Isaiah 14:18

Modern

All the kings of the nations lie in state, each in his own tomb.

Traditional

All the kings of the nations, even all of them, lie in glory, every one in his own house.

Literal

All the kings of the nations, all of them, lie down in glory, each man in his own house;

Latin

Omnes reges gentium universi dormierunt in gloria, vir in domo sua;

Hebrew

English

All the kings of the nations lie in state, each in his own tomb.

The absence of a proper burial was a sign of great shame and dishonor. Unlike other kings, the king of Babylon would be disgraced in judgment.

This taunting song about the king of Babylon is written like a funeral song. It speaks as if the king has already died.

The song mocks him and announces his downfall (compare Revelation 18).

Theme notes and profiles

Isaiah 22:16
What are you doing here, and who authorized you to carve out a tomb for yourself here—to chisel your tomb in the height and cut your resting place in the rock?
2 Chronicles 24:16
And Jehoiada was buried with the kings in the City of David, because he had done what was good in Israel for God and His temple.
Job 30:23
Yes, I know that You will bring me down to death, to the place appointed for all the living.
Ezekiel 32:18–32
“Son of man, wail for the multitudes of Egypt, and consign her and the daughters of the mighty nations to the depths of the earth with those who descend to the Pit:
2 Chronicles 24:25
And when the Arameans had withdrawn, they left Joash severely wounded. His own servants conspired against him for shedding the blood of the son of Jehoiada the priest, and they killed him on his bed. So he died and was buried in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.
Ecclesiastes 6:3
A man may father a hundred children and live for many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he is unsatisfied with his prosperity and does not even receive a proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he.
Ecclesiastes 12:5
…when men fear the heights and dangers of the road, when the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper loses its spring, and the caper berry shrivels—for then man goes to his eternal home and mourners walk the streets.