| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1The burden against the Wilderness of the Sea. As whirlwinds in the South pass through, So it comes from the desert, from a terrible land. | 1Here is a message about the Desert by the Sea: Like strong winds blowing in the south, one invades from the desert, from a land that is feared. |
| 2A distressing vision is declared to me; The treacherous dealer deals treacherously, And the plunderer plunders. Go up, O Elam! Besiege, O Media! All its sighing I have made to cease. | 2I have received a distressing message: "The deceiver deceives, the destroyer destroys. Attack, you Elamites! Lay siege, you Medes! I will put an end to all the groaning!" |
| 3Therefore my loins are filled with pain; Pangs have taken hold of me, like the pangs of a woman in labor. I was distressed when I heard it; I was dismayed when I saw it. | 3For this reason my stomach churns; cramps overwhelm me like the contractions of a woman in labor. I am disturbed by what I hear, horrified by what I see. |
| 4My heart wavered, fearfulness frightened me; The night for which I longed He turned into fear for me. | 4My heart palpitates, I shake in fear; the twilight I desired has brought me terror. |
| 5Prepare the table, Set a watchman in the tower, Eat and drink. Arise, you princes, Anoint the shield! | 5Arrange the table, lay out the carpet, eat and drink! Get up, you officers, smear oil on the shields! |
| 6For thus has the Lord said to me: “Go, set a watchman, Let him declare what he sees.” | 6For this is what the sovereign master has told me: "Go, post a guard! He must report what he sees. |
| 7And he saw a chariot with a pair of horsemen, A chariot of donkeys, and a chariot of camels, And he listened earnestly with great care. | 7When he sees chariots, teams of horses, riders on donkeys, riders on camels, he must be alert, very alert." |
| 8Then he cried, “A lion, my Lord! I stand continually on the watchtower in the daytime; I have sat at my post every night. | 8Then the guard cries out: "On the watchtower, O sovereign master, I stand all day long; at my post I am stationed every night. |
| 9And look, here comes a chariot of men with a pair of horsemen!” Then he answered and said, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen! And all the carved images of her gods He has broken to the ground.” | 9Look what's coming! A charioteer, a team of horses." When questioned, he replies, "Babylon has fallen, fallen! All the idols of her gods lie shattered on the ground!" |
| 10Oh, my threshing and the grain of my floor! That which I have heard from the LORD of hosts, The God of Israel, I have declared to you. | 10O my downtrodden people, crushed like stalks on the threshing floor, what I have heard from the LORD who commands armies, the God of Israel, I have reported to you. |
| 11The burden against Dumah. He calls to me out of Seir, “Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night?” | 11Here is a message about Dumah: Someone calls to me from Seir, "Watchman, what is left of the night? Watchman, what is left of the night?" |
| 12The watchman said, “The morning comes, and also the night. If you will inquire, inquire; Return! Come back!” | 12The watchman replies, "Morning is coming, but then night. If you want to ask, ask; come back again." |
| 13The burden against Arabia. In the forest in Arabia you will lodge, O you traveling companies of Dedanites. | 13Here is a message about Arabia: In the thicket of Arabia you spend the night, you Dedanite caravans. |
| 14O inhabitants of the land of Tema, Bring water to him who is thirsty; With their bread they met him who fled. | 14Bring out some water for the thirsty. You who live in the land of Tema, bring some food for the fugitives. |
| 15For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword, From the bent bow, and from the distress of war. | 15For they flee from the swords--from the drawn sword and from the battle-ready bow and from the severity of the battle. |
| 16For thus the LORD has said to me: “Within a year, according to the year of a hired man, all the glory of Kedar will fail; | 16For this is what the sovereign master has told me: "Within exactly one year all the splendor of Kedar will come to an end. |
| 17and the remainder of the number of archers, the mighty men of the people of Kedar, will be diminished; for the LORD God of Israel has spoken it.” | 17Just a handful of archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be left." Indeed, the LORD God of Israel has spoken. |
|
