Isaiah 34:10-15

Judgment on the Nations

10 Night and day i it shall not be quenched;
j its smoke shall go up forever.
k From generation to generation it shall lie waste;
none shall pass through it forever and ever.
 11 l But the hawk and the porcupine 1 shall possess it,
the owl and the raven shall dwell in it.
m He shall stretch the line of n confusion 2 over it,
and the plumb line of emptiness.
 12 Its nobles - there is no one there to call it a kingdom,
and all its princes shall be nothing.

13 o Thorns shall grow over its strongholds,
nettles and thistles in its fortresses.
It shall be the haunt of p jackals,
an abode for ostriches. 3
14 q And wild animals shall meet with hyenas;
the wild goat shall cry to his fellow;
indeed, there the night bird 4 settles
and finds for herself a resting place.

15 There the owl nests and lays
and hatches and gathers her young in her shadow;
indeed, there r the hawks are gathered,
each one with her mate.

  1. Cross References
    Isaiah 66:24
    "And they shall go out and look on the dead bodies of the men who have rebelled against me. For their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh."
  2. Cross References
    Revelation 14:11
    And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.
    Revelation 18:18
    And cried out as they saw the smoke of her burning, "What city was like the great city?
    Revelation 19:3
    Once more they cried out, "Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.
  3. Cross References
    Malachi 1:4
    If Edom says, "We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins," the Lord of hosts says, "They may build, but I will tear down, and they will be called 'the wicked country,' and 'the people with whom the Lord is angry forever.'
  4. Cross References
    Isaiah 14:23
    And I will make it a possession of the hedgehog, and pools of water, and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction," declares the Lord of hosts.
    Zephaniah 2:14
    Herds shall lie down in her midst, all kinds of beasts; even the owl and the hedgehog shall lodge in her capitals; a voice shall hoot in the window; devastation will be on the threshold; for her cedar work will be laid bare.
    Revelation 18:2
    And he called out with a mighty voice, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast.
  5. Cross References
    2 Kings 21:13
    And I will stretch over Jerusalem the measuring line of Samaria, and the plumb line of the house of Ahab, and I will wipe Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down.
    Lamentations 2:8
    The Lord determined to lay in ruins the wall of the daughter of Zion; he stretched out the measuring line; he did not restrain his hand from destroying; he caused rampart and wall to lament; they languished together.
    Amos 7:7 - 9
    This is what he showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand.
  6. Cross References
    Isaiah 24:10
    The wasted city is broken down; every house is shut up so that none can enter.
  7. Cross References
    Isaiah 32:13
    For the soil of my people growing up in thorns and briers, yes, for all the joyous houses in the exultant city.
  8. Cross References
    Isaiah 13:22
    Hyenas will cry in its towers, and jackals in the pleasant palaces; its time is close at hand and its days will not be prolonged.
    Psalms 44:19
    Yet you have broken us in the place of jackals and covered us with the shadow of death.
    Malachi 1:3
    But Esau I have hated. I have laid waste his hill country and left his heritage to jackals of the desert.
  9. Cross References
    Isaiah 13:21
    But wild animals will lie down there, and their houses will be full of howling creatures; there ostriches will dwell, and there wild goats will dance.
  10. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 14:13
    The kite, the falcon of any kind.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.