Jeremiah 25
Christian Standard Bible
The Seventy-Year Exile
25 This is the word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim(A) son of Josiah, king of Judah (which was the first year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon). 2 The prophet Jeremiah spoke concerning all the people of Judah and all the residents of Jerusalem as follows: 3 “From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon,(B) king of Judah, until this very day—twenty-three years—the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you time and time again,[a](C) but you have not obeyed. 4 The Lord sent all his servants the prophets to you time and time again,[b] but you have not obeyed or even paid attention.[c](D) 5 He announced, ‘Turn, each of you, from your evil way of life and from your evil deeds.(E) Live in the land the Lord gave to you and your ancestors long ago and forever.(F) 6 Do not follow other gods to serve them and to bow in worship to them,(G) and do not anger me by the work of your hands.(H) Then I will do you no harm.
7 “‘But you have not obeyed me’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘with the result that you have angered me by the work of your hands and brought disaster on yourselves.’
8 “Therefore, this is what the Lord of Armies says: ‘Because you have not obeyed my words, 9 I am going to send for all the families of the north’(I)—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘and send for my servant(J) Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and I will bring them against this land, against its residents, and against all these surrounding nations, and I will completely destroy them and make them an example of horror(K) and scorn, and ruins forever.(L) 10 I will eliminate the sound of joy and gladness from them—the voice of the groom and the bride,(M) the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 This whole land will become a desolate ruin, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.(N) 12 When the seventy years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, and I will make it a ruin forever.(O) 13 I will bring on that land all my words I have spoken against it, all that is written in this book that Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. 14 For many nations and great kings will enslave them, and I will repay them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.’”(P)
The Cup of God’s Wrath
15 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from my hand and make all the nations to whom I am sending you drink from it.(Q) 16 They will drink, stagger,[d] and go out of their minds because of the sword I am sending among them.”(R)
17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink from it.
18 Jerusalem and the other cities of Judah, its kings and its officials, to make them a desolate ruin, an example for scorn and cursing—as it is today;
19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, his officers, his leaders, all his people,
20 and all the mixed peoples;
all the kings of the land of Uz;
all the kings of the land of the Philistines—Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod;
21 Edom, Moab, and the Ammonites;
22 all the kings of Tyre,
all the kings of Sidon,
and the kings of the coasts and islands;
23 Dedan, Tema, Buz, and all those who clip the hair on their temples;[e](S)
24 all the kings of Arabia,
and all the kings of the mixed peoples who have settled in the desert;
25 all the kings of Zimri,
all the kings of Elam,
and all the kings of Media;
26 all the kings of the north, both near and far from one another;
that is, all the kingdoms of the world throughout the earth.
27 “Then you are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Drink,(U) get drunk, and vomit. Fall down and never get up again, as a result of the sword I am sending among you.’ 28 If[g] they refuse to accept the cup from your hand and drink, you are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Armies says: You must drink! 29 For I am already bringing disaster(V) on the city that bears my name,(W) so how could you possibly go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth. This is the declaration of the Lord of Armies.’(X)
Judgment on the Whole World
30 “As for you, you are to prophesy all these things to them, and say to them:
The Lord roars from on high;
he makes his voice heard from his holy dwelling.(Y)
He roars loudly over his grazing land;
he calls out with a shout, like those who tread grapes,
against all the inhabitants of the earth.
31 The tumult reaches to the ends of the earth
because the Lord brings a case against(Z) the nations.
He enters into judgment with all humanity.(AA)
As for the wicked, he hands them over to the sword—
this is the Lord’s declaration.
32 “This is what the Lord of Armies says:
Pay attention! Disaster spreads
from nation to nation.
A huge storm is stirred up
from the ends of the earth.”(AB)
33 Those slain by the Lord(AC) on that day will be scattered from one end of the earth to the other. They will not be mourned,(AD) gathered, or buried. They will be like manure on the soil’s surface.
34 Wail, you shepherds, and cry out.
Roll in the dust,(AE) you leaders of the flock.
Because the days of your slaughter have come,(AF)
you will fall and become shattered like a precious vase.
35 Flight will be impossible for the shepherds,
and escape, for the leaders of the flock.
36 Hear the sound of the shepherds’ cry,
the wail of the leaders of the flock,
for the Lord is destroying their pasture.
37 Peaceful grazing land will become lifeless
because of the Lord’s burning anger.(AG)
38 He has left his den like a lion,
for their land has become a desolation
because of the sword[h] of the oppressor,(AH)
because of his burning anger.
Jeremiah 25
International Standard Version
The Irrevocable Judgment on Judah
25 This message from the Lord came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Josiah’s son Jehoiakim, king of Judah. (This was also the first year of the reign of[a] King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.) 2 This is what Jeremiah the prophet told all the people of Judah and all the residents of Jerusalem: 3 “From the thirteenth year of the reign of[b] Ammon’s son Josiah, the king of Judah, until the present time, for 23 years this message from the Lord has come to me, and I’ve spoken to you again and again,[c] but you haven’t listened. 4 Again and again,[d] the Lord sent all his servants, the prophets, to you, but you wouldn’t listen or even turn your ears in my direction to hear. 5 They said, ‘Turn, each one of you, from your[e] evil habits[f] and evil deeds, and live in the land that the Lord gave to you and your ancestors forever and ever. 6 Don’t follow other gods to serve and worship them. Don’t provoke me with the idols[g] you make with your hands, and I won’t bring disaster on you.’ 7 But you didn’t listen to me,” declares the Lord, “so as to provoke me with the idols[h] you make with your hands to your own harm.
8 “Therefore, this is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘Because you haven’t listened to my message, 9 I’m now sending for all the tribes from the north, declares the Lord, and for my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. I’ll bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against all these surrounding nations. I’ll utterly destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn,[i] and an everlasting desolation. 10 I’ll destroy the sounds of gladness and rejoicing from them, the sounds of the bridegroom and the bride, the sound of the hand mill and also the light of the lamp. 11 This entire land will be a desolation and a waste, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.
12 ‘Then when the seventy years have passed, I’ll judge the king of Babylon and that nation, declares the Lord, I’ll judge[j] the land of the Chaldeans for their iniquity and I’ll make it a desolation forever. 13 I’ll bring on that land all the things I spoke against it, all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah prophesied about the nations. 14 Indeed many nations and great kings will make slaves even of them, and I’ll repay them according to their deeds, according to what they have done.’”
Judgment on the Nations
15 For this is what the Lord God of Israel says to me, “Take this cup of the wine of burning anger from my hand and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it. 16 They’ll drink, stagger, and act like madmen because of the sword I’m sending among them.” 17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand, and I made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it: 18 Jerusalem, the cities of Judah, its kings and officials[k] to make them into a ruin, an object of horror and scorn,[l] and a curse, as it is this day; 19 Pharaoh, king of Egypt, his officials,[m] his princes, and all his people; 20 all the various people;[n] all the kings of the land of Uz, all the kings of the land of the Philistines, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and what remains of Ashdod; 21 Edom, Moab, and the people of Ammon; 22 all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and all the kings of the coast lands that are beyond the sea; 23 Dedan, Tema, Buz, and those who shave the corners of their beards;[o] 24 all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the various people[p] who live in the desert; 25 all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media; 26 all the kings of the north near and far, one after another, and all the kingdoms of the world on the face of the earth. The king of Sheshak[q] will drink after all the others.[r]
27 “You are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Drink, get drunk, and vomit! Fall down and don’t get up because of the sword I’m sending among you.”’ 28 And if they refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink it, say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: “You will surely drink it! 29 Look, I’m beginning to bring disaster on the city that is called by my name, and do you actually think you will avoid punishment? You won’t avoid punishment because I’m summoning the sword against all those who live in the land,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.’”
The Lord will Judge the Nations
30 “You are to prophesy all these things against them, and you are to say to them,
‘The Lord roars from his high place,
from his holy dwelling he lifts his voice.
He roars loudly against his flock,[s]
and against all who live on the earth;
he shouts like those treading grapes.[t]
31 A tumult reaches to the ends of the earth
because the Lord is bringing an indictment against the nations.
He judges all flesh.
He has given the wicked over to the sword,’
declares the Lord.
32 ‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says:
“Look, disaster is going from nation to nation,
a great storm is being stirred up
from the most distant parts of the earth.
33 “Those slain by the Lord on that day will extend[u] from one end of the earth to the other. They won’t be mourned for or gathered up or buried. They’ll be like dung on the surface of the ground.
34 “Scream, you shepherds! Cry out!
Roll in the dust, you leaders of the flock!
Indeed, the time for your slaughter
and your dispersion has arrived,
and you will break like a choice vessel.
35 Flight will be impossible[v] for the shepherds,
as will be escape for the leaders of the flock.
36 A sound—it’s the cry of the shepherds
and the scream of the leaders of the flock—
because the Lord is destroying their pastures.
37 The peaceful meadows are silent
because of the Lord’s fierce anger.
38 Like a lion, he has left his den.[w]
Indeed, their land has become a waste
because of the anger of the oppressor
and because of the Lord’s[x] fierce anger.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 25:1 The Heb. lacks the reign of
- Jeremiah 25:3 The Heb. lacks the reign of
- Jeremiah 25:3 Lit. getting up early and speaking
- Jeremiah 25:4 Lit. getting up early and sending
- Jeremiah 25:5 Lit. his
- Jeremiah 25:5 Lit. ways
- Jeremiah 25:6 Lit. works
- Jeremiah 25:7 Lit. works
- Jeremiah 25:9 Lit. hissing; i.e. a sign of mocking and contempt
- Jeremiah 25:12 The Heb. lacks I’ll judge
- Jeremiah 25:18 Or princes
- Jeremiah 25:18 Lit. hissing; i.e. hissing was a sign of ridicule and contempt
- Jeremiah 25:19 Or servants
- Jeremiah 25:20 Or the mixed company
- Jeremiah 25:23 Lit. cut off the side
- Jeremiah 25:24 Or the mixed company
- Jeremiah 25:26 Sheshak is a cryptogram for Babylon
- Jeremiah 25:26 Lit. after them
- Jeremiah 25:30 Or habitation
- Jeremiah 25:30 The Heb. lacks grapes
- Jeremiah 25:33 Lit. will be
- Jeremiah 25:35 Lit. will perish
- Jeremiah 25:38 Or thicket
- Jeremiah 25:38 Lit. his
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