God’s Word Translation
Isaiah 21:1
1This is the divine revelation about the desert by the sea. Like a storm sweeping through the Negev, an invader will come from the desert, from a terrifying land.
Isaiah 21:1 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The burden of the desert of the sea. As whirlwinds in the south pass through; so it cometh from the desert, from a terrible land.
- New International Version (NIV)A prophecy against the Desert by the Sea: Like whirlwinds sweeping through the southland, an invader comes from the desert, from a land of terror.
- English Standard Version (ESV)The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea. As whirlwinds in the Negeb sweep on, it comes from the wilderness, from a terrible land.
- New King James Version (NKJV)The burden against the Wilderness of the Sea. As whirlwinds in the South pass through, So it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.
Context of Isaiah 21:1
This is the divine revelation about the desert by the sea. Like a storm sweeping through the Negev, an invader will come from the desert, from a terrifying land. 2I was shown a harsh vision. The traitor betrays. The destroyer destroys. Go to war, Elam! Surround them, Media! I will put an end to all the groaning. 3That is why my body is full of trembling. Pain grips me like the pain of childbirth. I’m disturbed by what I hear. I’m terrified by what I see.
Read all of Isaiah 21Isaiah 21:1 word by word
מַשָּׂ֖א מִדְבַּר־יָ֑ם כְּסוּפ֤וֹת בַּנֶּ֙גֶב֙ לַֽחֲלֹ֔ף מִמִּדְבָּ֣ר בָּ֔א מֵאֶ֖רֶץ נוֹרָאָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- The burdenמַשָּׂאmaώώâ' · oracleH4853
- of the desertמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
- of the seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
- As whirlwindsסוּפָהsûphâh · whirlwindH5492
- in the southנֶ֫גֶבnegeb · NegebH5045
- passחָלַףchâlaph · to passH2498
- it comethבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- from a terribleיָרֵאyârê' · to fearH3372
- landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
Cross-references for Isaiah 21:1
- Isaiah 13:1This is the divine revelation which Isaiah, son of Amoz, saw about Babylon.
- Isaiah 17:1This is the divine revelation about Damascus. “Damascus will no longer be a city. It will become a pile of rubble.
- Isaiah 13:20It will never be inhabited again, and no one will live in it for generations. Arabs won’t pitch their tents there. Shepherds won’t let their flocks rest there.
- Isaiah 14:23“It will become the possession of herons. It will become pools of water. I’ll sweep it with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of Armies.
- Jeremiah 51:42What a horrifying sight Babylon will be to the nations! The sea will rise over Babylon, and its roaring waves will cover it.
- Job 37:9A storm comes out of its chamber. It is cold because of the strong winds.
- Daniel 11:40“In the end times the southern king will attack him. The northern king will rush at him like a storm with chariots, horses, and many ships. He will invade countries, overwhelm them, and pass through their land.
- Zechariah 9:14The Lord will appear over them, and his arrow will go out like lightning. The Almighty Lord will blow the ram’s horn and will march in the storms from the south.
- Isaiah 13:4Listen to the noise on the mountains. It is like the sound of a large army. It is the sound of kingdoms and nations gathering together. The Lord of Armies is assembling his army for battle.
- Ezekiel 30:11He and his troops, the most ruthless troops among the nations, will be brought to destroy the land. They will draw their swords to attack Egypt and fill the land with dead bodies.
- Ezekiel 31:12Foreigners from the most ruthless nation cut it down and threw it away. Its branches fell on the mountains and in every valley. Its broken branches fell in every ravine in the land. All the nations in the world came out from under its shade and left.
Commentaries on Isaiah 21:1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1The desert of the sea - This plainly means Babylon, which is the subject of the prophecy. The country about Babylon, and especially below it towards the sea, was a great flat morass, overflowed by the Euphrates and Tigris. It became habitable by being drained by the many canals that were made in it. Herodotus, lib. 1:184, says that "Semiramis confined the Euphrates within its channel by raising great dams against it; for before it overflowed the whole…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1The burden - (see the note at Isaiah 13:1). Of the desert - There have been almost as many interpretations of this expression, as there have been interpreters. That it means Babylon, or the country about Babylon, there can be no doubt; but the question why this phrase was applied, has given rise to a great diversity of opinions. The term desert‘ (מדבר midbâr ) is usually applied to a wilderness, or to a comparatively barren and uncultivated country - a…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1The taking of Babylon. (Is. 21:1-10) Of the Edomites. (Is. 21:11,12) Of the Arabs. (Is. 21:13-17) Verses 1-10 Babylon was a flat country, abundantly watered. The destruction of Babylon, so often prophesied of by Isaiah, was typical of the destruction of the great foe of the New Testament church, foretold in the Revelation. To the poor oppressed captives it would be welcome news; to the proud oppressors it would be grievous. Let this check vain mirth and…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1This is the burden against the Desert by the Sea: This description of Babylon might ironically suggest that the land was physically lush but spiritually empty. from the desert, from a land of terror: (compare Deuteronomy 8:15).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-10He does not narrate the event, but graphically supposes himself a watchman in Babylon, beholding the events as they pass. 1. desert--the champaign between Babylon and Persia; it was once a desert, and it was to become so again. of the sea--The plain was covered with the water of the Euphrates like a "sea" (Jr 51:13, 36; so Is 11:15, the Nile), until Semiramis raised great dams against it. Cyrus removed these dykes, and so converted the whole country again…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 21:1
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Isaiah 21
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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