Jeremiah 50:33–51:19

33 Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“The children of Israel were oppressed,

Along with the children of Judah;

All who took them captive have held them fast;

They have refused to let them go.

34 dTheir Redeemer is strong;

eThe Lord of hosts is His name.

He will thoroughly plead their fcase,

That He may give rest to the land,

And disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.

35 “A sword is against the Chaldeans,” says the Lord,

“Against the inhabitants of Babylon,

And gagainst her princes and hher wise men.

36 A sword is iagainst the soothsayers, and they will be fools.

A sword is against her mighty men, and they will be dismayed.

37 A sword is against their horses,

Against their chariots,

And against all jthe mixed peoples who are in her midst;

And kthey will become like women.

A sword is against her treasures, and they will be robbed.

38 lA 1drought is against her waters, and they will be dried up.

For it is the land of carved images,

And they are insane with their idols.

39 “Therefore mthe wild desert beasts shall dwell there with the jackals,

And the ostriches shall dwell in it.

nIt shall be inhabited no more forever,

Nor shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.

40 oAs God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah

And their neighbors,” says the Lord,

“So no one shall reside there,

Nor son of man pdwell in it.

41 “Behold, qa people shall come from the north,

And a great nation and many kings

Shall be raised up from the ends of the earth.

42 rThey shall hold the bow and the lance;

sThey are cruel and shall not show mercy.

tTheir voice shall roar like the sea;

They shall ride on horses,

Set in array, like a man for the battle,

Against you, O daughter of Babylon.

43 “The king of Babylon has uheard the report about them,

And his hands grow feeble;

Anguish has taken hold of him,

Pangs as of a woman in vchildbirth.

44 “Behold, whe shall come up like a lion from the 2floodplain of the Jordan

Against the dwelling place of the strong;

But I will make them suddenly run away from her.

And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her?

For who is like Me?

Who will arraign Me?

And xwho is that shepherd

Who will withstand Me?”

45 Therefore hear ythe counsel of the Lord that He has taken against Babylon,

And His zpurposes that He has proposed against the land of the Chaldeans:

aSurely the least of the flock shall draw them out;

Surely He will make their dwelling place desolate with them.

46 bAt the noise of the taking of Babylon

The earth trembles,

And the cry is heard among the nations.

The Utter Destruction of Babylon

51 Thus says the Lord:

“Behold, I will raise up against aBabylon,

Against those who dwell in 1Leb Kamai,

bA destroying wind.

2 And I will send cwinnowers to Babylon,

Who shall winnow her and empty her land.

dFor in the day of doom

They shall be against her all around.

3 Against her elet the archer bend his bow,

And lift himself up against her in his armor.

Do not spare her young men;

fUtterly destroy all her army.

4 Thus the slain shall fall in the land of the Chaldeans,

gAnd those thrust through in her streets.

5 For Israel is hnot forsaken, nor Judah,

By his God, the Lord of hosts,

Though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.”

6 iFlee from the midst of Babylon,

And every one save his life!

Do not be cut off in her iniquity,

For jthis is the time of the Lord’s vengeance;

kHe shall recompense her.

7 lBabylon was a golden cup in the Lord’s hand,

That made all the earth drunk.

mThe nations drank her wine;

Therefore the nations nare deranged.

8 Babylon has suddenly ofallen and been destroyed.

pWail for her!

qTake balm for her pain;

Perhaps she may be healed.

9 We would have healed Babylon,

But she is not healed.

Forsake her, and rlet us go everyone to his own country;

sFor her judgment reaches to heaven and is lifted up to the skies.

10 The Lord has trevealed our righteousness.

Come and let us udeclare in Zion the work of the Lord our God.

11 vMake 2the arrows bright!

Gather the shields!

wThe Lord has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes.

xFor His plan is against Babylon to destroy it,

Because it is ythe vengeance of the Lord,

The vengeance for His temple.

12 zSet up the standard on the walls of Babylon;

Make the guard strong,

Set up the watchmen,

Prepare the ambushes.

For the Lord has both devised and done

What He spoke against the inhabitants of Babylon.

13 aO you who dwell by many waters,

Abundant in treasures,

Your end has come,

The measure of your covetousness.

14 bThe Lord of hosts has sworn by Himself:

“Surely I will fill you with men, cas with locusts,

And they shall lift dup a shout against you.”

15 eHe has made the earth by His power;

He has established the world by His wisdom,

And fstretched out the heaven by His understanding.

16 When He utters His voice—

There is a multitude of waters in the heavens:

g“He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth;

He makes lightnings for the rain;

He brings the wind out of His treasuries.”

17 hEveryone is dull-hearted, without knowledge;

Every metalsmith is put to shame by the carved image;

iFor his molded image is falsehood,

And there is no breath in them.

18 They are futile, a work of errors;

In the time of their punishment they shall perish.

19 The Portion of Jacob is not like them,

For He is the Maker of all things;

And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance.

The Lord of hosts is His name.