Isaiah 13:16 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Their infants will be dashed in pieces before their eyes; their houses will be plundered and their wives ravished.

NIV: Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses will be looted and their wives violated.

NASB: Their little ones also will be dashed to pieces Before their eyes; Their houses will be plundered And their wives raped.

CSB: Their children will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses will be looted, and their wives raped.

NLT: Their little children will be dashed to death before their eyes. Their homes will be sacked, and their wives will be raped.

KJV: Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes; their houses shall be spoiled, and their wives ravished.

NKJV: Their children also will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; Their houses will be plundered And their wives ravished.

Isaiah does not shy away from predicting what will happen to the people of Babylon when the Lord's judgment comes. The armies the Lord has summoned will attack the city and invade it (Isaiah 13:2–5). There will be no difference for those who run or those who stay behind (Isaiah 13:12–15). The cruel and ruthless soldiers will carry out utter destruction without mercy. The scenes are grotesque, with gut-wrenching imagery meant to inspire a sense of horror. Infants will be murdered in view of their parents. The treasures of their homes will be carried off. The wives of the men of Babylon will be raped.

Though God was the one who arranged for Babylon to fall to foreign armies (Isaiah 13:6), He is not directing these specific acts to occur. The deeds, themselves, were common in warfare of the ancient world. In fact, part of God's judgment on that nation comes as they experience what they inflicted on others to gain dominance. Those who kill the innocent, because they do not value them, often live to see their own innocent loved ones destroyed in the same way. Babylon, itself, was used as a tool to punish Assyria (Isaiah 10:12–14), and so will be judged for their own sins. Likewise, those who conquer Babylon will answer to God for their actions.

In all this misery, the Babylonians will be crushed to realize that their false gods cannot protect or save them. The message written to Israel is clear. They are to trust in the Lord, and in Him alone, to protect them. He is their only hope to escape the slaughter that comes for those who become the object of the Lord's anger.

Isaiah 13:1–22 contains Isaiah's prophecy from the Lord. This is against the dominant power of Babylon, which would arise after the defeat of the Assyrians. The Lord will assemble and consecrate an international army to attack and obliterate the powerful city-state of Babylon. The people will tremble in fear as the Lord executes His judgment out of His great wrath toward the arrogant and ruthless Babylonians. The population will be slaughtered without mercy and the land left desolate. When it's over, only wild animals will walk the streets of the once-splendid city.

Chapter 13 begins a new section in the book of Isaiah, which focuses on prophecies against other nations besides Israel. It begins by describing the Lord's destruction of the city-state of Babylon. This will come after it has become a dominating power in the world. The Lord will assemble a multi-nation army to attack the city and leave the land completely desolate. All who flee will be hunted and killed. The Medes will slaughter even pregnant women and children without mercy. When it is all over, only wild animals will occupy the once luxurious center of human achievement and sophistication.

Isaiah has been discussing the eventual rescue and restoration of Israel (Isaiah 10–12). Chapter 13 introduces an entirely new section in Isaiah's book: prophecies from the Lord against Gentile nations. First is a prediction of the utter destruction of Babylon. That nation had been the dominant power in the world. The Lord will assemble a multi-nation army from near and far to destroy the luxurious and powerful city-state on the Euphrates. This is followed by reassurances and further details of God's vengeance on Israel's other oppressors.

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).