Isaiah 34:5-17
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
5 When my sword has drunk its fill in the heavens,
upon Edom it will fall,
upon the people I have doomed to judgment.(A)
6 The Lord has a sword; it is sated with blood;
it is gorged with fat,
with the blood of lambs and goats,
with the fat of the kidneys of rams.
For the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah,
a great slaughter in the land of Edom.(B)
7 Wild oxen shall fall with them
and young steers with the mighty bulls.
Their land shall be soaked with blood,
and their soil made rich with fat.(C)
8 For the Lord has a day of vengeance,
a year of vindication for Zion’s cause.[a](D)
9 And the streams of Edom[b] shall be turned into pitch
and her soil into sulfur;
her land shall become burning pitch.(E)
10 Night and day it shall not be quenched;
its smoke shall go up forever.
From generation to generation it shall lie waste;
no one shall pass through it forever and ever.(F)
11 But the desert owl[c] and the screech owl[d] shall possess it;
the great owl and the raven shall live in it.
He shall stretch the line of confusion
and the plummet of chaos over it.(G)
12 They shall call its nobles No Kingdom There,
and all its princes shall be nothing.
13 Thorns shall grow over its strongholds,
nettles and thistles in its fortresses.
It shall be the haunt of jackals,
an abode for ostriches.(H)
14 Wildcats shall meet with hyenas;
goat-demons shall call to each other;
there also Lilith shall repose
and find a place to rest.(I)
15 There shall the owl nest
and lay and hatch and brood in its shadow;
there also the buzzards shall gather,
each one with its mate.(J)
16 Seek and read from the book of the Lord:
Not one of these shall be missing;
none shall be without its mate.
For his mouth, it has commanded,
and his spirit, it has gathered them.(K)
17 He has cast the lot for them;
his hand has portioned it out to them with the line.
[[They shall possess it;
from generation to generation they shall live in it.(L)
Isaiah 34:5-17
New American Standard Bible
5 For (A)My sword has drunk its fill in heaven;
Behold it shall descend for judgment upon (B)Edom,
And upon the people whom I have (C)designated for destruction.
6 The sword of the Lord is filled with blood,
It drips with fat, with the blood of lambs and goats,
With the fat of the kidneys of rams.
For the Lord has a sacrifice in (D)Bozrah,
And a great slaughter in the land of (E)Edom.
7 (F)Wild oxen will also [a]fall with them
And (G)young bulls with strong ones;
So their land will be (H)soaked with blood,
And their dust [b]become greasy with fat.
8 For the Lord has a day of (I)vengeance,
A year of retribution for the [c]cause of Zion.
9 [d]Its streams will be turned into pitch,
And its loose earth into (J)brimstone,
And its land will become burning pitch.
10 It will (K)not be extinguished night or day;
Its (L)smoke will go up forever.
From (M)generation to generation it will be desolate;
(N)None will pass through it forever and ever.
11 But [e](O)pelican and hedgehog will possess it,
And [f]owl and raven will dwell in it;
And He will stretch over it the (P)line of [g]desolation
And the [h]plumb line of emptiness.
12 Its nobles—there is (Q)no one there
Whom they may proclaim king—
And all its officials will be (R)nothing.
13 Thorns will come up in its (S)fortified towers,
Weeds and thistles in its fortified cities;
It will also be a haunt of (T)jackals
And a habitat of ostriches.
14 The desert (U)creatures will meet with the [i]wolves,
The [j](V)goat also will cry to its kind.
Yes, the [k]night-bird will settle there
And will find herself a resting place.
15 The tree snake will make its nest and lay eggs there,
And it will hatch and gather them under its [l]protection.
Yes, (W)the [m]hawks will be gathered there,
Every one with its kind.
16 Seek from the (X)book of the Lord, and read:
Not one of these will be missing;
None will lack its mate.
For [n](Y)His mouth has commanded,
And His Spirit has gathered them.
17 He has cast the (Z)lot for them,
And His hand has divided it to them by the (AA)measuring line.
They shall possess it forever;
From (AB)generation to generation they will dwell in it.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 34:7 Lit go down
- Isaiah 34:7 Lit made fat
- Isaiah 34:8 Or controversy
- Isaiah 34:9 I.e., Edom’s
- Isaiah 34:11 Or owl; or jackdaw
- Isaiah 34:11 Or great horned owl
- Isaiah 34:11 Or formlessness
- Isaiah 34:11 Lit stones of void
- Isaiah 34:14 Or howling creatures
- Isaiah 34:14 Or goat demon
- Isaiah 34:14 Or a demon; Heb Lilith
- Isaiah 34:15 Lit shade
- Isaiah 34:15 Or kites
- Isaiah 34:16 As in DSS; MT My
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
