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Isaiah 14:3-23
Lexham English Bible

The Downfall of the King of Babylon

3 And it shall happen on the day Yahweh gives you rest from your pain and turmoil and hard labor which you had to perform,[a]

4 that you will take this taunt against the king of Babylon,
    and you will say:
“How the oppressor has ceased!
    his insolence[b] has ceased.
5 Yahweh has broken the staff of the wicked,
    the scepter of rulers,
6 that struck the peoples in wrath, a blow without ceasing,
    that ruled the nations in anger
    with unrestrained persecution.[c]
7 All of the earth rests and is quiet;
    they break forth into singing.
8 Even the cypresses rejoice over you,
    the cedars of Lebanon:
‘Since you were laid down,
    no wood cutter comes up against us.’
9 Sheol below is getting excited over you,
    to meet you when you come;[d]
it arouses the dead spirits for you,
    all of the leaders of the earth.
    It raises all of the kings of the nations from their thrones.
10 All of them will respond and say to you,
‘You yourself also were made weak like us!
    You have become the same as us!’
11 Your pride is brought down to Sheol,
    and the sound of your harps;
maggots[e] are spread out beneath you like a bed,
    and your covering is worms.[f]
12 How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of dawn!
    You are cut down to the ground, conqueror of nations!

13 And you yourself said in your heart,

‘I will ascend to heaven;
    I will raise up my throne above the stars of God;
and I will sit on the mountain of assembly
    on the summit of Zaphon;[g]
14 I will ascend to the high places of the clouds,[h]
    I will make myself like the Most High.’
15 But you are brought down to Sheol,
    to the depths of the pit.
16 Those who see you will stare at you,
    they will look closely at you:
‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,
    who caused kingdoms to shake,
17 who made the world like the desert
    and destroyed its cities,
    who would not let his prisoners go home?’
18 All the kings of the nations, all of them, lie in glory,
    each one in his house.
19 But as for you, you are thrown away from your grave,
    like an abhorrent shoot,
clothed with the slain,
    those pierced by the sword,
those who go down to the stones of the pit,
    like a corpse that is trodden down.
20 You will not be united with them in burial
because you have destroyed your land,
    you have killed your people.

The descendants[i] of evildoers will not be mentioned for eternity!

21 Prepare a place of slaughter for his sons
    because of the sin of their ancestors.[j]
Let them not rise and take possession of the earth
    or fill up the face of the world with cities.”
22 “And I will rise up against them,”

declares[k] Yahweh of hosts,

“and I will cut off name and a remnant from Babylon,
    and offspring and posterity,”

declares[l] Yahweh.

23 “And I will make her a possession of the hedgehog,
    and pools of water,
    and I will sweep her away with the broom of destruction,”

declares[m] Yahweh of hosts.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 14:3 Literally “was worked by you”
  2. Isaiah 14:4 The meaning of the word is uncertain; others translate it as “fury,” “hostility,” or even “golden city”
  3. Isaiah 14:6 Literally “persecution without withholding”
  4. Isaiah 14:9 Literally “your entrance”
  5. Isaiah 14:11 Hebrew “maggot”
  6. Isaiah 14:11 Hebrew “worm”
  7. Isaiah 14:13 Or “of the north”
  8. Isaiah 14:14 Hebrew “cloud”
  9. Isaiah 14:20 Hebrew “descendant”
  10. Isaiah 14:21 Or “fathers”
  11. Isaiah 14:22 Literally “declaration of”
  12. Isaiah 14:22 Literally “declaration of”
  13. Isaiah 14:23 Literally “declaration of”
Close NET

Isaiah 14:3-23
New English Translation

3 When the Lord gives you relief from your suffering and anxiety[a] and from the hard labor that you were made to perform, 4 you will taunt the king of Babylon with these words:[b]

“Look how the oppressor has met his end!

Hostility[c] has ceased!
5 The Lord has broken the club of the wicked,
the scepter of rulers.
6 It[d] furiously struck down nations
with unceasing blows.[e]
It angrily ruled over nations,
oppressing them without restraint.[f]
7 The whole earth rests and is quiet;
they break into song.
8 The evergreens also rejoice over your demise,[g]
as do the cedars of Lebanon, singing,[h]
‘Since you fell asleep,[i]
no woodsman comes up to chop us down!’[j]
9 Sheol[k] below is stirred up about you,
ready to meet you when you arrive.
It rouses[l] the spirits of the dead for you,
all the former leaders of the earth;[m]
it makes all the former kings of the nations
rise from their thrones.[n]
10 All of them respond to you, saying:
‘You too have become weak like us!
You have become just like us!
11 Your splendor[o] has been brought down to Sheol,
as well as the sound of your stringed instruments.[p]
You lie on a bed of maggots,
with a blanket of worms over you.[q]
12 Look how you have fallen from the sky,

O shining one, son of the dawn![r]
You have been cut down to the ground,
O conqueror[s] of the nations![t]
13 You said to yourself,[u]
‘I will climb up to the sky.
Above the stars of El[v]
I will set up my throne.
I will rule on the mountain of assembly
on the remote slopes of Zaphon.[w]
14 I will climb up to the tops[x] of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High!’[y]
15 But you were brought down[z] to Sheol,
to the remote slopes of the Pit.[aa]
16 Those who see you stare at you,
they look at you carefully, thinking:[ab]
‘Is this the man who shook the earth,
the one who made kingdoms tremble?
17 Is this the one who made the world like a wilderness,
who ruined its[ac] cities,
and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?’[ad]
18 [ae] As for all the kings of the nations,
all of them[af] lie down in splendor,[ag]
each in his own tomb.[ah]
19 But you have been thrown out of your grave
like a shoot that is thrown away.[ai]
You lie among[aj] the slain,
among those who have been slashed by the sword,
among those headed for[ak] the stones of the Pit,[al]
as if you were a mangled corpse.[am]
20 You will not be buried with them,[an]
because you destroyed your land
and killed your people.
The offspring of the wicked

will never be mentioned again.
21 Prepare to execute[ao] his sons
for the sins their ancestors have committed.[ap]
They must not rise up and take possession of the earth,
or fill the surface of the world with cities.[aq]
22 “I will rise up against them,”

says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“I will blot out all remembrance of Babylon and destroy all her people,[ar]
including the offspring she produces,”[as]
says the Lord.
23 “I will turn her into a place that is overrun with wild animals[at]
and covered with pools of stagnant water.
I will get rid of her, just as one sweeps away dirt with a broom,”[au]
says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 14:3 tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.
  2. Isaiah 14:4 tn Heb “you will lift up this taunt over the king of Babylon, saying.”
  3. Isaiah 14:4 tc The word in the Hebrew text (מַדְהֵבָה, madhevah) is unattested elsewhere and of uncertain meaning. Many (following the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa) assume a confusion of dalet and resh (ד and ר) and emend the form to מַרְהֵבָה (marhevah, “onslaught”). See HALOT 548 s.v. II *מִדָּה and HALOT 633 s.v. *מַרְהֵבָה.
  4. Isaiah 14:6 tn Or perhaps, “he” (cf. KJV; NCV “the king of Babylon”). The present translation understands the referent of the pronoun (“it”) to be the “club/scepter” of the preceding line.
  5. Isaiah 14:6 tn Heb “it was striking down nations in fury [with] a blow without ceasing.” The participle (“striking down”) suggests repeated or continuous action in past time.
  6. Isaiah 14:6 tn Heb “it was ruling in anger nations [with] oppression without restraint.” The participle (“ruling”) suggests repeated or continuous action in past time.
  7. Isaiah 14:8 tn Heb “concerning you.”
  8. Isaiah 14:8 tn The word “singing” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. Note that the personified trees speak in the second half of the verse.
  9. Isaiah 14:8 tn Heb “lay down” (in death); cf. NAB “laid to rest.”
  10. Isaiah 14:8 tn Heb “the [wood]cutter does not come up against us.”
  11. Isaiah 14:9 sn Sheol is the proper name of the subterranean world which was regarded as the land of the dead.
  12. Isaiah 14:9 tn Heb “arousing.” The form is probably a Polel infinitive absolute, rather than a third masculine singular perfect, for Sheol is grammatically feminine (note “stirred up”). See GKC 466 §145.t.
  13. Isaiah 14:9 tn Heb “all the rams of the earth.” The animal epithet is used metaphorically here for leaders. See HALOT 903 s.v. *עַתּוּד.
  14. Isaiah 14:9 tn Heb “lifting from their thrones all the kings of the nations.” הֵקִים (heqim, a Hiphil perfect third masculine singular) should be emended to an infinitive absolute (הָקֵים, haqem). See the note on “rouses” earlier in the verse.
  15. Isaiah 14:11 tn Or “pride” (NCV, CEV); KJV, NIV, NRSV “pomp.”
  16. Isaiah 14:11 tn Or “harps” (NAB, NIV, NRSV).
  17. Isaiah 14:11 tn Heb “under you maggots are spread out, and worms are your cover.”
  18. Isaiah 14:12 tn The Hebrew text has הֵילֵל בֶּן־שָׁחַר (helel ben shakhar, “Helel son of Shachar”), which is probably a name for the morning star (Venus) or the crescent moon. See HALOT 245 s.v. הֵילֵל. sn What is the background for the imagery in vv. 12-15? This whole section (vv. 4b-21) is directed to the king of Babylon, who is clearly depicted as a human ruler. Other kings of the earth address him in vv. 9ff., he is called “the man” in v. 16, and, according to vv. 19-20, he possesses a physical body. Nevertheless the language of vv. 12-15 has led some to see a dual referent in the taunt song. These verses, which appear to be spoken by other pagan kings to a pagan king (cf. vv. 9-11), contain several titles and motifs that resemble those of Canaanite mythology, including references to Helel son of Shachar, the stars of El, the mountain of assembly, the recesses of Zaphon, and the divine title Most High. Apparently these verses allude to a mythological story about a minor god (Helel son of Shachar) who tried to take over Zaphon, the mountain of the gods. His attempted coup failed, and he was hurled down to the underworld. The king of Babylon is taunted for having similar unrealized delusions of grandeur. Some Christians have seen an allusion to the fall of Satan here, but this seems contextually unwarranted (see J. Martin, “Isaiah,” BKCOT, 1061).
  19. Isaiah 14:12 tn Some understand the verb חָלַשׁ (khalash) to mean “weaken,” but HALOT 324 s.v. II חלשׁ proposes a homonym here meaning “defeat.”
  20. Isaiah 14:12 sn In this line the taunting kings hint at the literal identity of the king, after likening him to the god Helel and a tree. The verb גָדַע (gadaʿ, “cut down”) is used of chopping down trees in 9:10 and 10:33.
  21. Isaiah 14:13 tn Heb “you, you said in your heart.”
  22. Isaiah 14:13 sn In Canaanite mythology the stars of El were astral deities under the authority of the high god El.
  23. Isaiah 14:13 sn Zaphon, the Canaanite version of Olympus, was the “mountain of assembly” where the gods met.
  24. Isaiah 14:14 tn Heb “the high places.” This word often refers to the high places where pagan worship was conducted, but here it probably refers to the “backs” or tops of the clouds. See HALOT 136 s.v. בָּמָה.
  25. Isaiah 14:14 sn Normally in the OT the title “Most High” belongs to the God of Israel, but in this context, where the mythological overtones are so strong, it probably refers to the Canaanite high god El.
  26. Isaiah 14:15 tn The prefixed verb form is taken as a preterite. Note the use of perfects in v. 12 to describe the king’s downfall.
  27. Isaiah 14:15 tn The Hebrew term בּוּר (bor, “cistern”) is sometimes used metaphorically to refer to the place of the dead or the entrance to the underworld.
  28. Isaiah 14:16 tn The word “thinking” is supplied in the translation in order to make it clear that the next line records their thoughts as they gaze at him.
  29. Isaiah 14:17 tc The pronominal suffix is masculine, even though its antecedent appears to be the grammatically feminine noun “world.” Some have suggested that the form עָרָיו (ʿarayv, plural noun with third masculine singular suffix) should be emended to עָרֶיהָ (ʿareha, plural noun with third feminine singular suffix). This emendation may be unnecessary in light of other examples of lack of agreement between a suffix and its antecedent noun.
  30. Isaiah 14:17 tn Heb “and his prisoners did not let loose to [their] homes.” This really means, “he did not let loose his prisoners and send them back to their homes.” On the elliptical style, see GKC 366 §117.o.
  31. Isaiah 14:18 sn It is unclear where the quotation of the kings, begun in v. 10b, ends. However, the reference to the “kings of the nations” in v. 18 (see also v. 9) seems to indicate that the quotation has ended at this point and that Israel’s direct taunt (cf. vv. 4b-10a) has resumed. In fact, the references to the “kings of the nations” may form a stylistic inclusio or frame around the quotation.
  32. Isaiah 14:18 tc The phrase “all of them” does not appear in the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa.
  33. Isaiah 14:18 sn This refers to the typically extravagant burial of kings.
  34. Isaiah 14:18 tn Heb “house” (so KJV, ASV), but in this context a tomb is in view. Note the verb “lie down” in the preceding line and the reference to a “grave” in the next line.
  35. Isaiah 14:19 tn Heb “like a shoot that is abhorred.” The simile seems a bit odd; apparently it refers to a small shoot that is trimmed from a plant and tossed away. Some prefer to emend נֵצֶר (netser, “shoot”); some propose נֵפֶל (nefel, “miscarriage”). In this case one might paraphrase: “like a horrible-looking fetus that is delivered when a woman miscarries.”
  36. Isaiah 14:19 tn Heb “are clothed with.”
  37. Isaiah 14:19 tn Heb “those going down to.”
  38. Isaiah 14:19 tn בּוֹר (bor) literally means “cistern”; cisterns were constructed from stones. On the metaphorical use of “cistern” for the underworld, see the note at v. 15.
  39. Isaiah 14:19 tn Heb “like a trampled corpse.” Some take this line with what follows.
  40. Isaiah 14:20 tn Heb “you will not be united with them in burial” (so NASB).
  41. Isaiah 14:21 tn Or “the place of slaughter for.”
  42. Isaiah 14:21 tn Heb “for the sin of their fathers.”
  43. Isaiah 14:21 sn J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 1:320, n. 10) suggests that the garrison cities of the mighty empire are in view here.
  44. Isaiah 14:22 tn Heb “I will cut off from Babylon name and remnant” (ASV, NAB, and NRSV all similar).
  45. Isaiah 14:22 tn Heb “descendant and child.”
  46. Isaiah 14:23 tn Heb “I will make her into a possession of wild animals.” It is uncertain what type of animal קִפֹּד (qippod) refers to. Some suggest a rodent (cf. NASB, NRSV “hedgehog”), others, an owl (cf, NAB, NIV, TEV).
  47. Isaiah 14:23 tn Heb “I will sweep her away with the broom of destruction.”
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