Jeremiah 50
50
1The word that the LORD spake concerning Babylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, by Jeremiah the prophet. 2Declare ye among the nations and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is put to shame, Merodach is dismayed; her images are put to shame, her idols are dismayed. 3For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they are fled, they are gone, both man and beast. 4In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together; they shall go on their way weeping, and shall seek the LORD their God. 5They shall inquire concerning Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come ye, and join yourselves to the LORD in an everlasting covenant that shall not be forgotten. 6My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their resting place. 7All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the LORD, the habitation of justice, even the LORD, the hope of their fathers. 8Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he-goats before the flocks.
9For, lo, I will stir up and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of an expert mighty man; none shall return in vain. 10And Chaldea shall be a spoil: all that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith the LORD. 11Because ye are glad, because ye rejoice, O ye that plunder mine heritage, because ye are wanton as an heifer that treadeth out the corn, and neigh as strong horses; 12your mother shall be sore ashamed; she that bare you shall be confounded: behold, she shall be the hindermost of the nations, a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert. 13Because of the wrath of the LORD it shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate: every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished, and hiss at all her plagues. 14Set yourselves in array against Babylon round about, all ye that bend the bow; shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the LORD. 15Shout against her round about; she hath submitted herself; her bulwarks are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of the LORD; take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her. 16Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people, and they shall flee every one to his own land. 17Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones. 18Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria; 19And I will bring Israel again to his pasture, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead. 20In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I leave as a remnant.
21Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: slay and utterly destroy after them, saith the LORD, and do according to all that I have commanded thee. 22A sound of battle is in the land, and of great destruction. 23How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken! how is Babylon become a desolation among the nations! 24I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD. 25The LORD hath opened his armoury, and hath brought forth the weapons of his indignation: for the Lord, the LORD of hosts, hath a work to do in the land of the Chaldeans. 26Come against her from the utmost border, open her storehouses: cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly: let nothing of her be left. 27Slay all her bullocks; let them go down to the slaughter: woe unto them! for their day is come, the time of their visitation. 28The voice of them that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God, the vengeance of his temple. 29Call together the archers against Babylon, all them that bend the bow; camp against her round about; let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the LORD, against the Holy One of Israel. 30Therefore shall her young men fall in her streets, and all her men of war shall be brought to silence in that day, saith the LORD. 31Behold, I am against thee, O thou proud one, saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts: for thy day is come, the time that I will visit thee. 32And the proud one shall stumble and fall, and none shall raise him up: and I will kindle a fire in his cities, and it shall devour all that are round about him.
33Thus saith the LORD of hosts: The children of Israel and the children of Judah are oppressed together: and all that took them captives hold them fast; they refuse to let them go. 34Their redeemer is strong; the LORD of hosts is his name: he shall throughly plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon. 35A sword is upon the Chaldeans, saith the LORD, and upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and upon her wise men. 36A sword is upon the boasters, and they shall dote: a sword is upon her mighty men, and they shall be dismayed. 37A sword is upon their horse, and upon their chariots, and upon all the mingled people that are in the midst of her, and they shall become as women: a sword is upon her treasures, and they shall be robbed. 38A drought is upon her waters, and they shall be dried up: for it is a land of graven images, and they are mad upon idols. 39Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wolves shall dwell there, and the ostriches shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation. 40As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD; so shall no man dwell there, neither shall any son of man sojourn therein. 41Behold, a people cometh from the north; and a great nation, and many kings shall be stirred up from the uttermost parts of the earth. 42They lay hold on bow and spear; they are cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roareth like the sea, and they ride upon horses; every one set in array, as man to the battle, against thee, O daughter of Babylon. 43The king of Babylon hath heard the fame of them, and his hands wax feeble: anguish hath taken hold of him, and pangs as of a woman in travail. 44Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the pride of Jordan against the strong habitation: but I will suddenly make them run away from her; and whoso is chosen, him will I appoint over her: for who is like me? and who will appoint me a time? and who is the shepherd that will stand before me? 45Therefore hear ye the counsel of the LORD, that he hath taken against Babylon; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely they shall drag them away, even the little ones of the flock; surely he shall make their habitation desolate with them. 46At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth trembleth, and the cry is heard among the nations.
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Jeremiah 50: RV1885
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Jeremiah 50
50
A Message About Babylon
1This is the message the Lord spoke about Babylon and the Babylonian people. He spoke this message through Jeremiah the prophet.
2“Announce this to the nations.
Lift up a banner and tell them.
Speak the whole message and say:
‘Babylon will be captured.
The god Bel will be put to shame.
The god Marduk will be very afraid.
Babylon’s idols will be put to shame.
Her idols will be filled with terror!’
3A nation from the north will attack Babylon.
That nation will make Babylon like an empty desert.
No people will live there.
Both men and animals will run away from there.”
4The Lord says, “At that time
the people of Israel and Judah will be together.
They will cry and look for the Lord their God.
5Those people will ask how to go to Jerusalem.
They will start to go in that direction.
They will come and join themselves to the Lord.
They will make an agreement that will last forever.
It will be an agreement that will never be forgotten.
6“My people have been like lost sheep.
Their leaders have led them in the wrong way.
Their leaders made them wander around in the mountains and hills.
They forgot where their resting place was.
7Whoever found my people hurt them.
And those enemies said, ‘We did nothing wrong.
Those people sinned against the Lord, their true resting place.
He was the God their fathers trusted.’
8“Run away from Babylon.
Leave the land of the Babylonians.
Be like the goats that lead the flock.
9I will bring against Babylon
many nations from the north.
This group of nations will take their places for war against Babylon.
Babylon will be captured by people from the north.
Their arrows are like trained soldiers
who do not return from war with empty hands.
10The enemy will take all the wealth from the Babylonians.
Those enemy soldiers will get all they want!” says the Lord.
11“Babylon, you are excited and happy.
You took my land.
You dance around like a young cow in the grain.
Your laughter is like the neighing of male horses.
12Your mother will be very ashamed.
The woman who gave you birth will be disgraced.
Babylonia will be the least important of all the nations.
She will be an empty, dry desert.
13The Lord will show his anger.
No people will live there.
Babylon will be completely empty.
Everyone who passes by Babylon will be afraid.
They will shake their heads when they see how it has been destroyed.
14“Take your positions for war against Babylon,
all you soldiers with bows.
Shoot your arrows at Babylon! Do not save any of them.
This is because Babylon has sinned against the Lord.
15Soldiers around Babylon, shout the war cry!
Babylon has surrendered. Her towers have fallen.
Her walls have been torn down.
The Lord is giving them the punishment they deserve.
You nations should give Babylon what she deserves.
Do to her what she has done to others.
16Don’t let the people from Babylon plant their crops.
Don’t let them gather the harvest.
The soldiers of Babylon treated their captives cruelly.
Now, let everyone go back home!
Let everyone run to his own country.
17“The people of Israel are like a flock of sheep that are scattered.
They are like sheep that have been chased away by lions.
The first lion to eat them up
was the king of Assyria.
The last lion to crush their bones
was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.”
18So this is what the Lord of heaven’s armies, the God of Israel, says:
“I will punish the king of Babylon and his country.
I will punish him as I punished the king of Assyria.
19But I will bring the people of Israel back to their own pasture.
They will eat on Mount Carmel and in Bashan.
They will eat and be full.
They will eat on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.”
20The Lord says,
“At that time people will try to find Israel’s guilt.
But there will be no guilt.
People will try to find Judah’s sins.
But no sins will be found.
This is because I am saving the few people left alive from Israel and Judah.
And I am forgiving their sins.
21“Attack the land of Merathaim.
Attack the people who live in Pekod.
Chase them, kill them and completely destroy them.
Do everything I commanded you!” says the Lord.
22“The noise of battle can be heard all over the country.
It is the noise of much destruction.
23Babylon was the hammer of the whole earth.
But how broken and shattered that hammer is now!
Babylon is truly the most ruined
of all the nations.
24Babylon, I set a trap for you.
And you were caught before you knew it.
You fought against the Lord.
So you were found and taken prisoner.
25The Lord has opened up his storeroom.
He has brought out the weapons of his anger.
This is because the Lord God of heaven’s armies has work to do.
He has work to do in the land of the Babylonians.
26Come against Babylon from far away.
Break open her storehouses of grain.
Pile up her dead bodies like big piles of grain.
Completely destroy Babylon
and do not leave anyone alive.
27Kill all the young men in Babylon.
Let them be killed.
The time has come for their defeat.
How terrible it will be for them!
It is time for them to be punished.
28Listen to the people running from the country of Babylon!
They are telling Jerusalem
how the Lord our God is punishing Babylon as it deserves.
This is because Babylon destroyed his Temple.
29“Call for the men who shoot arrows
to come against Babylon.
Tell them to surround the city.
Don’t let anyone escape.
Pay her back for the bad things she has done.
Do to her what she has done to other nations.
Babylon acted with pride against the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel.
30So Babylon’s young men will be killed in the streets.
All her soldiers will die on that day,” says the Lord.
31“Babylon, you are too proud. And I am against you,”
says the Master, the Lord of heaven’s armies.
“This is because the time has come
for you to be punished.
32Proud Babylon will stumble and fall.
And no one will help her get up.
I will start a fire in her towns.
It will completely burn up everything around her.”
33This is what the Lord of heaven’s armies says:
“The people of Israel
and Judah both are slaves.
The enemy took them as prisoners.
And they won’t let them go.
34But God is strong and will buy them back.
His name is the Lord of heaven’s armies.
He will defend them with power
so he can give rest to their land.
But he will not give rest to those living in Babylon.”
35The Lord says,
“Let a sword kill the people living in Babylon!
Let a sword kill its officers and wise men!
36Let a sword kill its false prophets!
They will become fools.
Let a sword kill Babylon’s warriors!
They will be full of terror.
37Let a sword kill its horses and chariots.
Let a sword kill all the soldiers hired from other countries!
They will be like frightened women.
Let there be a sword against Babylon’s treasures!
They will be taken away.
38Let there be a sword against its waters!
They will be dried up.
It is a land of idols.
Those idols will go crazy with fear.
39“Babylon will never be filled with people again.
Desert animals and hyenas will live there.
Owls will live there.
But no people will live there ever again.
40God completely destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah
and the towns around them,” says the Lord.
“In the same way no people will live in Babylon.
No man will stay there.
41“Look! An army is coming from the north.
It comes from a powerful nation.
Many kings are coming together from all around the world.
42Their armies have bows and spears.
The soldiers are cruel and have no mercy.
The soldiers come riding on their horses.
And the sound is loud like the roaring sea.
They stand in their places, ready for battle.
They are ready to attack you, city of Babylon.
43The king of Babylon heard about those armies.
And he became helpless because of his fear.
His fear is like pain.
It is like the pain of a woman having a baby.
44“A lion will come from the thick bushes near the Jordan River.
It will go into the rich pastures where people feed their flocks.
I am like that lion! I will suddenly chase the people of Babylon from their land.
Who is the one I have chosen to do this?
There is no one like me.
There is no one who can challenge me.
None of their leaders can stand up against me.”
45So listen to what the Lord has planned to do against Babylon.
Listen to what he has decided to do to the people in Babylon.
He will surely drag away the young ones of Babylon.
Babylon’s pastures will be destroyed because of them.
46At the sound of Babylon’s fall, the earth will shake.
People in all nations will hear about their destruction.
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