Isaiah 47
1 [Yahweh also says], “You people of Babylon, you should go and sit in the dust/dirt [to show that you are mourning], because your time to rule [MTY] [other countries] is almost ended. People will never again say that Babylonia is beautiful [like] a very attractive/beautiful young woman.
“Go down and sit in the dust, O Virgin Daughter of Babylon. Sit on the ground without a throne, O Daughter of Chaldea! For you will no longer be called tender or delicate.
2 [You will be slaves, so] take heavy stones and grind grain [like slave women do]. Take off your [beautiful] veils and take off your robes [as you prepare to cross streams to go where you will be forced to go].
Take millstones and grind flour; remove your veil; strip off your skirt, bare your thigh, and wade through the streams.
3 You will be naked and [very] ashamed. I will get vengeance on you and not pity you.”
Your nakedness will be uncovered and your shame will be exposed. I will take vengeance; I will spare no one.”
4 The one who frees us [people of Judah], whom we call ‘the Commander of the armies of angels’, is the Holy One of Israel.
Our Redeemer—the LORD of Hosts is His name— is the Holy One of Israel.
5 [Yahweh says], “You people of Babylon, sit silently in the darkness, because people will never again say that your city is [like] [MET] a queen that rules many kingdoms.
“Sit in silence and go into darkness, O Daughter of Chaldea. For you will no longer be called the queen of kingdoms.
6 I was angry with the people whom I chose [to belong to me], and I punished them. I allowed you [people of Babylon] to conquer them. But [when you conquered them], you did not have mercy on them. You (oppressed/treated cruelly) [MET] even the old people.
I was angry with My people; I profaned My heritage, and I placed them under your control. You showed them no mercy; even on the elderly you laid a most heavy yoke.
7 You said, ‘We will rule [other nations] forever; [it is as though our city] will be the queen [of the world] forever!’ But you did not think about the things [that you were doing], or think about what would result.
You said, ‘I will be queen forever.’ You did not take these things to heart or consider their outcome.
8 You people [of Babylon] who enjoy pleasure and sex, listen to this: You enjoy a luxurious life and you feel secure. You say, ‘We are [like gods], and there are no others like us. Our women will never become widows, and our children will never be killed [in wars].’
So now hear this, O lover of luxury who sits securely, who says to herself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me. I will never be a widow or know the loss of children.’
9 But both of those things will happen to you suddenly: Many of your women will become widows and many of your children will die, even though you perform much sorcery and many kinds of magic [to prevent bad things from happening to you].
These two things will overtake you in a moment, in a single day: loss of children, and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and the potency of your spells.
10 You felt protected even though you were doing many wicked things, and you said, ‘No one will see what we [are doing]!’ [You thought that] you were very wise and knew many things, and you said, ‘We are gods, and there are no others like us,’ but you deceived yourselves.
You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’
11 So you will experience terrible things, and you will not be able to prevent them by working magic. You will experience disasters, and you will not be able to pay anyone to prevent those things from happening. (A catastrophe/Something terrible) will happen to you suddenly, something that you will not realize [is about to happen].
But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.
12 So you can continue to perform all your magic spells [IRO]! You can perform the many kinds of sorcery that you have practiced for many years! Perhaps [doing those things will enable you to] be successful; perhaps you will be able to cause your enemies to be afraid of you!
So take your stand with your spells and with your many sorceries, with which you have wearied yourself from your youth. Perhaps you will succeed; perhaps you will inspire terror!
13 But [all that has resulted from your] doing all the things that the magicians have told you to do is that you have become tired! The men who look at the stars every month and predict what will happen should come forward and rescue you [from the disasters that you are about to experience].
You are wearied by your many counselors; let them come forward now and save you— your astrologers who observe the stars, who monthly predict your fate.
14 But [they cannot do that, because] they are like [SIM] straw that is burning in a fire; they cannot save themselves from being burned up in the flames. Those men are unable to help you [MET]; they are as useless as stubble [that burns quickly and produces no heat] for you.
Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot deliver themselves from the power of the flame. There will be no coals to warm them or fire to sit beside.
15 The people whom you have associated with and worked with since you were young [will not help you], because they will just continue doing their own foolish things, and they will not pay any attention to you [when you cry out for help].”
This is what they are to you— those with whom you have labored and traded from youth— each one strays in his own direction; not one of them can save you.
