14 The Lord will once again be kind to Jacob's descendants. He will choose to help the Israelite people again, as his own people. He will put them back in their land. Foreign people will join them and they will become a part of Jacob's family. 2 People of other nations will help Israel's people to return to their own country. When they are living again in the land that the Lord gave to them, foreign people will become their servants, both men and women. In that way, the people who made the Israelites prisoners will be prisoners themselves! The Israelites will rule over the people who had been cruel to them.
3 At that time, the Lord will let you live safely, without trouble and without pain. You will no longer have to work for cruel people, as their slaves. 4 Then you will laugh at the king of Babylon. You will say to him,
‘Now you cannot be cruel to us any more! Your power to cause trouble has finished! 5 The Lord has destroyed the authority of wicked rulers like you.
6 You used your power to attack people all the time. In your anger, you ruled over other nations, and you never stopped being cruel to them.
7 But now there is peace in the whole world. People can live safely. Everyone is so happy that they are singing! 8 Even the pine trees and the cedar trees in Lebanon are happy because your power has finished. They say to you, “Now God has knocked you down. So nobody will come again to cut us down!”
9 The deep hole of death below the earth is ready to receive you! People there want to meet you. The spirits of those who ruled on the earth have heard that you are coming. They are standing up from their thrones. 10 All of them will say to you, “Now you have become as weak as we are! You are weak like us!”
11 Your great power has now come down low, into the deep hole of death. People no longer praise you with their harps. Now you will lie on a bed of maggots. [ a ] A blanket of worms will cover you.
12 Look at you! You have fallen from heaven!
You shine like the bright morning star!
You have won against many nations,
but now you have come down very low!
13 You said to yourself, “I will go up into heaven.
I will put my throne above the stars of God.
I will rule as king on the mountain in the far north,
where the gods of the nations meet together.
14 I will go up above the tops of the clouds.
I will become like the Most High God.”
15 But instead of that, you have come down into the deep hole of death.
You have fallen to the deepest place under the earth.
16 In that deep place, people will look at you carefully. They will be very surprised. They will think, “This is the man who caused the earth to shake. He caused kingdoms to shake with fear. Is that really true? 17 Is this really the man who made the world become like a desert? He destroyed its cities. He did not let his prisoners go back to their homes.”
18 All the kings of all the nations lie down there, with all their valuable things. Each king lies in his own grave. 19 But as for you, Babylon's king, they have thrown you out! You have no grave! You are like a branch that has broken off. You lie among the dead bodies of soldiers that their enemies have killed with their swords. They have thrown your body into a big hole in the rocks, and they have walked over it.
20 They will not bury you with those other kings, because you destroyed your land and you killed your people. Nobody will ever remember the family of a wicked person like you.
21 Prepare to kill this king's children, because of the sins of their ancestors. Then his children will not rule the world. They will not build cities everywhere.’
22 This is what the Lord Almighty says, ‘I will attack Babylon and I will destroy it. I will leave nothing that people can remember. No people or their descendants will remain.’
23 The Lord Almighty says, ‘I will make Babylon a place where wild animals live. There will be pools of bad water. I will sweep everything away, like someone who sweeps dirt away with a brush.’
24 The Lord Almighty promises this: ‘It will happen exactly as I have decided. Yes, it will really happen like that. 25 I will destroy the Assyrians who are in my land. I will knock them down on my mountains. They will no longer be cruel to my people. My people will not be their slaves any more. 26 That is what I have decided for the whole earth. I am ready to show my power against all the nations.’
27 Yes, the Lord Almighty has decided what he will do. Nobody can change it. He is ready to show his power. Nobody can stop it.
28 In the year that King Ahaz died, God showed this message to Isaiah:
29 Do not feel happy, you Philistine people. God has destroyed the king who was attacking you. That king hit you with a big stick, but a dangerous snake will follow! And that snake will give birth to an even more dangerous snake that moves very fast.
30 The Lord will give food to the poorest of his people. The weak and helpless people will live safely. But you Philistine people will die from famine. I will destroy you all, so that nobody remains.
31 Gate of the city, weep! [ b ] City, cry out in pain! You Philistine people should be very afraid! See that cloud of smoke in the north! It is the dust of an army that is marching towards you. Their soldiers are ready to fight, and none of them is afraid.
32 When a foreign nation sends a message, what should we say? Say that the Lord has made Zion very strong. When his people have trouble, they will be safe there.
14 The Lord will again show his love to Jacob. He will again choose the people of Israel. He will give them their land. Then the non-Israelites [ a ] will join the Israelites, and both will become one family—Jacob’s family. 2 Those nations will bring the Israelites back to their land. The men and women from the other nations will become slaves to Israel. In the past, those people forced the Israelites to become their slaves. But in the future the Israelites will defeat those nations, and Israel will then rule over them in the Lord ’s land. 3 In the past, you were slaves. People forced you to work hard. But the Lord will take away the hard work you were forced to do.
4 At that time you will begin to sing this song about the king of Babylon:
The king was cruel when he ruled us,
but now his rule is finished.
5 The Lord breaks the scepter of evil rulers;
he takes away their power.
6 In anger, the king of Babylon beat the people.
He never stopped beating them.
He was an evil ruler who ruled in anger.
He never stopped hurting people.
7 But now, the whole country rests and is quiet.
Now the people begin to celebrate.
8 You were an evil king,
and now you are finished.
Even the pine trees are happy.
The cedar trees of Lebanon rejoice.
They say, “The king chopped us down,
but now the king has fallen,
and he will never stand again.”
9 The place of death is excited
that you are coming.
Sheol is waking the spirits
of all the leaders of the earth for you.
Sheol is making the kings stand up
from their thrones to meet you.
10 They will make fun of you, saying,
“Now you are as dead as we are.
Now you are just like us.”
11 Your pride has been sent down to Sheol.
The music from your harps announces the coming of your proud spirit.
Maggots will be the bed you lie on,
and other worms will cover your body like a blanket.
12 You were like the morning star,
but you have fallen from the sky.
In the past, all the nations on earth bowed down before you,
but now you have been cut down.
13 You always told yourself,
“I will go to the skies above.
I will put my throne above God’s stars.
I will sit on Zaphon, [ b ] the holy mountain where the gods meet.
14 I will go up to the altar above the tops of the clouds.
I will be like God Most High.”
15 But that did not happen.
You were brought down to the deep pit—Sheol, the place of death.
16 People will come to look at your dead body.
They will think about you and say,
“Is this the same man
who caused great fear in all the kingdoms on earth,
17 who destroyed cities
and turned the land into a desert,
who captured people in war
and would not let them go home?”
18 The kings of other nations lie buried with honor,
each king with his own grave.
19 But you were thrown out of your grave
like a branch cut from a tree and thrown away.
You are like a dead man who fell in battle,
trampled under the feet of other soldiers.
Now you look like any other dead man
wrapped in burial clothes.
20 Other kings have their own graves,
but you will not join them,
because you ruined your own country
and killed your own people.
So your wicked descendants will be stopped.
21 Prepare to kill his children,
because their father is guilty.
His children will never take control of the land.
They will never fill the world with their cities.
22 The Lord All-Powerful said, “I will stand and fight against those people. I will destroy the famous city, Babylon. I will destroy all the people there. I will destroy their children, their grandchildren, and their great-grandchildren.” The Lord himself said this.
23 “I will change Babylon. It will be a place for animals, [ c ] not people. It will be a swamp. I will use the ‘broom of destruction’ to sweep Babylon away.” The Lord All-Powerful said this.
24 The Lord All-Powerful made this promise: “This will happen exactly as I meant for it to happen. It will happen just the way I planned. 25 I will destroy the king of Assyria in my country. I will walk on him on my mountains. He forced my people to be his slaves; he put a yoke on their necks. But that pole will be taken off Judah’s neck, and that burden will be removed. 26 This is what I plan to do for this land. I will use my power to punish all those nations.”
27 When the Lord All-Powerful makes a plan, no one can change it. When he raises his arm to punish, no one can stop him.
28 This message [ d ] was given to me the year King Ahaz died [ e ] :
29 Country of Philistia, don’t be happy that the king who beat you is now dead. It is true that his rule has ended, but his son will come and rule. It will be like one snake giving birth to a more dangerous one. The new king will be like a quick and dangerous snake to you. 30 But even the poorest of my people will be able to eat safely. And their children will be able to lie down and feel safe. But I will make your family die from hunger, and your enemy will kill anyone who survives.
31 People near the city gates, cry!
People in the city, cry out!
Everyone in Philistia,
your courage will melt like hot wax.
Look to the north!
There is a cloud of dust.
An army is coming,
and everyone in that army is strong. [ f ]
32 But what will the messengers from that nation report about us?
They will say, “The Lord made Zion strong,
and his poor people went there for safety.”
14 For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land: and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob.
2 And the people shall take them, and bring them to their place: and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the Lord for servants and handmaids: and they shall take them captives, whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors.
3 And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve,
4 That thou shalt take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say, How hath the oppressor ceased! the golden city ceased!
5 The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, and the sceptre of the rulers.
6 He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth.
7 The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing.
8 Yea, the fir trees rejoice at thee, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Since thou art laid down, no feller is come up against us.
9 Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee, even all the chief ones of the earth; it hath raised up from their thrones all the kings of the nations.
10 All they shall speak and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us?
11 Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee.
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
16 They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms;
17 That made the world as a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof; that opened not the house of his prisoners?
18 All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house.
19 But thou art cast out of thy grave like an abominable branch, and as the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with a sword, that go down to the stones of the pit; as a carcase trodden under feet.
20 Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial, because thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people: the seed of evildoers shall never be renowned.
21 Prepare slaughter for his children for the iniquity of their fathers; that they do not rise, nor possess the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities.
22 For I will rise up against them, saith the Lord of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the name, and remnant, and son, and nephew, saith the Lord .
23 I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water: and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the Lord of hosts.
24 The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand:
25 That I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulders.
26 This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations.
27 For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?
28 In the year that king Ahaz died was this burden.
29 Rejoice not thou, whole Palestina, because the rod of him that smote thee is broken: for out of the serpent's root shall come forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent.
30 And the firstborn of the poor shall feed, and the needy shall lie down in safety: and I will kill thy root with famine, and he shall slay thy remnant.
31 Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou, whole Palestina, art dissolved: for there shall come from the north a smoke, and none shall be alone in his appointed times.
32 What shall one then answer the messengers of the nation? That the Lord hath founded Zion, and the poor of his people shall trust in it.
14 When the Lord ( A ) has compassion on Jacob and again ( B ) chooses Israel, and settles them on their own land, then ( C ) strangers will join them and attach themselves to the house of Jacob. 2 The peoples will take them along and bring them to their place, and the ( D ) house of Israel will make them their own possession in the land of the Lord ( E ) as male and female servants; and [ a ] they will take their captors captive and will rule over their oppressors.
3 And it will be on the day when the Lord gives you ( F ) rest from your hardship, your turmoil, and from the harsh service in which you have been enslaved, 4 that you will ( G ) take up this [ b ] taunt against the king of Babylon, and say,
“How ( H ) the oppressor has ceased,
And how the [ c ] onslaught has ceased!
5 The Lord has broken the staff of the wicked,
The scepter of rulers,
6 ( I ) Which used to strike the peoples in fury with unceasing strokes,
Which [ d ] subdued the nations in anger with unrestrained persecution.
7 The whole earth is at rest and is quiet;
They ( J ) break forth into shouts of joy.
8 Even the ( K ) juniper trees rejoice over you, and the cedars of Lebanon, saying ,
‘Since you have been laid low, no tree cutter comes up against us.’
9 ( L ) Sheol below is excited about you, to meet you when you come;
It stirs the [ e ] spirits of the dead for you, all the [ f ] leaders of the earth;
It raises all the kings of the nations from their thrones.
10 ( M ) They will all respond and say to you,
‘Even you have become weak as we,
You have become like us.
11 Your ( N ) pride and the music of your harps
Have been brought down to Sheol;
Maggots are spread out as your bed beneath you
And worms are your covering.’
12 How you have ( O ) fallen from heaven,
You [ g ] ( P ) star of the morning, son of the dawn!
You have been cut down to the earth,
You who defeated the nations!
13 But you said in your heart,
‘I will ( Q ) ascend to heaven;
I will ( R ) raise my throne above the stars of God,
And I will sit on the mount of assembly
In the recesses of the north.
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
( S ) I will make myself like the Most High.’
15 Nevertheless you ( T ) will be brought down to Sheol,
To the recesses of the pit.
16 Those who see you will stare at you,
They will [ h ] closely examine you, saying ,
‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,
Who shook kingdoms,
17 Who made the world like a ( U ) wilderness
And overthrew its cities,
Who ( V ) did not [ i ] allow his prisoners to go home?’
18 All the kings of the nations lie in glory,
Each in his own [ j ] tomb.
19 But you have been ( W ) hurled out of your tomb
Like [ k ] a rejected branch,
[ l ] Clothed with those killed who have been pierced with a sword,
Who go down to the stones of the ( X ) pit
Like a ( Y ) trampled corpse.
20 You will not be united with them in burial,
Because you have ruined your country,
You have killed your people.
May the ( Z ) descendants of evildoers never be mentioned.
21 Prepare a place of slaughter for his sons
Because of the ( AA ) wrongdoing of their fathers.
They must not arise and take possession of the earth,
And fill the surface of the world with cities.”
22 “I will rise up against them,” declares the Lord of armies, “and eliminate from Babylon ( AB ) name and survivors, ( AC ) offspring and descendants,” declares the Lord . 23 “I will also make it the property of the ( AD ) hedgehog and swamps of water, and I will sweep it away with the broom of ( AE ) destruction,” declares the Lord of armies.
24 The Lord of armies has sworn, saying, “Certainly, ( AF ) just as I have intended, so it has happened, and just as I have planned, so it will stand, 25 to ( AG ) break Assyria in My land, and I will trample him on My mountains. Then his ( AH ) yoke will be removed from them, and his burden removed from their shoulders. 26 This is the ( AI ) plan [ m ] devised against the entire earth; and this is the ( AJ ) hand that is stretched out against all the nations. 27 For ( AK ) the Lord of armies has planned, and who can frustrate it ? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?”
28 In the ( AL ) year that King Ahaz died, this ( AM ) pronouncement came:
29 “Do not rejoice, ( AN ) Philistia, all of you,
Because the rod that ( AO ) struck you is broken;
For from the serpent’s root a ( AP ) viper will come out,
And its fruit will be a ( AQ ) winged serpent.
30 [ n ] Those who are most ( AR ) helpless will eat,
And the poor will lie down in security;
I will kill your root with ( AS ) famine,
And it will kill your survivors.
31 Wail, you ( AT ) gate; cry, you city;
[ o ] Melt away, ( AU ) Philistia, all of you!
For smoke comes from the ( AV ) north,
And ( AW ) there is no straggler in his ranks.
32 What answer will one give the ( AX ) messengers of the nation?
That ( AY ) the Lord has founded Zion,
And ( AZ ) the poor of His people will take refuge in it.”
14 The Lord will have compassion ( A ) on Jacob;
once again he will choose ( B ) Israel
and will settle them in their own land. ( C )
Foreigners ( D ) will join them
and unite with the descendants of Jacob.
2 Nations will take them
and bring ( E ) them to their own place.
And Israel will take possession of the nations ( F )
and make them male and female servants in the Lord ’s land.
They will make captives ( G ) of their captors
and rule over their oppressors. ( H )
3 On the day the Lord gives you relief ( I ) from your suffering and turmoil ( J ) and from the harsh labor forced on you, ( K ) 4 you will take up this taunt ( L ) against the king of Babylon: ( M )
How the oppressor ( N ) has come to an end!
How his fury [ a ] has ended!
5 The Lord has broken the rod ( O ) of the wicked, ( P )
the scepter ( Q ) of the rulers,
6 which in anger struck down peoples ( R )
with unceasing blows,
and in fury subdued ( S ) nations
with relentless aggression. ( T )
7 All the lands are at rest and at peace; ( U )
they break into singing. ( V )
8 Even the junipers ( W ) and the cedars of Lebanon
gloat over you and say,
“Now that you have been laid low,
no one comes to cut us down.” ( X )
9 The realm of the dead ( Y ) below is all astir
to meet you at your coming;
it rouses the spirits of the departed ( Z ) to greet you—
all those who were leaders ( AA ) in the world;
it makes them rise from their thrones—
all those who were kings over the nations. ( AB )
10 They will all respond,
they will say to you,
“You also have become weak, as we are;
you have become like us.” ( AC )
11 All your pomp has been brought down to the grave, ( AD )
along with the noise of your harps; ( AE )
maggots are spread out beneath you
and worms ( AF ) cover you. ( AG )
12 How you have fallen ( AH ) from heaven,
morning star, ( AI ) son of the dawn!
You have been cast down to the earth,
you who once laid low the nations! ( AJ )
13 You said in your heart,
“I will ascend ( AK ) to the heavens;
I will raise my throne ( AL )
above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, ( AM )
on the utmost heights ( AN ) of Mount Zaphon. [ b ]
14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; ( AO )
I will make myself like the Most High.” ( AP )
15 But you are brought down ( AQ ) to the realm of the dead, ( AR )
to the depths ( AS ) of the pit. ( AT )
16 Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate: ( AU )
“Is this the man who shook ( AV ) the earth
and made kingdoms tremble,
17 the man who made the world a wilderness, ( AW )
who overthrew ( AX ) its cities
and would not let his captives go home?” ( AY )
18 All the kings of the nations lie in state,
each in his own tomb. ( AZ )
19 But you are cast out ( BA ) of your tomb
like a rejected branch;
you are covered with the slain, ( BB )
with those pierced by the sword, ( BC )
those who descend to the stones of the pit. ( BD )
Like a corpse trampled underfoot,
20 you will not join them in burial, ( BE )
for you have destroyed your land
and killed your people.
Let the offspring ( BF ) of the wicked ( BG )
never be mentioned ( BH ) again.
21 Prepare a place to slaughter his children ( BI )
for the sins of their ancestors; ( BJ )
they are not to rise to inherit the land
and cover the earth with their cities.
22 “I will rise up ( BK ) against them,”
declares the Lord Almighty.
“I will wipe out Babylon’s name ( BL ) and survivors,
her offspring and descendants, ( BM ) ”
declares the Lord .
23 “I will turn her into a place for owls ( BN )
and into swampland;
I will sweep her with the broom of destruction, ( BO ) ”
declares the Lord Almighty. ( BP )
24 The Lord Almighty has sworn, ( BQ )
“Surely, as I have planned, ( BR ) so it will be,
and as I have purposed, so it will happen. ( BS )
25 I will crush the Assyrian ( BT ) in my land;
on my mountains I will trample him down.
His yoke ( BU ) will be taken from my people,
and his burden removed from their shoulders. ( BV ) ”
26 This is the plan ( BW ) determined for the whole world;
this is the hand ( BX ) stretched out over all nations.
27 For the Lord Almighty has purposed, ( BY ) and who can thwart him?
His hand ( BZ ) is stretched out, and who can turn it back? ( CA )
28 This prophecy ( CB ) came in the year ( CC ) King Ahaz ( CD ) died:
29 Do not rejoice, all you Philistines, ( CE )
that the rod that struck you is broken;
from the root of that snake will spring up a viper, ( CF )
its fruit will be a darting, venomous serpent. ( CG )
30 The poorest of the poor will find pasture,
and the needy ( CH ) will lie down in safety. ( CI )
But your root I will destroy by famine; ( CJ )
it will slay ( CK ) your survivors. ( CL )
31 Wail, ( CM ) you gate! ( CN ) Howl, you city!
Melt away, all you Philistines! ( CO )
A cloud of smoke comes from the north, ( CP )
and there is not a straggler in its ranks. ( CQ )
32 What answer shall be given
to the envoys ( CR ) of that nation?
“The Lord has established Zion, ( CS )
and in her his afflicted people will find refuge. ( CT ) ”
