“The oracle concerning Dumah.
One is calling to me
From Seir.
‘Sentinel!
What of the night?
Sentinel!
What of the night?’
The sentinel says.
‘Morning comes!
Also the night!
If you will inquire,
Inquire!
Come back again.’”
Dumah means silence and may be a symbolic name for Edom. Apparently Isaiah or Yahweh presented an oracle about Edom that was south of Moab, in modern day southern Jordan. The Edomites had been part of the uprising against Assyria. Someone was calling from Seir, a mountainous region in Edom. Once again, it is the lookout, the watchman, or the sentinel who gives the cry. The question is what is happening. Apparently there will there will a night like destruction, not merely once, but twice, and then again. In between, there will be a nice morning.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 