Elam and Media are Rebuked
1A messagea concerning the pastureb by the Sea.
“Like whirlwinds in the Negevc sweep on,
it comes from the desert,
from a distantd land.
2A dire vision has been announced to me:
the traitor betrays,
and the plunderer takes loot.
Get up, Elam!
Attack, Media!
I am putting a stop
to all the groaning she has caused.
3Therefore my body ise racked with pain;
pangs have seized me,
like the pangs of a woman in labor;
I am so upset that I cannot hear;
I am so frightened that I cannot see
while I’m reeling around.f
4And as for my heart,g horror has terrified me;
the twilight I longed for
has started to make me tremble.
5They set the tables;
they spread the carpets;h
they eat, they drink!
Get up, you officers!
Oil the shields!”
The Fall of Babylon
6For this is what the LORD told me:
“Go post a lookout.
Have him report what he sees.
7When he sees chariots, each mani with a pair of horses,
riders on donkeys or riders onj camels,
let him pay attention,
full attention.”
8Then the lookoutk shouted:
“Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord,
continually by day,
and I am stationed at my post
throughout the night.
9Look! Here come riders,l
each man with a pair of horses!”
They’re shouting out the answer:
“Babylon has fallen, has fallen,
and they have shattered
all the images of her godsm on the ground!
10O my downtrodden people,n my wall!o
I’ll tell you what I have heard
from the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel.”
A Message about Dumah
11A messagep concerning Dumah.
“Someone is calling to me from Seir:
‘Watchman, what is left of the night?q
Watchman, what is left of the night?’r
12The watchman replies:
‘Morning is coming, but also the night.
If you want to ask, then ask;
come back again.’”
A Message about Arabia
13A messages concerning Arabia.
“You will camp in the thickets in Arabia,
you caravans of the Dedanites.
14Bring water for the thirsty,
you who live in the land of Tema.
Meet the fugitive with bread,t
15For he has fledu from swords,
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow,
and from the heat of battle.”
16For this is what the LORDv is saying to me: “Within three years,w according to the years of a contract worker,x the pompy of Kedar will come to an end.17And there will be few archers, those who are descendants of Kedar, who survive, because the LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken.”
Footnotes:
a 21:1 Lit.An oracle
b 21:1 Orplague; cf. Isa 5:17; 1King 8:37; Jer 14:12; MT LXX readwilderness
c 21:1 i.e. southern regions of the Sinai peninsula; cf. Josh 10:40
d 21:1 So 1QIsaa; 1QIsaa corrector MT LXX readterrible
e 21:3 Orwaist; lit.my hips and lower back are
f 21:3 So 1QIsaa 4QIsaa; MT LXX begin v. 4 with this line
g 21:4 So 1QIsaa 4QIsaa; MT LXX readMy mind reels
h 21:5 So 1QIsaa MT; LXX lacks this line
i 21:7 So 1QIsaa 4QIsaa; cf. v. 9; MT LXX lackeach man
j 21:7 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT readstrain of donkeys or train of
k 21:8 So 1QIsaa Syr; MT readsThen a lion
l 21:9 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT readschariot; cf. v. 7
m 21:9 So 1QIsaa; LXX readsall the images of her gods are shattered; MT readsHe has shattered all the images of her gods
n 21:10 1QIsaa lackspeople
o 21:10 So 1QIsaa; MT readsmy threshing floor
p 21:11 Lit.An oracle
q 21:11 OrWhat time of night?
r 21:11 OrWhat time of night?
s 21:13 Lit.An oracle
t 21:14 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT readswith his bread; 4QIsaareadsand with his bread
u 21:15 So 1QIsaa; MT readsthey have fled
v 21:16 So 1QIsaa 4QIsaa; MT readsLord
w 21:16 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX readWithin a year
x 21:16 i.e. as if carefully counted pursuant to an employment contract; cf. Isa 16:14
y 21:16 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT readsyears, all the pomp
The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1
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ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY.
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