New Living Translation NLT
Common English Bible CEB
1 This message came to me concerning Babylon—the desert by the sea : Disaster is roaring down on you from the desert, like a whirlwind sweeping in from the Negev.
1
An oracle about the wilderness near the sea. Like whirlwinds sweeping through the arid southern plain, it comes from the desert, from a fearsome land.
2 I see a terrifying vision: I see the betrayer betraying, the destroyer destroying. Go ahead, you Elamites and Medes, attack and lay siege. I will make an end to all the groaning Babylon caused.
2
A harsh vision was proclaimed to me: The betrayer betrays, and the destroyer destroys. Go up, Elam! Lay siege, Media! Put an end to all her groaning.
3 My stomach aches and burns with pain. Sharp pangs of anguish are upon me, like those of a woman in labor. I grow faint when I hear what God is planning; I am too afraid to look.
3
Therefore, I'm shaken to my core in anguish. Pains have seized me like the pains of a woman in labor. I'm too bent over to hear, too dismayed to see.
4 My mind reels and my heart races. I longed for evening to come, but now I am terrified of the dark.
4
My heart pounds; convulsions overpower me. He has turned my evening of pleasure into dread—
5 Look! They are preparing a great feast. They are spreading rugs for people to sit on. Everyone is eating and drinking. But quick! Grab your shields and prepare for battle. You are being attacked!
5
setting the table, spreading the cloth, eating, drinking. "Arise, captains! Polish the shields."
6 Meanwhile, the Lord said to me, “Put a watchman on the city wall. Let him shout out what he sees.
6
The Lord said this to me: "Go, post a lookout to report what he sees.
7 He should look for chariots drawn by pairs of horses, and for riders on donkeys and camels. Let the watchman be fully alert.”
7
When he sees chariots, pairs of horsemen, donkey riders, camel riders, he should listen carefully, carefully, very carefully."
8 Then the watchman called out, “Day after day I have stood on the watchtower, my lord. Night after night I have remained at my post.
8
Then the seer called out: "Upon a watchtower, Lord, I'm standing all day; and upon my observation post I'm stationed throughout the night.
9 Now at last—look! Here comes a man in a chariot with a pair of horses!” Then the watchman said, “Babylon is fallen, fallen! All the idols of Babylon lie broken on the ground!”
9
Here they come: charioteers, pairs of horsemen!" One spoke up and said, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon, and all the images of her gods are shattered on the ground!"
10 O my people, threshed and winnowed, I have told you everything the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has said, everything the God of Israel has told me.
10
Oh, my downtrodden people, threshed on my threshing floor, what I heard from the LORD of heavenly forces, the God of Israel, I reported to you.
11 This message came to me concerning Edom : Someone from Edom keeps calling to me, “Watchman, how much longer until morning? When will the night be over?”
11
An oracle about Dumah. Someone is calling to me from Seir: "Guard, how long is the night? Guard, how long is the night?"
12 The watchman replies, “Morning is coming, but night will soon return. If you wish to ask again, then come back and ask.”
12
The guard said, "Morning has come, but it is still night. If you must inquire, inquire; come back again."
13 This message came to me concerning Arabia: O caravans from Dedan, hide in the deserts of Arabia.
13
An oracle about the desert. In the woods, in the desert where you camp, caravans of the Dedanites
14 O people of Tema, bring water to these thirsty people, food to these weary refugees.
14
meet the thirsty with water; inhabitants of the land of Tema greet the refugees with bread.
15 They have fled from the sword, from the drawn sword, from the bent bow and the terrors of battle.
15
They have fled from swords, from the drawn sword, from the bent bow and from the intensity of battle.
16 The Lord said to me, “Within a year, counting each day, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end.
16
So the Lord said to me: Within a year, according to the number of years for which a laborer is hired, all the glory of Kedar will end;
17 Only a few of its courageous archers will survive. I, the LORD, the God of Israel, have spoken!”
17
there will be few Kedarite archers remaining. The LORD God of Israel has spoken.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by
Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible