Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version “Take up a harp, walk through the city, you forgotten prostitute; play the harp well, sing many a song, so that you will be remembered.” New Living Translation Take a harp and walk the streets, you forgotten harlot. Make sweet melody and sing your songs so you will be remembered again. English Standard Version “Take a harp; go about the city, O forgotten prostitute! Make sweet melody; sing many songs, that you may be remembered.” Berean Standard Bible “Take up your harp, stroll through the city, O forgotten harlot. Make sweet melody, sing many a song, so you will be remembered.” King James Bible Take an harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered. New King James Version “Take a harp, go about the city, You forgotten harlot; Make sweet melody, sing many songs, That you may be remembered.” New American Standard Bible Take your harp, wander around the city, You forgotten prostitute; Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs, That you may be remembered. NASB 1995 Take your harp, walk about the city, O forgotten harlot; Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs, That you may be remembered. NASB 1977 Take your harp, walk about the city, O forgotten harlot; Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs, That you may be remembered. Legacy Standard Bible Take your harp, walk about the city, O forgotten harlot; Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs, That you may be remembered. Amplified Bible Take a harp, walk around the city, O forgotten prostitute; Play the strings skillfully, sing many songs, That you may be remembered. Christian Standard Bible Pick up your lyre, stroll through the city, you forgotten prostitute. Play skillfully, sing many a song so that you will be remembered. Holman Christian Standard Bible Pick up your lyre, stroll through the city, prostitute forgotten by men. Play skillfully, sing many a song, and you will be thought of again. American Standard Version Take a harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered. Contemporary English Version You're gone and forgotten, you evil woman! So strut through the town, singing and playing your favorite tune to be remembered again. English Revised Version Take an harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered. GOD'S WORD® Translation "Take your lyre. Go around in the city, you forgotten prostitute. Make sweet music. Sing many songs so that you'll be remembered." Good News Translation Take your harp, go round the town, you poor forgotten whore! Play and sing your songs again to bring men back once more. International Standard Version "Take a harp; walk around the city, you forgotten whore! Make sweet melody; sing many songs, and perhaps you'll be remembered." Majority Standard Bible ?Take up your harp, stroll through the city, O forgotten harlot. Make sweet melody, sing many a song, so you will be remembered.? NET Bible "Take the harp, go through the city, forgotten prostitute! Play it well, play lots of songs, so you'll be noticed!" New Heart English Bible Take a harp; go about the city, you prostitute that has been forgotten. Make sweet melody. Sing many songs, that you may be remembered. Webster's Bible Translation Take a harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered. World English Bible Take a harp; go about the city, you prostitute that has been forgotten. Make sweet melody. Sing many songs, that you may be remembered. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionTake a harp, go around the city, O forgotten harlot, play well, "" Multiply song that you may be remembered. Young's Literal Translation Take a harp, go round the city, O forgotten harlot, play well, Multiply song that thou mayest be remembered. Smith's Literal Translation Take a harp, go about the city, O harlot having been forgotten; be cheerful, playing on the instrument; increase the song so that thou shalt be remembered. Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleTake a harp, go about the city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten: sing well, sing many a song, that thou mayst be remembered. Catholic Public Domain Version Take up a stringed instrument. Circulate through the city, you harlot who had been forgotten. Sing many canticles well, so that you may be remembered. New American Bible Take a harp, go about the city, forgotten prostitute; Pluck the strings skillfully, sing many songs, that you may be remembered. New Revised Standard Version Take a harp, go about the city, you forgotten prostitute! Make sweet melody, sing many songs, that you may be remembered. Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleTake a harp, go about the city, O you harlot that has been forgotten; play sweet melodies, sing many songs, that you may be remembered. Peshitta Holy Bible Translated Take a harp and go around the city, whore that was forgotten! Play beautifully! Multiply singers so that you will be remembered! OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917Take a harp, Go about the city, Thou harlot long forgotten; Make sweet melody, Sing many songs, That thou mayest be remembered. Brenton Septuagint Translation Take a harp, go about, O city, thou harlot that hast been forgotten; play well on the harp, sing many songs, that thou mayest be remembered. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context The Fall of Tyre…15At that time Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years—the span of a king’s life. But at the end of seventy years, it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the harlot: 16“Take up your harp, stroll through the city, O forgotten harlot. Make sweet melody, sing many a song, so you will be remembered.” 17And at the end of seventy years, the LORD will restore Tyre. Then she will return to hire as a prostitute and sell herself to all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.… Cross References Ezekiel 26:13 So I will silence the sound of your songs, and the music of your lyres will no longer be heard. Revelation 18:22 And the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters, will never ring out in you again. Nor will any craftsmen of any trade be found in you again, nor the sound of a millstone be heard in you again. Jeremiah 25:10 Moreover, I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the lamp. Ezekiel 27:25-27 The ships of Tarshish carried your merchandise. And you were filled with heavy cargo in the heart of the sea. / Your oarsmen have brought you onto the high seas, but the east wind will shatter you in the heart of the sea. / Your wealth, wares, and merchandise, your sailors, captains, and shipwrights, your merchants and all the warriors within you, with all the other people on board, will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your downfall. Nahum 3:4 because of the many harlotries of the harlot, the seductive mistress of sorcery, who betrays nations by her prostitution and clans by her witchcraft. Isaiah 47:15 This is what they are to you—those with whom you have labored and traded from youth—each one strays in his own direction; not one of them can save you. Revelation 17:1-2 Then one of the seven angels with the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters. / The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and those who dwell on the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her immorality.” Isaiah 14:11 Your pomp has been brought down to Sheol, along with the music of your harps. Maggots are your bed and worms your blanket. Ezekiel 28:12-19 “Son of man, take up a lament for the king of Tyre and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. / You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every kind of precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald. Your mountings and settings were crafted in gold, prepared on the day of your creation. / You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for I had ordained you. You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked among the fiery stones. ... Revelation 18:3 All the nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her immorality. The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy from the extravagance of her luxury.” Isaiah 24:8 The joyful tambourines have ceased; the noise of revelers has stopped; the joyful harp is silent. Jeremiah 51:7 Babylon was a gold cup in the hand of the LORD, making the whole earth drunk. The nations drank her wine; therefore the nations have gone mad. Isaiah 32:13-14 and for the land of my people, overgrown with thorns and briers—even for every house of merriment in this city of revelry. / For the palace will be forsaken, the busy city abandoned. The hill and the watchtower will become caves forever—the delight of wild donkeys and a pasture for flocks— Revelation 14:8 Then a second angel followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, who has made all the nations drink the wine of the passion of her immorality.” Isaiah 16:10 Joy and gladness are removed from the orchard; no one sings or shouts in the vineyards. No one tramples the grapes in the winepresses; I have put an end to the cheering. Treasury of Scripture Take an harp, go about the city, you harlot that have been forgotten; make sweet melody, sing many songs, that you may be remembered. Proverbs 7:10-12 And, behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart… Jeremiah 30:14 All thy lovers have forgotten thee; they seek thee not; for I have wounded thee with the wound of an enemy, with the chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of thine iniquity; because thy sins were increased. Jump to Previous City Forgotten Harlot Harp Instrument Loose Mayest Melody Memory Minds Music Play Pluck Prostitute Remembered Round Sing Skillfully Songs Strings Sweet WalkJump to Next City Forgotten Harlot Harp Instrument Loose Mayest Melody Memory Minds Music Play Pluck Prostitute Remembered Round Sing Skillfully Songs Strings Sweet WalkIsaiah 23 1. The miserable overthrow of Tyre15. Her restoration and unfaithfulness Take up your harp In ancient times, the harp was a common musical instrument used for both worship and entertainment. The use of the harp here symbolizes an attempt to regain favor and attention through music, which was a significant part of cultural and religious life in biblical times. The harp is often associated with joy and celebration, as seen in Psalm 33:2, where it is used to praise God. stroll through the city O forgotten harlot Make sweet melody sing many a song so you will be remembered Persons / Places / Events 1. TyreAn ancient Phoenician city known for its wealth and trade. In Isaiah 23, Tyre is personified as a harlot due to its commercial and political alliances. 2. The Forgotten Harlot Represents Tyre, which is depicted as a once-prominent city that has fallen into obscurity and is attempting to regain its former status through its trade and influence. 3. Isaiah The prophet who delivers God's message of judgment and restoration. His prophecies often include symbolic language and vivid imagery. 4. The Harp A musical instrument symbolizing the attempt to regain attention and favor through charm and allure. 5. The City Represents the broader society or world that Tyre seeks to influence and captivate once again. Teaching Points The Fleeting Nature of Worldly SuccessTyre's attempt to regain prominence highlights the temporary nature of worldly wealth and status. Believers are reminded to seek eternal treasures in heaven rather than earthly acclaim. Repentance and Restoration The call to "sing many songs" can be seen as an opportunity for repentance and a return to God. It serves as a reminder that restoration is possible through genuine repentance. The Power of Influence Just as Tyre sought to influence through charm, Christians are called to be a positive influence in the world, using their gifts to glorify God rather than seeking personal gain. The Danger of Forgetfulness Being "forgotten" serves as a warning against spiritual complacency. Believers must remain vigilant in their faith and not allow themselves to drift away from God's purposes.(16) Take an harp, go about the city . . .--In a tone half of irony and half of pity, the prophet tells the "harlot that had been forgotten" to return to her old arts of song (the singing women of the East were commonly of this class), and to go about once more with song and lyre, recalling her old lovers (i.e., her old allies) to the memory of their past love.Verse 16. - Take an harp. Harlots in the East, and indeed in the West also in ancient times (Her., 'Epist.,' 1:14, 1. 25), were expected to be musicians. The harp and the guitar were their usual instruments. Forgotten harlot. In addressing. Tyro as a "harlot," the prophet does not seem to mean more than that her aims were, or at any rate had been, selfish and worldly, such as sever between man and God. She had pursued wealth for the enjoyments that it brought her, not in order to make a good use of it. Hers had been the covetousness which is "idolatry" (Colossians 3:5). Parallel Commentaries ... Hebrew Take upקְחִ֥י (qə·ḥî) Verb - Qal - Imperative - feminine singular Strong's 3947: To take your harp, כִנּ֛וֹר (ḵin·nō·wr) Noun - masculine singular Strong's 3658: A harp stroll through סֹ֥בִּי (sōb·bî) Verb - Qal - Imperative - feminine singular Strong's 5437: To turn about, go around, surround the city, עִ֖יר (‘îr) Noun - feminine singular Strong's 5892: Excitement O forgotten נִשְׁכָּחָ֑ה (niš·kā·ḥāh) Verb - Nifal - Participle - feminine singular Strong's 7911: To mislay, to be oblivious of, from want of memory, attention harlot; זוֹנָ֣ה (zō·w·nāh) Noun - feminine singular Strong's 2181: To commit adultery, to commit idolatry make sweet הֵיטִ֤יבִי (hê·ṭî·ḇî) Verb - Hifil - Imperative - feminine singular Strong's 3190: To be good, well, glad, or pleasing melody, נַגֵּן֙ (nag·gên) Verb - Piel - Infinitive construct Strong's 5059: To touch or play a stringed instrument sing many הַרְבִּי־ (har·bî-) Verb - Hifil - Imperative - feminine singular Strong's 7235: To be or become much, many or great a song, שִׁ֔יר (šîr) Noun - masculine singular Strong's 7892: A song, singing so you will be remembered. תִּזָּכֵֽרִי׃ (tiz·zā·ḵê·rî) Verb - Nifal - Imperfect - second person feminine singular Strong's 2142: To mark, to remember, to mention, to be male Links Isaiah 23:16 NIVIsaiah 23:16 NLT Isaiah 23:16 ESV Isaiah 23:16 NASB Isaiah 23:16 KJV Isaiah 23:16 BibleApps.com Isaiah 23:16 Biblia Paralela Isaiah 23:16 Chinese Bible Isaiah 23:16 French Bible Isaiah 23:16 Catholic Bible OT Prophets: Isaiah 23:16 Take a harp (Isa Isi Is) |
    |