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God’s Message to Moab

15 This is a message about Moab:

One night armies took the wealth from Ar in Moab,
    and the city was destroyed.
One night armies took the wealth from Kir in Moab,
    and the city was destroyed.
The king’s family and the people of Dibon[a] go to the places of worship[b] to cry.
    The people of Moab are crying for Nebo[c] and Medeba.[d]
    They have shaved their heads and beards to show their sadness.
Everywhere in Moab, on the housetops and in the streets,
    people are wearing sackcloth.
    Everyone is crying.
In Heshbon and Elealeh they are crying loudly.
    You can hear their voices as far away as Jahaz.
Even the soldiers are frightened.
    They are shaking with fear.

My heart cries, full of sorrow for Moab.
    Its people run away to Zoar for safety.
    They run to Eglath Shelishiyah.
The people are crying
    as they go up the road to Luhith.
They are crying loudly
    as they walk on the road to Horonaim.
But Nimrim Brook is as dry as a desert.
    The grass has dried up,
and the plants are all dead.
    Nothing is green.
So the people gather up everything they own
    and cross the border at Arabah stream.

You can hear crying everywhere in Moab—
    as far away as Eglaim and Beer Elim.
The water of Dimon[e] is full of blood,
    and I will bring even more troubles to Dimon.
A few people living in Moab have escaped the enemy,
    but I will send lions to eat them.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 15:2 Dibon A city in the country of Moab. This name is like a Hebrew word meaning “to be very sad.”
  2. Isaiah 15:2 places of worship Or “high places.” See “high places” in the Word List.
  3. Isaiah 15:2 Nebo A city in the country of Moab and the name of a false god.
  4. Isaiah 15:2 Medeba A city in the country of Moab. This name is like a Hebrew word meaning “to be very sad.”
  5. Isaiah 15:9 Dimon This is probably the city of Dibon. Dimon is like the Hebrew word meaning “blood.”

A Prophecy Against Moab(A)

15 A prophecy(B) against Moab:(C)

Ar(D) in Moab is ruined,(E)
    destroyed in a night!
Kir(F) in Moab is ruined,
    destroyed in a night!
Dibon(G) goes up to its temple,
    to its high places(H) to weep;
    Moab wails(I) over Nebo(J) and Medeba.
Every head is shaved(K)
    and every beard cut off.(L)
In the streets they wear sackcloth;(M)
    on the roofs(N) and in the public squares(O)
they all wail,(P)
    prostrate with weeping.(Q)
Heshbon(R) and Elealeh(S) cry out,
    their voices are heard all the way to Jahaz.(T)
Therefore the armed men of Moab cry out,
    and their hearts are faint.

My heart cries out(U) over Moab;(V)
    her fugitives(W) flee as far as Zoar,(X)
    as far as Eglath Shelishiyah.
They go up the hill to Luhith,
    weeping as they go;
on the road to Horonaim(Y)
    they lament their destruction.(Z)
The waters of Nimrim are dried up(AA)
    and the grass is withered;(AB)
the vegetation is gone(AC)
    and nothing green is left.(AD)
So the wealth they have acquired(AE) and stored up
    they carry away over the Ravine of the Poplars.
Their outcry echoes along the border of Moab;
    their wailing reaches as far as Eglaim,
    their lamentation as far as Beer(AF) Elim.
The waters of Dimon[a] are full of blood,
    but I will bring still more upon Dimon[b]
a lion(AG) upon the fugitives of Moab(AH)
    and upon those who remain in the land.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 15:9 Dimon, a wordplay on Dibon (see verse 2), sounds like the Hebrew for blood.
  2. Isaiah 15:9 Dimon, a wordplay on Dibon (see verse 2), sounds like the Hebrew for blood.