Isaiah 13:1-8

Amplified Bible

Prophecies about Babylon

13 The [mournful, inspired] oracle (^[a]a burden to be carried) concerning Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw [in a prophetic vision]:

²
Lift up a signal banner on the bare mountain,
Summon them [the Medes and Persians] with a loud voice,
Wave the [beckoning] hand so that they may enter the doorways of the [Babylonian] nobles.
³
I [the Lord] have commanded My consecrated ones,
I have even called My great warriors,
My proudly exulting ones [the Medes and the Persians who triumph for My honor]—
To execute My anger.
⁴
A sound of tumult on the mountains,
Like that of many people!
A sound of the uproar of the kingdoms,
Of nations gathered together!
The Lord of hosts is mustering an army for battle.
⁵
They are coming from a distant country,
From the end of heaven [the farthest horizon]—
The Lord and the weapons of His indignation—
To destroy the whole land.^(A)

Judgment on the Day of the Lord

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Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand!
It will come as ^[b]destruction from the ^[c]Almighty (All Sufficient One—Invincible God)!^(B)
⁷
Therefore ^[d]all hands will fall limp,
And every man’s heart will melt.
⁸
They [of Babylon] will be shocked and terrified,
Pains and anguish will grip them;
They will be in pain like a woman in childbirth.
They will stare aghast and horrified at one another,
Their faces aflame [from the effects of the unprecedented warfare].

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Footnotes

Isaiah 13:1 I.e. an urgent message the prophet is under compulsion to proclaim.
Isaiah 13:6 Shod in Hebrew, forming a word play with Shaddai.
Isaiah 13:6 Heb Shaddai.
Isaiah 13:7 Babylon was taken by surprise on the night of Belshazzar’s sacrilegious feast when Belshazzar was killed, and Darius the Mede was made king over Babylonia, the realm of the Chaldeans (Dan 5:30). The Chaldeans became the dominant people in Babylonia when Merodach-baladan declared himself king of Babylon. The words “Chaldean” and “Babylonian” are used interchangeably.