Jeremiah 49

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Judgment on the Philistines

47 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 it1 be quiet

uwhen the Lord has given it a charge?

Against vAshkelon and against the seashore

whe has appointed it.

Judgment on Moab

48 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;1

for eat the descent of Horonaim

they have heard the distressed cry2 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 his3 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

49 aConcerning the Ammonites.

Thus says the Lord:

Has Israel no sons?

Has he no heir?

Why then has bMilcom1 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,2

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,3

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 him4 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

50 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,1

and against the inhabitants of Pekod.2

Kill, xand devote them to destruction,3

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,4 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

51  Thus says the Lord:

Behold, I will stir up nthe spirit of a destroyer

against Babylon,

against the inhabitants of Leb-kamai,1

and I will send to Babylon winnowers,

and othey shall winnow her,

and they shall empty her land,

when they come against her from every side

pon the day of trouble.

qLet not the archer bend his bow,

and let him not stand up in his armor.

Spare not her young men;

rdevote to destruction2 all her army.

They shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans,

sand wounded in her streets.

tFor Israel and Judah have not been forsaken

by their God, the Lord of hosts,

but the land of the Chaldeans3 is full of guilt

against the Holy One of Israel.

uFlee from the midst of Babylon;

let every one save his life!

vBe not cut off in her punishment,

wfor this is the time of the Lord’s vengeance,

the repayment he is rendering her.

Babylon was xa golden cup in the Lord’s hand,

ymaking all the earth drunken;

zthe nations drank of her wine;

therefore the nations went mad.

aSuddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken;

bwail for her!

cTake balm for her pain;

perhaps she may be healed.

We would have healed Babylon,

but she was not healed.

dForsake her, and elet us go

each to his own country,

for fher judgment has reached up to heaven

and has been lifted up even to the skies.

10  gThe Lord has brought about our vindication;

hcome, let us declare in Zion

the work of the Lord our God.

11  iSharpen the arrows!

Take up the shields!

jThe Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of kthe Medes, because lhis purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, mfor that is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance for mhis temple.

12  nSet up a standard against the walls of Babylon;

omake the watch strong;

set up watchmen;

prepare the ambushes;

lfor the Lord has both planned and done

what he spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.

13  pO you who dwell by many waters,

rich in treasures,

your end has come;

the thread of your life is cut.

14  qThe Lord of hosts has sworn by himself:

Surely I will fill you with men, ras many as locusts,

sand they shall raise the shout of victory over you.

15  tIt is he who made the earth by his power,

who established the world by his wisdom,

and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.

16  When he utters his voice there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,

and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.

He makes lightning for the rain,

and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.

17  Every man is stupid and without knowledge;

every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,

for his images are false,

and there is no breath in them.

18  They are worthless, a work of delusion;

at the time of their punishment they shall perish.

19  Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob,

for he is the one who formed all things,

and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;

the Lord of hosts is his name.

20  You are my hammer and weapon of war:

with you I ubreak nations in pieces;

with you I destroy kingdoms;

21  with you I break in pieces the horse and his rider;

with you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer;

22  with you I break in pieces man and woman;

with you I break in pieces vthe old man and the youth;

with you I break in pieces vthe young man and the young woman;

23  with you I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock;

with you I break in pieces the farmer and his team;

with you I break in pieces wgovernors and commanders.

24 xI will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, declares the Lord.

25  Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain,

declares the Lord,

which destroys the whole earth;

I will stretch out my hand against you,

and roll you down from the crags,

yand make you a burnt mountain.

26  No zstone shall be taken from you for a corner

and no stone for a foundation,

but you shall be aa perpetual waste,

declares the Lord.

27  bSet up a standard on the earth;

cblow the trumpet among the nations;

dprepare ethe nations for war against her;

summon against her fthe kingdoms,

gArarat, Minni, and hAshkenaz;

appoint a imarshal against her;

jbring up horses like bristling locusts.

28  dPrepare ethe nations for war against her,

the kings of kthe Medes, lwith their governors land deputies,

and every mland under their dominion.

29  nThe land trembles and writhes in pain,

ofor the Lord’s purposes against Babylon stand,

to make the land of Babylon a desolation,

without inhabitant.

30  The warriors of Babylon have ceased fighting;

they remain in their strongholds;

their strength has failed;

pthey have become women;

qher dwellings are on fire;

rher bars are broken.

31  One srunner runs to meet another,

and one messenger to meet another,

to tell the king of Babylon

that his city is taken on every side;

32  the fords have been tseized,

the marshes are burned with fire,

and the soldiers are in panic.

33  For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:

uThe daughter of Babylon is like ua threshing floor

at the time when it is trodden;

yet a little while

and vthe time of her harvest will come.

34  Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon whas devoured me;

he has crushed me;

he has made me an empty vessel;

xhe has swallowed me like ya monster;

he has filled his stomach with my delicacies;

he has rinsed me out.4

35  The violence done to me and to my kinsmen be upon Babylon,

let the inhabitant of Zion say.

My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,

let Jerusalem say.

36  Therefore thus says the Lord:

Behold, zI will plead your cause

and take vengeance for you.

aI will dry up her sea

and bmake her fountain dry,

37  and Babylon shall become ca heap of ruins,

dthe haunt of jackals,

ea horror eand a hissing,

without inhabitant.

38  fThey shall roar together glike lions;

they shall growl like lions’ cubs.

39  hWhile they are inflamed hI will prepare them a feast

and imake them drunk, that they may become merry,

ithen sleep a perpetual sleep

and not wake, declares the Lord.

40  I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter,

like rams and male goats.

41  How jBabylon5 is taken,

kthe praise of the whole earth lseized!

How Babylon has become

a horror among the nations!

42  mThe sea has come up on Babylon;

she is covered with its tumultuous waves.

43  Her cities have become a horror,

na land of drought and a desert,

oa land in which no one dwells,

and through which no son of man passes.

44  And I will punish pBel in Babylon,

and qtake out of his mouth rwhat he has swallowed.

sThe nations shall no longer flow to him;

tthe wall of Babylon has fallen.

45  Go out of the midst of her, umy people!

Let every one save his life

from vthe fierce anger of the Lord!

46  Let not your heart faint, and be not fearful

wat the report heard in the land,

xwhen a report comes in one year

and afterward a report in another year,

and violence is in the land,

xand ruler is against ruler.

47  Therefore, behold, the days are coming

when yI will punish the images of Babylon;

zher whole land shall be put to shame,

and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.

48  aThen the heavens and the earth,

and all that is in them,

shall sing for joy over Babylon,

bfor the destroyers shall come against them out of the north,

declares the Lord.

49  Babylon must fall for the slain of Israel,

cjust as for Babylon have fallen the slain of all the earth.

50  dYou who have escaped from the sword,

go, do not stand still!

Remember the Lord from far away,

and let Jerusalem come into your mind:

51  eWe are put to shame, for we have heard reproach;

edishonor has covered our face,

ffor foreigners have come

into the holy places of the Lord’s house.

52  Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord,

when yI will execute judgment upon her images,

gand through all her land

the wounded shall groan.

53  Though Babylon should hmount up to heaven,

and though she should ifortify her strong height,

yet destroyers would come from me against her,

declares the Lord.

54  jA voice! A cry from Babylon!

The noise of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!

55  For the Lord is laying Babylon waste

and stilling her mighty voice.

kTheir waves roar like many waters;

the noise of their voice is raised,

56  for a destroyer has come upon her,

upon Babylon;

her warriors are taken;

their bows are broken in pieces,

lfor the Lord is a God of recompense;

he will surely repay.

57  mI will make drunk her officials and her wise men,

nher governors, her commanders, and her warriors;

they shall sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake,

declares othe King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.

58  Thus says the Lord of hosts:

The broad pwall of Babylon

shall be leveled to the ground,

qand her high gates

shall be burned with fire.

rThe peoples labor for nothing,

and sthe nations weary themselves only for fire.

59 The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah tthe son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon, uin the fourth year of his reign. Seraiah was the quartermaster. 60 vJeremiah wrote in a book all the disaster that should come upon Babylon, wall these words that are written concerning Babylon. 61 And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words, 62 and say, O Lord, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it off, so xthat nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be ydesolate forever. 63 When you finish reading this book, zatie a stone to it zand cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, 64 and say, zThus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her, band they shall become exhausted.

Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.