Concerning Moab. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Woe to Nebo, for it is laid waste! Kiriathaim is put to shame, it is taken; the fortress is put to shame and broken down;
the renown of Moab is no more. In Heshbon they planned disaster against her: ‘Come, let us cut her off from being a nation!’ You also, O Madmen, shall be brought to silence; the sword shall pursue you.
“A voice! A cry from Horonaim, ‘Desolation and great destruction!’
Moab is destroyed; her little ones have made a cry.
For at the ascent of Luhith they go up weeping; for at the descent of Horonaim they have heard the distressed cry of destruction.
Flee! Save yourselves! You will be like a juniper in the desert!
For, because you trusted in your works and your treasures, you also shall be taken; and Chemosh shall go into exile with his priests and his officials.
The destroyer shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape; the valley shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the LORD has spoken.
“Give wings to Moab, for she would fly away; her cities shall become a desolation, with no inhabitant in them.
“Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD with slackness, and cursed is he who keeps back his sword from bloodshed.
“Moab has been at ease from his youth and has settled on his dregs; he has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, nor has he gone into exile; so his taste remains in him, and his scent is not changed.
“Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I shall send to him pourers who will pour him, and empty his vessels and break his jars in pieces.
Then Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence.
“How do you say, ‘We are heroes and mighty men of war’?
The destroyer of Moab and his cities has come up, and the choicest of his young men have gone down to slaughter, declares the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.
The calamity of Moab is near at hand, and his affliction hastens swiftly.
Grieve for him, all you who are around him, and all who know his name; say, ‘How the mighty scepter is broken, the glorious staff.’
“Come down from your glory, and sit on the parched ground, O inhabitant of Dibon! For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you; he has destroyed your strongholds.
Stand by the way and watch, O inhabitant of Aroer! Ask him who flees and her who escapes; say, ‘What has happened?’
Moab is put to shame, for it is broken; wail and cry! Tell it beside the Arnon, that Moab is laid waste.
“Judgment has come upon the tableland, upon Holon, and Jahzah, and Mephaath,
and Dibon, and Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim,
and Kiriathaim, and Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon,
and Kerioth, and Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near.
The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, declares the LORD.
“Make him drunk, because he magnified himself against the LORD, so that Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he too shall be held in derision.
Was not Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves, that whenever you spoke of him you wagged your head?
“Leave the cities, and dwell in the rock, O inhabitants of Moab! Be like the dove that nests in the sides of the mouth of a gorge.
We have heard of the pride of Moab— he is very proud— of his loftiness, his pride, and his arrogance, and the haughtiness of his heart.
I know his insolence, declares the LORD; his boasts are false, his deeds are false.
Therefore I wail for Moab; I cry out for all Moab; for the men of Kir-hareseth I mourn.
More than for Jazer I weep for you, O vine of Sibmah! Your branches passed over the sea, reached to the Sea of Jazer; on your summer fruits and your grapes the destroyer has fallen.
Gladness and joy have been taken away from the fruitful land of Moab; I have made the wine cease from the winepresses; no one treads them with shouts of joy; the shouting is not the shout of joy.
“From the outcry at Heshbon even to Elealeh, as far as Jahaz they utter their voice, from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. For the waters of Nimrim also have become desolate.
And I will bring to an end in Moab, declares the LORD, him who offers sacrifice in the high place and makes offerings to his god.
Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans like a flute for the men of Kir-hareseth. Therefore the riches they gained have perished.
“For every head is shaved and every beard cut off. On all the hands are gashes, and around the waist is sackcloth.
On all the housetops of Moab and in the squares there is nothing but lamentation, for I have broken Moab like a vessel for which no one cares, declares the LORD.
How it is broken! How they wail! How Moab has turned his back in shame! So Moab has become a derision and a horror to all that are around him.”
For thus says the LORD: “Behold, one shall fly swiftly like an eagle and spread his wings against Moab;
the cities shall be taken and the strongholds seized. The heart of the warriors of Moab shall be in that day like the heart of a woman in her birth pains;
Moab shall be destroyed and be no longer a people, because he magnified himself against the LORD.
Terror, pit, and snare are before you, O inhabitant of Moab! declares the LORD.
He who flees from the terror shall fall into the pit, and he who climbs out of the pit shall be caught in the snare. For I will bring these things upon Moab, the year of their punishment, declares the LORD.
“In the shadow of Heshbon fugitives stop without strength, for fire came out from Heshbon, flame from the house of Sihon; it has destroyed the forehead of Moab, the crown of the sons of tumult.
Woe to you, O Moab! The people of Chemosh are undone, for your sons have been taken captive, and your daughters into captivity.
Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab in the latter days, declares the LORD.” Thus far is the judgment on Moab.
Scripture quotations marked “ESV” are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
YHWH announces extensive judgment against Moab, condemning its pride and security, declaring that Moab's god Chemosh will not save the nation, and announcing that cities will be destroyed and people taken captive, establishing that national religion and perceived strength provide no protection against YHWH's determination to execute judgment. The oracle lamenting Moab's fallen glory (
My heart moans for Moab like a flute; the riches they gained have perished. Divine heart's mourning emphasizes emotional dimensions.
Every head is shaved and every beard cut off; gashes on hands, sackcloth on loins. These represent extreme expressions of ritual mourning.
On all housetops and in streets there is nothing but lamentation; I have broken Moab like an unwanted vessel. The image emphasizes worthlessness.
How it is broken! How they wail! Moab has turned his back in shame! The rhetorical exclamations emphasize emotional impact.
One shall fly swiftly like an eagle and spread his wings against Moab. The image represents sudden, overwhelming attack.
The cities shall be taken and strongholds seized; warriors' hearts are like women in labor. The feminization suggests emasculation.
Moab shall be destroyed as a people because he magnified himself against the LORD. The judgment eliminates national identity.
Terror, pit, and snare are upon you, O inhabitant of Moab! The triple enumeration emphasizes inescapability.
Everyone who flees terror falls into pit; everyone who climbs out is caught in snare. The progression emphasizes inescapable entrapment.
In the shadow of Heshbon fugitives stand without strength; fire from Heshbon devours. The spreading destruction suggests internal origin.
Woe to you, Moab! The people of Chemosh have perished; sons taken captive. The direct woe emphasizes weight of judgment.
Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab in the latter days. The restoration promise establishes that judgment is not final.
Then Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as Israel was ashamed of Bethel. The comparison establishes continuity between Israel's and Moab's judgments.
How can you say, We are mighty and strong warriors for battle? The rhetorical question challenges self-assessment.
The destroyer of Moab has come up; the choicest young men have gone down to slaughter. The king is the LORD of hosts.
The calamity of Moab is near at hand; his doom approaches swiftly. The imminence emphasizes pressing nature of judgment.
Mourn over him, all you who know him; say, How the mighty scepter is broken! The call to mourning establishes significance of Moab's fall.
Come down from glory and sit on parched ground, O inhabitant of Dibon! The command represents radical reversal of fortune.
Stand by the road and watch, O inhabitant of Aroer! Ask what has happened? The witnessing perspective creates narrative perspective.
Moab is broken; wail and cry! Tell by the Arnon that Moab is laid waste. The command to announce ensures judgment is proclaimed throughout.
Judgment has come upon the tableland, upon Holon and Jahzah. The enumeration emphasizes geographic comprehensiveness.
And upon Dibon and Nebo and Beth-diblathaim. The continued listing emphasizes extensiveness.
And upon Kiriathaim and Beth-gamul and Beth-meon. The enumeration continues.
And upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. The comprehensive summary prevents notion of partial judgment.
The horn of Moab is cut off, his arm is broken. The body imagery represents complete loss of military power.
Make him drunk and wallow in vomit; let him become a laughingstock. The command represents extreme humiliation.
Was Israel not a laughingstock to you? Moab mocked Israel; now Moab faces reversal of circumstances.
Leave the cities and dwell in the rock like a dove nesting in a gorge. The command represents reduction to primitive, fugitive existence.
Concerning Moab: Alas for Nebo! It is laid waste; Kiriathaim is put to shame. The oracle opens with lament over specific cities.
I know his insolence; his boasts are false, his deeds are false. Divine knowledge establishes that nothing escapes God's attention.
Therefore I wail for Moab; I cry out and mourn for people of Kir-heres. The prophet's grief suggests judgment is occasion for lament.
More than Jazer I weep for you, vine of Sibmah! Your branches crossed the sea. The agricultural imagery represents productivity and prosperity.
Gladness and joy have been taken from the fruitful fields of Moab. The removal emphasizes loss of celebration and festivity.
The sound of a cry goes up from Heshbon to Elealeh; waters of Nimrim are desolate. The enumeration emphasizes geographic spread of lamentation.
I will bring to an end those who make offerings at high places. The judgment targets spiritual foundations of Moabite civilization.
We have heard of the pride of Moab—very proud, lofty, arrogant, haughty. The enumeration emphasizes pride as root of judgment.
The renown of Moab is no more; they have devised evil to cut her off from being a nation. The reduction of renown emphasizes complete reversal.
Hark! A cry from Horonaim: Desolation and great destruction! The auditory imagery emphasizes desperation of destruction spreading.
Moab is broken; her little ones have made a cry. The breaking of Moab affects all ages including vulnerable children.
At the ascent of Luhith they go up weeping; at the descent of Horonaim they hear distressing cry. The imagery emphasizes chaotic flight.
Flee! Save yourselves! Be like a wild ass in the desert! The command emphasizes urgency.
Because you trusted in fortress and treasure, Chemosh shall go into exile with priests. The threat extends to Moab's gods.
The destroyer shall come upon every city; no city shall escape. The comprehensive judgment emphasizes geographic ubiquity.
Give wings to Moab, for she will fly away; her cities shall become desolation. The poetic image suggests frantic flight.
Accursed is anyone who keeps back the sword from bloodshed. This verse emphasizes totality with which judgment must be carried out.
Moab has been at ease and settled on his lees; he has not been emptied. The characterization establishes pattern of comfort creating complacency.
I shall send decanter-pourers who shall pour him out and empty his vessels. The image represents thoroughness of dispersion.