| English Standard Version | New Living Translation |
| 1The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on, it comes from the wilderness, from a terrible land. | 1This message came to me concerning Babylon—the desert by the sea : Disaster is roaring down on you from the desert, like a whirlwind sweeping in from the Negev. |
| 2A stern vision is told to me; the traitor betrays, and the destroyer destroys. Go up, O Elam; lay siege, O Media; all the sighing she has caused I bring to an end. | 2I see a terrifying vision: I see the betrayer betraying, the destroyer destroying. Go ahead, you Elamites and Medes, attack and lay siege. I will make an end to all the groaning Babylon caused. |
| 3Therefore my loins are filled with anguish; pangs have seized me, like the pangs of a woman in labor; I am bowed down so that I cannot hear; I am dismayed so that I cannot see. | 3My stomach aches and burns with pain. Sharp pangs of anguish are upon me, like those of a woman in labor. I grow faint when I hear what God is planning; I am too afraid to look. |
| 4My heart staggers; horror has appalled me; the twilight I longed for has been turned for me into trembling. | 4My mind reels and my heart races. I longed for evening to come, but now I am terrified of the dark. |
| 5They prepare the table, they spread the rugs, they eat, they drink. Arise, O princes; oil the shield! | 5Look! They are preparing a great feast. They are spreading rugs for people to sit on. Everyone is eating and drinking. But quick! Grab your shields and prepare for battle. You are being attacked! |
| 6For thus the Lord said to me: “Go, set a watchman; let him announce what he sees. | 6Meanwhile, the Lord said to me, “Put a watchman on the city wall. Let him shout out what he sees. |
| 7When he sees riders, horsemen in pairs, riders on donkeys, riders on camels, let him listen diligently, very diligently.” | 7He should look for chariots drawn by pairs of horses, and for riders on donkeys and camels. Let the watchman be fully alert.” |
| 8Then he who saw cried out: “Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord, continually by day, and at my post I am stationed whole nights. | 8Then the watchman called out, “Day after day I have stood on the watchtower, my lord. Night after night I have remained at my post. |
| 9And behold, here come riders, horsemen in pairs!” And he answered, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon; and all the carved images of her gods he has shattered to the ground.” | 9Now at last—look! Here comes a man in a chariot with a pair of horses!” Then the watchman said, “Babylon is fallen, fallen! All the idols of Babylon lie broken on the ground!” |
| 10O my threshed and winnowed one, what I have heard from the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, I announce to you. | 10O my people, threshed and winnowed, I have told you everything the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has said, everything the God of Israel has told me. A Message about Edom |
| 11The oracle concerning Dumah. One is calling to me from Seir, “Watchman, what time of the night? Watchman, what time of the night?” | 11This message came to me concerning Edom : Someone from Edom keeps calling to me, “Watchman, how much longer until morning? When will the night be over?” |
| 12The watchman says: “Morning comes, and also the night. If you will inquire, inquire; come back again.” | 12The watchman replies, “Morning is coming, but night will soon return. If you wish to ask again, then come back and ask.” A Message about Arabia |
| 13The oracle concerning Arabia. In the thickets in Arabia you will lodge, O caravans of Dedanites. | 13This message came to me concerning Arabia: O caravans from Dedan, hide in the deserts of Arabia. |
| 14To the thirsty bring water; meet the fugitive with bread, O inhabitants of the land of Tema. | 14O people of Tema, bring water to these thirsty people, food to these weary refugees. |
| 15For they have fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, from the bent bow, and from the press of battle. | 15They have fled from the sword, from the drawn sword, from the bent bow and the terrors of battle. |
| 16For thus the Lord said to me, “Within a year, according to the years of a hired worker, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end. | 16The Lord said to me, “Within a year, counting each day, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end. |
| 17And the remainder of the archers of the mighty men of the sons of Kedar will be few, for the LORD, the God of Israel, has spoken.” | 17Only a few of its courageous archers will survive. I, the LORD, the God of Israel, have spoken!” |
| ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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