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23 And the Lord told her, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son.”

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23 The Lord said to her,

“Two nations(A) are in your womb,
    and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
    and the older will serve the younger.(B)

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40 You will live by your sword,
    and you will serve your brother.
But when you decide to break free,
    you will shake his yoke from your neck.”

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40 You will live by the sword
    and you will serve(A) your brother.(B)
But when you grow restless,
    you will throw his yoke
    from off your neck.(C)

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29 May many nations become your servants,
    and may they bow down to you.
May you be the master over your brothers,
    and may your mother’s sons bow down to you.
All who curse you will be cursed,
    and all who bless you will be blessed.”

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29 May nations serve you
    and peoples bow down to you.(A)
Be lord over your brothers,
    and may the sons of your mother bow down to you.(B)
May those who curse you be cursed
    and those who bless you be blessed.(C)

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10 This son was our ancestor Isaac. When he married Rebekah, she gave birth to twins.[a] 11 But before they were born, before they had done anything good or bad, she received a message from God. (This message shows that God chooses people according to his own purposes; 12 he calls people, but not according to their good or bad works.) She was told, “Your older son will serve your younger son.”[b] 13 In the words of the Scriptures, “I loved Jacob, but I rejected Esau.”[c]

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Footnotes

  1. 9:10 Greek she conceived children through this one man.
  2. 9:12 Gen 25:23.
  3. 9:13 Mal 1:2-3.

10 Not only that, but Rebekah’s children were conceived at the same time by our father Isaac.(A) 11 Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad(B)—in order that God’s purpose(C) in election might stand: 12 not by works but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.”[a](D) 13 Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”[b](E)

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Footnotes

  1. Romans 9:12 Gen. 25:23
  2. Romans 9:13 Mal. 1:2,3

14 He placed army garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites became David’s subjects. In fact, the Lord made David victorious wherever he went.

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14 He put garrisons throughout Edom, and all the Edomites(A) became subject to David.(B) The Lord gave David victory(C) wherever he went.(D)

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The Lord’s Love for Israel

“I have always loved you,” says the Lord.

But you retort, “Really? How have you loved us?”

And the Lord replies, “This is how I showed my love for you: I loved your ancestor Jacob, but I rejected his brother, Esau, and devastated his hill country. I turned Esau’s inheritance into a desert for jackals.”

Esau’s descendants in Edom may say, “We have been shattered, but we will rebuild the ruins.”

But the Lord of Heaven’s Armies replies, “They may try to rebuild, but I will demolish them again. Their country will be known as ‘The Land of Wickedness,’ and their people will be called ‘The People with Whom the Lord Is Forever Angry.’ When you see the destruction for yourselves, you will say, ‘Truly, the Lord’s greatness reaches far beyond Israel’s borders!’”

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Israel Doubts God’s Love

“I have loved(A) you,” says the Lord.

“But you ask,(B) ‘How have you loved us?’

“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob,(C) but Esau I have hated,(D) and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland(E) and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.(F)

Edom(G) may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild(H) the ruins.”

But this is what the Lord Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish.(I) They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord.(J) You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great(K) is the Lord—even beyond the borders of Israel!’(L)

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A Message for Edom

12 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The people of Edom have sinned greatly by avenging themselves against the people of Judah. 13 Therefore, says the Sovereign Lord, I will raise my fist of judgment against Edom. I will wipe out its people and animals with the sword. I will make a wasteland of everything from Teman to Dedan. 14 I will accomplish this by the hand of my people of Israel. They will carry out my vengeance with anger, and Edom will know that this vengeance is from me. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!

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A Prophecy Against Edom

12 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because Edom(A) took revenge on Judah and became very guilty by doing so, 13 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will stretch out my hand(B) against Edom and kill both man and beast.(C) I will lay it waste, and from Teman(D) to Dedan(E) they will fall by the sword.(F) 14 I will take vengeance on Edom by the hand of my people Israel, and they will deal with Edom in accordance with my anger(G) and my wrath; they will know my vengeance, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”(H)

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13 He placed army garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites became David’s subjects. In fact, the Lord made David victorious wherever he went.

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13 He put garrisons in Edom, and all the Edomites became subject to David. The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.

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60 They gave her this blessing as she parted:

“Our sister, may you become
    the mother of many millions!
May your descendants be strong
    and conquer the cities of their enemies.”

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60 And they blessed(A) Rebekah and said to her,

“Our sister, may you increase
    to thousands upon thousands;(B)
may your offspring possess
    the cities of their enemies.”(C)

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16 And I will bless her and give you a son from her! Yes, I will bless her richly, and she will become the mother of many nations. Kings of nations will be among her descendants.”

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16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her.(A) I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations;(B) kings of peoples will come from her.”

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Messages about Edom

This message was given concerning Edom. This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says:

“Is there no wisdom in Teman?
    Is no one left to give wise counsel?
Turn and flee!
    Hide in deep caves, you people of Dedan!
For when I bring disaster on Edom,[a]
    I will punish you, too!
Those who harvest grapes
    always leave a few for the poor.
If thieves came at night,
    they would not take everything.
10 But I will strip bare the land of Edom,
    and there will be no place left to hide.
Its children, its brothers, and its neighbors
    will all be destroyed,
    and Edom itself will be no more.
11 But I will protect the orphans who remain among you.
    Your widows, too, can depend on me for help.”

12 And this is what the Lord says: “If the innocent must suffer, how much more must you! You will not go unpunished! You must drink this cup of judgment! 13 For I have sworn by my own name,” says the Lord, “that Bozrah will become an object of horror and a heap of ruins; it will be mocked and cursed. All its towns and villages will be desolate forever.”

14 I have heard a message from the Lord
    that an ambassador was sent to the nations to say,
“Form a coalition against Edom,
    and prepare for battle!”

15 The Lord says to Edom,
“I will cut you down to size among the nations.
    You will be despised by all.
16 You have been deceived
    by the fear you inspire in others
    and by your own pride.
You live in a rock fortress
    and control the mountain heights.
But even if you make your nest among the peaks with the eagles,
    I will bring you crashing down,”
    says the Lord.

17 “Edom will be an object of horror.
    All who pass by will be appalled
    and will gasp at the destruction they see there.
18 It will be like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah
    and their neighboring towns,” says the Lord.
“No one will live there;
    no one will inhabit it.
19 I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan,
    leaping on the sheep in the pasture.
I will chase Edom from its land,
    and I will appoint the leader of my choice.
For who is like me, and who can challenge me?
    What ruler can oppose my will?”

20 Listen to the Lord’s plans against Edom
    and the people of Teman.
Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep,
    and their homes will be destroyed.
21 The earth will shake with the noise of Edom’s fall,
    and its cry of despair will be heard all the way to the Red Sea.[b]
22 Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle,
    spreading his wings over Bozrah.
Even the mightiest warriors will be in anguish
    like a woman in labor.

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Footnotes

  1. 49:8 Hebrew Esau; also in 49:10.
  2. 49:21 Hebrew sea of reeds.

A Message About Edom(A)(B)

Concerning Edom:(C)

This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Is there no longer wisdom in Teman?(D)
    Has counsel perished from the prudent?
    Has their wisdom decayed?
Turn and flee, hide in deep caves,(E)
    you who live in Dedan,(F)
for I will bring disaster on Esau
    at the time when I punish him.
If grape pickers came to you,
    would they not leave a few grapes?
If thieves came during the night,
    would they not steal only as much as they wanted?
10 But I will strip Esau bare;
    I will uncover his hiding places,(G)
    so that he cannot conceal himself.
His armed men are destroyed,
    also his allies and neighbors,
    so there is no one(H) to say,
11 ‘Leave your fatherless children;(I) I will keep them alive.
    Your widows(J) too can depend on me.’”

12 This is what the Lord says: “If those who do not deserve to drink the cup(K) must drink it, why should you go unpunished?(L) You will not go unpunished, but must drink it. 13 I swear(M) by myself,” declares the Lord, “that Bozrah(N) will become a ruin and a curse,[a] an object of horror(O) and reproach;(P) and all its towns will be in ruins forever.”(Q)

14 I have heard a message from the Lord;
    an envoy was sent to the nations to say,
“Assemble yourselves to attack it!
    Rise up for battle!”

15 “Now I will make you small among the nations,
    despised by mankind.
16 The terror you inspire
    and the pride(R) of your heart have deceived you,
you who live in the clefts of the rocks,(S)
    who occupy the heights of the hill.
Though you build your nest(T) as high as the eagle’s,
    from there I will bring you down,”
declares the Lord.
17 “Edom will become an object of horror;(U)
    all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff
    because of all its wounds.(V)
18 As Sodom(W) and Gomorrah(X) were overthrown,
    along with their neighboring towns,”
says the Lord,
“so no one will live there;
    no people will dwell(Y) in it.

19 “Like a lion(Z) coming up from Jordan’s thickets(AA)
    to a rich pastureland,
I will chase Edom from its land in an instant.
    Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this?
Who is like(AB) me and who can challenge me?(AC)
    And what shepherd(AD) can stand against me?”

20 Therefore, hear what the Lord has planned against Edom,(AE)
    what he has purposed(AF) against those who live in Teman:(AG)
The young of the flock(AH) will be dragged away;
    their pasture will be appalled at their fate.(AI)
21 At the sound of their fall the earth will tremble;(AJ)
    their cry(AK) will resound to the Red Sea.[b]
22 Look! An eagle will soar and swoop(AL) down,
    spreading its wings over Bozrah.(AM)
In that day the hearts of Edom’s warriors(AN)
    will be like the heart of a woman in labor.(AO)

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 49:13 That is, its name will be used in cursing (see 29:22); or, others will see that it is cursed.
  2. Jeremiah 49:21 Or the Sea of Reeds

A Message for the Nations

34 Come here and listen, O nations of the earth.
    Let the world and everything in it hear my words.
For the Lord is enraged against the nations.
    His fury is against all their armies.
He will completely destroy[a] them,
    dooming them to slaughter.
Their dead will be left unburied,
    and the stench of rotting bodies will fill the land.
    The mountains will flow with their blood.
The heavens above will melt away
    and disappear like a rolled-up scroll.
The stars will fall from the sky
    like withered leaves from a grapevine,
    or shriveled figs from a fig tree.

And when my sword has finished its work in the heavens,
    it will fall upon Edom,
    the nation I have marked for destruction.
The sword of the Lord is drenched with blood
    and covered with fat—
with the blood of lambs and goats,
    with the fat of rams prepared for sacrifice.
Yes, the Lord will offer a sacrifice in the city of Bozrah.
    He will make a mighty slaughter in Edom.
Even men as strong as wild oxen will die—
    the young men alongside the veterans.
The land will be soaked with blood
    and the soil enriched with fat.

For it is the day of the Lord’s revenge,
    the year when Edom will be paid back for all it did to Israel.[b]
The streams of Edom will be filled with burning pitch,
    and the ground will be covered with fire.
10 This judgment on Edom will never end;
    the smoke of its burning will rise forever.
The land will lie deserted from generation to generation.
    No one will live there anymore.
11 It will be haunted by the desert owl and the screech owl,
    the great owl and the raven.[c]
For God will measure that land carefully;
    he will measure it for chaos and destruction.
12 It will be called the Land of Nothing,
    and all its nobles will soon be gone.[d]
13 Thorns will overrun its palaces;
    nettles and thistles will grow in its forts.
The ruins will become a haunt for jackals
    and a home for owls.
14 Desert animals will mingle there with hyenas,
    their howls filling the night.
Wild goats will bleat at one another among the ruins,
    and night creatures[e] will come there to rest.
15 There the owl will make her nest and lay her eggs.
    She will hatch her young and cover them with her wings.
And the buzzards will come,
    each one with its mate.

16 Search the book of the Lord,
    and see what he will do.
Not one of these birds and animals will be missing,
    and none will lack a mate,
for the Lord has promised this.
    His Spirit will make it all come true.
17 He has surveyed and divided the land
    and deeded it over to those creatures.
They will possess it forever,
    from generation to generation.

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Footnotes

  1. 34:2 The Hebrew term used here refers to the complete consecration of things or people to the Lord, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; similarly in 34:5.
  2. 34:8 Hebrew to Zion.
  3. 34:11 The identification of some of these birds is uncertain.
  4. 34:12 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  5. 34:14 Hebrew Lilith, possibly a reference to a mythical demon of the night.

Judgment Against the Nations

34 Come near, you nations, and listen;(A)
    pay attention, you peoples!(B)
Let the earth(C) hear, and all that is in it,
    the world, and all that comes out of it!(D)
The Lord is angry with all nations;
    his wrath(E) is on all their armies.
He will totally destroy[a](F) them,
    he will give them over to slaughter.(G)
Their slain(H) will be thrown out,
    their dead bodies(I) will stink;(J)
    the mountains will be soaked with their blood.(K)
All the stars in the sky will be dissolved(L)
    and the heavens rolled up(M) like a scroll;
all the starry host will fall(N)
    like withered(O) leaves from the vine,
    like shriveled figs from the fig tree.

My sword(P) has drunk its fill in the heavens;
    see, it descends in judgment on Edom,(Q)
    the people I have totally destroyed.(R)
The sword(S) of the Lord is bathed in blood,
    it is covered with fat—
the blood of lambs and goats,
    fat from the kidneys of rams.
For the Lord has a sacrifice(T) in Bozrah(U)
    and a great slaughter(V) in the land of Edom.
And the wild oxen(W) will fall with them,
    the bull calves and the great bulls.(X)
Their land will be drenched with blood,(Y)
    and the dust will be soaked with fat.

For the Lord has a day(Z) of vengeance,(AA)
    a year of retribution,(AB) to uphold Zion’s cause.
Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch,
    her dust into burning sulfur;(AC)
    her land will become blazing pitch!
10 It will not be quenched(AD) night or day;
    its smoke will rise forever.(AE)
From generation to generation(AF) it will lie desolate;(AG)
    no one will ever pass through it again.
11 The desert owl[b](AH) and screech owl[c] will possess it;
    the great owl[d] and the raven(AI) will nest there.
God will stretch out over Edom(AJ)
    the measuring line of chaos(AK)
    and the plumb line(AL) of desolation.
12 Her nobles will have nothing there to be called a kingdom,
    all her princes(AM) will vanish(AN) away.
13 Thorns(AO) will overrun her citadels,
    nettles and brambles her strongholds.(AP)
She will become a haunt for jackals,(AQ)
    a home for owls.(AR)
14 Desert creatures(AS) will meet with hyenas,(AT)
    and wild goats will bleat to each other;
there the night creatures(AU) will also lie down
    and find for themselves places of rest.
15 The owl will nest there and lay eggs,
    she will hatch them, and care for her young
    under the shadow of her wings;(AV)
there also the falcons(AW) will gather,
    each with its mate.

16 Look in the scroll(AX) of the Lord and read:

None of these will be missing,(AY)
    not one will lack her mate.
For it is his mouth(AZ) that has given the order,(BA)
    and his Spirit will gather them together.
17 He allots their portions;(BB)
    his hand distributes them by measure.
They will possess it forever
    and dwell there from generation to generation.(BC)

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 34:2 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them; also in verse 5.
  2. Isaiah 34:11 The precise identification of these birds is uncertain.
  3. Isaiah 34:11 The precise identification of these birds is uncertain.
  4. Isaiah 34:11 The precise identification of these birds is uncertain.

Yes, this was their unanimous decision.
    They signed a treaty as allies against you—
these Edomites and Ishmaelites;
    Moabites and Hagrites;
Gebalites, Ammonites, and Amalekites;
    and people from Philistia and Tyre.
Assyria has joined them, too,
    and is allied with the descendants of Lot. Interlude

Do to them as you did to the Midianites
    and as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River.
10 They were destroyed at Endor,
    and their decaying corpses fertilized the soil.
11 Let their mighty nobles die as Oreb and Zeeb did.
    Let all their princes die like Zebah and Zalmunna,
12 for they said, “Let us seize for our own use
    these pasturelands of God!”
13 O my God, scatter them like tumbleweed,
    like chaff before the wind!
14 As a fire burns a forest
    and as a flame sets mountains ablaze,
15 chase them with your fierce storm;
    terrify them with your tempest.

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With one mind they plot together;(A)
    they form an alliance against you—
the tents of Edom(B) and the Ishmaelites,
    of Moab(C) and the Hagrites,(D)
Byblos,(E) Ammon(F) and Amalek,(G)
    Philistia,(H) with the people of Tyre.(I)
Even Assyria(J) has joined them
    to reinforce Lot’s descendants.[a](K)

Do to them as you did to Midian,(L)
    as you did to Sisera(M) and Jabin(N) at the river Kishon,(O)
10 who perished at Endor(P)
    and became like dung(Q) on the ground.
11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,(R)
    all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,(S)
12 who said, “Let us take possession(T)
    of the pasturelands of God.”

13 Make them like tumbleweed, my God,
    like chaff(U) before the wind.
14 As fire consumes the forest
    or a flame sets the mountains ablaze,(V)
15 so pursue them with your tempest(W)
    and terrify them with your storm.(X)

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 83:8 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here.