Isaiah 47:1

Context

Babylon Will Fall

47:1 “Fall down! Sit in the dirt,

O virgin¹ daughter Babylon!

Sit on the ground, not on a throne,

O daughter of the Babylonians!

Indeed,² you will no longer be called delicate and pampered.

[47:1] ¹tn 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] ²tn Or “For” (NASB, NRSV).