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Scripture Mapping

Isaiah 47

World English Bible

WEB

1“Come down and sit in the dust, virgin daughter of Babylon. Sit on the ground without a throne, daughter of the Chaldeans. For you will no longer be called tender and delicate. 2Take the millstones and grind flour. Remove your veil, lift up your skirt, uncover your legs, and wade through the rivers. 3Your nakedness will be uncovered. Yes, your shame will be seen. I will take vengeance, and will spare no one.” 4Our Redeemer, Yahweh of Armies is his name, is the Holy One of Israel. 5“Sit in silence, and go into darkness, daughter of the Chaldeans. For you shall no longer be called the mistress of kingdoms. 6I was angry with my people. I profaned my inheritance and gave them into your hand. You showed them no mercy. You laid a very heavy yoke on the aged. 7You said, ‘I will be a princess forever,’ so that you didn’t lay these things to your heart, nor did you remember the results. 8“Now therefore hear this, you who are given to pleasures, who sit securely, who say in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else besides me. I won’t sit as a widow, neither will I know the loss of children.’ 9But these two things will come to you in a moment in one day: the loss of children and widowhood. They will come on you in their full measure, in the multitude of your sorceries, and the great abundance of your enchantments. 10For you have trusted in your wickedness. You have said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and your knowledge has perverted you. You have said in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else besides me.’ 11Therefore disaster will come on you. You won’t know when it dawns. Mischief will fall on you. You won’t be able to put it away. Desolation will come on you suddenly, which you don’t understand. 12“Stand now with your enchantments and with the multitude of your sorceries, in which you have labored from your youth, as if you might profit, as if you might prevail. 13You are wearied in the multitude of your counsels. Now let the astrologers, the stargazers, and the monthly prognosticators stand up and save you from the things that will happen to you. 14Behold, they are like stubble. The fire will burn them. They won’t deliver themselves from the power of the flame. It won’t be a coal to warm at or a fire to sit by. 15The things that you labored in will be like this: those who have trafficked with you from your youth will each wander in his own way. There will be no one to save you.

World English Bible, 2020 stable text edition. Public domain; “World English Bible” is a trademark of eBible.org. eBible.org

Overview

Isaiah Chapter 47 presents a powerful message of judgment against #Babylon, personified as a woman who has fallen from her exalted position. The chapter opens with a call for Babylon to sit in the dust, stripped of her former glory and power. This imagery emphasizes the complete humiliation and downfall of a nation that once ruled with arrogance and oppression. The text highlights God's sovereignty and the certainty of His judgment against those who oppose Him, as Babylon is reminded of her past pride and the consequences that follow.

The chapter continues to describe the impending destruction of Babylon, as God declares that her sorceries and enchantments will not save her from the coming calamity. The people of Babylon are warned that their reliance on false gods and magical practices will ultimately lead to their ruin. The Lord's declaration of judgment serves as a reminder of His authority over all nations and the futility of trusting in anything other than Him. The chapter concludes with a stark warning that the time of reckoning has come, and Babylon will face the consequences of her actions, illustrating the theme of divine justice that runs throughout the book of Isaiah.

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Referenced by

  1. Jeremiah 50:15v1Jeremiah 50:15 speaks of Babylon's walls being taken, which is paralleled in Isaiah 47:1-3 where Babylon is depicted as humiliated and defenseless.
  2. Daniel 5:30v11Daniel 5:30 records the sudden fall of Babylon, which aligns with the prophecy in Isaiah 47:11 about the unexpected calamity that would come upon Babylon.
  3. Zephaniah 2:15v8Zephaniah 2:15 describes the pride and complacency of a city, similar to the description of Babylon's arrogance in Isaiah 47:8.
  4. Revelation 18:7v7Revelation 18:7 describes Babylon's arrogance and self-glorification, similar to Isaiah 47:7-8 where Babylon boasts in her security and pride, leading to her downfall.

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