Isaiah 16

1 Send ye the lambs to the ruler of the land, From Selah through the wilderness To the mount of the daughter of Zion!

Send ye the lamb due to the ruler of the land, From Sela towards the desert, —Unto the mount of the daughter of Zion;

2 For as a wandering bird, As a forthdriven nest, So shall be the daughters of Moab At the fords of Arnon; [[saying, ]]

Yet shall it be that—Like wandering birds from a nest cast forth, Shall be the daughters of Moab, at the fords of Arnon.

3 “Offer counsel; give decision, Make thy shadow at noonday like the darkness of night. Hide the outcasts; Betray not the fugitives.

Bring thou, in counsel, Execute thou judgment, Make as the night, thy shadow in the midst of high noon, —Hide thou the outcasts, The wanderer, do not thou reveal.

4 Let my outcasts dwell with thee, [[O Zion!]] Be thou to them a covert from the spoiler! For the extortion is at an end, The spoiling ceaseth. The oppressors are consumed from the land.

Let mine own outcasts, sojourn with thee, O Moab, become thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler, —For vanished is the oppressor, At an end is extortion, They who tread down have ceased out of the land.

5 Then shall your throne be established through mercy, And upon it shall sit in the house of David A judge searching for justice, and prompt in equity.”

So shall be established, in lovingkindness, a throne, And one shall sit thereon, in truth, in the home of David, —Judging—and seeking justice and speeding righteousness.

6 “We have beard of the pride of Moab; he is very proud; His haughtiness, and his pride, and his insolence, His vain boastings.”

We have heard of the arrogance of Moab, Proud exceedingly! His haughtiness and his arrogance and his passion, Not true, are his boastings.

7 Therefore shall Moab howl for Moab; Every one shall howl; For the ruins of Kir-hares shall ye mourn, In deep affliction.

Therefore shall, Moab, howl for, Moab, All that belong to her, shall wail, —For the ruins of Kir-hareseth, shall they moan out Utterly stricken!

8 For the fields of Heshbon languish, The lords of the nations break down the choicest shoots of the vine of Sibmah, They reached even to Jazer; they wandered into the desert; Her branches were spread out; they crossed the sea.

For, the fields of Heshbon are withered—The vine of Sibmah, the owners of nations, have broken off ruddy branches, Unto Jazer, had they reached, They had spread abroad to the desert, —Her boughs, had stretched forth, had gone over to the sea.

9 Therefore I will weep, like Jazer, for the vine of Sibmah; I will water thee with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealah, For upon thy summer fruits, and thy harvest, the war-shout is fallen.

For this cause, will I bewail, in the wailing of Jazer, The vine of Sibmah, I will drench thee with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealeh, —For, upon thy fruit-harvest, and upon thy grain-harvest, the battle-shout, hath fallen.

10 Gladness and joy are driven from the fruitful field, And in the vineyards is no singing nor shouting; The treaders tread out no wine in their vats; I have made the vintage-shouting to cease.

Now shall be withdrawn rejoicing and exultation out of the garden-land, And, in the vineyards, shall be neither singing nor shouting, —Wine in the winepress, the treader, shall not tread, The vintage-shout, have I made to cease.

11 Therefore shall my bowels sound like a harp for Moab, And my inward parts for Kir-hares.

For this cause, mine inward parts—for Moab, like a lyre, shall make a plaintive sound, —Yea what is within me, for Kir-heres.

12 And it shall come to pass that though Moab present himself, Though he weary himself upon his high places, And go up to his sanctuary to pray, Yet shall he not prevail.

And it shall be—When it is seen that Moab hath laboured in vain on the high place, He shall enter into his holy place to pray, and shall not prevail,

13 This is the word which Jehovah spake concerning Moab of old.

This, is the word which Yahweh spake concerning Moab in, time past;

14 But now saith Jehovah: Within three years, like the years of a hireling, The glory of Moab shall be put to shame, With all his great multitude; And the remnant shall be very small, and without strength.

But now, hath Yahweh spoken saying, In three years, —as the years of a hireling, shall the glory of Moab be diminished, with all the great multitude, —even a very small remnant, of no account.