Isaiah 15
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 15
Moab[a]
1 [b]An oracle concerning Moab:
Having been laid waste in a single night,
Ar of Moab is destroyed.
Having been laid waste in a single night,
Kir of Moab is destroyed.
2 The daughter of Dibon goes up
to the high places to weep.
Moab wails unceasingly
over Nebo and Medeba.
Every head has been shaved,
every beard has been cut off.
3 In the streets they wear sackcloth;
on the roofs and in the public squares
everyone wails and collapses in tears.
4 Hesbon and Elealeh cry out in distress;
their voices are heard as far away as Jahaz.
As a result, the bravest of Moab’s warriors cry out
and their hearts grow faint.
5 My heart cries out for Moab;
her fugitives have arrived close to Zoar,
at Eglath-shelishiyah.
They climb the slope of Luhith,
weeping as they make their ascent;
on the road to Horonaim
they emit heart-rending cries.
6 The waters of Nimrim
have become a desolate waste.
The grass is parched,
the plants have withered away,
and nothing green can be seen.
7 Therefore, the people carry away
across the Ravine of the Willows
whatever possessions they can manage
and the savings they have accumulated.
8 Their cry of distress has echoed
around the land of Moab.
Their wailing reaches as far as Eglaim;
it can be heard even to the land of Beer-elim.
9 The waters of Dimon are filled with blood,
but I have far worse in store for Dimon:
a lion for those who are fleeing from Moab,
as well as for those who are left on its soil.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 15:1 Moab, ancient rival and enemy of Israel, was devastated during the Assyrian war of 701 B.C.
- Isaiah 15:1 The names are those of places belonging at that time to the kingdom of Moab.
Isaiah 15
English Standard Version
An Oracle Concerning Moab
15 An (A)oracle concerning (B)Moab.
Because (C)Ar of Moab is laid waste in a night,
Moab is undone;
because (D)Kir of Moab is laid waste in a night,
Moab is undone.
2 He has gone up to the temple,[a] and to (E)Dibon,
to the high places[b] to weep;
over (F)Nebo and over (G)Medeba
Moab (H)wails.
On every head is (I)baldness;
every beard is shorn;
3 in the streets they wear sackcloth;
on the housetops and in the squares
everyone wails and melts in tears.
4 (J)Heshbon and (K)Elealeh cry out;
their voice is heard as far as (L)Jahaz;
therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud;
his soul trembles.
5 My heart cries out for Moab;
her fugitives flee to Zoar,
to (M)Eglath-shelishiyah.
For at the (N)ascent of Luhith
they go up weeping;
on the road to (O)Horonaim
they raise a cry of destruction;
6 the waters of (P)Nimrim
are a desolation;
the grass is withered, the vegetation fails,
the greenery is no more.
7 (Q)Therefore the abundance they have gained
and what they have laid up
they carry away
over the Brook of the Willows.
8 For a cry has gone
around the land of Moab;
her wailing reaches to Eglaim;
her wailing reaches to Beer-elim.
9 For the waters of (R)Dibon[c] are full of blood;
for I will bring upon Dibon even more,
(S)a lion for those of Moab who escape,
for the remnant of the land.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 15:2 Hebrew the house
- Isaiah 15:2 Or temple, even Dibon to the high places
- Isaiah 15:9 Dead Sea Scroll, Vulgate (compare Syriac); Masoretic Text Dimon; twice in this verse
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.