Judgment on Babylon and Babylonia

50 The word that the Lord spoke (A)against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet.

“Declare among the nations,
Proclaim, and [a]set up a standard;
Proclaim—do not conceal it
Say, ‘Babylon is (B)taken, (C)Bel is shamed.
[b]Merodach is broken in pieces;
(D)Her idols are humiliated,
Her images are broken in pieces.’
(E)For out of the north (F)a nation comes up against her,
Which shall make her land desolate,
And no one shall dwell therein.
They shall [c]move, they shall depart,
Both man and beast.

“In those days and in that time,” says the Lord,
“The children of Israel shall come,
(G)They and the children of Judah together;
(H)With continual weeping they shall come,
(I)And seek the Lord their God.
They shall ask the way to Zion,
With their faces toward it, saying,
‘Come and let us join ourselves to the Lord
In (J)a perpetual covenant
That will not be forgotten.’

“My people have been (K)lost sheep.
Their shepherds have led them (L)astray;
They have turned them away on (M)the mountains.
They have gone from mountain to hill;
They have forgotten their resting place.
All who found them have (N)devoured them;
And (O)their adversaries said, (P)‘We have not offended,
Because they have sinned against the Lord, (Q)the habitation of justice,
The Lord, (R)the hope of their fathers.’

“Move(S) from the midst of Babylon,
Go out of the land of the Chaldeans;
And be like the [d]rams before the flocks.
(T)For behold, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon
An assembly of great nations from the north country,
And they shall array themselves against her;
From there she shall be captured.
Their arrows shall be like those of [e]an expert warrior;
(U)None shall return in vain.
10 And Chaldea shall become plunder;
(V)All who plunder her shall be satisfied,” says the Lord.

11 “Because(W) you were glad, because you rejoiced,
You destroyers of My heritage,
Because you have grown fat (X)like a heifer threshing grain,
And you [f]bellow like bulls,
12 Your mother shall be deeply ashamed;
She who bore you shall be ashamed.
Behold, the least of the nations shall be a (Y)wilderness,
A dry land and a desert.
13 Because of the wrath of the Lord
She shall not be inhabited,
(Z)But she shall be wholly desolate.
(AA)Everyone who goes by Babylon shall be horrified
And hiss at all her plagues.

14 “Put(AB) yourselves in array against Babylon all around,
All you who bend the bow;
Shoot at her, spare no arrows,
For she has sinned against the Lord.
15 Shout against her all around;
She has (AC)given her hand,
Her foundations have fallen,
(AD)Her walls are thrown down;
For (AE)it is the vengeance of the Lord.
Take vengeance on her.
As she has done, so do to her.
16 Cut off the sower from Babylon,
And him who handles the sickle at harvest time.
For fear of the oppressing sword
(AF)Everyone shall turn to his own people,
And everyone shall flee to his own land.

17 “Israel is like (AG)scattered sheep;
(AH)The lions have driven him away.
First (AI)the king of Assyria devoured him;
Now at last this (AJ)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has broken his bones.”

18 Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:

“Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land,
As I have punished the king of (AK)Assyria.
19 (AL)But I will bring back Israel to his home,
And he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan;
His soul shall be satisfied on Mount Ephraim and Gilead.
20 In those days and in that time,” says the Lord,
(AM)“The iniquity of Israel shall be sought, but there shall be none;
And the sins of Judah, but they shall not be found;
For I will pardon those (AN)whom I preserve.

21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim, against it,
And against the inhabitants of (AO)Pekod.
[g]Waste and utterly destroy them,” says the Lord,
“And do (AP)according to all that I have commanded you.
22 (AQ)A sound of battle is in the land,
And of great destruction.
23 How (AR)the hammer of the whole earth has been cut apart and broken!
How Babylon has become a desolation among the nations!
24 I have laid a snare for you;
You have indeed been (AS)trapped, O Babylon,
And you were not aware;
You have been found and also caught,
Because you have (AT)contended against the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened His armory,
And has brought out (AU)the weapons of His indignation;
For this is the work of the Lord God of hosts
In the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come against her from the farthest border;
Open her storehouses;
Cast her up as heaps of ruins,
And destroy her utterly;
Let nothing of her be left.
27 Slay all her (AV)bulls,
Let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them!
For their day has come, the time of (AW)their punishment.
28 The voice of those who flee and escape from the land of Babylon
(AX)Declares in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God,
The vengeance of His temple.

29 “Call together the archers against Babylon.
All you who bend the bow, encamp against it all around;
Let none of them [h]escape.
(AY)Repay her according to her work;
According to all she has done, do to her;
(AZ)For she has been proud against the Lord,
Against the Holy One of Israel.
30 (BA)Therefore her young men shall fall in the streets,
And all her men of war shall be cut off in that day,” says the Lord.
31 “Behold, I am against you,
O most haughty one!” says the Lord God of hosts;
“For your day has come,
[i]The time that I will punish you.
32 The most (BB)proud shall stumble and fall,
And no one will raise him up;
(BC)I will kindle a fire in his cities,
And it will devour all around him.”

33 Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“The children of Israel were oppressed,
Along with the children of Judah;
All who took them captive have held them fast;
They have refused to let them go.
34 (BD)Their Redeemer is strong;
(BE)The Lord of hosts is His name.
He will thoroughly plead their (BF)case,
That He may give rest to the land,
And disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.

35 “A sword is against the Chaldeans,” says the Lord,
“Against the inhabitants of Babylon,
And (BG)against her princes and (BH)her wise men.
36 A sword is (BI)against the soothsayers, and they will be fools.
A sword is against her mighty men, and they will be dismayed.
37 A sword is against their horses,
Against their chariots,
And against all (BJ)the mixed peoples who are in her midst;
And (BK)they will become like women.
A sword is against her treasures, and they will be robbed.
38 (BL)A [j]drought is against her waters, and they will be dried up.
For it is the land of carved images,
And they are insane with their idols.

39 “Therefore(BM) the wild desert beasts shall dwell there with the jackals,
And the ostriches shall dwell in it.
(BN)It shall be inhabited no more forever,
Nor shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.
40 (BO)As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah
And their neighbors,” says the Lord,
So no one shall reside there,
Nor son of man (BP)dwell in it.

41 “Behold,(BQ) a people shall come from the north,
And a great nation and many kings
Shall be raised up from the ends of the earth.
42 (BR)They shall hold the bow and the lance;
(BS)They are cruel and shall not show mercy.
(BT)Their voice shall roar like the sea;
They shall ride on horses,
Set in array, like a man for the battle,
Against you, O daughter of Babylon.

43 “The king of Babylon has (BU)heard the report about them,
And his hands grow feeble;
Anguish has taken hold of him,
Pangs as of a woman in (BV)childbirth.

44 “Behold,(BW) he shall come up like a lion from the [k]floodplain of the Jordan
Against the dwelling place of the strong;
But I will make them suddenly run away from her.
And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her?
For who is like Me?
Who will arraign Me?
And (BX)who is that shepherd
Who will withstand Me?”

45 Therefore hear (BY)the counsel of the Lord that He has taken against Babylon,
And His (BZ)purposes that He has proposed against the land of the Chaldeans:
(CA)Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out;
Surely He will make their dwelling place desolate with them.
46 (CB)At the noise of the taking of Babylon
The earth trembles,
And the cry is heard among the nations.

The Utter Destruction of Babylon

51 Thus says the Lord:

“Behold, I will raise up against (CC)Babylon,
Against those who dwell in [l]Leb Kamai,
(CD)A destroying wind.
And I will send (CE)winnowers to Babylon,
Who shall winnow her and empty her land.
(CF)For in the day of doom
They shall be against her all around.
Against her (CG)let the archer bend his bow,
And lift himself up against her in his armor.
Do not spare her young men;
(CH)Utterly destroy all her army.
Thus the slain shall fall in the land of the Chaldeans,
(CI)And those thrust through in her streets.
For Israel is (CJ)not forsaken, nor Judah,
By his God, the Lord of hosts,
Though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.”

(CK)Flee from the midst of Babylon,
And every one save his life!
Do not be cut off in her iniquity,
For (CL)this is the time of the Lord’s vengeance;
(CM)He shall recompense her.
(CN)Babylon was a golden cup in the Lord’s hand,
That made all the earth drunk.
(CO)The nations drank her wine;
Therefore the nations (CP)are deranged.
Babylon has suddenly (CQ)fallen and been destroyed.
(CR)Wail for her!
(CS)Take balm for her pain;
Perhaps she may be healed.

We would have healed Babylon,
But she is not healed.
Forsake her, and (CT)let us go everyone to his own country;
(CU)For her judgment reaches to heaven and is lifted up to the skies.
10 The Lord has (CV)revealed our righteousness.
Come and let us (CW)declare in Zion the work of the Lord our God.

11 (CX)Make[m] the arrows bright!
Gather the shields!
(CY)The Lord has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes.
(CZ)For His plan is against Babylon to destroy it,
Because it is (DA)the vengeance of the Lord,
The vengeance for His temple.
12 (DB)Set up the standard on the walls of Babylon;
Make the guard strong,
Set up the watchmen,
Prepare the ambushes.
For the Lord has both devised and done
What He spoke against the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 (DC)O you who dwell by many waters,
Abundant in treasures,
Your end has come,
The measure of your covetousness.
14 (DD)The Lord of hosts has sworn by Himself:
“Surely I will fill you with men, (DE)as with locusts,
And they shall lift (DF)up a shout against you.”

15 (DG)He has made the earth by His power;
He has established the world by His wisdom,
And (DH)stretched out the heaven by His understanding.
16 When He utters His voice—
There is a multitude of waters in the heavens:
(DI)“He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth;
He makes lightnings for the rain;
He brings the wind out of His treasuries.”

17 (DJ)Everyone is dull-hearted, without knowledge;
Every metalsmith is put to shame by the carved image;
(DK)For his molded image is falsehood,
And there is no breath in them.
18 They are futile, a work of errors;
In the time of their punishment they shall perish.
19 The Portion of Jacob is not like them,
For He is the Maker of all things;
And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance.
The Lord of hosts is His name.

20 “You(DL) are My battle-ax and weapons of war:
For with you I will break the nation in pieces;
With you I will destroy kingdoms;
21 With you I will break in pieces the horse and its rider;
With you I will break in pieces the chariot and its rider;
22 With you also I will break in pieces man and woman;
With you I will break in pieces (DM)old and young;
With you I will break in pieces the young man and the maiden;
23 With you also I will break in pieces the shepherd and his flock;
With you I will break in pieces the farmer and his yoke of oxen;
And with you I will break in pieces governors and rulers.

24 “And(DN) I will repay Babylon
And all the inhabitants of Chaldea
For all the evil they have done
In Zion in your sight,” says the Lord.

25 “Behold, I am against you, (DO)O destroying mountain,
Who destroys all the earth,” says the Lord.
“And I will stretch out My hand against you,
Roll you down from the rocks,
(DP)And make you a burnt mountain.
26 They shall not take from you a stone for a corner
Nor a stone for a foundation,
(DQ)But you shall be desolate forever,” says the Lord.

27 (DR)Set up a banner in the land,
Blow the trumpet among the nations!
(DS)Prepare the nations against her,
Call (DT)the kingdoms together against her:
Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz.
Appoint a general against her;
Cause the horses to come up like the bristling locusts.
28 Prepare against her the nations,
With the kings of the Medes,
Its governors and all its rulers,
All the land of his dominion.
29 And the land will tremble and sorrow;
For every (DU)purpose of the Lord shall be performed against Babylon,
(DV)To make the land of Babylon a desolation without inhabitant.
30 The mighty men of Babylon have ceased fighting,
They have remained in their strongholds;
Their might has failed,
(DW)They became like women;
They have burned her dwelling places,
(DX)The bars of her gate are broken.
31 (DY)One runner will run to meet another,
And one messenger to meet another,
To show the king of Babylon that his city is taken on all sides;
32 (DZ)The passages are blocked,
The reeds they have burned with fire,
And the men of war are terrified.

33 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:

“The daughter of Babylon is (EA)like a threshing floor
When (EB)it is time to thresh her;
Yet a little while
(EC)And the time of her harvest will come.”

34 “Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon
Has (ED)devoured me, he has crushed me;
He has made me an (EE)empty vessel,
He has swallowed me up like a monster;
He has filled his stomach with my delicacies,
He has spit me out.
35 Let the violence done to me and my flesh be upon Babylon,”
The inhabitant of Zion will say;
“And my blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea!”
Jerusalem will say.

36 Therefore thus says the Lord:

“Behold, (EF)I will plead your case and take vengeance for you.
(EG)I will dry up her sea and make her springs dry.
37 (EH)Babylon shall become a heap,
A dwelling place for jackals,
(EI)An astonishment and a hissing,
Without an inhabitant.
38 They shall roar together like lions,
They shall growl like lions’ whelps.
39 In their excitement I will prepare their feasts;
(EJ)I will make them drunk,
That they may rejoice,
And sleep a perpetual sleep
And not awake,” says the Lord.
40 “I will bring them down
Like lambs to the slaughter,
Like rams with male goats.

41 “Oh, how (EK)Sheshach[n] is taken!
Oh, how (EL)the praise of the whole earth is seized!
How Babylon has become desolate among the nations!
42 (EM)The sea has come up over Babylon;
She is covered with the multitude of its waves.
43 (EN)Her cities are a desolation,
A dry land and a wilderness,
A land where (EO)no one dwells,
Through which no son of man passes.
44 I will punish (EP)Bel[o] in Babylon,
And I will bring out of his mouth what he has swallowed;
And the nations shall not stream to him anymore.
Yes, (EQ)the wall of Babylon shall fall.

45 “My(ER) people, go out of the midst of her!
And let everyone deliver [p]himself from the fierce anger of the Lord.
46 And lest your heart faint,
And you fear (ES)for the rumor that will be heard in the land
(A rumor will come one year,
And after that, in another year
A rumor will come,
And violence in the land,
Ruler against ruler),
47 Therefore behold, the days are coming
That I will bring judgment on the carved images of Babylon;
Her whole land shall be ashamed,
And all her slain shall fall in her midst.
48 Then (ET)the heavens and the earth and all that is in them
Shall sing joyously over Babylon;
(EU)For the plunderers shall come to her from the north,” says the Lord.

49 As Babylon has caused the slain of Israel to fall,
So at Babylon the slain of all the earth shall fall.
50 (EV)You who have escaped the sword,
Get away! Do not stand still!
(EW)Remember the Lord afar off,
And let Jerusalem come to your mind.

51 (EX)We are ashamed because we have heard reproach.
Shame has covered our faces,
For strangers (EY)have come into the [q]sanctuaries of the Lord’s house.

52 “Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord,
“That I will bring judgment on her carved images,
And throughout all her land the wounded shall groan.
53 (EZ)Though Babylon were to [r]mount up to heaven,
And though she were to fortify the height of her strength,
Yet from Me plunderers would come to her,” says the Lord.

54 (FA)The sound of a cry comes from Babylon,
And great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans,
55 Because the Lord is plundering Babylon
And silencing her loud voice,
Though her waves roar like great waters,
And the noise of their voice is uttered,
56 Because the plunderer comes against her, against Babylon,
And her mighty men are taken.
Every one of their bows is broken;
(FB)For the Lord is the God of recompense,
He will surely repay.

57 “And I will make drunk
Her princes and (FC)wise men,
Her governors, her deputies, and her mighty men.
And they shall sleep a perpetual sleep
And not awake,” says (FD)the King,
Whose name is the Lord of hosts.

58 Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly (FE)broken,[s]
And her high gates shall be burned with fire;
(FF)The people will labor in vain,
And the nations, because of the fire;
And they shall be weary.”

Jeremiah’s Command to Seraiah

59 The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of (FG)Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. And Seraiah was the quartermaster. 60 So Jeremiah (FH)wrote in a book all the evil that would come upon Babylon, all these words that are written against Babylon. 61 And Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “When you arrive in Babylon and see it, and read all these words, 62 then you shall say, ‘O Lord, You have spoken against this place to cut it off, so that (FI)none shall remain in it, neither man nor beast, but it shall be desolate forever.’ 63 Now it shall be, when you have finished reading this book, (FJ)that you shall tie a stone to it and throw it out into the Euphrates. 64 Then you shall say, ‘Thus Babylon shall sink and not rise from the catastrophe that I will bring upon her. And they shall be weary.’ ”

Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 50:2 lift
  2. Jeremiah 50:2 Or Marduk; a Babylonian god
  3. Jeremiah 50:3 Or wander
  4. Jeremiah 50:8 male goats
  5. Jeremiah 50:9 So with some Heb. mss., LXX, Syr.; MT, Tg., Vg. a warrior who makes childless
  6. Jeremiah 50:11 Or neigh like steeds
  7. Jeremiah 50:21 Or Attack with the sword
  8. Jeremiah 50:29 Qr., some Heb. mss., LXX, Tg. add to her
  9. Jeremiah 50:31 So with MT, Tg.; LXX, Vg. The time of your punishment
  10. Jeremiah 50:38 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; Syr. sword; LXX omits A drought is
  11. Jeremiah 50:44 Or thicket
  12. Jeremiah 51:1 Lit. The Midst of Those Who Rise Up Against Me; a code word for Chaldea, Babylonia
  13. Jeremiah 51:11 Polish the arrows!
  14. Jeremiah 51:41 A code word for Babylon, Jer. 25:26
  15. Jeremiah 51:44 A Babylonian god
  16. Jeremiah 51:45 Lit. his soul
  17. Jeremiah 51:51 holy places
  18. Jeremiah 51:53 ascend
  19. Jeremiah 51:58 Lit. laid utterly bare

A Message About Babylon(A)

50 This is the word the Lord spoke through Jeremiah the prophet concerning Babylon(B) and the land of the Babylonians[a]:

“Announce and proclaim(C) among the nations,
    lift up a banner(D) and proclaim it;
    keep nothing back, but say,
‘Babylon will be captured;(E)
    Bel(F) will be put to shame,(G)
    Marduk(H) filled with terror.
Her images will be put to shame
    and her idols(I) filled with terror.’
A nation from the north(J) will attack her
    and lay waste her land.
No one will live(K) in it;
    both people and animals(L) will flee away.

“In those days, at that time,”
    declares the Lord,
“the people of Israel and the people of Judah together(M)
    will go in tears(N) to seek(O) the Lord their God.
They will ask the way(P) to Zion
    and turn their faces toward it.
They will come(Q) and bind themselves to the Lord
    in an everlasting covenant(R)
    that will not be forgotten.

“My people have been lost sheep;(S)
    their shepherds(T) have led them astray(U)
    and caused them to roam on the mountains.
They wandered over mountain and hill(V)
    and forgot their own resting place.(W)
Whoever found them devoured(X) them;
    their enemies said, ‘We are not guilty,(Y)
for they sinned against the Lord, their verdant pasture,
    the Lord, the hope(Z) of their ancestors.’

“Flee(AA) out of Babylon;(AB)
    leave the land of the Babylonians,
    and be like the goats that lead the flock.
For I will stir(AC) up and bring against Babylon
    an alliance of great nations(AD) from the land of the north.(AE)
They will take up their positions against her,
    and from the north she will be captured.(AF)
Their arrows(AG) will be like skilled warriors
    who do not return empty-handed.
10 So Babylonia[b] will be plundered;(AH)
    all who plunder her will have their fill,”
declares the Lord.

11 “Because you rejoice and are glad,
    you who pillage my inheritance,(AI)
because you frolic like a heifer(AJ) threshing grain
    and neigh like stallions,
12 your mother will be greatly ashamed;
    she who gave you birth will be disgraced.(AK)
She will be the least of the nations—
    a wilderness, a dry land, a desert.(AL)
13 Because of the Lord’s anger she will not be inhabited
    but will be completely desolate.(AM)
All who pass Babylon will be appalled;(AN)
    they will scoff(AO) because of all her wounds.(AP)

14 “Take up your positions around Babylon,
    all you who draw the bow.(AQ)
Shoot at her! Spare no arrows,(AR)
    for she has sinned against the Lord.
15 Shout(AS) against her on every side!
    She surrenders, her towers fall,
    her walls(AT) are torn down.
Since this is the vengeance(AU) of the Lord,
    take vengeance on her;
    do to her(AV) as she has done to others.(AW)
16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,
    and the reaper with his sickle at harvest.
Because of the sword(AX) of the oppressor
    let everyone return to their own people,(AY)
    let everyone flee to their own land.(AZ)

17 “Israel is a scattered flock(BA)
    that lions(BB) have chased away.
The first to devour(BC) them
    was the king(BD) of Assyria;
the last to crush their bones(BE)
    was Nebuchadnezzar(BF) king(BG) of Babylon.”

18 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says:

“I will punish the king of Babylon and his land
    as I punished the king(BH) of Assyria.(BI)
19 But I will bring(BJ) Israel back to their own pasture,
    and they will graze on Carmel and Bashan;
their appetite will be satisfied(BK)
    on the hills(BL) of Ephraim and Gilead.(BM)
20 In those days, at that time,”
    declares the Lord,
“search will be made for Israel’s guilt,
    but there will be none,(BN)
and for the sins(BO) of Judah,
    but none will be found,
    for I will forgive(BP) the remnant(BQ) I spare.

21 “Attack the land of Merathaim
    and those who live in Pekod.(BR)
Pursue, kill and completely destroy[c] them,”
declares the Lord.
    “Do everything I have commanded you.
22 The noise(BS) of battle is in the land,
    the noise of great destruction!
23 How broken and shattered
    is the hammer(BT) of the whole earth!(BU)
How desolate(BV) is Babylon
    among the nations!
24 I set a trap(BW) for you, Babylon,
    and you were caught before you knew it;
you were found and captured(BX)
    because you opposed(BY) the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened his arsenal
    and brought out the weapons(BZ) of his wrath,
for the Sovereign Lord Almighty has work to do
    in the land of the Babylonians.(CA)
26 Come against her from afar.(CB)
    Break open her granaries;
    pile her up like heaps of grain.(CC)
Completely destroy(CD) her
    and leave her no remnant.
27 Kill all her young bulls;(CE)
    let them go down to the slaughter!(CF)
Woe to them! For their day(CG) has come,
    the time(CH) for them to be punished.
28 Listen to the fugitives(CI) and refugees from Babylon
    declaring in Zion(CJ)
how the Lord our God has taken vengeance,(CK)
    vengeance for his temple.(CL)

29 “Summon archers against Babylon,
    all those who draw the bow.(CM)
Encamp all around her;
    let no one escape.(CN)
Repay(CO) her for her deeds;(CP)
    do to her as she has done.
For she has defied(CQ) the Lord,
    the Holy One(CR) of Israel.
30 Therefore, her young men(CS) will fall in the streets;
    all her soldiers will be silenced in that day,”
declares the Lord.
31 “See, I am against(CT) you, you arrogant one,”
    declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
“for your day(CU) has come,
    the time for you to be punished.
32 The arrogant(CV) one will stumble and fall(CW)
    and no one will help her up;(CX)
I will kindle a fire(CY) in her towns
    that will consume all who are around her.”

33 This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“The people of Israel are oppressed,(CZ)
    and the people of Judah as well.
All their captors hold them fast,
    refusing to let them go.(DA)
34 Yet their Redeemer(DB) is strong;
    the Lord Almighty(DC) is his name.
He will vigorously defend their cause(DD)
    so that he may bring rest(DE) to their land,
    but unrest to those who live in Babylon.

35 “A sword(DF) against the Babylonians!”(DG)
    declares the Lord
“against those who live in Babylon
    and against her officials and wise(DH) men!
36 A sword against her false prophets!
    They will become fools.
A sword against her warriors!(DI)
    They will be filled with terror.(DJ)
37 A sword against her horses and chariots(DK)
    and all the foreigners in her ranks!
    They will become weaklings.(DL)
A sword against her treasures!(DM)
    They will be plundered.
38 A drought on[d] her waters!(DN)
    They will dry(DO) up.
For it is a land of idols,(DP)
    idols that will go mad with terror.

39 “So desert creatures(DQ) and hyenas will live there,
    and there the owl will dwell.
It will never again be inhabited
    or lived in from generation to generation.(DR)
40 As I overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah(DS)
    along with their neighboring towns,”
declares the Lord,
“so no one will live there;
    no people will dwell in it.(DT)

41 “Look! An army is coming from the north;(DU)
    a great nation and many kings
    are being stirred(DV) up from the ends of the earth.(DW)
42 They are armed with bows(DX) and spears;
    they are cruel(DY) and without mercy.(DZ)
They sound like the roaring sea(EA)
    as they ride on their horses;
they come like men in battle formation
    to attack you, Daughter Babylon.(EB)
43 The king of Babylon has heard reports about them,
    and his hands hang limp.(EC)
Anguish has gripped him,
    pain like that of a woman in labor.(ED)
44 Like a lion coming up from Jordan’s thickets(EE)
    to a rich pastureland,
I will chase Babylon from its land in an instant.
    Who is the chosen(EF) one I will appoint for this?
Who is like me and who can challenge me?(EG)
    And what shepherd can stand against me?”

45 Therefore, hear what the Lord has planned against Babylon,
    what he has purposed(EH) against the land of the Babylonians:(EI)
The young of the flock will be dragged away;
    their pasture will be appalled at their fate.
46 At the sound of Babylon’s capture the earth will tremble;(EJ)
    its cry(EK) will resound among the nations.

51 This is what the Lord says:

“See, I will stir(EL) up the spirit of a destroyer
    against Babylon(EM) and the people of Leb Kamai.[e]
I will send foreigners(EN) to Babylon
    to winnow(EO) her and to devastate her land;
they will oppose her on every side
    in the day(EP) of her disaster.
Let not the archer string his bow,(EQ)
    nor let him put on his armor.(ER)
Do not spare her young men;
    completely destroy[f] her army.
They will fall(ES) down slain in Babylon,[g]
    fatally wounded in her streets.(ET)
For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken(EU)
    by their God, the Lord Almighty,
though their land[h] is full of guilt(EV)
    before the Holy One of Israel.

“Flee(EW) from Babylon!
    Run for your lives!
    Do not be destroyed because of her sins.(EX)
It is time(EY) for the Lord’s vengeance;(EZ)
    he will repay(FA) her what she deserves.
Babylon was a gold cup(FB) in the Lord’s hand;
    she made the whole earth drunk.
The nations drank her wine;
    therefore they have now gone mad.
Babylon will suddenly fall(FC) and be broken.
    Wail over her!
Get balm(FD) for her pain;
    perhaps she can be healed.

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

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

11 “Sharpen the arrows,(FI)
    take up the shields!(FJ)
The Lord has stirred up the kings(FK) of the Medes,(FL)
    because his purpose(FM) is to destroy Babylon.
The Lord will take vengeance,(FN)
    vengeance for his temple.(FO)
12 Lift up a banner(FP) against the walls of Babylon!
    Reinforce the guard,
station the watchmen,(FQ)
    prepare an ambush!(FR)
The Lord will carry out his purpose,(FS)
    his decree against the people of Babylon.
13 You who live by many waters(FT)
    and are rich in treasures,(FU)
your end has come,
    the time for you to be destroyed.(FV)
14 The Lord Almighty has sworn by himself:(FW)
    I will surely fill you with troops, as with a swarm of locusts,(FX)
    and they will shout(FY) in triumph over you.

15 “He made the earth by his power;
    he founded the world by his wisdom(FZ)
    and stretched(GA) out the heavens by his understanding.(GB)
16 When he thunders,(GC) the waters in the heavens roar;
    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain(GD)
    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.(GE)

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

20 “You are my war club,(GJ)
    my weapon for battle—
with you I shatter(GK) nations,(GL)
    with you I destroy kingdoms,
21 with you I shatter horse and rider,(GM)
    with you I shatter chariot(GN) 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,(GO)
23 with you I shatter shepherd and flock,
    with you I shatter farmer and oxen,
    with you I shatter governors and officials.(GP)

24 “Before your eyes I will repay(GQ) Babylon(GR) and all who live in Babylonia[i] for all the wrong they have done in Zion,” declares the Lord.

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

27 “Lift up a banner(GX) in the land!
    Blow the trumpet among the nations!
Prepare the nations for battle against her;
    summon against her these kingdoms:(GY)
    Ararat,(GZ) Minni and Ashkenaz.(HA)
Appoint a commander against her;
    send up horses like a swarm of locusts.(HB)
28 Prepare the nations for battle against her—
    the kings of the Medes,(HC)
their governors and all their officials,
    and all the countries they rule.(HD)
29 The land trembles(HE) and writhes,
    for the Lord’s purposes(HF) against Babylon stand—
to lay waste(HG) the land of Babylon
    so that no one will live there.(HH)
30 Babylon’s warriors(HI) have stopped fighting;
    they remain in their strongholds.
Their strength is exhausted;
    they have become weaklings.(HJ)
Her dwellings are set on fire;(HK)
    the bars(HL) of her gates are broken.
31 One courier(HM) follows another
    and messenger follows messenger
to announce to the king of Babylon
    that his entire city is captured,(HN)
32 the river crossings seized,
    the marshes set on fire,(HO)
    and the soldiers terrified.(HP)

33 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says:

“Daughter Babylon(HQ) is like a threshing floor(HR)
    at the time it is trampled;
    the time to harvest(HS) her will soon come.(HT)

34 “Nebuchadnezzar(HU) king of Babylon has devoured(HV) us,(HW)
    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(HX) us out.
35 May the violence(HY) done to our flesh[j] be on Babylon,”
    say the inhabitants of Zion.
“May our blood be on those who live in Babylonia,”
    says Jerusalem.(HZ)

36 Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“See, I will defend your cause(IA)
    and avenge(IB) you;
I will dry up(IC) her sea
    and make her springs dry.
37 Babylon will be a heap of ruins,
    a haunt(ID) of jackals,
an object of horror and scorn,(IE)
    a place where no one lives.(IF)
38 Her people all roar like young lions,(IG)
    they growl like lion cubs.
39 But while they are aroused,
    I will set out a feast for them
    and make them drunk,(IH)
so that they shout with laughter—
    then sleep forever(II) and not awake,”
declares the Lord.(IJ)
40 “I will bring them down
    like lambs to the slaughter,
    like rams and goats.(IK)

41 “How Sheshak[k](IL) will be captured,(IM)
    the boast of the whole earth seized!
How desolate(IN) Babylon will be
    among the nations!
42 The sea will rise over Babylon;
    its roaring waves(IO) will cover her.
43 Her towns will be desolate,
    a dry and desert(IP) land,
a land where no one lives,
    through which no one travels.(IQ)
44 I will punish Bel(IR) in Babylon
    and make him spew out(IS) what he has swallowed.
The nations will no longer stream to him.
    And the wall(IT) of Babylon will fall.

45 “Come out(IU) of her, my people!
    Run(IV) for your lives!
    Run from the fierce anger(IW) of the Lord.
46 Do not lose heart(IX) or be afraid(IY)
    when rumors(IZ) 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(JA) of Babylon;
her whole land will be disgraced(JB)
    and her slain will all lie fallen within her.(JC)
48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
    will shout(JD) for joy over Babylon,
for out of the north(JE)
    destroyers(JF) 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.(JG)
50 You who have escaped the sword,
    leave(JH) and do not linger!
Remember(JI) the Lord in a distant land,(JJ)
    and call to mind Jerusalem.”

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

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

54 “The sound of a cry(JQ) comes from Babylon,
    the sound of great destruction(JR)
    from the land of the Babylonians.[l]
55 The Lord will destroy Babylon;
    he will silence(JS) her noisy din.
Waves(JT) of enemies will rage like great waters;
    the roar of their voices will resound.
56 A destroyer(JU) will come against Babylon;
    her warriors will be captured,
    and their bows will be broken.(JV)
For the Lord is a God of retribution;
    he will repay(JW) in full.
57 I will make her officials(JX) and wise(JY) men drunk,(JZ)
    her governors, officers and warriors as well;
they will sleep(KA) forever and not awake,”
    declares the King,(KB) whose name is the Lord Almighty.

58 This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Babylon’s thick wall(KC) will be leveled
    and her high gates(KD) set on fire;
the peoples(KE) exhaust(KF) themselves for nothing,
    the nations’ labor is only fuel for the flames.”(KG)

59 This is the message Jeremiah the prophet gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah,(KH) the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah(KI) king of Judah in the fourth(KJ) year of his reign. 60 Jeremiah had written on a scroll(KK) about all the disasters that would come upon Babylon—all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. 61 He said to Seraiah, “When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud. 62 Then say, ‘Lord, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither people nor animals will live in it; it will be desolate(KL) forever.’ 63 When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates.(KM) 64 Then say, ‘So will Babylon sink to rise no more(KN) because of the disaster I will bring on her. And her people(KO) will fall.’”(KP)

The words of Jeremiah end(KQ) here.

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 50:1 Or Chaldeans; also in verses 8, 25, 35 and 45
  2. Jeremiah 50:10 Or Chaldea
  3. Jeremiah 50:21 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them; also in verse 26.
  4. Jeremiah 50:38 Or A sword against
  5. Jeremiah 51:1 Leb Kamai is a cryptogram for Chaldea, that is, Babylonia.
  6. Jeremiah 51:3 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
  7. Jeremiah 51:4 Or Chaldea
  8. Jeremiah 51:5 Or Almighty, / and the land of the Babylonians
  9. Jeremiah 51:24 Or Chaldea; also in verse 35
  10. Jeremiah 51:35 Or done to us and to our children
  11. Jeremiah 51:41 Sheshak is a cryptogram for Babylon.
  12. Jeremiah 51:54 Or Chaldeans