Isaiah 13:5

13:5 They come from a distant land,

from the horizon. ¹ 

It is the Lord with his instruments of judgment, ² 

coming to destroy the whole earth. ³ 

Isaiah 32:7

32:7 A deceiver’s methods are evil; ⁴ 

he dreams up evil plans ⁵ 

to ruin the poor with lies,

even when the needy are in the right. ⁶ 

[13:5]  ¹ tn Heb “from the end of the sky.”

[13:5]  ² tn Or “anger”; cf. KJV, ASV “the weapons of his indignation.”

[13:5]  ³ tn Or perhaps, “land” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NLT). Even though the heading and subsequent context (see v. 17) indicate Babylon’s judgment is in view, the chapter has a cosmic flavor that suggests that the coming judgment is universal in scope. Perhaps Babylon’s downfall occurs in conjunction with a wider judgment, or the cosmic style is poetic hyperbole used to emphasize the magnitude and importance of the coming event.

[32:7]  ⁴ tn Heb “as for a deceiver, his implements [or “weapons”] are evil.”

[32:7]  ⁵ tn Or “he plans evil things”; NIV “he makes up evil schemes.”

[32:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “to ruin the poor with words of falsehood, even when the needy speak what is just.”