Seventy Years of Servitude

25 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, the king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, 2 which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, ⌊saying⌋,a 3 “From the thirteenth year of Josiah, the son of Amon, the king of Judah, even up to this day, these twenty-three yearsb the word of Yahweh has come to me, and ⌊I have spoken to you over and over again⌋,c but you have not listened. 4 And though Yahweh has sent all his servants the prophets to you ⌊over and over again⌋d you have not listened, and you have not inclined your ear to hear, 5 ⌊saying⌋,e ‘Turn back please, each one from his evil way, and from the evil of your deeds, and live on the land that Yahweh has given to you and to your ancestorsf from a long time back and until forever, 6 and you must not go after other gods to serve them, and to bow in worship to them, and you must not provoke me to anger with the work of your hands, then I will not do something bad to you.’ 7 ‘Yet you have not listened to me,’ ⌊declares⌋g Yahweh, ‘so that youh have provoked me to anger with the work of your hands for your own harm.’

8 ⌊Therefore⌋i thus says Yahweh of hosts, ‘Because you have not obeyed my words, 9 look, I am going to send and take all the clansj of the north,’ ⌊declares⌋k Yahweh, ‘and I will sendl to Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land, and against its inhabitants, and against all these nations all around, and I will destroy them, and I will make them a horror, and an object of hissing, and ⌊everlasting ruins⌋.m 10 And I will exterminate from them the sound of jubilation, and the sound of joy, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the lamp. 11 And all this land will become a site of ruins, a desolation, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.n

The Cup of Wrath

12 ⌊And then⌋o when the seventy yearsp are fulfilled, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation,’ ⌊declares⌋q Yahweh, ‘for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and I will make it ⌊an everlasting waste⌋.r 13 And I will bring upon that land all my words that I have spoken against it, everything that is written in this scroll which Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. 14 For many nations and great kings will let them work, even them, and I will repay them according to their deeds, and according to the work of their hands.’ ” 15 For thus said Yahweh, the God of Israel, to me, “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from my hand, and you must give it to all the nations to whom I am sending you to drink. 16 And they will drink, and they will stagger, and they will act like madmen because of the ⌊presence⌋s of the sword that I am sending among them.”

17 So I took the cup from the hand of Yahweh and I gave itt to all the nations to whom Yahweh sent me to drink: 18 Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, and its kings, and its officials, to make them a site of ruins, a horror, an object of hissing, and a curse, as it is this day; 19 Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and his servants, and his officials, and all his people; 20 and all the otheru people; and all the kings of the land of Uz; and all the kings of the land of the Philistines—v​Ashkelon, and Gaza, and Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod; 21 Edom, and Moab, and the ⌊Ammonites⌋;w 22 and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the coastland that is across the sea; 23 and Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all those who are trimmed to the side; 24 and all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the otherx people who dwell in the desert;y 25 and all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media; 26 and all the kings of the north, near and far, each one to his brother, and all the kingdoms of the world that are on the face of the earth; and the king of Sheshach, he will drink after them.

27 “And you shall say to them, ‘Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel: “Drink and become drunk, and vomit, and fall, and you must not rise because of the ⌊presence⌋z of the sword that I am sending among you.” ’ 28 And it will happen, if they refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says Yahweh of hosts, “You must certainly drink! 29 For look, on the city that is called ⌊by⌋a my name I am beginning to inflict harm, and you indeed, will you go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth,” ⌊declares⌋b Yahweh of hosts.’

30 And you yourself shall prophesy against them all these words, and you shall say to them:

‘Yahweh will roar from on high,

and from ⌊his holy dwelling place⌋c he will give his voice.

He will roar mightily against his settlement,

a jubilant shout like those who tread grapes,

he will answer against all the inhabitants of the earth.

31 The rage of battle will resound to the end of the earth,

for there is a lawsuit of Yahweh against the nations.

He is entering into judgment with all wicked flesh,

he will give them to the sword,’ ⌊declares⌋d Yahweh.”

32 Thus says Yahweh of hosts,

“Look, disaster is going out from nation to nation,

and a great tempest is stirred up from the farthest parts of the earth.

33 And the slain ones of Yahweh will be on that day

from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth,

and they will not be mourned,

and they will not be gathered,

and they will not be buried.

They will become like dung on the ⌊surface⌋e of the ground.

34 Wail, you shepherds, and cry out.

And roll about in mourning in the dust, O leadersf of the flock.

For your days of slaughter and your dispersions have arrived,

and you will fall like a vessel of desire.

35 And flight will perish from the shepherds,

and escape from the leadersg of the flock.

36 A sound, the cry of distress of the shepherds

and the wailing of the leadersh of the flock,

for Yahweh is despoiling their pasture.

37 And the ⌊peaceful settlements⌋i are devastated

because of ⌊the burning anger of Yahweh⌋.j

38 He has left his den like a lion,

for their land has become a horror,

because of the anger of the oppressors,

and because of ⌊his burning anger⌋.”k