Jeremiah 49
49
You’re a Broken-Down Has-Been
1-6 God’s Message on the Ammonites:
“Doesn’t Israel have any children,
no one to step into her inheritance?
So why is the god Milcom taking over Gad’s land,
his followers moving into its towns?
But not for long! The time’s coming”
—God’s Decree—
“When I’ll fill the ears of Rabbah, Ammon’s big city,
with battle cries.
She’ll end up a pile of rubble,
all her towns burned to the ground.
Then Israel will kick out the invaders.
I, God, say so, and it will be so.
Wail Heshbon, Ai is in ruins.
Villages of Rabbah, wring your hands!
Dress in mourning, weep buckets of tears.
Go into hysterics, run around in circles!
Your god Milcom will be hauled off to exile,
and all his priests and managers right with him.
Why do you brag of your once-famous strength?
You’re a broken-down has-been, a castoff
Who fondles his trophies and dreams of glory days
and vainly thinks, ‘No one can lay a hand on me.’
Well, think again. I’ll face you with terror from all sides.”
Word of the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
“You’ll be stampeded headlong,
with no one to round up the runaways.
Still, the time will come
when I will make things right with Ammon.” God’s Decree.
Strutting Across the Stage of History
7-11The Message of God-of-the-Angel-Armies on Edom:
“Is there nobody wise left in famous Teman?
no one with a sense of reality?
Has their wisdom gone wormy and rotten?
Run for your lives! Get out while you can!
Find a good place to hide,
you who live in Dedan!
I’m bringing doom to Esau.
It’s time to settle accounts.
When harvesters work your fields,
don’t they leave gleanings?
When burglars break into your house,
don’t they take only what they want?
But I’ll strip Esau clean.
I’ll search out every nook and cranny.
I’ll destroy everything connected with him,
children and relatives and neighbors.
There’ll be no one left who will be able to say,
‘I’ll take care of your orphans.
Your widows can depend on me.’”
12-13Indeed. God says, “I tell you, if there are people who have to drink the cup of God’s wrath even though they don’t deserve it, why would you think you’d get off? You won’t get off. You’ll drink it. Oh yes, you’ll drink every drop. And as for Bozrah, your capital, I swear by all that I am”—God’s Decree—“that that city will end up a pile of charred ruins, a stinking garbage dump, an obscenity—and all her daughter-cities with her.”
14I’ve just heard the latest from God.
He’s sent an envoy to the nations:
“Muster your troops and attack Edom.
Present arms! Go to war!”
15-16“Ah, Edom, I’m dropping you to last place among nations,
the bottom of the heap, kicked around.
You think you’re so great—
strutting across the stage of history,
Living high in the impregnable rocks,
acting like king of the mountain.
You think you’re above it all, don’t you,
like an eagle in its aerie?
Well, you’re headed for a fall.
I’ll bring you crashing to the ground.” God’s Decree.
17-18“Edom will end up trash. Stinking, despicable trash. A wonder of the world in reverse. She’ll join Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbors in the sewers of history.” God says so.
“No one will live there,
no mortal soul move in there.
19“Watch this: Like a lion coming up
from the thick jungle of the Jordan
Looking for prey in the mountain pastures,
I will come upon Edom and pounce.
I’ll take my pick of the flock—and who’s to stop me?
The shepherds of Edom are helpless before me.”
20-22So, listen to this plan that God has worked out against Edom, the blueprint of what he’s prepared for those who live in Teman:
“Believe it or not, the young, the vulnerable—
mere lambs and kids—will be dragged off.
Believe it or not, the flock
in shock, helpless to help, will watch it happen.
The very earth will shudder because of their cries,
cries of anguish heard at the distant Red Sea.
Look! An eagle soars, swoops down,
spreads its wings over Bozrah.
Brave warriors will double up in pain, helpless to fight,
like a woman giving birth to a baby.”
The Blood Will Drain from the Face of Damascus
23-27The Message on Damascus:
“Hamath and Arpad will be in shock
when they hear the bad news.
Their hearts will melt in fear
as they pace back and forth in worry.
The blood will drain from the face of Damascus
as she turns to flee.
Hysterical, she’ll fall to pieces,
disabled, like a woman in childbirth.
And now how lonely—bereft, abandoned!
The once famous city, the once happy city.
Her bright young men dead in the streets,
her brave warriors silent as death.
On that day”—Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies—
“I’ll start a fire at the wall of Damascus
that will burn down all of Ben-hadad’s forts.”
Find a Safe Place to Hide
28-33The Message on Kedar and the sheikdoms of Hazor who were attacked by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. This is God’s Message:
“On your feet! Attack Kedar!
Plunder the Bedouin nomads from the east.
Grab their blankets and pots and pans.
Steal their camels.
Traumatize them, shouting, ‘Terror! Death! Doom!
Danger everywhere!’
Oh, run for your lives,
You nomads from Hazor.” God’s Decree.
“Find a safe place to hide.
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
has plans to wipe you out,
to go after you with a vengeance:
‘After them,’ he says. ‘Go after these relaxed nomads
who live free and easy in the desert,
Who live in the open with no doors to lock,
who live off by themselves.’
Their camels are there for the taking,
their herds and flocks, easy picking.
I’ll scatter them to the four winds,
these defenseless nomads on the fringes of the desert.
I’ll bring terror from every direction.
They won’t know what hit them.” God’s Decree.
“Jackals will take over the camps of Hazor,
camps abandoned to wind and sand.
No one will live there,
no mortal soul move in there.”
The Winds Will Blow Away Elam
34-39 God’s Message to the prophet Jeremiah on Elam at the outset of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah. This is what God-of-the-Angel-Armies says:
“Watch this! I’ll break Elam’s bow,
her weapon of choice, across my knee.
Then I’ll let four winds loose on Elam,
winds from the four corners of earth.
I’ll blow them away in all directions,
landing homeless Elamites in every country on earth.
They’ll live in constant fear and terror
among enemies who want to kill them.
I’ll bring doom on them,
my anger-fueled doom.
I’ll set murderous hounds on their heels
until there’s nothing left of them.
And then I’ll set up my throne in Elam,
having thrown out the king and his henchmen.
But the time will come when I make
everything right for Elam again.” God’s Decree.
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Jeremiah 49: MSG
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.
Jeremiah 49
49
Judgment on Ammon
1Against the #Deut. 23:3, 4; 2 Chr. 20:1; Jer. 25:21; Ezek. 21:28–32; 25:1–7Ammonites.
Thus says the Lord:
“Has Israel no sons?
Has he no heir?
Why then does Milcom inherit #Amos 1:13–15; Zeph. 2:8–11Gad,
And his people dwell in its cities?
2#Amos 1:13–15Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord,
“That I will cause to be heard an alarm of war
In #Ezek. 25:5Rabbah of the Ammonites;
It shall be a desolate mound,
And her villages shall be burned with fire.
Then Israel shall take possession of his inheritance,” says the Lord.
3“Wail, O #Jer. 48:2Heshbon, for Ai is plundered!
Cry, you daughters of Rabbah,
#Is. 32:11; Jer. 48:37Gird yourselves with sackcloth!
Lament and run to and fro by the walls;
For Milcom shall go into captivity
With his #Jer. 48:7priests and his princes together.
4Why #Jer. 9:23do you boast in the valleys,
Your flowing valley, O #Jer. 3:14backsliding daughter?
Who trusted in her #Jer. 48:7treasures, #Jer. 21:13saying,
‘Who will come against me?’
5Behold, I will bring fear upon you,”
Says the Lord God of hosts,
“From all those who are around you;
You shall be driven out, everyone headlong,
And no one will gather those who wander off.
6But #Jer. 48:47afterward I will bring back
The captives of the people of Ammon,” says the Lord.
Judgment on Edom
7#Gen. 25:30; 32:3; Is. 34:5, 6; Jer. 25:21; Ezek. 25:12–14; 35:1–15; Joel 3:19; Amos 1:11, 12; Obad. 1–9, 15, 16Against Edom.
Thus says the Lord of hosts:
#Gen. 36:11; Job 2:11“Is wisdom no more in Teman?
#Is. 19:11Has counsel perished from the prudent?
Has their wisdom #Jer. 8:9vanished?
8Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths, O inhabitants of #Is. 21:13; Jer. 25:23Dedan!
For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him,
The time that I will punish him.
9#Obad. 5, 6If grape-gatherers came to you,
Would they not leave some gleaning grapes?
If thieves by night,
Would they not destroy until they have enough?
10#Obad. 5, 6; Mal. 1:3But I have made Esau bare;
I have uncovered his secret places,
And he shall not be able to hide himself.
His descendants are plundered,
His brethren and his neighbors,
And #Is. 17:14he is no more.
11Leave your fatherless children,
I will preserve them alive;
And let your widows trust in Me.”
12For thus says the Lord: “Behold, #Jer. 25:29; Obad. 16those whose judgment was not to drink of the cup have assuredly drunk. And are you the one who will altogether go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you shall surely drink of it. 13For #Gen. 22:16; Is. 45:23; Jer. 44:26; Amos 6:8I have sworn by Myself,” says the Lord, “that #Gen. 36:33; 1 Chr. 1:44; Is. 34:6; 63:1; Amos 1:12Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse. And all its cities shall be perpetual wastes.”
14#Obad. 1–4I have heard a message from the Lord,
And an ambassador has been sent to the nations:
“Gather together, come against her,
And rise up to battle!
15“For indeed, I will make you small among nations,
Despised among men.
16Your fierceness has deceived you,
The #Jer. 48:29pride of your heart,
O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock,
Who hold the height of the hill!
#Obad. 3, 4Though you make your #Job 39:27; Is. 14:13–15nest as high as the eagle,
#Amos 9:2I will bring you down from there,” says the Lord.
17“Edom also shall be an astonishment;
#Jer. 18:16; 49:13; 50:13; Ezek. 35:7Everyone who goes by it will be astonished
And will hiss at all its plagues.
18#Gen. 19:24, 25; Deut. 29:23; Jer. 50:40; Amos 4:11; Zeph. 2:9As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah
And their neighbors,” says the Lord,
“No one shall remain there,
Nor shall a son of man dwell in it.
19“Behold,#Jer. 50:44 he shall come up like a lion from #Josh. 3:15; Jer. 12:5the floodplain of the Jordan
Against the dwelling place of the strong;
But I will suddenly make him run away from her.
And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her?
For #Ex. 15:11; Is. 46:9who is like Me?
Who will arraign Me?
And #Job 41:10who is that shepherd
Who will withstand Me?”
20#Is. 14:24, 27; Jer. 50:45Therefore hear the counsel of the Lord that He has taken against Edom,
And His purposes that He has proposed against the inhabitants of Teman:
Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out;
Surely He shall make their dwelling places desolate with them.
21#Jer. 50:46; Ezek. 26:15, 18The earth shakes at the noise of their fall;
At the cry its noise is heard at the Red Sea.
22Behold, #Jer. 48:40, 41He shall come up and fly like the eagle,
And spread His wings over Bozrah;
The heart of the mighty men of Edom in that day shall be
Like the heart of a woman in birth pangs.
Judgment on Damascus
23#Is. 17:1–3; Amos 1:3, 5; Zech. 9:1, 2Against Damascus.
#Jer. 39:5; Zech. 9:2“Hamath and Arpad are shamed,
For they have heard bad news.
They are fainthearted;
#(Is. 57:20)There is trouble on the sea;
It cannot be quiet.
24Damascus has grown feeble;
She turns to flee,
And fear has seized her.
#Is. 13:8; Jer. 4:31; 6:24; 48:21Anguish and sorrows have taken her like a woman in labor.
25Why is #Jer. 33:9the city of praise not deserted, the city of My joy?
26#Jer. 50:30; Amos 4:10Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets,
And all the men of war shall be cut off in that day,” says the Lord of hosts.
27“I#Amos 1:4 will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus,
And it shall consume the palaces of Ben-Hadad.”
Judgment on Kedar and Hazor
28#Gen. 25:13; Ps. 120:5; Is. 21:16, 17; Jer. 2:10; Ezek. 27:21Against Kedar and against the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon shall strike.
Thus says the Lord:
“Arise, go up to Kedar,
And devastate #Judg. 6:3; Job 1:3the men of the East!
29Their #Ps. 120:5tents and their flocks they shall take away.
They shall take for themselves their curtains,
All their vessels and their camels;
And they shall cry out to them,
#Jer. 46:5‘Fear is on every side!’
30“Flee, get far away! Dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of Hazor!” says the Lord.
“For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has taken counsel against you,
And has conceived a plan against you.
31“Arise, go up to #Ezek. 38:11the wealthy nation that dwells securely,” says the Lord,
“Which has neither gates nor bars,
#Num. 23:9; Deut. 33:28; Mic. 7:16Dwelling alone.
32Their camels shall be for booty,
And the multitude of their cattle for plunder.
I will #Ezek. 5:10scatter to all winds those in the farthest corners,
And I will bring their calamity from all its sides,” says the Lord.
33“Hazor #Jer. 9:11; 10:22; Zeph. 2:9, 12–15; Mal. 1:3shall be a dwelling for jackals, a desolation forever;
No one shall reside there,
Nor son of man dwell in it.”
Judgment on Elam
34The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet against #Gen. 10:22; Jer. 25:25; Ezek. 32:24; Dan. 8:2Elam, in the #2 Kin. 24:17, 18; Jer. 28:1beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, 35“Thus says the Lord of hosts:
‘Behold, I will break #Ps. 46:9; Is. 22:6the bow of Elam,
The foremost of their might.
36Against Elam I will bring the four winds
From the four quarters of heaven,
And scatter them toward all those winds;
There shall be no nations where the outcasts of Elam will not go.
37For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies
And before those who seek their life.
#Jer. 9:16I will bring disaster upon them,
My fierce anger,’ says the Lord;
‘And I will send the sword after them
Until I have consumed them.
38I will #Jer. 43:10set My throne in Elam,
And will destroy from there the king and the princes,’ says the Lord.
39‘But it shall come to pass #Jer. 48:47in the latter days:
I will bring back the captives of Elam,’ says the Lord.”
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.