Logos Bible Study

Isaiah 34:9–15

The NET BibleOther versions

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34:9Edom’s20 streams will be turned into pitch

and her soil into brimstone;

her land will become burning pitch.

34:10Night and day it will burn;21

its smoke will ascend continually.

Generation after generation it will be a wasteland

and no one will ever pass through it again.

34:11Owls and wild animals22 will live there,23

all kinds of wild birds24 will settle in it.

The Lord25 will stretch out over her

the measuring line of ruin

and the plumb line26 of destruction.27

34:12Her nobles will have nothing left to call a kingdom

and all her officials will disappear.28

34:13Her fortresses will be overgrown with thorns;

thickets and weeds will grow29 in her fortified cities.

Jackals will settle there;

ostriches will live there.30

34:14Wild animals and wild dogs will congregate there;31

wild goats will bleat to one another.32

Yes, nocturnal animals33 will rest there

and make for themselves a nest.34

34:15Owls35 will make nests and lay eggs36 there;

they will hatch them and protect them.37

Yes, hawks38 will gather there,

each with its mate.

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Footnotes

  1. 20 Heb “her”; the referent (Edom) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  2. 21 Heb “it will not be extinguished.”
  3. 22 קָאַת (qa’at) refers to some type of bird (cf. Lev 11:18; Deut 14:17) that was typically found near ruins (see Zeph 2:14). קִפּוֹד (qippod) may also refer to a type of bird ( “hoot owl”; “screech owl”; “ravens”), but some have suggested a rodent may be in view (cf. “small animals”; “porcupine”; , “hedgehog”).
  4. 23 Heb “will possess it” (so ).
  5. 24 The Hebrew text has יַנְשׁוֹף וְעֹרֵב (yanshof vé’orev). Both the יַנְשׁוֹף (“owl”; see Lev 11:17; Deut 14:16) and עֹרֵב (“raven”; Lev 11:15; Deut 14:14) were types of wild birds.
  6. 25 Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  7. 26 Heb “stones,” i.e., the stones used in a plumb bob.
  8. 27 The metaphor in v. 11b emphasizes that God has carefully planned Edom’s demise.
  9. 28 Heb “will be nothing”; , , “will all be gone.”
  10. 29 The words “will grow” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  11. 30 Heb “and she will be a settlement for wild dogs, a dwelling place for ostriches.” The translation assumes an emendation of חָצִיר (khatsir, “grass”) to חָצֵר (khatser, “settlement”). One of the Qumran scrolls of Isaiah (1QIsaa) supports this emendation (cf. II חָצִיר)
  12. 31 Heb “will meet” (so ); “will mingle there.”
  13. 32 Heb “and a goat will call to its neighbor.”
  14. 33 The precise meaning of לִּילִית (lilit) is unclear, though in this context the word certainly refers to some type of wild animal or bird. The word appears to be related to לַיְלָה (laylah, “night”). Some interpret it as the name of a female night demon, on the basis of an apparent Akkadian cognate used as the name of a demon. Later Jewish legends also identified Lilith as a demon. Cf. “Lilith.”
  15. 34 Heb “and will find for themselves a resting place.”
  16. 35 Hebrew קִפּוֹז (qippoz) occurs only here; the precise meaning of the word is uncertain.
  17. 36 For this proposed meaning for Hebrew מָלַט (malat), see I מלט.
  18. 37 Heb “and brood [over them] in her shadow.”
  19. 38 The precise meaning of דַּיָּה (dayyah) is uncertain, though the term appears to refer to some type of bird of prey, perhaps a vulture.

The NET Bible First Edition, Copyright 1996-2005 by Biblical Studies Press

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And the streams of Edom shall be turned into pitch,

and her soil into sulfur;

her land shall become burning pitch.

Night and day it shall not be quenched;

its smoke shall go up forever.

From generation to generation it shall lie waste;

none shall pass through it forever and ever.

But the hawk and the porcupine shall possess it,

the owl and the raven shall dwell in it.

He shall stretch the line of confusion over it,

and the plumb line of emptiness.

Its nobles—there is no one there to call it a kingdom,

and all its princes shall be nothing.

Thorns shall grow over its strongholds,

nettles and thistles in its fortresses.

It shall be the haunt of jackals,

an abode for ostriches.

And wild animals shall meet with hyenas;

the wild goat shall cry to his fellow;

indeed, there the night bird settles

and finds for herself a resting place.

There the owl nests and lays

and hatches and gathers her young in her shadow;

indeed, there the hawks are gathered,

each one with her mate.

Copyright 2001 Crossway Bibles

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch,

her dust into burning sulfur;

her land will become blazing pitch!

It will not be quenched night or day;

its smoke will rise forever.

From generation to generation it will lie desolate;

no one will ever pass through it again.

The desert owl and screech owl will possess it;

the great owl and the raven will nest there.

God will stretch out over Edom

the measuring line of chaos

and the plumb line of desolation.

Her nobles will have nothing there to be called a kingdom,

all her princes will vanish away.

Thorns will overrun her citadels,

nettles and brambles her strongholds.

She will become a haunt for jackals,

a home for owls.

Desert creatures will meet with hyenas,

and wild goats will bleat to each other;

there the night creatures will also lie down

and find for themselves places of rest.

The owl will nest there and lay eggs,

she will hatch them, and care for her young

under the shadow of her wings;

there also the falcons will gather,

each with its mate.

Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 Biblica, Inc.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch,

her soil into sulfur;

her land will become burning pitch.

It will never go out—day or night.

Its smoke will go up forever.

It will be desolate, from generation to generation;

no one will pass through it forever and ever.

Eagle owls and herons will possess it,

and long-eared owls and ravens will dwell there.

The Lord will stretch out a measuring line

and a plumb line over her

for her destruction and chaos.

No nobles will be left to proclaim a king,

and all her princes will come to nothing.

Her palaces will be overgrown with thorns;

her fortified cities, with thistles and briers.

She will become a dwelling for jackals,

an abode for ostriches.

The desert creatures will meet hyenas,

and one wild goat will call to another.

Indeed, the night birds will stay there

and will find a resting place.

Sand partridges will make their nests there;

they will lay and hatch their eggs

and will gather their broods under their shadows.

Indeed, the birds of prey will gather there,

each with its mate.

Copyright 2017 Holman Bible Publishers

NLTNew Living Translation

The streams of Edom will be filled with burning pitch,

and the ground will be covered with fire.

This judgment on Edom will never end;

the smoke of its burning will rise forever.

The land will lie deserted from generation to generation.

No one will live there anymore.

It will be haunted by the desert owl and the screech owl,

the great owl and the raven.

For God will measure that land carefully;

he will measure it for chaos and destruction.

It will be called the Land of Nothing,

and all its nobles will soon be gone.

Thorns will overrun its palaces;

nettles and thistles will grow in its forts.

The ruins will become a haunt for jackals

and a home for owls.

Desert animals will mingle there with hyenas,

their howls filling the night.

Wild goats will bleat at one another among the ruins,

and night creatures will come there to rest.

There the owl will make her nest and lay her eggs.

She will hatch her young and cover them with her wings.

And the buzzards will come,

each one with its mate.

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. All rights reserved.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And its streams shall be changed to pitch and its soil to sulfur,

and its land shall become like burning pitch.

Night and day it shall not be quenched;

its smoke shall go up forever.

From generation to generation it shall be in ruins;

forever and ever there will be no one who passes through her.

But the large bird and the hedgehog shall take possession of it,

and the owl and the raven shall live in it.

And he shall stretch the measuring line of confusion out over it,

and the plumb line of emptiness.

Its nobles—but no kingdom is there—shall call,

and all its princes shall be nothing.

And thorns shall go up her citadel fortress,

weeds and thistle plants in her fortresses;

and it shall be the settlement of jackals,

green grass for the daughters of an ostrich.

And desert creatures shall meet with hyenas,

and a goat-demon shall call to his neighbor;

surely there Lilith shall repose,

and she shall find a resting place for herself.

There the owl shall nest and lay

and hatch and care for her chicks in her shadow;

surely there the birds of prey shall be gathered,

each one with her mate.

Copyright 2012 Lexham Press

KJV 1900King James Version

And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch,

And the dust thereof into brimstone,

And the land thereof shall become burning pitch.

It shall not be quenched night nor day;

The smoke thereof shall go up for ever:

From generation to generation it shall lie waste;

None shall pass through it for ever and ever.

But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it;

The owl also and the raven shall dwell in it:

And he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness.

They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there,

And all her princes shall be nothing.

And thorns shall come up in her palaces,

Nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof:

And it shall be an habitation of dragons,

And a court for owls.

The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island,

And the satyr shall cry to his fellow;

The screech owl also shall rest there,

And find for herself a place of rest.

There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay,

And hatch, and gather under her shadow:

There shall the vultures also be gathered,

Every one with her mate.

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