A Prophecy Against Moab
15 An oracle against Moab.
In one night, Ar[a] of Moab has been ruined and brought to nothing.
In one night, Kir of Moab has been ruined and brought to nothing.
2 They have gone up to the temple at Dibon,
up to the high places to weep.
Moab wails over Nebo and over Medeba.
Every head is shaved.
Every beard is cut off.
3 They wear sackcloth in their streets.
On the rooftops and in the public squares, everyone wails.
They all collapse in tears.
4 Heshbon cries out with Elealeh.
Their voice is heard even in Jahaz.
Therefore the armed men of Moab cry out,
and their spirit is weak.
5 My heart cries out for Moab!
Her refugees[b] flee to Zoar,
to Eglath Shelishiyah.
They go up the Ascent of Luhith,
weeping all the way.
On the way to Horonaim,
they weep continuously over their destruction.
6 The waters of Nimrim are dried up.
The grass has withered away.
The vegetation has died,
and no green thing remains.
7 So they will carry across the Ravine of Poplars[c]
whatever remains from the wealth they acquired
and from the supplies they stored up.
8 For a cry has echoed around the borders of Moab.
The wailing reaches to Eglaim
and all the way to Be’er Elim.
9 For the waters of Dimon are full of blood,[d]
and I will bring still more on Dimon.
I will bring a lion upon the refugees of Moab
and upon the survivors who remain in the land.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 15:1 Ar and the parallel terms in this chapter are names of cities in Moab. In general, the list moves from north to south.
- Isaiah 15:5 Or protectors, literally the bars of her gates
- Isaiah 15:7 Probably the ravine on the border between Moab and Edom
- Isaiah 15:9 The Hebrew word for blood (dam) sounds like the name of the city of Dimon. Dimon may be a pun on the name Dibon, the capital city of Moab.