Judgment on Babylon
1 The Lord says,
“Babylon, come down from your throne,
and sit in the dust on the ground.
You were once like a virgin, a city unconquered,
but you are soft and delicate no longer!
You are now a slave!
2 Turn the millstone! Grind the flour!
Off with your veil! Strip off your fine clothes!
Lift up your skirts to cross the streams!
3 People will see you naked;
they will see you humbled and shamed.
I will take vengeance, and no one will stop me.”
4 The holy God of Israel sets us free—
his name is the Lord Almighty.
5 The Lord says to Babylon,
“Sit in silence and darkness;
no more will they call you the queen of nations!
6 I was angry with my people;
I treated them as no longer mine:
I put them in your power,
and you showed them no mercy;
even the aged you treated harshly.
7 You thought you would always be a queen,
and did not take these things to heart
or think how it all would end.
8 “Listen to this, you lover of pleasure,
you that think you are safe and secure.
You claim you are as great as God—
that there is no one else like you.
You thought that you would never be a widow
or suffer the loss of your children.
9 But in a moment, in a single day,
both of these things will happen.
In spite of all the magic you use,
you will lose your husband and children.
10 “You felt sure of yourself in your evil;
you thought that no one could see you.
Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray,
and you said to yourself, ‘I am God—
there is no one else like me.’
11 Disaster will come upon you,
and none of your magic can stop it.
Ruin will come on you suddenly—
ruin you never dreamed of!
12 Keep all your magic spells and charms;
you have used them since you were young.
Perhaps they will be of some help to you;
perhaps you can frighten your enemies.
13 You are powerless in spite of the advice you get.
Let your astrologers come forward and save you—
those people who study the stars,
who map out the zones of the heavens
and tell you from month to month
what is going to happen to you.
14 “They will be like bits of straw,
and a fire will burn them up!
They will not even be able to save themselves—
the flames will be too hot for them,
not a cozy fire to warm themselves by.
15 That is all the good they will do you—
those astrologers you've consulted all your life.
They all will leave you and go their own way,
and none will be left to save you.”
Babilons ǀgoraǃgâhes
1 “ǁGôaxa, îs tsarab ǃnâ ǂnû,
sas oaxae ǀgôas Babilons dise.
Trons ose ǃhūb ai ǂnû,
sas Xaldeaǁîn ǀgôase!
ǃAruǀîs ge tsauraǃnâs,
tamas ka io ǃgâixaǃnâs ti ǂgaihe tide.
2 ǁKhamiǀuisa ū, î mel-e ǁkhami!
ǃGū-aib âsa ūǁnâ, saran âsa ǁhû!
ǀNūkha âsa ǀōǀkhā kai, î ǃāga xanuǃgâu!
3 ǀŌǀkhāsib âs ge nî ǂhaisa kaihe
tsîb ge sa taosiba nî mûhe.
Tita ge nî ǀkhao
tsî ǀgui-i tsîna ǀkhom tide.”
4 Sada Ore-aob, Israels di ǃAnub
ge ǃKhūb Hoaǀgaixab ti ǀon hâ.
5 “ǃNōsase ǂnû, î ǃkhaenas ǃnâ ǂgâ,
ǀgôas Xaldeaǁîn dise!
ǃAruǀîs ge gaosigu ǀgôas ti ǂgaihe tide.
6 Tita ge ti khoen ǀkha ge ǁaixa,
ti ǀumisa ta ge ge ǃanuoǃnâ kai.
Sa ǃomkha ǃnâ ta ge ǁîna ge māǁnâ,
xawes ge ǁîna ǀkhom tama ge i.
Kairanas ge ǃnāǂamsase ǃgomma ge ǃnao-ai.
7 Sas ge ‘ǀamos kōse ta ge gao-aose nî hâ’ ti ge mî,
tsî nē xūn xa ǂâiǂâisen tama ge hâ i,
tamas ka io ǁîn ǀams nî hāsa ge ǂâiǃgâ tama hâ i.
8 “ǁNā-amaga sas ǂkhīǂkhurisensa ǀnamse, nēsa ǃgâ re,
sas kaise ǁkhaubahe hâse ǂnû tsî ǂgaob âs ǃnâ
‘Tita ǀgui ta tsî ǀnî-i ti xōǀkha a ǀkhai,
tita ge ǃoatarase ǂnû tide,
tamas ka io ta ǀgôaose hâsa ǂan tide,’ ti ra mîsa.
9 Nē ǀgam xūra ge mûsǀapirob ǃnâ,
ǀgui tsēs ai nî hāǂam si;
ǀoasa ǀnōb ai, ǀgôaosis tsî ǃoatarasis tsîra.
Nēs ge ǃgaidīb âs ǂguisib
tsî ǀkhūs ǀgaib tsîras ga ūhâ xawesa.
10 “Sa ǂkhabusasib ǃnâs ge ǃnorasase tsâ,
tsî ‘Khoe-i xare-i xa ta mûhe tama’ ti ge mî.
Sa gā-aisib tsî ǂans tsîra ge ge ǂgaeǂhapu si
tsîs ge ǂgaob âs ǃnâ: ‘Tita ǀgui ta,
ǀnî-i ti xōǀkhā a ǀkhai,’ ti ge mî.
11 Xaweb ge ǂkhababa nî hāǂam si,
sa ǃgaidīb xas tsîna ǁkhaehe tideba.
ǂŌǂōsib ge nî hāǂam si,
xawes ge ǁîba ǁkhae ǁkhā tide.
ǃNapetamases ge hîkākāsa nî hāǂam si,
ǁîs hāsas ge ǂan tide!
12 ǀKhūs tsî ǃgaidīs âs ǀkha hâǀgara,
sa ǂkhamsisa xus gere sîsenūra.
ǀNîsis kom nî ǃgâiǃgâo,
ǀnîsis kom ǂōǂōsiba nî ǁkhaebēo.
13 ǂGui ǀapemādi âs xas ge ge ǂkhabu,
an ǀhomma ra ôaǃnân hoana khâi tsî hui si.
An ǀgamiroǂansena khâi tsî ǁkhâkorobe ra aimûǀgaruna,
mîba si tare-i nî hāǂam sisa.
14 “Mû, ǁîn ge ǀhōb ǀaes xa ra khauǃkhūheb khami ī,
ǁîn ge ǀaeǁhabub ǀgaiba xu oresen ǁoa.
ǁÎna nî ǀgamǀgam ǂnom-i ge ǀkhai,
ǀaes ǁîn nî ǂnûǃgaos ge a ǀkhai.
15 ǁNātin ge ī, sas gere sîsenūna,
ǁnān sa ǂkhamsisa xus gere ǂgomǃgâna.
Mâ-i hoa-i ǁîn di-i ge ge bēxū si,
khoe-i xare-i sasa nî ore-i ge a ǀkhai.”
