vs 1 This is the vision that IsaiAh (son of Amoz) saw against Babylon:
vs 2 Raise [a] flag on top of the mountains. Then, don’t be afraid, shout it loudly. Open [your mouths], O you rulers…Put your hands [to your mouths] and call out for aid!
vs 3 For I’m in command and I’ve given the order to giants that are coming to fulfill my rage…together they’re coming, shouting insults.’
vs 4 There’s [a] voice like the sound of great crowds That [you’ll hear from the tops of] the mountains. It’s the sound of [a] gathering of kings, And [a] great assembly of troops. For, [Jehovah] of Armies has given the order To [a] nation of warriors with weapons
vs 5 That are coming from [a] faraway land…From the pillars of the skies they’ll arrive. Yes, the Lord and His warriors are coming To bring ruin to the place where you dwell.
vs 6 So shriek, for the day of the Lord is at hand, And destruction from God will come quickly!
vs 7 So, all of their hands will go limp And the soul of each man will know fear.
vs 8 Their elders will all be disturbed And have pains like women about to give birth. They’ll discuss it and they will be sad for each other, And together, they’ll all be in shock…Their faces will be changed into flames!
vs 9 For Look! the day of the Lord is about to arrive… It’s [a] day of incurable anger… The rage to destroy the place where you live And wipe away all the sinners.
vs 10 Then the stars in the skies (including Orion) And the heaven’s arrangement will no longer shine. The rising sun will be darkened, And the moon won’t give out its light.
vs 11 ‘I’ll punish this dwelling place for its evil, And the irreverent, I’ll destroy for their sins…I’ll end the insolence of the lawless, nd bring the haughty ways of the proud to the ground.
vs 12 ‘Then, those left behind will be rarer than gold…They’ll be rarer than gold from Ophir.
vs 13 For the skies will then be enraged, And the foundations of the land will be shaken By the anger and rage of [Jehovah] of Armies On the day that He sends His wrath.
vs 14 ‘Then, those who remain will be fleeing like deer…Like sheep, they will all run away…No way will [a] man return to his house, For they’ll all be fleeing their homes.
vs 15 The captured will then all be [slaughtered]…Yes, those who are caught will fall by the sword.
vs 16 Before them, their young will be dashed to the ground, All of their homes will be ruined, And their women will all be dishonored.
vs 17 ‘Look! For against you, I’m arousing the Medes…Those who think nothing of silver And those who have no need for your gold!
vs 18 They’ll break the bows of your young men, And on your young, show no mercy…Their eyes will not spare your children!
vs 19 ‘Then Babylon, home of the king of Chaldea, Will be wiped away by our God, As He did to Sodom and GomorRah.
vs 20 And throughout ages, no one will live there again, For generations, no one will [want to] go there…No Arabs will go there, and shepherds won’t stop there to rest.
vs 21 But wild beasts will surely be found there, And fill all the houses with growling. ‘It’ll be [a] place where demons will dance…
vs 22 A place where vultures will dwell, And where hedgehogs build nests in the homes.’