HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 985
ISAIAH 14
page 615
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I, the Lord, have dedicated these soldiers
for this task.
Yes, I have called mighty warriors to
express my anger,
and they will rejoice when I am exalted.”
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Hear the noise on the mountains!
Listen, as the vast armies march!
It is the noise and shouting of many nations.
The Lord of Heaven’s Armies has called
this army together.
They come from distant countries,
from beyond the farthest horizons.
They are the Lord’s weapons to carry
out his anger.
With them he will destroy the whole
land.
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Scream in terror, for the day of the Lord
has arrived—
the time for the Almighty to destroy.
Every arm is paralyzed with fear.
Every heart melts,
and people are terrified.
Pangs of anguish grip them,
like those of a woman in labor.
They look helplessly at one another,
their faces aflame with fear.
For see, the day of the Lord is coming—
the terrible day of his fury and fierce
anger.
The land will be made desolate,
and all the sinners destroyed with it.
The heavens will be black above them;
the stars will give no light.
The sun will be dark when it rises,
and the moon will provide no light.
“I, the Lord, will punish the world for
its evil
and the wicked for their sin.
I will crush the arrogance of the proud
and humble the pride of the mighty.
I will make people scarcer than gold—
more rare than the fine gold of Ophir.
For I will shake the heavens.
The earth will move from its place
when the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
displays his wrath
in the day of his fierce anger.”
Everyone in Babylon will run about like
a hunted gazelle,
like sheep without a shepherd.
They will try to find their own people
and flee to their own land.
Anyone who is captured will be cut down—
run through with a sword.
14:1 Hebrew the house of Jacob. The names “Jacob” and
“Israel” are often interchanged throughout the Old Testament,
referring sometimes to the individual patriarch and sometimes
to the nation. 14:4 As in Dead Sea Scrolls; the meaning of
the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
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Their little children will be dashed to death
before their eyes.
Their homes will be sacked, and their
wives will be raped.
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“Look, I will stir up the Medes against
Babylon.
They cannot be tempted by silver
or bribed with gold.
The attacking armies will shoot down the
young men with arrows.
They will have no mercy on helpless
babies
and will show no compassion for
children.”
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Babylon, the most glorious of kingdoms,
the flower of Chaldean pride,
will be devastated like Sodom and
Gomorrah
when God destroyed them.
Babylon will never be inhabited again.
It will remain empty for generation after
generation.
Nomads will refuse to camp there,
and shepherds will not bed down their
sheep.
Desert animals will move into the ruined
city,
and the houses will be haunted by
howling creatures.
Owls will live among the ruins,
and wild goats will go there to dance.
Hyenas will howl in its fortresses,
and jackals will make dens in its
luxurious palaces.
Babylon’s days are numbered;
its time of destruction will soon arrive.
A Taunt for Babylon’s King
But the Lord will have mercy on the
descendants of Jacob. He will choose Israel as his special people once again. He will
bring them back to settle once again in their
own land. And people from many different nations will come and join them there and unite
with the people of Israel.* 2 The nations of the
world will help the people of Israel to return,
and those who come to live in the Lord’s land
will serve them. Those who captured Israel will
themselves be captured, and Israel will rule
over its enemies.
3 In that wonderful day when the Lord gives
his people rest from sorrow and fear, from slavery and chains, 4 you will taunt the king of Babylon. You will say,
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“The mighty man has been destroyed.
Yes, your insolence* is ended.
For the Lord has crushed your wicked
power
and broken your evil rule.