Jeremiah 48:8-25 - Compare All Versions

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The destroyer will come against every town, and not a town will escape. The valley will be ruined and the plateau destroyed, because the LORD has spoken. Put salt on Moab, for she will be laid waste; her towns will become desolate, with no one to live in them. “A curse on anyone who is lax in doing the LORD’s work! A curse on anyone who keeps their sword from bloodshed! “Moab has been at rest from youth, like wine left on its dregs, not poured from one jar to another— she has not gone into exile. So she tastes as she did, and her aroma is unchanged. But days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will send men who pour from pitchers, and they will pour her out; they will empty her pitchers and smash her jars. Then Moab will be ashamed of Chemosh, as Israel was ashamed when they trusted in Bethel. “How can you say, ‘We are warriors, men valiant in battle’? Moab will be destroyed and her towns invaded; her finest young men will go down in the slaughter,” declares the King, whose name is the LORD Almighty. “The fall of Moab is at hand; her calamity will come quickly. Mourn for her, all who live around her, all who know her fame; say, ‘How broken is the mighty scepter, how broken the glorious staff!’ “Come down from your glory and sit on the parched ground, you inhabitants of Daughter Dibon, for the one who destroys Moab will come up against you and ruin your fortified cities. Stand by the road and watch, you who live in Aroer. Ask the man fleeing and the woman escaping, ask them, ‘What has happened?’ Moab is disgraced, for she is shattered. Wail and cry out! Announce by the Arnon that Moab is destroyed. Judgment has come to the plateau— to Holon, Jahzah and Mephaath, to Dibon, Nebo and Beth Diblathaim, to Kiriathaim, Beth Gamul and Beth Meon, to Kerioth and Bozrah— to all the towns of Moab, far and near. Moab’s horn is cut off; her arm is broken,” declares the LORD.

The destroyer shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape; the valley shall perish, and the 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. “Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD with slackness, and cursed is he who keeps back his sword from bloodshed. “Moab has been at ease from his youth and has settled 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. “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 his jars in pieces. Then Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence. “How do you say, ‘We are heroes and mighty men of war’? The destroyer of Moab and his cities has come up, and the choicest of his young men have gone down to slaughter, declares the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts. The calamity of Moab is near at hand, and his affliction hastens swiftly. Grieve for him, all you who are around him, and all who know his name; say, ‘How the mighty scepter is broken, the glorious staff.’ “Come down from your glory, and sit on the parched ground, O inhabitant of Dibon! For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you; he has destroyed your strongholds. Stand by the way and watch, O inhabitant of Aroer! Ask him who flees and her who escapes; say, ‘What has happened?’ Moab is put to shame, for it is broken; wail and cry! Tell it beside the Arnon, that Moab is laid waste. “Judgment has come upon the tableland, upon Holon, and Jahzah, and Mephaath, and Dibon, and Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, and Kiriathaim, and Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon, and Kerioth, and Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, declares the LORD.

“All the towns will be destroyed, and no one will escape— either on the plateaus or in the valleys, for the LORD has spoken. Oh, that Moab had wings so she could fly away, for her towns will be left empty, with no one living in them. Cursed are those who refuse to do the LORD’s work, who hold back their swords from shedding blood! “From his earliest history, Moab has lived in peace, never going into exile. He is like wine that has been allowed to settle. He has not been poured from flask to flask, and he is now fragrant and smooth. But the time is coming soon,” says the LORD, “when I will send men to pour him from his jar. They will pour him out, then shatter the jar! At last Moab will be ashamed of his idol Chemosh, as the people of Israel were ashamed of their gold calf at Bethel. “You used to boast, ‘We are heroes, mighty men of war.’ But now Moab and his towns will be destroyed. His most promising youth are doomed to slaughter,” says the King, whose name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. “Destruction is coming fast for Moab; calamity threatens ominously. You friends of Moab, weep for him and cry! See how the strong scepter is broken, how the beautiful staff is shattered! “Come down from your glory and sit in the dust, you people of Dibon, for those who destroy Moab will shatter Dibon, too. They will tear down all your towers. You people of Aroer, stand beside the road and watch. Shout to those who flee from Moab, ‘What has happened there?’ “And the reply comes back, ‘Moab lies in ruins, disgraced; weep and wail! Tell it by the banks of the Arnon River: Moab has been destroyed!’ Judgment has been poured out on the towns of the plateau— on Holon and Jahaz and Mephaath, on Dibon and Nebo and Beth-diblathaim, on Kiriathaim and Beth-gamul and Beth-meon, on Kerioth and Bozrah— all the towns of Moab, far and near. “The strength of Moab has ended. His arm has been broken,” says the LORD.

The destroyer  will move against every town; not one town will escape. The valley will perish, and the plain will be annihilated,  as the LORD has said. Make Moab a salt marsh,  , for she will run away;  her towns will become a desolation, without inhabitant.  The one who does the  LORD’s business deceitfully  is cursed,  and the one who withholds his sword from bloodshed is cursed. Moab has been left quiet since his youth, settled like wine on its dregs.  He hasn’t been poured from one container to another or gone into exile. So his taste has remained the same, and his aroma hasn’t changed. Therefore look, the days are coming   — this is the  LORD’s declaration — when I will send pourers to him, who will pour him out. They will empty his containers and smash his jars. Moab will be put to shame because of Chemosh, just as the house of Israel was put to shame because of Bethel  that they trusted in. How can you say, “We are warriors — valiant men for battle”? The destroyer of Moab and its towns has come up,  and the best of its young men have gone down to slaughter. This is the King’s declaration; the LORD of Armies is his name.  Moab’s calamity is near at hand; his disaster is rushing swiftly. Mourn for him, all you surrounding nations, everyone who knows his name. Say, “How the mighty scepter  is shattered, the glorious staff! ” Come down from glory; sit on parched ground, resident of the daughter of Dibon,  for the destroyer of Moab has come against you; he has destroyed your fortresses. Stand by the highway and watch, resident of Aroer!  Ask him who is fleeing or her who is escaping,  “What happened? ” Moab is put to shame, indeed dismayed. Wail and cry out!  Declare by the Arnon that Moab is destroyed. “Judgment has come to the land of the plateau   — to Holon, Jahzah, Mephaath, Dibon, Nebo, Beth-diblathaim, Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, Beth-meon,  Kerioth,  Bozrah, and all the towns of the land of Moab, those far and near. Moab’s horn is chopped off;  his arm is shattered.”  This is the LORD’s declaration.

And the spoiler shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape: the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the LORD hath spoken. Give wings unto Moab, that it may flee and get away: for the cities thereof shall be desolate, without any to dwell therein. Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood. Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent is not changed. Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will send unto him wanderers, that shall cause him to wander, and shall empty his vessels, and break their bottles. And Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Beth-el their confidence. How say ye, We are mighty and strong men for the war? Moab is spoiled, and gone up out of her cities, and his chosen young men are gone down to the slaughter, saith the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts. The calamity of Moab is near to come, and his affliction hasteth fast. All ye that are about him, bemoan him; and all ye that know his name, say, How is the strong staff broken, and the beautiful rod! Thou daughter that dost inhabit Dibon, come down from thy glory, and sit in thirst; for the spoiler of Moab shall come upon thee, and he shall destroy thy strong holds. O inhabitant of Aroer, stand by the way, and espy; ask him that fleeth, and her that escapeth, and say, What is done? Moab is confounded; for it is broken down: howl and cry; tell ye it in Arnon, that Moab is spoiled, and judgment is come upon the plain country; upon Holon, and upon Jahazah, and upon Mephaath, and upon Dibon, and upon Nebo, and upon Beth-diblathaim, and upon Kiriathaim, and upon Beth-gamul, and upon Beth-meon, and upon Kerioth, and upon Bozrah, and upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near. The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, saith the LORD.

And the plunderer shall come against every city; No one shall escape. The valley also shall perish, And the plain shall be destroyed, As the LORD has spoken. “Give wings to Moab, That she may flee and get away; For her cities shall be desolate, Without any to dwell in them. Cursed is he who does the work of the LORD deceitfully, And cursed is he who keeps back his sword from blood. “Moab has been at ease from his youth; He has settled on his dregs, And has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, Nor has he gone into captivity. Therefore his taste remained in him, And his scent has not changed. “Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “That I shall send him wine-workers Who will tip him over And empty his vessels And break the bottles. Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, As the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence. “How can you say, ‘We are mighty And strong men for the war’? Moab is plundered and gone up from her cities; Her chosen young men have gone down to the slaughter,” says the King, Whose name is the LORD of hosts. “The calamity of Moab is near at hand, And his affliction comes quickly. Bemoan him, all you who are around him; And all you who know his name, Say, ‘How the strong staff is broken, The beautiful rod!’ “O daughter inhabiting Dibon, Come down from your glory, And sit in thirst; For the plunderer of Moab has come against you, He has destroyed your strongholds. O inhabitant of Aroer, Stand by the way and watch; Ask him who flees And her who escapes; Say, ‘What has happened?’ Moab is shamed, for he is broken down. Wail and cry! Tell it in Arnon, that Moab is plundered. “And judgment has come on the plain country: On Holon and Jahzah and Mephaath, On Dibon and Nebo and Beth Diblathaim, On Kirjathaim and Beth Gamul and Beth Meon, On Kerioth and Bozrah, On all the cities of the land of Moab, Far or near. The horn of Moab is cut off, And his arm is broken,” says the LORD.

The Message on Moab from GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel: “Doom to Nebo! Leveled to the ground! Kiriathaim demeaned and defeated, The mighty fortress reduced to a molehill, Moab’s glory—dust and ashes. Conspirators plot Heshbon’s doom: ‘Come, let’s wipe Moab off the map.’ The city of Madmen will be struck mute, as killing follows killing. Listen! A cry out of Horonaim: ‘Disaster—doom and more doom!’ Moab will be shattered. Her cries will be heard clear down in Zoar. Up the ascent of Luhith climbers weep, And down the descent from Horonaim, cries of loss and devastation. Oh, run for your lives! Get out while you can! Survive by your wits in the wild! You trusted in thick walls and big money, yes? But it won’t help you now. Your big god Chemosh will be hauled off, his priests and managers with him. A wrecker will wreck every city. Not a city will survive. The valley fields will be ruined, the plateau pastures destroyed, just as I told you. Cover the land of Moab with salt. Make sure nothing ever grows here again. Her towns will all be ghost towns. Nobody will ever live here again. Sloppy work in GOD’s name is cursed, and cursed all halfhearted use of the sword. “Moab has always taken it easy— lazy as a dog in the sun, Never had to work for a living, never faced any trouble, Never had to grow up, never once worked up a sweat. But those days are a thing of the past. I’ll put him to work at hard labor. That will wake him up to the world of hard knocks. That will smash his illusions. Moab will be as ashamed of god Chemosh as Israel was ashamed of her Bethel calf-gods, the calf-gods she thought were so great. For how long do you think you’ll be saying, ‘We’re tough. We can beat anyone anywhere’? The destruction of Moab has already begun. Her choice young soldiers are lying dead right now.” The King’s Decree— his full name, GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies. “Yes. Moab’s doom is on countdown, disaster targeted and launched. Weep for Moab, friends and neighbors, all who know how famous he’s been. Lament, ‘His mighty scepter snapped in two like a toothpick, that magnificent royal staff!’ “Come down from your high horse, pampered beauty of Dibon. Sit in dog dung. The destroyer of Moab will come against you. He’ll wreck your safe, secure houses. Stand on the roadside, pampered women of Aroer. Interview the refugees who are running away. Ask them, ‘What’s happened? And why?’ Moab will be an embarrassing memory, nothing left of the place. Wail and weep your eyes out! Tell the bad news along the Arnon river. Tell the world that Moab is no more. “My judgment will come to the plateau cities: on Holon, Jahzah, and Mephaath; on Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim; on Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon; on Kerioth, Bozrah, and all the cities of Moab, far and near. “Moab’s link to power is severed. Moab’s arm is broken.” GOD’s Decree.

“A destroyer will come to every city, So that no city will escape; The valley also will be ruined And the plateau will be destroyed, As the LORD has said. “Give wings to Moab, For she will flee away; And her cities will become a desolation, Without inhabitants in them. “Cursed is the one who does the LORD’S work negligently, And cursed is the one who restrains his sword from blood. ¶“Moab has been at ease since his youth; He has also been peaceful, like wine on its dregs, And he has not been poured from vessel to vessel, Nor has he gone into exile. Therefore he retains his flavor, And his aroma has not changed. Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will send to him those who tip vessels, and they will tip him over, and they will pour out his vessels and smash his jars. And Moab will be ashamed of Chemosh, just as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence. “How can you say, ‘We are warriors, And men competent for battle’? “Moab has been destroyed and men have gone up to his cities; His choicest young men have also gone down to the slaughter,” Declares the King, whose name is the LORD of armies. “The disaster of Moab will soon come, And his catastrophe has hurried quickly. “Mourn for him, all you who live around him, And all of you who know his name; Say, ‘How the mighty scepter has been broken, A staff of splendor!’ “Come down from your glory And sit on the parched ground, O daughter living in Dibon, For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you, He has ruined your strongholds. “Stand by the road and keep watch, You inhabitant of Aroer; Ask him who flees and her who escapes And say, ‘What has happened?’ “Moab has been put to shame, for it has been shattered. Wail and cry out; Declare by the Arnon That Moab has been destroyed. “Judgment has also come upon the plain, upon Holon, Jahzah, and against Mephaath, against Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, against Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon, against Kerioth, Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. The horn of Moab has been cut off, and his arm broken,” declares the LORD.

“And the destroyer will come upon every city; No city will escape. The [Jordan] valley also will be ruined And the plain will be devastated, As the LORD has said. “Give a gravestone to Moab, For she will fall into ruins; Her cities (pastures, farms) will be desolate, Without anyone to live in them. “Cursed is the one who does the work of the LORD negligently, And cursed is the one who restrains his sword from blood [in executing the judgment of the LORD]. ¶“Moab has been at ease from his youth; He has also been undisturbed, and settled like wine on his dregs, And he has not been emptied from one vessel to another, Nor has he gone into exile. Therefore his flavor remains in him, And his scent has not changed. Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “when I will send to Moab those who will tip him over and who will empty his vessels and break his [earthenware] jars in pieces. And Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh [his worthless, disgusting god], as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their [misplaced] confidence. [1 Kin 12:28, 29] “How can you say, ‘We are great warriors And valiant men in war?’ “Moab has been made desolate and his cities have gone up [in smoke and flame]; And his chosen young men have gone down to the slaughter,” Says the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts. “The destruction of Moab will come soon, And his disaster hurries quickly. “Show sympathy for him, all you [nations] who are around him, And all you [distant nations] who know his name; Say, ‘How has the mighty scepter [of national power] been broken, And the splendid staff [of glory]!’ “Come down from your glory, O Daughter living in Dibon, And sit on the parched ground [among the thirsty]! For the destroyer of Moab has advanced against you; He has destroyed your strongholds. “O inhabitant of Aroer, Stand by the road and keep watch! Ask [of] him who flees and [ask of] her who escapes, Saying, ‘What has happened?’ “Moab is shamed, for she has been broken down and shattered. Wail and cry out! Tell by [the banks of] the Arnon That Moab has been destroyed. “Judgment has come on [the land of] the plain—upon Holon, Jahzah, and against Mephaath, against Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, against Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon, against Kerioth, Bozrah and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. The horn (strength) of Moab has been cut off and his arm [of authority] is shattered,” says the LORD.

The destroyer will come against every town. Not one town will escape. The towns in the valley will be destroyed. The cities on the high plain will be laid waste. I, the LORD, have spoken! Set up a gravestone for Moab, for it will certainly be laid in ruins! Its cities will be laid waste and become uninhabited.” A curse on anyone who is lax in doing the LORD’s work! A curse on anyone who keeps from carrying out his destruction! “From its earliest days Moab has lived undisturbed. It has never been taken into exile. Its people are like wine allowed to settle undisturbed on its dregs, never poured out from one jar to another. They are like wine which tastes like it always did, whose aroma has remained unchanged. But the time is coming when I will send men against Moab who will empty it out. They will empty the towns of their people, then will lay those towns in ruins. I, the LORD, affirm it! The people of Moab will be disappointed by their god Chemosh. They will be as disappointed as the people of Israel were when they put their trust in the calf god at Bethel. How can you men of Moab say, ‘We are heroes, men who are mighty in battle?’ Moab will be destroyed. Its towns will be invaded. Its finest young men will be slaughtered. I, the King, the LORD who rules over all, affirm it! Moab’s destruction is at hand. Disaster will come on it quickly. Mourn for that nation, all you nations living around it, all of you nations that know of its fame. Mourn and say, ‘Alas, its powerful influence has been broken! Its glory and power have been done away!’ Come down from your place of honor; sit on the dry ground, you who live in Dibon. For the one who will destroy Moab will attack you; he will destroy your fortifications. You who live in Aroer, stand by the road and watch. Question the man who is fleeing and the woman who is escaping. Ask them, ‘What has happened?’ They will answer, ‘Moab is disgraced, for it has fallen! Wail and cry out in mourning! Announce along the Arnon River that Moab has been destroyed.’ “Judgment will come on the cities on the high plain: on Holon, Jahzah, and Mephaath, on Dibon, Nebo, and Beth Diblathaim, on Kiriathaim, Beth Gamul, and Beth Meon, on Kerioth and Bozrah. It will come on all the towns of Moab, both far and near. Moab’s might will be crushed. Its power will be broken. I, the LORD, affirm it!