Parallel Bible results for "isaiah 21"

Isaiah 21

New Revised Standard NRS

1 The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on, it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.

2 A stern vision is told to me; the betrayer betrays, and the destroyer destroys. Go up, O Elam, lay siege, O Media; all the sighing she has caused I bring to an end.

3 Therefore my loins are filled with anguish; pangs have seized me, like the pangs of a woman in labor; I am bowed down so that I cannot hear, I am dismayed so that I cannot see.

4 My mind reels, horror has appalled me; the twilight I longed for has been turned for me into trembling.

5 They prepare the table, they spread the rugs, they eat, they drink. Rise up, commanders, oil the shield!

6 For thus the Lord said to me: "Go, post a lookout, let him announce what he sees.

7 When he sees riders, horsemen in pairs, riders on donkeys, riders on camels, let him listen diligently, very diligently."

8 Then the watcher called out: "Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord, continually by day, and at my post I am stationed throughout the night.

9 Look, there they come, riders, horsemen in pairs!" Then he responded, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon; and all the images of her gods lie shattered on the ground."

10 O my threshed and winnowed one, what I have heard from the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, I announce to you.

11 The oracle concerning Dumah. One is calling to me from Seir, "Sentinel, what of the night? Sentinel, what of the night?"

12 The sentinel says: "Morning comes, and also the night. If you will inquire, inquire; come back again."

13 The oracle concerning the desert plain. In the scrub of the desert plain you will lodge, O caravans of Dedanites.

14 Bring water to the thirsty, meet the fugitive with bread, O inhabitants of the land of Tema.

15 For they have fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, from the bent bow, and from the stress of battle.

16 For thus the Lord said to me: Within a year, according to the years of a hired worker, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end;

17 and the remaining bows of Kedar's warriors will be few; for the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.

The Message Bible MSG

1 A Message concerning the desert at the sea: As tempests drive through the Negev Desert, coming out of the desert, that terror-filled place,

2 A hard vision is given me: The betrayer betrayed, the plunderer plundered. Attack, Elam! Lay siege, Media! Persians, attack! Attack, Babylon! I'll put an end to all the moaning and groaning.

3 Because of this news I'm doubled up in pain, writhing in pain like a woman having a baby, Baffled by what I hear, undone by what I see.

4 Absolutely stunned, horror-stricken, I had hoped for a relaxed evening, but it has turned into a nightmare.

5 The banquet is spread, the guests reclining in luxurious ease, Eating and drinking, having a good time, and then, "To arms, princes! The fight is on!"

6 The Master told me, "Go, post a lookout. Have him report whatever he spots.

7 When he sees horses and wagons in battle formation, lines of donkeys and columns of camels, Tell him to keep his ear to the ground, note every whisper, every rumor."

8 Just then, the lookout shouted, "I'm at my post, Master, Sticking to my post day after day and all through the night!

9 I watched them come, the horses and wagons in battle formation. I heard them call out the war news in headlines: 'Babylon fallen! Fallen! And all its precious god-idols smashed to pieces on the ground.'"

10 Dear Israel, you've been through a lot, you've been put through the mill. The good news I get from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel, I now pass on to you.

11 A Message concerning Edom: A voice calls to me from the Seir mountains in Edom, "Night watchman! How long till daybreak? How long will this night last?"

12 The night watchman calls back, "Morning's coming, But for now it's still night. If you ask me again, I'll give the same answer."

13 A Message concerning Arabia: You'll have to camp out in the desert badlands, you caravans of Dedanites.

14 Haul water to the thirsty, greet fugitives with bread. Show your desert hospitality, you who live in Tema.

15 The desert's swarming with refugees escaping the horrors of war.

16 The Master told me, "Hang on. Within one year - I'll sign a contract on it! - the arrogant brutality of Kedar, those hooligans of the desert, will be over,

17 nothing much left of the Kedar toughs." The God of Israel says so.