17 Look! I am stirring up the Medes against them,h

who cannot be bought off withA silver

and who have no desire for gold.

18 Their bows will cut young men to pieces.

They will have no compassion on offspring;

they will not look with pity on children.

19 And Babylon, the jewel of the kingdoms,

the glory of the pride of the Chaldeans,

will be like Sodom and Gomorrah

when God overthrew them.i

20 It will never be inhabited

or lived in from generation to generation;j

a nomad will not pitch his tent there,

and shepherds will not let their flocks rest there.

21 But desert creatures will lie down there,

and owls will fill the houses.

Ostriches will dwell there,

and wild goats will leap about.k

22 Hyenas will howl in the fortresses,

and jackals, in the luxurious palaces.

Babylon’s time is almost up;

her days are almost over.