Word Against Egypt
That which came as the word of Yahweh to Jeremiah the prophet aconcerning the nations.
2 To aEgypt, concerning the military force of bPharaoh Neco king of Egypt, which was by the Euphrates River at cCarchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck down in the dfourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:
3 “aArrange the shield and large shield,
And draw near for the battle!
4 Harness the horses,
And mount the steeds,
And take your stand with helmets on!
aPolish the spears,
Put on the bscale‑armor!
5 Why have I seen it?
They are shattered;
They are adrawing back,
And their bmighty men are crushed
And have fled to refuge,
Without facing back;
cTerror is on every side!”
Declares Yahweh.
6 Let not the aswift man flee,
Nor the mighty man escape;
In the north beside the river Euphrates
They have bstumbled and fallen.
7 Who is this that arises like the Nile,
Like the rivers whose waters toss about?
8 Egypt rises like the Nile,
Even like the rivers whose waters toss about;
And He has said, “I will arise and cover that land;
I will surely bcause the city to perish, as well as its inhabitants.”
9 Go up, you horses, and adrive madly, you chariots,
That the mighty men may go forth:
Ethiopia and bPut, who seize the shield,
And the cLydians, who seize and bend the bow.
10 Indeed, athat day belongs to Lord Yahweh of hosts,
A day of bvengeance, so as to avenge Himself on His adversaries;
And the csword will devour and be satiated
And drink its fill of their blood;
For there will be a dsacrifice to Lord Yahweh of hosts
In the land of the north by the river Euphrates.
11 Go aup to Gilead and obtain balm,
bO virgin daughter of Egypt!
In vain have you multiplied remedies;
There is cno healing for you.
12 The nations have heard of your adisgrace,
And the earth is full of your boutcry;
For one cwarrior has stumbled over another,
And both of them have fallen down together.
13 This is the message which Yahweh spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the acoming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to bstrike down the land of Egypt:
14 “Declare in Egypt and cause it to be heard in aMigdol;
Cause it to be heard also in Memphis and bTahpanhes;
Say, ‘Take your stand and get yourself ready,
For the csword has devoured those around you.’
15 Why are your amighty ones thrown down?
They do not stand because Yahweh has bthrust them down.
16 They have repeatedly astumbled;
Indeed, they have fallen one against another.
Then they said, ‘Rise up! And blet us return
To our own people and land of our birth
Away from the csword of the oppressor.’
17 They called out there, ‘Pharaoh king of Egypt is but aa rumbling;
He has let the appointed time pass by!’
18 As I live,” declares the aKing
Whose name is Yahweh of hosts,
“Surely one shall come who looms up like bTabor among the mountains,
Or like cCarmel by the sea.
19 Make your baggage ready for aexile,
O inhabitant of the bdaughter of Egypt,
For cMemphis will become a desolation;
It will even be turned into ruin and without inhabitants.
20 Egypt is a pretty aheifer,
But a horsefly is coming bfrom the north—it is coming!
21 Also her amercenaries in her midst
Are like fattened bcalves,
For even they have turned back and have fled away together;
They did not stand their ground.
For the day of their disaster has come upon them,
The time of their cpunishment.
22 Its sound moves along like a serpent;
For they move on like a military force
And come to her as woodcutters with axes.
23 They have cut down her aforest,” declares Yahweh;
“Surely it will no longer be searched out,
Even though they are now more numerous than blocusts
And are without number.
24 The daughter of Egypt has been put to shame,
Given over to the hand of the apeople of the north.”
25 Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, says, “Behold, I am going to punish Amon of aThebes, and bPharaoh, and Egypt along with her cgods and her kings, even Pharaoh and those who dtrust in him. 26 I shall give them into the hand of those who are aseeking their lives, even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of his servants. bAfterwards, however, it will be dwelt in like in the days of old,” declares Yahweh.
27 “But as for you, O Jacob My servant, ado not fear,
Nor be dismayed, O Israel!
For behold, I am going to bsave you from afar,
And your seed from the land of their captivity;
And Jacob will return and have cquiet
And be at ease, with no one making him tremble.
28 O Jacob My servant, do not fear,” declares Yahweh,
“For aI am with you.
For I will make a complete destruction of all the nations
Where I have banished you,
Yet I will bnot make a complete destruction of you;
But I will cdiscipline you with justice
And by no means leave you unpunished.”
Word Against Philistia
That which came as the word of Yahweh to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the aPhilistines, before Pharaoh struck down bGaza. 2 Thus says Yahweh:
“Behold, waters are going to rise from athe north
And become an overflowing torrent,
And boverflow the land as well as its fullness,
The city and those who inhabit it;
And the men will ccry out,
And every inhabitant of the land will wail.
3 Because of the noise of the agalloping hoofs of his valiant steeds,
The quaking of his chariots, and the tumult of his wheels,
The fathers have not turned back for their children,
Because of the limpness of their hands,
4 On account of the day that is coming
To adestroy all the Philistines,
To cut off from bTyre and Sidon
Every ally that is left;
For Yahweh is going to destroy the Philistines,
The remnant of the coastland of cCaphtor.
5 aBaldness has come upon Gaza;
bAshkelon has been ruined.
O remnant of their valley,
How long will you cgash yourself?
6 Ah, asword of Yahweh,
How long will you not be quiet?
Withdraw into your sheath;
Be at rest and stay still.
7 How can it be quiet?
Yahweh has agiven it a command;
Against Ashkelon and against the seacoast—
There He has bassigned it.”
Word Against Moab
Concerning aMoab. Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel,
“Woe to bNebo, for it has been destroyed;
cKiriathaim has been put to shame, it has been captured;
The lofty stronghold has been put to shame and shattered.
2 There is praise for Moab no longer;
In aHeshbon they have devised calamity against her:
‘Come and let us cut her off from being a nation!’
You too, Madmen, will be silenced;
The sword will follow after you.
3 The sound of an outcry from aHoronaim,
‘Devastation and great destruction!’
4 Moab is broken;
Her little ones have made their cry of distress heard.
5 For by the ascent of aLuhith
They will ascend with continual weeping;
For at the descent of Horonaim
They have heard the distressed cry of destruction.
6 aFlee, escape with your lives,
That you may be like a juniper in the wilderness.
7 For because of your atrust in your own works and treasures,
Even you yourself will be captured;
And bChemosh will go off into exile
Together with his priests and his princes.
8 A destroyer will come to every city,
So that no city will escape;
The valley also will perish,
And the aplateau will be destroyed,
As Yahweh has said.
9 Give awings to Moab,
For she will flee away;
And her cities will become a bdesolation,
Without inhabitants in them.
10 aCursed be the one who does the work of Yahweh bwith a slack hand,
And cursed be the one who restrains his csword from blood.
11 “Moab has been aat ease since his youth;
He has also had bquiet, like wine on its dregs,
And he has not been cemptied from vessel to vessel,
Nor has he gone into exile.
Therefore he retains his flavor,
And his aroma has not changed.
12 Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when I will send to him those who tip vessels, and they will tip him over, and they will empty his vessels and shatter his jars. 13 And Moab will be aashamed of bChemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of cBethel, their trust.
14 How can you say, ‘We are amighty warriors,
And men valiant for battle’?
15 Moab has been destroyed, and men have gone up to his cities;
His choicest ayoung men have also gone down to the slaughter,”
Declares the bKing, whose name is Yahweh of hosts.
16 “The disaster of Moab will asoon come,
And his calamity has quickly hastened.
17 Mourn for him, all you who live around him,
Even all of you who know his name;
Say, ‘How has the strong ascepter been broken,
A staff of beauty!’
18 aCome down from your glory
And inhabit the parched ground,
O inhabitant of the bdaughter of cDibon;
For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you,
He has ruined your strongholds.
19 Stand by the road and keep watch,
O inhabitant of aAroer;
bAsk him who flees and her who escapes
And say, ‘What has happened?’
20 Moab has been put to shame, for it has been shattered.
Wail and cry out;
Declare by the aArnon
That Moab has been destroyed.
21 “Judgment has also come upon the plain, upon Holon, upon aJahzah, and against bMephaath, 22 and against Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, 23 and against Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and aBeth-meon, 24 and against aKerioth, Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. 25 The ahorn of Moab has been cut in pieces and his barm broken,” declares Yahweh. 26 “aMake him drunk, for he has bmagnified himself against Yahweh; so Moab will wallow in his vomit, and he also will become a laughingstock. 27 Now was not Israel a alaughingstock to you? Or was he bcaught among thieves? For each time you speak about him you cshake your head in scorn.
28 Leave the cities and dwell among the acrags,
O inhabitants of Moab,
And be like a bdove that nests
Beyond the mouth of the chasm.
29 aWe have heard of the pride of Moab—he is very proud—
Of his haughtiness, his bpride, his arrogance, and the exaltedness of his heart.
30 I know his afury,” declares Yahweh,
“But it is nothing;
His idle boasts have accomplished nothing.
31 Therefore I will awail for Moab,
Even for all Moab will I cry out;
I will moan for the men of bKir‑heres.
32 More than the aweeping for bJazer
I will weep for you, O vine of Sibmah!
Your branches stretched across the sea,
They reached to the sea of Jazer;
Upon your summer fruits and your grape harvest
The destroyer has fallen.
33 So agladness and joy are gathered up
From the fruitful orchard, even from the land of Moab.
And I have made the wine to bcease from the wine presses;
No one will tread them with shouting,
The shouting will not be shouts of joy.
34 aFrom the outcry at Heshbon even to bElealeh, even to Jahaz they have given forth their voice, from cZoar even to Horonaim and to Eglath-shelishiyah; for even the waters of Nimrim will become desolate. 35 I will make Moab cease,” declares Yahweh, “the one who offers offerings on the ahigh place and the one who boffers offerings in smoke to his gods.
36 “Therefore My aheart moans for Moab like flutes; My heart also moans like flutes for the men of Kir-heres. Therefore they have blost the abundance it produced. 37 For aevery head is bald and every beard cut short; there are gashes on all the hands and bsackcloth on the loins. 38 On all the arooftops of Moab and in its open squares there is lamentation everywhere; for I have broken Moab like an undesirable bvessel,” declares Yahweh. 39 “How shattered it is! How they have wailed! How Moab has turned his back—he is ashamed! So Moab will become a laughingstock and an aobject of terror to all around him.”
40 For thus says Yahweh:
“Behold, one will aswoop like an eagle
And bspread out his wings against Moab.
41 Kerioth has been captured,
And the strongholds have been seized,
So the ahearts of the mighty men of Moab in that day
Will be like the heart of a bwoman in labor.
42 Moab will be adestroyed from being a people
Because he has bmagnified himself against Yahweh.
43 aPanic and pit and pitfall are coming upon you,
O inhabitant of Moab,” declares Yahweh.
44 “The one who aflees from the panic
Will fall into the pit,
And the one who climbs up out of the pit
Will be caught in the pitfall;
For I shall bring upon her, even upon Moab,
The year of their bpunishment,” declares Yahweh.
45 “In the shadow of Heshbon
Those who flee stand without strength;
For a fire has gone forth from Heshbon
And a aflame from the midst of bSihon,
And it has devoured the ctop of the head of Moab
And the scalps of those who rumble.
46 aWoe to you, Moab!
The people of bChemosh have perished;
For your sons have been taken away captive
And your daughters into captivity.
47 Yet I will areturn the fortunes of Moab
In the last days,” declares Yahweh.
Thus far the judgment on Moab.
Word Against Ammon
Concerning the sons of aAmmon. Thus says Yahweh:
“Does Israel have no sons?
Or has he no one who can take possession?
Why then has Malcam taken possession of Gad
And his people settled in its cities?
2 Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh,
“That I will cause a atrumpet blast of war to be heard
Against bRabbah of the sons of Ammon;
And it will become a desolate heap,
And her ctowns will be set on fire.
Then Israel will take dpossession of his possessors,”
Says Yahweh.
3 “Wail, O aHeshbon, for bAi has been destroyed!
Cry out, O daughters of Rabbah,
cGird yourselves with sackcloth and lament,
And rush back and forth inside the walls;
For Malcam will dgo into exile
Together with his priests and his princes.
4 How aboastful you are about the valleys!
Your valley is flowing away,
O bfaithless daughter
Who trusts in her ctreasures, saying,
‘dWho will come against me?’
5 Behold, I am going to bring adread upon you,”
Declares Lord Yahweh of hosts,
“From all around you;
And each of you will be bbanished headlong,
With no one to gather the cone who flees.
6 But afterward I will areturn
The fortunes of the sons of Ammon,”
Declares Yahweh.
Word Against Edom
7 Concerning aEdom.
Thus says Yahweh of hosts,
“Is there no longer any bwisdom in cTeman?
Has counsel been lost to the understanding?
Has their wisdom decayed?
8 Flee away, turn back, inhabit the depths,
O inhabitants of aDedan,
For I will bring the bdisaster of Esau upon him
At the time I punish him.
9 aIf grape gatherers came to you,
Would they not have gleanings remain?
If thieves came by night,
They would ruin only until they had enough.
10 But I have astripped Esau bare;
I have uncovered his hiding places,
So that he will not be able to conceal himself;
His seed has been destroyed along with his relatives
And his neighbors, and bhe is no more.
11 Leave your aorphans behind, I will keep them alive;
And let your bwidows trust in Me.”
12 For thus says Yahweh, “Behold, those who are not under judgment to drink the acup will certainly drink it, but are you the one who will go bcompletely unpunished? You will not go unpunished, but you will certainly drink it. 13 For I have asworn by Myself,” declares Yahweh, “that bBozrah will become an cobject of horror, a reproach, a ruin, and an imprecation; and all its cities will become perpetual ruins.”
14 I have aheard a message from Yahweh,
And an benvoy is sent among the nations, saying,
“cGather yourselves together and come against her,
And rise up for battle!”
15 “For behold, I have made you small among the nations,
Despised among men.
16 As for the terror of you,
The arrogance of your heart has deceived you,
O you who dwell in the clefts of the arock,
Who seize the height of the hill.
Though you make your nest as bhigh as an eagle’s,
I will cbring you down from there,” declares Yahweh.
17 “Edom will become an aobject of horror; everyone who passes by it will be horrified and will bhiss at all its wounds. 18 Like the aoverthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah with its neighbors,” says Yahweh, “bno one will live there, nor will a son of man sojourn in it. 19 aBehold, one will come up like a lion from the bthickets of the Jordan against an enduring pasture; for in an instant I will make him run away from it, and whoever is cchosen I shall appoint over it. For who is dlike Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd ewho can stand against Me?”
20 Therefore hear the acounsel of Yahweh which He has counseled against Edom, and His purposes which He has purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: surely they will drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; surely He will make their pasture bdesolate because of them. 21 The aearth has quaked at the noise of their downfall. There is an outcry! The noise of it has been heard at the Red Sea. 22 Behold, He will mount up and aswoop like an eagle and spread out His wings against Bozrah; and the bhearts of the mighty men of Edom in that day will be like the heart of a woman in labor.
Word Against Damascus
23 Concerning aDamascus.
“bHamath and cArpad are put to shame,
For they have heard a bad report;
They are dmelting away.
There is anxiety by the sea,
It ecannot be quieted.
24 Damascus has become limp in their hands;
She has turned away to flee,
And panic has taken hold of her;
aDistress and pangs have seized her
Like a woman in childbirth.
25 How the acity of praise has not been forsaken,
The town of My joy!
26 Therefore, her ayoung men will fall in her open squares,
And all the men of war will be silenced in that day,” declares Yahweh of hosts.
27 “I will aset fire to the wall of Damascus,
And it will devour the fortified towers of bBen‑hadad.”
Word Against Kedar and Hazor
28 Concerning aKedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck down. Thus says Yahweh,
“Arise, go up to Kedar
And destroy the bmen of the east.
29 They will take away their tents and their flocks;
They will carry off for themselves
Their tent acurtains, all their goods, and their bcamels,
And they will call out to one another, ‘cTerror on every side!’
30 Run away, flee earnestly! Inhabit the depths,
O inhabitants of Hazor,” declares Yahweh;
“For aNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has taken counsel against you
And purposed a purpose against you.
31 Arise, go up against a nation which is aat ease,
Which inhabits its land securely,” declares Yahweh.
“It has bno gates or bars;
They cdwell alone.
32 Their camels will become plunder,
And their many cattle for spoil,
And I will ascatter to all the winds those who bcut the corners of their hair;
And I will bring their disaster from every side,” declares Yahweh.
33 “Hazor will become a ahaunt of jackals,
A desolation forever;
No one will inhabit there,
Nor will a son of man sojourn in it.”
Word Against Elam
34 That which came as the word of Yahweh to Jeremiah the prophet concerning aElam, bin the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying:
35 “Thus says Yahweh of hosts,
‘Behold, I am going to abreak the bow of Elam,
The finest of their might.
36 I will bring upon Elam the afour winds
From the four ends of heaven,
And I will bscatter them to all these winds;
And there will be no nation
To which the banished ones of Elam will not go.
37 So I will shatter Elam before their enemies
And before those who seek their lives;
And I will abring calamity upon them,
Even My bburning anger,’ declares Yahweh,
‘And I will csend out the sword after them
Until I have consumed them.
38 Then I will set My throne in Elam
And cause king and princes from there to perish,’
Declares Yahweh.
39 ‘But it will be in the last days
That I will areturn the fortunes of Elam,’”
Declares Yahweh.
Word Against Babylon
The word which Yahweh spoke concerning aBabylon, the land of the Chaldeans, by the hand of Jeremiah the prophet:
2 “aDeclare and make it heard among the nations.
Make it heard and blift up a standard.
Do not conceal it but say,
‘cBabylon has been captured;
dBel has been put to shame; Marduk has been shattered;
Her eimages have been put to shame; her idols have been shattered.’
3 For a nation has come up against her out of the anorth; it will make her land ban object of horror, and there will be cno inhabitant in it. Both man and beast have wandered off; they have gone away!
4 “In those days and at that time,” declares Yahweh, “the sons of Israel will come, both they and the sons of Judah aas well; they will go along bweeping as they go, and it will be cYahweh their God they will seek. 5 They will aask for the way to Zion—turning their faces in its direction and saying, ‘Come!’—in order that they may join themselves to Yahweh in an beverlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.
6 “My people have become alost sheep;
bTheir shepherds have led them astray.
They have made them turn away on the cmountains;
They have gone along from mountain to hill
And have forgotten their dresting place.
7 All who came out against them have devoured them;
And their adversaries have said, ‘aWe are not guilty,
Inasmuch as they have sinned against Yahweh, who is the babode of righteousness,
Even Yahweh, the chope of their fathers.’
8 “Wander away from the amidst of Babylon
And go forth from the land of the Chaldeans;
Be also like male goats at the head of the flock.
9 For behold, I am going to aarouse and bring up against Babylon
An assembly of great nations from the land of the north,
And they will arrange their battle lines against her;
From there she will be taken captive.
Their arrows will be like a warrior who makes one childless
Who does not return empty‑handed.
10 aChaldea will become spoil;
All who take her spoil will have enough,” declares Yahweh.
11 “Because you are glad, because you exult,
O you who aplunder My inheritance,
Because you skip about like a threshing bheifer
And neigh like valiant steeds,
12 Your amother will be greatly ashamed;
She who gave you birth will be humiliated.
Behold, she will be the least of the nations,
A bwilderness, a parched land, and a desert.
13 Because of the wrath of Yahweh she will anot be inhabited,
But she will be bcompletely desolate;
Everyone who passes by Babylon cwill be in desolation
And will hiss because of all her wounds.
14 Arrange your battle lines against Babylon on every side,
All you who bend the bow;
Shoot at her, do not be sparing with your arrows,
For she has asinned against Yahweh.
15 Raise a loud shout against her on every side!
She has agiven herself up, her pillars have fallen,
Her bwalls have been pulled down.
For this is the cvengeance of Yahweh:
Take vengeance on her;
dAs she has done to others, so do to her.
16 Cut off the asower from Babylon
And the one who seizes the sickle at the time of harvest;
From before the bsword of the oppressor
cThey will each turn back to his own people,
And they will each flee to his own land.
17 “Israel is a ascattered flock; the blions have banished them away. The first one who devoured him was the cking of Assyria, and this last one who has broken his bones is dNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 18 Therefore thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am going to punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I apunished the king of Assyria. 19 And I will areturn Israel back to his pasture, and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan, and his desire will be satisfied in the bhill country of Ephraim and Gilead. 20 In those days and at that time,’ declares Yahweh, ‘search will be made for the iniquity of Israel, but athere will be none; and for the sins of Judah, but they will not be found; for I will pardon those bwhom I leave as a remnant.’
21 “Against the land of Merathaim, go up against it,
And against the inhabitants of aPekod.
Put them to the sword and devote them to destruction,” declares Yahweh,
“And do according to all that I have commanded you.
22 The anoise of battle is in the land,
And great destruction.
23 How the ahammer of the whole earth
Has been cut in pieces and broken!
How Babylon has become
An object of horror among the nations!
24 I aset a snare for you, and you were also bcaught, O Babylon,
But you yourself did not know;
You have been found and also seized
Because you have engaged in cconflict with Yahweh.”
25 Yahweh has opened His armory
And has brought forth the aweapons of His indignation,
For it is a bwork of Lord Yahweh of hosts
In the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come to her from the farthest border;
aOpen up her barns;
Pile her up like heaps,
And bdevote her to destruction;
Let nothing of her remain.
27 aPut all her young bulls to the sword;
Let them bgo down to the slaughter!
Woe be upon them, for their cday has come,
The time of their punishment.
28 There is a asound of those who flee and escape from the land of Babylon,
To declare in Zion the bvengeance of Yahweh our God,
Vengeance for His ctemple.
29 “Summon many against Babylon,
All those who bend the bow:
Encamp against her on every side,
Let there be no escape.
Repay her according to her work;
aAccording to all that she has done, so do to her;
For she has become barrogant against Yahweh,
Against the Holy One of Israel.
30 Therefore her ayoung men will fall in her open squares,
And all her men of war will be bsilenced in that day,” declares Yahweh.
31 “Behold, aI am against you, O arrogant one,”
Declares Lord Yahweh of hosts,
“For your day has come,
The time when I will punish you.
32 The aarrogant one will stumble and fall
With no one to raise him up;
And I will bset fire to his cities,
And it will devour him on every side.”
33 Thus says Yahweh of hosts,
“The sons of Israel are oppressed,
And the sons of Judah as well;
And aall who took them captive have held them fast;
They have refused to let them go.
34 Their aRedeemer is strong, bYahweh of hosts is His name;
He will vigorously cplead their case
So that He may dbring relief to the earth,
But turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 A asword against the Chaldeans,” declares Yahweh,
“And against the inhabitants of Babylon
And against her bofficials and her cwise men!
36 A sword against the aoracle priests, and they will become fools!
A sword against her bmighty men, and they will be cshattered!
37 A sword against their ahorses and against their chariots
And against all the bforeigners who are in the midst of her,
And they will become cwomen!
A sword against her treasures, and they will be plundered!
38 A adrought on her waters, and they will be dried up!
For it is a land of bgraven images,
And they are mad over terrifying idols.
39 “Therefore the adesert creatures will live there along with the jackals;
The ostriches also will live in it,
And it will bnever again be lived in
Or dwelt in from generation to generation.
40 As when God overthrew aSodom
And Gomorrah with its neighbors,” declares Yahweh,
“No man will live there,
Nor will any son of man sojourn in it.
41 “Behold, a people is coming afrom the north,
And a great nation and many kings
Will be aroused from the remote parts of the earth.
42 They aseize their bow and javelin;
They are bcruel and have no compassion.
Their cvoice roars like the sea;
And they ride on dhorses,
eArranged like a man for the battle
Against you, O daughter of Babylon.
43 The aking of Babylon has heard the report about them,
And his hands hang limp;
bDistress has taken hold of him,
Agony like a woman in childbirth.
44 “aBehold, one will come up like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan to an enduring pasture; for in an instant I will make them run away from it, and whoever is bchosen I will appoint over it. For who is clike Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd who can dstand before Me?” 45 Therefore hear the acounsel of Yahweh which He has counseled against Babylon, and His purposes which He has purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: bsurely they will drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; surely He will make their pasture desolate because of them. 46 At the sound, “Babylon has been seized!” the aearth is shaken, and an boutcry is heard among the nations.
Yahweh Sends Calamity to Babylon
Thus says Yahweh:
“Behold, I am going to arouse against Babylon
And against the inhabitants of Leb‑kamai
The aspirit of a destroyer.
2 I will send strangers to Babylon that they may awinnow her
And may empty her land to destruction;
For on every side they will be against her
In the day of her calamity.
3 Let not him who abends his bow bend it,
Nor let him rise up in his bscale‑armor;
So do not spare her young men;
Devote all her army to destruction.
4 They will fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans,
And apierced through in their streets.”
5 For aneither Israel nor Judah has been widowed
By his God, by Yahweh of hosts,
Although their land is bfull of guilt
Before the Holy One of Israel.
6 aFlee from the midst of Babylon,
And each of you escape with his life!
Do not be bsilenced in her iniquity,
For this is cYahweh’s time of vengeance;
He is going to drender recompense to her.
7 Babylon has been a golden acup in the hand of Yahweh,
Intoxicating all the earth.
The bnations have drunk of her wine;
Therefore the nations are cgoing mad.
8 Suddenly aBabylon has fallen and been broken;
bWail over her!
cTake balm for her pain;
Perhaps she may be healed.
9 We applied healing to Babylon, but she was not healed;
Forsake her and alet us each go to his own country,
For her judgment has btouched heaven
And lifts up to the very skies.
10 Yahweh has abrought about our righteousness;
Come and let us brecount in Zion
The work of Yahweh our God!
11 aSharpen the arrows, fill the quivers!
Yahweh has aroused the spirit of the kings of the Medes
Because His purpose is against Babylon to destroy it;
For it is the bvengeance of Yahweh, vengeance for His temple.
12 aLift up a standard against the walls of Babylon;
Make strong the watch;
Raise up watchmen;
Establish men in ambush!
For Yahweh has both bpurposed and performed
What He spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 O you who adwell by abundant waters,
Abundant in btreasures,
Your end has come,
The measure of your cend.
14 aYahweh of hosts has sworn by Himself:
“Surely I will fill you with a population like blocusts,
And they will cry out with shouts of victory over you.”
15 It is aHe who made the earth by His power,
Who established the world by His wisdom,
And by His understanding He bstretched out the heavens.
16 When He gives forth His avoice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
And He causes the bclouds to ascend from the end of the earth;
He makes lightning for the rain
And brings forth the cwind from His storehouses.
17 aAll mankind is senseless, devoid of knowledge;
Every goldsmith is put to shame by his graven image,
For his molten images are ba lie,
And there is no breath in them.
18 They are avanity, a work of mockery;
In the time of their punishment they will perish.
19 The aportion of Jacob is not like these;
For the Maker of all is He,
And of the tribe of His inheritance;
bYahweh of hosts is His name.
20 He says, “You are My ainstrument of shattering, My weapon of war;
And with you I bshatter nations,
And with you I destroy kingdoms.
21 With you I ashatter the horse and his rider,
And with you I shatter the bchariot and its rider,
22 And with you I shatter aman and woman,
And with you I shatter old man and byouth,
And with you I shatter choice man and virgin,
23 And with you I shatter the shepherd and his flock,
And with you I shatter the farmer and his pair of oxen,
And with you I shatter governors and prefects.
24 “But I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of aChaldea for ball their evil that they have done in Zion before your eyes,” declares Yahweh.
25 “Behold, aI am against you, bO destroying mountain,
Who destroys the whole earth,” declares Yahweh,
“And I will stretch out My hand against you
And roll you down from the crags,
And I will make you a cburnt out mountain.
26 They will not take from you even a stone for a corner
Nor a stone for foundations,
But you will be a perpetual adesolation,” declares Yahweh.
27 aLift up a standard in the land,
Blow a trumpet among the nations!
Set apart the nations against her;
Summon against her the bkingdoms of cArarat, Minni, and dAshkenaz;
Appoint a marshal against her;
Bring up the ehorses like bristly locusts.
28 Set apart the nations against her,
The kings of the Medes,
Their governors and all their prefects
And every land of their rule.
29 So the aland quakes and writhes,
For the purposes of Yahweh against Babylon stand,
To make the land of Babylon
A bdesolation without inhabitants.
30 The amighty men of Babylon have ceased fighting;
They inhabit the strongholds;
bTheir might is dried up;
They are becoming blike women;
Their dwelling places are set on fire;
The cbars of her gates are broken.
31 One arunner runs to meet another,
And one bmessenger to meet another,
To give a message to the king of Babylon
That his city has been captured from end to end;
32 The fords also have been seized,
And they have burned the marshes with fire,
And the men of war are terrified.
33 For thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel:
“The daughter of Babylon is like a athreshing floor
At the time it is stamped firm;
Yet in a little while the time of bharvest will come for her.”
34 “Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has adevoured me and brought me into confusion;
He has set me down like an bempty vessel;
He has cswallowed me like a sea monster;
He has filled his stomach with my delicacies;
He has rinsed me away.
35 May the aviolence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,”
The inhabitant of Zion will say;
And, “May my blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,”
Jerusalem will say.
36 Therefore thus says Yahweh,
“Behold, I am going to aplead your case
And bexact full vengeance for you;
And cI will dry up her sea
And make her fountain dry.
37 aBabylon will become a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals,
An bobject of horror and hissing, without inhabitants.
38 They will roar together like ayoung lions;
They will growl like lions’ cubs.
39 When they become heated up, I will set before them their feast
And amake them drunk, that they may exult
And may bsleep a perpetual sleep
And not wake up,” declares Yahweh.
40 “I will bring them down like lambs ato the slaughter,
Like rams together with male goats.
41 “How aSheshak has been captured,
And bthe praise of the whole earth been seized!
How Babylon has become an object of horror among the nations!
42 The asea has come up over Babylon;
She has been covered with its tumultuous waves.
43 Her cities have become an aobject of horror,
A parched land, and a desert,
A land in which bno man lives
And through which no son of man passes.
44 aI will punish Bel in Babylon,
And I will make what he has swallowed bcome out of his mouth;
And the nations will no longer cstream to him.
Even the dwall of Babylon has fallen down!
45 “aCome forth from her midst, My people,
And each of you bescape with his life
From the burning anger of Yahweh.
46 Now alest your heart grow faint,
And you fear the breport that will be heard in the land—
For the report will come one year,
And after that another report in another year,
And violence will be in the land
With cruler against ruler—
47 Therefore behold, days are coming
When I will punish the agraven images of Babylon;
And her whole land will be bput to shame,
And all her slain will fall in her midst.
48 Then aheaven and earth and all that is in them
Will shout for joy over Babylon,
For bthe destroyers will come to her from the north,”
Declares Yahweh.
49 aIndeed Babylon is to fall for the slain of Israel,
As also for Babylon bthe slain of all the earth have fallen.
50 You awho have escaped the sword,
Go! Do not stand around!
bRemember Yahweh from afar,
And let Jerusalem come upon your heart.
51 aWe are ashamed because we have heard reproach;
Dishonor has covered our faces,
For bstrangers have entered
The holy places of the house of Yahweh.
52 “Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares Yahweh,
“When I will punish her agraven images,
And the mortally wounded will groan throughout her land.
53 Though Babylon should aascend to the heavens,
And though she should fortify her lofty stronghold,
From bMe destroyers will come to her,” declares Yahweh.
54 The asound of an outcry from Babylon,
And of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!
55 For Yahweh is going to destroy Babylon,
And He will make her loud noise vanish from her.
And their awaves will roar like many waters;
The rumbling of their voices sounds forth.
56 For the adestroyer is coming against her, against Babylon,
And her mighty men will be captured;
Their bbows are shattered;
For Yahweh is a God of crecompense,
He will fully repay.
57 “I will amake her princes and her wise men drunk,
Her governors, her prefects, and her mighty men,
That they may sleep a bperpetual sleep and not wake up,”
cDeclares the King, whose name is Yahweh of hosts.
58 Thus says Yahweh of hosts,
“The broad awall of Babylon will be completely razed,
And her high bgates will be set on fire;
So the peoples will ctoil for nothing,
And the nations become dweary only for fire.”
59 The message which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of aNeriah, the grandson of Mahseiah, when he went with bZedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. (Now Seraiah was quartermaster.) 60 So Jeremiah awrote in a single scroll all the calamity which would come upon Babylon, that is, all these words which have been written concerning Babylon. 61 Then Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “As soon as you come to Babylon, then see that you read all these words aloud, 62 and then you will say, ‘You, O Yahweh, have promised concerning this place to acut it off, so that there will be bnothing inhabiting it, whether man or beast, but it will be a perpetual desolation.’ 63 And as soon as you finish reading this scroll, you will tie a stone to it and athrow it into the middle of the Euphrates, 64 and then you will say, ‘Just so shall Babylon sink down and anot rise again because of the calamity that I am going to bring upon her; and they will become butterly weary.’” cThus far are the words of Jeremiah.