Isaiah 25:2

1 O LORD, You are my God! I will exalt You; I will praise Your name. For You have worked wonders— plans formed long ago— in perfect faithfulness.

Indeed, You have made the city a heap of rubble, the fortified town a ruin. The fortress of strangers is a city no more; it will never be rebuilt.

3 Therefore, a strong people will honor You. The cities of ruthless nations will revere You.

4 For You have been a refuge for the poor, a stronghold for the needy in distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat. For the breath of the ruthless is like rain against a wall,

This was said to Israel at a particular time, so it is wise to read it together with the surrounding text. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB
Indeed, You have made the city a heap of rubble, the fortified town a ruin. The fortress of strangers is a city no more; it will never be rebuilt.
KJV
For thou hast made of a city an heap; of a defenced city a ruin: a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built.
WEB
For you have made a city into a heap, a fortified city into a ruin, a palace of strangers to be no city. It will never be built.
ASV
For thou hast made of a city a heap, of a fortified city a ruin, a palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built.
DARBY
For thou hast made of the city a heap, of the fortified town a ruin, the palace of strangers to be no city; it shall never be built up.
BLB
For You have made the city a heap, the fortified city a ruin, a fortress of strangers from a city—forever it will never be rebuilt!
ÅB
For du har gjort en by til en stenhaug, en fast by til en grusdynge, du har ødelagt de fremmedes palasser, så det ikke mere er noen by; de skal aldri mere bygges opp igjen.
OTB
Du har gjort byen til en ruinhaug, den befestede byen til en ruin; fremmedes palass er ikke lenger en by, den vil aldri bli gjenoppbygd.
B1930
For du har gjort en by til en stenhaug, en fast by til en grusdynge, du har ødelagt de fremmedes palasser, så det ikke mere er nogen by; de skal aldri mere bygges op igjen.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

  • Isaiah 17:1

    This is the burden against Damascus: “Behold, Damascus is no longer a city; it has become a heap of ruins.

    Read in context
  • Isaiah 13:22

    Hyenas will howl in her fortresses and jackals in her luxurious palaces. Babylon’s time is at hand, and her days will not be prolonged.

    Read in context
  • Isaiah 25:12

    The high-walled fortress will be brought down, cast to the ground, into the dust.

    Read in context
  • Isaiah 21:9

    Look, here come the riders, horsemen in pairs.” And one answered, saying: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon! All the images of her gods lie shattered on the ground!”

    Read in context
  • Deuteronomy 13:16

    And you are to gather all its plunder in the middle of the public square, and completely burn the city and all its plunder as a whole burnt offering to the LORD your God. The city must remain a mound of ruins forever, never to be rebuilt.

    Read in context
  • Isaiah 23:13

    Look at the land of the Chaldeans — a people now of no account. The Assyrians destined it for the desert creatures; they set up their siege towers and stripped its palaces. They brought it to ruin.

    Read in context
  • Jeremiah 51:26

    No one shall retrieve from you a cornerstone or a foundation stone, because you will become desolate forever,” declares the LORD.

    Read in context
  • Isaiah 14:23

    “I will make her a place for owls and for swamplands; I will sweep her away with the broom of destruction,” declares the LORD of Hosts.

    Read in context