16¹ Send lambs as tribute to the ruler of the land, from Sela, across the desert, to the mount of Daughter Zion. ² Like fluttering birds pushed from the nest, so are the women of Moab at the fords of the Arnon. ³ "Make up your mind," Moab says. "Render a decision. Make your shadow like night- at high noon. Hide the fugitives, do not betray the refugees. ⁴ Let the Moabite fugitives stay with you; be their shelter from the destroyer." The oppressor will come to an end, and destruction will cease; the aggressor will vanish from the land. ⁵ In love a throne will be established; in faithfulness a man will sit on it- one from the house[1] of David- one who in judging seeks justice and speeds the cause of righteousness.

⁶ We have heard of Moab's pride- how great is her arrogance!- of her conceit, her pride and her insolence; but her boasts are empty. ⁷ Therefore the Moabites wail, they wail together for Moab. Lament and grieve for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. ⁸ The fields of Heshbon wither, the vines of Sibmah also. The rulers of the nations have trampled down the choicest vines, which once reached Jazer and spread toward the desert. Their shoots spread out and went as far as the sea.[2] ⁹ So I weep, as Jazer weeps, for the vines of Sibmah. Heshbon and Elealeh, I drench you with tears! The shouts of joy over your ripened fruit and over your harvests have been stilled. ¹⁰ Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards; no one sings or shouts in the vineyards; no one treads out wine at the presses, for I have put an end to the shouting. ¹¹ My heart laments for Moab like a harp, my inmost being for Kir Hareseth. ¹² When Moab appears at her high place, she only wears herself out; when she goes to her shrine to pray, it is to no avail. ¹³ This is the word the Lord has already spoken concerning Moab. ¹⁴ But now the Lord says: "Within three years, as a servant bound by contract would count them, Moab's splendor and all her many people will be despised, and her survivors will be very few and feeble."

16¹ Send lambs from Sela as tribute to the ruler of the land. Send them through the desert to the mountain of beautiful Zion. ² The women of Moab are left like homeless birds at the shallow crossings of the Arnon River. ³ "Help us," they cry. "Defend us against our enemies. Protect us from their relentless attack. Do not betray us now that we have escaped. ⁴ Let our refugees stay among you. Hide them from our enemies until the terror is past." When oppression and destruction have ended and enemy raiders have disappeared, ⁵ then God will establish one of David's descendants as king. He will rule with mercy and truth. He will always do what is just and be eager to do what is right.

⁶ We have heard about proud Moab- about its pride and arrogance and rage. But all that boasting has disappeared. ⁷ The entire land of Moab weeps. Yes, everyone in Moab mourns for the cakes of raisins from Kir-hareseth. They are all gone now. ⁸ The farms of Heshbon are abandoned; the vineyards at Sibmah are deserted. The rulers of the nations have broken down Moab- that beautiful grapevine. Its tendrils spread north as far as the town of Jazer and trailed eastward into the wilderness. Its shoots reached so far west that they crossed over the Dead Sea. ⁹ So now I weep for Jazer and the vineyards of Sibmah; my tears will flow for Heshbon and Elealeh. There are no more shouts of joy over your summer fruits and harvest. ¹⁰ Gone now is the gladness, gone the joy of harvest. There will be no singing in the vineyards, no more happy shouts, no treading of grapes in the winepresses. I have ended all their harvest joys. ¹¹ My heart's cry for Moab is like a lament on a harp. I am filled with anguish for Kir-hareseth. ¹² The people of Moab will worship at their pagan shrines, but it will do them no good. They will cry to the gods in their temples, but no one will be able to save them. ¹³ The Lord has already said these things about Moab in the past. ¹⁴ But now the Lord says, "Within three years, counting each day, the glory of Moab will be ended. From its great population, only a feeble few will be left alive."

16¹ And they will send ... to the mountain of the daughter of Zion. ² For the daughters of Moab will be like wandering birds, like a place from which the young birds have gone in flight, at the ways across the Arnon. ³ Give wise directions, make a decision; let your shade be as night in full day: keep safe those who are in flight; do not give up the wandering ones. ⁴ Let those who have been forced out of Moab have a resting-place with you; be a cover to them from him who is making waste their land: till the cruel ones are cut off, and wasting has come to an end, and those who take pleasure in crushing the poor are gone from the land. ⁵ Then a king's seat will be based on mercy, and one will be seated on it in the tent of David for ever; judging uprightly, and quick to do righteousness.

⁶ We have had word of the pride of Moab, how great it is; how he is lifted up in pride and passion: his high words about himself are false. ⁷ For this cause everyone in Moab will give cries of grief for Moab: crushed to the earth, they will be weeping for the men of Kir-hareseth. ⁸ For the fields of Heshbon are waste, the vine of Sibmah is dead; the lords of nations were overcome by the produce of her vines; her vine-plants went as far as Jazer, and came even to the waste land; her branches were stretched out to the sea. ⁹ For this cause my sorrow for the vine of Sibmah will be like the weeping for Jazer: my eyes are dropping water on you, O Heshbon and Elealeh! For they are sounding the war-cry over your summer fruits and the getting in of your grain; ¹⁰ And all joy is gone; no longer are they glad for the fertile field; and in the vine-gardens there are no songs or sounds of joy: the crushing of grapes has come to an end, and its glad cry has been stopped. ¹¹ For this cause the cords of my heart are sounding for Moab, and I am full of sorrow for Kir-heres. ¹² And when Moab goes up to the high place, and makes prayer in the house of his god, it will have no effect. ¹³ This is the word which the Lord said about Moab in the past. ¹⁴ But now the Lord has said, In three years, the years of a servant working for payment, the glory of Moab, all that great people, will be turned to shame, and the rest of Moab will be very small and without honour.

16¹ "Dispatch a gift of lambs," says Moab, "to the leaders in Jerusalem - Lambs from Sela sent across the desert to buy the goodwill of Jerusalem. ² The towns and people of Moab are at a loss, New-hatched birds knocked from the nest, fluttering helplessly At the banks of the Arnon River, unable to cross: ³ 'Tell us what to do, help us out! Protect us, hide us! ⁴ Give the refugees from Moab sanctuary with you. Be a safe place for those on the run from the killing fields.'" "When this is all over," Judah answers, "the tyrant toppled, The killing at an end, all signs of these cruelties long gone, ⁵ A new government of love will be established in the venerable David tradition. A Ruler you can depend upon will head this government, A Ruler passionate for justice, a Ruler quick to set things right."

⁶ We've heard - everyone's heard! - of Moab's pride, world-famous for pride - Arrogant, self-important, insufferable, full of hot air. ⁷ So now let Moab lament for a change, with antiphonal mock-laments from the neighbors! What a shame! How terrible! No more fine fruitcakes and Kir-hareseth candies! ⁸ All those lush Heshbon fields dried up, the rich Sibmah vineyards withered! Foreign thugs have crushed and torn out the famous grapevines That once reached all the way to Jazer, right to the edge of the desert, Ripped out the crops in every direction as far as the eye can see. ⁹ I'll join the weeping. I'll weep right along with Jazer, weep for the Sibmah vineyards. And yes, Heshbon and Elealeh, I'll mingle my tears with your tears! The joyful shouting at harvest is gone. Instead of song and celebration, dead silence. ¹⁰ No more boisterous laughter in the orchards, no more hearty work songs in the vineyards. Instead of the bustle and sound of good work in the fields, silence - deathly and deadening silence. ¹¹ My heartstrings throb like harp strings for Moab, my soul in sympathy for sad Kir-heres. ¹² When Moab trudges to the shrine to pray, he wastes both time and energy. Going to the sanctuary and praying for relief is useless. Nothing ever happens. ¹³ This is God's earlier Message on Moab. ¹⁴ God's updated Message is, "In three years, no longer than the term of an enlisted soldier, Moab's impressive presence will be gone, that splendid hot-air balloon will be punctured, and instead of a vigorous population, just a few shuffling bums cadging handouts."