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Jeremiah 45-52
New American Standard Bible

Message to Baruch

45 This is the message which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to (A)Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had (B)written these words in a book [a]at Jeremiah’s dictation, in the (C)fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying: 2 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says to you, Baruch: 3 ‘You said, “Oh, woe to me! For the Lord has added grief to my pain; I am (D)weary with my groaning and have found no rest.”’ 4 This is what you are to say to him: ‘This is what the Lord says: “Behold, (E)what I have built I am going to tear down, and what I have planted I am going to uproot, that is, all the people of the land.” 5 But as for you, are you (F)seeking great things for yourself? Do not seek them; for behold, I am going to (G)bring disaster on all flesh,’ declares the Lord, ‘but I will (H)give your life to you as plunder in all the places where you may go.’”

Defeat of Pharaoh Foretold

46 That which came as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet (I)concerning the nations.

2 To (J)Egypt, concerning the army of (K)Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates at (L)Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated in the (M)fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

3 “(N)Set up the [b]buckler and shield,
And advance to the battle!
4 Harness the horses,
And [c]mount the steeds,
Take your stand with helmets on!
(O)Polish the spears,
Put on the (P)coats of armor!
5 Why have I seen it?
They are terrified,
They are (Q)retreating,
And their (R)warriors are defeated
And have taken refuge in flight,
Without facing back.
[d](S)Terror is on every side!”
Declares the Lord.
6 Let not the (T)swift man flee,
Nor the warrior escape.
In the north beside the river Euphrates
They have (U)stumbled and fallen.
7 Who is this that (V)rises like the Nile,
Like the rivers whose waters surge?
8 Egypt rises like the Nile,
And like the rivers whose waters surge;
And He has said, “I will (W)rise and cover that land;
I will (X)destroy the city and its inhabitants.”
9 Go up, you horses, and [e](Y)drive wildly, you chariots,
So that the warriors may [f]march forward:
[g]Cush and [h](Z)Put, who handle the shield,
And the [i](AA)Lydians, who handle and bend the bow.
10 For (AB)that day belongs to the Lord [j]God of armies,
A day of (AC)vengeance, so as to avenge Himself on His foes;
And the (AD)sword will devour and be satisfied,
And [k]drink its fill of their blood;
For there will be a (AE)slaughter for the Lord [l]God of armies,
In the land of the north at the river Euphrates.
11 Go (AF)up to Gilead and obtain balm,
(AG)Virgin daughter of Egypt!
You have used many [m]remedies in vain;
There is (AH)no healing for you.
12 The nations have heard of your (AI)shame,
And the earth is full of your (AJ)cry of distress;
For one (AK)warrior has stumbled over [n]another,
And both of them have fallen down together.

13 This is the [o]message which the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the (AL)coming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to (AM)strike the land of Egypt:

14 “Declare in Egypt and proclaim in (AN)Migdol,
Proclaim also in Memphis and (AO)Tahpanhes;
Say, ‘Take your stand and get yourself ready,
For the (AP)sword has devoured those around you.’
15 Why have your (AQ)powerful ones been cut down?
They do not stand because the Lord has (AR)thrust them away.
16 They have repeatedly (AS)stumbled;
Indeed, they have fallen, one against another.
Then they said, ‘Get up, and (AT)let’s go back
To our own people and our native land,
Away from the [p](AU)sword of the oppressor!’
17 [q]They shouted there, ‘Pharaoh king of Egypt is nothing but (AV)a big noise;
He has let the appointed time pass by!’
18 As I live,” declares the (AW)King,
Whose name is the Lord of armies,
“One certainly shall come who is like (AX)Tabor among the mountains,
Or like (AY)Carmel by the sea.
19 Make your baggage ready for (AZ)exile,
(BA)Daughter living in Egypt,
For (BB)Memphis will become a desolation;
It will be destroyed and [r]deprived of inhabitants.
20 Egypt is a pretty (BC)heifer,
But a [s]horsefly is coming (BD)from the north—it is coming!
21 Also her (BE)mercenaries in her midst
Are like fattened (BF)calves,
For they too have turned away and have fled together;
They did not stand their ground.
For the day of their disaster has come upon them,
The time of their (BG)punishment.
22 Its sound moves along like a serpent;
For they move on [t]like an army
And come to her as woodcutters with axes.
23 They have cut down her (BH)forest,” declares the Lord;
“Certainly it will no longer be found,
Even though [u]they are more numerous than (BI)locusts
And are without number.
24 The daughter of Egypt has been put to shame,
Turned over to the [v]power of the (BJ)people of the north.”

25 The Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: “Behold, I am going to punish Amon of (BK)Thebes, and (BL)Pharaoh, and Egypt along with her (BM)gods and her kings, indeed, Pharaoh and those who (BN)trust in him. 26 I shall hand them over to those who are (BO)seeking their lives, that is, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to his [w]officers. (BP)Afterward, however, it will be inhabited as in the days of old,” declares the Lord.

27 “But as for you, Jacob My servant, (BQ)do not fear,
Nor be dismayed, Israel!
For, see, I am going to (BR)save you from far away,
And your descendants from the land of their captivity;
And Jacob will return and be (BS)undisturbed
And secure, with no one making him afraid.
28 Jacob My servant, do not fear,” declares the Lord,
“For (BT)I am with you.
For I will make a complete destruction of all the nations
Where I have driven you,
Yet I will (BU)not make a complete destruction of you;
But I will (BV)correct you properly
And by no means leave you unpunished.”

Prophecy against Philistia

47 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the (BW)Philistines, before Pharaoh [x]conquered (BX)Gaza. 2 This is what the Lord says:

“Behold, waters are going to rise from (BY)the north
And become an overflowing torrent,
And (BZ)overflow the land and everything that is in it,
The city and those who live in it;
And the people will (CA)cry out,
And every inhabitant of the land will wail.
3 Because of the noise of the [y](CB)galloping hoofs of his [z]stallions,
The roar of his chariots, and the rumbling of his wheels,
The fathers have not turned back for their children,
Because of the debility of their hands,
4 Because of the day that is coming
To (CC)destroy all the Philistines,
To eliminate from (CD)Tyre and Sidon
Every surviving ally;
For the Lord is going to destroy the Philistines,
The remnant of the coastland of (CE)Caphtor.
5 (CF)Baldness has come upon Gaza;
(CG)Ashkelon has been destroyed.
Remnant of their valley,
How long will you (CH)gash yourself?
6 Ah, (CI)sword of the Lord,
How long will you not be quiet?
Withdraw into your sheath;
Rest and stay still.
7 How can [aa]it be quiet,
When the Lord has (CJ)given it an order?
Against Ashkelon and against the sea shore—
There He has (CK)summoned it.”

Prophecy against Moab

48 Concerning (CL)Moab. This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says:

“Woe to (CM)Nebo, for it has been destroyed;
(CN)Kiriathaim has been put to shame, it has been captured;
The high stronghold has been put to shame and [ab]shattered.
2 There is no longer praise for Moab;
In (CO)Heshbon they have devised disaster against her:
‘Come and let’s cut her off from being a nation!’
You too, [ac]Madmen, will be silenced;
The sword will follow you.
3 The sound of an outcry from (CP)Horonaim,
‘Devastation and great destruction!’
4 Moab is broken,
Her little ones have sounded out a cry of distress.
5 For they will go up by the ascent of (CQ)Luhith
With continual weeping;
For at the descent of Horonaim
They have heard the [ad]anguished cry of destruction.
6 (CR)Flee, save yourselves,
So that you may be like a juniper in the wilderness.
7 For because of your (CS)trust in your own achievements and treasures,
You yourself will also be captured;
And (CT)Chemosh will go off into exile
Together with his priests and his leaders.
8 A destroyer will come to every city,
So that no city will escape;
The valley also will be ruined
And the (CU)plateau will be destroyed,
As the Lord has said.
9 Give [ae](CV)wings to Moab,
For she will [af]flee away;
And her cities will become a (CW)desolation,
Without inhabitants in them.
10 (CX)Cursed is the one who does the Lord’s work (CY)negligently,
And cursed is the one who restrains his (CZ)sword from blood.

11 “Moab has been (DA)at ease since his youth;
He has also been (DB)peaceful, like wine on [ag]its dregs,
And he has not been (DC)poured from vessel to vessel,
Nor has he gone into exile.
Therefore [ah]he retains his flavor,
And his aroma has not changed.

12 Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will send to him those who tip vessels, and they will tip him over, and they will pour out his vessels and smash [ai]his jars. 13 And Moab will be (DD)ashamed of (DE)Chemosh, just as the house of Israel was ashamed of (DF)Bethel, their confidence.

14 How can you say, ‘We are (DG)warriors,
And men competent for battle’?
15 Moab has been destroyed and [aj]men have gone up to [ak]his cities;
His choicest [al](DH)young men have also gone down to the slaughter,”
Declares the (DI)King, whose name is the Lord of armies.
16 “The disaster of Moab will (DJ)soon come,
And his catastrophe has hurried quickly.
17 Mourn for him, all you who live around him,
And all of you who know his name;
Say, ‘How the mighty [am](DK)scepter has been broken,
A staff of splendor!’
18 (DL)Come down from your glory
And sit on the parched ground,
O (DM)daughter living in (DN)Dibon,
For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you,
He has ruined your strongholds.
19 Stand by the road and keep watch,
You inhabitant of (DO)Aroer;
(DP)Ask him who flees and her who escapes
And say, ‘What has happened?’
20 Moab has been put to shame, for it has been [an]shattered.
Wail and cry out;
Declare by the (DQ)Arnon
That Moab has been destroyed.

21 “Judgment has also come upon the plain, upon Holon, (DR)Jahzah, and against (DS)Mephaath, 22 against Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, 23 against Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and (DT)Beth-meon, 24 against (DU)Kerioth, Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. 25 The (DV)horn of Moab has been cut off, and his (DW)arm broken,” declares the Lord. 26 “(DX)Make him drunk, for he has [ao]become (DY)arrogant toward the Lord; so Moab will [ap]vomit, and he also will become a laughingstock. 27 Now was Israel not a (DZ)laughingstock to you? Or was he [aq](EA)caught among thieves? For whenever you speak about him you (EB)shake your head in scorn.

28 Leave the cities and live among the (EC)rocky cliffs,
You inhabitants of Moab,
And be like a (ED)dove that nests
Beyond the mouth of the chasm.
29 (EE)We have heard of the pride of Moab—he is very proud—
Of his haughtiness, his (EF)pride, his arrogance, and [ar]his self-exaltation.
30 I know his (EG)fury,” declares the Lord,
“But it is futile;
His idle boasts have accomplished nothing.
31 Therefore I will (EH)wail for Moab,
For all of Moab I will cry out;
[as]I will moan for the men of (EI)Kir-heres.
32 More than the (EJ)weeping for (EK)Jazer
I will weep for you, O vine of Sibmah!
Your tendrils stretched across the sea,
They reached to the sea of Jazer;
Upon your summer fruits and your grape harvest
The destroyer has fallen.
33 So (EL)joy and rejoicing are removed
From the fruitful field, and from the land of Moab.
And I have (EM)eliminated the wine from the wine presses;
No one will tread them with shouting,
The shouting will not be shouts of joy.

34 (EN)From the outcry at Heshbon to (EO)Elealeh, to Jahaz they have [at]raised their voice, from (EP)Zoar to Horonaim, and to Eglath-shelishiyah; for even the waters of Nimrim will become desolate. 35 And I will put an end to Moab,” declares the Lord, “the one who offers sacrifice on the (EQ)high place and the one who [au](ER)burns incense to his gods.

36 “Therefore My (ES)heart makes a sound like flutes for Moab; My heart also makes a sound like flutes for the men of Kir-heres. Therefore they have (ET)lost the abundance it produced. 37 For (EU)every head is shaved bald, and every beard cut short; there are gashes on all the hands, and (EV)sackcloth around the waists. 38 On all the (EW)housetops of Moab and in its public squares [av]there is mourning everywhere; for I have broken Moab like an undesirable (EX)vessel,” declares the Lord. 39 “How [aw]shattered it is! How they have wailed! How Moab has turned his back—he is ashamed! So Moab will become a laughingstock and an (EY)object of terror to all around him.”

40 For this is what the Lord says:
“Behold, one will (EZ)fly swiftly like an eagle
And (FA)spread out his wings against Moab.
41 Kerioth has been captured
And the strongholds have been seized,
So the (FB)hearts of the warriors of Moab on that day
Will be like the heart of a (FC)woman in labor.
42 Moab will be (FD)destroyed from being a people
Because he has [ax]become (FE)arrogant toward the Lord.
43 (FF)Terror, pit, and snare are coming upon you,
Inhabitant of Moab,” declares the Lord.
44 “The one who (FG)flees from the terror
Will fall into the pit,
And the one who climbs up out of the pit
Will be caught in the snare;
For I will bring upon her, upon Moab,
The year of their (FH)punishment,” declares the Lord.

45 “In the shadow of Heshbon
The fugitives stand without strength;
For a fire has spread out from Heshbon
And a (FI)flame from the midst of (FJ)Sihon,
And it has devoured the (FK)forehead of Moab
And the scalps of the [ay]loud revelers.
46 (FL)Woe to you, Moab!
The people of (FM)Chemosh have perished;
For your sons have been taken away captive,
And your daughters into captivity.
47 Yet I will (FN)restore the fortunes of Moab
In the [az]latter days,” declares the Lord.

This is the extent of the judgment on Moab.

Prophecy against Ammon

49 Concerning the sons of (FO)Ammon. This is what the Lord says:

“Does Israel have no sons?
Or has he no heirs?
Why then has [ba]Malcam taken possession of Gad,
And his people settled in its cities?
2 Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“When I will cause an alarm of (FP)war to be heard
Against (FQ)Rabbah of the sons of Ammon;
And it will become a desolate heap,
And her (FR)towns will be set on fire.
Then Israel will take (FS)possession of his possessors,”
Says the Lord.
3 “Wail, (FT)Heshbon, for (FU)Ai has been destroyed!
Cry out, daughters of Rabbah,
(FV)Put on sackcloth and mourn,
And move about inside the walls;
For [bb]Malcam will (FW)go into exile
Together with his priests and his leaders.
4 How you (FX)boast about the valleys!
Your valley is flowing away,
You (FY)backsliding daughter
Who trusts in her (FZ)treasures, saying,
‘(GA)Who can come against me?’
5 Behold, I am going to bring (GB)terror upon you,”
Declares the Lord [bc]God of armies,
“From all directions around you;
And you will be (GC)driven away [bd]one after another,
With no one to gather the (GD)fugitives together.
6 But afterward I will (GE)restore
The fortunes of the sons of Ammon,”
Declares the Lord.

Prophecy against Edom

7 Concerning (GF)Edom.
This is what the Lord of armies says:
“Is there no longer any (GG)wisdom in (GH)Teman?
Has good advice been lost by the prudent?
Has their wisdom decayed?
8 Flee away, turn back, dwell in the depths,
You inhabitants of (GI)Dedan,
For I [be]will bring the (GJ)disaster of Esau upon him
At the time I [bf]punish him.
9 (GK)If grape pickers came to you,
Would they not leave gleanings?
If thieves came by night,
They would destroy only what was sufficient for them.
10 But I have (GL)stripped Esau bare,
I have uncovered his hiding places
So that he will not be able to conceal himself;
His [bg]offspring have been destroyed along with his [bh]brothers
And his neighbors, and (GM)he no longer exists.
11 Leave your [bi](GN)orphans behind, I will keep them alive;
And let your (GO)widows trust in Me.”

12 For this is what the Lord says: “Behold, those [bj]who were not sentenced to drink the (GP)cup will certainly drink it, so are you the one who will be held (GQ)completely blameless? You will not be held blameless, but you will certainly drink it. 13 For I have (GR)sworn by Myself,” declares the Lord, “that (GS)Bozrah will become an (GT)object of horror, a disgrace, a wasteland, and a curse; and all its cities will become permanent ruins.”

14 I have (GU)heard a message from the Lord,
And a (GV)messenger is being sent among the nations, saying,
“(GW)Gather yourselves together and come against her,
And rise up for battle!”
15 “For behold, I have made you small among the nations,
Despised among people.
16 As for the terror you cause,
The arrogance of your heart has deceived you,
You who live in the clefts of [bk]the (GX)rock,
Who occupy the height of the hill.
Though you make your nest as (GY)high as an eagle’s,
I will (GZ)bring you down from there,” declares the Lord.

17 “Edom will become an (HA)object of horror; everyone who passes by it will be appalled and will [bl](HB)hiss at all its wounds. 18 Like the (HC)overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah with its neighbors,” says the Lord, “(HD)no one will live there, nor will [bm]anyone of mankind reside in it. 19 (HE)Behold, one will come up like a lion from the (HF)thicket of the Jordan to a perennially watered pasture; for in an instant I will chase him away from it, and I will appoint over it whoever is (HG)chosen. For who is (HH)like Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd (HI)who can stand against Me?”

20 Therefore hear the (HJ)plan of the Lord which He has planned against Edom, and His purposes which He has in mind against the inhabitants of Teman: they will certainly drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; He will certainly make their pasture (HK)desolate because of them. 21 The (HL)earth has quaked at the noise of their downfall. There is an outcry! The noise of it has been heard at the [bn]Red Sea. 22 Behold, [bo]He will mount up and (HM)swoop like an eagle, and spread out His wings [bp]against Bozrah; and the (HN)hearts of the warriors of Edom on that day will be like the heart of a woman in labor.

Prophecy against Damascus

23 Concerning (HO)Damascus:
“(HP)Hamath and (HQ)Arpad are put to shame,
For they have heard bad news;
They (HR)despair.
There is anxiety at the sea,
It (HS)cannot be calmed.
24 Damascus has become helpless;
She has turned away to flee,
And panic has gripped her;
(HT)Distress and labor pains have seized her
Like a woman in childbirth.
25 How the (HU)city of praise has not been deserted,
The town of My joy!
26 Therefore, her (HV)young men will fall in her streets,
And all the men of war will perish on that day,” declares the Lord of armies.
27 “I will (HW)set fire to the wall of Damascus,
And it will devour the fortified palace of (HX)Ben-hadad.”

Prophecy against Kedar and Hazor

28 Concerning (HY)Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated. This is what the Lord says:

“Arise, go up to Kedar
And devastate the [bq](HZ)people of the east.
29 They will take away their tents and their flocks;
They will carry off for themselves
Their tent (IA)curtains, all their goods and their (IB)camels,
And they will call out to one another, ‘(IC)Horror on every side!’
30 Run away, flee! Dwell in the depths,
You inhabitants of Hazor,” declares the Lord;
“For (ID)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has formed a plan against you
And devised a scheme against you.
31 Arise, go up against a nation which is (IE)at ease,
Which lives securely,” declares the Lord.
“It has (IF)no gates or bars;
They (IG)dwell alone.
32 Their camels will become plunder,
And their many livestock for spoils,
And I will (IH)scatter to all the winds those who (II)cut the corners of their hair;
And I will bring their disaster from every side,” declares the Lord.
33 “Hazor will become a (IJ)haunt of jackals,
A desolation forever;
No one will live there,
Nor will [br]anyone of mankind reside in it.”

Prophecy against Elam

34 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning (IK)Elam, (IL)at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying:

35 “This is what the Lord of armies says:
‘Behold, I am going to (IM)break the bow of Elam,
The [bs]finest of their might.
36 I will bring upon Elam the (IN)four winds
From the four ends of heaven,
And will (IO)scatter them to all these winds;
And there will be no nation
To which the outcasts of Elam will not go.
37 So I will [bt]shatter Elam before their enemies
And before those who seek their lives;
And I will (IP)bring disaster upon them,
Even My (IQ)fierce anger,’ declares the Lord,
‘And I will (IR)send the sword after them
Until I have consumed them.
38 Then I will set My throne in Elam,
And eliminate from there the king and officials,’
Declares the Lord.
39 ‘But it will come about in the last days
That I will (IS)restore the fortunes of Elam,’”
Declares the Lord.

Prophecy against Babylon

50 The word which the Lord spoke concerning (IT)Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, through Jeremiah the prophet:

2 “(IU)Declare and proclaim among the nations.
Proclaim it and (IV)lift up a flag,
Do not conceal it. Say,
‘(IW)Babylon has been captured,
(IX)Bel has been put to shame, [bu]Marduk has been [bv]shattered;
Her (IY)idols have been put to shame, her images have been shattered.’

3 For a nation has come up against her from the (IZ)north; it will make her land (JA)an object of horror, and there will be (JB)no inhabitant in it. Whether people or animals, they have wandered off, they have gone!

4 “In those days and at that time,” declares the Lord, “the sons of Israel will come, they and the sons of Judah (JC)as well; they will go along (JD)weeping as they go, and it will be (JE)the Lord their God whom they will seek. 5 They will (JF)ask for the way to Zion, turning their faces [bw]in its direction; [bx]they [by]will come so that they may join themselves to the Lord in an (JG)everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.

6 “My people have become (JH)lost sheep;
(JI)Their shepherds have led them astray.
They have made them turn aside on the (JJ)mountains.
They have gone from mountain to hill,
They have forgotten their (JK)resting place.
7 All who found them have devoured them;
And their adversaries have said, ‘(JL)We are not guilty,
Since they have sinned against the Lord who is the (JM)habitation of righteousness,
The Lord, the (JN)hope of their fathers.’

8 “Wander away from the (JO)midst of Babylon
And [bz]go out from the land of the Chaldeans;
Be like male goats [ca]at the head of the flock.
9 For behold, I am going to (JP)rouse and bring up against Babylon
A contingent of great nations from the land of the north,
And they will draw up their battle lines against her;
From there she will be taken captive.
Their arrows will be like [cb]an expert warrior
Who does not return empty-handed.
10 [cc](JQ)Chaldea will become plunder;
All who plunder her will have enough,” declares the Lord.

11 “Because you are glad, because you are jubilant,
You who (JR)pillage My heritage,
Because you skip about [cd]like a threshing (JS)heifer
And neigh like [ce]stallions,
12 Your (JT)mother [cf]will be greatly ashamed,
She who gave you birth [cg]will be humiliated.
Behold, she will be the least of the nations,
A (JU)wilderness, a dry land and a desert.
13 Because of the wrath of the Lord she will (JV)not be inhabited,
But she will be (JW)completely desolate;
Everyone who passes by Babylon (JX)will be horrified
And will hiss because of all her wounds.
14 Draw up your battle lines against Babylon on every side,
All of you who [ch]bend the bow;
Shoot at her, do not spare your arrows,
For she has (JY)sinned against the Lord.
15 Raise your battle cry against her on every side!
She has (JZ)given [ci]herself up, her towers have fallen,
Her (KA)walls have been torn down.
For this is the (KB)vengeance of the Lord:
Take vengeance on her;
(KC)As she has done to others, so do to her.
16 Eliminate the (KD)sower from Babylon
And the one who wields the sickle at the time of harvest;
From [cj]the (KE)sword of the oppressor
(KF)Each of them will turn back to his own people
And each of them will flee to his own land.

17 “Israel is a (KG)scattered [ck]flock, the (KH)lions have driven them away. The first one who devoured him was the (KI)king of Assyria, and this last one who has gnawed his bones is (KJ)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 18 Therefore this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Behold, I am going to punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I (KK)punished the king of Assyria. 19 And I will (KL)bring Israel back to his pasture and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan, and his [cl]desire will be satisfied in the (KM)hill country of Ephraim and Gilead. 20 In those days and at that time,’ declares the Lord, ‘search will be made for the wrongdoing of Israel, but (KN)there will be none; and for the sins of Judah, but they will not be found; for I will forgive those (KO)whom I leave as a remnant.’

21 “Against the land of [cm]Merathaim, go up against it,
And against the inhabitants of [cn](KP)Pekod.
Kill and [co]completely destroy them,” declares the Lord,
“And do according to everything that I have commanded you.
22 The (KQ)noise of battle is in the land,
And great destruction.
23 How the (KR)hammer of the whole earth
Has been cut off and broken!
How Babylon has become
An object of horror among the nations!
24 I (KS)set a trap for you and you were also (KT)caught, Babylon,
While you yourself were not aware;
You have been found and also seized
Because you have engaged in (KU)conflict with the Lord.”
25 The Lord has opened His armory
And has brought out the (KV)weapons of His indignation,
For it is a (KW)work of the Lord [cp]God of armies
In the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come to her from the [cq]farthest border;
(KX)Open up her barns,
Pile her up like heaps of grain
And [cr](KY)completely destroy her,
Let nothing be left to her.
27 (KZ)Put all her bulls to the sword;
Let them (LA)go down to the slaughter!
Woe be upon them, for their (LB)day has come,
The time of their punishment.

28 There is a (LC)sound of fugitives and refugees from the land of Babylon,
To declare in Zion the (LD)vengeance of the Lord our God,
Vengeance for His (LE)temple.

29 “Summon [cs]many against Babylon,
All those who [ct]bend the bow:
Encamp against her on every side,
Let there be no escape[cu].
Repay her according to her work;
(LF)According to all that she has done, so do to her;
For she has become (LG)arrogant against the Lord,
Against the Holy One of Israel.
30 Therefore her (LH)young men will fall in her streets,
And all her men of war will (LI)perish on that day,” declares the Lord.
31 “Behold, (LJ)I am against you, [cv]arrogant one,”
Declares the Lord [cw]God of armies,
“For your day has come,
The time [cx]when I will punish you.
32 The [cy](LK)arrogant one will stumble and fall
With no one to raise him up;
And I will (LL)set fire to his cities,
And it will devour all his surroundings.”

33 This is what the Lord of armies says:
“The sons of Israel are oppressed,
And the sons of Judah as well;
And (LM)all who took them captive have held them firmly,
They have refused to let them go.
34 Their (LN)Redeemer is strong, (LO)the Lord of armies is His name;
He will vigorously (LP)plead their case
So that He may (LQ)bring rest to their land,
But turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 A (LR)sword against the Chaldeans,” declares the Lord,
“And against the inhabitants of Babylon
And against her (LS)leaders and her (LT)wise men!
36 A sword against the (LU)oracle priests, and they will become fools!
A sword against her (LV)warriors, and they will be [cz](LW)shattered!
37 A sword against [da]their (LX)horses, against [db]their chariots,
And against all the [dc](LY)foreigners who are in the midst of her,
And they will become (LZ)women!
A sword against her treasures, and they will be plundered!
38 A [dd](MA)drought on her waters, and they will be dried up!
For it is a land of (MB)idols,
And they go insane at frightful images.

39 “Therefore the (MC)desert creatures will live there with the jackals;
The ostriches also will live in it.
It will (MD)never again be inhabited
Nor lived in from generation to generation.
40 As when God overthrew (ME)Sodom
And Gomorrah with its neighbors,” declares the Lord,
“No one will live there,
Nor will [de]anyone of mankind reside in it.

41 “Behold, a people is coming (MF)from the north,
And a great nation and many kings
Will be roused from the remote parts of the earth.
42 They (MG)seize their bow and javelin;
They are (MH)cruel and have no mercy.
Their (MI)voice roars like the sea;
And they ride on (MJ)horses,
(MK)Drawn up like a man for the battle
Against you, daughter of Babylon.
43 The (ML)king of Babylon has heard the report about them,
And his hands hang limp;
(MM)Distress has gripped him,
Agony like a woman in childbirth.

44 “(MN)Behold, one will come up like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan to a perennially watered pasture; for in an instant I will chase them away from it, and I will appoint over it whoever is (MO)chosen. For who is (MP)like Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd who can (MQ)stand against Me?” 45 Therefore hear the (MR)plan of the Lord which He has planned against Babylon, and His purposes which He has in mind against the land of the Chaldeans: (MS)they will certainly drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; He will certainly make their pasture desolate because of them. 46 At the [df]shout, “Babylon has been conquered!” the (MT)earth quakes, and an (MU)outcry is heard among the nations.

Babylon Judged for Sins against Israel

51 This is what the Lord says:

“Behold, I am going to stir up
[dg]The (MV)spirit of a destroyer against Babylon
And against the inhabitants of [dh]Leb-kamai.
2 I will send [di]foreigners to Babylon so that they may (MW)winnow her
And devastate her land;
For they will be opposed to her on every side
On the day of her disaster.
3 Let not [dj]him who [dk](MX)bends his bow [dl]bend it,
Nor let him rise up in his (MY)coat of armor.
Do not spare her young men;
Devote all her army to destruction.
4 They will fall down [dm]dead in the land of the Chaldeans,
And (MZ)pierced through in their streets.”

5 For (NA)neither Israel nor Judah has been [dn]forsaken
By his God, the Lord of armies,
Although their land is (NB)full of guilt
[do]Before the Holy One of Israel.
6 (NC)Flee from the midst of Babylon,
And each of you save his life!
Do not (ND)perish in her [dp]punishment,
For this is the (NE)Lord’s time of vengeance;
He is going to (NF)repay to her what she deserves.
7 Babylon has been a golden (NG)cup in the hand of the Lord,
Intoxicating all the earth.
The (NH)nations have drunk of her wine;
Therefore the nations are (NI)going insane.
8 Suddenly (NJ)Babylon has fallen and been broken;
(NK)Wail over her!
(NL)Bring [dq]balm for her pain;
Perhaps she may be healed.
9 We applied healing to Babylon, but she was not healed;
Abandon her and (NM)let’s each go to his own country,
For her judgment has (NN)reached to heaven
And it rises to the clouds.
10 The Lord has (NO)brought [dr]about our vindication;
Come and let’s (NP)recount in Zion
The work of the Lord our God!

11 (NQ)Sharpen the arrows, fill the quivers!
The Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes,
Because His plan is against Babylon to destroy it;
For it is the (NR)vengeance of the Lord, vengeance for His temple.
12 (NS)Lift up a signal flag against the walls of Babylon;
Post a strong guard,
Station [ds]sentries,
Set up an ambush!
For the Lord has both (NT)planned and performed
What He spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 You who (NU)live by many waters,
Abundant in (NV)treasures,
Your end has come,
The [dt]measure of your [du](NW)end.
14 The (NX)Lord of armies has sworn by Himself:
“I will certainly fill you with a [dv]population like (NY)locusts,
And they will cry out with shouts of victory over you.”

15 It is (NZ)He who made the earth by His power,
Who established the world by His wisdom,
And by His understanding He (OA)stretched out the heavens.
16 When He utters His (OB)voice, there is a roar of waters in the heavens,
And He makes the (OC)clouds ascend from the end of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain
And brings out (OD)wind from His storehouses.
17 (OE)Every person is stupid, devoid of knowledge;
Every goldsmith is put to shame by his [dw]idols,
For his cast metal images are (OF)deceitful,
And there is no breath in them.
18 They are (OG)worthless, a work of mockery;
At the time of their punishment they will perish.
19 The (OH)portion of Jacob is not like these;
For He is the [dx]Maker of everything,
And of the [dy]tribe of His inheritance;
The (OI)Lord of armies is His name.
20 He says, “You are My [dz](OJ)war-club, My weapon of war;
And with you I (OK)shatter nations,
And with you I destroy kingdoms.
21 With you I (OL)shatter the horse and his rider,
And with you I shatter the (OM)chariot and its rider,
22 And with you I shatter (ON)man and woman,
And with you I shatter the old man and (OO)youth,
And with you I shatter the young man and virgin,
23 And with you I shatter the shepherd and his flock,
And with you I shatter the farmer and his team,
And with you I shatter governors and officials.

24 “But I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of (OP)Chaldea for (OQ)all their evil that they have done in Zion before your eyes,” declares the Lord.

25 “Behold, (OR)I am against you, mountain of (OS)destruction
That destroys the whole earth,” declares the Lord,
“And I will stretch out My hand against you,
And roll you down from the rocky cliffs,
And I will make you a (OT)burnt out mountain.
26 They will not take from you even a stone for a corner
Nor a stone for foundations,
But you will be (OU)desolate forever,” declares the Lord.

27 (OV)Lift up a signal flag in the land,
Blow a trumpet among the nations!
Consecrate the nations against her,
Summon against her the (OW)kingdoms of (OX)Ararat, Minni, and (OY)Ashkenaz;
Appoint an officer against her,
Bring up the (OZ)horses like bristly locusts.
28 Consecrate the nations against her,
The kings of the Medes,
[ea]Their governors and all [eb]their officials,
And every land [ec]under their control.
29 So the (PA)land quakes and writhes,
For the plans of the Lord against Babylon stand,
To make the land of Babylon
[ed]A (PB)desolation without inhabitants.
30 The (PC)warriors of Babylon have ceased fighting,
They stay in the strongholds;
(PD)Their strength is [ee]exhausted,
They are becoming (PE)like women;
Their homes are set on fire,
The (PF)bars of her gates are broken.
31 One [ef](PG)courier runs to meet [eg]another,
And one [eh](PH)messenger to meet [ei]another,
To tell the king of Babylon
That his city has been captured from end to end;
32 The river crossing places have been seized,
And they have burned the marshes with fire,
And the men of war are terrified.

33 For this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says:
“The daughter of Babylon is like a (PI)threshing floor
At the time that [ej]it is tread down;
In just a little while the time of (PJ)harvest will come for her.”

34 “Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has (PK)devoured me, he has crushed me,
He has set me down like an (PL)empty vessel;
He has (PM)swallowed me like a monster,
He has filled his stomach with my delicacies;
He has washed me away.
35 May the (PN)violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,”
The [ek]inhabitant of Zion will say;
And, “May my blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,”
Jerusalem will say.

36 Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“Behold, I am going to (PO)plead your case
And (PP)take vengeance for you;
And (PQ)I will dry up her [el]sea
And make her fountain dry.
37 (PR)Babylon will become a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals,
An (PS)object of horror and hissing, without inhabitants.
38 They will roar together like (PT)young lions,
They will growl like lions’ cubs.
39 When they become heated up, I will serve them their banquet
And (PU)make them drunk, so that they may rejoice in triumph,
And may (PV)sleep a perpetual sleep
And not wake up,” declares the Lord.
40 “I will bring them down like [em]lambs (PW)to the slaughter,
Like rams together with male goats.

41 “How [en](PX)Sheshak has been captured,
And (PY)the praise of the whole earth has been seized!
How Babylon has become an object of horror among the nations!
42 The [eo](PZ)sea has come up over Babylon;
She has been engulfed by its roaring waves.
43 Her cities have become an (QA)object of horror,
A dry land and a desert,
A land in which (QB)no one lives
And through which no [ep]one of mankind passes.
44 (QC)I will punish Bel in Babylon,
And I will make what he has swallowed (QD)come out of his mouth;
And the nations will no longer (QE)stream toward him.
Even the (QF)wall of Babylon has fallen down!

45 “(QG)Come out from her midst, My people,
And each of you (QH)save yourselves
From the fierce anger of the Lord.
46 Now, (QI)so that your heart does not grow faint,
And you are not afraid at the (QJ)report that will be heard in the land—
For the report will come in [eq]one year,
And after that [er]another report in [es]another year,
And violence will be in the land
With (QK)ruler against ruler—
47 Therefore behold, days are coming
When I will punish the (QL)idols of Babylon;
And her whole land will be (QM)put to shame.
And all her slain will fall in her midst.
48 Then (QN)heaven and earth and everything that is in them
Will shout for joy over Babylon,
Because (QO)the destroyers will come to her from the north,”
Declares the Lord.

49 (QP)Indeed, Babylon is to fall for the slain of Israel,
As (QQ)the slain of all the earth have also fallen for Babylon.
50 You (QR)who have escaped the sword,
Go! Do not stay!
(QS)Remember the Lord from far away,
And let Jerusalem [et]come to your mind.
51 (QT)We are ashamed because we have heard rebuke;
Disgrace has covered our faces,
Because (QU)strangers have entered
The holy places of the Lord’s house.

52 “Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“When I will punish her (QV)idols,
And the mortally wounded will groan throughout her land.
53 Though Babylon (QW)ascends to the heavens,
And though she fortifies [eu]her lofty stronghold,
Destroyers will come from (QX)Me to her,” declares the Lord.

54 The (QY)sound of an outcry from Babylon,
And of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!
55 For the Lord is going to destroy Babylon,
And He will make her loud [ev]noise vanish from her.
And their (QZ)waves will roar like many waters;
The clamor of their voices [ew]sounds forth.
56 For the (RA)destroyer is coming against her, against Babylon,
And her warriors will be captured,
Their (RB)bows shattered;
For the Lord is a God of (RC)retribution,
He will fully repay.
57 “I will (RD)make her leaders and her wise men drunk,
Her governors, her officials, and her warriors,
So that they will sleep a (RE)perpetual sleep and not wake up,”
(RF)Declares the King, whose name is the Lord of armies.

58 This is what the Lord of armies says:

“The broad (RG)wall of Babylon will be completely demolished,
And her high (RH)gates will be set on fire;
So the peoples will (RI)labor for nothing,
And the nations become (RJ)exhausted only for fire.”

59 The [ex]command that Jeremiah the prophet [ey]gave Seraiah the son of (RK)Neriah, the grandson of Mahseiah, when he went with (RL)Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. (And Seraiah was quartermaster.) 60 Jeremiah (RM)wrote [ez]on a single scroll all the disaster which would come against Babylon, that is, all these words which have been written concerning Babylon. 61 Then Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “As soon as you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud, 62 and say, ‘You, Lord, have [fa]promised concerning this place to (RN)cut it off, so that there will be (RO)nothing living in it, [fb]whether man or animal; but it will be a permanent desolation.’ 63 And as soon as you finish reading this [fc]scroll, you shall tie a stone to it and (RP)throw it into the middle of the Euphrates, 64 and say, ‘Just so shall Babylon sink down and (RQ)not rise again, because of the disaster that I am going to bring upon her; and they will become (RR)exhausted.’” (RS)To this point are the words of Jeremiah.

The Fall of Jerusalem

52 (RT)Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned for eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was [fd](RU)Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of (RV)Libnah. 2 He did (RW)evil in the sight of the Lord, in accordance with everything that (RX)Jehoiakim had done. 3 For because of the (RY)anger of the Lord this came about in Jerusalem and Judah, until He drove them out from His presence. And Zedekiah (RZ)revolted against the king of Babylon. 4 (SA)Now it came about in the ninth year of his reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, camped against it, and built a [fe](SB)bulwark all around [ff]it. 5 (SC)So the city was under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 6 On the ninth day of the (SD)fourth month the (SE)famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 7 Then the city was (SF)breached, and all the (SG)warriors fled and left the city at night by way of the gate between the two walls which was by the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were [fg](SH)all around the city. And they went by way of the Arabah. 8 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and (SI)overtook Zedekiah in the [fh]desert plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. 9 Then they captured the king and (SJ)brought him up to the king of Babylon at (SK)Riblah in the land of (SL)Hamath, and he [fi]passed sentence on him. 10 And the king of Babylon (SM)slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also slaughtered all the commanders of Judah in Riblah. 11 Then he (SN)blinded the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him with bronze shackles and brought him to Babylon and put him in prison until the day of his death.

12 (SO)Now on the tenth day of the fifth month, which was the (SP)nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, (SQ)Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard, who [fj]was in the service of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 13 And he (SR)burned the house of the Lord, the (SS)king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem; even every large house he burned with fire. 14 So the entire army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard (ST)tore down all the walls around Jerusalem. 15 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard (SU)took into exile some of the poorest of the people, the rest of the people who were left in the city, the (SV)deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen. 16 But (SW)Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and farmers.

17 Now the bronze (SX)pillars which belonged to the house of the Lord and the (SY)stands and the bronze [fk](SZ)sea, which were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans smashed to pieces and carried all their bronze to Babylon. 18 They also took the (TA)pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the basins, the [fl]pans, and all the bronze vessels which were used in temple service. 19 The captain of the guard also took the (TB)bowls, the firepans, the basins, the pots, the lampstands, the [fm]pans, and the drink offering bowls, whatever was fine gold, and whatever was fine silver. 20 The two pillars, the one [fn]sea, and the twelve bronze bulls that were under [fo]the sea, and the stands, which King Solomon had made for the house of the Lord—the bronze of all these vessels was (TC)beyond weight. 21 As for the pillars, the (TD)height of each pillar was [fp]eighteen cubits, and [fq]it was twelve cubits in (TE)circumference and four fingers in thickness, and hollow. 22 Also, a (TF)capital of bronze was on top of it; and the height of each capital was [fr]five cubits, with latticework and (TG)pomegranates on the capital all around, all of bronze. And the second pillar was like these, including pomegranates. 23 There were ninety-six [fs]exposed pomegranates; all (TH)the pomegranates numbered a hundred on the latticework all around.

24 Then the captain of the guard took (TI)Seraiah the chief priest and (TJ)Zephaniah the second priest, with the three [ft](TK)officers of the temple. 25 He also took from the city one official who was overseer of the warriors, seven [fu]of the (TL)king’s advisers who were found in the city, the scribe of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the land, and sixty men from the people of the land who were found inside the city. 26 Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguards took them and (TM)brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 27 Then the king of Babylon (TN)struck them and put them to death in Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was (TO)led into exile from its land.

28 These are the people whom (TP)Nebuchadnezzar took into exile: in the [fv]seventh year 3,023 Jews; 29 in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar 832 persons from Jerusalem; 30 in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, (TQ)Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took into exile 745 Jewish people; there were 4,600 people in all.

31 (TR)Now it came about in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth of the month, that [fw]Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, [fx](TS)showed favor to Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. 32 (TT)Then he spoke kindly to him and set his throne above the thrones of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 33 So [fy]Jehoiachin (TU)changed his prison clothes, and [fz](TV)had his meals in [ga]the king’s presence regularly all the days of his life. 34 And as his allowance, a (TW)regular allowance was given to him by the king of Babylon, a portion for each day, all the days of his life until the day of his death.

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 45:1 Lit from the mouth of Jeremiah
  2. Jeremiah 46:3 I.e., small shield
  3. Jeremiah 46:4 Or go up, you horsemen
  4. Jeremiah 46:5 Heb Magor-missabib i.e., Terror is on every side
  5. Jeremiah 46:9 Lit act like madmen
  6. Jeremiah 46:9 Lit go forth
  7. Jeremiah 46:9 Or Ethiopia
  8. Jeremiah 46:9 I.e., Libya (or Somaliland)
  9. Jeremiah 46:9 Heb Ludim
  10. Jeremiah 46:10 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  11. Jeremiah 46:10 Lit be saturated with
  12. Jeremiah 46:10 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  13. Jeremiah 46:11 Lit healings
  14. Jeremiah 46:12 Lit warrior
  15. Jeremiah 46:13 Lit word
  16. Jeremiah 46:16 Lit oppressing sword
  17. Jeremiah 46:17 Some ancient versions Call the name of Pharaoh a big noise
  18. Jeremiah 46:19 Lit without
  19. Jeremiah 46:20 Or possibly mosquito
  20. Jeremiah 46:22 Or in force
  21. Jeremiah 46:23 I.e., trees of the forest, the Egyptians
  22. Jeremiah 46:24 Lit hand
  23. Jeremiah 46:26 Lit servants
  24. Jeremiah 47:1 Lit struck
  25. Jeremiah 47:3 Lit stamping of the
  26. Jeremiah 47:3 Lit mighty ones
  27. Jeremiah 47:7 Lit you
  28. Jeremiah 48:1 Or dismayed
  29. Jeremiah 48:2 Heb Madmen; i.e., a city of Moab
  30. Jeremiah 48:5 Lit distresses of outcry
  31. Jeremiah 48:9 Or salt
  32. Jeremiah 48:9 Or fall in ruins
  33. Jeremiah 48:11 Lit his
  34. Jeremiah 48:11 Lit his flavor has stayed in him
  35. Jeremiah 48:12 Lit their
  36. Jeremiah 48:15 Lit one has
  37. Jeremiah 48:15 Lit her
  38. Jeremiah 48:15 I.e., warriors
  39. Jeremiah 48:17 Or rod
  40. Jeremiah 48:20 Or dismayed
  41. Jeremiah 48:26 Or magnified himself against
  42. Jeremiah 48:26 Lit vomit in his vomit
  43. Jeremiah 48:27 Or found
  44. Jeremiah 48:29 Lit elevation of his heart
  45. Jeremiah 48:31 Another reading is He
  46. Jeremiah 48:34 Lit given forth
  47. Jeremiah 48:35 Or offers up in smoke
  48. Jeremiah 48:38 Lit all of it is mourning
  49. Jeremiah 48:39 Or terrified
  50. Jeremiah 48:42 Or magnified himself against
  51. Jeremiah 48:45 Lit sons of uproar
  52. Jeremiah 48:47 Lit end of the days
  53. Jeremiah 49:1 In 1 Kin 11:5, 33 and Zeph 1:5, Milcom
  54. Jeremiah 49:3 See note v 1
  55. Jeremiah 49:5 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  56. Jeremiah 49:5 Lit each one before him
  57. Jeremiah 49:8 Or brought
  58. Jeremiah 49:8 Or punished
  59. Jeremiah 49:10 Lit seed
  60. Jeremiah 49:10 Or relatives
  61. Jeremiah 49:11 Or fatherless
  62. Jeremiah 49:12 Lit whose judgment was not to
  63. Jeremiah 49:16 Or Sela
  64. Jeremiah 49:17 Or whistle
  65. Jeremiah 49:18 Lit a son of man
  66. Jeremiah 49:21 Lit Sea of Reeds
  67. Jeremiah 49:22 Or one
  68. Jeremiah 49:22 Or over
  69. Jeremiah 49:28 Lit sons
  70. Jeremiah 49:33 Lit a son of man
  71. Jeremiah 49:35 Lit first
  72. Jeremiah 49:37 Or dismay
  73. Jeremiah 50:2 Heb Merodach
  74. Jeremiah 50:2 Or dismayed
  75. Jeremiah 50:5 Lit toward here
  76. Jeremiah 50:5 MT come, that
  77. Jeremiah 50:5 Or will have come
  78. Jeremiah 50:8 Another reading is let them go out
  79. Jeremiah 50:8 Or in front of
  80. Jeremiah 50:9 As in some mss and ancient versions; MT a warrior who makes childless
  81. Jeremiah 50:10 Or the Chaldeans
  82. Jeremiah 50:11 Another reading is in the grass
  83. Jeremiah 50:11 Lit mighty ones
  84. Jeremiah 50:12 Or has become
  85. Jeremiah 50:12 Or has become
  86. Jeremiah 50:14 Lit step on (in order to string)
  87. Jeremiah 50:15 Lit her hand
  88. Jeremiah 50:16 Or the oppressing sword
  89. Jeremiah 50:17 Lit sheep
  90. Jeremiah 50:19 Lit soul
  91. Jeremiah 50:21 Or double rebellion
  92. Jeremiah 50:21 I.e., punishment (uncertain)
  93. Jeremiah 50:21 Lit put under the ban
  94. Jeremiah 50:25 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  95. Jeremiah 50:26 Lit end
  96. Jeremiah 50:26 Lit put under the ban
  97. Jeremiah 50:29 Another reading is archers
  98. Jeremiah 50:29 Lit step on (in order to string)
  99. Jeremiah 50:29 Some mss add to her
  100. Jeremiah 50:31 Lit arrogance
  101. Jeremiah 50:31 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  102. Jeremiah 50:31 Another reading is of your punishment
  103. Jeremiah 50:32 Lit arrogance
  104. Jeremiah 50:36 Or filled with terror
  105. Jeremiah 50:37 Lit his
  106. Jeremiah 50:37 Lit his
  107. Jeremiah 50:37 Lit mixed multitude
  108. Jeremiah 50:38 Another reading is sword
  109. Jeremiah 50:40 Lit a son of man
  110. Jeremiah 50:46 Lit voice
  111. Jeremiah 51:1 Or a destroying wind
  112. Jeremiah 51:1 Cryptic name for Chaldea; or the heart of those who rise up against Me
  113. Jeremiah 51:2 Some ancient versions winnowers
  114. Jeremiah 51:3 I.e., the Chaldean defender
  115. Jeremiah 51:3 Lit step(s) on; MT in order to string
  116. Jeremiah 51:3 Lit step(s) on; MT in order to string
  117. Jeremiah 51:4 Lit killed; or wounded
  118. Jeremiah 51:5 Lit widowed
  119. Jeremiah 51:5 Lit From
  120. Jeremiah 51:6 Or penalty for wrongdoing
  121. Jeremiah 51:8 Or balsam resin
  122. Jeremiah 51:10 Lit forth
  123. Jeremiah 51:12 Or watchmen
  124. Jeremiah 51:13 Lit cubit
  125. Jeremiah 51:13 Lit being cut off
  126. Jeremiah 51:14 Or mankind
  127. Jeremiah 51:17 Or images
  128. Jeremiah 51:19 Lit Fashioner
  129. Jeremiah 51:19 Or scepter; cf. Num 24:17
  130. Jeremiah 51:20 Lit shatterer
  131. Jeremiah 51:28 Lit her
  132. Jeremiah 51:28 Lit her
  133. Jeremiah 51:28 Lit of his dominion
  134. Jeremiah 51:29 Or An object of horror
  135. Jeremiah 51:30 Lit dried up
  136. Jeremiah 51:31 Lit runner
  137. Jeremiah 51:31 Lit runner
  138. Jeremiah 51:31 Lit announcer
  139. Jeremiah 51:31 Lit announcer
  140. Jeremiah 51:33 Lit of treading it
  141. Jeremiah 51:35 Lit inhabitress
  142. Jeremiah 51:36 Or broad river
  143. Jeremiah 51:40 Or young rams
  144. Jeremiah 51:41 Cryptic name for Babylon
  145. Jeremiah 51:42 Or broad river
  146. Jeremiah 51:43 Lit son of man
  147. Jeremiah 51:46 Lit the
  148. Jeremiah 51:46 Lit the
  149. Jeremiah 51:46 Lit the
  150. Jeremiah 51:50 Lit come upon your heart
  151. Jeremiah 51:53 Lit the height of her strength
  152. Jeremiah 51:55 Or voice
  153. Jeremiah 51:55 Lit is given
  154. Jeremiah 51:59 Lit word
  155. Jeremiah 51:59 Lit commanded
  156. Jeremiah 51:60 Or in...book
  157. Jeremiah 51:62 Lit spoken
  158. Jeremiah 51:62 Lit from man even to beast
  159. Jeremiah 51:63 Or book
  160. Jeremiah 52:1 Another reading is Hamital
  161. Jeremiah 52:4 I.e., a defensive wall
  162. Jeremiah 52:4 Lit against it
  163. Jeremiah 52:7 Lit against the city on every side
  164. Jeremiah 52:8 Heb Arabah
  165. Jeremiah 52:9 Lit spoke judgments with
  166. Jeremiah 52:12 Lit stood before the king
  167. Jeremiah 52:17 I.e., large basin
  168. Jeremiah 52:18 Or spoons for incense
  169. Jeremiah 52:19 Or spoons for incense
  170. Jeremiah 52:20 As in LXX and Syriac; MT omits the sea; i.e., large basin
  171. Jeremiah 52:20 As in LXX and Syriac; MT omits the sea; i.e., large basin
  172. Jeremiah 52:21 About 27 ft. high and 18 ft. in circumference or 8 m and 5.4 m
  173. Jeremiah 52:21 Lit a thread of 12 cubits would encircle it
  174. Jeremiah 52:22 About 7.5 ft. or 2.3 m
  175. Jeremiah 52:23 Lit windward
  176. Jeremiah 52:24 Lit keepers of the door
  177. Jeremiah 52:25 Lit men of those seeing the king’s face
  178. Jeremiah 52:28 Or possibly seventeenth
  179. Jeremiah 52:31 Or Awil-Marduk (“Man of Marduk”)
  180. Jeremiah 52:31 Lit lifted up the head of
  181. Jeremiah 52:33 Lit he
  182. Jeremiah 52:33 Lit ate bread
  183. Jeremiah 52:33 Lit his presence
Next
Jeremiah 44
Lamentations 1
Next
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Lamentations 1-5
New American Standard Bible

The Sorrows of Zion

1 How (A)lonely sits the city
That once had (B)many people!
She has become like a (C)widow
Who was once (D)great among the nations!
She who was a princess among the [a]provinces
Has become a (E)forced laborer!
2 She (F)weeps bitterly in the night,
And her tears are on her cheeks;
She has no one to comfort her
Among all her (G)lovers.
All her friends have (H)dealt treacherously with her;
They have become her enemies.
3 (I)Judah has gone into exile out of affliction
And [b]harsh servitude;
She lives (J)among the nations,
But she has not found a resting place;
All those who (K)pursued her have overtaken her
In the midst of [c]distress.
4 The roads [d]of Zion are in mourning
Because (L)no one comes to an appointed feast.
All her gates are (M)deserted;
Her priests groan,
Her (N)virgins are worried,
And as for Zion herself, it is (O)bitter for her.
5 Her adversaries have become [e]her masters,
Her enemies are [f]secure;
For the Lord has [g](P)caused her grief
Because of the multitude of her wrongdoings;
Her little ones have gone away
As captives [h]led by the enemy.
6 All of her (Q)splendor
Is gone from the daughter of Zion;
Her leaders have become like deer
That have found no pasture,
And they have [i](R)fled without strength
[j]From the pursuer.
7 In the days of her affliction and homelessness
(S)Jerusalem remembers all her treasures
That were hers since the days of old,
When her people fell into the hand of the adversary
And (T)no one helped her.
The adversaries saw her,
They (U)laughed at her [k]ruin.
8 Jerusalem sinned (V)greatly,
Therefore (W)she has become an [l]object of ridicule.
All who honored her despise her
Because they have seen her nakedness;
Even (X)she herself groans and turns away.
9 Her (Y)uncleanness was in her garment’s seams;
She [m]did not think of her (Z)future.
So she has [n](AA)fallen in an astonishing way;
(AB)She has no comforter.
“(AC)See, Lord, my affliction,
For the enemy has [o](AD)honored himself!”
10 The adversary has stretched out his hand
Over all her precious things,
For she has seen the (AE)nations enter her sanctuary,
The ones whom You commanded
That they were (AF)not to enter Your congregation.
11 All her people groan, (AG)seeking bread;
They have given their treasures for food
To (AH)restore their [p]lives.
“See, Lord, and look,
For I am (AI)despised.”
12 “Is it (AJ)nothing to all you who pass this way?
Look and see if there is any pain like my pain
Which was inflicted on me,
With which the (AK)Lord tormented me on the day of His (AL)fierce anger.
13 From [q]the height He sent fire into my (AM)bones,
And it dominated them.
He has spread a (AN)net for my feet;
He has turned me back;
He has made me (AO)desolate,
[r]Faint all day long.
14 The (AP)yoke of my wrongdoings is bound;
By His hand they are woven together.
They have (AQ)come upon my neck;
He has made my strength [s]fail.
The Lord (AR)has handed me over
To those against whom I am not able to stand.
15 The (AS)Lord has thrown away all my strong men
In my midst;
He has called an appointed [t]time against me
To crush my (AT)young men;
The Lord has (AU)trodden as in a wine press
The virgin daughter of Judah.
16 For these things I (AV)weep;
[u]My eyes run down with water;
Because far from me is a (AW)comforter,
One to restore my soul.
My children are desolate
Because the enemy has prevailed.”
17 Zion (AX)stretches out with her hands;
There is no one to comfort her;
The Lord has (AY)commanded regarding Jacob
That those around him become his adversaries;
(AZ)Jerusalem has become a filthy thing among them.
18 “The Lord is (BA)righteous,
For I have (BB)rebelled against His [v]command;
Hear now, all peoples,
And (BC)see my pain;
(BD)My virgins and my young men
Have gone into captivity.
19 I (BE)called to my lovers, but they deserted me;
My (BF)priests and my elders perished in the city
While they sought food to (BG)restore their [w]strength themselves.
20 See, Lord, for I am in distress;
My [x](BH)spirit is greatly troubled;
My heart is overturned within me,
For I have been very (BI)rebellious.
In the street the sword has made women childless;
In the house it is like death.
21 They have heard that I (BJ)groan;
There is no one to comfort me,
All my enemies have heard of my disaster;
They are (BK)joyful that You have done it.
Oh, that You would bring the day which You have proclaimed,
So that they will become (BL)like me.
22 May all their wickedness come before You;
And (BM)deal with them just as You have dealt with me
For all my wrongdoings.
For my groans are many and my heart is faint.”

God’s Anger over Israel

2 How the Lord has [y](BN)covered the daughter of Zion
With a cloud in His anger!
He has (BO)hurled
The (BP)glory of Israel from heaven to earth,
And has not remembered His (BQ)footstool
In the day of His anger.
2 The Lord has [z](BR)destroyed; He has not spared
All the settlements of Jacob.
In His wrath He has (BS)overthrown
The strongholds of the daughter of Judah,
He has (BT)hurled them down to the ground;
He has (BU)profaned the kingdom and its leaders.
3 In fierce anger He has cut off
[aa]All the (BV)strength of Israel;
He has (BW)pulled back His right hand
From the enemy.
And He has (BX)burned in Jacob like a flaming fire
Consuming on all sides.
4 He has bent His (BY)bow like an enemy;
His right hand is positioned like an adversary,
And He has killed everything that was (BZ)pleasant to the eye.
In the tent of the daughter of Zion
He has (CA)poured out His wrath like fire.
5 The Lord has become like an (CB)enemy.
He has (CC)engulfed Israel;
He has engulfed all its (CD)palaces,
He has destroyed its strongholds
And (CE)caused great mourning and grieving in the daughter of Judah.
6 And He has treated His [ab]tabernacle violently, like a despised garden;
He has (CF)destroyed His appointed [ac]meeting place.
The Lord has (CG)caused
The appointed feast and Sabbath in Zion to be forgotten,
And He has (CH)despised king and priest
In the indignation of His anger.
7 The Lord has (CI)rejected His altar,
He has [ad]repudiated His sanctuary;
He (CJ)has handed over
The walls of her palaces to the enemy.
They have made a (CK)noise in the house of the Lord
As on the day of an appointed feast.
8 The Lord determined to destroy
The wall of the daughter of Zion.
He has (CL)stretched out a line,
He has not restrained His hand from [ae]destroying,
And He has (CM)caused rampart and wall to mourn;
They have languished together.
9 Her (CN)gates have sunk into the ground,
He has destroyed and broken her bars.
Her king and her leaders are among the nations;
The (CO)Law is gone.
Her prophets, too, find
(CP)No vision from the Lord.
10 The elders of the daughter of Zion
(CQ)Sit on the ground and [af](CR)are silent.
They have thrown (CS)dust on their heads;
They have put on (CT)sackcloth.
The (CU)virgins of Jerusalem
Have bowed their heads to the ground.
11 My (CV)eyes fail because of tears,
My [ag](CW)spirit is greatly troubled;
My [ah](CX)heart is poured out on the earth
(CY)Because of the [ai]destruction of the daughter of my people,
When (CZ)little ones and infants languish
In the streets of the city.
12 They say to their mothers,
“(DA)Where is grain and wine?”
As they faint like a wounded person
In the streets of the city,
As their (DB)lives are poured out
[aj]In their mothers’ arms.
13 How shall I admonish you?
What (DC)shall I compare to you,
Daughter of Jerusalem?
What shall I liken to you as I comfort you,
(DD)Virgin daughter of Zion?
For your collapse is as vast as the sea;
Who can (DE)heal you?
14 Your (DF)prophets have seen for you
Worthless and deceptive visions;
And they have not (DG)exposed your wrongdoing
So as to restore you from captivity,
But they have (DH)seen for you worthless and misleading pronouncements.
15 All who pass along the way
(DI)Clap their hands in ridicule at you;
They (DJ)[ak]hiss and shake their heads
At the daughter of Jerusalem:
“Is this the city of which they said,
‘(DK)Perfect in beauty,
(DL)A joy to all the earth’?”
16 All (DM)your enemies
Have opened their mouths wide against you;
They [al]hiss and (DN)gnash their teeth.
They say, “We have (DO)engulfed her!
This certainly is the (DP)day which we awaited;
We have reached it, we have seen it!”
17 The Lord has (DQ)done what He determined;
He has accomplished His word
Which He commanded from days of old.
He has torn down (DR)without sparing,
And He has helped the enemy to (DS)rejoice over you;
He has (DT)exalted the [am]might of your adversaries.
18 Their (DU)heart cried out to the Lord:
“You (DV)wall of the daughter of Zion,
Let your (DW)tears stream down like a river day and night;
Give yourself no relief,
Let [an]your eyes have no rest.
19 Arise, whimper in the (DX)night
At the beginning of the night watches;
(DY)Pour out your heart like water
Before the presence of the Lord;
Raise your hands to Him
For the (DZ)life of your little ones
Who (EA)languish because of hunger
At the head of every street.
20 See, Lord, and look!
With (EB)whom have You dealt this way?
Should women really (EC)eat their [ao]children,
The little ones who were [ap]born healthy?
Should (ED)priest and prophet really be killed
In the sanctuary of the Lord?
21 On the ground in the streets
Lie (EE)young and old;
My (EF)virgins and my young men
Have fallen by the sword.
You have put them to death on the day of Your anger,
You have slaughtered, (EG)without sparing.
22 You called as on the day of an appointed feast
My (EH)terrors on every side;
And there was (EI)no one who survived or escaped
On the day of the Lord’s anger.
As for those (EJ)whom I brought forth healthy and whom I raised,
My enemy annihilated them.”

Jeremiah Shares Israel’s Misery

3 I am the man who has (EK)seen misery
Because of the rod of His wrath.
2 He has driven me and made me walk
In (EL)darkness and not in light.
3 Indeed, He has (EM)turned His hand against me
Repeatedly all the day.
4 He has consumed my (EN)flesh and my skin,
He has (EO)broken my bones.
5 He has [aq](EP)besieged and surrounded me with [ar](EQ)bitterness and hardship.
6 He has made me live in (ER)dark places,
Like those who have long been dead.
7 He has (ES)walled me in so that I cannot go out;
He has made my [as](ET)chain heavy.
8 Even when I cry out and call for help,
He (EU)shuts out my prayer.
9 He has (EV)blocked my ways with cut stone;
He has twisted my paths.
10 He is to me like a bear lying in wait,
Like a lion in secret places.
11 He has made my ways deviate, and (EW)torn me to pieces;
He has made me desolate.
12 He (EX)bent His bow
And (EY)took aim at me as a target for the arrow.
13 He made the [at]arrows of His (EZ)quiver
Enter my [au]inward parts.
14 I have become a (FA)laughingstock to all my people,
Their (FB)song of ridicule all the day.
15 He has (FC)filled me with bitterness,
He has made me drink plenty of wormwood.
16 He has also (FD)made my teeth grind with (FE)gravel;
He has made me cower in the (FF)dust.
17 My soul has been excluded (FG)from peace;
I have forgotten [av]happiness.
18 So I say, “My [aw]strength has failed,
And so has my (FH)hope from the Lord.”

Hope of Relief in God’s Mercy

19 Remember my misery and my homelessness, the (FI)wormwood and [ax]bitterness.
20 (FJ)My soul certainly remembers,
And [ay]is (FK)bent over within me.
21 I recall this to my mind,
Therefore I [az](FL)wait.
22 [ba]The Lord’s (FM)acts of mercy indeed do not end,
(FN)For His compassions do not fail.
23 They are new (FO)every morning;
Great is (FP)Your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my (FQ)portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I [bb](FR)wait for Him.”
25 The Lord is good to those who [bc](FS)await Him,
To the [bd]person who (FT)seeks Him.
26 It is good that he (FU)waits silently
For the salvation of the Lord.
27 It is good for a man to bear
The yoke in his youth.
28 Let him (FV)sit alone and keep quiet,
Since He has laid it on him.
29 Let him [be]put his mouth in the (FW)dust;
Perhaps there is (FX)hope.
30 Let him give his (FY)cheek to the one who is going to strike him;
Let him be filled with shame.
31 For the Lord will (FZ)not reject forever,
32 For if He causes grief,
Then He will have (GA)compassion
In proportion to His abundant mercy.
33 For He (GB)does not [bf]afflict [bg]willingly
Or [bh]grieve the sons of mankind.
34 To crush under [bi]one’s feet
All the prisoners of the [bj]land,
35 To [bk]deprive a man of (GC)justice
In the presence of the Most High,
36 To [bl](GD)defraud someone in his lawsuit—
Of these things the Lord does not [bm]approve.
37 Who is [bn]there who speaks and it (GE)comes to pass,
Unless the Lord has commanded it?
38 Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
That [bo](GF)both adversity and good proceed?

39 Of what can any living [bp]mortal, or any man,
(GG)Complain [bq]in view of his sins?
40 Let’s (GH)examine and search out our ways,
And let’s return to the Lord.
41 We (GI)raise our heart [br]and hands
Toward God in heaven;
42 We have (GJ)done wrong and rebelled;
You have (GK)not pardoned.
43 You have covered Yourself with (GL)anger
And (GM)pursued us;
You have slain and (GN)have not spared.
44 You have (GO)veiled Yourself with a cloud
So that (GP)no prayer can pass through.
45 You have made us mere (GQ)refuse and rubbish
In the midst of the peoples.
46 All our enemies have (GR)opened their mouths against us.
47 (GS)Panic and pitfall have come upon us,
Devastation and destruction;
48 My [bs](GT)eyes run down with streams of water
Because of the destruction of the daughter of my people.
49 My eyes flow (GU)unceasingly,
Without stopping,
50 Until the Lord (GV)looks down
And sees from heaven.
51 My eyes bring pain to my soul
Because of all the daughters of my city.
52 My enemies (GW)without reason
Hunted me down (GX)like a bird;
53 They have silenced [bt]me (GY)in the pit
And have [bu](GZ)thrown stones on me.
54 Waters flowed (HA)over my head;
I said, “I am [bv]cut off!”
55 I (HB)called on Your name, Lord,
Out of the lowest pit.
56 You have (HC)heard my voice,
“(HD)Do not cover Your ear from my plea for relief,
From my cry for help.”
57 You (HE)came near on the day I called to You;
You said, “(HF)Do not fear!”
58 Lord, You (HG)have pleaded my soul’s cause;
You have (HH)redeemed my life.
59 Lord, You have (HI)seen my oppression;
(HJ)Judge my case.
60 You have seen all their vengeance,
All their (HK)schemes against me.
61 You have heard their (HL)reproach, Lord,
All their schemes against me.
62 The (HM)lips of my assailants and their talk
Are against me all day long.
63 Look at their [bw](HN)sitting and their rising;
(HO)I am their mocking song.
64 You will (HP)repay them, Lord,
In accordance with the work of their hands.
65 You will give them [bx](HQ)shamelessness of heart,
Your curse will be on them.
66 You will (HR)pursue them in anger and eliminate them
From under the (HS)heavens of the Lord!

Distress of the Siege Described

4 How (HT)dark the gold has become,
How the pure gold has changed!
The sacred stones are spilled out
At the [by]corner of every street.
2 The precious sons of Zion,
Weighed against pure gold,
How they are regarded as (HU)earthenware jars,
The work of a potter’s hands!
3 Even (HV)jackals offer the breast,
They nurse their young;
But the daughter of my people has proved herself (HW)cruel,
Like (HX)ostriches in the wilderness.
4 The (HY)tongue of the infant clings
To the roof of its mouth because of (HZ)thirst;
The children (IA)ask for bread,
But no one breaks it for them.
5 Those who used to eat (IB)delicacies
Are made to tremble in the streets;
Those who were raised in crimson clothing
Embrace garbage heaps.
6 For the [bz]wrongdoing of the daughter of my people
Is greater than the [ca](IC)sin of Sodom,
Which was (ID)overthrown as in a moment,
[cb]And no hands were turned toward her.
7 Her [cc]consecrated ones were (IE)purer than snow,
They shined more than milk;
They were more ruddy in [cd]body than pearls of coral,
Their form was like [ce](IF)lapis lazuli.
8 Their appearance is (IG)darker than soot,
They are not recognized in the streets;
Their (IH)skin is shriveled on their bones,
It is dry, it has become like wood.
9 Better off are those (II)killed by the sword
Than those killed by hunger;
For they [cf](IJ)waste away, [cg]stricken
By the lack of the produce of the field.
10 The hands of compassionate women
(IK)Boiled their own children;
They became (IL)food for them
Due to the destruction of the daughter of my people.
11 The Lord has (IM)expended His wrath,
He has poured out His fierce anger;
And He has (IN)kindled a fire in Zion,
And it has consumed its foundations.
12 The kings of the earth did not believe,
Nor did any of (IO)the inhabitants of the world,
That the adversary and the enemy
Would (IP)enter the gates of Jerusalem.
13 Because of the sins of her (IQ)prophets
And the wrongdoings of her priests,
Who have shed in her midst
The (IR)blood of the righteous,
14 They wandered, (IS)blind, in the streets;
They were defiled with (IT)blood,
Such that no one could touch their (IU)garments.
15 “Keep away! (IV)Unclean!” [ch]they cried out of themselves.
“Keep away, keep away, do not touch!”
For they (IW)distanced themselves as well as wandered;
People among the nations said,
“They shall not continue to reside with us.”
16 The presence of the Lord has scattered them,
He will not continue to look at them;
They did not [ci](IX)honor the priests,
They did not favor the elders.
17 Yet our eyes failed,
Looking for [cj]help was (IY)useless;
At our observation point we have watched
For a (IZ)nation that could not save.
18 They (JA)hunted our steps
So that we could not walk in our streets;
Our (JB)end drew near,
Our days were [ck]finished
For our end had come.
19 Our pursuers were (JC)swifter
Than the eagles of the sky;
They chased us on the mountains,
They waited in ambush for us in the wilderness.
20 The (JD)breath of our nostrils, the (JE)Lord’s anointed,
Was (JF)captured in their pits,
Of whom we had said, “[cl]In his (JG)shadow
We shall live among the nations.”
21 Rejoice and be joyful, daughter of (JH)Edom,
Who lives in the land of Uz;
But the (JI)cup will pass to you as well,
You will become drunk and expose yourself.
22 The punishment of your wrongdoing has been (JJ)completed, daughter of Zion;
He will no longer exile you.
But He (JK)will punish your wrongdoing, daughter of Edom;
He will expose your sins!

A Prayer for Mercy

5 Remember, Lord, what has come upon us;
Look, and see our (JL)disgrace!
2 Our inheritance has been turned over to (JM)strangers,
Our (JN)houses to foreigners.
3 We have become orphans, (JO)without a father;
Our mothers are like widows.
4 [cm]We have to pay for our drinking (JP)water,
Our wood comes to us at a price.
5 [cn]Our pursuers are at our necks;
We are worn out, we are given (JQ)no rest.
6 We have [co]submitted to (JR)Egypt and Assyria [cp]to get enough bread.
7 Our (JS)fathers sinned, and are gone;
It is we who have been burdened with the punishment for their wrongdoings.
8 (JT)Slaves rule over us;
There is (JU)no one to rescue us from their hand.
9 We get our bread [cq]at the (JV)risk of our lives
Because of the sword in the wilderness.
10 Our skin has become as (JW)hot as an oven,
Because of the ravages of hunger.
11 They violated the (JX)women in Zion,
The virgins in the cities of Judah.
12 Leaders were hung by their hands;
[cr](JY)Elders were not respected.
13 Young men [cs](JZ)worked at the grinding mill,
And youths (KA)staggered under loads of wood.
14 Elders are absent from the gate,
Young men from their (KB)music.
15 The joy of our hearts has (KC)ended;
Our dancing has been turned into mourning.
16 The (KD)crown has fallen from our head;
(KE)Woe to us, for we have sinned!
17 Because of this our (KF)heart is faint,
Because of these things our (KG)eyes are dim;
18 Because of (KH)Mount Zion which lies desolate,
(KI)Jackals prowl in it.

19 (KJ)You, Lord, [ct]rule forever;
Your (KK)throne is from generation to generation.
20 Why will You (KL)forget us forever?
Why do You abandon us for [cu]so long?
21 (KM)Restore us to You, Lord, so that we may be restored;
Renew (KN)our days as of old,
22 Unless (KO)You have utterly rejected us
And are exceedingly (KP)angry with us.

Footnotes

  1. Lamentations 1:1 Or districts
  2. Lamentations 1:3 Lit great
  3. Lamentations 1:3 Or narrow places
  4. Lamentations 1:4 Or to
  5. Lamentations 1:5 Lit head
  6. Lamentations 1:5 Or at ease
  7. Lamentations 1:5 Or tormented her
  8. Lamentations 1:5 Lit before
  9. Lamentations 1:6 Lit gone
  10. Lamentations 1:6 Lit Before
  11. Lamentations 1:7 Lit cessation
  12. Lamentations 1:8 Or abomination
  13. Lamentations 1:9 Or remember her final end
  14. Lamentations 1:9 Lit gone down
  15. Lamentations 1:9 Or boasted
  16. Lamentations 1:11 Lit soul
  17. Lamentations 1:13 I.e., heaven
  18. Lamentations 1:13 Or Sick
  19. Lamentations 1:14 Lit falter
  20. Lamentations 1:15 Another reading is feast
  21. Lamentations 1:16 Lit My eye, my eye
  22. Lamentations 1:18 Lit mouth
  23. Lamentations 1:19 Lit soul
  24. Lamentations 1:20 Lit inward parts are in ferment
  25. Lamentations 2:1 Or scorned...Zion in His anger
  26. Lamentations 2:2 Lit engulfed
  27. Lamentations 2:3 Lit Every horn
  28. Lamentations 2:6 Or booth
  29. Lamentations 2:6 Or feast
  30. Lamentations 2:7 I.e., scornfully rejected
  31. Lamentations 2:8 Lit engulfing
  32. Lamentations 2:10 Another reading is wail
  33. Lamentations 2:11 Lit inward parts are in ferment
  34. Lamentations 2:11 Lit liver
  35. Lamentations 2:11 Lit breaking
  36. Lamentations 2:12 Lit on...breast
  37. Lamentations 2:15 Or whistle
  38. Lamentations 2:16 Or whistle
  39. Lamentations 2:17 Lit horn
  40. Lamentations 2:18 Lit the daughter of your eye
  41. Lamentations 2:20 Lit fruit
  42. Lamentations 2:20 Or tenderly cared for
  43. Lamentations 3:5 Lit built against
  44. Lamentations 3:5 Lit poison
  45. Lamentations 3:7 Lit bronze piece
  46. Lamentations 3:13 Lit sons
  47. Lamentations 3:13 Lit kidneys
  48. Lamentations 3:17 Lit good
  49. Lamentations 3:18 Or splendor
  50. Lamentations 3:19 Lit poison
  51. Lamentations 3:20 Or bows down
  52. Lamentations 3:21 Lit have hope
  53. Lamentations 3:22 As in ancient versions; MT It is...mercy that we do not end
  54. Lamentations 3:24 Or hope in
  55. Lamentations 3:25 Or hope in
  56. Lamentations 3:25 Lit soul
  57. Lamentations 3:29 Lit give
  58. Lamentations 3:33 Or oppress
  59. Lamentations 3:33 Lit from His heart
  60. Lamentations 3:33 Or torment
  61. Lamentations 3:34 Lit his
  62. Lamentations 3:34 Or earth
  63. Lamentations 3:35 Or turn aside a man’s case
  64. Lamentations 3:36 Lit bend
  65. Lamentations 3:36 Lit see
  66. Lamentations 3:37 Lit this
  67. Lamentations 3:38 Lit the evil things and the good
  68. Lamentations 3:39 Or human being
  69. Lamentations 3:39 Or on the basis of
  70. Lamentations 3:41 Lit toward our
  71. Lamentations 3:48 Lit eye goes down
  72. Lamentations 3:53 Lit my life
  73. Lamentations 3:53 Or thrown a stone
  74. Lamentations 3:54 Or destroyed
  75. Lamentations 3:63 I.e., daily activities
  76. Lamentations 3:65 Or insanity
  77. Lamentations 4:1 Lit head
  78. Lamentations 4:6 Or punishment for wrongdoing
  79. Lamentations 4:6 Or punishment for sin
  80. Lamentations 4:6 I.e., without human intervention
  81. Lamentations 4:7 Or Nazirites
  82. Lamentations 4:7 Lit bones
  83. Lamentations 4:7 Heb sappir
  84. Lamentations 4:9 Lit flow away
  85. Lamentations 4:9 Lit pierced through
  86. Lamentations 4:15 Or they (other people) cried to them
  87. Lamentations 4:16 Lit lift up the faces of
  88. Lamentations 4:17 Lit our help
  89. Lamentations 4:18 Lit full
  90. Lamentations 4:20 I.e., under his protection
  91. Lamentations 5:4 Lit We drink our water with silver
  92. Lamentations 5:5 Lit We have been pursued upon
  93. Lamentations 5:6 Lit given Egypt a hand
  94. Lamentations 5:6 Lit to be satisfied with
  95. Lamentations 5:9 Lit with our soul
  96. Lamentations 5:12 Lit The faces of elders
  97. Lamentations 5:13 Lit carried the
  98. Lamentations 5:19 Lit sit
  99. Lamentations 5:20 Lit length of days
Next
Jeremiah 52
Ezekiel 1
Next
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Ezekiel 1-4
New American Standard Bible

The Vision of Four Figures

1 Now it came about in the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was by the (A)river Chebar among the exiles, the (B)heavens were opened and I saw [a](C)visions of God. 2 (On the fifth of the month [b]in the (D)fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile, 3 the (E)word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, son of Buzi, in the (F)land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and there (G)the hand of the Lord came upon him.)

4 As I looked, behold, a (H)high wind was coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing intermittently and a bright light around it, and in its midst something like (I)gleaming [c]metal in the midst of the fire. 5 And within it there were figures resembling (J)four living beings. And this was their appearance: they had human (K)form. 6 Each of them had (L)four faces and (M)four wings. 7 Their legs were straight and [d]their feet were like a calf’s [e]hoof, and they sparkled like (N)polished bronze. 8 Under their wings on their (O)four sides were human (P)hands. As for the faces and wings of the four of them, 9 their wings touched one another; their faces did (Q)not turn when they moved, each (R)went straight forward. 10 As for the (S)form of their faces, each had a human (T)face; [f]all four had the face of a lion on the right and the face of a bull on the left, and [g]all four had the face of an eagle. 11 Such were their faces. Their wings were spread out above; each had two touching another being, and (U)two covering their bodies. 12 And (V)each went straight forward; (W)wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go, without turning as they went. 13 [h]In the midst of the living beings there was something that looked like burning coals of (X)fire, [i]like torches moving among the living beings. The fire was bright, and lightning was [j]flashing from the fire. 14 And the living beings (Y)ran back and forth like bolts of (Z)lightning.

15 Now as I looked at the living beings, behold, there was one (AA)wheel on the ground beside the living beings, for [k]each of the four of them. 16 The (AB)appearance of the wheels and their workmanship was like [l]sparkling (AC)topaz, and all four of them had the same form, their appearance and workmanship being as if [m]one wheel were within another. 17 Whenever they [n]moved, they [o]moved in any of their four [p]directions without (AD)turning as they [q]moved. 18 As for their rims, they were high and awesome, and the rims of all four of them were [r](AE)covered with eyes all around. 19 (AF)Whenever the living beings [s]moved, the wheels [t]moved with them. And whenever the living beings (AG)rose from the earth, the wheels rose also. 20 (AH)Wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go in that direction[u]. And the wheels rose just as they did; for the spirit of the living [v]beings was in the wheels. 21 (AI)Whenever those went, they went; and whenever those stopped, they stopped. And whenever those rose from the earth, the wheels rose just as they did; for the spirit of the living [w]beings was in the wheels.

Vision of Divine Glory

22 Now (AJ)over the heads of the living [x]beings there was something like an expanse, like the awesome gleam of crystal, spread out over their heads. 23 Under the expanse their wings were stretched out straight, one toward the other; each one also had (AK)two wings covering its body on the one side and on the other. 24 And I also heard the sound of their wings, like the (AL)sound of abundant waters as they went, like the (AM)voice of [y]the Almighty, a sound of a crowd like the (AN)sound of an army camp; whenever they stopped, they let down their wings. 25 And a voice came from above the (AO)expanse that was over their heads; whenever they stood still, they let down their wings.

26 Now (AP)above the expanse that was over their heads there was something (AQ)resembling a throne, like [z](AR)lapis lazuli in appearance; and on that which resembled a throne, high up, was a figure with the appearance of a (AS)man. 27 Then I [aa]noticed from the appearance of His waist and upward something (AT)like gleaming [ab]metal that looked like fire all around within it, and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw something like fire; and there was a radiance around Him. 28 Like the appearance of the (AU)rainbow [ac]in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the (AV)glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I (AW)fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.

The Prophet’s Call

2 Then He said to me, “Son of man, (AX)stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” 2 And as He spoke to me the (AY)Spirit entered me and set me on my feet; and I heard Him speaking to me. 3 Then He said to me, “Son of man, I am sending you to the sons of Israel, to a rebellious people who have (AZ)rebelled against Me; (BA)they and their fathers have revolted against Me to this very day. 4 So I am sending you to those who are [ad](BB)impudent and obstinate children, and you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Lord [ae]God says:’ 5 As for them, (BC)whether they listen or [af]not—for they are a rebellious house—they will (BD)know that a prophet has been among them. 6 And as for you, son of man, you are (BE)not to fear them nor fear their words, though (BF)thistles and thorns are with you and you sit on scorpions; you are not to fear their words nor be dismayed at their presence, since they are a rebellious house. 7 But you shall (BG)speak My words to them (BH)whether they listen or [ag]not, for they are rebellious.

8 “Now you, son of man, listen to what I am speaking to you; do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth wide and (BI)eat what I am giving you.” 9 Then I looked, and behold, a (BJ)hand was extended to me; and behold, a [ah](BK)scroll was in it. 10 When He spread it out before me, it was written on the front and back, and written on it were songs of mourning, sighing, and (BL)woe.

Ezekiel’s Commission

3 Then He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; (BM)eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” 2 So I (BN)opened my mouth, and He fed me this scroll. 3 And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your stomach and (BO)fill your [ai]body with this scroll which I am giving you.” Then I (BP)ate it, and it was as sweet as (BQ)honey in my mouth.

4 Then He said to me, “Son of man, [aj]go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. 5 For (BR)you are not being sent to a people of [ak](BS)unintelligible speech or difficult language, but to the house of Israel, 6 nor to many peoples of [al]unintelligible speech or difficult language, whose words you cannot understand. [am]But I have sent you to [an]the people who understand you; 7 yet the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, since they are (BT)not willing to listen to Me. The entire house of Israel certainly is [ao]stubborn and obstinate. 8 Behold, I have made your face just as hard as their faces, and your forehead just as hard as their foreheads. 9 Like emery harder than flint I have made your forehead. Do not be afraid of them or be dismayed before them, since they are a rebellious house.” 10 Moreover, He said to me, “Son of man, take into your heart all My (BU)words which I will speak to you and listen [ap]closely. 11 [aq]Go to the exiles, to the sons of your people, and speak to them and tell them, whether they listen or [ar]not, ‘This is what the Lord [as]God says.’”

12 Then the (BV)Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a great (BW)rumbling sound behind me: “Blessed be the glory of the Lord from His place!” 13 And I heard the sound of the wings of the living beings touching one another and the sound of the (BX)wheels beside them, even a great rumbling sound. 14 So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away; and I went embittered in the rage of my spirit, and (BY)the hand of the Lord was strong on me. 15 Then I came to the exiles who lived beside the river Chebar at Tel-abib, and I sat there for (BZ)seven days where they were living, causing consternation among them.

16 Now (CA)at the end of seven days the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 17 “Son of man, I have appointed you as a (CB)watchman for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from My mouth, (CC)warn them from Me. 18 When I say to the wicked, ‘You will certainly die,’ and you do not warn him or speak out to warn the wicked from his wicked way so that he may live, that wicked person shall die for wrongdoing, but his (CD)blood I will require from your hand. 19 However if you have (CE)warned the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked way, he shall die for wrongdoing, but you have (CF)saved yourself. 20 Again, (CG)when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and commits sin, and I place an (CH)obstacle before him, he will die; since you have not warned him, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require from your hand. 21 However, if you have (CI)warned [at]the righteous person that the righteous is not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall certainly live because he took warning; and you have saved yourself.”

22 Now the hand of the Lord was on me there, and He said to me, “Get up, go out to the plain, and there I will (CJ)speak to you.” 23 So I got up and went out to the plain; and behold, the (CK)glory of the Lord was standing there, like the glory that (CL)I saw by the river Chebar, and I fell on my face. 24 But the (CM)Spirit entered me and set me up on my feet; and He spoke with me and said to me, “Go, shut yourself inside your house. 25 And as for you, son of man, they will (CN)put ropes [au]around you and bind you with them so that you do not go out among them. 26 Moreover, (CO)I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you will be unable to speak and will not be a man who reprimands them, since they are a rebellious house. 27 But (CP)when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you will say to them, ‘This is what the Lord [av]God says:’ The one who hears, let him hear; and the one who refuses, let him refuse; (CQ)for they are a rebellious house.

Siege of Jerusalem Predicted

4 “Now you, son of man, (CR)get yourself a brick, place it before you, and inscribe a city on it—Jerusalem. 2 Then (CS)lay siege against it, build a siege wall, pile up an assault ramp, set up camps, and place battering rams against it all around. 3 Then get yourself an iron plate and set it up as an iron wall between yourself and the city, and direct your face toward it so that (CT)it is under siege, and besiege it. This will be a (CU)sign to the house of Israel.

4 “Then you are to lie down on your left side and put the wrongdoing of the house of Israel on it; you shall (CV)bear their wrongdoing for the number of days that you lie on it. 5 For I have assigned you a number of days corresponding to the years of their wrongdoing, 390 days; so (CW)you shall bear the wrongdoing of the house of Israel. 6 When you have completed these days, you shall lie down a second time, but on your right side, and bear the wrongdoing of the house of Judah; I have assigned it to you for forty days, a day for (CX)each year. 7 Then you shall direct your face toward the siege of Jerusalem with your arm bared, and (CY)prophesy against it. 8 Now behold, I will (CZ)put ropes [aw]around you so that you cannot turn from your one side to your other until you have completed the days of your siege.

Defiled Bread

9 “But as for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and (DA)spelt, and put them in one vessel and make them into bread for yourself; you shall eat it according to the number of the days that you lie on your side, 390 days. 10 Your food which you eat shall be (DB)twenty shekels a day by weight; you shall eat it from time to time. 11 The water you drink shall be a [ax]sixth of a hin by measure; you shall drink it from time to time.

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 1:1 Some ancient versions a vision
  2. Ezekiel 1:2 Lit it was
  3. Ezekiel 1:4 Heb uncertain; Gr indicates a gold and silver alloy
  4. Ezekiel 1:7 Lit the sole of their feet
  5. Ezekiel 1:7 Lit sole of a foot
  6. Ezekiel 1:10 Lit the four of them
  7. Ezekiel 1:10 Lit the four of them
  8. Ezekiel 1:13 As in some ancient versions; MT And the likeness of the living beings
  9. Ezekiel 1:13 Lit like the appearance of
  10. Ezekiel 1:13 Lit going out
  11. Ezekiel 1:15 Lit his four faces
  12. Ezekiel 1:16 Or the look of topaz
  13. Ezekiel 1:16 Lit the wheel in the midst of the wheel
  14. Ezekiel 1:17 Lit went
  15. Ezekiel 1:17 Lit went
  16. Ezekiel 1:17 Lit sides
  17. Ezekiel 1:17 Lit went
  18. Ezekiel 1:18 Lit full of
  19. Ezekiel 1:19 Lit went
  20. Ezekiel 1:19 Lit went
  21. Ezekiel 1:20 MT adds the spirit to go
  22. Ezekiel 1:20 MT being
  23. Ezekiel 1:21 MT being
  24. Ezekiel 1:22 As in some mss and ancient versions; MT being
  25. Ezekiel 1:24 Heb Shaddai
  26. Ezekiel 1:26 Heb eben-sappir
  27. Ezekiel 1:27 Lit saw
  28. Ezekiel 1:27 See note v 4
  29. Ezekiel 1:28 Lit which occurs in
  30. Ezekiel 2:4 Lit hard-faced and hard-hearted
  31. Ezekiel 2:4 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  32. Ezekiel 2:5 Lit refrain
  33. Ezekiel 2:7 Lit refrain
  34. Ezekiel 2:9 Lit scroll of a book
  35. Ezekiel 3:3 Lit inward parts
  36. Ezekiel 3:4 Lit go, come
  37. Ezekiel 3:5 Lit deep lip and heavy tongue
  38. Ezekiel 3:6 Lit deep lip and heavy tongue
  39. Ezekiel 3:6 Or I certainly have sent
  40. Ezekiel 3:6 Lit them, they understand
  41. Ezekiel 3:7 Lit of a hard forehead and hard of heart
  42. Ezekiel 3:10 Lit with your ears
  43. Ezekiel 3:11 Lit Go, come
  44. Ezekiel 3:11 Lit refrain
  45. Ezekiel 3:11 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  46. Ezekiel 3:21 Lit him, the righteous
  47. Ezekiel 3:25 Lit on
  48. Ezekiel 3:27 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  49. Ezekiel 4:8 Lit on
  50. Ezekiel 4:11 About 0.6 qt. or 0.6 liter
Next
Lamentations 5
Ezekiel 5
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