Isaiah 16
16
1Send lambs to the ruler of the land.#16:1 Masoretic Text; Targum “They have sent lambs to the ruler of the land.”
Send lambs from Sela through the desert to my people at Mount Zion.
2Moab’s daughters are like fluttering birds,
like scattered nestlings,
at the shallow crossings of the Arnon River.
3Give us advice.
Make a decision.
At high noon make your shadow as dark as night.
Hide the fugitives.
Don’t betray the refugees.
4Let the fugitives from Moab stay with you a while. Be their refuge from the destroyer.
Ruthless people will come to an end.
The destruction will end.
The one who tramples others will be gone.
5Then the Lord will set up a trusted king.
He will rule faithfully.
He is from the tent of David.
He judges and searches for justice.
He is quick to do what is right.
6We’ve heard of the arrogance of Moab’s people.
They are very arrogant.
We’ve heard of their boasting, arrogance, and conceit,
but their boasts aren’t true.
7That is why Moab will wail.
Everyone will wail for Moab.
Mourn and grieve over the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth.
8The fields of Heshbon and the vineyards of Sibmah wither.
Rulers of the nations have cut off their grapes.
The grapevines ⌞once⌟ reached as far as Jazer
and strayed out into the desert.
Their shoots had spread out over the sea.
9I will cry for the grapevines of Sibmah
as Jazer cries for them.
I will drench you with my tears, Heshbon and Elealeh.
The shouts of joy for your ripened fruits
and your harvest will be silenced.
10Joy and delight have vanished from the orchards.
No songs are sung.
No shouts are raised.
No one stomps on grapes in the winepresses,
because I have put an end to the shouts of joy.
11That is why my heart mourns for Moab like a harp.
My soul mourns for Kir Hareseth.
12When the people of Moab appear at the worship site,
they will only wear themselves out.
They will come into the holy place to pray,
but they won’t be able to.
13This is the message that the Lord spoke about Moab in the past. 14But now the Lord says, “Moab’s honor will be despised within three years. I will count them like workers count the years left of their contracts. In spite of their great number, the survivors will be very few and powerless.”
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Isaiah 16: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 16
16
A New Government in the David Tradition
1-4a “Dispatch a gift of lambs,” says Moab,
“to the leaders in Jerusalem—
Lambs from Sela sent across the desert
to buy the goodwill of Jerusalem.
The towns and people of Moab
are at a loss,
New-hatched birds knocked from the nest,
fluttering helplessly
At the banks of the Arnon River,
unable to cross:
‘Tell us what to do,
help us out!
Protect us,
hide us!
Give the refugees from Moab
sanctuary with you.
Be a safe place for those on the run
from the killing fields.’”
4b-5 “When this is all over,” Judah answers,
“the tyrant toppled,
The killing at an end,
all signs of these cruelties long gone,
A new government of love will be established
in the venerable David tradition.
A Ruler you can depend upon
will head this government,
A Ruler passionate for justice,
a Ruler quick to set things right.”
* * *
6-12We’ve heard—everyone’s heard!—of Moab’s pride,
world-famous for pride—
Arrogant, self-important, insufferable,
full of hot air.
So now let Moab lament for a change,
with antiphonal mock-laments from the neighbors!
What a shame! How terrible!
No more fine fruitcakes and Kir-hareseth candies!
All those lush Heshbon fields dried up,
the rich Sibmah vineyards withered!
Foreign thugs have crushed and torn out
the famous grapevines
That once reached all the way to Jazer,
right to the edge of the desert,
Ripped out the crops in every direction
as far as the eye can see.
I’ll join the weeping. I’ll weep right along with Jazer,
weep for the Sibmah vineyards.
And yes, Heshbon and Elealeh,
I’ll mingle my tears with your tears!
The joyful shouting at harvest is gone.
Instead of song and celebration, dead silence.
No more boisterous laughter in the orchards,
no more hearty work songs in the vineyards.
Instead of the bustle and sound of good work in the fields,
silence—deathly and deadening silence.
My heartstrings throb like harp strings for Moab,
my soul in sympathy for sad Kir-heres.
When Moab trudges to the shrine to pray,
he wastes both time and energy.
Going to the sanctuary and praying for relief
is useless. Nothing ever happens.
13-14This is God’s earlier Message on Moab. God’s updated Message is, “In three years, no longer than the term of an enlisted soldier, Moab’s impressive presence will be gone, that splendid hot-air balloon will be punctured, and instead of a vigorous population, just a few shuffling bums panhandling handouts.”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.