Isaiah 13
1 The burden of Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz has seen:
THE VISION WHICH ESAIAS SON OF AMOS SAW AGAINST BABYLON.
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.
Lift up a standard on the mountain of the plain, exalt the voice to them, beckon with the hand, open [the gates], you rulers.
3 I have given charge to My sanctified ones, Also I have called My mighty ones for My anger, Those rejoicing at My excellence.”
I give command, and I bring them: giants are coming to fulfil my wrath, rejoicing at the same time and insulting.
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!
A voice of many nations on the mountains, [even] like [to that] of many nations; a voice of kings and nations gathered together: the Lord of hosts has given command to a warlike nation,
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 come from a land afar off, from the utmost foundation of heaven; the Lord and his warriors [are coming] to destroy all the world.
6 Howl, for the Day of YHWH [is] near, It comes as destruction from the Mighty.
Howl you, for the day of the Lord is near, and destruction from God shall arrive.
7 Therefore, all hands fail, And every heart of man melts.
Therefore every hand shall become powerless, and every soul of man shall be dismayed.
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!
The elders shall be troubled, and pangs shall seize them, as of a woman in travail: and they shall mourn one to another, and shall be amazed, and shall change their countenance as a flame.
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.
For behold! the day of the Lord is coming which can’t be escaped, [a day] of wrath and anger, to make the world desolate, and to destroy sinners out of 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 heaven, and Orion, and all the host of heaven, shall not give their light; and it shall be dark at sunrise, and the moon shall not give her light.
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 command evils for the whole world, and [will visit] their sins on the ungodly: and I will destroy the pride of transgressors, and will bring low the pride of the haughty.
12 I make man more rare than fine gold, And a common man than pure gold of Ophir.
And they that are left shall be more precious than gold tried in the fire; and a man shall be more precious than the stone that is in Suphir.
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 the heaven shall be enraged, and the earth shall be shaken from her foundation, because of the fierce anger of the Lord of hosts, in the day in which his wrath shall come on.
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 that are left shall be as a fleeing fawn, and as a stray sheep, and there shall be none to gather [them]: so that a man shall turn back to his people, and a man shall flee to his own land.
15 Everyone who is found is thrust through, And everyone who is added falls by sword.
For whoever shall be taken shall be overcome; and they that are gathered together shall fall by the sword.
16 And their sucklings are dashed to pieces before their eyes, Their houses are spoiled, and their wives lain with.
And they shall dash their children before their eyes; and they shall spoil their houses, and shall take their wives.
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 against you the Medes, who do not regard silver, neither have they need of 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.
They shall break the bows of the young men; and they shall have no mercy on your children; nor shall their eyes spare your 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 Babylon, which is called glorious by the king of the Chaldeans, shall be as [when] God overthrew Sodoma, and Gomorrha.
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 shall never be inhabited, neither shall any enter into it for many generations: neither shall the Arabians pass through it; nor shall shepherds at all rest in it.
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.
But wild beasts shall rest there; and the houses shall be filled with howling; and monsters shall rest there, and devils shall dance there, and satyrs shall dwell there; and hedgehogs shall make their nests in their houses. It will come soon, and will not wait.
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!”
