Isaiah 16
1 Send lambs as tribute to the ruler of the land, from Sela through the desert, to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.
Send rams to the ruler of the land from Selah in the wilderness, to the mount of the daughter of Zion.
2 The Moabite women at the fords of the Arnon are like birds fluttering around when their nest is destroyed.
As wandering birds, as a scattered nest, so the women of Moab are at the fords of the Arnon River.
3 Think about it and make a decision. Make your shadow as invisible at midday as during the night. Hide the refugees; don't betray them as they run away.
“Give instruction, execute justice; provide some shade like night in the middle of the day; hide the fugitives; do not betray the fugitives.
4 Let my refugees stay among you, Moab. Hide them from our enemies until the destroyer is no more, the destruction is over, and the aggressive invaders have gone.
Let them live among you, the refugees from Moab; be a hiding place for them from the destroyer.” For the oppression will stop, and destruction will cease, those who trample will disappear from the land.
5 Then a kingdom will be set up based on trustworthy love, and on its throne will sit a faithful king from the line of David. He will judge fairly, and will be passionately committed to doing what is right.
A throne will be established in covenant faithfulness; and one from David's tent will faithfully sit there. He will judge as he seeks justice and does righteousness.
6 We know all about the pride of the Moabites, how terribly vain and conceited they are, completely arrogant! But their boasting is false.
We have heard of Moab's pride, his arrogance, his boasting, and his anger. But his boastings are empty words.
7 All the Moabites grieve for Moab. They all mourn the loss of the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth, all of them destroyed.
So Moab wails for Moab—they all wail! Mourn, you who are utterly destroyed, for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth.
8 Heshbon's fields have dried up, as have Sibmah's grapevines. The rulers of the nations have trampled down the vines that once branched out to Jazer and east towards the desert, and west as far as the sea.
The fields of Heshbon have dried up as well as the vines of Sibmah. The rulers of the nations have trampled the choice vines that reached to Jazer and spread into the desert. Its shoots spread abroad; they went over to the sea.
9 So I cry with Jazer for Sibmah's vines; I soak Heshbon and Elealeh with my tears. Nobody shouts in celebration over your summer fruit and your harvest any more.
Indeed I will weep along with Jazer for the vineyard of Sibmah. I will water you with my tears, Heshbon, and Elealeh. For on your fields of summer fruits and harvest I have ended the shouts of joy.
10 Joy and happiness are gone. Nobody celebrates in the harvest fields or the vineyards; nobody shouts happily. Nobody treads grapes in the winepresses. I have stopped their cheering.
Gladness and joy are taken away from the fruit tree groves; and there is no singing, or shouts in the vineyards. No one treads out wine in the presses, for I have put an end to the shouts of the one who treads.
11 Heartbroken I cry for Moab like sad music on a harp; deep inside I weep for Kir-hareseth.
So my heart sighs like a harp for Moab, and my inward being for Kir Hareseth.
12 The Moabites go and wear themselves out worshiping at their high places. They go to their shrines to pray, but it does them no good.
When Moab wears himself out on the high place and enters his temple to pray, his prayers will accomplish nothing.
13 This is the message that the Lord has already delivered about Moab.
This is the word that Yahweh spoke concerning Moab previously.
14 But now the Lord speaks again, and says, In three years, just as a contract worker precisely counts years, Moab's glory will turn into something to be laughed at. Despite there being so many Moabites now, soon there will only be a few feeble people left.
Again Yahweh speaks, “Within three years, the glory of Moab will disappear; in spite of his many people, the remnant will be very few and insignificant.”
