Babylon Will Be Punished

13 The special word about Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw: ² Lift up a flag on the hill without trees. Call out to the people. Wave the hand for them to go into the gates of the princes. ³ I have told My holy ones, and My powerful soldiers who take pride in their strength, to carry out My anger. ⁴ Listen to the noise on the mountains, like that of many people! Listen to the loud sound of the many people, of nations gathered together! The Lord of All is gathering an army for battle. ⁵ They are coming from a far country, from the end of the heavens. The Lord and all He is using to show His anger are coming to destroy the whole land. ⁶ Cry out in sorrow, for the day of the Lord is near! It will come as a destroying power from the All-powerful. ⁷ So all hands will become weak, and every man’s heart will melt. ⁸ They will be filled with fear. Pain and suffering will take hold of them. They will suffer like a woman giving birth. They will look surprised at one another, their faces burning. ⁹ See, the day of the Lord is coming, without pity and with much anger. He is coming to destroy the land and its sinners from it. ¹⁰ The stars of heaven and every group of stars will not give out their light. The sun will be dark when it comes up, and the moon will not give its light. ¹¹ This is how I will punish the world for its sin, and the sinful for their wrong-doing. I will also put an end to those who are proud. And I will put to shame those who make it hard for others and show no pity. ¹² I will make men so few that they will be of more worth than pure gold, even the gold of Ophir. ¹³ I will make the heavens shake. And the earth will be shaken from its place with the anger of the Lord of All in the day of His burning anger. ¹⁴ Every man will turn to his own people and run to his own land like a hunted gazelle or like sheep with no shepherd. ¹⁵ Anyone who is found will have a spear put through him. And anyone who is caught will fall by the sword. ¹⁶ Their little ones will be broken in pieces in front of their eyes. Their things will be taken from their houses. And their wives will be carried away.

¹⁷ See, I am going to make the Medes go against them, who will not want silver or be happy with gold. ¹⁸ Their bows will cut down the young men. They will have no pity on babies. Their eyes will not pity children. ¹⁹ And Babylon, the beauty of nations, the shining-greatness and pride of the Babylonians, will be as when God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. ²⁰ People will never live in it again, even all the people-to-come. No Arab will set up his tent there. No shepherds will make their flocks lie down there. ²¹ But wild animals of the desert will lie down there. Their houses will be full of owls. Ostriches will live there, and wild goats will play there. ²² Hyenas will make noise in their strong towers, and wild dogs in their beautiful houses. The end of her time is near. Her days will be few.