Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, October 2nd, 2024
the Week of Proper 21 / Ordinary 26
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Read the Bible

Updated Bible Version

Isaiah 13:20

It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Cyrus;   Tent;   Thompson Chain Reference - Folds;   The Topic Concordance - Judges;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Babylon;   Ishmaelites, the;   Tents;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Babylon;   Isaiah;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Arabia;   Sheep;   Shepherd;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Fold;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Babel;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Arabia;   Isaiah;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Arabia, Arabs;   Isaiah, Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Eternity;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Babylon ;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Babylon;   Medes;   Nineveh;   Rebels;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Babylon;   Messiah;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Kingdom of Judah;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Demon;   Isaiah;   Satyr;   Tent;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Arabia;  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for February 20;  

Parallel Translations

Legacy Standard Bible
It will never be inhabited or dwelt in from generation to generation;Nor will the Arab pitch his tent there,Nor will shepherds make their flocks lie down there.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation; Nor will the Arab pitch his tent there, Nor will shepherds make their flocks lie down there.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
It shall not endure for euer, neither shall there be any more dwelling there from generation to generation: The Arabians shall pitche no tentes there, neither shall the sheepheardes make their foldes there any more.
Darby Translation
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in, even to generation and generation; nor shall Arabian pitch tent there, nor shepherds make fold there.
New King James Version
It will never be inhabited, Nor will it be settled from generation to generation; Nor will the Arabian pitch tents there, Nor will the shepherds make their sheepfolds there.
Literal Translation
It shall not be lived in forever, nor shall it be lived in from generation to generation. And the Arabian shall not pitch a tent there, nor shall the shepherds make flocks lie down there.
Easy-to-Read Version
But Babylon will not continue to be beautiful. People will not continue to live there in the future. Arabs will not put their tents there. Shepherds will not bring their sheep to let them eat there.
World English Bible
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be lived in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there.
King James Version (1611)
It shall neuer be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there, neither shal the shepheards make their fold there.
King James Version
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
It shal neuer be more inhabited, nether shal there be eny more dwellinge there, from generacion to generacion. The Arabians shall make no mo tentes there, nether shall the shepardes make their foldes there eny more:
Amplified Bible
Babylon will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation; Nor will the Arab pitch his tent there, Nor will the shepherds let their sheep lie down there.
American Standard Version
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there.
Bible in Basic English
People will never be living in it again, and it will have no more men from generation to generation: the Arab will not put up his tent there; and those who keep sheep will not make it a resting-place for their flocks.
Webster's Bible Translation
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there.
New English Translation
No one will live there again; no one will ever reside there again. No bedouin will camp there, no shepherds will rest their flocks there.
Contemporary English Version
No one will live in Babylon. Even nomads won't camp nearby, and shepherds won't let their sheep rest there.
Complete Jewish Bible
It will never again be inhabited, never lived in through all generations. Arabs will not pitch tents there nor shepherds bring their flocks.
Geneva Bible (1587)
It shall not bee inhabited for euer, neither shall it be dwelled in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch his tents there, neither shall the shepheardes make their foldes there.
George Lamsa Translation
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation; neither shall the Arabians encamp there; neither shall the shepherds make their folds there.
Hebrew Names Version
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be lived in from generation to generation: neither shall the `Arivi pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation; neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there.
New Living Translation
Babylon will never be inhabited again. It will remain empty for generation after generation. Nomads will refuse to camp there, and shepherds will not bed down their sheep.
New Life Bible
People will never live in it again, even all the people-to-come. No Arab will set up his tent there. No shepherds will make their flocks lie down there.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall any enter into it for many generations: neither shall the Arabians pass through it; nor shall shepherds at all rest in it.
English Revised Version
It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there.
Berean Standard Bible
She will never be inhabited or settled from generation to generation; no nomad will pitch his tent there, no shepherd will rest his flock there.
New Revised Standard
It will never be inhabited or lived in for all generations; Arabs will not pitch their tents there, shepherds will not make their flocks lie down there.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
It shall not be dwelt in for ever, Neither shall it be inhabited from generation to generation, - Neither shall encamp there, an Arab, Nor, shepherds, fold their flocks there.
Douay-Rheims Bible
It shall no more be inhabited for ever, and it shall not be founded unto generation and generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch his tents there, nor shall shepherds rest there.
Lexham English Bible
It will not be inhabited forever, and it will not be dwelled in forever; and no Arab will pitch a tent there, and shepherds will not allow their flocks to lie down there.
English Standard Version
It will never be inhabited or lived in for all generations; no Arab will pitch his tent there; no shepherds will make their flocks lie down there.
New American Standard Bible
It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation; Nor will the Arab pitch his tent there, Nor will shepherds allow their flocks to lie down there.
New Century Version
No one will ever live there or settle there again. No Arab will put a tent there; no shepherd will bring sheep there.
Good News Translation
No one will ever live there again. No wandering Arab will ever pitch a tent there, and no shepherd will ever pasture a flock there.
Christian Standard Bible®
It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation; a nomad will not pitch his tent there, and shepherds will not let their flocks rest there.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
It shall not be enhabitid til in to the ende, and it schal not be foundid til to generacioun and generacioun; a man of Arabie schal not sette tentis there, and scheepherdis schulen not reste there.
Revised Standard Version
It will never be inhabited or dwelt in for all generations; no Arab will pitch his tent there, no shepherds will make their flocks lie down there.
Young's Literal Translation
She doth not sit for ever, Nor continueth unto many generations, Nor doth Arab pitch tent there, And shepherds lie not down there.

Contextual Overview

19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldeans' pride, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. 20 It shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall shepherds make their flocks to lie down there. 21 But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be full of doleful creatures; and ostriches shall dwell there, and wild goats shall dance there. 22 And wolves shall cry in their castles, and jackals in the pleasant palaces: and her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Isaiah 14:23, Jeremiah 50:3, Jeremiah 50:13, Jeremiah 50:21, Jeremiah 50:39, Jeremiah 50:45, Jeremiah 51:25, Jeremiah 51:29, Jeremiah 51:43, Jeremiah 51:62-64, Revelation 18:21-23

Reciprocal: Judges 6:5 - tents Job 3:7 - solitary Isaiah 7:25 - but it Isaiah 21:1 - the desert Isaiah 21:13 - O ye Isaiah 34:10 - from Isaiah 34:11 - cormorant Isaiah 34:17 - they shall Isaiah 38:12 - as a Isaiah 47:5 - silent Isaiah 47:9 - they shall come Jeremiah 49:29 - tents Jeremiah 49:33 - a dwelling Jeremiah 50:12 - a wilderness Jeremiah 50:40 - General Zephaniah 2:9 - as Gomorrah Acts 2:11 - Arabians

Gill's Notes on the Bible

It shall never be inhabited,.... As it has not been since its utter destruction. Pausanias p, who lived in the times of Adrian, says, Babylon, the greatest city that ever the sun saw, that then there was nothing left of it but a wall: what is now called Babylon is a new city, and built in another place:

neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation; which is the same thing repeated in other and stronger terms, for the confirmation of it:

neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there; that sort of the Arabians called Scenitae, because they dwelt in tents, and moved from place to place with their flocks, for the sake of pasture; but here there should be none for them, and therefore would not pitch their tents at it:

neither shall the shepherds make their folds there; as they had used to do in the pastures adjoining to it, which were formerly exceeding good, but now would be barren and unfruitful; and as there would be no shepherds in the city, so neither would any neighbouring ones come hither, or any from distant parts; partly because of the unfruitfulness of the place, and partly through fear of wild beasts, which had their habitation there, as follows. Pliny q says it was reduced to a mere desert.

p Arcadica sive, l. 8. p. 509. q Ut supra. (Nat. Hist. l. 6. c. 26.)

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

It shall never be inhabited - This has been completely fulfilled. It is now, and has been for centuries, a scene of wide desolation, and is a heap of ruins, and there is every indication that it will continue so to be. From Rauwolff’s testimony it appears, that in the sixteenth century ‘there was not a house to be seen;’ and now the ‘eye wanders over a barren desert, in which the ruins are nearly the only indication that it had ever been inhabited. It is impossible to behold this scene and not be reminded how exactly the predictions of Isaiah and Jeremiah have been fulfilled, even in the appearance Babylon was doomed to present, “that she should never be inhabited.”’ - (Keppel’s “Narrative,” p. 234.) ‘Babylon is spurned alike by the heel of the Ottoman, the Israelites, and the sons of Ishmael.’ - (Mignan’s “Travels,” p. 108.) ‘It is a tenantless and desolate metropolis.’ - (Ibid. p. 235; see Keith “On Prophecy,” p. 221.)

Neither shall it be dwelt in ... - This is but another form of the expression, denoting that it shall be utterly desolate. The following testimonies of travelers will show how this accomplished: ‘Ruins composed, like those of Babylon, of heaps of rubbish impregnated with nitre, cannot be cultivated.’ - (Rich’s “Memoir,” p. 16.) ‘The decomposing materials of a Babylonian structure doom the earth on which they perish, to lasting sterility. On this part of the plain, both where traces of buildings are left, and where none stood, all seemed equally naked of vegetation; the whole ground appearing as if it had been washed over and over again by the coming and receding waters, until every bit of genial soil was swept away; its half-clay, half-sandy surface being left in ridgy streaks, like what is often seen on the flat shores of the sea after the retreating of the tide.’ - (Sir R. K. Porter’s “Travels,” vol. ii. p. 392.) ‘The ground is low and marshy, and presents not the slightest vestige of former buildings, of any description whatever.’ - (Buckingham’s “Travels,” vol. ii. p. 278.) ‘The ruins of Babylon are thus inundated so as to render many parts of them inaccessible, by converting the valleys among them into morasses.’ - (Rich’s “Memoir,” p. 13.)

Neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there - The Arabians dwelt chiefly in tents; and were a wandering people, or engaged in traffic which was conducted in caravans traveling from place to place. The idea here is, that Babylon, so far from being occupied as a permanent residence for any people, would be unfit even for a resting place. It would be so utterly desolate, so forsaken, and so unhealthy, that the caravan would not even stop there for a night. What a charge this from its former splendor! How different from the time when it was the place of magnificent palaces, when strangers flocked to it, and when people from all nations were collected there!

Neither shall the shepherds ... - This is an additional image of desolation. Babylon was situated in the midst of a most fertile region. It might be supposed that, though it was to be destroyed, it would still furnish pasturage for flocks. But no, says the prophet, it shall be so utterly and entirely desolate, that it shall not even afford pasturage for them. The reasons of this are:

(1) that the whole region round about Babylon was laid under water by the Euphrates after the city was taken, and became a stagnant pool, and of course an unfit place for flocks; and

(2) that Babylon was reduced to an extended scene of ruins; and on those ruins - those extended wastes of broken walls, of bricks and cement - no grass would grow.

The prophecy has been remarkably fulfilled. It is said that the Arabs cannot be persuaded to remain there even for a night. They traverse these ruins by day without fear; but at night the superstitious dread of evil spirits deters them from remaining there. ‘Captain Mignan was accompanied by six Arabs completely armed, but he “could not induce them to remain toward night, from the apprehension of evil spirits. It is impossible to eradicate this idea from the minds of these people, who are very deeply imbued with superstition ... And when the sun sunk behind the Mujelibe, and the moon would have lighted his way among the ruins, it was with infinite regret that he obeyed the summons of his guides.”’ - (Mignan’s “Travels,” as quoted by Keith, pp. 221, 222.) ‘All the people of the country assert that it is extremely dangerous to approach the mound’ (the mound in Babylon called Kasr, or Palad) ‘after nightfall, on account of the multitude of evil spirits by which it is haunted.’ - (Rich’s “Memoir on the Ruins of Babylon,” p. 27.) The Joseph Wolff, speaking of his visit to Babylon, says, ‘I inquired of them (the Yezeedes), whether the Arabs ever pitched their tents among the ruins of Babylon. No, said they, the Arabs believe that the ghost of Nimrod walks amidst them in the darkness, and no Arab would venture on so hazardous an experiment.’


 
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