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Isaiah chapter 15

English Standard Version

1An oracle concerning Moab. Because Ar of Moab is laid waste in a night, Moab is undone; because Kir of Moab is laid waste in a night, Moab is undone.
2He has gone up to the temple, and to Dibon, to the high places to weep; over Nebo and over Medeba Moab wails. On every head is baldness; every beard is shorn; 3in the streets they wear sackcloth; on the housetops and in the squares everyone wails and melts in tears. 4Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voice is heard as far as Jahaz; therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud; his soul trembles. 5My heart cries out for Moab; her fugitives flee to Zoar, to Eglath-shelishiyah. For at the ascent of Luhith they go up weeping; on the road to Horonaim they raise a cry of destruction; 6the waters of Nimrim are a desolation; the grass is withered, the vegetation fails, the greenery is no more. 7Therefore the abundance they have gained and what they have laid up they carry away over the Brook of the Willows. 8For a cry has gone around the land of Moab; her wailing reaches to Eglaim; her wailing reaches to Beer-elim. 9For the waters of Dibon are full of blood; for I will bring upon Dibon even more, a lion for those of Moab who escape, for the remnant of the land.
New International Version

1A prophecy against Moab: Ar in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! Kir in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! 2Dibon goes up to its temple, to its high places to weep; Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba. Every head is shaved and every beard cut off. 3In the streets they wear sackcloth; on the roofs and in the public squares they all wail, prostrate with weeping.
4Heshbon and Elealeh cry out, their voices are heard all the way to Jahaz. Therefore the armed men of Moab cry out, and their hearts are faint. 5My heart cries out over Moab; her fugitives flee as far as Zoar, as far as Eglath Shelishiyah. They go up the hill to Luhith, weeping as they go; on the road to Horonaim they lament their destruction. 6The waters of Nimrim are dried up and the grass is withered; the vegetation is gone and nothing green is left. 7So the wealth they have acquired and stored up they carry away over the Ravine of the Poplars. 8Their outcry echoes along the border of Moab; their wailing reaches as far as Eglaim, their lamentation as far as Beer Elim. 9The waters of Dimon are full of blood, but I will bring still more upon Dimon -- a lion upon the fugitives of Moab and upon those who remain in the land.
New American Standard Bible

1The pronouncement concerning Moab: Certainly in a night Ar of Moab is devastated and ruined; Certainly in a night Kir of Moab is devastated and ruined. 2 The people have gone up to the temple and to Dibon, to the high places to weep. Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba; Everyone’s head is bald and every beard is cut off. 3In their streets they have put on sackcloth; On their housetops and in their public squares Everyone is wailing, overcome with weeping. 4Heshbon and Elealeh also cry out, Their voice is heard all the way to Jahaz; Therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud; His soul trembles within him. 5My heart cries out for Moab; His fugitives are as far as Zoar and Eglath-shelishiyah, For they go up the ascent of Luhith weeping; Indeed, on the road to Horonaim they raise a cry of distress over their collapse. 6For the waters of Nimrim are desolate. Indeed, the grass is withered, the new growth has died, There is no greenery. 7Therefore the abundance which they have acquired and stored up, They carry it off over the brook of Arabim. 8For the cry of distress has gone around the territory of Moab, Its wailing goes as far as Eglaim and its howling to Beer-elim. 9For the waters of Dimon are full of blood; I will certainly bring added woes upon Dimon, A lion upon the fugitives of Moab and the remnant of the land.
Christian Standard Bible

1A pronouncement concerning Moab: Ar in Moab is devastated, destroyed in a night. Kir in Moab is devastated, destroyed in a night.
2Dibon went up to its temple to weep at its high places. Moab wails on Nebo and at Medeba. Every head is shaved; every beard is chopped short. 3In its streets they wear sackcloth; on its rooftops and in its public squares everyone wails, falling down and weeping. 4Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voices are heard as far away as Jahaz. Therefore the soldiers of Moab cry out, and they tremble.
5My heart cries out over Moab, whose fugitives flee as far as Zoar, to Eglath-shelishiyah; they go up the Ascent of Luhith weeping; they raise a cry of destruction on the road to Horonaim. 6The Waters of Nimrim are desolate; the grass is withered, the foliage is gone, and the vegetation has vanished. 7So they carry their wealth and belongings over the Wadi of the Willows. 8For their cry echoes throughout the territory of Moab. Their wailing reaches Eglaim; their wailing reaches Beer-elim. 9The Waters of Dibon are full of blood, but I will bring on Dibon even more than this -- a lion for those who escape from Moab, and for the survivors in the land.
New Living Translation

1This message came to me concerning Moab: In one night the town of Ar will be leveled, and the city of Kir will be destroyed. 2Your people will go to their temple in Dibon to mourn. They will go to their sacred shrines to weep. They will wail for the fate of Nebo and Medeba, shaving their heads in sorrow and cutting off their beards. 3They will wear burlap as they wander the streets. From every home and public square will come the sound of wailing. 4The people of Heshbon and Elealeh will cry out; their voices will be heard as far away as Jahaz! The bravest warriors of Moab will cry out in utter terror. They will be helpless with fear.
5My heart weeps for Moab. Its people flee to Zoar and Eglath-shelishiyah. Weeping, they climb the road to Luhith. Their cries of distress can be heard all along the road to Horonaim. 6Even the waters of Nimrim are dried up! The grassy banks are scorched. The tender plants are gone; nothing green remains. 7The people grab their possessions and carry them across the Ravine of Willows. 8A cry of distress echoes through the land of Moab from one end to the other — from Eglaim to Beer-elim. 9The stream near Dibon runs red with blood, but I am still not finished with Dibon! Lions will hunt down the survivors — both those who try to escape and those who remain behind.
King James Version

1The burden of Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; 2He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off. 3In their streets they shall gird themselves with sackcloth: on the tops of their houses, and in their streets, every one shall howl, weeping abundantly. 4And Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous unto him. 5My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.
6For the waters of Nimrim shall be desolate: for the hay is withered away, the grass faileth, there is no green thing. 7Therefore the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have laid up, shall they carry away to the brook of the willows. 8For the cry is gone round about the borders of Moab; the howling thereof unto Eglaim, and the howling thereof unto Beerelim. 9For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.

What does Isaiah chapter 15 mean?

During this era of history, Moab's territory included nearly land east of the Dead Sea to the wilderness. The Moabites were descended, in scandal, from Abraham's nephew Lot (Genesis 19:30–38). They shared a long history of antagonism with Israel dating back to the wilderness wanderings. Moab was often mentioned as one of Israel's enemies (Numbers 25:1; 31:15–17; Joshua 24:9; Judges 3:12–14; 2 Kings 1:1), frequently in conflict over disputed territory north and east of the Dead Sea.

This chapter begins a prophecy from the Lord against Moab. The "oracle" shares common content with Jeremiah's predictions (Jeremiah 48). Since the Holy Spirit inspired both passages, it is not surprising there is overlap in their reporting of the future judgment to come on Moab. This oracle is unique because it does not explicitly spell out what form the judgment from the Lord takes. Instead, Isaiah describes the grief and hardship in the aftermath of events that wiped out one city after another in Moab. Commentators suggest that the most likely explanation for Moab's woes would have been Assyrian invaders from the north. These invaders would have destroyed each of the towns mentioned as they made their way south.

Isaiah describes Moab as being undone after the major cities of Ar and Kir are destroyed in one night. The people go up to the temple and high places in the city of Dibon to weep. This grief would likely be directed to the Moabite god Chemosh, who failed to save them from the utter destruction (Judges 11:24; Jeremiah 48:46). The people also weep over the cities of Nebo and Medeba in the north after they are wiped out. Survivors of the massacre go into mourning. The men shave their heads and beards. Everyone wears coarse, dark mourning clothing: sackcloth, a material like burlap worn because it was uncomfortable and ragged. Both in private and in public, all wail and melt in tears for the loss of loved ones, homes, and ways of life. The cities of Heshbon and Elealeh in the north also wail after in their destruction. Their cries are heard by those in the city of Jahaz, to the south. Even the armed men of Moab's army outwardly weep and tremble in their souls at the destruction (Isaiah 15:1–4).

Even Isaiah, speaking God's own message, feels pity for the Moabites as they flee. Fugitives fill the road heading south to the city of Zoar. This destination would be just beyond Moab's border with Edom at the southern end of the Dead Sea. They keep moving south even as they are weeping. They find even more reason to weep when they reach the waters of Nimrim. The oasis is dried up, and the grass is all dead. Rather than finding relief, they find more desolation. The people push on, perhaps leaving their pack animals behind and carrying their last remaining possessions on their own backs. Finally, they reach the Brook of the Willows, or the Ravine of the Poplars. Commentators assume this place to be the Zered Brook, the border between Moab and Edom (Isaiah 15:5–7).

Still, Isaiah concludes, the cry of anguish has travelled from one end of Moab to the other. The water supply of the city of Dibon is contaminated with human remains, due to the great slaughter of the people there. The Lord promises there is more suffering to come for those who escape that initial destruction. He declares that He has prepared "a lion" to come for the remnant of Moab (Isaiah 15:8–9).
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