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耶利米书 50
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)
耶利米书 50
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Simplified)
审判巴比伦的预言
50 论到迦勒底人居住的巴比伦，耶和华对耶利米先知说：
2 “你要向列国宣告，
你要竖起旗帜毫不隐瞒地宣告，
‘巴比伦要沦陷了！
它的神明彼勒必蒙羞，
米罗达必惊慌；
巴比伦的神像都蒙羞，
偶像都必惊慌。
3 因为有一个来自北方的国家要攻击它，
使它荒凉、人畜绝迹。’”
4 耶和华说：“那时，以色列人要与犹大人一同哭着来寻求他们的上帝耶和华。 5 他们必打听前往锡安的路，朝锡安走去。他们必凭不会被遗忘的永恒之约归附耶和华。 6 我的子民成了一群迷路的羊，他们的牧人使他们步入歧途，在高山丘陵间流浪，忘了自己的安歇之处。 7 敌人遇见他们，就吞噬他们，还说，‘我们没有错！这是因为他们冒犯了他们真正的安歇之处——耶和华，他们祖先的盼望——耶和华。’ 8 我的子民啊，你们要逃离巴比伦，离开迦勒底人的土地，要像带领羊群的公山羊一样离开。 9 看啊，我要使来自北方的列强联合起来攻打巴比伦，他们要列阵攻占它，他们的勇士箭术高超，百发百中。 10 他们要在迦勒底肆意掳掠，直到心满意足。这是耶和华说的。
11 “抢夺我产业的巴比伦人啊，
你们欢喜快乐，
像草场上欢跳的母牛犊，
又像嘶鸣的公马。
12 生养你们的母亲巴比伦将羞愧难当，
蒙受耻辱，
排在列国之末，
沦为干旱的荒漠。
13 由于耶和华的愤怒，
巴比伦必无人居住，
荒凉不堪。
她满目疮痍，
令路人惊惧、嗤笑。
14 弓箭手啊，你们要列阵围攻巴比伦，
向她猛射，
不要吝啬箭枝，
因为她得罪了耶和华。
15 你们要从四面向她吶喊，
她必投降，
她的堡垒将倾倒，
城墙将坍塌，
因为耶和华要报应她。
你们要向她复仇，
她怎样对待别人，
你们也要怎样对待她。
16 你们要铲除在巴比伦撒种的和收割的。
为躲避敌人的刀剑，
人们各自逃到故土亲族那里。
17 “以色列人是一群被狮子驱散的羊，先被亚述王吞噬，后被巴比伦王尼布甲尼撒咬碎骨头。” 18 以色列的上帝——万军之耶和华说：“看啊，我要像惩罚亚述王一样惩罚巴比伦王和他的国家。 19 我要带领以色列人返回他们的草场，让他们在迦密和巴珊吃草，在以法莲和基列的山上吃得饱足。 20 那时，在以色列必找不到过犯，在犹大必找不到罪恶，因为我必赦免我保留下来的余民。这是耶和华说的。
21 “你们要去攻打米拉大翁和比割的居民，
照我的命令彻底消灭他们。
这是耶和华说的。
22 巴比伦境内传来战争和大毁灭的声音。
23 威震天下的锤子巴比伦怎么被砍断、打碎了！
它的下场令列国震惊。
24 巴比伦啊，我给你设下了陷阱，
你在懵然不知中被捉住，
因为你与耶和华为敌。
25 耶和华已打开祂的军库，
取出倾泻祂愤怒的兵器。
因为主——万军之耶和华要惩罚迦勒底人。
26 你们要从远方前来攻打巴比伦，
打开她的粮仓，
使她沦为一堆废墟，
彻底毁灭她，不留一物。
27 你们要杀掉她所有的士兵，
把他们全部屠杀。
他们大祸临头了，
惩罚他们的日子到了。
28 “从巴比伦逃出来的人在锡安述说我们的上帝耶和华如何报仇，为祂的圣殿报仇。
29 “要召集所有的弓箭手来攻打巴比伦，在她四围扎营，不让一人漏网。要照她的所作所为报应她；她怎样对待别人，也要怎样对待她，因为她藐视耶和华——以色列的圣者。 30 她的青年要倒毙街头，那时她所有的战士都要灭亡。”这是耶和华说的。
31 “主——万军之耶和华说，
‘狂傲的人啊，我要与你为敌，
我惩罚你的时候到了。
32 狂傲的人要踉踉跄跄，
跌倒在地，无人扶起。
我要焚烧她的城邑，
使她周围的一切化为灰烬。’”
33 万军之耶和华说：“以色列人和犹大人要一同受压迫，掳走他们的人必控制他们，不肯释放他们。 34 但他们的救赎主——万军之耶和华有伟大的能力，祂必为他们申冤，使他们的家园安宁，使巴比伦的居民不得安宁。”
35 耶和华说：
“敌人要攻击巴比伦的居民及其首领和谋士；
36 敌人要攻击巴比伦的假先知，
使他们显出愚昧；
敌人要攻击巴比伦的勇士，
使他们充满恐惧；
37 敌人要攻击巴比伦人的战车战马和他们的盟军，
使他们柔弱得像妇女；
敌人要攻打他们的库房，
肆意抢夺他们的财宝。
38 旱灾必临到巴比伦，
使那里的河流干涸，
因为那里偶像遍地，
人们都沉迷于祭拜神像。
39 “因此，巴比伦必杳无人烟，永远荒凉，成为豺狼等野兽出没之地、鸵鸟的栖身之所。 40 上帝要毁灭巴比伦，像毁灭所多玛、蛾摩拉及其周围的城邑一样，使那里人烟绝迹。这是耶和华说的。
41 “看啊，大军要从北方而来，
一个强国及其盟军要从地极而来。
42 巴比伦人啊，他们残忍无道，
手持弓箭和矛枪，
骑着战马，
列阵攻击你们，
声势如翻腾的大海。
43 巴比伦王闻风丧胆，
四肢发软，
像分娩的妇人一样痛苦不堪。
44 “看啊，我必在瞬间把巴比伦人赶离家园，如约旦河边丛林中跳出的狮子赶散草场的羊群。我要派我拣选的人统治这地方。谁能与我相比？谁能与我较量？哪位首领能抵抗我？”
45 因此，你们要听听耶和华攻击巴比伦的策略，听听祂攻击迦勒底人的计划。他们的孩子要被拖走，他们的家园要被毁灭。 46 巴比伦被毁灭的消息震动天下，呼喊声传到列国。
Jeremiah 50
EasyEnglish Bible
Jeremiah 50
EasyEnglish Bible
Punishment for Babylon
50 The Lord gave this message to the prophet Jeremiah about Babylon city and the people of Babylonia:
2 ‘Tell this news to the nations!
Wave a flag to make sure that people listen!
Do not try to hide anything. Say this:
“Enemies will take Babylon.
Bel will become ashamed.
Yes, Marduk will be afraid.[a]
All Babylon's disgusting idols will be ashamed.”
3 A nation from the north will attack Babylon.
They will destroy the whole land.
People and animals will all run away,
so that nobody lives there.’
4 The Lord says, ‘When that happens,
the people of Israel and Judah will return to their land.
They will weep because of their sins.
They will want to worship the Lord their God.
5 They will ask people to show them the way to Zion.
They will travel in that direction.
They will promise to serve the Lord.
They will make a covenant with him that will continue for ever.
Nobody will ever forget that covenant.[b]
6 My people have been like sheep that are lost.
Their leaders should have taken care of them like shepherds.
Instead, they have let my people become lost,
like sheep that have gone into the mountains.
They go from one hill to another hill,
and they have forgotten where their home is.
7 Anyone who found them killed them.
Their enemies said, “We are not guilty for their death.
They deserved to die because they turned against the Lord.
He is their true home where they are safe.
But they turned against the Lord,
the God that their ancestors trusted.” ’
8 ‘People of Judah, escape quickly from Babylon!
Leave the land of Babylonia!
Be the first people to leave.
Lead the other people away,
like a male goat that leads the other goats.
9 I will call a group of strong nations from the north.
They will join together to fight against Babylon.
They will get ready to attack.
They will come from the north
and they will take power over Babylon.
Their arrows will be like brave soldiers.
They will kill everyone that they want to kill.
10 The people of Babylonia will lose all their things.
Enemy soldiers will take everything that they want for themselves.’
That is what the Lord says.
11 ‘You people of Babylon are very happy,
because you have robbed my people.
You dance like young cows that have fresh grass to eat.
You make a happy noise, like a strong male horse.
12 Babylon is like your mother who gave you life,
but she will become ashamed.
Yes, she will become the least important of all nations.
The country will be dry and empty, like a desert.
13 Nobody will live in Babylon,
because I, the Lord, am very angry with it.
It will be only a heap of stones.
Everyone who goes that way will see that it is a disgusting place.
They will insult Babylon,
because of the terrible troubles that have happened to it.’
14 ‘Get ready to fight, all you soldiers who have bows and arrows.
Stand in your places around Babylon.
Shoot your arrows into the city! Shoot all of them!
Punish Babylon, because its people have turned against the Lord.
15 Shout as you attack the city from all sides.
Its people are ready to stop fighting.
Its strong towers will fall down.
You will knock down its walls.
The Lord is punishing Babylon,
so punish the people for their sins!
Do the same thing to them that they have done to other people.
16 Remove from Babylon all the farmers who plant crops.
Remove all the people who cut the crops at harvest time.
The foreigners must return to their own homes.
They must run away to escape from the enemy army.’
17 ‘Israel's enemies have chased them away to many different places.
They are like sheep that hungry lions have chased away.
The first to catch them was the king of Assyria.
Then King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon destroyed them,
like a lion that broke their bones.’[c]
18 So the Lord Almighty, Israel's God, says this:
‘I will punish the king of Babylon and his country,
as I punished the king of Assyria.
19 But I will bring Israel's people back to their own land.
They will grow their crops on Carmel and in Bashan.
They will have plenty of food to eat
on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead.
20 At that time, I will forgive the sins of my people.
I have let a few people of Israel and Judah remain.
And they will no longer be guilty of any sins.’
That is what the Lord says.
21 The Lord says,
‘Attack the land of Merathaim.
Attack the people who live in Pekod.[d]
Run after them! Kill them! Completely destroy them!
Do everything that I have commanded you to do.
22 There is a noise of war in the land of Babylonia.
The enemy is destroying everything!
23 Babylon attacked other nations of the world,
like a hammer that breaks things into pieces.
But now that hammer has broken into pieces.
Now the other nations see that Babylon is a disgusting place.
24 Babylon, I put a trap to catch you,
and you did not know about it.
Now I have caught you in my trap,
because you fought against me.
25 I have taken out my weapons from the place where I had stored them.
I will use those weapons to punish the people of Babylonia,
because I am very angry with them.[e]
I am the Lord God Almighty.
I have work to do in the land of Babylonia.
26 Now come from far away to attack Babylonia!
Break open the store rooms and take out the grain.
Knock down their buildings and break them into pieces.
Completely destroy everything.
Do not let anything remain!
27 Kill all their strong soldiers.
Let them go to their place of death!
Terrible trouble has come to the people of Babylon.
The time of their punishment has arrived!’
28 Listen! People have run away from the war in Babylon. Now they are arriving in Jerusalem. They will tell the news in Zion about how the Lord is punishing Babylon. He is punishing the people of Babylon because they destroyed his temple.
29 ‘Bring all the soldiers with bows and arrows to attack Babylon.
They must make their camp all around the city.
Do not let anyone escape.
Punish the people for the things that they have done.
Do the same thing to them that they have done to others.
Those people have insulted me, Israel's holy God.
30 So Babylon's young men will die in its streets.
All its soldiers will die in battle on that day.’
That is what the Lord says.
31 The Lord God Almighty says this:
‘You people of Babylon are very proud,
so I will fight against you.
Now the day has come
when I will punish you for your sins.
32 You are proud but you will fall to the ground.
Nobody will help you to get up.
I will burn Babylonia's towns with fire,
and it will destroy everything that is around them.’
33 The Lord Almighty says,
‘People have been cruel to the people of Israel and Judah.
Enemies have taken them away as prisoners.
They have refused to let my people go free.
34 But my name is the Lord Almighty.
I am strong and I will rescue my people.
I will fight hard to save them.
I will bring peace to their land.
But the people of Babylonia will only have trouble.’
35 The Lord says,
‘I am sending an army to fight against Babylon.
They will attack the people of Babylonia,
its leaders and its wise men.
36 They will attack its false prophets,
and people will see that the prophets are fools.
They will attack the soldiers of Babylonia,
and those soldiers will be very afraid.
37 They will attack Babylonia's horses and chariots,
and the foreign soldiers who belong to its army.
They will become as weak as women.
The enemy soldiers will take Babylon's valuable things.
They will take them away for themselves.
38 There will be no rain on the land
so that the rivers and streams become dry.
I will send all this trouble because
their whole land is full of idols.
The people become crazy
because they are afraid of their idols.
39 Hyenas and other wild animals will live there.
Ostriches will live there, too.
But people will never live there again.
It will remain as empty as a desert.
40 Babylonia will become a heap of stones where nobody lives.
The same thing happened to Sodom and Gomorrah
and the towns near to them.
Nobody will live there any more.’
That is what the Lord says.
41 ‘Look! An army is coming from the north.
A great nation and many kings are preparing to attack.
They are coming from a place that is far away.
42 Its soldiers carry bows and spears as their weapons.
They are always cruel and they are never kind.
They ride into the battle on their horses,
and it sounds like the noise of the sea.
They are ready to attack you, people of Babylon!
43 The king of Babylon has heard news about them,
and he is very afraid.
He feels too weak to fight.
He feels pain like a woman who is giving birth.
44 I will attack the people of Babylonia,
and I will chase them out of their land.
I will do that like a lion that has been hiding in the forest.
It attacks the sheep in the fields beside the Jordan River.
Like that lion, I will suddenly chase Babylonia's people out of their country.
Then I will choose a leader to rule that nation.
There is nobody who is like me.
Nobody can accuse me of anything.
No ruler can stand against me.
45 So listen to me, the Lord!
This is what I have decided to do to Babylon.
Yes, this is the trouble that I will bring to the people of Babylonia.
Soldiers will catch their children and take them away,
like little lambs that they take from their mothers.
I will completely destroy their homes.
46 When the enemy takes power over Babylon,
the noise will cause the whole earth to shake.
The other nations will hear Babylon's people shout with pain.’
Footnotes
- 50:2 Bel and Marduk were names for the god of the people in Babylon.
- 50:5 See Jeremiah 32:40.
- 50:17 First, Assyria took away the people of the northern kingdom of Israel as their prisoners. Now King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon would take away the people of Judah, the southern kingdom.
- 50:21 Merathaim and Pekod were names of other regions in Babylonia.
- 50:25 The weapons that the Lord uses are the nations that will attack Babylonia.
Jeremiah 50
New King James Version
Jeremiah 50
New King James Version
Judgment on Babylon and Babylonia
50 The word that the Lord spoke (A)against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet.
2 “Declare among the nations,
Proclaim, and [a]set up a standard;
Proclaim—do not conceal it—
Say, ‘Babylon is (B)taken, (C)Bel is shamed.
[b]Merodach is broken in pieces;
(D)Her idols are humiliated,
Her images are broken in pieces.’
3 (E)For out of the north (F)a nation comes up against her,
Which shall make her land desolate,
And no one shall dwell therein.
They shall [c]move, they shall depart,
Both man and beast.
4 “In those days and in that time,” says the Lord,
“The children of Israel shall come,
(G)They and the children of Judah together;
(H)With continual weeping they shall come,
(I)And seek the Lord their God.
5 They shall ask the way to Zion,
With their faces toward it, saying,
‘Come and let us join ourselves to the Lord
In (J)a perpetual covenant
That will not be forgotten.’
6 “My people have been (K)lost sheep.
Their shepherds have led them (L)astray;
They have turned them away on (M)the mountains.
They have gone from mountain to hill;
They have forgotten their resting place.
7 All who found them have (N)devoured them;
And (O)their adversaries said, (P)‘We have not offended,
Because they have sinned against the Lord, (Q)the habitation of justice,
The Lord, (R)the hope of their fathers.’
8 “Move(S) from the midst of Babylon,
Go out of the land of the Chaldeans;
And be like the [d]rams before the flocks.
9 (T)For behold, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon
An assembly of great nations from the north country,
And they shall array themselves against her;
From there she shall be captured.
Their arrows shall be like those of [e]an expert warrior;
(U)None shall return in vain.
10 And Chaldea shall become plunder;
(V)All who plunder her shall be satisfied,” says the Lord.
11 “Because(W) you were glad, because you rejoiced,
You destroyers of My heritage,
Because you have grown fat (X)like a heifer threshing grain,
And you [f]bellow like bulls,
12 Your mother shall be deeply ashamed;
She who bore you shall be ashamed.
Behold, the least of the nations shall be a (Y)wilderness,
A dry land and a desert.
13 Because of the wrath of the Lord
She shall not be inhabited,
(Z)But she shall be wholly desolate.
(AA)Everyone who goes by Babylon shall be horrified
And hiss at all her plagues.
14 “Put(AB) yourselves in array against Babylon all around,
All you who bend the bow;
Shoot at her, spare no arrows,
For she has sinned against the Lord.
15 Shout against her all around;
She has (AC)given her hand,
Her foundations have fallen,
(AD)Her walls are thrown down;
For (AE)it is the vengeance of the Lord.
Take vengeance on her.
As she has done, so do to her.
16 Cut off the sower from Babylon,
And him who handles the sickle at harvest time.
For fear of the oppressing sword
(AF)Everyone shall turn to his own people,
And everyone shall flee to his own land.
17 “Israel is like (AG)scattered sheep;
(AH)The lions have driven him away.
First (AI)the king of Assyria devoured him;
Now at last this (AJ)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has broken his bones.”
18 Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:
“Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land,
As I have punished the king of (AK)Assyria.
19 (AL)But I will bring back Israel to his home,
And he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan;
His soul shall be satisfied on Mount Ephraim and Gilead.
20 In those days and in that time,” says the Lord,
(AM)“The iniquity of Israel shall be sought, but there shall be none;
And the sins of Judah, but they shall not be found;
For I will pardon those (AN)whom I preserve.
21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim, against it,
And against the inhabitants of (AO)Pekod.
[g]Waste and utterly destroy them,” says the Lord,
“And do (AP)according to all that I have commanded you.
22 (AQ)A sound of battle is in the land,
And of great destruction.
23 How (AR)the hammer of the whole earth has been cut apart and broken!
How Babylon has become a desolation among the nations!
24 I have laid a snare for you;
You have indeed been (AS)trapped, O Babylon,
And you were not aware;
You have been found and also caught,
Because you have (AT)contended against the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened His armory,
And has brought out (AU)the weapons of His indignation;
For this is the work of the Lord God of hosts
In the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come against her from the farthest border;
Open her storehouses;
Cast her up as heaps of ruins,
And destroy her utterly;
Let nothing of her be left.
27 Slay all her (AV)bulls,
Let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them!
For their day has come, the time of (AW)their punishment.
28 The voice of those who flee and escape from the land of Babylon
(AX)Declares in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God,
The vengeance of His temple.
29 “Call together the archers against Babylon.
All you who bend the bow, encamp against it all around;
Let none of them [h]escape.
(AY)Repay her according to her work;
According to all she has done, do to her;
(AZ)For she has been proud against the Lord,
Against the Holy One of Israel.
30 (BA)Therefore her young men shall fall in the streets,
And all her men of war shall be cut off in that day,” says the Lord.
31 “Behold, I am against you,
O most haughty one!” says the Lord God of hosts;
“For your day has come,
[i]The time that I will punish you.
32 The most (BB)proud shall stumble and fall,
And no one will raise him up;
(BC)I will kindle a fire in his cities,
And it will devour all around him.”
33 Thus says the Lord of hosts:
“The children of Israel were oppressed,
Along with the children of Judah;
All who took them captive have held them fast;
They have refused to let them go.
34 (BD)Their Redeemer is strong;
(BE)The Lord of hosts is His name.
He will thoroughly plead their (BF)case,
That He may give rest to the land,
And disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 “A sword is against the Chaldeans,” says the Lord,
“Against the inhabitants of Babylon,
And (BG)against her princes and (BH)her wise men.
36 A sword is (BI)against the soothsayers, and they will be fools.
A sword is against her mighty men, and they will be dismayed.
37 A sword is against their horses,
Against their chariots,
And against all (BJ)the mixed peoples who are in her midst;
And (BK)they will become like women.
A sword is against her treasures, and they will be robbed.
38 (BL)A [j]drought is against her waters, and they will be dried up.
For it is the land of carved images,
And they are insane with their idols.
39 “Therefore(BM) the wild desert beasts shall dwell there with the jackals,
And the ostriches shall dwell in it.
(BN)It shall be inhabited no more forever,
Nor shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.
40 (BO)As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah
And their neighbors,” says the Lord,
“So no one shall reside there,
Nor son of man (BP)dwell in it.
41 “Behold,(BQ) a people shall come from the north,
And a great nation and many kings
Shall be raised up from the ends of the earth.
42 (BR)They shall hold the bow and the lance;
(BS)They are cruel and shall not show mercy.
(BT)Their voice shall roar like the sea;
They shall ride on horses,
Set in array, like a man for the battle,
Against you, O daughter of Babylon.
43 “The king of Babylon has (BU)heard the report about them,
And his hands grow feeble;
Anguish has taken hold of him,
Pangs as of a woman in (BV)childbirth.
44 “Behold,(BW) he shall come up like a lion from the [k]floodplain of the Jordan
Against the dwelling place of the strong;
But I will make them suddenly run away from her.
And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her?
For who is like Me?
Who will arraign Me?
And (BX)who is that shepherd
Who will withstand Me?”
45 Therefore hear (BY)the counsel of the Lord that He has taken against Babylon,
And His (BZ)purposes that He has proposed against the land of the Chaldeans:
(CA)Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out;
Surely He will make their dwelling place desolate with them.
46 (CB)At the noise of the taking of Babylon
The earth trembles,
And the cry is heard among the nations.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 50:2 lift
- Jeremiah 50:2 Or Marduk; a Babylonian god
- Jeremiah 50:3 Or wander
- Jeremiah 50:8 male goats
- Jeremiah 50:9 So with some Heb. mss., LXX, Syr.; MT, Tg., Vg. a warrior who makes childless
- Jeremiah 50:11 Or neigh like steeds
- Jeremiah 50:21 Or Attack with the sword
- Jeremiah 50:29 Qr., some Heb. mss., LXX, Tg. add to her
- Jeremiah 50:31 So with MT, Tg.; LXX, Vg. The time of your punishment
- Jeremiah 50:38 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; Syr. sword; LXX omits A drought is
- Jeremiah 50:44 Or thicket
Jeremiah 50
New International Version
Jeremiah 50
New International Version
A Message About Babylon(A)
50 This is the word the Lord spoke through Jeremiah the prophet concerning Babylon(B) and the land of the Babylonians[a]:
2 “Announce and proclaim(C) among the nations,
lift up a banner(D) and proclaim it;
keep nothing back, but say,
‘Babylon will be captured;(E)
Bel(F) will be put to shame,(G)
Marduk(H) filled with terror.
Her images will be put to shame
and her idols(I) filled with terror.’
3 A nation from the north(J) will attack her
and lay waste her land.
No one will live(K) in it;
both people and animals(L) will flee away.
4 “In those days, at that time,”
declares the Lord,
“the people of Israel and the people of Judah together(M)
will go in tears(N) to seek(O) the Lord their God.
5 They will ask the way(P) to Zion
and turn their faces toward it.
They will come(Q) and bind themselves to the Lord
in an everlasting covenant(R)
that will not be forgotten.
6 “My people have been lost sheep;(S)
their shepherds(T) have led them astray(U)
and caused them to roam on the mountains.
They wandered over mountain and hill(V)
and forgot their own resting place.(W)
7 Whoever found them devoured(X) them;
their enemies said, ‘We are not guilty,(Y)
for they sinned against the Lord, their verdant pasture,
the Lord, the hope(Z) of their ancestors.’
8 “Flee(AA) out of Babylon;(AB)
leave the land of the Babylonians,
and be like the goats that lead the flock.
9 For I will stir(AC) up and bring against Babylon
an alliance of great nations(AD) from the land of the north.(AE)
They will take up their positions against her,
and from the north she will be captured.(AF)
Their arrows(AG) will be like skilled warriors
who do not return empty-handed.
10 So Babylonia[b] will be plundered;(AH)
all who plunder her will have their fill,”
declares the Lord.
11 “Because you rejoice and are glad,
you who pillage my inheritance,(AI)
because you frolic like a heifer(AJ) threshing grain
and neigh like stallions,
12 your mother will be greatly ashamed;
she who gave you birth will be disgraced.(AK)
She will be the least of the nations—
a wilderness, a dry land, a desert.(AL)
13 Because of the Lord’s anger she will not be inhabited
but will be completely desolate.(AM)
All who pass Babylon will be appalled;(AN)
they will scoff(AO) because of all her wounds.(AP)
14 “Take up your positions around Babylon,
all you who draw the bow.(AQ)
Shoot at her! Spare no arrows,(AR)
for she has sinned against the Lord.
15 Shout(AS) against her on every side!
She surrenders, her towers fall,
her walls(AT) are torn down.
Since this is the vengeance(AU) of the Lord,
take vengeance on her;
do to her(AV) as she has done to others.(AW)
16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the reaper with his sickle at harvest.
Because of the sword(AX) of the oppressor
let everyone return to their own people,(AY)
let everyone flee to their own land.(AZ)
17 “Israel is a scattered flock(BA)
that lions(BB) have chased away.
The first to devour(BC) them
was the king(BD) of Assyria;
the last to crush their bones(BE)
was Nebuchadnezzar(BF) king(BG) of Babylon.”
18 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says:
“I will punish the king of Babylon and his land
as I punished the king(BH) of Assyria.(BI)
19 But I will bring(BJ) Israel back to their own pasture,
and they will graze on Carmel and Bashan;
their appetite will be satisfied(BK)
on the hills(BL) of Ephraim and Gilead.(BM)
20 In those days, at that time,”
declares the Lord,
“search will be made for Israel’s guilt,
but there will be none,(BN)
and for the sins(BO) of Judah,
but none will be found,
for I will forgive(BP) the remnant(BQ) I spare.
21 “Attack the land of Merathaim
and those who live in Pekod.(BR)
Pursue, kill and completely destroy[c] them,”
declares the Lord.
“Do everything I have commanded you.
22 The noise(BS) of battle is in the land,
the noise of great destruction!
23 How broken and shattered
is the hammer(BT) of the whole earth!(BU)
How desolate(BV) is Babylon
among the nations!
24 I set a trap(BW) for you, Babylon,
and you were caught before you knew it;
you were found and captured(BX)
because you opposed(BY) the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened his arsenal
and brought out the weapons(BZ) of his wrath,
for the Sovereign Lord Almighty has work to do
in the land of the Babylonians.(CA)
26 Come against her from afar.(CB)
Break open her granaries;
pile her up like heaps of grain.(CC)
Completely destroy(CD) her
and leave her no remnant.
27 Kill all her young bulls;(CE)
let them go down to the slaughter!(CF)
Woe to them! For their day(CG) has come,
the time(CH) for them to be punished.
28 Listen to the fugitives(CI) and refugees from Babylon
declaring in Zion(CJ)
how the Lord our God has taken vengeance,(CK)
vengeance for his temple.(CL)
29 “Summon archers against Babylon,
all those who draw the bow.(CM)
Encamp all around her;
let no one escape.(CN)
Repay(CO) her for her deeds;(CP)
do to her as she has done.
For she has defied(CQ) the Lord,
the Holy One(CR) of Israel.
30 Therefore, her young men(CS) will fall in the streets;
all her soldiers will be silenced in that day,”
declares the Lord.
31 “See, I am against(CT) you, you arrogant one,”
declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
“for your day(CU) has come,
the time for you to be punished.
32 The arrogant(CV) one will stumble and fall(CW)
and no one will help her up;(CX)
I will kindle a fire(CY) in her towns
that will consume all who are around her.”
33 This is what the Lord Almighty says:
“The people of Israel are oppressed,(CZ)
and the people of Judah as well.
All their captors hold them fast,
refusing to let them go.(DA)
34 Yet their Redeemer(DB) is strong;
the Lord Almighty(DC) is his name.
He will vigorously defend their cause(DD)
so that he may bring rest(DE) to their land,
but unrest to those who live in Babylon.
35 “A sword(DF) against the Babylonians!”(DG)
declares the Lord—
“against those who live in Babylon
and against her officials and wise(DH) men!
36 A sword against her false prophets!
They will become fools.
A sword against her warriors!(DI)
They will be filled with terror.(DJ)
37 A sword against her horses and chariots(DK)
and all the foreigners in her ranks!
They will become weaklings.(DL)
A sword against her treasures!(DM)
They will be plundered.
38 A drought on[d] her waters!(DN)
They will dry(DO) up.
For it is a land of idols,(DP)
idols that will go mad with terror.
39 “So desert creatures(DQ) and hyenas will live there,
and there the owl will dwell.
It will never again be inhabited
or lived in from generation to generation.(DR)
40 As I overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah(DS)
along with their neighboring towns,”
declares the Lord,
“so no one will live there;
no people will dwell in it.(DT)
41 “Look! An army is coming from the north;(DU)
a great nation and many kings
are being stirred(DV) up from the ends of the earth.(DW)
42 They are armed with bows(DX) and spears;
they are cruel(DY) and without mercy.(DZ)
They sound like the roaring sea(EA)
as they ride on their horses;
they come like men in battle formation
to attack you, Daughter Babylon.(EB)
43 The king of Babylon has heard reports about them,
and his hands hang limp.(EC)
Anguish has gripped him,
pain like that of a woman in labor.(ED)
44 Like a lion coming up from Jordan’s thickets(EE)
to a rich pastureland,
I will chase Babylon from its land in an instant.
Who is the chosen(EF) one I will appoint for this?
Who is like me and who can challenge me?(EG)
And what shepherd can stand against me?”
45 Therefore, hear what the Lord has planned against Babylon,
what he has purposed(EH) against the land of the Babylonians:(EI)
The young of the flock will be dragged away;
their pasture will be appalled at their fate.
46 At the sound of Babylon’s capture the earth will tremble;(EJ)
its cry(EK) will resound among the nations.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 50:1 Or Chaldeans; also in verses 8, 25, 35 and 45
- Jeremiah 50:10 Or Chaldea
- Jeremiah 50:21 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them; also in verse 26.
- Jeremiah 50:38 Or A sword against
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