Jeremiah 49:1–22

A Message about Ammon

This message was given concerning the Ammonites. This is what the Lord says:

“Are there no descendants of Israel

to inherit the land of Gad?

Why are you, who worship Molech,

living in its towns?

²In the days to come,” says the Lord,

“I will sound the battle cry against your city of Rabbah.

It will become a desolate heap of ruins,

and the neighboring towns will be burned.

Then Israel will take back the land

you took from her,” says the Lord.

³“Cry out, O Heshbon,

for the town of Ai is destroyed.

Weep, O people of Rabbah!

Put on your clothes of mourning.

Weep and wail, hiding in the hedges,

for your god Molech, with his priests and officials,

will be hauled off to distant lands.

⁴You are proud of your fertile valleys,

but they will soon be ruined.

You trusted in your wealth,

you rebellious daughter,

and thought no one could ever harm you.

⁵But look! I will bring terror upon you,”

says the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“Your neighbors will chase you from your land,

and no one will help your exiles as they flee.

⁶But I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites

in days to come.

I, the Lord, have spoken.”

Messages about Edom

⁷This message was given concerning Edom. This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says:

“Is there no wisdom in Teman?

Is no one left to give wise counsel?

⁸Turn and flee!

Hide in deep caves, you people of Dedan!

For when I bring disaster on Edom,

I will punish you, too!

⁹Those who harvest grapes

always leave a few for the poor.

If thieves came at night,

they would not take everything.

¹⁰But I will strip bare the land of Edom,

and there will be no place left to hide.

Its children, its brothers, and its neighbors

will all be destroyed,

and Edom itself will be no more.

¹¹But I will protect the orphans who remain among you.

Your widows, too, can depend on me for help.”

¹²And this is what the Lord says: “If the innocent must suffer, how much more must you! You will not go unpunished! You must drink this cup of judgment! ¹³For I have sworn by my own name,” says the Lord, “that Bozrah will become an object of horror and a heap of ruins; it will be mocked and cursed. All its towns and villages will be desolate forever.”

¹⁴I have heard a message from the Lord

that an ambassador was sent to the nations to say,

“Form a coalition against Edom,

and prepare for battle!”

¹⁵The Lord says to Edom,

“I will cut you down to size among the nations.

You will be despised by all.

¹⁶You have been deceived

by the fear you inspire in others

and by your own pride.

You live in a rock fortress

and control the mountain heights.

But even if you make your nest among the peaks with the eagles,

I will bring you crashing down,”

says the Lord.

¹⁷“Edom will be an object of horror.

All who pass by will be appalled

and will gasp at the destruction they see there.

¹⁸It will be like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

and their neighboring towns,” says the Lord.

“No one will live there;

no one will inhabit it.

¹⁹I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan,

leaping on the sheep in the pasture.

I will chase Edom from its land,

and I will appoint the leader of my choice.

For who is like me, and who can challenge me?

What ruler can oppose my will?”

²⁰Listen to the Lord’s plans against Edom

and the people of Teman.

Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep,

and their homes will be destroyed.

²¹The earth will shake with the noise of Edom’s fall,

and its cry of despair will be heard all the way to the Red Sea.

²²Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle,

spreading his wings over Bozrah.

Even the mightiest warriors will be in anguish

like a woman in labor.