Isaiah 13
1 The burden of Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz has seen:
The burden of Babylon which Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw.
2 “Lift up an ensign on a high mountain, Raise the voice to them, wave the hand, And they go into the openings of nobles.
Over the foggy mountain lift up a sign! Raise the voice, lift up the hand, and let the rulers enter through the gates!
3 I have given charge to My sanctified ones, Also I have called My mighty ones for My anger, Those rejoicing at My excellence.”
In my wrath, I commanded my sanctified ones, and I called my strong ones, those who exult in my glory.
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, YHWH of Hosts inspecting a host of battle!
On the mountains, there is the voice of a multitude, as if of a numerous people, a voice with the sound of kings, of nations gathered together. For the Lord of hosts has given orders to soldiers of war,
5 They are coming in from a far-off land, From the end of the heavens, YHWH and the instruments of His indignation, To destroy all the land.
to those who are arriving from a far off land, from the heights of the heavens. It is the Lord and the instruments of his fury, so that he may bring ruin to all the earth.
6 Howl, for the Day of YHWH [is] near, It comes as destruction from the Mighty.
Wail aloud! For the day of the Lord draws near! It will arrive like a devastation from the Lord.
7 Therefore, all hands fail, And every heart of man melts.
Because of it, every hand will fail, and every heart of man will waste away and be crushed.
8 And they have been troubled, Pains and pangs take them, They are pained as a travailing woman, A man marvels at his friend, The appearance of flames—their faces!
Writhing and pain will seize them. They will be in pain, like a woman in labor. Each one will appear stupefied to his neighbor. Their countenances will be like faces which have been burned up.
9 Behold, the Day of YHWH comes, Fierce, with wrath, and heat of anger, To make the land become a desolation, Indeed, He destroys its sinning ones from it.
Behold, the day of the Lord approaches: a cruel day, full of indignation and wrath and fury, which will place the earth in solitude and crush the sinners from it.
10 For the stars of the heavens, and their constellations, Do not cause their light to shine, The sun has been darkened in its going out, And the moon does not cause its light to come forth.
For the stars of the heavens, in their splendor, will not display their light. The sun will be obscured at its rising, and the moon will not shine in her brightness.
11 “And I have appointed evil on the world, And on the wicked their iniquity, And have caused the excellence of the proud to cease, And I make the excellence of the terrible low.
And I will act against the evils of the world, and against the impious for their iniquity. And I will cause the pride of the unfaithful to cease, and I will bring down the arrogance of the strong.
12 I make man more rare than fine gold, And a common man than pure gold of Ophir.
A man will be more precious than gold, and mankind will become like pure refined gold.
13 Therefore I cause the heavens to tremble, And the earth shakes from its place, In the wrath of YHWH of Hosts, And in a day of the heat of His anger.
For this purpose, I will stir up heaven, and the earth will be moved from its place, because of the indignation of the Lord of hosts, because of the day of his furious wrath.
14 And it has been, as a roe driven away, And as a flock that has no gatherer, Each to his people—they turn, And each to his land—they flee.
And they will be like a doe fleeing away, or like sheep; and there will be no one who may gather them together. Each one will turn to his own people, and every one will flee to his own land.
15 Everyone who is found is thrust through, And everyone who is added falls by sword.
All who are found will be killed, and all who are caught unaware will fall by the sword.
16 And their sucklings are dashed to pieces before their eyes, Their houses are spoiled, and their wives lain with.
Their infants will be thrown down violently before their eyes. Their houses will be plundered, and their wives will be violated.
17 Behold, I am stirring up the Medes against them, Who do not esteem silver, And gold—they do not delight in it.
Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them. They will not seek silver, nor desire gold.
18 And bows dash young men to pieces, And they do not pity the fruit of the womb, Their eye has no pity on sons.
Instead, with their arrows, they will put the little children to death, and they will take no pity on breastfeeding women, and their eye will not spare their children.
19 And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, The glory, the excellence of the Chaldeans, Has been as overthrown by God, With Sodom and with Gomorrah.
And then Babylon, the glorious one among kingdoms, that famous pride of the Chaldeans, will be destroyed, even as the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 She does not sit forever, Nor continue to many generations, Nor does Arab pitch tent there, And shepherds do not lie down there.
It will not be inhabited, even unto the end, and it will not be reestablished, even from generation to generation. The Arab will not pitch his tents there, nor will the shepherds take rest there.
21 And desert-dwellers have lain down there, And their houses have been full of howlers, And daughters of an ostrich have dwelt there, And goats skip there.
Instead, the wild beasts will rest there, and their houses will be filled with serpents, and ostriches will live there, and the hairy ones will leap about there.
22 And howlers—he has responded in his forsaken habitations, And dragons in palaces of delight, And her time [is] near to come, And her days are not drawn out!”
And the tawny owls will answer one another there, in its buildings, and the Sirens in its shrines of pleasure.
