Isaiah 16
1 Send lambs to the ruler of the land, from Sela through the desert to Mount Zion’s daughter.
2 Like wandering birds, like a nest scattered, the daughters of Moab will be at the fords of the Arnon.
3 Give counsel; make a decision. Make your shade like night at high noon. Hide the outcasts; do not betray the fugitive.
4 Let my outcasts from Moab live with you; be a refuge for them from the destroyer. The oppressor will come to an end, destruction will cease, and those who trample will vanish from the land.
5 Then a throne will be established in steadfast love, and on it, in David’s tent, one will sit faithfully—a judge who seeks justice and is quick to do what is right.
6 We have heard of Moab’s pride: he is very proud. His arrogance, his pride, and his fury—his boasts are empty.
7 Therefore Moab cries out in anguish for Moab; everyone cries out in anguish. You groan over the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth, utterly dejected.
8 The fields of Heshbon have withered, as has the vine of Sibmah. The rulers of the nations trampled its finest branches, which reached as far as Jazer and strayed into the desert; its shoots spread out and crossed the sea.
9 Therefore I weep with Jazer’s weeping for the vine of Sibmah; I drench you with my tears, Heshbon and Elealeh, for a battle cry has fallen on your fruit harvest and your grain harvest.
10 Joy and gladness have been taken from the orchard; no one sings or shouts for joy in the vineyards. In the winepresses the presser no longer treads the wine; I have put an end to the harvest shout.
11 Therefore my heart throbs for Moab like a harp, and deep within me for Kir-heres.
12 When Moab appears, weary, at the high place and enters its sanctuary to pray, it will gain nothing.
13 This is the word the LORD spoke about Moab long ago.
14 But now the LORD has spoken: “Within three years, counted like the years of a hired worker, Moab’s glory will be brought into contempt, despite its great multitude; what remains will be very small and without strength.”
Read and listen to this chapter in the Shalem app, free: narration, chapter video and reading progress. Get the app