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49 Of the children of Ammon. Yahweh says:

“Has Israel no sons?
    Has he no heir?
Why then does Malcam possess Gad,
    and his people dwell in its cities?
Therefore behold, the days come,”
    says Yahweh,
“that I will cause an alarm of war to be heard against Rabbah of the children of Ammon;
    and it will become a desolate heap,
    and her daughters will be burned with fire:
then Israel will possess those who possessed him,”
    says Yahweh.
“Wail, Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste!
    Cry, you daughters of Rabbah!
Clothe yourself in sackcloth.
    Lament, and run back and forth among the fences;
for Malcam will go into captivity,
    his priests and his princes together.
Why do you boast in the valleys,
    your flowing valley, backsliding daughter?
You trusted in her treasures,
    saying, ‘Who will come to me?’
Behold, I will bring a terror on you,”
    says the Lord, Yahweh of Armies,
“from all who are around you.
    All of you will be driven completely out,
    and there will be no one to gather together the fugitives.

“But afterward I will reverse the captivity of the children of Ammon,”
    says Yahweh.

Of Edom, Yahweh of Armies says:

“Is wisdom no more in Teman?
    Has counsel perished from the prudent?
    Has their wisdom vanished?
Flee! Turn back!
    Dwell in the depths, inhabitants of Dedan;
    for I will bring the calamity of Esau on him when I visit him.
If grape gatherers came to you,
    would they not leave some gleaning grapes?
If thieves came by night,
    wouldn’t they steal until they had enough?
10 But I have made Esau bare,
    I have uncovered his secret places,
    and he will not be able to hide himself.
His offspring is destroyed,
    with his brothers and his neighbors;
    and he is no more.
11 Leave your fatherless children.
    I will preserve them alive.
    Let your widows trust in me.”

12 For Yahweh says: “Behold, they to whom it didn’t pertain to drink of the cup will certainly drink; and are you he who will altogether go unpunished? You won’t go unpunished, but you will surely drink. 13 For I have sworn by myself,” says Yahweh, “that Bozrah will become an astonishment, a reproach, a waste, and a curse. All its cities will be perpetual wastes.”

14 I have heard news from Yahweh,
    and an ambassador is sent among the nations,
saying, “Gather yourselves together!
    Come against her!
    Rise up to the battle!”

15 “For, behold, I have made you small among the nations,
    and despised among men.
16 As for your terror,
    the pride of your heart has deceived you,
O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock,
    who hold the height of the hill,
though you should make your nest as high as the eagle,
    I will bring you down from there,” says Yahweh.
17 “Edom will become an astonishment.
    Everyone who passes by it will be astonished,
    and will hiss at all its plagues.
18 As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and its neighbor cities,” says Yahweh,
    “no man will dwell there,
    neither will any son of man live therein.

19 “Behold, he will come up like a lion from the pride of the Jordan against the strong habitation:
    for I will suddenly make them run away from it;
and whoever is chosen,
    I will appoint him over it.
For who is like me?
    Who will appoint me a time?
    Who is the shepherd who will stand before me?”
20 Therefore hear the counsel of Yahweh, that he has taken against Edom;
    and his purposes, that he has purposed against the inhabitants of Teman:
Surely they will drag them away,
    the little ones of the flock.
    Surely he will make their habitation desolate over them.
21 The earth trembles at the noise of their fall;
    there is a cry, the noise which is heard in the Red Sea.
22 Behold, he will come up and fly as the eagle,
    and spread out his wings against Bozrah.
    The heart of the mighty men of Edom at that day will be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.

23 Of Damascus:

“Hamath is confounded, and Arpad;
    for they have heard evil news.
    They have melted away.
There is sorrow on the sea.
    It can’t be quiet.
24 Damascus has grown feeble,
    she turns herself to flee,
    and trembling has seized her.
Anguish and sorrows have taken hold of her,
    as of a woman in travail.
25 How is the city of praise not forsaken,
    the city of my joy?
26 Therefore her young men will fall in her streets,
    and all the men of war will be brought to silence in that day,”
    says Yahweh of Armies.
27 “I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus,
    and it will devour the palaces of Ben Hadad.”

28 Of Kedar, and of the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck. Yahweh says:
“Arise, go up to Kedar,
    and destroy the children of the east.
29 They will take their tents and their flocks.
    they will carry away for themselves their curtains,
    all their vessels, and their camels;
    and they will cry to them, ‘Terror on every side!’
30 Flee!
    Wander far off!
Dwell in the depths, you inhabitants of Hazor,” says Yahweh;
    “for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has taken counsel against you,
    and has conceived a purpose against you.
31 Arise! Go up to a nation that is at ease,
    that dwells without care,” says Yahweh;
    “that has neither gates nor bars,
    that dwells alone.
32 Their camels will be a booty,
    and the multitude of their livestock a plunder.
I will scatter to all winds those who have the corners of their beards cut off;
    and I will bring their calamity from every side of them,”
    says Yahweh.
33 Hazor will be a dwelling place of jackals,
    a desolation forever.
No man will dwell there,
    neither will any son of man live therein.”

34 Yahweh’s word that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, 35 “Yahweh of Armies says:

‘Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,
    the chief of their might.
36 I will bring on Elam the four winds from the four quarters of the sky,
    and will scatter them toward all those winds.
    There will be no nation where the outcasts of Elam will not come.
37 I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies,
    and before those who seek their life.
I will bring evil on them, even my fierce anger,’ says Yahweh;
    ‘and I will send the sword after them,
    until I have consumed them.
38 I will set my throne in Elam,
    and will destroy from there king and princes,’ says Yahweh.
39 ‘But it will happen in the latter days
    that I will reverse the captivity of Elam,’ says Yahweh.”

A Message about Ammon

49 This message was given concerning the Ammonites. This is what the Lord says:

“Are there no descendants of Israel
    to inherit the land of Gad?
Why are you, who worship Molech,[a]
    living in its towns?
In the days to come,” says the Lord,
    “I will sound the battle cry against your city of Rabbah.
It will become a desolate heap of ruins,
    and the neighboring towns will be burned.
Then Israel will take back the land
    you took from her,” says the Lord.

“Cry out, O Heshbon,
    for the town of Ai is destroyed.
Weep, O people of Rabbah!
    Put on your clothes of mourning.
Weep and wail, hiding in the hedges,
    for your god Molech, with his priests and officials,
    will be hauled off to distant lands.
You are proud of your fertile valleys,
    but they will soon be ruined.
You trusted in your wealth,
    you rebellious daughter,
    and thought no one could ever harm you.
But look! I will bring terror upon you,”
    says the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“Your neighbors will chase you from your land,
    and no one will help your exiles as they flee.
But I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites
    in days to come.
    I, the Lord, have spoken.”

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,[b]
    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.[c]
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.

A Message about Damascus

23 This message was given concerning Damascus. This is what the Lord says:

“The towns of Hamath and Arpad are struck with fear,
    for they have heard the news of their destruction.
Their hearts are troubled
    like a wild sea in a raging storm.
24 Damascus has become feeble,
    and all her people turn to flee.
Fear, anguish, and pain have gripped her
    as they grip a woman in labor.
25 That famous city, a city of joy,
    will be forsaken!
26 Her young men will fall in the streets and die.
    Her soldiers will all be killed,”
    says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
27 “And I will set fire to the walls of Damascus
    that will burn up the palaces of Ben-hadad.”

A Message about Kedar and Hazor

28 This message was given concerning Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which were attacked by King Nebuchadnezzar[d] of Babylon. This is what the Lord says:

“Advance against Kedar!
    Destroy the warriors from the East!
29 Their flocks and tents will be captured,
    and their household goods and camels will be taken away.
Everywhere shouts of panic will be heard:
    ‘We are terrorized at every turn!’
30 Run for your lives,” says the Lord.
    “Hide yourselves in deep caves, you people of Hazor,
for King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has plotted against you
    and is preparing to destroy you.

31 “Go up and attack that complacent nation,”
    says the Lord.
“Its people live alone in the desert
    without walls or gates.
32 Their camels and other livestock will all be yours.
    I will scatter to the winds these people
    who live in remote places.[e]
I will bring calamity upon them
    from every direction,” says the Lord.
33 “Hazor will be inhabited by jackals,
    and it will be desolate forever.
No one will live there;
    no one will inhabit it.”

A Message about Elam

34 This message concerning Elam came to the prophet Jeremiah from the Lord at the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah. 35 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says:

“I will destroy the archers of Elam—
    the best of their forces.
36 I will bring enemies from all directions,
    and I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds.
    They will be exiled to countries around the world.
37 I myself will go with Elam’s enemies to shatter it.
    In my fierce anger, I will bring great disaster
    upon the people of Elam,” says the Lord.
“Their enemies will chase them with the sword
    until I have destroyed them completely.
38 I will set my throne in Elam,” says the Lord,
    “and I will destroy its king and officials.
39 But I will restore the fortunes of Elam
    in days to come.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!”

Footnotes

  1. 49:1 Hebrew Malcam, a variant spelling of Molech; also in 49:3.
  2. 49:8 Hebrew Esau; also in 49:10.
  3. 49:21 Hebrew sea of reeds.
  4. 49:28 Hebrew Nebuchadrezzar, a variant spelling of Nebuchadnezzar; also in 49:30.
  5. 49:32 Or who clip the corners of their hair.