Isaiah 13:1

The Lord Will Judge Babylon

13:1 ¹ This is a message about Babylon that God revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz: ² 

Isaiah 14:4

14:4 you will taunt the king of Babylon with these words: ³ 

“Look how the oppressor has met his end!

Hostility ⁴  has ceased!

Isaiah 39:7

39:7 ‘Some of your very own descendants whom you father ⁵  will be taken away and will be made eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’”

Isaiah 13:19

13:19 Babylon, the most admired ⁶  of kingdoms,

the Chaldeans’ source of honor and pride, ⁷ 

will be destroyed by God

just as Sodom and Gomorrah were. ⁸ 

Isaiah 14:22

14:22 “I will rise up against them,”

says the Lord who commands armies.

“I will blot out all remembrance of Babylon and destroy all her people, ⁹ 

including the offspring she produces,” ¹⁰ 

says the Lord.

Isaiah 21:9

21:9 Look what’s coming!

A charioteer,

a team of horses.” ¹¹ 

When questioned, he replies, ¹² 

“Babylon has fallen, fallen!

All the idols of her gods lie shattered on the ground!”

Isaiah 39:1

Messengers from Babylon Visit Hezekiah

39:1 At that time Merodach-Baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a gift to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been ill and had recovered.

Isaiah 43:14

The Lord Will Do Something New

43:14 This is what the Lord says,

your protector, ¹³  the Holy One of Israel: ¹⁴ 

“For your sake I send to Babylon

and make them all fugitives, ¹⁵ 

turning the Babylonians’ joyful shouts into mourning songs. ¹⁶ 

Isaiah 48:14

48:14 All of you, gather together and listen!

Who among them ¹⁷  announced these things?

The Lord’s ally ¹⁸  will carry out his desire against Babylon;

he will exert his power against the Babylonians. ¹⁹ 

Isaiah 48:20

48:20 Leave Babylon!

Flee from the Babylonians!

Announce it with a shout of joy!

Make this known!

Proclaim it throughout the earth! ²⁰ 

Say, ‘The Lord protects ²¹  his servant Jacob.

Isaiah 39:3

39:3 Isaiah the prophet visited King Hezekiah and asked him, “What did these men say? Where do they come from?” Hezekiah replied, “They come from the distant land of Babylon.”

Isaiah 39:6

39:6 ‘Look, a time is coming when everything in your palace and the things your ancestors ²²  have accumulated to this day will be carried away to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord.

Isaiah 47:1

Babylon Will Fall

47:1 “Fall down! Sit in the dirt,

O virgin ²³  daughter Babylon!

Sit on the ground, not on a throne,

O daughter of the Babylonians!

Indeed, ²⁴  you will no longer be called delicate and pampered.

[13:1]  ¹ sn Isa 13-23 contains a series of judgment oracles against various nations. It is likely that Israel, not the nations mentioned, actually heard these oracles. The oracles probably had a twofold purpose. For those leaders who insisted on getting embroiled in international politics, these oracles were a reminder that Judah need not fear foreign nations or seek international alliances for security reasons. For the righteous remnant within the nation, these oracles were a reminder that Israel’s God was indeed the sovereign ruler of the earth, worthy of his people’s trust.

[13:1]  ² tn Heb “The message [traditionally, “burden”] [about] Babylon which Isaiah son of Amoz saw.”

[14:4]  ³ tn Heb “you will lift up this taunt over the king of Babylon, saying.”

[14:4]  ⁴ tc The word in the Hebrew text (מַדְהֵבָה, madhevah) is unattested elsewhere and of uncertain meaning. Many (following the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a) assume a dalet-resh (ד-ר) confusion and emend the form to מַרְהֵבָה (marhevah, “onslaught”). See HALOT 548 s.v. II *מִדָּה and HALOT 633 s.v. *מַרְהֵבָה.

[39:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “Some of your sons, who go out from you, whom you father.”

[13:19]  ⁷ tn Or “most beautiful” (NCV, TEV).

[13:19]  ⁸ tn Heb “the beauty of the pride of the Chaldeans.”

[13:19]  ⁹ tn Heb “and Babylon…will be like the overthrow by God of Sodom and Gomorrah.” On מַהְפֵּכַת (mahpekhat, “overthrow”) see the note on the word “destruction” in 1:7.

[14:22]  ⁹ tn Heb “I will cut off from Babylon name and remnant” (ASV, NAB, and NRSV all similar).

[14:22]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “descendant and child.”

[21:9]  ¹¹ tn Or “[with] teams of horses,” or perhaps, “with a pair of horsemen.”

[21:9]  ¹² tn Heb “and he answered and said” (so KJV, ASV).

[43:14]  ¹³ tn Or “kinsman redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[43:14]  ¹⁴ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[43:14]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and I bring down [as] fugitives all of them.”

[43:14]  ¹⁶ tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “as for the Babylonians, in ships their joyful shout.” This might be paraphrased, “even the Babylonians in the ships [over which] they joyfully shouted.” The point would be that the Lord caused the Babylonians to flee for safety in the ships in which they took such great pride. A slight change in vocalization yields the reading “into mourning songs,” which provides a good contrast with “joyful shout.” The prefixed bet (בְּ) would indicate identity.

[48:14]  ¹⁵ sn This probably refers to the idol gods (see v. 5).

[48:14]  ¹⁶ tn Or “friend,” or “covenant partner.”

[48:14]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and his arm [against] the Babylonians.”

[48:20]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “to the end of the earth” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV).

[48:20]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “redeems.” See the note at 41:14.

[39:6]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “fathers” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV).

[47:1]  ²¹ tn בְּתוּלַה (bÿtulah) often refers to a virgin, but the phrase “virgin daughter” is apparently stylized (see also 23:12; 37:22). In the extended metaphor of this chapter, where Babylon is personified as a queen (vv. 5, 7), she is depicted as being both a wife and mother (vv. 8-9).

[47:1]  ²² tn Or “For” (NASB, NRSV).