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God’s Message About Babylon

21 This is a message[a] about the “desert by the sea”[b]:

It is coming like a storm blowing through the Negev.
    It is coming in from the desert, from a frightening nation.
I was given a vision of the hard times to come.
    I see traitors turning against you.
    I see people taking your wealth.

Elam, go against them!
    Media, surround the city!
    I will put an end to all their moaning.

I saw those terrible things, and now I am afraid.
    My fear makes my stomach hurt like the pain of giving birth.
What I hear frightens me.
    What I see makes me shake with fear.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 21:1 message Or “burden.” Also in verses 11, 13.
  2. Isaiah 21:1 the desert by the sea Probably Babylon.

A Prophecy Against Babylon

21 A prophecy(A) against the Desert(B) by the Sea:

Like whirlwinds(C) sweeping through the southland,(D)
    an invader comes from the desert,
    from a land of terror.

A dire(E) vision has been shown to me:
    The traitor betrays,(F) the looter takes loot.
Elam,(G) attack! Media,(H) lay siege!
    I will bring to an end all the groaning she caused.

At this my body is racked with pain,(I)
    pangs seize me, like those of a woman in labor;(J)
I am staggered by what I hear,
    I am bewildered(K) by what I see.

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