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Isaiah 14
New Catholic Bible
Isaiah 14
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 14
Taunting the King of Babylon. 1 The Lord will have compassion on Jacob, and he will once again choose Israel. He will resettle them on their native soil, where foreigners will join them and attach themselves to the house of Jacob. 2 Nations will take them and escort them to their homeland, and the house of Israel will accept them as male and female slaves in the Lord’s land. The house of Israel will also enslave those who had enslaved them and will rule her oppressors.
3 [a]When that day arrives that the Lord affords you relief from your suffering and trouble and from the cruel servitude that had been imposed upon you, 4 you will take up this taunt-song against the king of Babylon:
Behold how the oppressor has come to an end!
Behold how his arrogance has ceased!
5 The Lord has broken the rod of the wicked,
the scepter of rulers,
6 that struck down the peoples in wrath,
inflicting continuous blows,
and that furiously crushed the nations
with relentless persecution.
7 The entire world is at rest and peaceful;
shouts of joy resound.
8 The cypresses exult over you,
as do the cedars of Lebanon, saying,
“Now that you have been laid low,
no one approaches to cut us down.”[b]
9 The netherworld below is all astir
to greet you upon your arrival.
To welcome you it aroused the departed spirits,
all the rulers of the earth.
It raised from their thrones
all those who were kings of the nations.
10 All of them will speak out
and greet you with these words,
“You too have become as weak as we are.
You have become like us.”
11 Your pomp has descended to the netherworld
along with the music of your harps.
Maggots compose the mattress upon which you lie,
and worms serve as your blanket.
12 To what depths have you fallen from the heavens,
O morning star, son of the dawn!
How you have been cut down to the ground,
you who laid the nations low!
13 You used to say in your heart,
“I will scale the heavens.
I will raise my throne
above the stars of God.
I will sit on the Mountain of Assembly,
in the far recesses of the north.
14 I will ascend above the highest clouds;
I will be like the Most High.”
15 Instead you have been hurled down to the netherworld,
to the depths of the abyss.
16 Those who see you will stare at you,
and as they do so they will wonder,
“Is this the man who made the earth tremble
and overthrew kingdoms,
17 who turned the world into a desert,
laid its cities in ruins,
and refused to let his prisoners return home?”
18 All the kings of the nations lie in honor,
each one in his own tomb.
19 But you have been cast out without burial,
like some loathsome piece of flesh;
you are covered with the dead,
with those pierced by the sword
who descend to the rocks of the abyss.
20 You will never be buried with those kings
because you have destroyed your land
and brought death to your people.
The offspring of the wicked
will never again be mentioned.
21 Make ready to slaughter his sons
because of the guilt of their father.
Let them never again rise to possess the earth
and cover the face of the earth with their cities.
22 I will rise up against them, says the Lord of hosts, and I will deprive Babylon of her name and remnant, her offspring and posterity, says the Lord. 23 I will cause it to become a haunt of the hedgehogs and a marshland; I will sweep it with the broom of destruction, says the Lord of hosts.
Assyria[c]
24 The Lord of hosts has sworn:
As I have resolved, so will it be;
as I have planned, so will it come to pass.
25 I will break the Assyrian in my land
and trample him underfoot on my mountains;
his yoke will be lifted from my people,
and his burden will be removed from their shoulders.
26 This is the plan that the Lord has prepared
for the entire world,
and this is the hand that he has outstretched
over all the nations.
27 For the Lord of hosts has devised this plan;
who can thwart it?
His hand is outstretched;
who can turn it back?
28 Philistia. In the year that King Ahaz died, this oracle was proclaimed:
29 Let not a single one of you rejoice, O Philistia,
that the rod that struck you is broken.
For from the root of a snake will be born a viper,
and its fruit will be a flying serpent.
30 The poor of my people will eat in my pasture,
and the destitute will lie down in safety.
But I will make your offspring die of hunger,
and I will then slay the remnant.
31 Howl, O gate! Cry out, O city!
Let all Philistia be stricken with fear!
For a mighty foe is coming from the north,
without a single straggler in its ranks.
32 What reply will then be given
to the envoys of that nation?
“The Lord has established Zion,
and the afflicted of his people
will find refuge in her.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 14:3 The passage refers perhaps to Sargon II, king of Assyria, or, more probably, to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonia. The Fathers of the Church saw in the Lucifer of verse 12 the leader of the angels, who had become the prince of demons in punishment for his boundless pride.
- Isaiah 14:8 The kings of Assyria and Babylon had had a great many of the cedars of Lebanon cut down for their building projects.
- Isaiah 14:24 In 701 B.C., Sennacherib invaded the kingdom of Judah and surrounded Jerusalem. He had to lift the siege, however: an epidemic was destroying his army. This was the beginning of the decline of this empire.
Isaiah 14
New International Version
Isaiah 14
New International Version
14 The Lord will have compassion(A) on Jacob;
once again he will choose(B) Israel
and will settle them in their own land.(C)
Foreigners(D) will join them
and unite with the descendants of Jacob.
2 Nations will take them
and bring(E) them to their own place.
And Israel will take possession of the nations(F)
and make them male and female servants in the Lord’s land.
They will make captives(G) of their captors
and rule over their oppressors.(H)
3 On the day the Lord gives you relief(I) from your suffering and turmoil(J) and from the harsh labor forced on you,(K) 4 you will take up this taunt(L) against the king of Babylon:(M)
How the oppressor(N) has come to an end!
How his fury[a] has ended!
5 The Lord has broken the rod(O) of the wicked,(P)
the scepter(Q) of the rulers,
6 which in anger struck down peoples(R)
with unceasing blows,
and in fury subdued(S) nations
with relentless aggression.(T)
7 All the lands are at rest and at peace;(U)
they break into singing.(V)
8 Even the junipers(W) and the cedars of Lebanon
gloat over you and say,
“Now that you have been laid low,
no one comes to cut us down.”(X)
9 The realm of the dead(Y) below is all astir
to meet you at your coming;
it rouses the spirits of the departed(Z) to greet you—
all those who were leaders(AA) in the world;
it makes them rise from their thrones—
all those who were kings over the nations.(AB)
10 They will all respond,
they will say to you,
“You also have become weak, as we are;
you have become like us.”(AC)
11 All your pomp has been brought down to the grave,(AD)
along with the noise of your harps;(AE)
maggots are spread out beneath you
and worms(AF) cover you.(AG)
12 How you have fallen(AH) from heaven,
morning star,(AI) son of the dawn!
You have been cast down to the earth,
you who once laid low the nations!(AJ)
13 You said in your heart,
“I will ascend(AK) to the heavens;
I will raise my throne(AL)
above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,(AM)
on the utmost heights(AN) of Mount Zaphon.[b]
14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;(AO)
I will make myself like the Most High.”(AP)
15 But you are brought down(AQ) to the realm of the dead,(AR)
to the depths(AS) of the pit.(AT)
16 Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate:(AU)
“Is this the man who shook(AV) the earth
and made kingdoms tremble,
17 the man who made the world a wilderness,(AW)
who overthrew(AX) its cities
and would not let his captives go home?”(AY)
18 All the kings of the nations lie in state,
each in his own tomb.(AZ)
19 But you are cast out(BA) of your tomb
like a rejected branch;
you are covered with the slain,(BB)
with those pierced by the sword,(BC)
those who descend to the stones of the pit.(BD)
Like a corpse trampled underfoot,
20 you will not join them in burial,(BE)
for you have destroyed your land
and killed your people.
Let the offspring(BF) of the wicked(BG)
never be mentioned(BH) again.
21 Prepare a place to slaughter his children(BI)
for the sins of their ancestors;(BJ)
they are not to rise to inherit the land
and cover the earth with their cities.
22 “I will rise up(BK) against them,”
declares the Lord Almighty.
“I will wipe out Babylon’s name(BL) and survivors,
her offspring and descendants,(BM)”
declares the Lord.
23 “I will turn her into a place for owls(BN)
and into swampland;
I will sweep her with the broom of destruction,(BO)”
declares the Lord Almighty.(BP)
24 The Lord Almighty has sworn,(BQ)
“Surely, as I have planned,(BR) so it will be,
and as I have purposed, so it will happen.(BS)
25 I will crush the Assyrian(BT) in my land;
on my mountains I will trample him down.
His yoke(BU) will be taken from my people,
and his burden removed from their shoulders.(BV)”
26 This is the plan(BW) determined for the whole world;
this is the hand(BX) stretched out over all nations.
27 For the Lord Almighty has purposed,(BY) and who can thwart him?
His hand(BZ) is stretched out, and who can turn it back?(CA)
A Prophecy Against the Philistines
28 This prophecy(CB) came in the year(CC) King Ahaz(CD) died:
29 Do not rejoice, all you Philistines,(CE)
that the rod that struck you is broken;
from the root of that snake will spring up a viper,(CF)
its fruit will be a darting, venomous serpent.(CG)
30 The poorest of the poor will find pasture,
and the needy(CH) will lie down in safety.(CI)
But your root I will destroy by famine;(CJ)
it will slay(CK) your survivors.(CL)
31 Wail,(CM) you gate!(CN) Howl, you city!
Melt away, all you Philistines!(CO)
A cloud of smoke comes from the north,(CP)
and there is not a straggler in its ranks.(CQ)
32 What answer shall be given
to the envoys(CR) of that nation?
“The Lord has established Zion,(CS)
and in her his afflicted people will find refuge.(CT)”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 14:4 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
- Isaiah 14:13 Or of the north; Zaphon was the most sacred mountain of the Canaanites.
New International Version (NIV) 
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