“In the time of my favor I heard you,
    and in the day of salvation I helped you.”^[a](C)

“I will live with them
    and walk among them,
and I will be their God,
    and they will be my people.”^[c](AG)

“Come out from them^(AH)
    and be separate,
says the Lord.
Touch no unclean thing,
    and I will receive you.”^[d](AI)

“I will be a Father to you,
    and you will be my sons and daughters,^(AJ)
says the Lord Almighty.”^[e](AK)

⁵ May all who hate Zion^(H)
    be turned back in shame.^(I)
6 May they be like grass on the roof,^(J)
    which withers^(K) before it can grow;
⁷ a reaper cannot fill his hands with it,^(L)
    nor one who gathers fill his arms.
⁸ May those who pass by not say to them,
    “The blessing of the Lord be on you;
    we bless you^(M) in the name of the Lord.”

“See, I will stir^(A) up the spirit of a destroyer
    against Babylon^(B) and the people of Leb Kamai.^[a]
2 I will send foreigners^(C) to Babylon
    to winnow^(D) her and to devastate her land;
they will oppose her on every side
    in the day^(E) of her disaster.
³ Let not the archer string his bow,^(F)
    nor let him put on his armor.^(G)
Do not spare her young men;
    completely destroy^[b] her army.
⁴ They will fall^(H) down slain in Babylon,^[c]
    fatally wounded in her streets.^(I)
5 For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken^(J)
    by their God, the Lord Almighty,
though their land^[d] is full of guilt^(K)
    before the Holy One of Israel.

⁶ “Flee^(L) from Babylon!
    Run for your lives!
    Do not be destroyed because of her sins.^(M)
It is time^(N) for the Lord’s vengeance;^(O)
    he will repay^(P) her what she deserves.
⁷ Babylon was a gold cup^(Q) in the Lord’s hand;
    she made the whole earth drunk.
The nations drank her wine;
    therefore they have now gone mad.
⁸ Babylon will suddenly fall^(R) and be broken.
    Wail over her!
Get balm^(S) for her pain;
    perhaps she can be healed.

⁹ “‘We would have healed Babylon,
    but she cannot be healed;
let us leave^(T) her and each go to our own land,
    for her judgment^(U) reaches to the skies,
    it rises as high as the heavens.’

¹⁰ “‘The Lord has vindicated^(V) us;
    come, let us tell in Zion
    what the Lord our God has done.’^(W)

¹¹ “Sharpen the arrows,^(X)
    take up the shields!^(Y)
The Lord has stirred up the kings^(Z) of the Medes,^(AA)
    because his purpose^(AB) is to destroy Babylon.
The Lord will take vengeance,^(AC)
    vengeance for his temple.^(AD)
12 Lift up a banner^(AE) against the walls of Babylon!
    Reinforce the guard,
station the watchmen,^(AF)
    prepare an ambush!^(AG)
The Lord will carry out his purpose,^(AH)
    his decree against the people of Babylon.
¹³ You who live by many waters^(AI)
    and are rich in treasures,^(AJ)
your end has come,
    the time for you to be destroyed.^(AK)
14 The Lord Almighty has sworn by himself:^(AL)
    I will surely fill you with troops, as with a swarm of locusts,^(AM)
    and they will shout^(AN) in triumph over you.

¹⁵ “He made the earth by his power;
    he founded the world by his wisdom^(AO)
    and stretched^(AP) out the heavens by his understanding.^(AQ)
16 When he thunders,^(AR) the waters in the heavens roar;
    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain^(AS)
    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.^(AT)

¹⁷ “Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;
    every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.
The images he makes are a fraud;^(AU)
    they have no breath in them.
¹⁸ They are worthless,^(AV) the objects of mockery;
    when their judgment comes, they will perish.
¹⁹ He who is the Portion^(AW) of Jacob is not like these,
    for he is the Maker of all things,
including the people of his inheritance^(AX)—
    the Lord Almighty is his name.

²⁰ “You are my war club,^(AY)
    my weapon for battle—
with you I shatter^(AZ) nations,^(BA)
    with you I destroy kingdoms,
²¹ with you I shatter horse and rider,^(BB)
    with you I shatter chariot^(BC) and driver,
²² with you I shatter man and woman,
    with you I shatter old man and youth,
    with you I shatter young man and young woman,^(BD)
23 with you I shatter shepherd and flock,
    with you I shatter farmer and oxen,
    with you I shatter governors and officials.^(BE)

²⁵ “I am against^(BH) you, you destroying mountain,
    you who destroy the whole earth,”^(BI)
declares the Lord.
“I will stretch out my hand^(BJ) against you,
    roll you off the cliffs,
    and make you a burned-out mountain.^(BK)
26 No rock will be taken from you for a cornerstone,
    nor any stone for a foundation,
    for you will be desolate^(BL) forever,”
declares the Lord.

²⁷ “Lift up a banner^(BM) in the land!
    Blow the trumpet among the nations!
Prepare the nations for battle against her;
    summon against her these kingdoms:^(BN)
    Ararat,^(BO) Minni and Ashkenaz.^(BP)
Appoint a commander against her;
    send up horses like a swarm of locusts.^(BQ)
28 Prepare the nations for battle against her—
    the kings of the Medes,^(BR)
their governors and all their officials,
    and all the countries they rule.^(BS)
29 The land trembles^(BT) and writhes,
    for the Lord’s purposes^(BU) against Babylon stand—
to lay waste^(BV) the land of Babylon
    so that no one will live there.^(BW)
30 Babylon’s warriors^(BX) have stopped fighting;
    they remain in their strongholds.
Their strength is exhausted;
    they have become weaklings.^(BY)
Her dwellings are set on fire;^(BZ)
    the bars^(CA) of her gates are broken.
³¹ One courier^(CB) follows another
    and messenger follows messenger
to announce to the king of Babylon
    that his entire city is captured,^(CC)
32 the river crossings seized,
    the marshes set on fire,^(CD)
    and the soldiers terrified.^(CE)”

“Daughter Babylon^(CF) is like a threshing floor^(CG)
    at the time it is trampled;
    the time to harvest^(CH) her will soon come.^(CI)”

³⁴ “Nebuchadnezzar^(CJ) king of Babylon has devoured^(CK) us,^(CL)
    he has thrown us into confusion,
    he has made us an empty jar.
Like a serpent he has swallowed us
    and filled his stomach with our delicacies,
    and then has spewed^(CM) us out.
³⁵ May the violence^(CN) done to our flesh^[f] be on Babylon,”
    say the inhabitants of Zion.
“May our blood be on those who live in Babylonia,”
    says Jerusalem.^(CO)

“See, I will defend your cause^(CP)
    and avenge^(CQ) you;
I will dry up^(CR) her sea
    and make her springs dry.
³⁷ Babylon will be a heap of ruins,
    a haunt^(CS) of jackals,
an object of horror and scorn,^(CT)
    a place where no one lives.^(CU)
38 Her people all roar like young lions,^(CV)
    they growl like lion cubs.
³⁹ But while they are aroused,
    I will set out a feast for them
    and make them drunk,^(CW)
so that they shout with laughter—
    then sleep forever^(CX) and not awake,”
declares the Lord.^(CY)
40 “I will bring them down
    like lambs to the slaughter,
    like rams and goats.^(CZ)

⁴¹ “How Sheshak^[g](DA) will be captured,^(DB)
    the boast of the whole earth seized!
How desolate^(DC) Babylon will be
    among the nations!
⁴² The sea will rise over Babylon;
    its roaring waves^(DD) will cover her.
⁴³ Her towns will be desolate,
    a dry and desert^(DE) land,
a land where no one lives,
    through which no one travels.^(DF)
44 I will punish Bel^(DG) in Babylon
    and make him spew out^(DH) what he has swallowed.
The nations will no longer stream to him.
    And the wall^(DI) of Babylon will fall.

⁴⁵ “Come out^(DJ) of her, my people!
    Run^(DK) for your lives!
    Run from the fierce anger^(DL) of the Lord.
⁴⁶ Do not lose heart^(DM) or be afraid^(DN)
    when rumors^(DO) are heard in the land;
one rumor comes this year, another the next,
    rumors of violence in the land
    and of ruler against ruler.
⁴⁷ For the time will surely come
    when I will punish the idols^(DP) of Babylon;
her whole land will be disgraced^(DQ)
    and her slain will all lie fallen within her.^(DR)
48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
    will shout^(DS) for joy over Babylon,
for out of the north^(DT)
    destroyers^(DU) will attack her,”
declares the Lord.

⁴⁹ “Babylon must fall because of Israel’s slain,
    just as the slain in all the earth
    have fallen because of Babylon.^(DV)
50 You who have escaped the sword,
    leave^(DW) and do not linger!
Remember^(DX) the Lord in a distant land,^(DY)
    and call to mind Jerusalem.”

⁵¹ “We are disgraced,^(DZ)
    for we have been insulted
    and shame covers our faces,
because foreigners have entered
    the holy places of the Lord’s house.”^(EA)

⁵² “But days are coming,” declares the Lord,
    “when I will punish her idols,^(EB)
and throughout her land
    the wounded will groan.^(EC)
53 Even if Babylon ascends to the heavens^(ED)
    and fortifies her lofty stronghold,
    I will send destroyers^(EE) against her,”
declares the Lord.

⁵⁴ “The sound of a cry^(EF) comes from Babylon,
    the sound of great destruction^(EG)
    from the land of the Babylonians.^[h]
55 The Lord will destroy Babylon;
    he will silence^(EH) her noisy din.
Waves^(EI) of enemies will rage like great waters;
    the roar of their voices will resound.
⁵⁶ A destroyer^(EJ) will come against Babylon;
    her warriors will be captured,
    and their bows will be broken.^(EK)
For the Lord is a God of retribution;
    he will repay^(EL) in full.
⁵⁷ I will make her officials^(EM) and wise^(EN) men drunk,^(EO)
    her governors, officers and warriors as well;
they will sleep^(EP) forever and not awake,”
    declares the King,^(EQ) whose name is the Lord Almighty.

“Babylon’s thick wall^(ER) will be leveled
    and her high gates^(ES) set on fire;
the peoples^(ET) exhaust^(EU) themselves for nothing,
    the nations’ labor is only fuel for the flames.”^(EV)

² Bitterly she weeps^(F) at night,
    tears are on her cheeks.
Among all her lovers^(G)
    there is no one to comfort her.
All her friends have betrayed^(H) her;
    they have become her enemies.^(I)

³ After affliction and harsh labor,
    Judah has gone into exile.^(J)
She dwells among the nations;
    she finds no resting place.^(K)
All who pursue her have overtaken her^(L)
    in the midst of her distress.

⁴ The roads to Zion mourn,^(M)
    for no one comes to her appointed festivals.
All her gateways are desolate,^(N)
    her priests groan,
her young women grieve,
    and she is in bitter anguish.^(O)

⁵ Her foes have become her masters;
    her enemies are at ease.
The Lord has brought her grief^(P)
    because of her many sins.^(Q)
Her children have gone into exile,^(R)
    captive before the foe.^(S)

⁶ All the splendor has departed
    from Daughter Zion.^(T)
Her princes are like deer
    that find no pasture;
in weakness they have fled^(U)
    before the pursuer.

⁷ In the days of her affliction and wandering
    Jerusalem remembers all the treasures
    that were hers in days of old.
When her people fell into enemy hands,
    there was no one to help her.^(V)
Her enemies looked at her
    and laughed^(W) at her destruction.

⁸ Jerusalem has sinned^(X) greatly
    and so has become unclean.^(Y)
All who honored her despise her,
    for they have all seen her naked;^(Z)
she herself groans^(AA)
    and turns away.

⁹ Her filthiness clung to her skirts;
    she did not consider her future.^(AB)
Her fall^(AC) was astounding;
    there was none to comfort^(AD) her.
“Look, Lord, on my affliction,^(AE)
    for the enemy has triumphed.”

¹⁰ The enemy laid hands
    on all her treasures;^(AF)
she saw pagan nations
    enter her sanctuary^(AG)—
those you had forbidden^(AH)
    to enter your assembly.

¹¹ All her people groan^(AI)
    as they search for bread;^(AJ)
they barter their treasures for food
    to keep themselves alive.
“Look, Lord, and consider,
    for I am despised.”

¹² “Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by?^(AK)
    Look around and see.
Is any suffering like my suffering^(AL)
    that was inflicted on me,
that the Lord brought on me
    in the day of his fierce anger?^(AM)

¹³ “From on high he sent fire,
    sent it down into my bones.^(AN)
He spread a net^(AO) for my feet
    and turned me back.
He made me desolate,^(AP)
    faint^(AQ) all the day long.

¹⁴ “My sins have been bound into a yoke^[b];^(AR)
    by his hands they were woven together.
They have been hung on my neck,
    and the Lord has sapped my strength.
He has given me into the hands^(AS)
    of those I cannot withstand.

¹⁵ “The Lord has rejected
    all the warriors in my midst;^(AT)
he has summoned an army^(AU) against me
    to^[c] crush my young men.^(AV)
In his winepress^(AW) the Lord has trampled^(AX)
    Virgin Daughter^(AY) Judah.

¹⁶ “This is why I weep
    and my eyes overflow with tears.^(AZ)
No one is near to comfort^(BA) me,
    no one to restore my spirit.
My children are destitute
    because the enemy has prevailed.”^(BB)

¹⁷ Zion stretches out her hands,^(BC)
    but there is no one to comfort her.
The Lord has decreed for Jacob
    that his neighbors become his foes;^(BD)
Jerusalem has become
    an unclean^(BE) thing^(BF) among them.

¹⁸ “The Lord is righteous,^(BG)
    yet I rebelled^(BH) against his command.
Listen, all you peoples;
    look on my suffering.^(BI)
My young men and young women
    have gone into exile.^(BJ)

¹⁹ “I called to my allies^(BK)
    but they betrayed me.
My priests and my elders
    perished^(BL) in the city
while they searched for food
    to keep themselves alive.

²⁰ “See, Lord, how distressed^(BM) I am!
    I am in torment^(BN) within,
and in my heart I am disturbed,^(BO)
    for I have been most rebellious.^(BP)
Outside, the sword bereaves;
    inside, there is only death.^(BQ)

²¹ “People have heard my groaning,^(BR)
    but there is no one to comfort me.^(BS)
All my enemies have heard of my distress;
    they rejoice^(BT) at what you have done.
May you bring the day^(BU) you have announced
    so they may become like me.

²² “Let all their wickedness come before you;
    deal with them
as you have dealt with me
    because of all my sins.^(BV)
My groans^(BW) are many
    and my heart is faint.”