Isaiah 49:6; Jeremiah 25:15–29; Jeremiah 46–51:1

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Isaiah 49:6

he says:

It is too light a thing that you should be my servant

to raise up the tribes of Jacob

and to bring back the preserved of Israel;

tI will make you uas a light for the nations,

that vmy salvation may reach to the end of the earth.


Jeremiah 25:15–29

The Cup of the Lord’s Wrath

15 Thus the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: zTake from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of athe sword that I am sending among them.

17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand, band made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it: 18 cJerusalem and the cities of Judah, its kings and officials, dto make them a desolation and a waste, a hissing and a curse, as at this day; 19 ePharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his officials, all his people, 20 and fall the mixed tribes among them; all the kings of gthe land of Uz and all the kings of hthe land of the Philistines (hAshkelon, hGaza, Ekron, and the remnant of iAshdod); 21 jEdom, kMoab, and the sons of lAmmon; 22 all the kings of mTyre, all the kings of mSidon, and the kings of the coastland across nthe sea; 23 oDedan, pTema, qBuz, and all who cut rthe corners of their hair; 24 all the skings of Arabia and all the kings of fthe mixed tribes who dwell in the desert; 25 all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of tElam, and all the kings of uMedia; 26 all the kings of vthe north, far and near, one after another, and all the kingdoms of the world that are on the face of the earth. And after them the king of wBabylon1 shall drink.

27 Then you shall say to them, Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: xDrink, be drunk and vomit, fall and rise no more, because of ythe sword that I am sending among you.

28 And if they refuse to accept the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, Thus says the Lord of hosts: zYou must drink! 29 For behold, aI begin to work disaster at the city that is called by my name, and shall you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, yfor I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth, declares the Lord of hosts.


Jeremiah 46–51:1

Judgment on Egypt

The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet cconcerning the nations.

About Egypt. dConcerning the army of Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates at Carchemish and which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated in ethe fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

fPrepare buckler and shield,

and advance for battle!

gHarness the horses;

mount, O horsemen!

Take your stations with your helmets,

fpolish your spears,

put on your armor!

Why have I seen it?

They are dismayed

and have turned backward.

Their hwarriors are beaten down

and have fled in haste;

ithey look not back

jterror on every side!

declares the Lord.

The swift cannot flee away,

nor the warrior escape;

din the north by the river Euphrates

kthey have stumbled and fallen.

Who is this, lrising like the Nile,

like rivers mwhose waters surge?

Egypt rises like the Nile,

like rivers mwhose waters surge.

He said, I will rise, I will cover the earth,

I will destroy cities and their inhabitants.

nAdvance, O horses,

and rage, O chariots!

Let the warriors go out:

men of Cush and oPut who handle the shield,

pmen of Lud, skilled in handling the bow.

10  qThat day is the day of the Lord God of hosts,

ra day of vengeance,

sto avenge himself on his foes.

tThe sword shall devour and be sated

and drink its fill of their blood.

For the Lord God of hosts holds ua sacrifice

vin the north country wby the river Euphrates.

11  xGo up to Gilead, and take xbalm,

O virgin daughter of Egypt!

In vain you have used many medicines;

ythere is no healing for you.

12  The nations have heard of your shame,

and the earth is full of your cry;

zfor warrior has stumbled against warrior;

they have both fallen together.

13 The word that the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of aNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to strike the land of Egypt:

14  Declare in Egypt, and proclaim in bMigdol;

proclaim in bMemphis and bTahpanhes;

say, cStand ready and be prepared,

for dthe sword shall devour around you.

15  Why are your mighty ones face down?

They do not stand1

because the Lord thrust them down.

16  He made many stumble, fand they fell,

and they said one to another,

Arise, and let us go back to our own people

and to the land of our birth,

gbecause of the sword of the oppressor.

17  Call the name of hPharaoh, king of Egypt,

Noisy one who lets the hour go by.

18  iAs I live, declares the King,

jwhose name is the Lord of hosts,

like kTabor among the mountains

and like lCarmel by the sea, shall one come.

19  mPrepare yourselves baggage for exile,

O ninhabitants of Egypt!

For oMemphis shall become a waste,

a ruin, pwithout inhabitant.

20  A beautiful qheifer is Egypt,

but a biting fly rfrom the north has come upon her.

21  Even her hired soldiers in her midst

are like sfattened calves;

yes, they have turned and fled together;

they did not stand,

for the day of their calamity has come upon them,

tthe time of their punishment.

22  She makes ua sound like a serpent gliding away;

for her enemies march in force

and come against her with axes

vlike those who fell trees.

23  vThey shall cut down her forest,

declares the Lord,

though it is impenetrable,

because wthey are more numerous than locusts;

they are without number.

24  The daughter of Egypt shall be put to shame;

she shall be delivered into the hand of ra people from the north.

25 The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, said: Behold, I am bringing punishment upon xAmon of yThebes, and Pharaoh and Egypt zand her gods and her kings, upon Pharaoh and those who trust in him. 26 aI will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their life, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. bAfterward Egypt shall be inhabited cas in the days of old, declares the Lord.

27  dBut fear not, O Jacob my servant,

nor be dismayed, O Israel,

for behold, I will save you from far away,

and your offspring from the land of their captivity.

Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,

and none shall make him afraid.

28  dFear not, O Jacob my servant,

declares the Lord,

for I am with you.

I will make a full end of all the nations

to which I have driven you,

but of you I will not make a full end.

eI will discipline you in just measure,

and I will by no means leave you unpunished.

Judgment on the Philistines

The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet fconcerning the Philistines, before Pharaoh struck down gGaza.

Thus says the Lord:

hBehold, waters are rising iout of the north,

hand shall become an overflowing torrent;

they shall overflow jthe land and all that fills it,

the city and those who dwell in it.

Men shall cry out,

and every inhabitant of the land shall wail.

At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his stallions,

lat the rushing of his chariots, at the rumbling of their wheels,

the fathers mlook not back to their children,

so feeble are their hands,

because of the day that is coming to destroy

all fthe Philistines,

to cut off from nTyre and Sidon

every helper that remains.

For the Lord is destroying the Philistines,

othe remnant of the coastland of pCaphtor.

qBaldness has come upon Gaza;

rAshkelon has perished.

O remnant of their valley,

show long will you gash yourselves?

tAh, sword of the Lord!

How long till you are quiet?

Put yourself into your scabbard;

rest and be still!

How can it2 be quiet

uwhen the Lord has given it a charge?

Against vAshkelon and against the seashore

whe has appointed it.

Judgment on Moab

xConcerning Moab.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:

Woe to yNebo, for it is laid waste!

zKiriathaim is put to shame, it is taken;

the fortress is put to shame aand broken down;

the renown of Moab is no more.

In bHeshbon they planned disaster against her:

Come, let us cut her off cfrom being a nation!

You also, O dMadmen, shall be brought to silence;

the sword shall pursue you.

A voice! A cry from eHoronaim,

Desolation and great destruction!

Moab is destroyed;

her little ones have made a cry.

eFor at the ascent of Luhith

they go up weeping;3

for eat the descent of Horonaim

they have heard the distressed cry4 of destruction.

Flee! Save yourselves!

You will be like fa juniper in the desert!

For, gbecause you trusted in your works and your treasures,

you also shall be taken;

and hChemosh ishall go into exile

with jhis priests and his officials.

kThe destroyer shall come upon every city,

and no city shall escape;

the valley shall perish,

and lthe plain shall be destroyed,

as the Lord has spoken.

Give wings to Moab,

for she would fly away;

her cities shall become a desolation,

with no inhabitant in them.

10 mCursed is he who does nthe work of the Lord with slackness, and cursed is he who keeps back his sword from bloodshed.

11  Moab has been at ease from his youth

and has osettled on his dregs;

he has not been emptied from vessel to vessel,

nor has he gone into exile;

so his taste remains in him,

and his scent is not changed.

12 Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I shall send to him pourers who will pour him, and empty his vessels and break his5 jars in pieces. 13 Then pMoab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as qthe house of Israel was ashamed of rBethel, their confidence.

14  How do you say, We are heroes

and mighty men of war?

15  The destroyer of sMoab and his cities has come up,

and the choicest of his young men have tgone down to slaughter,

declares uthe King, uwhose name is the Lord of hosts.

16  The calamity of Moab is near at hand,

and his affliction hastens swiftly.

17  vGrieve for him, all you who are around him,

and all who know his name;

say, wHow the mighty scepter is broken,

the glorious staff.

18  xCome down from your glory,

and sit on the parched ground,

O inhabitant of yDibon!

For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you;

he has destroyed your strongholds.

19  zStand by the way zand watch,

O inhabitant of aAroer!

Ask him who flees and her who escapes;

say, What has happened?

20  Moab is put to shame, for it is broken;

vwail and cry!

Tell it beside bthe Arnon,

that sMoab is laid waste.

21 Judgment has come upon cthe tableland, upon Holon, and dJahzah, and Mephaath, 22 and yDibon, and eNebo, and Beth-diblathaim, 23 and fKiriathaim, and Beth-gamul, and gBeth-meon, 24 and hKerioth, and iBozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. 25 jThe horn of Moab is cut off, and khis arm is broken, declares the Lord.

26 lMake him drunk, mbecause he magnified himself against the Lord, so that Moab shall lwallow in his vomit, nand he too shall be held in derision. 27 oWas not Israel a derision to you? pWas he found among thieves, that whenever you spoke of him qyou wagged your head?

28  rLeave the cities, and dwell in the rock,

O inhabitants of Moab!

Be slike the dove that nests

in the sides of the mouth of a gorge.

29  tWe have heard of the pride of Moab

he is very proud

of his loftiness, his pride, and his arrogance,

and the haughtiness of his heart.

30  I know his insolence, declares the Lord;

uhis boasts are false,

his deeds are false.

31  vTherefore I wail for Moab;

I cry out for all Moab;

for the men of wKir-hareseth I mourn.

32  More than for xJazer I weep for you,

yO vine of zSibmah!

aYour branches passed over the sea,

reached to the Sea of xJazer;

on your summer fruits and your grapes

the destroyer has fallen.

33  bGladness and joy have been taken away

from the fruitful land of Moab;

I have made the wine cease from the winepresses;

no one treads them with shouts of joy;

the shouting is not the shout of joy.

34 cFrom the outcry at Heshbon even to Elealeh, as far as Jahaz they utter their voice, from Zoar to dHoronaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. For the waters of Nimrim also have become desolate. 35 And I will bring to an end in Moab, declares the Lord, him who offers sacrifice in ethe high place and makes offerings to his god. 36 Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans like a flute for the men of fKir-hareseth. gTherefore the riches they gained have perished.

37 hFor every head is shaved and every beard cut off. iOn all the hands are gashes, and jaround the waist is sackcloth. 38 On all the housetops of Moab and in the squares there is nothing but lamentation, for I have broken Moab like ka vessel for which no one cares, declares the Lord. 39 How it is broken! How they wail! lHow Moab has turned his back in shame! So Moab mhas become a derision and a horror to all that are around him.

40  For thus says the Lord:

Behold, none shall fly swiftly like an eagle

oand spread his wings against Moab;

41  pthe cities shall be taken

and the strongholds seized.

qThe heart of the warriors of Moab shall be in that day

like the heart of ra woman in her birth pains;

42  Moab shall be sdestroyed and be no longer a people,

because the magnified himself against the Lord.

43  uTerror, pit, and snare

are before you, O inhabitant of Moab!

declares the Lord.

44  He who flees from the terror

shall fall into the pit,

and he who climbs out of the pit

shall be caught in the snare.

vFor I will bring these things upon Moab,

the year of their punishment,

declares the Lord.

45  In the shadow of Heshbon

fugitives stop without strength,

for fire came out from Heshbon,

flame from the house of Sihon;

it has destroyed wthe forehead of Moab,

the crown of wthe sons of tumult.

46  xWoe to you, O Moab!

The people of yChemosh are undone,

for your sons have been taken captive,

and your daughters into captivity.

47  zYet I will restore the fortunes of Moab

in the latter days, declares the Lord.

Thus far is the judgment on Moab.

Judgment on Ammon

aConcerning the Ammonites.

Thus says the Lord:

Has Israel no sons?

Has he no heir?

Why then has bMilcom6 cdispossessed Gad,

and his people settled in its cities?

Therefore, behold, the days are coming,

declares the Lord,

when I will cause dthe battle cry to be heard

against eRabbah of the Ammonites;

it shall become a desolate fmound,

and its villages shall be burned with fire;

then Israel shall dispossess those who dispossessed him,

says the Lord.

Wail, O gHeshbon, for Ai is laid waste!

Cry out, O daughters of eRabbah!

hPut on sackcloth,

lament, and run to and fro among the hedges!

For iMilcom shall go into exile,

jwith his priests and his officials.

Why do you boast of your valleys,7

kO faithless daughter,

lwho trusted in her treasures, saying,

Who will come against me?

Behold, mI will bring terror upon you,

declares the Lord God of hosts,

from all who are around you,

and you shall be driven out, every man straight before him,

with none to gather the fugitives.

But nafterward I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites, declares the Lord.

Judgment on Edom

Concerning oEdom.

Thus says the Lord of hosts:

pIs wisdom no more in pTeman?

qHas counsel perished from the prudent?

qHas their wisdom vanished?

rFlee, turn back, dwell in the depths,

O inhabitants of sDedan!

For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him,

tthe time when I punish him.

uIf grape gatherers came to you,

would they not leave vgleanings?

uIf thieves came by night,

would they not destroy only enough for themselves?

10  wBut I have stripped Esau bare;

uI have uncovered his hiding places,

and he is not able to conceal himself.

His children are destroyed, and his brothers,

and his neighbors; and xhe is no more.

11  yLeave your fatherless children; I will keep them alive;

yand let your widows trust in me.

12 For thus says the Lord: zIf those who did not deserve to drink the cup must drink it, awill you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you must drink. 13 bFor I have sworn by myself, declares the Lord, that cBozrah shall become da horror, a taunt, a waste, and a curse, and all her cities shall be perpetual wastes.

14  eI have heard a message from the Lord,

and an envoy has been sent among the nations:

fGather yourselves together and come against her,

and rise up for battle!

15  For behold, I will make you small among the nations,

despised among mankind.

16  The horror you inspire has deceived you,

and the pride of your heart,

you who live in the clefts of the rock,8

who hold the height of the hill.

Though you gmake your nest as high as the eagle’s,

I will bring you down from there,

declares the Lord.

17 hEdom shall become a horror. iEveryone who passes by it will be horrified iand will hiss because of all its disasters. 18 jAs when Sodom and Gomorrah and their kneighboring cities were overthrown, says the Lord, lno man shall dwell there, lno man shall sojourn in her. 19 mBehold, nlike a lion coming up from othe jungle of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make him9 run away from her. And I will appoint over her whomever I choose. pFor who is like me? qWho will summon me? rWhat shepherd can stand before me? 20 Therefore hear the plan that the Lord has made against sEdom and the purposes that he has formed against the inhabitants of tTeman: uEven the little ones of the flock shall be dragged away. Surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 21 At the sound of their fall vthe earth shall tremble; the sound of their cry shall be heard at the Red Sea. 22 Behold, wone shall mount up and fly swiftly like an eagle and spread his wings against xBozrah, and the heart of the warriors of Edom shall be in that day like the heart yof a woman in her birth pains.

Judgment on Damascus

23 Concerning zDamascus:

aHamath and bArpad are confounded,

for they have heard bad news;

they melt in fear,

cthey are troubled like the sea that cannot be quiet.

24  zDamascus has become feeble, dshe turned to flee,

and panic seized her;

anguish and sorrows have taken hold of her,

as yof a woman in labor.

25  How is ethe famous city not forsaken,

the city of my joy?

26  fTherefore her young men shall fall in her squares,

and all her soldiers shall be destroyed in that day,

declares the Lord of hosts.

27  And gI will kindle a fire in the wall of zDamascus,

and it shall devour the strongholds of hBen-hadad.

Judgment on Kedar and Hazor

28 Concerning iKedar and the kingdoms of Hazor that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck down.

Thus says the Lord:

jRise up, advance against iKedar!

Destroy kthe people of the east!

29  lTheir tents and their flocks shall be taken,

their lcurtains and all their goods;

their camels shall be led away from them,

and men shall cry to them: mTerror on every side!

30  nFlee, wander far away, dwell in the depths,

O inhabitants of Hazor!

declares the Lord.

For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon

has made a plan against you

and formed a purpose against you.

31  jRise up, advance against a nation oat ease,

pthat dwells securely,

declares the Lord,

pthat has no gates or bars,

that dwells alone.

32  qTheir camels shall become plunder,

their herds of livestock a spoil.

rI will scatter to every wind

sthose who cut the corners of their hair,

and I will bring their calamity

from every side of them,

declares the Lord.

33  Hazor shall become ta haunt of jackals,

an everlasting waste;

uno man shall dwell there;

uno man shall sojourn in her.

Judgment on Elam

34 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning vElam, in the beginning of the reign of wZedekiah king of Judah.

35 Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will break xthe bow of vElam, the mainstay of their might. 36 And I will bring upon vElam the four winds from the four quarters of heaven. And I will scatter them to all those winds, and there shall be no nation to which those driven out of vElam shall not come. 37 I will yterrify vElam before their enemies and before those who seek their life. I will bring disaster upon them, zmy fierce anger, declares the Lord. aI will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them, 38 and I will set my throne in vElam and destroy their king and officials, declares the Lord.

39 But in the latter days bI will restore the fortunes of vElam, declares the Lord.

Judgment on Babylon

The word that the Lord spoke concerning cBabylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, dby Jeremiah the prophet:

Declare among the nations and proclaim,

set up a banner and proclaim,

conceal it not, and say:

eBabylon is taken,

fBel is put to shame,

Merodach is dismayed.

eHer images are put to shame,

her idols are dismayed.

For gout of the north a nation has come up against her, hwhich shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; iboth man and beast shall flee away.

jIn those days and in that time, declares the Lord, jthe people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, kweeping as they come, and they lshall seek the Lord their God. mThey shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, nsaying, Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in an oeverlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.

pMy people have been lost sheep. qTheir shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. All who found them have devoured them, rand their enemies have said, We are not guilty, for sthey have sinned against the Lord, ttheir habitation of righteousness, the Lord, uthe hope of their fathers.

vFlee from the midst of Babylon, vand go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock. For behold, I am stirring up and bringing against Babylon wa gathering of great nations, from the north country. And they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 xChaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, declares the Lord.

11  yThough you rejoice, though you exult,

O plunderers of my heritage,

though you frolic like a heifer in the pasture,

and neigh like stallions,

12  your mother shall be utterly shamed,

and she who bore you shall be disgraced.

Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,

za wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.

13  aBecause of the wrath of the Lord she shall not be inhabited

but shall be an utter desolation;

beveryone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,

band hiss because of all her wounds.

14  cSet yourselves in array against Babylon all around,

dall you who bend the bow;

shoot at her, spare no arrows,

efor she has sinned against the Lord.

15  fRaise a shout against her all around;

she has surrendered;

her bulwarks have fallen;

gher walls are thrown down.

For hthis is the vengeance of the Lord:

take vengeance on her;

ido to her as she has done.

16  Cut off from Babylon the sower,

and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;

jbecause of the sword of the oppressor,

kevery one shall turn to his own people,

and every one shall flee to his own land.

17 lIsrael is a hunted sheep mdriven away by lions. nFirst the king of Assyria odevoured him, and now at last pNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon qhas gnawed his bones. 18 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, rI am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, sas I punished the king of Assyria. 19 tI will restore Israel to his pasture, and the shall feed on uCarmel and in uBashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in uGilead. 20 In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, viniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for wI will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.

21  Go up against the land of Merathaim,10

and against the inhabitants of Pekod.11

Kill, xand devote them to destruction,12

declares the Lord,

and do all that I have commanded you.

22  yThe noise of battle is in the land,

and great destruction!

23  zHow the hammer of the whole earth

is cut down and broken!

aHow Babylon bhas become

a horror among the nations!

24  cI set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,

and dyou did not know it;

you were found and caught,

because you opposed the Lord.

25  The Lord has opened his armory

and brought out ethe weapons of his wrath,

for the Lord God of hosts has a work to do

in the land of the Chaldeans.

26  Come against her from every quarter;

open her granaries;

fpile her up like heaps of grain, and devote her to destruction;

let nothing be left of her.

27  Kill all gher bulls;

let them go down to the slaughter.

Woe to them, for their day has come,

hthe time of their punishment.

28 A voice! They iflee and escape from the land of Babylon, jto declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for khis temple.

29 lSummon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow. lEncamp around her; let no one escape. mRepay her according to her deeds; do to her according to all that she has done. For she has nproudly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 30 oTherefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, declares the Lord.

31  Behold, I am against you, O nproud one,

declares the Lord God of hosts,

pfor your day has come,

the time when I will punish you.

32  nThe proud one shall stumble and fall,

with none to raise him up,

qand I will kindle a fire in his cities,

and it will devour all that is around him.

33 Thus says the Lord of hosts: rThe people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah with them. All who took them captive have held them fast; sthey refuse to let them go. 34 tTheir Redeemer is strong; uthe Lord of hosts is his name. vHe will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.

35  A sword against the Chaldeans, declares the Lord,

and against the inhabitants of Babylon,

and against wher officials and her xwise men!

36  A sword against the diviners,

that they may become fools!

A sword against her ywarriors,

that they may be destroyed!

37  A sword against her horses and against her chariots,

and against all zthe foreign troops in her midst,

that athey may become women!

bA sword against all her treasures,

that they may be plundered!

38  cA drought against her waters,

that they may be dried up!

dFor it is a land of images,

and they are mad over idols.

39 eTherefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon,13 and ostriches shall dwell in her. She shall never again have people, nor be inhabited for all generations. 40 fAs when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring cities, declares the Lord, gso no man shall dwell there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.

41  hBehold, a people comes from the north;

a mighty nation and many kings

are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.

42  They lay hold of bow and spear;

they are cruel and have no mercy.

The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;

they ride on horses,

arrayed as a man for battle

against you, O daughter of Babylon!

43  The king of Babylon heard the report of them,

and his hands fell helpless;

anguish seized him,

pain as of a woman in labor.

44 iBehold, like a lion coming up from the thicket of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make them run away from her, and I will appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd jcan stand before me? 45 Therefore hear kthe plan that the Lord has made against Babylon, kand the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: lSurely the little ones of their flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 mAt the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.

The Utter Destruction of Babylon

Thus says the Lord:

Behold, I will stir up nthe spirit of a destroyer

against Babylon,

against the inhabitants of Leb-kamai,14