Fallen, Fallen Is Babylon
The aoracle concerning the wilderness of bthe sea.
cAs whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on,
it comes from the wilderness,
from a terrible land.
2 A stern vision is told to me;
athe traitor betrays,
and the destroyer destroys.
Go up, O bElam;
lay siege, O cMedia;
all the dsighing she has caused
I bring to an end.
3 Therefore my loins are filled with anguish;
apangs have seized me,
like the pangs of a woman in labor;
I am bowed down so that I cannot hear;
I am dismayed so that I cannot see.
4 My heart staggers; horror has appalled me;
athe twilight I longed for
has been turned for me into trembling.
5 aThey prepare the table,
they spread the rugs,
they eat, they drink.
Arise, O princes;
boil the shield!
6 For thus the Lord said to me:
“Go, set a watchman;
let him announce what he sees.
7 When he sees riders, horsemen in pairs,
riders on donkeys, riders on camels,
let him listen diligently,
very diligently.”
8 Then he who saw cried out:
a“Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord,
continually by day,
and at my post I am stationed
whole nights.
9 And behold, here come riders,
horsemen in pairs!”
aAnd he answered,
b“Fallen, fallen is Babylon;
cand all the carved images of her gods
he has shattered to the ground.”
10 O amy threshed and winnowed one,
what I have heard from the Lord of hosts,
the God of Israel, I announce to you.
11 The aoracle concerning bDumah.
One is calling to me from cSeir,
“Watchman, what time of the night?
Watchman, what time of the night?”
12 The watchman says:
“Morning comes, and also athe night.
If you will inquire, binquire;
come back again.”
13 The aoracle concerning bArabia.
In the thickets in bArabia you will lodge,
O ccaravans of bDedanites.
14 To the thirsty bring water;
meet the fugitive with bread,
O inhabitants of the land of aTema.
15 For they have fled from the swords,
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow,
and from the press of battle.
16 For thus the Lord said to me, “Within a year, aaccording to the years of a hired worker, all the glory of bKedar will come to an end. 17 And the remainder of the archers of the mighty men of the sons of aKedar will be few, bfor the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.”