Isaiah 47

The Humiliation of Babylon

1 aCome down and sit in the dust,
O virgin bdaughter of Babylon;
csit on the ground without a throne,
O daughter of dthe Chaldeans!
eFor you shall no more be called
tender and delicate.
2Take the millstones and fgrind flour,
gput off your veil,
strip off your robe, uncover your legs,
pass through the rivers.
3Your nakedness shall be uncovered,
and your disgrace shall be seen.
I will take vengeance,
and I will spare no one.
4 hOur Redeemer—the Lord of hosts is his name
is the Holy One of Israel.
5 iSit in silence, and go into darkness,
O daughter of jthe Chaldeans;
for you shall no more be called
kthe mistress of kingdoms.
6 lI was angry with my people;
I profaned my heritage;
I gave them into your hand;
myou showed them no mercy;
on the aged you made your yoke exceedingly heavy.
7You said, “I shall be nmistress forever,”
so that you did not lay these things to heart
or remember their end.
8 Now therefore hear this, oyou lover of pleasures,
pwho sit securely,
who say in your heart,
qI am, and there is no one besides me;
rI shall not sit as a widow
or know the loss of children”:
9 sThese two things shall come to you
in a moment, tin one day;
the loss of children and widowhood
shall come upon you in full measure,
uin 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,
vI am, and there is no one besides me.”
11But 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;
wand ruin shall come upon you suddenly,
of which you know nothing.
12 xStand 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.
13You are wearied with your many counsels;
let them stand forth and save you,
ythose who divide the heavens,
who gaze at the stars,
who at the new moons make known
what shall come upon you.
14 Behold, zthey are like stubble;
aathe 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!
15Such 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.
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