Isaiah 21:1-10
New King James Version
The Fall of Babylon Proclaimed
21 The [a]burden against the Wilderness of the Sea.
As (A)whirlwinds in the South pass through,
So it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.
2 A distressing vision is declared to me;
(B)The treacherous dealer deals treacherously,
And the plunderer plunders.
(C)Go up, O Elam!
Besiege, O Media!
All its sighing I have made to cease.
3 Therefore (D)my loins are filled with pain;
(E)Pangs have taken hold of me, like the pangs of a woman in labor.
I was [b]distressed when I heard it;
I was dismayed when I saw it.
4 My heart wavered, fearfulness frightened me;
(F)The night for which I longed He turned into fear for me.
5 (G)Prepare the table,
Set a watchman in the tower,
Eat and drink.
Arise, you princes,
Anoint the shield!
6 For thus has the Lord said to me:
“Go, set a watchman,
Let him declare what he sees.”
7 And he saw a chariot with a pair of horsemen,
A chariot of donkeys, and a chariot of camels,
And he listened earnestly with great care.
8 [c]Then he cried, “A lion, my Lord!
I stand continually on the (H)watchtower in the daytime;
I have sat at my post every night.
9 And look, here comes a chariot of men with a pair of horsemen!”
Then he answered and said,
(I)“Babylon is fallen, is fallen!
And (J)all the carved images of her gods
He has broken to the ground.”
10 (K)Oh, my threshing and the grain of my floor!
That which I have heard from the Lord of hosts,
The God of Israel,
I have declared to you.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 21:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 21:3 Lit. bowed
- Isaiah 21:8 DSS Then the observer cried, “My Lord!
Isaiah 21:1-10
American Standard Version
21 The [a]burden of the wilderness of the sea.
As whirlwinds in the South sweep through, it cometh from the wilderness, from a terrible land. 2 A [b]grievous vision is declared unto me; the treacherous man dealeth treacherously, and the destroyer destroyeth. Go up, O Elam; besiege, O Media; all the sighing thereof [c]have I made to cease. 3 Therefore are my loins filled with anguish; pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman in travail: I am [d]pained so that I cannot hear; I am dismayed so that I cannot see. 4 My heart [e]fluttereth, horror hath affrighted me; the twilight that I desired hath been turned into trembling unto me. 5 They prepare the table, they [f]set the watch, they eat, they drink: rise up, ye princes, anoint the shield. 6 For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Go, set a watchman; let him declare what he seeth: 7 [g]and when he seeth [h]a troop, [i]horsemen in pairs, [j]a troop of asses, [k]a troop of camels, he shall hearken diligently with much heed. 8 And he cried as a lion: O Lord, I stand continually upon the watch-tower in the day-time, and am set in my ward [l]whole nights; 9 and, behold, here [m]cometh a troop of men, [n]horsemen in pairs. And he answered and said, Fallen, fallen is Babylon; and all the graven images of her gods are broken unto the ground.
10 O thou my threshing, and the [o]grain of my floor! that which I have heard from Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, have I declared unto you.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Isaiah 21:1 Or, oracle concerning
- Isaiah 21:2 Or, hard
- Isaiah 21:2 Or, will I make
- Isaiah 21:3 Hebrew bent.
- Isaiah 21:4 Hebrew wandereth.
- Isaiah 21:5 Or, spread the carpets
- Isaiah 21:7 Or, and he saw . . . and he hearkened
- Isaiah 21:7 Or, a chariot. Or, chariots
- Isaiah 21:7 Or, a pair of horsemen
- Isaiah 21:7 Or, a chariot. Or, chariots
- Isaiah 21:7 Or, a chariot. Or, chariots
- Isaiah 21:8 Or, every night
- Isaiah 21:9 Or, come chariots of men
- Isaiah 21:9 Or, a pair of horsemen
- Isaiah 21:10 Hebrew son.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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