Isaiah 16
Christian Standard Bible
16 Send lambs to the ruler of the land,(A)
from Sela in the desert(B)
to the mountain of Daughter Zion.
2 Like a bird fleeing,
forced from the nest,
the daughters of Moab
will be at the fords of the Arnon.
3 Give us counsel and make a decision.
Shelter us at noonday
with shade that is as dark as night.
Hide the refugees;(C)
do not betray the one who flees.
4 Let my refugees stay with you;
be a refuge for Moab[a] from the aggressor.
When the oppressor has gone,
destruction has ended,
and marauders have vanished from the land,
5 a throne will be established in love,(D)
and one will sit on it faithfully[b]
in the tent of David,
judging and pursuing what is right,
quick to execute justice.
6 We have heard of Moab’s pride(E)—
how very proud he is—
his haughtiness, his pride, his arrogance,
and his empty boasting.
7 Therefore let Moab wail;
let every one of them wail for Moab.
You who are completely devastated, mourn
for the raisin cakes(F) of Kir-hareseth.(G)
8 For Heshbon’s terraced vineyards
and the grapevines of Sibmah have withered.
The rulers of the nations
have trampled its choice vines
that reached as far as Jazer(H)
and spread to the desert.
Their shoots spread out
and reached the sea.(I)
9 So I join with Jazer
to weep for the vines of Sibmah;
I drench Heshbon and Elealeh with my tears.
Triumphant shouts have fallen silent[c]
over your summer fruit and your harvest.
10 Joy and rejoicing(J) have been removed from the orchard;
no one is singing or shouting for joy in the vineyards.(K)
No one tramples grapes[d] in the winepresses.
I have put an end to the shouting.
11 Therefore I moan like the sound of a lyre for Moab,(L)
as does my innermost being for Kir-heres.
12 When Moab appears
and tires himself out on the high place(M)
and comes to his sanctuary to pray,
it will do him no good.(N)
13 This is the message that the Lord previously announced about Moab. 14 And now the Lord says, “In three years, as a hired worker counts years,(O) Moab’s splendor will become an object of contempt, in spite of a very large population. And those who are left will be few and weak.”
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Isaiah 16
International Standard Version
Moab’s Destruction
16 “Send a lamb to the ruler of the land,
from Selah,[a] by way of the desert,
to the mountain of the Daughter of Zion.[b]
2 Like fluttering birds,
like an abandoned nest,
so are the daughters of Moab
at the fords of the Arnon River.[c]
3 “Give us advice;
reach a decision!
Cast your shadow as if night had come
at high noon.
Shelter the fugitives,
And don’t betray a single refugee.
4 Let the fugitives[d] from Moab
settle among you;
be a shelter to them
from the destroyer.
When the oppressor comes to an end,
and destruction has[e] ceased,
and the marauder[f] has[g] vanished from the land,
5 then a throne will be established in gracious love,
and there will sit in faithfulness—
in the Tent of David—
one who judges, seeks justice,
and is swift to do what is right.”
6 “We’ve heard about Moab’s pride—
so very proud he became!—[h]
his arrogance, his pride, and his insolence;
therefore he is alone.[i]
7 Therefore, let Moab not[j] wail,
let everyone wail for Moab.
Lament and grieve deeply
for the ruined remains[k] of Kir-hareseth.
8 For the fields of Heshbon wither,
as well as the vines of Sibmah.[l]
The rulers of the nations
have struck down its choicest vines,
which once reached Jazer
and pushed to the desert.
Its shoots spread out
and passed over the sea.”
Isaiah Weeps for Moab
9 “Therefore I weep with the tears of Jazer
for the vines of Sibmah.
I drench you with my tears,
O Heshbon and Elealeh—
for the shouts of joy over your summer fruit
and your grain harvest have ended.
10 Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards,
in the vineyards people will sing no songs,[m]
and[n] no cheers are raised.
No vintner[o] treads out wine in the presses,
because I’ve put an end to the shouting.
11 Therefore my insides[p] moan like a lyre for Moab,
and my innermost being[q] for Kir-hareseth.
12 When Moab appears,
when he arrives[r] upon the high place
and comes to his sanctuary to pray,
he will not prevail.”
13 This was the message that the Lord spoke concerning Moab in the past. 14 But now the Lord has spoken again: “Within three years, like the years of a contract worker,[s] Moab’s glory will be brought into contempt, in spite of all its great multitude, and its survivors will be very few and[t] of no importance.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Isaiah 16:1 So 1QIsaa; MT reads Sela; LXX reads not the rock
- Isaiah 16:1 I.e. Mt. Zion
- Isaiah 16:2 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks River
- Isaiah 16:4 So 1QIsaa; MT reads my fugitives
- Isaiah 16:4 So 1QIsaa; MT reads have
- Isaiah 16:4 Lit. the one who tramples underfoot
- Isaiah 16:4 So 1QIsaa; MT reads have
- Isaiah 16:6 So 1QIsaa MTmss; cf. Jer 48:29; MT reads how very proud he was
- Isaiah 16:6 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read but his boasts mean nothing
- Isaiah 16:7 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks not
- Isaiah 16:7 Or for the raisin cakes
- Isaiah 16:8 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX include the rest of v. 8: The rulers … vine of Sibmah in v. 9
- Isaiah 16:10 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads no songs are sung
- Isaiah 16:10 So 1QIsaa MTmss; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 16:10 Lit. treader
- Isaiah 16:11 Or heart; lit. bowels
- Isaiah 16:11 Or my very soul
- Isaiah 16:12 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read tires himself
- Isaiah 16:14 I.e. as if carefully counted pursuant to an employment contract; cf. Isa 21:16
- Isaiah 16:14 So 1QIsaa LXX; the Heb. lacks and
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