Isaiah — Chapter 15
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1This is the burden against Moab: Ar in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! Kir in Moab is devastated, destroyed in a night!
2Dibon goes up to its temple to weep at its high places. Moab wails over Nebo, as well as over Medeba. Every head is shaved, every beard is cut off.
3In its streets they wear sackcloth; on the rooftops and in the public squares they all wail, falling down weeping.
4Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voices are heard as far as Jahaz. Therefore the soldiers of Moab cry out; their souls tremble within.
5My heart cries out over Moab; her fugitives flee as far as Zoar, as far as Eglath-shelishiyah. With weeping they ascend the slope of Luhith; they lament their destruction on the road to Horonaim.
6The waters of Nimrim are dried up, and the grass is withered; the vegetation is gone, and the greenery is no more.
7So they carry their wealth and belongings over the Brook of the Willows.
8For their outcry echoes to the border of Moab. Their wailing reaches Eglaim; it is heard in Beer-elim.
9The waters of Dimon are full of blood, but I will bring more upon Dimon—a lion upon the fugitives of Moab and upon the remnant of the land.
1The burden of Moab. Because in the night Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence; because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to silence;
2He is gone up to Bajith, and to Dibon, the high places, to weep: Moab shall howl over Nebo, and over Medeba: on all their heads shall be baldness, and every beard cut off.
3In their streets they shall gird themselves with sackcloth: on the tops of their houses, and in their streets, every one shall howl, weeping abundantly.
4And Heshbon shall cry, and Elealeh: their voice shall be heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed soldiers of Moab shall cry out; his life shall be grievous unto him.
5My heart shall cry out for Moab; his fugitives shall flee unto Zoar, an heifer of three years old: for by the mounting up of Luhith with weeping shall they go it up; for in the way of Horonaim they shall raise up a cry of destruction.
6For the waters of Nimrim shall be desolate: for the hay is withered away, the grass faileth, there is no green thing.
7Therefore the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have laid up, shall they carry away to the brook of the willows.
8For the cry is gone round about the borders of Moab; the howling thereof unto Eglaim, and the howling thereof unto Beer-elim.
9For the waters of Dimon shall be full of blood: for I will bring more upon Dimon, lions upon him that escapeth of Moab, and upon the remnant of the land.
1The burden of Moab. For in a night Ar of Moab is laid waste, [and] brought to nought; for in a night Kir of Moab is laid waste, [and] brought to nought.
2They are gone up to Bayith, and to Dibon, to the high places, to weep: Moab waileth over Nebo, and over Medeba; on all their heads is baldness, every beard is cut off.
3In their streets they gird themselves with sackcloth; on their housetops, and in their broad places, every one waileth, weeping abundantly.
4And Heshbon crieth out, and Elealeh; their voice is heard even unto Jahaz: therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud; his soul trembleth within him.
5My heart crieth out for Moab; her nobles [flee] unto Zoar, to Eglath-shelishi-yah: for by the ascent of Luhith with weeping they go up; for in the way of Horonaim they raise up a cry of destruction.
6For the waters of Nimrim shall be desolate; for the grass is withered away, the tender grass faileth, there is no green thing.
7Therefore the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have laid up, shall they carry away over the brook of the willows.
8For the cry is gone round about the borders of Moab; the wailing thereof unto Eglaim, and the wailing thereof unto Beer-elim.
9For the waters of Dimon are full of blood; for I will bring yet more upon Dimon, a lion upon them of Moab that escape, and upon the remnant of the land.
1This is an oracle about Moab: Indeed, in a night it is devastated, Ar of Moab is destroyed! Indeed, in a night it is devastated, Kir of Moab is destroyed!
2They went up to the temple; the people of Dibon went up to the high places to lament. Because of what happened to Nebo and Medeba, Moab wails. Every head is shaved bare, every beard is trimmed off.
3In their streets they wear sackcloth; on their roofs and in their town squares all of them wail; they fall down weeping.
4The people of Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voices are heard as far away as Jahaz. For this reason Moab’s soldiers shout in distress; their courage wavers.
5My heart cries out because of Moab’s plight and for the fugitives stretched out as far as Zoar and Eglath Shelishiyah. For they weep as they make their way up the ascent of Luhith; they loudly lament their demise on the road to Horonaim.
6For the waters of Nimrim are gone; the grass is dried up, the vegetation has disappeared, and there are no plants.
7For this reason what they have made and stored up, they carry over the Stream of the Poplars.
8Indeed, the cries of distress echo throughout Moabite territory; their wailing can be heard in Eglaim and Beer Elim.
9Indeed, the waters of Dimon are full of blood! Indeed, I will heap even more trouble on Dimon. A lion will attack the Moabite fugitives and the people left in the land.
1The burden of Moab. For in a night, Ar of Moab is laid waste, and brought to nothing. For in a night Kir of Moab is laid waste, and brought to nothing.
2They have gone up to Bayith, and to Dibon, to the high places, to weep. Moab wails over Nebo and over Medeba. Baldness is on all of their heads. Every beard is cut off.
3In their streets, they clothe themselves in sackcloth. In their streets and on their housetops, everyone wails, weeping abundantly.
4Heshbon cries out with Elealeh. Their voice is heard even to Jahaz. Therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud. Their souls tremble within them.
5My heart cries out for Moab! Her nobles flee to Zoar, to Eglath Shelishiyah; for they go up by the ascent of Luhith with weeping; for on the way to Horonaim, they raise up a cry of destruction.
6For the waters of Nimrim will be desolate; for the grass has withered away, the tender grass fails, there is no green thing.
7Therefore they will carry away the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have stored up, over the brook of the willows.
8For the cry has gone around the borders of Moab; its wailing to Eglaim, and its wailing to Beer Elim.
9For the waters of Dimon are full of blood; for I will bring yet more on Dimon, a lion on those of Moab who escape, and on the remnant of the land.
Summary
This oracle pronounces judgment on Moab, opening with the sudden nighttime destruction of its cities Ar and Kir (v. 1). Moab's people go up to their high places to weep, shave their heads in mourning, and cry out in the streets and on rooftops as the news spreads from town to town — Heshbon, Elealeh, Jahaz, Medeba (vv. 2-4). Isaiah himself is moved with grief for Moab, describing refugees fleeing south toward Zoar and Horonaim with their wealth loaded on donkeys while the waters of Nimrim dry up and the land lies desolate (vv. 5-7). The wailing echoes across Moab's entire border, and the chapter ends warning that even greater disaster awaits those who survive (vv. 8-9).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
Places on this map
- Moabwest-central JordanThe plateau east of the Dead Sea, cut off from Israel by the rift valley and from Ammon by the Arnon gorge. High enough to farm grain, which is why Naomi's family went there in a famine. Wikipedia
- Dead SeaIsrael / JordanThe lowest exposed ground on earth, about 1,400 feet below sea level, and roughly ten times saltier than the ocean because water leaves only by evaporation. Nothing lives in it, which is the image Ezekiel 47 overturns when he has it filled with fish. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik notes the prophet's remarkable compassion for a pagan nation under judgment and traces the geographic sweep of destruction through Moab's cities.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- BibleProject: bibleproject.com On the whole book: the promised king who runs through Isaiah from beginning to end.
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Isaiah -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- Judgment Beyond the Covenant People (v.1) — Moab's cities fall in a single night even though Moab never had Israel's law, temple, or covenant. Does it change how you think about accountability to know that God holds even those outside His covenant responsible for their ways?
- Sudden, Unexpected Ruin (v.1) — The destruction of Ar and Kir happens overnight, catching the nation off guard. Are you living spiritually alert, or assuming there will always be more warning before things change?
- A Prophet's Compassion for the Judged (v.5) — Isaiah's own heart cries out for Moab even while announcing its downfall, grief rather than satisfaction. Do you feel genuine sorrow for people experiencing consequences, or something closer to quiet satisfaction?