Isaiah 13:8

Isaiah 13:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And they shall be afraid: pangs and sorrows shall take hold of them; they shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth: they shall be amazed one at another; their faces shall be as flames.
• New International Version (NIV)Terror will seize them, pain and anguish will grip them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will look aghast at each other, their faces aflame.
• English Standard Version (ESV)They will be dismayed: pangs and agony will seize them; they will be in anguish like a woman in labor. They will look aghast at one another; their faces will be aflame.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And they will be afraid. Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them; They will be in pain as a woman in childbirth; They will be amazed at one another; Their faces will be like flames.

Context of Isaiah 13:8

6Wail, for the Day of the LORD is near; it will come as destruction from the Almighty. 7Therefore all hands will fall limp, and every man’s heart will melt. Terror, pain, and anguish will seize them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will look at one another, their faces flushed with fear. 9Behold, the Day of the LORD is coming— cruel, with fury and burning anger— to make the earth a desolation and to destroy the sinners within it. 10For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light. The rising sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light.

Isaiah 13:8 word by word

וְֽנִבְהָ֓לוּ׀ צִירִ֤ים וַֽחֲבָלִים֙ יֹֽאחֵז֔וּן כַּיּוֹלֵדָ֖ה יְחִיל֑וּן אִ֤ישׁ אֶל־רֵעֵ֙הוּ֙ יִתְמָ֔הוּ פְּנֵ֥י לְהָבִ֖ים פְּנֵיהֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

• Terrorבָּהַלbâhal · to dismayH926
• painצִירtsîyr · pangH6735
• and anguishחֵ֫בֶלchebel chêbel · painH2256
• will seize themאָחַז'âchaz · to graspH270
• they will writheחוּלchûl chîyl · to twist: writh in painH2342
• like a woman in laborיָלַדyâlad · to begetH3205
• They will look atאֶל'êl 'el · to(wards)H413
• oneאִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
• anotherרֵעַrêa‛ rêya‛ · neighborH7453
• their facesפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
• flushedלַ֫הַבlahab · flameH3851
• with fearתָּמַהּtâmahh · to astoundedH8539

Cross-references for Isaiah 13:8

• Isaiah 21:3Therefore my body is filled with anguish. Pain grips me, like the pains of a woman in labor. I am bewildered to hear, I am dismayed to see.
• Isaiah 26:17As a woman with child about to give birth writhes and cries out in pain, so were we in Your presence, O LORD.
• Psalms 48:5They saw and were astounded; they fled in terror.
• Jeremiah 30:6Ask now, and see: Can a male give birth? Why then do I see every man with his hands on his stomach like a woman in labor and every face turned pale?
• Jeremiah 50:43The king of Babylon has heard the report, and his hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped him, pain like that of a woman in labor.
• Daniel 5:5At that moment the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall, near the lampstand in the royal palace. As the king watched the hand that was writing,
• 1 Thessalonians 5:3While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
• Joel 2:6Nations writhe in horror before them; every face turns pale.
• Nahum 2:10She is emptied! Yes, she is desolate and laid waste! Hearts melt, knees knock, bodies tremble, and every face grows pale!

Commentaries on Isaiah 13:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8And they shall be afraid "And they shall be terrified" - I join this verb, ונבהלו venibhalu, to the preceding verse, with the Syriac and Vulgate. Pangs and sorrows shall take hold on them "Pangs shall seize them" - The Septuagint, Syriac, and Chaldee read יאחזום yochezum, instead of יאחזון yochezun, which does not express the pronoun then, necessary to the sense.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8They shall be in pain as a woman that travaileth - This comparison is often used in the Scriptures to denote the deepest possible pain and sorrow, as well as the suddenness with which any calamity comes upon a people Psalm 48:6; Isaiah 21:3; Isaiah 42:14; Jeremiah 6:24; Jeremiah 13:21; Jeremiah 22:23; Jeremiah 49:24; Jeremiah 50:43; Hosea 13:13; Micah 4:9-10; John 16:21; Galatians 4:19; 1 Thessalonians 5:3. They shall be amazed one at another - They shall…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-18Verses 6-18 We have here the terrible desolation of Babylon by the Medes and Persians. Those who in the day of their peace were proud, and haughty, and terrible, are quite dispirited when trouble comes. Their faces shall be scorched with the flame. All comfort and hope shall fail. The stars of heaven shall not give their light, the sun shall be darkened. Such expressions are often employed by the prophets, to describe the convulsions of governments. God…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 8writhe like a woman in labor: The day of the Lord brings sudden and overpowering pain and fear for the wicked (see also Jeremiah 30:6; Hosea 13:13; Micah 4:9, 10; 5:3).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. pangs--The Hebrew means also a "messenger." Horsley, therefore, with the Septuagint translates, "The heralds (who bring word of the unexpected invasion) are terrified." Maurer agrees with English Version, literally, "they shall take hold of pangs and sorrows." woman ... travaileth--(1Th 5:3). amazed--the stupid, bewildered gaze of consternation. faces ... flames--"their visages have the livid hue of flame" [Horsley]; with anguish and indignation.Read the comment

Topics related to Isaiah 13:8

• Birth
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• Babylon
• Birth
• Glory
• Haughtiness
• Howl
• Astronomy
• Canon of the Old Testament
• Esther, the Rest of
• Evil
• Ezekiel

Commentaries on Isaiah 13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings