Jeremiah 50
50
Prophecy against Babylon
1This is what the LORD said concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians through the prophet Jeremiah:
2Tell the nations;
proclaim it far and wide!
Set up a flag;
proclaim it far and wide!
Hold nothing back;
just shout it:
“Babylon is captured;
Bel is shamed;
Marduk is panic-stricken.
Her images are shamed;
her idols are panic-stricken.”
3A nation from the north
has risen up against her.
It will decimate her land,
and no one will live in it.
Every living thing will flee.
4In those days and at that time,
declares the LORD,
the people of Israel and Judah
will come out of Babylon#50.4 Heb lacks of Babylon. together;
with weeping they will leave
as they seek the LORD their God.
5They will search for Zion,
turning their faces toward it.
They will come#50.5 Heb uncertain and
unite with the LORD,
in an everlasting covenant
that will never be forgotten.
6My people were lost sheep;
their shepherds led them astray;
they deserted them on the mountains,
where they wandered off among the hills,
forgetting their resting place.
7All who found them devoured them;
and their attackers said,
“It’s not our fault,
because they have sinned against the LORD,
the true pasture,#50.7 Or righteous dwelling place
the hope of their ancestors—the LORD.”
8Now wander far from Babylon.
Get out of that country.
Like rams of the flock,
lead the way home.
9I’m stirring up against Babylon
a coalition of mighty nations.
It will mobilize in the north,
and from there she will be captured.
Their arrows are like those of an expert archer
who does not return empty-handed.
10Babylon will be defeated;
its attackers will carry off all that they want,
declares the LORD.
11Sure, you gloat and rejoice,
you plunderers of my possession.
Sure, you dance around like a calf
and neigh like a stallion.
12But Mother Babylon#50.12 Or your mother will be humiliated;
the one who bore you will be disgraced.
She will become the least of the nations:
a wilderness, a desert, and parched land.
13Because of the LORD’s anger,
no one will live there;
she will be reduced to total ruin.
All who pass by Babylon will be shocked;
they will gasp at all her injuries.
14Take up your positions around Babylon,
all you archers;
now shoot at her;
save none of your arrows,
because she’s sinned against the LORD.
15Raise a victory shout against her on every side!
She’s surrendered;
her towers have collapsed;
her walls are destroyed.
This is the LORD’s retribution;
now pay her back:
do to her what she’s done to others!
16Cut Babylon off from those who plant
and those who harvest the crops,
because of its ruthless sword.#50.16 Heb uncertain
Now return, all of you, to your people;
flee to your homeland!
17Israelites are scattered sheep,
driven away by lions.
First the king of Assyria devoured them,
and now Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar has ravaged them.#50.17 Or gnawed their bones
18Therefore, the LORD of heavenly forces, the God of Israel, proclaims:
I’m going to punish the king of Babylon and his land,
just as I punished the king of Assyria.
19But I will restore Israel to their pasture;
they will graze on Carmel and Bashan;
they will eat their fill
in the highlands of Ephraim and Gilead.
20In those days and at that time,
declares the LORD,
if one searches for the sin of Israel,
they will find nothing;
if one seeks out the wrongdoing of Judah,
they will look in vain.
I will forgive those I have spared.
21Attack the land of Merathaim;#50.21 Or Double rebellion
crush those living in Pekod.
Ruin and destroy them,
declares the LORD;
do all I have commanded you.
22There’s the sound of war in the land
and enormous devastation.
23How the hammer of the whole earth
has been broken and shattered into pieces!
How Babylon has become a wasteland
among the nations!
24You set a trap for others, Babylon,#50.24 Or I set a trap for you, Babylon, and you were
but you yourself were caught in it unaware;
you have been found and captured
because you have defied the LORD.
25The LORD has opened his arsenal
and brought out his brutal weapons.
The LORD God of heavenly forces
has a job to do in the land of the Babylonians.
26Come against her from every side;
throw open her granaries;
pile her up like stalks of grain;
totally destroy her;
leave nothing intact.
27Destroy all her bulls;
prepare them for slaughter.
How terrible for them!
Their time has come,
the day of reckoning.
28A voice of fugitives and refugees,
from the land of Babylon,
declaring in Zion
the retribution of the LORD our God
because of what has been done to his temple.
29Send the archers against Babylon,
all who draw the bow!
Surround her
and let no one escape.
Pay her back for her deeds;
do to her what she’s done to others.
She has acted arrogantly toward the LORD,
the holy one of Israel!
30Therefore, her soldiers will fall in the streets;
all her warriors will be silenced on that day,
declares the LORD.
31I’m against you, you arrogant one!
declares the LORD God of heavenly forces.
Your day has come,
your time of reckoning.
32The arrogant one will stumble and fall,
and no one will help her up.
I’ll set your cities on fire,
and it will consume all that’s around her.
33The LORD of heavenly forces proclaims:
The people of Israel were oppressed,
together with the people of Judah.
Their captors held them
and refused to let them go.
34Yet their redeemer is strong;
the LORD of heavenly forces is his name.
He will surely defend their cause
and give them rest in the land.
But he will unsettle the people of Babylon.
35A sword against Babylon and its people,
declares the LORD,
along with its officials and sages.
36A sword against its diviners
so that they become fools.
A sword against its warriors
so that they are terrified.
37A sword against its horses and chariots,
and the mercenaries#50.37 Or foreigners in its midst
so that they lose courage.#50.37 Or become like women
A sword against its treasures
so that they are looted.
38A sword#50.38 Or A drought against the water supplies
so that they dry up.
It is truly the land of idols,
idols about which they have gone utterly mad!
39Therefore, Babylon will become a ghost town,
a place for desert animals,
hyenas, and ravenous birds.#50.39 Heb uncertain
No one will live there again;
no one will make it their home.
40Just as God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbors,
declares the LORD,
so no one will live in Babylon
or settle there again.
41Look! An army is on the move
from the northern regions.
A powerful nation and many kings are coming
from the ends of the earth.
42Equipped with bow and spear,
they are cruel and show no mercy.
Their horsemen sound like the roaring sea,
arrayed in battle formation against you,
Daughter Babylon.
43The king of Babylon has heard reports of them
and is panic-stricken;
distress overwhelms him,
pain like that of a woman in labor.
44Like a lion coming up from
the jungle of the Jordan
to a well-watered meadow,#50.44 Heb uncertain
so I will suddenly chase down Babylon
and single out its choicest of rams.
Who is like me?
Who can direct me?
What shepherd can withstand me?
45Therefore, listen to the counsel
that the LORD has for Babylon
and the plans he’s devised
against the land of Babylon:
The little ones of the flock
will be dragged off,
as their pasture watches
in utter disbelief.#50.45 Heb uncertain
46The earth quakes
at the sound of Babylon’s capture;
its screams echo throughout the world.
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Jeremiah 50: CEB
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Jeremiah 50
50
Prophecy against Babylon
1This is what the LORD said concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians through the prophet Jeremiah:
2Tell the nations;
proclaim it far and wide!
Set up a flag;
proclaim it far and wide!
Hold nothing back;
just shout it:
“Babylon is captured;
Bel is shamed;
Marduk is panic-stricken.
Her images are shamed;
her idols are panic-stricken.”
3A nation from the north
has risen up against her.
It will decimate her land,
and no one will live in it.
Every living thing will flee.
4In those days and at that time,
declares the LORD,
the people of Israel and Judah
will come out of Babylon#50.4 Heb lacks of Babylon. together;
with weeping they will leave
as they seek the LORD their God.
5They will search for Zion,
turning their faces toward it.
They will come#50.5 Heb uncertain and
unite with the LORD,
in an everlasting covenant
that will never be forgotten.
6My people were lost sheep;
their shepherds led them astray;
they deserted them on the mountains,
where they wandered off among the hills,
forgetting their resting place.
7All who found them devoured them;
and their attackers said,
“It’s not our fault,
because they have sinned against the LORD,
the true pasture,#50.7 Or righteous dwelling place
the hope of their ancestors—the LORD.”
8Now wander far from Babylon.
Get out of that country.
Like rams of the flock,
lead the way home.
9I’m stirring up against Babylon
a coalition of mighty nations.
It will mobilize in the north,
and from there she will be captured.
Their arrows are like those of an expert archer
who does not return empty-handed.
10Babylon will be defeated;
its attackers will carry off all that they want,
declares the LORD.
11Sure, you gloat and rejoice,
you plunderers of my possession.
Sure, you dance around like a calf
and neigh like a stallion.
12But Mother Babylon#50.12 Or your mother will be humiliated;
the one who bore you will be disgraced.
She will become the least of the nations:
a wilderness, a desert, and parched land.
13Because of the LORD’s anger,
no one will live there;
she will be reduced to total ruin.
All who pass by Babylon will be shocked;
they will gasp at all her injuries.
14Take up your positions around Babylon,
all you archers;
now shoot at her;
save none of your arrows,
because she’s sinned against the LORD.
15Raise a victory shout against her on every side!
She’s surrendered;
her towers have collapsed;
her walls are destroyed.
This is the LORD’s retribution;
now pay her back:
do to her what she’s done to others!
16Cut Babylon off from those who plant
and those who harvest the crops,
because of its ruthless sword.#50.16 Heb uncertain
Now return, all of you, to your people;
flee to your homeland!
17Israelites are scattered sheep,
driven away by lions.
First the king of Assyria devoured them,
and now Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar has ravaged them.#50.17 Or gnawed their bones
18Therefore, the LORD of heavenly forces, the God of Israel, proclaims:
I’m going to punish the king of Babylon and his land,
just as I punished the king of Assyria.
19But I will restore Israel to their pasture;
they will graze on Carmel and Bashan;
they will eat their fill
in the highlands of Ephraim and Gilead.
20In those days and at that time,
declares the LORD,
if one searches for the sin of Israel,
they will find nothing;
if one seeks out the wrongdoing of Judah,
they will look in vain.
I will forgive those I have spared.
21Attack the land of Merathaim;#50.21 Or Double rebellion
crush those living in Pekod.
Ruin and destroy them,
declares the LORD;
do all I have commanded you.
22There’s the sound of war in the land
and enormous devastation.
23How the hammer of the whole earth
has been broken and shattered into pieces!
How Babylon has become a wasteland
among the nations!
24You set a trap for others, Babylon,#50.24 Or I set a trap for you, Babylon, and you were
but you yourself were caught in it unaware;
you have been found and captured
because you have defied the LORD.
25The LORD has opened his arsenal
and brought out his brutal weapons.
The LORD God of heavenly forces
has a job to do in the land of the Babylonians.
26Come against her from every side;
throw open her granaries;
pile her up like stalks of grain;
totally destroy her;
leave nothing intact.
27Destroy all her bulls;
prepare them for slaughter.
How terrible for them!
Their time has come,
the day of reckoning.
28A voice of fugitives and refugees,
from the land of Babylon,
declaring in Zion
the retribution of the LORD our God
because of what has been done to his temple.
29Send the archers against Babylon,
all who draw the bow!
Surround her
and let no one escape.
Pay her back for her deeds;
do to her what she’s done to others.
She has acted arrogantly toward the LORD,
the holy one of Israel!
30Therefore, her soldiers will fall in the streets;
all her warriors will be silenced on that day,
declares the LORD.
31I’m against you, you arrogant one!
declares the LORD God of heavenly forces.
Your day has come,
your time of reckoning.
32The arrogant one will stumble and fall,
and no one will help her up.
I’ll set your cities on fire,
and it will consume all that’s around her.
33The LORD of heavenly forces proclaims:
The people of Israel were oppressed,
together with the people of Judah.
Their captors held them
and refused to let them go.
34Yet their redeemer is strong;
the LORD of heavenly forces is his name.
He will surely defend their cause
and give them rest in the land.
But he will unsettle the people of Babylon.
35A sword against Babylon and its people,
declares the LORD,
along with its officials and sages.
36A sword against its diviners
so that they become fools.
A sword against its warriors
so that they are terrified.
37A sword against its horses and chariots,
and the mercenaries#50.37 Or foreigners in its midst
so that they lose courage.#50.37 Or become like women
A sword against its treasures
so that they are looted.
38A sword#50.38 Or A drought against the water supplies
so that they dry up.
It is truly the land of idols,
idols about which they have gone utterly mad!
39Therefore, Babylon will become a ghost town,
a place for desert animals,
hyenas, and ravenous birds.#50.39 Heb uncertain
No one will live there again;
no one will make it their home.
40Just as God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbors,
declares the LORD,
so no one will live in Babylon
or settle there again.
41Look! An army is on the move
from the northern regions.
A powerful nation and many kings are coming
from the ends of the earth.
42Equipped with bow and spear,
they are cruel and show no mercy.
Their horsemen sound like the roaring sea,
arrayed in battle formation against you,
Daughter Babylon.
43The king of Babylon has heard reports of them
and is panic-stricken;
distress overwhelms him,
pain like that of a woman in labor.
44Like a lion coming up from
the jungle of the Jordan
to a well-watered meadow,#50.44 Heb uncertain
so I will suddenly chase down Babylon
and single out its choicest of rams.
Who is like me?
Who can direct me?
What shepherd can withstand me?
45Therefore, listen to the counsel
that the LORD has for Babylon
and the plans he’s devised
against the land of Babylon:
The little ones of the flock
will be dragged off,
as their pasture watches
in utter disbelief.#50.45 Heb uncertain
46The earth quakes
at the sound of Babylon’s capture;
its screams echo throughout the world.
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