Isaiah 47:11 But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.

◄ Isaiah 47:11 ►

New International Version
Disaster will come upon you, and you will not know how to conjure it away. A calamity will fall upon you that you cannot ward off with a ransom; a catastrophe you cannot foresee will suddenly come upon you.

New Living Translation
So disaster will overtake you, and you won’t be able to charm it away. Calamity will fall upon you, and you won’t be able to buy your way out. A catastrophe will strike you suddenly, one for which you are not prepared.

English Standard Version
But evil shall come upon you, which you will not know how to charm away; disaster shall fall upon you, for which you will not be able to atone; and ruin shall come upon you suddenly, of which you know nothing.

Berean Standard Bible
But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.

King James Bible
Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know from whence it riseth: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it off: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know.

New King James Version
Therefore evil shall come upon you; You shall not know from where it arises. And trouble shall fall upon you; You will not be able to put it off. And desolation shall come upon you suddenly, Which you shall not know.

New American Standard Bible
“But evil will come on you Which you will not know how to charm away; And disaster will fall on you For which you cannot atone; And destruction about which you do not know Will come on you suddenly.

NASB 1995
“But evil will come on you Which you will not know how to charm away; And disaster will fall on you For which you cannot atone; And destruction about which you do not know Will come on you suddenly.

NASB 1977
“But evil will come on you Which you will not know how to charm away; And disaster will fall on you For which you cannot atone, And destruction about which you do not know Will come on you suddenly.

Legacy Standard Bible
But evil will come on you Which you will not know how to charm away; And disaster will fall on you For which you cannot atone; And destruction about which you do not know Will come on you suddenly.

Amplified Bible
“Therefore disaster will come on you; You will not know how to make it disappear [with your magic]. And disaster will fall on you For which you cannot atone [with all your offerings to your gods]; And destruction about which you do not know Will come on you suddenly.

Christian Standard Bible
But disaster will happen to you; you will not know how to avert it. And it will fall on you, but you will be unable to ward it off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But disaster will happen to you; you will not know how to avert it. And it will fall on you, but you will be unable to ward it off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.

American Standard Version
Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know the dawning thereof: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it away: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou knowest not.

Contemporary English Version
But without warning, disaster will strike--and your magic charms won't help at all.

English Revised Version
Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know the dawning thereof: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it away: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou knowest not.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
But evil will happen to you. You won't know how to keep it away. Disaster will strike you. You won't be able to stop it. Destruction will overtake you suddenly. You won't expect it.

Good News Translation
Disaster will come upon you, and none of your magic can stop it. Ruin will come on you suddenly--ruin you never dreamed of!

International Standard Version
"But disaster will come upon you, and you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will not be able to ward off; and devastation will come upon you suddenly, and you won't anticipate it.

Majority Standard Bible
But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly.

NET Bible
Disaster will overtake you; you will not know how to charm it away. Destruction will fall on you; you will not be able to appease it. Calamity will strike you suddenly, before you recognize it.

New Heart English Bible
Therefore disaster will come on you; you won't know when it dawns: and calamity will fall on you; you will not be able to put it away: and desolation shall come on you suddenly and unexpectedly.

Webster's Bible Translation
Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know from whence it riseth: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it off: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know.

World English Bible
Therefore disaster will come on you. You won’t know when it dawns. Mischief will fall on you. You won’t be able to put it away. Desolation will come on you suddenly, which you don’t understand.

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
And evil has come in on you, "" You do not know its rising, "" And disaster falls on you, "" You are not able to pacify it, "" And desolation comes on you suddenly, "" You do not know.

Young's Literal Translation
And come in on thee hath evil, Thou knowest not its rising, And fall on thee doth mischief, Thou art not able to pacify it, And come on thee suddenly doth desolation, Thou knowest not.

Smith's Literal Translation
And evil came upon thee; thou shalt not know its dawn, and ruin shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to expiate it, and desolation shall suddenly come upon thee; thou shalt not know.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
Evil shall come upon thee, and then shalt not know the rising thereof: and calamity shall fall violently upon thee, which thou canst not keep off: misery shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Evil will overwhelm you, and you will not notice its rising. And calamity will fall violently over you, and you will not be able to avert it. You will suddenly be overwhelmed by a misery such as you have never known.

New American Bible
But upon you shall come an evil you will not be able to charm away; Upon you shall fall a disaster you cannot ward off. Upon you shall suddenly come a ruin you cannot imagine.

New Revised Standard Version
But evil shall come upon you, which you cannot charm away; disaster shall fall upon you, which you will not be able to ward off; and ruin shall come on you suddenly, of which you know nothing.

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
Therefore evil shall come upon you in the early morning, and you shall not know from whence it rises; and mischief shall fall upon you and you shall not be able to put it off; and desolation shall come upon you suddenly, which you shall not know.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Evil shall come upon you at dawn and you shall not know, and alarm shall fall upon you and you shall not be able to remove it, and trouble shall come upon you suddenly, and you shall not know

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
Yet shall evil came upon thee; Thou shalt not know how to charm it away; And calamity shall fall upon thee; Thou shalt not be able to put it away; And ruin shall come upon thee suddenly, Before thou knowest.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And destruction shall come upon thee, and thou shalt not be aware; there shall be a pit, and thou shalt fall into it: and grief shall come upon thee, and thou shalt not be able to be clear; and destruction shall come suddenly upon thee, and thou shalt not know.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

The Fall of Babylon Predicted
…10You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’ 11But disaster will come upon you; you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will befall you that you will be unable to ward off. Devastation will happen to you suddenly and unexpectedly. 12So take your stand with your spells and with your many sorceries, with which you have wearied yourself from your youth. Perhaps you will succeed; perhaps you will inspire terror!…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Revelation 18:7-8
As much as she has glorified herself and lived in luxury, give her the same measure of torment and grief. In her heart she says, ‘I sit as queen; I am not a widow and will never see grief.’ / Therefore her plagues will come in one day—death and grief and famine—and she will be consumed by fire, for mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”

Nahum 3:19
There is no healing for your injury; your wound is severe. All who hear the news of you applaud your downfall, for who has not experienced your constant cruelty?

Zephaniah 1:15
That day will be a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of destruction and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness,

Ezekiel 7:5-7
This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Disaster! An unprecedented disaster—behold, it is coming! / The end has come! The end has come! It has roused itself against you. Behold, it has come! / Doom has come to you, O inhabitants of the land. The time has come; the day is near; there is panic on the mountains instead of shouts of joy.

Jeremiah 51:8
Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been shattered. Wail for her; get her balm for her pain; perhaps she can be healed.

1 Thessalonians 5:3
While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

Proverbs 6:15
Therefore calamity will come upon him suddenly; in an instant he will be shattered beyond recovery.

Obadiah 1:3-4
The pride of your heart has deceived you, O dwellers in the clefts of the rocks whose habitation is the heights, who say in your heart, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ / Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I will bring you down,” declares the LORD.

Daniel 5:30-31
That very night Belshazzar king of the Chaldeans was slain, / and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.

Revelation 18:10
In fear of her torment, they will stand at a distance and cry out: “Woe, woe to the great city, the mighty city of Babylon! For in a single hour your judgment has come.”

Jeremiah 50:31-32
“Behold, I am against you, O arrogant one,” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts, “for your day has come, the time when I will punish you. / The arrogant one will stumble and fall with no one to pick him up. And I will kindle a fire in his cities to consume all those around him.”

Matthew 24:43-44
But understand this: If the homeowner had known in which watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. / For this reason, you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.

Luke 12:19-20
Then I will say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry!”’ / But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’

Isaiah 13:6-9
Wail, for the Day of the LORD is near; it will come as destruction from the Almighty. / Therefore all hands will fall limp, and every man’s heart will melt. / Terror, pain, and anguish will seize them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will look at one another, their faces flushed with fear. ...

Joel 1:15
Alas for the day! For the Day of the LORD is near, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty.

Treasury of Scripture

Therefore shall evil come on you; you shall not know from where it rises: and mischief shall fall on you; you shall not be able to put it off: and desolation shall come on you suddenly, which you shall not know.

thou shalt not know

Isaiah 37:36
Then the angel of the LORD went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.

Exodus 12:29,30
And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle…

Nehemiah 4:11
And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease.

from whence it riseth.

Psalm 50:22
Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.

Jeremiah 51:39-42
In their heat I will make their feasts, and I will make them drunken, that they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith the LORD…

Daniel 5:25-30
And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN…

put it off.

Matthew 18:34
And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.

Luke 12:59
I tell thee, thou shalt not depart thence, till thou hast paid the very last mite.

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Isaiah 47

1. God's judgment upon Babylon and Chaldea
6. For their unmercifulness
7. Pride
10. And over-boldness
11. Shall be irresistible

Berean Study Bible

But disaster will come upon you
The Hebrew word for "disaster" here is "רָעָה" (ra'ah), which often denotes evil, calamity, or misfortune. In the context of Isaiah, this disaster is a divine judgment against Babylon for its pride and idolatry. Historically, Babylon was a powerful empire, but its downfall was inevitable due to its moral and spiritual corruption. This serves as a reminder of the sovereignty of God over nations and the certainty of His justice.

you will not know how to charm it away
The phrase "charm it away" suggests an attempt to use enchantments or magic to avert disaster. The Hebrew root "חָבַר" (chabar) implies binding or enchanting. Babylon was known for its reliance on sorcery and astrology, believing they could control their fate. This highlights the futility of relying on human wisdom or occult practices instead of trusting in God. It serves as a warning against the deception of self-reliance and the false security found in worldly powers.

A calamity will befall you that you cannot ward off
The word "calamity" is translated from "הֹוָה" (hovah), indicating ruin or disaster. The phrase emphasizes the inevitability and inescapability of God's judgment. Babylon's inability to "ward off" this calamity underscores the limits of human power and the ultimate authority of God. This reflects the biblical theme that no one can thwart God's plans, and it calls believers to humility and dependence on Him.

A catastrophe you cannot foresee
The term "catastrophe" comes from the Hebrew "שׁוֹאָה" (shoah), meaning desolation or destruction. The inability to "foresee" this catastrophe points to the blindness of those who trust in their own understanding rather than seeking divine wisdom. It serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of pride and the importance of spiritual vigilance. The suddenness of the event is a reminder of the unpredictability of life and the need to be prepared for God's intervention.

will suddenly come upon you
The suddenness of the disaster is emphasized by the Hebrew word "פִּתְאֹם" (pith'om), meaning unexpectedly or suddenly. This sudden judgment reflects the biblical principle that God's justice, though sometimes delayed, is certain and can occur without warning. It encourages believers to live righteously and remain steadfast in faith, knowing that God's timing is perfect and His justice will ultimately prevail.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(11) Thou shalt not be able to put it off . . .--The words have been variously rendered: (1) of which thou shalt know no dawn, i.e., after the night of calamity; and (2) which thou shalt not be able to charm away. Stress is laid on the destruction being at once unforeseen and irretrievable.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 11. - Therefore shall evil come upon thee. Connect this with the first clause of ver. 10, "Thou hast trusted in thine own evil (moral), therefore shall evil (physical) fall upon thee." The same word, ra'ah, is used in both places. Thou shalt not know from whence it riseth. So the Vulgate, Vitringa, Gesenius, and Dr. Kay. But the bulk of modern commentators (Hitzig, Ewald, Delitzsch, Nagelsbach, Weir, Cheyne) render, "Thou wilt not know how to charm it away." Both meanings are possible, and are almost equally good; but the parallelism of the clauses is in favour of the latter rendering. Shakhrah should correspond in construction, as in sound, with kapp'rah. To put it off; literally, to expiate; i.e. to get rid of it by means of expiatory rites. Which thou shalt not know; or, of which thou shalt not be aware. (On the carelessness and want of foresight displayed by the Babylonians, see the comment on ver. 8.)

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

But disaster
רָעָ֗ה (rā·‘āh)
Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 7451: Bad, evil

will come
וּבָ֧א (ū·ḇā)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 935: To come in, come, go in, go

upon you;
עָלַ֣יִךְ (‘ā·la·yiḵ)
Preposition | second person feminine singular
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

you will not
לֹ֤א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

know
תֵדְעִי֙ (ṯê·ḏə·‘î)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person feminine singular
Strong's 3045: To know

how to charm it away.
שַׁחְרָ֔הּ (šaḥ·rāh)
Verb - Piel - Infinitive construct | third person feminine singular
Strong's 7837: Dawn

A calamity
הֹוָ֔ה (hō·wāh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 1943: A ruin, disaster

will befall
וְתִפֹּ֤ל (wə·ṯip·pōl)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive imperfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 5307: To fall, lie

you
עָלַ֙יִךְ֙ (‘ā·la·yiḵ)
Preposition | second person feminine singular
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

that you will be unable
לֹ֥א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

to ward off.
כַּפְּרָ֑הּ (kap·pə·rāh)
Verb - Piel - Infinitive construct | third person feminine singular
Strong's 3722: To cover, to expiate, condone, to placate, cancel

Devastation
שׁוֹאָ֖ה (šō·w·’āh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 7722: A tempest, devastation

will happen
וְתָבֹ֨א (wə·ṯā·ḇō)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive imperfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 935: To come in, come, go in, go

to you
עָלַ֧יִךְ (‘ā·la·yiḵ)
Preposition | second person feminine singular
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

suddenly
פִּתְאֹ֛ם (piṯ·’ōm)
Adverb
Strong's 6597: Suddenness, suddenly

and unexpectedly.
לֹ֥א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

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OT Prophets: Isaiah 47:11 Therefore evil will come on you (Isa Isi Is)