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.”