Jeremiah 47–51

The ’s Message about Philistia

47^*Before the king of Egypt attacked Gaza, the Lord spoke to me about Philistia. ^2*He said:

“Look! Waters are rising in the north

and will rush like a river in flood.

They will cover the land and everything on it,

cities and the people who live there.

People will call out for help;

everyone on earth will cry bitterly.

^3*They will hear the hoof beats of horses,

the clatter of chariots,

the rumble of wheels.

Parents will not turn back for their children;

their hands will hang limp at their sides.

^4*The time has come to destroy Philistia,

to cut off from Tyre and Sidon

all the help that remains.

I, the Lord, will destroy the Philistines,

all who came from the shores of Crete.

^5*Great sorrow has come to the people of Gaza,

and Ashkelon’s people are silent.

How long will the rest of Philistia mourn?

^6*You cry out, ‘Sword of the Lord!

How long will you go on slashing?

Go back to your scabbard,

stay there and rest!’

^7*But how can it rest,

when I have given it work to do?

I have commanded it to attack Ashkelon

and the people who live on the coast.”

The Destruction of Moab

48^*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;

^2*the 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.

^3*The people of Horonaim cry out,

‘Violence! Destruction!’

^4*“Moab has been destroyed;

listen to the children crying.

^5*Hear 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.

^8*Not a town will escape the destruction;

both valley and plain will be ruined.

I, the Lord, have spoken.

^9*Set 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

^11*The 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. ^13*Then 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?

^15*Moab and its cities are destroyed;

its finest young men have been slaughtered.

I am the king, the Lord Almighty,

and I have spoken.

^16*Moab’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.’

^18*You 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.

^19*You 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, Mephath, ^22*Dibon, Nebo, Beth Diblathaim, ^23*Kiriathaim, Bethgamul, Bethmeon, ^24*Kerioth, and Bozrah. Judgement has come on all the cities of Moab, far and near. ^25*Moab’s might has been crushed; its power has been destroyed. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

Moab Will Be Humbled

^26*The Lord said, “Make Moab drunk, because it has rebelled against me. Moab will roll in its own vomit, and people will laugh. ^27*Moab, 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. ^29*Moab is very proud! I have heard how proud, arrogant, and conceited the people are, how much they think of themselves. ^30*I, the Lord, know of their arrogance. Their boasts amount to nothing, and the things they do will not last. ^31*And so I will weep for everyone in Moab and for the people of Kir Heres. ^32*I 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. ^33*Happiness 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,^g 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. ^35*I 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. ^37*All of them have shaved their heads and cut off their beards. They have all made gashes on their hands, and everyone is wearing sackcloth. ^38*On 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. ^39*Moab 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

^40*The Lord has promised that a nation will swoop down on Moab like an eagle with its outspread wings, ^41*and the towns and fortresses will be captured. On that day Moab’s soldiers will be as frightened as a woman in labour. ^42*Moab will be destroyed and will no longer be a nation, because it rebelled against me. ^43*Terror, pits, and traps are waiting for the people of Moab. The Lord has spoken. ^44*Whoever 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. ^45*Helpless refugees try to find protection in Heshbon, the city that King Sihon once ruled, but it is in flames.^h Fire has burnt up the frontiers and the mountain heights of the war-loving people of Moab. ^46*Pity the people of Moab! The people who worshipped Chemosh have been destroyed, and their sons and daughters have been taken away as prisoners.

^47*But in days to come the Lord will make Moab prosperous again. All of this is what the Lord has said will happen to Moab.

The ’s Judgement on Ammon

49^*This is what the Lord said about Ammon: “Where are the men of Israel? Is there no one to defend their land? Why have they let the people who worship Molech take the territory of the tribe of Gad and settle there? ^2*But the time is coming when I will make the people of the capital city of Rabbah hear the noise of battle, and it will be left in ruins and its villages burnt to the ground. Then Israel will take its land back from those who took it from them. ^3*People of Heshbon, cry out! Ai is destroyed! Women of Rabbah, go into mourning! Put on sackcloth and mourn. Run about in confusion. Your god Molech will be taken into exile, together with his priests and princes. ^4*Why do you unfaithful people boast? Your strength is failing. Why do you trust in your power and say that no one would dare attack you? ^5*I will bring terror on you from every side. You will all run away. Each one will run for his life, and there will be no one to bring your troops together again.

^6*“But later on I will make Ammon prosperous again. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

The ’s Judgement on Edom

^7*This is what the Lord Almighty said about Edom: “Have the people of Edom lost their good judgement? Can their advisers no longer tell them what to do? Has all their wisdom disappeared? ^8*People of Dedan, turn and run! Hide! I am going to destroy Esau’s descendants, because the time has come for me to punish them. ^9*When people pick grapes, they leave a few on the vines, and when robbers come at night, they take only what they want. ^10*But Iⁱ have stripped Esau’s descendants completely and uncovered their hiding places, so that they can no longer hide. All the people of Edom are destroyed. Not one of them is left. ^11*Leave your orphans with me, and I will take care of them. Your widows can depend on me.

^12*“If even those who did not deserve to be punished had to drink from the cup of punishment, do you think that you will go unpunished? No, you must drink from the cup! ^13*I myself have sworn that the city of Bozrah will become a horrifying sight and a desert; people will jeer at it and use its name as a curse. All the nearby villages will be in ruins for ever. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

^14*I said, “Edom, I have received a message from the Lord. He has sent a messenger to tell the nations to assemble their armies and to get ready to attack you. ^15*The Lord is going to make you weak, and no one will respect you. ^16*Your pride has deceived you. No one fears you as much as you think they do. You live on the rocky cliffs, high on top of the mountain; but even though you live as high up as an eagle, the Lord will bring you down. The Lord has spoken.” ^17*The Lord said, “The destruction that will come on Edom will be so terrible that everyone who passes by will…