Another Interesting Site to Challenge God

ISA 13:19-21

     19  And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans'
           pride,
         Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gommorah
     20  It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to
           generation;
         Nor will the arab pitch his tent there,
         Nor will shepherds make their flocks lie down there.
     21  But desert creatures will lie down there,
         And their houses will be full of owls,
         Ostriches also will live there, and shaggy goats will frolic there.
         And hyenas will howl in their fortified towers
         And jackals in their luxurious palaces.
         her hateful time also will soon come
         And her days will not be prolonged.

[ Note that where the word 'owls' appear here, the literal translation is "howling creatures." v. 21 ]

Babylon was once such a magnificent place. One of the seven wonders of the world. Again, picture a place like New York.

The site of ancient Babylon is uninhabited. Looking at verse 19 we see that it is as Sodom and Gommorah was. Brine and salt formations are forming in Babylon, and geologists aren't sure why.

But look at the second line in verse 20.

Did you catch it?

Arabs didn't exist when this was written. The Edomites, desert wanderers, eventually became the Arabs. Even in the Hebrew, this translates to Arabian tent.
( Note that some non-Biblical commentaries will refer to Edomites as "Elamites," which results from different phonetic pronounciations. )