Isaiah - Chapter 13

¹ Proclamation about Babylon, seen by Isaiah son of Amoz.

² On a bare hill hoist a signal, shout for them, beckon them to come to the Nobles' Gate.

³ I have issued orders to my sacred warriors, I have summoned my heroes to serve my anger, my proud champions.

⁴ The noise of a great crowd in the mountains, like an immense people, the tumultuous sound of kingdoms, of nations mustering: it is Yahweh Sabaoth marshalling the troops for battle.

⁵ They come from a distant country, from the far horizons, Yahweh and the instruments of his fury to lay the whole country waste.

⁶ Howl! For the Day of Yahweh is near, coming like devastation from Shaddai.

⁷ This is why all hands fall limp, why all the men are losing heart;

⁸ they are panic-stricken, seized with pains and convulsions; they writhe like a woman in labour, they look at one another appalled, with feverish faces.

⁹ Look, the Day of Yahweh is coming, merciless, with wrath and burning anger, to reduce the country to a desert and root out the sinners from it.

¹⁰ For in the sky the stars and Orion will shed their light no longer, the sun will be dark when it rises, and the moon will no longer give its light.

¹¹ I am going to punish the world for its wickedness and the wicked for their guilt, and put an end to the pride of the arrogant and humble the haughtiness of despots.

¹² I shall make people scarcer than pure gold, human life scarcer than the gold of Ophir.

¹³ This is why I am going to shake the heavens, why the earth will reel on its foundations, under the wrath of Yahweh Sabaoth, the day when his anger ignites.

¹⁴ Then like a hunted gazelle, like sheep that nobody gathers in, everyone will head back to his people, everyone will flee to his native land.

¹⁵ All those who are found will be stabbed, all those captured will fall by the sword,

¹⁶ their babies dashed to pieces before their eyes, their houses plundered, their wives raped.

¹⁷ Look, against them I am stirring up the Medes who care nothing for silver, who set no value by gold.

¹⁸ Bows will annihilate the young men, they will have no pity for the fruit of the womb, or mercy in their eyes for children.

¹⁹ And Babylon, that pearl of kingdoms, that splendid jewel of the Chaldaeans, will, like Sodom and Gomorrah, be overthrown by God.

²⁰ Never again will anyone live there or reside there for all generations to come. Never again will the Arab pitch his tent there, or the shepherds bring their flocks to rest.

²¹ But beasts of the desert will make their haunt there and owls fill their houses, there ostriches will settle their home, there goats will dance.

²² Hyenas will howl in its towers, jackals in its delightful palaces, for its doom is about to come and its days will not last long.

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