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Isaiah 16:9
ESV Therefore I weep with the weeping of Jazer for the vine of Sibmah; I drench you with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealeh; for over your summer fruit and your harvest the shout has ceased.
NIV So I weep, as Jazer weeps, for the vines of Sibmah. Heshbon and Elealeh, I drench you with tears! The shouts of joy over your ripened fruit and over your harvests have been stilled.
NASB Therefore I will weep bitterly for Jazer, for the vine of Sibmah; I will drench you with my tears, Heshbon and Elealeh; For the shouting over your summer fruits and your harvest has fallen away.
CSB So I join with Jazer to weep for the vines of Sibmah; I drench Heshbon and Elealeh with my tears. Triumphant shouts have fallen silent over your summer fruit and your harvest.
NLT So now I weep for Jazer and the vineyards of Sibmah; my tears will flow for Heshbon and Elealeh. There are no more shouts of joy over your summer fruits and harvest.
KJV Therefore I will bewail with the weeping of Jazer the vine of Sibmah: I will water thee with my tears, O Heshbon, and Elealeh: for the shouting for thy summer fruits and for thy harvest is fallen.

What does Isaiah 16:9 mean?

In a surprising statement, Isaiah weeps. He has been describing the impending judgment of the Lord on arrogant and proud Moab. Yet he cries over the suffering and ramifications of that judgment (Isaiah 16:6–8). Commentators suggest two possibilities of what Isaiah's tears mean.

On the one hand, perhaps Isaiah is being sarcastic. He may only be claiming to show heart-felt grief about the suffering of a people God is judging. This mockery may relate to the similar taunt-song about the fallen king of Babylon (Isaiah 14:4–21).

Other commentators insist that Isaiah's tears for Moab are genuine. Even more, Isaiah's tears may reflect the heart of the Lord. Perhaps Isaiah's sadness during this oracle is meant to express God's sadness at the pain that flows from His judgment. Even while delivering judgement that is just and right, the Lord does not delight in seeing people suffer (Ezekiel 33:11).

In either case, Isaiah says he mourns alongside those in Jazer, a city to the north, for the lost products that came from the vine of Sibmah. This is a vineyard that would have been near Heshbon. No more will loud celebrations during the harvest time of the summer fruit be heard in those fields (Isaiah 16:10). The simple pleasures of that life, and the economic boon of that business, will have ended when Isaiah's prophecy is fulfilled in three years' time (Isaiah 16:14).
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