Isaiah 13
1 The burden of Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz hath seen:
This is the message Isaiah, son of Amoz, received about Babylon.
2 'On a high mountain lift ye up an ensign, Raise the voice to them, wave the hand, And they go in to the openings of nobles.
Set up a banner on a bare hilltop; shout out to them; wave your hand to encourage them to enter the palaces of princes.
3 I have given charge to My sanctified ones, Also I have called My mighty ones for Mine anger, Those rejoicing at Mine excellency.'
I have ordered the ones I have chosen to attack; I have called my warriors to execute my furious judgment and to celebrate my triumph.
4 A voice of a multitude in the mountains, A likeness of a numerous people, A voice of noise from the kingdoms of nations who are gathered, Jehovah of Hosts inspecting a host of battle!
A noise comes from the mountains, sounding like that of a huge crowd! It's the roaring sound from the kingdoms, from nations gathering together! The Lord Almighty is calling up an army for war.
5 They are coming in from a land afar off, From the end of the heavens, Jehovah and the instruments of His indignation, To destroy all the land.
They are coming from distant lands, from beyond the far horizons—the Lord and the weapons of his fury—coming to destroy the whole country.
6 Howl ye, for near [is] the day of Jehovah, As destruction from the Mighty it cometh.
Howl in fear, for the day of the Lord is approaching—the time when the Almighty destroys.
7 Therefore, all hands do fail, And every heart of man doth melt.
Everyone's hands will fall limp, and everyone will lose their minds in panic.
8 And they have been troubled, Pains and pangs they take, As a travailing woman they are pained, A man at his friend they marvel, The appearance of flames — their faces!
They will be terrified; pain and anguish will seize them; they will suffer like a woman giving birth. They will look in shock at each other, their faces burning in fear.
9 Lo, the day of Jehovah doth come, Fierce, with wrath, and heat of anger, To make the land become a desolation, Yea, its sinning ones He destroyeth from it.
Look! The day of the Lord is coming—cruel, with fury and fierce anger—to devastate the land and to wipe out its sinners.
10 For the stars of the heavens, and their constellations, Cause not their light to shine, Darkened hath been the sun in its going out, And the moon causeth not its light to come forth.
The stars in the constellations of heaven above will not shine. When the sun rises it will stay dark. The moon will give no light.
11 And I have appointed on the world evil, And on the wicked their iniquity, And have caused to cease the excellency of the proud, And the excellency of the terrible I make low.
I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their sin, says the Lord. I will put an end to the conceit of the arrogant, and I will humiliate tyrants and their pride.
12 I make man more rare than fine gold, And a common man than pure gold of Ophir.
I will make people scarcer than pure gold, rarer than the gold of Ophir.
13 Therefore the heavens I cause to tremble, And the earth doth shake from its place, In the wrath of Jehovah of Hosts, And in a day of the heat of his anger.
So I will shake the heavens and make the earth jump out of its place because of the fury of the Lord Almighty, at the time when his anger burns.
14 And it hath been, as a roe driven away, And as a flock that hath no gatherer, Each unto his people — they turn, And each unto his land — they flee.
Like a gazelle being hunted, or like sheep without a shepherd, the Babylonians will return to their own people, they will run away to their own land.
15 Every one who is found is thrust through, And every one who is added falleth by sword.
Anyone who is captured will be stabbed to death; anyone who is caught will be killed by the sword.
16 And their sucklings are dashed to pieces before their eyes, Spoiled are their houses, and their wives lain with.
Their little children will be dashed to pieces as they watch, their houses will be looted, and their wives will be raped.
17 Lo, I am stirring up against them the Medes, Who silver esteem not, And gold — they delight not in it.
I'm going to get the Medes to attack them, people who don't care about silver or gold.
18 And bows dash young men to pieces, And the fruit of the womb they pity not, On sons their eye hath no pity.
Their bows will slaughter their young men; they will show no mercy to babies; they will have no pity on children.
19 And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, The glory, the excellency of the Chaldeans, Hath been as overthrown by God, With Sodom and with Gomorrah.
Babylon, the most marvelous city of any kingdom, the greatest pride of the Babylonian people, will be demolished by God like Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 She doth not sit for ever, Nor continueth unto many generations, Nor doth Arab pitch tent there, And shepherds lie not down there.
No one will ever live in Babylon again. It will be deserted—no desert nomad will set up a tent there, no shepherd will bring a flock to rest there.
21 And Ziim have lain down there, And full have been their houses of howlings, And dwelt there have daughters of an ostrich, And goats do skip there.
Only desert animals will make their homes there, and the ruined houses will be inhabited by wild dogs. Owls will live there, and wild goats will leap around.
22 And Aiim have responded in his forsaken habitations, And dragons in palaces of delight, And near to come [is] her time, And her days are not drawn out!
Hyenas will howl in her fortresses and jackals in her lavish palaces. Babylon's time is coming soon—they will not last much longer.
