Here Isaiah describes an event that will happen in the future as if it already happened. This emphasizes that it certainly will happen. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-pastforfuture]])
This can be stated in active form. Alternate translation: "The cities that were strong and had many people living in them will become empty like a desert" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-activepassive]])
Here "calf" represents calves or cattle in general. Alternate translation: "calves feed, and there they lie down and consume" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-genericnoun]])