Isa 14:4-23, 21:1-10, 43:14, 44:1-2, Isa 47, Jer 25:12-26, 50:0-51:23 | ESV | STEP | you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon : How the oppressor has ceased , the insolent fury ceased !

4 you will take up this ^ataunt against the king of Babylon:

“How the oppressor has ceased,
^bthe insolent fury ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll (compare Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate); the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain} ceased!
5 The Lord has broken the ^dstaff of the wicked,
the ^escepter of rulers,
6 ^fthat struck the peoples in wrath
with unceasing blows,
that ruled the nations in anger
with unrelenting persecution.
7 The whole earth is at rest and quiet;
^gthey break forth into singing.
8 ^h, ⁱThe cypresses rejoice at you,
^jthe cedars of Lebanon, saying,
‘Since you were laid low,
no woodcutter comes up against us.’
9 Sheol beneath is stirred up
to meet you when you come;
it rouses the shades to greet you,
all who were leaders of the earth;
it raises from their thrones
all who were kings of the nations.
10 ^kAll of them will answer
and say to you:
‘You too have become as weak as we!
You have become like us!’
11 Your pomp is brought down to Sheol,
the sound of your harps;
maggots are laid as a bed beneath you,
and worms are your covers.
12 “How ^lyou are fallen from heaven,
O Day Star, ^mson of Dawn!
How you are cut down to the ground,
you who laid the nations low!
13 You said in your heart,
ⁿ‘I will ascend to heaven;
above the stars of God
^oI will set my throne on high;
I will sit on the mount of assembly
in the far reaches of the north; ^{▼▼Or in the remote parts of Zaphon}
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;
I will make myself like the Most High.’
15 ^qBut you are brought down to Sheol,
to the far reaches of the pit.
16 Those who see you will stare at you
and ponder over you:
‘Is this ^rthe man who made the earth tremble,
who shook kingdoms,
17 who made the world like a desert
and overthrew its cities,
^swho did not let his prisoners go home?’
18 All the kings of the nations lie in glory,
each in his own tomb; ^{▼▼Hebrew house}
19 but you are cast out, away from your grave,
like a loathed branch,
^uclothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword,
who go down to the stones of the pit,
like a dead body trampled underfoot.
20 You will not be joined with them in burial,
because you have destroyed your land,
you have slain your people.
“May ^vthe offspring of evildoers
nevermore be named!
21 Prepare slaughter for his sons
^wbecause of the guilt of their fathers,
lest they rise and possess the earth,
and fill the face of the world with cities.”
22 “I will rise up against them,” declares the Lord of hosts, “and will cut off from Babylon name and ^xremnant, ^ydescendants and posterity,” declares the Lord. 23 “And I will make it a possession of the ^zhedgehog, ^{▼▼Possibly porcupine, or owl} and pools of water, and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of hosts.

Isaiah 21:1-10

Fallen, Fallen Is Babylon

1 The ^aboracle concerning the wilderness of ^acthe sea.

^adAs whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on,
it comes from the wilderness,
from a terrible land.
2 A stern vision is told to me;
^aethe traitor betrays,
and the destroyer destroys.
Go up, O ^afElam;
lay siege, O ^agMedia;
all the ^ahsighing she has caused
I bring to an end.
3 Therefore my loins are filled with anguish;
^aipangs 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 heart staggers; horror has appalled me;
^ajthe twilight I longed for
has been turned for me into trembling.
5 ^akThey prepare the table,
they spread the rugs, ^{▼▼Or they set the watchman}
they eat, they drink.
Arise, O princes;
^amoil the shield!
6 For thus the Lord said to me:
“Go, set a watchman;
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 he who saw cried out: ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Syriac; Masoretic Text Then a lion cried out, or Then he cried out like a lion}
^ao“Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord,
continually by day,
and at my post I am stationed
whole nights.
9 And behold, here come riders,
horsemen in pairs!”
^apAnd he answered,
^aq“Fallen, fallen is Babylon;
^arand all the carved images of her gods
he has shattered to the ground.”
10 O ^asmy threshed and winnowed one,
what I have heard from the Lord of hosts,
the God of Israel, I announce to you.

Isaiah 43:14

14 Thus says the Lord,
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
^at“For your sake I send to Babylon
and ^aubring them all down as fugitives,
^aveven the Chaldeans, in the ships in which they rejoice.

Isaiah 44:1-2

Israel the Lord’s Chosen

1 “But now hear, ^awO Jacob my servant,
Israel whom I have chosen!
2 Thus says the Lord who made you,
^axwho formed you from the womb and will help you:
^ayFear not, O Jacob my servant,
^azJeshurun whom I have chosen.

Isaiah 47

The Humiliation of Babylon

1 ^baCome down and sit in the dust,
O virgin ^bbdaughter of Babylon;
^bcsit on the ground without a throne,
O daughter of ^bdthe Chaldeans!
^beFor you shall no more be called
tender and delicate.
2 Take the millstones and ^bfgrind flour,
^bgput off your veil,
strip off your robe, uncover your legs,
pass through the rivers.
3 Your nakedness shall be uncovered,
and your disgrace shall be seen.
I will take vengeance,
and I will spare no one.
4 ^bhOur Redeemer—the Lord of hosts is his name—
is the Holy One of Israel.
5 ^biSit in silence, and go into darkness,
O daughter of ^bjthe Chaldeans;
for you shall no more be called
^bkthe mistress of kingdoms.
6 ^blI was angry with my people;
I profaned my heritage;
I gave them into your hand;
^bmyou showed them no mercy;
on the aged you made your yoke exceedingly heavy.
7 You said, “I shall be ^bnmistress forever,”
so that you did not lay these things to heart
or remember their end.
8 Now therefore hear this, ^boyou lover of pleasures,
^bpwho sit securely,
who say in your heart,
^bq“I am, and there is no one besides me;
^brI shall not sit as a widow
or know the loss of children”:
9 ^bsThese two things shall come to you
in a moment, ^btin one day;
the loss of children and widowhood
shall come upon you in full measure,
^buin spite of your many sorceries
and the great power of your enchantments.
10 You felt secure in your wickedness;
you said, “No one sees me”;
your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray,
and you said in your heart,
^bv“I am, and there is no one besides me.”
11 But evil shall come upon you,
which you will not know how to charm away;
disaster shall fall upon you,
for which you will not be able to atone;
^bwand ruin shall come upon you suddenly,
of which you know nothing.
12 ^bxStand fast in your enchantments
and your many sorceries,
with which you have labored from your youth;
perhaps you may be able to succeed;
perhaps you may inspire terror.
13 You are wearied with your many counsels;
let them stand forth and save you,
^bythose who divide the heavens,
who gaze at the stars,
who at the new moons make known
what shall come upon you.
14 Behold, ^bzthey are like stubble;
^cathe fire consumes them;
they cannot deliver themselves
from the power of the flame.
No coal for warming oneself is this,
no fire to sit before!
15 Such to you are those with whom you have labored,
who have done business with you from your youth;
they wander about, each in his own direction;
there is no one to save you.

Jeremiah 25:12-26

12 Then after ^cbseventy years are completed, ^ccI will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, ^cdthe land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, declares the Lord, ^cemaking the land an everlasting waste. 13 I will bring upon that land all the words that I have uttered against it, everything written ^cfin this book, which Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. 14 ^cgFor many nations ^chand great kings shall make slaves even of them, ^ciand I will recompense them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.”

The Cup of the Lord’s Wrath

15 Thus the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: ^cj“Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of ^ckthe sword that I am sending among them.”

17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand, ^cland made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it: 18 ^cmJerusalem and the cities of Judah, its kings and officials, ^cnto make them a desolation and a waste, a hissing and a curse, as at this day; 19 ^coPharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his officials, all his people, 20 and ^cpall the mixed tribes among them; all the kings of ^cqthe land of Uz and all the kings of ^crthe land of the Philistines ( ^csAshkelon, ^ctGaza, Ekron, and the remnant of ^cuAshdod); 21 ^cvEdom, ^cwMoab, and the sons of ^cxAmmon; 22 all the kings of ^cyTyre, all the kings of ^czSidon, and the kings of the coastland across ^dathe sea; 23 ^dbDedan, ^dcTema, ^ddBuz, and all who cut ^dethe corners of their hair; 24 all the ^dfkings of Arabia and all the kings of ^dgthe mixed tribes who dwell in the desert; 25 all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of ^dhElam, and all the kings of ^diMedia; 26 all the kings of ^djthe north, far and near, one after another, and all the kingdoms of the world that are on the face of the earth. And after them the king of ^dkBabylon ^{▼▼Hebrew Sheshach, a code name for Babylon} shall drink.

Jeremiah 50

Judgment on Babylon

1 The word that the Lord spoke concerning ^dmBabylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, ^dnby Jeremiah the prophet:

2 “Declare among the nations and proclaim,
set up a banner and proclaim,
conceal it not, and say:
^do‘Babylon is taken,
^dpBel is put to shame,
Merodach is dismayed.
^dqHer images are put to shame,
her idols are dismayed.’
3 “For ^drout of the north a nation has come up against her, ^dswhich shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; ^dtboth man and beast shall flee away.

4 ^du“In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, ^dvthe people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, ^dwweeping as they come, and they ^dxshall seek the Lord their God. 5 ^dyThey shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, ^dzsaying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in an ^eaeverlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.’

6 ^eb“My people have been lost sheep. ^ecTheir shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. 7 All who found them have devoured them, ^edand their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, for ^eethey have sinned against the Lord, ^eftheir habitation of righteousness, the Lord, ^egthe hope of their fathers.’

8 ^eh“Flee from the midst of Babylon, ^eiand go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock. 9 For behold, I am stirring up and bringing against Babylon ^eja gathering of great nations, from the north country. And they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 ^ekChaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, declares the Lord.

11 ^el“Though you rejoice, though you exult,
O plunderers of my heritage,
though you frolic like a heifer in the pasture,
and neigh like stallions,
12 your mother shall be utterly shamed,
and she who bore you shall be disgraced.
Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,
^ema wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
13 ^enBecause of the wrath of the Lord she shall not be inhabited
but shall be an utter desolation;
^eoeveryone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,
^epand hiss because of all her wounds.
14 ^eqSet yourselves in array against Babylon all around,
^erall you who bend the bow;
shoot at her, spare no arrows,
^esfor she has sinned against the Lord.
15 ^etRaise a shout against her all around;
she has surrendered;
her bulwarks have fallen;
^euher walls are thrown down.
For ^evthis is the vengeance of the Lord:
take vengeance on her;
^ewdo to her as she has done.
16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;
^exbecause of the sword of the oppressor,
^eyevery one shall turn to his own people,
and every one shall flee to his own land.
17 ^ez“Israel is a hunted sheep ^fadriven away by lions. ^fbFirst the king of Assyria ^fcdevoured him, and now at last ^fdNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon ^fehas gnawed his bones. 18 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, ^ffI am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, ^fgas I punished the king of Assyria. 19 ^fhI will restore Israel to his pasture, and ^fihe shall feed on ^fjCarmel and in ^fkBashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in ^flGilead. 20 In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, ^fminiquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for ^fnI will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.

21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim, ^{▼▼ Merathaim means double rebellion}
and against the inhabitants of Pekod. ^{▼▼ Pekod means punishment}
Kill, ^fqand devote them to destruction, ^{▼▼That is, set apart ( devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction)}

declares the Lord,
and do all that I have commanded you.
22 ^fsThe noise of battle is in the land,
and great destruction!
23 ^ftHow the hammer of the whole earth
is cut down and broken!
^fuHow Babylon ^fvhas become
a horror among the nations!
24 ^fwI set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,
and ^fxyou did not know it;
you were found and caught,
because you opposed the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened his armory
and brought out ^fythe weapons of his wrath,
for the Lord God of hosts has a work to do
in the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come against her from every quarter;
open her granaries;
^fzpile her up like heaps of grain, and devote her to destruction;
let nothing be left of her.
27 Kill all ^gaher bulls;
let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them, for their day has come,
^gbthe time of their punishment.
28 “A voice! They ^gcflee and escape from the land of Babylon, ^gdto declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for ^gehis temple.

29 ^gf“Summon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow. ^ggEncamp around her; let no one escape. ^ghRepay her according to her deeds; do to her according to all that she has done. For she has ^giproudly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 30 ^gjTherefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, declares the Lord.

31 “Behold, I am against you, O ^gkproud one,
declares the Lord God of hosts,
^glfor your day has come,
the time when I will punish you.
32 ^gmThe proud one shall stumble and fall,
with none to raise him up,
^gnand I will kindle a fire in his cities,
and it will devour all that is around him.
33 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ^goThe people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah with them. All who took them captive have held them fast; ^gpthey refuse to let them go. 34 ^gqTheir Redeemer is strong; ^grthe Lord of hosts is his name. ^gsHe will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.

35 “A sword against the Chaldeans, declares the Lord,
and against the inhabitants of Babylon,
and against ^gther officials and her ^guwise men!
36 A sword against the diviners,
that they may become fools!
A sword against her ^gvwarriors,
that they may be destroyed!
37 A sword against her horses and against her chariots,
and against all ^gwthe foreign troops in her midst,
that ^gxthey may become women!
^gyA sword against all her treasures,
that they may be plundered!
38 ^gzA drought against her waters,
that they may be dried up!
^haFor it is a land of images,
and they are mad over idols.
39 ^hb“Therefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon, and ostriches shall dwell in her. She shall never again have people, nor be inhabited for all generations. 40 ^hcAs when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring cities, declares the Lord, ^hdso no man shall dwell there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.

41 ^he“Behold, a people comes from the north;
a mighty nation and many kings
are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
42 They lay hold of bow and spear;
they are cruel and have no mercy.
The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;
they ride on horses,
arrayed as a man for battle
against you, O daughter of Babylon!
43 “The king of Babylon heard the report of them,
and his hands fell helpless;
anguish seized him,
pain as of a woman in labor.
44 ^hf“Behold, like a lion coming up from the thicket of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make them run away from her, and I will appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd ^hgcan stand before me? 45 Therefore hear ^hhthe plan that the Lord has made against Babylon, ^hiand the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: ^hjSurely the little ones of their flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 ^hkAt the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.”

Jeremiah 51:1-23

The Utter Destruction of Babylon

1 Thus says the Lord:
“Behold, I will stir up ^hlthe spirit of a destroyer
against Babylon,
against the inhabitants of Leb-kamai, ^{▼▼A code name for Chaldea}
2 and I will send to Babylon winnowers,
and ^hnthey shall winnow her,
and they shall empty her land,
when they come against her from every side
^hoon the day of trouble.
3 ^hpLet not the archer bend his bow,
and let him not stand up in his armor.
Spare not her young men;
^hqdevote to destruction ^{▼▼That is, set apart ( devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction)} all her army.
4 They shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans,
^hsand wounded in her streets.
5 ^htFor Israel and Judah have not been forsaken
by their God, the Lord of hosts,
but the land of the Chaldeans ^{▼▼Hebrew their land} is full of guilt
against the Holy One of Israel.
6 ^hv“Flee from the midst of Babylon;
let every one save his life!
^hwBe not cut off in her punishment,
^hxfor this is the time of the Lord’s vengeance,
the repayment he is rendering her.
7 Babylon was ^hya golden cup in the Lord’s hand,
^hzmaking all the earth drunken;
^iathe nations drank of her wine;
therefore the nations went mad.
8 ^ibSuddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken;
^icwail for her!
^idTake balm for her pain;
perhaps she may be healed.
9 We would have healed Babylon,
but she was not healed.
^ieForsake her, and ^iflet us go
each to his own country,
for ^igher judgment has reached up to heaven
and has been lifted up even to the skies.
10 ^ihThe Lord has brought about our vindication;
ⁱⁱcome, let us declare in Zion
the work of the Lord our God.
11 ^ij“Sharpen the arrows!
Take up the shields!
^ikThe Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of ^ilthe Medes, because ^imhis purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, ⁱⁿfor that is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance for ^iohis temple.

12 ^ip“Set up a standard against the walls of Babylon;
^iqmake the watch strong;
set up watchmen;
prepare the ambushes;
^irfor the Lord has both planned and done
what he spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 ^isO you who dwell by many waters,
rich in treasures,
your end has come;
the thread of your life is cut.
14 ^itThe Lord of hosts has sworn by himself:
Surely I will fill you with men, ^iuas many as locusts,
^ivand they shall raise the shout of victory over you.
15 ^iw“It is he who made the earth by his power,
who established the world by his wisdom,
and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.
16 When he utters his voice there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.
17 Every man is stupid and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,
for his images are false,
and there is no breath in them.
18 They are worthless, a work of delusion;
at the time of their punishment they shall perish.
19 Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob,
for he is the one who formed all things,
and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;
the Lord of hosts is his name.
20 “You are my hammer and weapon of war:
with you I ^ixbreak nations in pieces;
with you I destroy kingdoms;
21 with you I break in pieces the horse and his rider;
with you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer;
22 with you I break in pieces man and woman;
with you I break in pieces ^iythe old man and the youth;
with you I break in pieces ^izthe young man and the young woman;
23 with you I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock;
with you I break in pieces the farmer and his team;
with you I break in pieces ^jagovernors and commanders.