Isaiah 47:9–11

9 Both of these will overtake you

in a moment, on a single day:

loss of children and widowhood.

They will come upon you in full measure,

in spite of your many sorceries

and all your potent spells.

10 You have trusted in your wickedness

and have said, ‘No one sees me.’

Your wisdom and knowledge mislead you

when you say to yourself,

‘I am, and there is none besides me.’

11 Disaster will come upon you,

and you will not know how to conjure it away.

A calamity will fall upon you

that you cannot ward off with a ransom;

a catastrophe you cannot foresee

will suddenly come upon you.

9 But these two things shall come to thee in a moment in one day,

The loss of children, and widowhood:

They shall come upon thee in their perfection

For the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great abundance of thine enchantments.

10 For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me.

Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee;

And thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me.

11 Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know from whence it riseth:

And mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it off:

And desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know.

9 Well, both these things will come upon you in a moment:

widowhood and the loss of your children.

Yes, these calamities will come upon you,

despite all your witchcraft and magic.

10 “You felt secure in your wickedness.

‘No one sees me,’ you said.

But your ‘wisdom’ and ‘knowledge’ have led you astray,

and you said, ‘I am the only one, and there is no other.’

11 So disaster will overtake you,

and you won’t be able to charm it away.

Calamity will fall upon you,

and you won’t be able to buy your way out.

A catastrophe will strike you suddenly,

one for which you are not prepared.

9 But these two things shall come to you

In a moment, in one day:

The loss of children, and widowhood.

They shall come upon you in their fullness

Because of the multitude of your sorceries,

For the great abundance of your enchantments.

10 “For you have trusted in your wickedness;

You have said, ‘No one sees me’;

Your wisdom and your knowledge have warped you;

And you have said in your heart,

‘I am, and there is no one else besides me.’

11 Therefore evil shall come upon you;

You shall not know from where it arises.

And trouble shall fall upon you;

You will not be able to put it off.

And desolation shall come upon you suddenly,

Which you shall not know.

9 Two things will happen to you suddenly, in a single day.

You will lose your children and your husband.

These things will truly happen to you,

in spite of all your magic,

in spite of your powerful tricks.

10 You do evil things, but you feel safe

and say, ‘No one sees what I do.’

Your wisdom and knowledge

have fooled you.

You say to yourself,

‘I am God, and no one is equal to me.’

11 But troubles will come to you,

and you will not know how to stop them.

Disaster will fall on you,

and you will not be able to keep it away.

You will be destroyed quickly;

you will not even see it coming.

9 but these two things shall come to thee in a moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood; in their full measure shall they come upon thee, in the multitude of thy sorceries, and the great abundance of thine enchantments. 10 For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness; thou hast said, None seeth me; thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee, and thou hast said in thy heart, I am, and there is none else besides me. 11 Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know the dawning thereof: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it away: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou knowest not.

9 yet these two things shall come upon thee in a moment, in one day, loss of children and widowhood; they shall come upon thee in full measure for the multitude of thy sorceries, for the great abundance of thine enchantments. 10 For thou hast confided in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath seduced thee; and thou hast said in thy heart, It is I, and there is none but me. 11 But evil shall come upon thee—thou shalt not know from whence it riseth; and mischief shall fall upon thee, which thou shalt not be able to ward off; and desolation that thou suspectest not shall come upon thee suddenly.

9 In one day both of these will happen to you instantly: 

the loss of your children and your husband. 

All this will happen to you in spite of 

your evil magic and your many spells. 

10 You feel safe in your wickedness 

and say, “No one can see me.” 

Your wisdom and knowledge have led you astray, 

so you say to yourself, 

“I’m the only one, and there’s no one else.” 

11 But evil will happen to you. 

You won’t know how to keep it away. 

Disaster will strike you. 

You won’t be able to stop it. 

Destruction will overtake you suddenly. 

You won’t expect it. 

9 These two things will happen to you

suddenly, in one day:

loss of children and widowhood.

They will happen to you in their entirety,

in spite of your many sorceries

and the potency of your spells.

10 You were secure in your wickedness;

you said, ‘No one sees me.’

Your wisdom and knowledge

led you astray.

You said to yourself,

‘I exist, and there is no one else.’

11 But disaster will happen to you;

you will not know how to avert it.

And it will fall on you,

but you will be unable to ward it off.

Devastation will happen to you suddenly

and unexpectedly.

9 both these things shall come upon you

in a moment, in one day:

the loss of children and widowhood

shall come upon you in full measure,

in spite of your many sorceries

and the great power of your enchantments.

10 You felt secure in your wickedness;

you said, “No one sees me.”

Your wisdom and your knowledge

led you astray,

and you said in your heart,

“I am, and there is no one besides me.”

11 But evil shall come upon you,

which you cannot charm away;

disaster shall fall upon you,

which you will not be able to ward off,

and ruin shall come on you suddenly,

of which you know nothing.

9 And these two shall come to you in a moment, in one day:

the loss of children and widowhood shall come on you completely,

in spite of your many sorceries,

in spite of the power of your great enchantments.

10 And you felt secure in your wickedness;

you said, “No one sees me.”

Your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray,

and you said in your heart, “I am, and besides me there is no one.”

11 And evil shall come upon you, you will not know;

it will be on the lookout for her.

And disaster shall fall upon you; you will not be able to avert it.

And ruin shall come on you suddenly; you do not know.

9 But both of those things will happen to you in a moment.

They will take place on a single day.

You will lose your children.

And you will become a widow.

That is what will happen to you.

All of your evil magic

and powerful spells will not save you.

10 You have felt secure in your evil ways.

You have said, ‘No one sees what I’m doing.’

Your wisdom and knowledge lead you down the wrong path.

You say to yourself,

‘I am like a god. No one is greater than I am.’

11 So horrible trouble will come on you.

You will not know how to use your evil magic to make it go away.

Great trouble will fall on you.

No amount of money can keep it away.

Something terrible will happen to you all at once.

You will not see it coming ahead of time.

9 “But these two things will come on you suddenly in one day:

Loss of children and widowhood.

They will come on you in full measure

In spite of your many sorceries,

In spite of the great power of your spells.

10 “You felt secure in your wickedness and said,

‘No one sees me,’

Your wisdom and your knowledge, they have deluded you;

For you have said in your heart,

‘I am, and there is no one besides me.’

11 “But evil will come on you

Which you will not know how to charm away;

And disaster will fall on you

For which you cannot atone;

And destruction about which you do not know

Will come on you suddenly.