Isaiah 21:1-4

The Lord Will Judge Babylon

21:1 Here is a message about the Desert by the Sea: ¹ 

Like strong winds blowing in the south, ² 

one invades from the desert,

from a land that is feared.

21:2 I have received a distressing message: ³ 

“The deceiver deceives,

the destroyer destroys.

Attack, you Elamites!

Lay siege, you Medes!

I will put an end to all the groaning!” ⁴ 

21:3 For this reason my stomach churns; ⁵ 

cramps overwhelm me

like the contractions of a woman in labor.

I am disturbed ⁶  by what I hear,

horrified by what I see.

21:4 My heart palpitates, ⁷ 

I shake in fear; ⁸ 

the twilight I desired

has brought me terror.

[21:1]  ¹ sn The phrase is quite cryptic, at least to the modern reader. Verse 9 seems to indicate that this message pertains to Babylon. Southern Mesopotamia was known as the Sealand in ancient times, because of its proximity to the Persian Gulf. Perhaps the reference to Babylon as a “desert” foreshadows the destruction that would overtake the city, making it like a desolate desert.

[21:1]  ² tn Or “in the Negev” (NASB).

[21:2]  ³ tn Heb “a severe revelation has been related to me.”

[21:2]  ⁴ sn This is often interpreted to mean “all the groaning” that Babylon has caused others.

[21:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “my waist is filled with shaking [or “anguish”].”

[21:3]  ⁶ tn Or perhaps, “bent over [in pain]”; cf. NRSV “I am bowed down.”

[21:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “wanders,” perhaps here, “is confused.”

[21:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “shuddering terrifies me.”