Isaiah 47

1 Go down and sit in the dust, virgin daughter of Babylon. Sit on the ground without a throne, daughter of Babylonia! No longer will people call you gentle and delicate.

Down—and sit in the dust, O virgin Daughter of Babylon, Sit on the ground—throneless, Daughter of the Chaldeans; For thou shalt no more be called Tender and Dainty.

2 Go to work grinding flour with millstones. Remove your veil. Strip off your skirt, bare your legs, wade through rivers.

Take millstones, and grind meal, —Put back thy veil—tuck up thy train Bare the leg, wade through streams:

3 You will be seen naked; what should be kept private will be shamefully exposed. I will take vengeance—I won't spare anyone.

Bared shall be thy shame, Yea seen thy reproach, —An avenging, will I take, And will accept no son of earth.

4 Our Redeemer—his name is the Lord Almighty—is the Holy One of Israel.

Our Redeemer, Yahweh of hosts, is his name! The Holy One of Israel.

5 Sit quietly, and go into the darkness, daughter of Babylonia. Never again will you be called queen of all kingdoms.

Sit silent, and get into darkness, Daughter of the Chaldeans! For thou shalt no more be called Mistress of Kingdoms.

6 I was angry with my people, and I abandoned those who belonged to me. I handed them over to you. But you didn't show them mercy—you even mistreated old people.

I had been provoked with my people, Had profaned mine inheritance, And given them into thy hand, …Thou shewedst them no compassion, Upon the elder, madest thou very heavy thy yoke.

7 You said, “I will reign forever as the eternal queen.” But you didn't think about what was coming; you didn't remember what would happen to you in the end.

And thou saidst, Unto times age-abiding, shall I be Mistress, —Insomuch that thou laidst not these things to thy heart, Didst not keep in mind the issue thereof,

8 Now listen to this, you sensual woman, sitting there so sure of yourself, saying to yourself, “I am supreme—there's nobody besides me. I shall never be a widow or experience the loss of my children.”

Now, therefore hear this, Thou Lady of pleasure Who dwelleth securely, Who saith in her heart, —I, [am], and there is no one besides, I shall not sit a widow, Nor know loss of children.

9 But both these things will happen to you in quick succession! In just one day you will lose your children and become a widow. You will have this experience in its totality, in spite of all your witchcraft, in spite of all your magic spells.

Yet shall there come to thee—both these, in a moment, in one day, Loss of children and widowhood, —To their full, have they come on thee, Spite of the mass of thine incantations, Spite of the great throng of thy spells.

10 You put your trust in your evil actions, saying “No one can see what I'm doing.” Your wisdom and knowledge seduced you, and you told yourself, “I am supreme—there's nobody besides me.”

And so thou didst trust in thy wickedness, Thou saidst, no one, seeth me, Thy wisdom and knowledge, the same, seduced thee, —Therefore saidst thou in thy heart, I [am], and there is no one besides.

11 Evil is going to strike you, and you won't be able to magic it away. Disaster will fall on you that you can't stop by paying a ransom. Destruction will suddenly hit you that you weren't expecting.

Therefore shall come on thee—Mischief, Thou shalt not know how to charm it away Yea there shall fall on thee, Ruin, Thou shalt not be able to appease it, —And there shall come on thee suddenly. Desolation. Thou shalt not know.

12 So keep going with your magic spells and all your witchcraft, which you have worked at since you were young. Maybe you'll be successful, maybe you'll terrify people!

Take thy stand, I pray thee, With thy spells. And with the throng of thine incantations wherein thou hast wearied thyself from thy youth, —Peradventure thou mayest be able to profit Peradventure thou mayest strike me with terror.

13 All the advice you've received has worn you out! Where are your astrologers, those who look to the stars for guidance, who give you their predictions every month? Let them stand up and save you from what's coming down on you!

Thou hast worn thyself out with the mass of thy consultations, —Let them take their stand I pray thee that they may save thee—The dividers of the heavens—The gazers at the stars, They who make known by new moons, Somewhat of the things which shall come upon thee.

14 But look at them! They're like stubble that fire burns up completely—they can't even save their own lives from the flames. This is no fire to sit beside and grow warm!

Lo! they have become as straw—a fire, hath burned them up, They shall not deliver their own soul from the grasp of the flame, —There is, no live coal to warm them, nor blaze to sit before.

15 All those people you've worked with, all those you've traded with from when you were young—they will all go their own way, nobody will come and save you.

Such, have they become to thee, with whom thou hast wearied thyself, —Thy merchants—from thy youth, will every man stagger straight onwards—There is none to save thee.