Jeremiah 49
49
What the Lord Says about Ammon
1 #
Ez 21.28-32; 25.1-7; Am 1.13-15; Zep 2.8-11. The Lord has this to say about the nation of Ammon:
The people of Israel
have plenty of children
to inherit their lands.
So why have you worshipers
of the god Milcom#49.1 Milcom: The national god of Ammon, probably the same as the god Molech in 32.35.
taken over towns and land
belonging to the tribe of Gad?
2Someday I will send an army
to attack you in Rabbah,
your capital city.
It will be left in ruins,
and the surrounding villages
will lie in ashes.
You took some of Israel's land,
but on that day
Israel will take yours!
3Cry, people of Heshbon;#49.3 Heshbon: See also 48.45; since Heshbon was near the border of Moab and Ammon, it was probably ruled by the country that was stronger at the time.
your town will become
a pile of rubble.#49.3 your town will become a pile of rubble: Or “because the town of Ai has been destroyed”; referring to an Ammonite town named Ai, not the town of that name near Bethel in the land of Israel.
You will turn here and there,
but your path will be blocked.#49.3 You will turn … blocked: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Put on sackcloth#49.3 sackcloth: See the note at 4.8. and mourn,
you citizens of Rabbah,
because the idol you worship#49.3 the idol you worship: Hebrew “Milcom” (see verse 1 and the note there).
will be taken
to a foreign country,
along with its priests
and temple officials.
4You rebellious Ammonites
trust your wealth and ask,
“Who could attack us?”
But I warn you not to boast
when your strength is fading.#49.4 when … fading: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
5I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will send neighboring nations
to strike you with terror.
You will be scattered,
with no one to care
for your refugees.
6Yet someday, I will bring
your people back home.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
What the Lord Says about Edom
7 #
Is 34.5-17; 63.1-6; Ez 25.12-14; 35.1-15; Am 1.11,12; Ob 1-14; Ml 1.2-5. #Ba 3.22,23. The Lord All-Powerful says about Edom:
Wisdom and common sense
have vanished from Teman.#49.7,8 Teman: The name of a town in Edom, sometimes used as the name of the northern half of the nation of Edom; here it probably stands for the whole nation.
8I will send disaster to punish
you descendants of Esau,#49.7,8 Esau: The ancestor of the nation of Edom.
so anyone from Dedan#49.7,8 Dedan: The name of a town in northwest Arabia, also used of the northwest region of Arabia along the Red Sea.
had better turn around
and run back home.#49.7,8 anyone … home: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
9People who harvest grapes
leave some for the poor.
Thieves who break in at night
take only what they want.
10But I will take everything
that belongs to you,
people of Edom,
and I will uncover every place
where you try to hide.
Then you will die,
and so will your children,
relatives, and neighbors.
11But I can be trusted
to care for your orphans
and widows.
12Even those nations that don't deserve to be punished will have to drink from the cup of my anger. So how can you possibly hope to escape? 13I, the Lord, swear in my own name that your city of Bozrah#49.13 Bozrah: The main city and capital of Edom. and all your towns will suffer a horrible fate. They will lie in ruins forever, and people will use the name “Bozrah” as a curse word.
14I have sent a messenger
to command the nations
to prepare for war
against you people of Edom.
15Your nation will be small,
yet hated by other nations.
16Pride tricks you into thinking
that other nations
look at you with fear.#49.16 Pride … fear: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
You live along the cliffs
and high in the mountains
like the eagles,
but I am the Lord,
and I will bring you down.
17People passing by your country
will be shocked and horrified
to see a disaster
18 #
Gn 19.24,25. as bad as the destruction
of Sodom and Gomorrah
and towns nearby.
The towns of Edom will be empty.
19 #
Ws 12.12. I, the Lord, will attack you
like a lion from the forest,
attacking sheep in a meadow
along the Jordan.
In a moment the flock runs,
and the land is empty.
Who will I choose to attack you?
I will do it myself!
No one can force me to fight
or chase me away.
20Listen to my plans for you,
people of Edom.#49.20 Edom: The Hebrew text also uses the name “Teman” (see the note at 49.7,8).
Your children will be dragged off
and your country destroyed.
21The sounds of your destruction
will reach the Red Sea#49.21 Red Sea: Hebrew yam suph, here referring to the Gulf of Aqaba, since the term is extended to include the northeastern arm of the Red Sea (see also the note at Exodus 13.18).
and cause the earth to shake.
22An enemy will swoop down
to attack you,
like an eagle spreading its wings
and circling over Bozrah.
Your warriors will be as fearful
as women giving birth.#49.22 as fearful … birth: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
What the Lord Says about Damascus
23 #
Is 17.1-3; Am 1.3-5; Zec 9.1. The Lord says about Damascus:
The towns of Hamath and Arpad#49.23 Hamath and Arpad: Two towns in Syria that had been the capitals of small kingdoms allied with the more powerful kingdom whose capital was Damascus.
have heard your bad news.
They have lost hope,
and worries roll over them
like ocean waves.#49.23 worries … waves: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
24You people of Damascus
have lost your courage,
and in panic you turn to run,
gripped by fear and pain.#49.24 gripped by fear and pain: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
25Once I was pleased
with your famous city.
But now I warn you, “Escape
while you still can!”#49.25 can: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 25.
26Soon, even your best soldiers
will lie dead in your streets.
I, the Lord All-Powerful,
have spoken.
27I will set fire to your city walls
and burn down the fortresses
King Benhadad built.
Nebuchadnezzar and the People of the Desert
28Here is what the Lord says about the Kedar tribe and the desert villages#49.28 desert villages: The Hebrew text has “kingdoms of Hazor,” which probably refers to several kingdoms of desert peoples who were not nomads, but who lived in small villages. that were conquered by King Nebuchadnezzar#49.28 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2. of Babylonia:
Listen, you people of Kedar
and the other tribes
of the eastern desert.
I have told Nebuchadnezzar
to attack and destroy you.
29His fearsome army
will surround you,
taking your tents and possessions,
your sheep and camels.
30Run and hide,
you people of the desert
who live in villages!#49.30 villages: See the note at 49.28.
Nebuchadnezzar has big plans
for you.
31You have no city walls
and no neighbors to help,
yet you think you're safe—
so I told him to attack.
32Then your camels
and large herds
will be yours no longer.
People of the Arabian Desert,#49.32 People of the Arabian Desert: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
disaster will strike you
from every side,
and you will be scattered
everywhere on earth.
33Only jackals#49.33 jackals: See the note at 9.11. will live
where your villages#49.33 villages: See the note at 49.28. once stood.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
What the Lord Says about Elam
34-35Not long after Zedekiah#49.34,35 Zedekiah: See the note at 1.3. became king of Judah, the Lord told me to say:
People of Elam,#49.34,35 Elam: A nation east of Babylonia, attacked by Nebuchadnezzar about 596 b.c.
I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will kill the archers
who make your army strong.
36Enemies will attack
from all directions,
and you will be led captive
to every nation on earth.
37Their armies will crush
and kill you,
and you will face the disaster
that my anger brings.
38Your king and his officials
will die, and I will rule
in their place.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
39But I promise that someday
I will bring your people
back to their land.
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Jeremiah 49: CEVDCI
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Yirmeyahu (Jer) 49
49
1Concerning the people of ‘Amon, here is what Adonai says:
“Has Isra’el no sons?
Has he no heir?
Then why has Malkam inherited Gad,
with his people settled in its cities?
2Therefore,” says Adonai, “the days are coming
when I will sound the battle alarm
against Rabbah and the people of ‘Amon;
it will become a tel of ruins,
her villages burned to the ground.
Then Isra’el will inherit from them
who disinherited him,” says Adonai.
3“Wail, Heshbon, for ‘Ai is doomed!
Cry out, daughters of Rabbah!
Wear sackcloth and mourn,
running here and there among the sheep pens.
For Malkam will go into exile,
together with his priests and officers.
4Why do you take such pride in the valleys,
your well-watered valleys, rebellious daughter?
You trusted in your riches
and thought, ‘Who can attack me?’
5I am bringing terror on you,”
says Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot, “from every side.
Each of you will be driven out headlong,
with no one to gather the fugitives.
6But afterwards, I will bring back
the exiles of ‘Amon,” says Adonai.
7Concerning Edom, this is what Adonai-Tzva’ot says:
“Is there no wisdom left in Teman?
Have her wise men forgotten how to counsel?
Has their wisdom vanished?
8Flee! Turn back! Hide yourselves well,
you who live in D’dan;
for I am bringing calamity on ‘Esav,
when the time for me to punish him comes.
9If grape-pickers came to you,
they would leave no grapes for gleaning.
If thieves came at night,
they would destroy until they were satisfied.
10So I, for my part, have stripped ‘Esav bare,
I have exposed his hiding-places;
he will not be able to hide himself.
He is doomed — sons, brothers and neighbors —
so that he is no more.
11Leave your orphans; I will keep them alive;
let your widows trust in me.”
12For this is what Adonai says: “Those who do not deserve to drink from this cup will have to drink it anyway, so should you go unpunished? No, you will not go unpunished; you will certainly drink it. 13For I have sworn by myself,” says Adonai, “that Botzrah will become a ruin and an object of astonishment, reproach and cursing; all its cities will be ruins forever.”
14I have heard a message from Adonai:
“A messenger is sent among the nations, saying:
‘Gather together, and march against her!
Prepare for battle!’
15Here! I will make you least among nations,
the most despised of people.
16Your capacity to terrorize
has deceived you and made you arrogant.
You make your home in the rocky crags
and seize the top of the mountain;
but even if you build your nest high as an eagle’s,
from there I will drag you down,” says Adonai.
17Edom will become an object of horror;
everyone passing by will whistle
in astonishment at all its disasters.
18It will be like the overthrow of S’dom,
‘Amora and their neighboring towns,” says Adonai.
“No one will settle there any more,
no human being will live there again.
19It will be like a lion coming up from the thickets
of the Yarden against a strong settlement:
in an instant I will chase him away
and appoint over it whomever I choose.
For who is like me? Who can call me to account?
What shepherd can stand up to me?”
20So hear the plan of Adonai
that he has devised against Edom,
and his purpose that he will accomplish
against those who live in Teman:
the least of the flock will drag them away;
their own pasture will be in shock at them.
21The earth quakes at the sound of their fall;
their cry can be heard at the Sea of Suf.
22Like a vulture he will soar, swoop down
and spread out his wings against Botzrah.
On that day the hearts of Edom’s warriors
will be like the heart of a woman in labor.
23Concerning Dammesek:
“Hamat and Arpad are confused;
having heard bad news, they dissolve in fear,
like the churning sea, which cannot calm itself.
24Dammesek, weakened, turns to flee;
trembling has seized her;
anguish and pain take hold of her
like the pains of a woman in labor.
25How can a city so praised be deserted,
a city that gave me such joy?
26Therefore her young men will fall in her squares,
and all her warriors be silenced on that day,”
says Adonai-Tzva’ot.
27“I will light a fire inside Dammesek’s walls
which will consume the palaces of Ben-Hadad.”
28Concerning Kedar and the kingdoms of Hatzor, which N’vukhadretzar king of Bavel struck, Adonai says:
“Set out! March against Kedar!
Plunder the people of the east!
29They will seize their tents and their flocks,
their tent curtains and all their equipment;
their camels too they will take for themselves
and shout at them, ‘Terror in every direction!’
30Flee! Leave your homes! Hide yourselves well,
you who live in Hatzor,” says Adonai;
“for N’vukhadretzar king of Bavel
has devised a plan against you;
he has formed a scheme against you.
31Get up! March on a nation at ease,
that lives secure,” says Adonai.
“They have neither gates nor bars;
they live in isolation.
32Their camels will be booty,
their many cattle a spoil.
I will scatter to the winds
those who shave the sides of their heads;
From every direction I will bring
their disaster on them,” says Adonai.
33“Hatzor will be a place for jackals to live,
desolate forever;
no one will settle there any more,
no human being will live there again.”
34This is the word of Adonai that came to Yirmeyahu the prophet concerning ‘Eilam at the beginning of the reign of Tzidkiyahu king of Y’hudah: 35“Adonai-Tzva’ot says:
‘I will break ‘Eilam’s bow,
the mainstay of their might.
36I will bring against ‘Eilam the four winds
from the four quarters of the sky
and scatter them to all those winds.
There will not be one nation to which
the dispersed of ‘Eilam will not come.
37I will break ‘Eilam before their foes,
before those who seek their lives;
I will bring disaster on them,
my burning anger,’ says Adonai.
‘I will send the sword to pursue them
until I have finished them off.
38I will put my throne in ‘Eilam
and destroy their king and leaders,’ says Adonai.
39‘But in the acharit-hayamim,
I will bring back the exiles of ‘Eilam,’ says Adonai.”
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