Isaiah 13:18 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Their bows will slaughter the young men; they will have no mercy on the fruit of the womb; their eyes will not pity children.

NIV: Their bows will strike down the young men; they will have no mercy on infants, nor will they look with compassion on children.

NASB: And their bows will mow down the young men, They will not even have compassion on the fruit of the womb, Nor will their eye pity children.

CSB: Their bows will cut young men to pieces. They will have no compassion on offspring; they will not look with pity on children.

NLT: The attacking armies will shoot down the young men with arrows. They will have no mercy on helpless babies and will show no compassion for children.'

KJV: Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces; and they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb; their eye shall not spare children.

NKJV: Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces, And they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb; Their eye will not spare children.

The prophet Isaiah stated that the Medes would not accept any amount of bribery from the Babylonians to turn back their attack on the city (Isaiah 13:17). Why should they, when they could just take what they wanted after destroying Babylon.

It's important to remember that God's judgment here involved sending multiple sinful people against another. These chapters in Isaiah are prophecies against foreign nations. These nations who did not worship the Lord or follow His commands. He uses them to punish each other for their cruelty and arrogance. In this case, the Lord uses the Medes to punish the Babylonians in the same way that the Babylonians have destroyed others. The atrocities they commit (Isaiah 13:16) are, themselves, sins subject to God's judgment (Mark 4:22; Matthew 12:36).

Now Isaiah says that the bows of the Medes will slaughter the young men of Babylon. No compassion will be found for the pregnant women or children either. This was the way of warfare in the Near East during this time. And unfortunately, that approach has been applied throughout much of human history. This is what is coming for the once-great city of Babylon.

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).