Jeremiah 48
48
A Message Concerning Moab
1Concerning Moab, thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel:
“Woe to Nebo,
for it is devastated.
It is ashamed,
Kiriathaim is captured.
Misgab is ashamed,
and it is filled with terror.
2The glory of Moab is no longer.
In Heshbon they planned evil against her.
Come and let us cut her off from being a nation.
Also, Madmen, you will be silent.
After you will go the sword.
3The sound of a cry of distress arises from Horonaim,
devastation and great destruction.
4Moab is broken,
her little ones make heard#Literally “cause to hear” a cry for help.
5For the ascent of Luhith,
in weeping they go weeping,
For on the slope of Horonaim they have heard
the distresses of the cry of distress of the destruction.
6Flee! Save your life!
For#Literally “And” you must not be like the juniper tree in the desert.
7For because of your trusting in your works and in your treasures,
even you yourselves will be taken,
and Chemosh will go out into the exile,
his priests and his officials together.
8And the destroyer will come to every town,
and a town will not escape.
And the valley will be destroyed,
and the plain will be destroyed, as Yahweh has spoken.
9Give salt for Moab,
for certainly she will go to ruin,
and her towns will become as a desolation,
without#Literally “from there is not” an inhabitant in them.
10The one who does the work of Yahweh with slackness is cursed,
and the one who keeps away blood from his sword is cursed.
11Moab has been at ease from his youth,
and he has been quiet on his dregs,
and he has not been poured out from vessel to vessel,
and he has not gone into exile.
Therefore#Literally “Unto thus” his taste has remained unchanged,
and his fragrance has not changed.
12Therefore#Literally “To thus” look, days are coming,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh,
“and I will send to him decanters,#Literally “those who tilt”
and they will decant him,
and his vessels they will empty out,
and their jars they will smash.
13Then Moab will be ashamed of Chemosh,
just as the house of Israel were ashamed of Bethel, their trust.
14How can you say, ‘we are warriors,
and men of might for the battle.’
15Moab is destroyed,
and his towns have gone up,
and the choice of his young men have gone down to the slaughtering,”
declares#Literally “a declaration of” the King, Yahweh of hosts is his name.
16“The disaster of Moab is near to come,
and his disaster approaches very quickly.#Literally “hastens greatly”
17Mourn for him, all his surroundings,
and all those who knew his name.
Say, ‘How the staff of might is broken,
the staff of glory.’
18Come down from glory and sit on the parched ground,
O inhabitant, daughter of Dibon,
for the destroyer of Moab has come up against you,
he has destroyed your fortifications.
19Stand by the road and watch,
O inhabitant of Aroer.
Ask the man who is fleeing and the woman who is escaping,
say, ‘What has happened?’
20Moab is ashamed,
for it is filled with terror.
Wail and cry out,
tell it by Arnon that Moab is devastated.
21Judgment has also come to the land of the plain, to Holon, and to Jahaz, and on Mephaath, 22and on Dibon, and on Nebo, and on Beth-diblathaim, 23and on Kiriathaim, and on Beth-gamul, and on Beth-meon, 24and on Kerioth, and on Bozrah, and on all the towns of the land of Moab, the far and the near. 25The horn of Moab is cut off and his arm is broken,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
26“Make him drunk,
because he magnified himself against Yahweh,
and let Moab wallow in his vomit.
And he also will become a laughingstock.
27Now was not Israel the laughingstock to you?
Or was he found among thieves?
For as often as#Literally “from enough” you spoke over him
you shook your head.
28Leave the towns and dwell on the rock,
O inhabitants of Moab,
and be like the dove,
it nests on the sides of the mouth of a ravine.
29We have heard of the pride of Moab
—he is very proud—
his height, and his pride, and his arrogance,
and the haughtiness of his heart.
30I know his insolence,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh,
“and his boastings are false;#Literally “not right”
they act falsely.#Literally “not right”
31Therefore#Literally “Unto thus” over Moab I wail,
and for all of Moab I cry out,
for the people#Or “men” of Kir-heres I moan.
32More than the weeping of Jazer
I weep for you, O vine Sibmah.
Your branches cross over the sea,
up to the sea of Jazer they reach.
Upon your summer fruit and upon your vintage
the destroyer has fallen.
33And joy and rejoicing have been taken away from the fruitful land,
even from the land of Moab.
And the wine from the wine presses
I have caused to disappear.
He will not tread with exuberant shouts.#Hebrew “exuberant shout”
Exuberant shouts#Hebrew “Exuberant shout” will not be exuberant shouts.#Hebrew “exuberant shout”
34From the cry for help of Heshbon, up to Elealeh,
up to Jahaz, they give their voice,
from Zoar up to Horonaim, up to Eglath-shelishiyah,
for even the waters of Nimrim have become as a desolation.
35And I will cause to disappear for Moab,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh,
“the one who presents a sacrifice at a high place,
and the one who burns a smoke offering to his gods.
36Therefore#Literally “Unto thus” my heart moans for Moab like the flute.#Hebrew “flutes”
It moans for the people#Or “men” of Kir-heres like the flute.#Hebrew “flutes”
Therefore#Literally “Unto thus” the wealth they gained has perished.
37For on every head is baldness,
and every beard is trimmed.
On all the hands, slashes,
and on the loins, sackcloth.
38On all the roofs of Moab, and in its public squares,
there is wailing everywhere.
For I have broken Moab like a vessel,
there is no delight in it,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
39“How it is filled with terror! How they wail!
How Moab has turned his back! He is disgraced!
So Moab has become as a derision,
and as a terror for all his surrounding peoples.”
40For thus says Yahweh,
“Look, like an eagle he will swoop down,
and he will spread out his wings against Moab.
41Kerioth will be taken,
and the strongholds will be conquered,
and the hearts#Hebrew “heart” of the warriors of Moab will be on that day
like the heart of a woman who is in labor.
42And Moab will be destroyed from being a people,
because against Yahweh he magnified himself.
43Dread, and pit, and a trapping net are against you,
O inhabitant of Moab,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
44“He who flees before#Literally “from the face of” the dread
will fall into the pit,
and the one who climbs up from the pit
will be caught in the trapping net,
for I will bring on Moab
the year of their punishment,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
45“In the shadow of Heshbon
fugitives stand without strength,
for a fire has gone out from Heshbon,
and a flame from Sihon.
And it has eaten the forehead of Moab,
and the skulls#Hebrew “skull” of the people#Or “sons” of tumult.
46Woe to you, Moab!
The people of Chemosh have perished.
For your sons have been taken into captivity,
and your daughters into captivity.
47Yet I will restore the fortunes#Hebrew “fortune” of Moab
in the last of the days,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
Thus far#Literally “Up to here” is the judgment of Moab.
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Jeremiah 48: LEB
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Jeremiah 48
48
The Destruction of Moab
1 #
Is 15.1—16.14; 25.10–12; Ezek 25.8–11; Amos 2.1–3; Zeph 2.8–11 This is what the LORD Almighty said about Moab:
“Pity the people of Nebo —
their town is destroyed!
Kiriathaim is captured,
its mighty fortress torn down,
and its people put to shame;
2the splendour of Moab is gone.
The enemy have captured Heshbon
and plot to destroy the nation of Moab.
The town of Madmen will be silenced;
armies will march against it.
3The people of Horonaim cry out,
‘Violence! Destruction!’
4“Moab has been destroyed;
listen to the children crying.
5Hear the sound of their sobs
along the road up to Luhith,
the cries of distress
on the way down to Horonaim.
6‘Quick, run for your lives!’ they say.
‘Run like a wild desert donkey!’
7“Moab, you trusted in your strength and your wealth,
but now even you will be conquered;
your god Chemosh will go into exile,
along with his princes and priests.
8Not a town will escape the destruction;
both valley and plain will be ruined.
I, the LORD, have spoken.
9Set up a tombstone for Moab;
it will soon be destroyed.
Its towns will be left in ruins,
and no one will live there again.”
10(Curse those who do not do the LORD's work with all their heart! Curse those who do not slash and kill!)
The Cities of Moab are Destroyed
11The LORD said, “Moab has always lived secure and has never been taken into exile. Moab is like wine left to settle undisturbed and never poured from jar to jar. Its flavour has never been ruined, and it tastes as good as ever.
12“So now, the time is coming when I will send people to pour Moab out like wine. They will empty its wine jars and break them in pieces. 13Then the Moabites will be disillusioned with their god Chemosh, just as the Israelites were disillusioned with Bethel, a god in whom they trusted.
14“Men of Moab, why do you claim to be heroes,
brave soldiers tested in war?
15Moab and its cities are destroyed;
its finest young men have been slaughtered.
I am the king, the LORD Almighty,
and I have spoken.
16Moab's doom approaches;
its ruin is coming soon.
17“Mourn for that nation, you that live near by,
all of you that know its fame.
Say, ‘Its powerful rule has been broken;
its glory and might are no more.’
18You that live in Dibon,
come down from your place of honour
and sit on the ground in the dust;
Moab's destroyer is here
and has left its forts in ruins.
19You that live in Aroer,
stand by the road and wait;
ask those who are running away,
find out from them what has happened.
20‘Moab has fallen,’ they will answer,
‘weep for it; it is disgraced.
Announce along the River Arnon
that Moab is destroyed!’
21“Judgement has come on the cities of the plateau: on Holon, Jahzah, Mephaath, 22Dibon, Nebo, Beth Diblathaim, 23Kiriathaim, Bethgamul, Bethmeon, 24Kerioth, and Bozrah. Judgement has come on all the cities of Moab, far and near. 25Moab's might has been crushed; its power has been destroyed. I, the LORD, have spoken.”
Moab will be Humbled
26The LORD said, “Make Moab drunk, because it has rebelled against me. Moab will roll in its own vomit, and people will laugh. 27Moab, remember how you jeered at the people of Israel? You treated them as though they had been caught with a gang of robbers.
28“You people who live in Moab, leave your towns! Go and live on the cliffs! Be like the dove that makes its nest in the sides of a ravine. 29Moab is very proud! I have heard how proud, arrogant, and conceited the people are, how much they think of themselves. 30I, the LORD, know of their arrogance. Their boasts amount to nothing, and the things they do will not last. 31And so I will weep for everyone in Moab and for the people of Kir Heres. 32I will cry for the people of Sibmah, even more than for the people of Jazer. City of Sibmah, you are like a vine whose branches reach across the Dead Sea and go as far as Jazer. But now your summer fruits and your grapes have been destroyed. 33Happiness and joy have been taken away from the fertile land of Moab. I have made the wine stop flowing from the winepresses; there is no one to make the wine and shout for joy.
34“The people of Heshbon and Elealeh cry out,#48.34 Probable text Heshbon… cry out; Hebrew unclear. and their cry can be heard as far as Jahaz; it can be heard by the people in Zoar, and it is heard as far as Horonaim and Eglath Shelishiyah. Even the brook of Nimrim has dried up. 35I will stop the people of Moab from making burnt offerings at their places of worship and from offering sacrifices to their gods. I, the LORD, have spoken.
36“So my heart mourns for Moab and for the people of Kir Heres, like someone playing a funeral song on a flute, because everything they owned is gone. 37All of them have shaved their heads and cut off their beards. They have all made gashes on their hands, and everyone is wearing sackcloth. 38On all the housetops of Moab and in all its public squares there is nothing but mourning, because I have broken Moab like a jar that no one wants. 39Moab has been shattered! Cry out! Moab has been disgraced. It is in ruins, and all the surrounding nations jeer at it. I, the LORD, have spoken.”
No Escape for Moab
40The LORD has promised that a nation will swoop down on Moab like an eagle with its outspread wings, 41and the towns and fortresses will be captured. On that day Moab's soldiers will be as frightened as a woman in labour. 42Moab will be destroyed and will no longer be a nation, because it rebelled against me. 43Terror, pits, and traps are waiting for the people of Moab. The LORD has spoken. 44Whoever tries to escape the terror will fall into the pits, and whoever climbs out of the pits will be caught in the traps, because the LORD has set the time for Moab's destruction. 45Helpless refugees try to find protection in Heshbon, the city that King Sihon once ruled, but it is in flames.#48.45 Heshbon, the city… flames; or the city of Heshbon, but it is in flames and the palace of King Sihon is burning. Fire has burnt up the frontiers and the mountain heights of the war-loving people of Moab. 46Pity the people of Moab! The people who worshipped Chemosh have been destroyed, and their sons and daughters have been taken away as prisoners.
47But in days to come the LORD will make Moab prosperous again. All of this is what the LORD has said will happen to Moab.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.