New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Isaiah 47
1
"City of Babylon, go down and sit in the dust. Leave your throne and sit on the ground. City of the Babylonians, your life will not be comfortable and easy anymore.
Reference
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 46:11
Isaiah 3:26
Isaiah 37:22
Psalm 18:27
Jeremiah 48:18
Revelation 18:7
References Babylon
Psalm 137:8
Jeremiah 51:33
Jeremiah 50:42
Zechariah 2:7
2
Get millstones and grind some flour like a female slave. Take your veil off. Lift your skirts up. Make your legs bare. Wade through the streams.
Reference
3
Everyone will see your naked body. Everyone will see your shame. I will pay you back for what you did. I will not spare any of your people."
Reference
Parallel theme
Nahum 3:5
4
The one who sets us free is the Holy One of Israel. His name is The Lord Who Rules Over All.
Reference
5
The Lord says, "City of the Babylonians, go into a dark prison and sit there quietly. You will not be called the queen of kingdoms anymore.
Reference
6
I was angry with my people. I treated them as if they did not belong to me. I handed them over to you. And you did not show them any pity. You even placed heavy loads on their old people.
Reference
7
You said, 'I will continue to be queen forever!' But you did not think about what you were doing. You did not consider how things might turn out.
Reference
8
"So listen, you who love pleasure. You think you are safe and secure. You say to yourself, 'I am like a god. No one is greater than I am. I'll never be a widow. And my children will never be taken away from me.'
Reference
9
But both of those things will happen to you in a moment. They will take place on a single day. You will lose your children. And you will become a widow. That is what will happen to you. All of your evil magic and powerful spells will not save you.
Reference
10
You have felt secure in your evil ways. You have said, 'No one sees what I'm doing.' Your wisdom and knowledge lead you down the wrong path. You say to yourself, 'I am like a god. No one is greater than I am.'
Reference
11
So horrible trouble will come on you. You will not know how to use your evil magic to make it go away. Great trouble will fall on you. No amount of money can keep it away. Something terrible will happen to you all at once. You will not see it coming ahead of time.
Reference
12
"So keep on casting your magic spells. Keep on practicing your evil magic. You have been doing those things ever since you were a child. Perhaps they will help you. Maybe they will scare your enemies away.
Reference
13
All of the advice you have received has only worn you out! Let those who study the heavens come forward. They claim to know what is going to happen by watching the stars every month. So let them save you from the trouble that is coming on you.
Reference
14
They are just like straw. Fire will burn them up. They can't even save themselves from the powerful flames. They are not like coals that can warm anyone. They are not like a fire to sit by.
Reference
15
They can't do you any good. You have done business with them ever since you were a child. You have always asked them for advice. All of them are bewildered and continue in their own ways. None of them can save you."
Summary of Isaiah 47
Isaiah 47 is a dramatic prophecy describing the humiliation and downfall of Babylon, the great empire that had conquered Judah and destroyed Jerusalem.
The chapter begins by telling Babylon to leave her throne and sit in the dust.
The powerful queen of kingdoms will become like an ordinary servant, losing the luxury, dignity, and authority that once made her appear untouchable.
This imagery reflects a complete reversal of status: the empire that humbled other nations will itself be humbled.
Isaiah explains that God had allowed Babylon to discipline His people because of Judah's rebellion, but Babylon went beyond what was justified by acting without mercy and treating the conquered people harshly.
The problem was therefore not simply Babylon's military strength but its pride, cruelty, and belief that its power would last forever.
Babylon confidently declares that she is unique and secure, believing that she will never experience loss.
Isaiah responds that disaster will come suddenly.
This prediction fits the dramatic change that occurred in 539 BC, when Cyrus of Persia conquered Babylon and brought the Neo-Babylonian Empire to an end.
Another major theme is Babylon's dependence on sorcery, astrology, divination, and human wisdom.
The city has many advisers and learned specialists, but Isaiah challenges them to predict the coming disaster and prevent it.
They cannot.
The people who supposedly understand the future cannot even save themselves.
This creates another important contrast with the previous chapters: God knows and declares the future, while Babylon's astrologers and diviners cannot control it.
The chapter therefore attacks the illusion that human knowledge, political power, wealth, religion, or military strength can guarantee permanent security.
Babylon's merchants and political partners eventually scatter, demonstrating how quickly relationships built around power and wealth can disappear when the power itself collapses.
The chapter's central message is that Babylon's greatest weakness was not a lack of military strength but its pride; the empire believed its wealth, wisdom, political influence, and religious practices made it permanently secure, yet God demonstrates that no kingdom is beyond judgment, and the same Babylon that once appeared invincible is eventually brought down, proving that human power and prosperity cannot replace dependence upon the sovereign God.
The chapter begins by telling Babylon to leave her throne and sit in the dust.
The powerful queen of kingdoms will become like an ordinary servant, losing the luxury, dignity, and authority that once made her appear untouchable.
This imagery reflects a complete reversal of status: the empire that humbled other nations will itself be humbled.
Isaiah explains that God had allowed Babylon to discipline His people because of Judah's rebellion, but Babylon went beyond what was justified by acting without mercy and treating the conquered people harshly.
The problem was therefore not simply Babylon's military strength but its pride, cruelty, and belief that its power would last forever.
Babylon confidently declares that she is unique and secure, believing that she will never experience loss.
Isaiah responds that disaster will come suddenly.
This prediction fits the dramatic change that occurred in 539 BC, when Cyrus of Persia conquered Babylon and brought the Neo-Babylonian Empire to an end.
Another major theme is Babylon's dependence on sorcery, astrology, divination, and human wisdom.
The city has many advisers and learned specialists, but Isaiah challenges them to predict the coming disaster and prevent it.
They cannot.
The people who supposedly understand the future cannot even save themselves.
This creates another important contrast with the previous chapters: God knows and declares the future, while Babylon's astrologers and diviners cannot control it.
The chapter therefore attacks the illusion that human knowledge, political power, wealth, religion, or military strength can guarantee permanent security.
Babylon's merchants and political partners eventually scatter, demonstrating how quickly relationships built around power and wealth can disappear when the power itself collapses.
The chapter's central message is that Babylon's greatest weakness was not a lack of military strength but its pride; the empire believed its wealth, wisdom, political influence, and religious practices made it permanently secure, yet God demonstrates that no kingdom is beyond judgment, and the same Babylon that once appeared invincible is eventually brought down, proving that human power and prosperity cannot replace dependence upon the sovereign God.