1 Godspraak oor Babel wat Jesaja, die seun van Amos, gesien het.
2 Hef op 'n banier op 'n kaal berg; roep hulle hardop toe, wink met die hand, dat hulle kan intrek deur die poorte van die edeles.
3 Ek self het my geheiligdes ontbied; ook het Ek my helde tot my toorn geroep, my manne wat jubel in trotsheid.
4 Hoor, 'n gedruis op die berge soos van baie mense! Hoor, 'n rumoer van die koninkryke, van versamelde nasies! Die HERE van die leërskare hou wapenskouing oor 'n oorlogsleër.
5 Hulle kom uit 'n ver land, van die einde van die hemel af, die HERE en die werktuie van sy grimmigheid, om die hele aarde te verwoes.
6 Huil julle, want die dag van die HERE is naby; hy kom as 'n verwoesting van die Almagtige.
7 Daarom word al die hande slap, en elke mensehart versmelt;
8 en hulle is verskrik, kry krampe en weë; hulle krimp inmekaar soos een wat baar; die een kyk die ander verbaas aan; hulle gesigte is vlammende gesigte.
9 Kyk, die dag van die HERE kom, verskriklik, met grimmigheid en toorngloed, om die aarde 'n woesteny te maak en sy sondaars daaruit te verdelg.
10 Want die sterre van die hemel en sy Or¡ons sal hulle lig nie laat skyn nie; die son is duister by sy opgang, en die maan laat sy lig nie skyn nie.
11 En Ek sal aan die wêreld sy boosheid besoek, en aan die goddelose hulle ongeregtigheid; en Ek sal die trots van die vermeteles laat ophou en die hoogmoed van tiranne verneder.
12 En Ek sal sterwelinge skaarser maak as fyn goud, en mense as goud van Ofir.
13 Daarom sal Ek die hemel laat sidder, en die aarde sal wyk uit sy plek met gebeef, vanweë die grimmigheid van die HERE van die leërskare en vanweë die dag van sy toorngloed.
14 En soos 'n gemsbok wat gejaag word, en soos kleinvee wat niemand bymekaar maak nie, sal hulle elkeen draai na sy volk toe en elkeen vlug na sy land toe.
15 Elkeen wat gevind word, word deurboor; en elkeen wat gegryp word, val deur die swaard.
16 En hulle kinders word voor hul oë verpletter, hul huise geplunder en hul vroue onteer.
17 Kyk, Ek verwek die Meders teen hulle, wat silwer nie ag nie en in goud geen behae het nie.
18 Maar hulle boë sal die seuns neerwerp, en hulle sal hul nie ontferm oor die vrug van die moederskoot nie; hulle oog sal die kinders nie verskoon nie.
19 So sal dan Babel, die sieraad van die koninkryke, die trotse pronkstuk van die Chaldeërs, wees soos toe God Sodom en Gomorra omgekeer het.
20 Mense sal daar in ewigheid nie woon nie, en dit sal van geslag tot geslag nie bewoon word nie; en die Arabier sal daar geen tent opslaan nie, en geen herders sal hulle vee daar laat lê en rus nie.
21 Maar daar sal boskatte lê, en hulle huise sal vol uile wees; en volstruise sal daar hou, en veldduiwels daar rondspring.
22 En wildehonde sal huil in sy kastele en jakkalse in die vreugdepaleise; en naby is sy tyd om te kom, en sy dae sal nie verskuif word nie.
1 The word of the Lord about Babylon which Isaiah, the son of Amoz, saw.
2 Put up a flag on a clear mountain-top, make a loud outcry to them, give directions with the hand, so that they may go into the doors of the great ones.
3 I have given orders to my holy ones, I have sent out my men of war, those of mine who take pride in their power, to give effect to my wrath.
4 The noise of great numbers in the mountains, like the noise of a strong people! The noise of the kingdoms of the nations meeting together! The Lord of armies is numbering his forces for war.
5 They come from a far country, from the farthest part of heaven, even the Lord and the instruments of his wrath, with destruction for all the land.
6 Send out a cry of grief; for the day of the Lord is near; it comes as destruction from the Most High.
7 For this cause all hands will be feeble, and every heart of man be turned to water;
8 Their hearts will be full of fear; pains and sorrows will overcome them; they will be in pain like a woman in childbirth; they will be shocked at one another; their faces will be like flames.
9 See, the day of the Lord is coming, cruel, with wrath and burning passion: to make the land a waste, driving the sinners in it to destruction.
10 For the stars of heaven and its bright armies will not give their light: the sun will be made dark in his journey through the heaven, and the moon will keep back her light.
11 And I will send punishment on the world for its evil, and on the sinners for their wrongdoing; and I will put an end to all pride, and will make low the power of the cruel.
12 I will make men so small in number, that a man will be harder to get than gold, even the best gold of Ophir.
13 For this cause the heavens will be shaking, and the earth will be moved out of its place, in the wrath of the Lord of armies, and in the day of his burning passion.
14 And it will be that, like a roe in flight, and like wandering sheep, they will go every man to his people and to his land.
15 Everyone who is overtaken will have a spear put through him, and everyone who goes in flight will be put to the sword.
16 Their young children will be broken up before their eyes; their goods will be taken away, and their wives made the property of others.
17 See, I am driving the Medes against them, who put no value on silver and have no pleasure in gold.
18 In their hands are bows and spears; they are cruel, violently putting the young men to death, and crushing the young women; they have no pity for children, and no mercy for the fruit of the body.
19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beautiful town which is the pride of the Chaldaeans, will be like God's destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 People will never be living in it again, and it will have no more men from generation to generation: the Arab will not put up his tent there; and those who keep sheep will not make it a resting-place for their flocks.
21 But the beasts of the waste land will have their holes there; and the houses will be full of crying jackals, and ostriches will have their place there, and evil spirits will be dancing there.
22 And wolves will be answering one another in their towers, and jackals in their houses of pleasure: her time is near, and her days of power will quickly be ended.