They come from a far country, from the end of heaven, even the LORD, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.
Parallel translations
- WEB They come from a far country, from the uttermost part of heaven, even Yahweh, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.
- BSB They are coming from faraway lands, from the ends of the heavens—the LORD and the weapons of His wrath—to destroy the whole country.
- NKJV They come from a far country, From the end of heaven— The Lord and His weapons of indignation, To destroy the whole land.
- NASB They are coming from a distant country, From the farthest horizons, The Lord and the weapons of His indignation, To destroy the whole land.
- NLT They come from distant countries, from beyond the farthest horizons. They are the Lord’s weapons to carry out his anger. With them he will destroy the whole land.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The armies come from far away as weapons of God's indignation to destroy the land. God brings distant nations to carry out his judgment.
Overview
The attackers march 'from the uttermost part of heaven' as 'the weapons of his indignation' — instruments of divine wrath against Babylon. The phrase 'to destroy the whole land' signals comprehensive judgment. God's reach extends to the ends of the earth, summoning whom he wills to fulfill his justice.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Jer 51:20–46Thou art my battle axe and weapons of war: for with thee will I break in pieces the nations, and with thee will I destroy kingdoms;
- Matt 24:31And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
- Jer 50:9For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain.
- Isa 5:26And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:
- Isa 24:1Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.
- Jer 50:3For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
- Jer 51:11Make bright the arrows; gather the shields: the LORD hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes: for his device is against Babylon, to destroy it; because it is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance of his temple.
- Isa 13:17Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them, which shall not regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it.
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Christ at the center
Isaiah sees him most clearly: the virgin's son Immanuel, the child on David's throne, the shoot from Jesse, the light to the nations, and above all the Suffering Servant pierced for our transgressions (ch. 53).
How Isaiah 13:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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