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Isaiah 21:1-10
New American Standard Bible
Isaiah 21:1-10
New American Standard Bible
God Commands That Babylon Be Taken
21 The (A)pronouncement concerning the [a](B)wilderness of the sea:
As (C)windstorms in the [b]Negev come in turns,
It comes from the wilderness, from a terrifying land.
2 A (D)harsh vision has been shown to me;
The (E)treacherous one still deals treacherously, and the destroyer still destroys.
Go up, (F)Elam, lay siege, Media;
I have put an end to all [c]the groaning she has caused.
3 For this reason my (G)loins are full of anguish;
Pains have seized me like the pains of a (H)woman in labor.
I am so bewildered I cannot hear, so terrified I cannot see.
4 My [d]mind reels, [e]horror overwhelms me;
The twilight I longed for has been (I)turned into trembling for me.
5 They (J)set the table, they [f]spread out the cloth, they eat, they drink;
“Rise up, captains, oil the shields!”
6 For this is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, station the lookout, have him (K)report what he sees.
7 When he sees [g]a (L)column of chariots, horsemen in pairs,
A train of donkeys, a train of camels,
He is to pay close attention, very close attention.”
8 Then [h]the lookout called,
“(M)Lord, I stand continually by day on the watchtower,
And I am stationed every night at my guard post.
9 Now behold, here comes a troop of riders, horsemen in pairs.”
And one said, “(N)Fallen, fallen is Babylon;
And all the (O)images of her gods [i]are shattered on the ground.”
10 My (P)downtrodden people, and my [j]afflicted of the threshing floor!
What I have heard from the Lord of armies,
The God of Israel, I make known to you.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 21:1 Or sandy wastes, sea country
- Isaiah 21:1 I.e., South country
- Isaiah 21:2 Lit her groaning
- Isaiah 21:4 Lit heart has wandered
- Isaiah 21:4 Lit shuddering
- Isaiah 21:5 Or spread out the rugs or possibly they arranged the seating
- Isaiah 21:7 Or riders
- Isaiah 21:8 As in DSS; MT he called like a lion
- Isaiah 21:9 Lit he has shattered to the earth
- Isaiah 21:10 Lit son
Isaiah 21:1-10
New International Version
Isaiah 21:1-10
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.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 21:8 Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac; Masoretic Text A lion
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