,
    and he will destroy its sinners from it.
10 For the stars of the heavens and their constellations will not flash forth their light;
    the sun will keep back when it comes out,
    and the moon will not cause its light to shine.
11 And I will punish the world for its evil
    and the wicked for their iniquity.
And I will put an end to the pride of the arrogant,
    and I will bring the haughtiness of tyrants low.
12 I will make humanity more rare than gold
    and humankind more than the gold of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will make the heavens tremble,
    and the earth will quake from its place
because of the wrath of Yahweh of hosts,
    and in the day his anger burns.

14 And this shall happen:

like a hunted gazelle or sheep with none to gather them,[f]
they will each turn to his own people,
    and they will each flee to his own land.
15 Everyone who is found will be pierced through,
    and everyone who is carried away will fall by the sword.
16 And their children will be dashed into pieces before their eyes;
    their houses will be plundered, and their wives will be raped.[g]
17 Look! I am stirring the Medes up against them,
who do not value silver
    and do not delight in gold.
18 And their bows will shatter young men.
    And they will not show mercy on the fruit of the womb;
    their eyes will not look compassionately on children.

19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the splendor of the Chaldeans’ pride, will be like when God overthrew[h] Sodom and Gomorrah.

20 It will not be inhabited forever,
    and it will not be dwelled in forever;[i]
and no Arab will pitch a tent there,
    and shepherds will not allow their flocks to lie down there.
21 But wild animals will lie down there,
    and their houses will be full of howling creatures,
and the daughters of ostriches[j] will live there,
    and goats will dance there.
22 And hyenas will answer in its palaces,
    and jackals in the pleasure palaces;
and its time is coming soon,[k]
    and its days will not be prolonged.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 13:3 Literally “exultant of”
  2. Isaiah 13:5 Literally “all of the land/earth”
  3. Isaiah 13:6 Often translated “the Almighty”
  4. Isaiah 13:8 Literally “A man will stare at his neighbor”
  5. Isaiah 13:8 Literally “faces of flames”
  6. Isaiah 13:14 Literally “and without one who gathers”
  7. Isaiah 13:16 The reading tradition (Qere) softens this to “slept with”
  8. Isaiah 13:19 Literally “the overthrow by God of”
  9. Isaiah 13:20 Literally “until generation and generation”
  10. Isaiah 13:21 Hebrew “ostrich”
  11. Isaiah 13:22 Literally “close to come”