New Living Translation
Isaiah 21:9
9Now at last—look! Here comes a man in a chariot with a pair of horses!” Then the watchman said, “Babylon is fallen, fallen! All the idols of Babylon lie broken on the ground!”
Isaiah 21:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And, behold, here cometh a chariot of men, with a couple of horsemen. And he answered and said, Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground.
- New International Version (NIV)Look, here comes a man in a chariot with a team of horses. And he gives back the answer: ‘Babylon has fallen, has fallen! All the images of its gods lie shattered on the ground!’ ”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And behold, here come riders, horsemen in pairs!" And he answered, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon; and all the carved images of her gods he has shattered to the ground."
- New King James Version (NKJV)And look, here comes a chariot of men with a pair of horsemen!” Then he answered and said, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen! And all the carved images of her gods He has broken to the ground.”
Context of Isaiah 21:9
7He should look for chariots drawn by pairs of horses, and for riders on donkeys and camels. Let the watchman be fully alert.” 8Then the watchman called out, “Day after day I have stood on the watchtower, my lord. Night after night I have remained at my post. Now at last—look! Here comes a man in a chariot with a pair of horses!” Then the watchman said, “Babylon is fallen, fallen! All the idols of Babylon lie broken on the ground!” 10O my people, threshed and winnowed, I have told you everything the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has said, everything the God of Israel has told me. 11This message came to me concerning Edom: Someone from Edom keeps calling to me, “Watchman, how much longer until morning? When will the night be over?”
Read all of Isaiah 21Isaiah 21:9 word by word
וְהִנֵּה־זֶ֥ה בָא֙ רֶ֣כֶב אִ֔ישׁ צֶ֖מֶד פָּֽרָשִׁ֑ים וַיַּ֣עַן וַיֹּ֗אמֶר נָפְלָ֤ה נָֽפְלָה֙ בָּבֶ֔ל וְכָל־פְּסִילֵ֥י אֱלֹהֶ֖יהָ שִׁבַּ֥ר לָאָֽרֶץ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And, behold, here comethבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- a chariotרֶ֫כֶבrekeb · chariotH7393
- of menאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- a coupleצֶ֫מֶדtsemed · pairH6776
- of horsemenפָּרָשׁpârâsh · horsemanH6571
- And he answeredעָנָה‛ânâh · to answerH6030
- and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Babylonבָּבֶ֫ל, בָּבֶלbâbel · BabylonH894
- is fallenנָפַלnâphal · to fall: fallH5307
- and all the graven imagesפָּסִילpesîyl · idolH6456
- of her godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- he hath brokenשָׁבַרshâbar · to breakH7665
- unto the groundאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: soilH776
Cross-references for Isaiah 21:9
- Jeremiah 50:3For a nation will attack her from the north and bring such destruction that no one will live there again. Everything will be gone; both people and animals will flee.
- Jeremiah 51:27Raise a signal flag to the nations. Sound the battle cry! Mobilize them all against Babylon. Prepare them to fight against her! Bring out the armies of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Appoint a commander, and bring a multitude of horses like swarming locusts!
- Isaiah 13:19Babylon, the most glorious of kingdoms, the flower of Chaldean pride, will be devastated like Sodom and Gomorrah when God destroyed them.
- Isaiah 14:4you will taunt the king of Babylon. You will say, “The mighty man has been destroyed. Yes, your insolence is ended.
- Jeremiah 50:2This is what the Lord says: “Tell the whole world, and keep nothing back. Raise a signal flag to tell everyone that Babylon will fall! Her images and idols will be shattered. Her gods Bel and Marduk will be utterly disgraced.
- Jeremiah 51:8But suddenly Babylon, too, has fallen. Weep for her. Give her medicine. Perhaps she can yet be healed.
- Revelation 14:8Then another angel followed him through the sky, shouting, “Babylon is fallen—that great city is fallen—because she made all the nations of the world drink the wine of her passionate immorality.”
- Revelation 18:2He gave a mighty shout: “Babylon is fallen—that great city is fallen! She has become a home for demons. She is a hideout for every foul spirit, a hideout for every foul vulture and every foul and dreadful animal.
- Isaiah 46:1Bel and Nebo, the gods of Babylon, bow as they are lowered to the ground. They are being hauled away on ox carts. The poor beasts stagger under the weight.
- Jeremiah 51:44And I will punish Bel, the god of Babylon, and make him vomit up all he has eaten. The nations will no longer come and worship him. The wall of Babylon has fallen!
Commentaries on Isaiah 21:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9Here cometh a chariot of men, etc. "A man, one of the two riders" - So the Syriac understands it, and Ephrem Syr.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9And, behold a chariot of men - This place shows that the word chariot‘ (רכב rekeb ) may denote something else than a wagon or carriage, as a chariot drawn by men cannot be intended. The sense can be expressed, perhaps, by the word “riding,” I see a riding of men approach;‘ that is, I see “cavalry” drawing near, or men riding and hastening to the battle. With a couple of horsemen - The word with‘ is not in the Hebrew. The meaning is, I see a riding of…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9fallen is Babylon!: Assyrian King Sennacherib destroyed Babylon in 689 BC. The final fall of Babylon occurred in 539 BC. In Scripture, Babylon symbolizes all ungodly power structures, including nations and kingdoms that do not follow God and his word. The apostle John offered hope with his prophecy that all Babylons will fall (Revelation 14:8; 18:2). All the images of her gods lie shattered on the ground!: False gods could not save the Babylonians (see…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. chariot of men--chariots with men in them; or rather, the same body of riders, horsemen two abreast, as in Is 21:7 [Maurer]. But Horsley, "The man drawn in a car with a pair of riders." The first half of this verse describes what the watchman sees; the second half, what the watchman says, in consequence of what he sees. In the interval between Is 21:7 and Is 21:9, the overthrow of Babylon by the horsemen, or man in the car, is accomplished. The…Read the comment
Topics related to Isaiah 21:9
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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries