²⁴ I will bring the most ruthless of nations
    to occupy their homes.
I will break down their proud fortresses
    and defile their sanctuaries.

⁷     I will now bring against you a foreign army,
    the terror of the nations.
They will draw their swords against your marvelous wisdom
    and defile your splendor!

³¹ I will pour out my fury on you
    and blow on you with the fire of my anger.
I will hand you over to cruel men
    who are skilled in destruction.

⁴¹ He handed them over to pagan nations,
    and they were ruled by those who hated them.

⁶ I am raising up the Babylonians,^[a]
    a cruel and violent people.
They will march across the world
    and conquer other lands.
⁷ They are notorious for their cruelty
    and do whatever they like.
⁸ Their horses are swifter than cheetahs^[b]
    and fiercer than wolves at dusk.
Their charioteers charge from far away.
    Like eagles, they swoop down to devour their prey.

⁹ “On they come, all bent on violence.
    Their hordes advance like a desert wind,
    sweeping captives ahead of them like sand.
¹⁰ They scoff at kings and princes
    and scorn all their fortresses.
They simply pile ramps of earth
    against their walls and capture them!

¹² On all the bare hilltops,
    destroying armies can be seen.
The sword of the Lord devours people
    from one end of the nation to the other.
    No one will escape!