Proclamation Against Ethiopia

18 Woe (A)to the land shadowed with buzzing wings,
Which is beyond the rivers of [a]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:
(B)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 [b]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 (C)a present will be brought to the Lord of hosts
[c]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 18:1 Heb. Cush
  2. Isaiah 18:4 watch
  3. Isaiah 18:7 So with DSS, LXX, Vg.; MT omits From; Tg. To

Ang Mensahe tungkol sa Etiopia

18 Nakakaawa ang mga lugar malapit sa mga ilog ng Etiopia,[a] na may mga pagaspas ng pakpak ng mga kulisap na naririnig.[b] Mula sa lugar na ito ay may mga sugong nakasakay sa sasakyang yari sa tambo[c] at dumadaan sa Ilog ng Nilo.

Kayong mabibilis na sugo, bumalik na kayo sa inyong lupain na hinahati ng mga ilog. Bumalik na kayo sa inyong mga mamamayan na matatangkad at makikinis ang balat, mga taong makapangyarihan at kinakatakutan kahit saan.

Kayong lahat ng naninirahan sa mundo, abangan ninyo ang pagtaas ng bandila sa ibabaw ng bundok, at pakinggan ninyo ang tunog ng trumpeta. Sapagkat ito ang sinabi sa akin ng Panginoon, “Mula sa aking luklukan, panatag akong nagmamasid na parang nagniningning na araw sa katanghaliang tapat, at parang namumuong ambon sa maalinsangang gabi sa panahon ng anihan.”

Bago pa dumating ang panahon ng pag-ani, sa panahon pa lang ng pamumulaklak ng mga ubas at unti-unting paghinog ng mga bunga nito, puputulin na ng Dios ang mga sanga nito. Lilipulin ng Dios ang mga taga-Etiopia, at ang mga bangkay nila ay ipapaubaya sa ibong mandaragit at mababangis na hayop. Magiging pagkain sila ng mga ibon sa panahon ng tag-araw at ng mababangis na hayop sa panahon ng taglamig. Pero darating ang araw na tatanggap ang Panginoong Makapangyarihan ng mga handog mula sa lupaing ito na hinahati ng mga ilog. Ang mga mamamayan nitoʼy matatangkad, makikinis ang balat, makapangyarihan, at kinatatakutan kahit saan. Dadalhin nila ang kanilang mga regalo sa Bundok ng Zion, kung saan sinasamba ang Panginoong Makapangyarihan.

Footnotes

  1. 18:1 Etiopia: sa Hebreo, Cush.
  2. 18:1 may mga pagaspas ng pakpak ng mga kulisap na naririnig: o, ang kanilang mga sasakyan ay may katig.
  3. 18:2 tambo: sa Ingles, papyrus o reed.

An Oracle Concerning Cush

18 Ah, land of (A)whirring wings
    that is beyond the rivers of (B)Cush,[a]
which (C)sends ambassadors by the sea,
    in vessels of papyrus on the waters!
Go, you swift messengers,
    to a nation (D)tall and smooth,
to a people feared near and far,
    a nation (E)mighty and conquering,
    whose land the rivers divide.

All you inhabitants of the world,
    you who dwell on the earth,
when (F)a signal is raised on the mountains, look!
    When a trumpet is blown, hear!
For thus the Lord said to me:
“I will quietly look (G)from my dwelling
    like clear heat in sunshine,
    like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”
(H)For before the harvest, when the blossom is over,
    and the flower becomes a ripening grape,
he cuts off the shoots with pruning hooks,
    and the spreading branches he lops off and clears away.
(I)They shall all of them be left
    to the birds of prey of the mountains
    and to the beasts of the earth.
And the birds of prey will summer on them,
    and all the beasts of the earth will winter on them.

(J)At that time tribute will be brought to the Lord of hosts

from a people (K)tall and smooth,
    from a people feared near and far,
a nation mighty and conquering,
    whose land the rivers divide,

to (L)Mount Zion, the place of the (M)name of the Lord of hosts.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 18:1 Probably Nubia