134 lines
2.5 KiB
Markdown
134 lines
2.5 KiB
Markdown
A Message about Babylon
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# Chapter 21
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1. This message came to me concerning Babylon--the desert by the sea:
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Disaster is roaring down on you from the desert,
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like a whirlwind sweeping in from the Negev.
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2. I see a terrifying vision:
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I see the betrayer betraying,
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the destroyer destroying.
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Go ahead, you Elamites and Medes,
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attack and lay siege.
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I will make an end
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to all the groaning Babylon caused.
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3. My stomach aches and burns with pain.
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Sharp pangs of anguish are upon me,
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like those of a woman in labor.
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I grow faint when I hear what God is planning;
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I am too afraid to look.
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4. My mind reels and my heart races.
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I longed for evening to come,
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but now I am terrified of the dark.
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5. Look! They are preparing a great feast.
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They are spreading rugs for people to sit on.
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Everyone is eating and drinking.
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But quick! Grab your shields and prepare for battle.
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You are being attacked!
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6. Meanwhile, the Lord said to me,
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"Put a watchman on the city wall.
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Let him shout out what he sees.
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7. He should look for chariots
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drawn by pairs of horses,
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and for riders on donkeys and camels.
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Let the watchman be fully alert."
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8. Then the watchman called out,
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"Day after day I have stood on the watchtower, my lord.
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Night after night I have remained at my post.
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9. Now at last--look!
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Here comes a man in a chariot
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with a pair of horses!"
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Then the watchman said,
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"Babylon is fallen, fallen!
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All the idols of Babylon
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lie broken on the ground!"
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10. O my people, threshed and winnowed,
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I have told you everything the LORD of Heaven's Armies has said,
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everything the God of Israel has told me.
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A Message about Edom
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11. This message came to me concerning Edom:
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Someone from Edom keeps calling to me,
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"Watchman, how much longer until morning?
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When will the night be over?"
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12. The watchman replies,
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"Morning is coming, but night will soon return.
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If you wish to ask again, then come back and ask."
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A Message about Arabia
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13. This message came to me concerning Arabia:
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O caravans from Dedan,
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hide in the deserts of Arabia.
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14. O people of Tema,
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bring water to these thirsty people,
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food to these weary refugees.
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15. They have fled from the sword,
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from the drawn sword,
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from the bent bow
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and the terrors of battle.
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16. The Lord said to me, "Within a year, counting each day, all the glory of Kedar will come to an end.
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17. Only a few of its courageous archers will survive. I, the LORD, the God of Israel, have spoken!"
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