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14 Her time is near at hand, and her days shall not be prolonged. For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose out of Israel, and will make them rest upon their own ground: and the stranger shall be joined with them, and shall adhere to the house of Jacob.

And the people shall take them, and bring them into their place: and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the Lord for servants and handmaids: and they shall make them captives that had taken them, and shall subdue their oppressors.

And it shall come to pass in that day, that when God shall give thee rest from thy labour, and from thy vexation, and from the hard bondage, wherewith thou didst serve before,

Thou shalt take up this parable against the king of Babylon, and shalt say: How is the oppressor come to nothing, the tribute hath ceased?

The Lord hath broken the staff of the wicked, the rod of the rulers,

That struck the people in wrath with an incurable wound, that brought nations under in fury, that persecuted in a cruel manner.

The whole earth is quiet and still, it is glad and hath rejoiced.

The fir trees also have rejoiced over thee, and the cedars of Libanus, saying: Since thou hast slept, there hath none come up to cut us down.

Hell below was in an uproar to meet thee at thy coming, it stirred up the giants for thee. All the princes of the earth are risen up from their thrones, all the princes of nations.

10 All shall answer, and say to thee: Thou also art wounded as well as we, thou art become like unto us.

11 Thy pride is brought down to hell, thy carcass is fallen down: under thee shall the moth be strewed, and worms shall be thy covering.

12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, who didst rise in the morning? how art thou fallen to the earth, that didst wound the nations?

13 And thou saidst in thy heart: I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God, I will sit in the mountain of the covenant, in the sides of the north.

14 I will ascend above the height of the clouds, I will be like the most High.

15 But yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, into the depth of the pit.

16 They that shall see thee, shall turn toward thee, and behold thee. Is this the man that troubled the earth, that shook kingdoms,

17 That made the world a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof, that opened not the prison to his prisoners?

18 All the kings of the nations have all of them slept in glory, every one in his own house.

19 But thou art cast out of thy grave, as an unprofitable branch defiled, and wrapped up among them that were slain by the sword, and art gone down to the bottom of the pit, as a rotten carcass.

20 Thou shalt not keep company with them, even in burial: for thou hast destroyed thy land, thou hast slain thy people: the seed of the wicked shall not be named for ever.

21 Prepare his children for slaughter for the iniquity of their fathers: they shall not rise up, nor inherit the land, nor fill the face of the world with cities.

22 And I will rise up against them, saith the Lord of hosts: and I will destroy the name of Babylon, and the remains, and the bud, and the offspring, saith the Lord.

23 And I will make it a possession for the ericius and pools of waters, and I will sweep it and wear it out with a besom, saith the Lord of hosts.

24 The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying: Surely as I have thought, so shall it be: and as I have purposed,

25 So shall it fall out: That I will destroy the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: and his yoke shall be taken away from them, and his burden shall be taken off their shoulder.

26 This is the counsel, that I have purposed upon all the earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all nations.

27 For the Lord of hosts hath decreed, and who can disannul it? and his hand is stretched out: and who shall turn it away?

28 In the year that king Achaz died, was this burden:

29 Rejoice not thou, whole Philistia, that the rod of him that struck thee is broken in pieces: for out of the root of the serpent shall come forth a basilisk, and his seed shall swallow the bird.

30 And the firstborn of the poor shall be fed, and the poor shall rest with confidence: and I will make thy root perish with famine, and I will kill thy remnant.

31 Howl, O gate; cry, O city: all Philistia is thrown down: for a smoke shall come from the north, and there is none that shall escape his troop.

32 And what shall be answered to the messengers of the nations? That the Lord hath founded Sion, and the poor of his people shall hope in him.

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.
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)

On the day the Lord gives you relief(I) from your suffering and turmoil(J) and from the harsh labor forced on you,(K) 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!
The Lord has broken the rod(O) of the wicked,(P)
    the scepter(Q) of the rulers,
which in anger struck down peoples(R)
    with unceasing blows,
and in fury subdued(S) nations
    with relentless aggression.(T)
All the lands are at rest and at peace;(U)
    they break into singing.(V)
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)

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)

A Prophecy Against the Philistines

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)

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 14:4 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
  2. Isaiah 14:13 Or of the north; Zaphon was the most sacred mountain of the Canaanites.