Isaiah 16

An Oracle Concerning Moab

1 t Send the lamb to the ruler of the land,
from u Sela, by way of the desert,
to the mount of the daughter of Zion.
 2 Like fleeing birds,
like a scattered nest,
so are the daughters of Moab
at v the fords of the Arnon.

3 "Give counsel;
grant justice;
w make your shade like night
at the height of noon;
shelter the outcasts;
do not reveal the fugitive;
 4 let x the outcasts of Moab
sojourn among you;
be a shelter to them 1
from the destroyer.
When the oppressor is no more,
and destruction has ceased,
and he who tramples underfoot has vanished from the land,
 5 y then a throne will be established in steadfast love,
and on it will sit in faithfulness
in the tent of David
one who judges and seeks justice
and is swift to do righteousness."

6 z We have heard of the pride of Moab -
how proud he is! -
a of his arrogance, his pride, and his insolence;
in his idle boasting he is not right.
 7 Therefore let Moab wail for Moab,
b let everyone wail.
Mourn, utterly stricken,
for the c raisin cakes of d Kir-hareseth.

8 For the fields of Heshbon languish,
and e the vine of Sibmah;
the lords of the nations
have struck down its branches,
which reached to Jazer
and strayed to the desert;
its shoots spread abroad
and passed over the sea.
 9 Therefore f I weep with e the weeping of Jazer
for the vine of Sibmah;
I drench you with my tears,
O Heshbon and Elealeh;
for over g your summer fruit and your harvest
the shout has ceased.
 10 h And joy and gladness are taken away from i the fruitful field,
and in the vineyards no j songs are sung,
no cheers are raised;
no k treader treads out wine l in the presses;
I have put an end to the shouting.
 11 Therefore m my inner parts moan like a lyre for Moab,
and my inmost self for Kir-hareseth.

12 And when Moab presents himself, when n he wearies himself on o the high place, when he comes to his sanctuary to pray, he will not prevail.

13 This is the word that the Lord spoke concerning Moab p in the past. 14 But now the Lord has spoken, saying, "In three years, q like the years of a hired worker, the glory of Moab will be brought into contempt, in spite of all his great multitude, and those who remain will be r very few and feeble."

  1. Cross References
    2 Kings 3:4
    Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder, and he had to deliver to the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams.
  2. Cross References
    Isaiah 42:11
    Let the desert and its cities lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar inhabits; let the habitants of Sela sing for joy, let them shout from the top of the mountains.
    2 Kings 14:7
    He struck down ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt and took Sela by storm, and called it Joktheel, which is its name to this day.
  3. Cross References
    Judges 11:18
    Then they journeyed through the wilderness and went around the land of Edom and the land of Moab and arrived on the east side of the land of Moab and camped on the other side of the Arnon. But they did not enter the territory of Moab, for the Arnon was the boundary of Moab.
  4. Cross References
    1 Kings 18:4
    And when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave and fed them with bread and water.)
  5. Cross References
    1 Samuel 22:3
    And David went from there to Mizpeh of Moab. And he said to the king of Moab, "Please let my father and my mother stay with you, till I know what God will do for me.
  6. Cross References
    Isaiah 32:1 - 2
    Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule in justice.
    Daniel 7:14
    And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
    Daniel 7:27
    And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey them.
    Micah 4:7
    And the lame I will make the remnant, and those who were cast off, a strong nation; and the Lord will reign over them in Mount Zion from this time forth and forevermore.
    Luke 1:33
    And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.
  7. Cross References
    Jeremiah 48:29
    We have heard of the pride of Moab - he is very proud - of his loftiness, his pride, and his arrogance, and the haughtiness of his heart.
    Zephaniah 2:10
    This shall be their lot in return for their pride, because they taunted and boasted against the people of the Lord of hosts.
  8. Cross References
    Judges 3:14
    And the people of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
    2 Kings 13:20
    So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year.
    2 Chronicles 20:1
    After this the Moabites and Ammonites, and with them some of the Meunites, came against Jehoshaphat for battle.
  9. Cross References
    Isaiah 15:3
    In the streets they wear sackcloth; on the housetops and in the squares everyone wails and melts in tears.
  10. Cross References
    2 Samuel 6:19
    And distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, a cake of bread, a portion of meat, and a cake of raisins to each one. Then all the people departed, each to his house.
    Isaiah 16:9
    Therefore I weep with the weeping of Jazer for the vine of Sibmah; I drench you with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealeh; for over your summer fruit and your harvest the shout has ceased.
  11. Cross References
    2 Kings 3:25
    And they overthrew the cities, and on every good piece of land every man threw a stone until it was covered. They stopped every spring of water and felled all the good trees, till only its stones were left in Kir-hareseth, and the slingers surrounded and attacked it.
    Isaiah 15:1
    An oracle concerning Moab. Because Ar of Moab is laid waste in a night, Moab is undone; because Kir of Moab is laid waste in a night, Moab is undone.
  12. Cross References
    Jeremiah 48:32
    More than for Jazer I weep for you, O vine of Sibmah! Your branches passed over the sea, reached to the Sea of Jazer; on your summer fruits and your grapes the destroyer has fallen.
  13. Cross References
    Isaiah 15:5
    My heart cries out for Moab; her fugitives flee to Zoar, to Eglath-shelishiyah. For at the ascent of Luhith they go up weeping; on the road to Horonaim they raise a cry of destruction.
  14. Cross References
    Isaiah 16:8
    For the fields of Heshbon languish, and the vine of Sibmah; the lords of the nations have struck down its branches, which reached to Jazer and strayed to the desert; its shoots spread abroad and passed over the sea.
  15. Cross References
    Isaiah 16:7
    Therefore let Moab wail for Moab, let everyone wail. Mourn, utterly stricken, for the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth.
  16. Cross References
    Jeremiah 48:33
    Gladness and joy have been taken away from the fruitful land of Moab; I have made the wine cease from the winepresses; no one treads them with shouts of joy; the shouting is not the shout of joy.
  17. Cross References
    Isaiah 9:3
    You have multiplied the nation; you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
  18. Cross References
    Judges 9:27
    And they went out into the field and gathered the grapes from their vineyards and trod them and held a festival; and they went into the house of their god and ate and drank and reviled Abimelech.
  19. Cross References
    Isaiah 63:3
    I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples no one was with me; I trod them in my anger and trampled them in my wrath; their lifeblood spattered on my garments, and stained all my apparel.
    Jeremiah 25:30
    You, therefore, shall prophesy against them all these words, and say to them: "'The Lord will roar from on high, and from his holy habitation utter his voice; he will roar mightily against his fold, and shout, like those who tread grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.
  20. Cross References
    Isaiah 5:2
    He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; he built a watchtower in the midst of it, and hewed out a wine vat in it; and he looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes.
  21. Cross References
    Isaiah 15:5
    My heart cries out for Moab; her fugitives flee to Zoar, to Eglath-shelishiyah. For at the ascent of Luhith they go up weeping; on the road to Horonaim they raise a cry of destruction.
    Jeremiah 48:36
    Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans like a flute for the men of Kir-hareseth. Therefore the riches they gained have perished.
  22. Cross References
    1 Kings 18:29
    And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.
  23. Cross References
    Isaiah 15:2
    He has gone up to the temple, and to Dibon, to the high places to weep; over Nebo and over Medeba Moab wails. On every head is baldness; every beard is shorn.
    Numbers 22:41
    And in the morning Balak took Balaam and brought him up to Bamoth-baal, and from there he saw a fraction of the people.
    Numbers 23:14
    And he took him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar.
    Numbers 23:28
    So Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, which overlooks the desert.
  24. Cross References
    Amos 2:1 - 3
    Thus says the Lord : "For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because he burned to lime the bones of the king of Edom.
  25. Cross References
    Isaiah 21:16
    For thus the Lord said to me, "Within a year, according to the years of a hired worker, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end.
  26. Cross References
    Isaiah 10:22
    For though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will return. Destruction is decreed, overflowing with righteousness.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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