Jeremiah 50
Legacy Standard Bible
Word Against Babylon
50 The word which Yahweh spoke concerning (A)Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, by the hand of Jeremiah the prophet:
2 “(B)Declare and make it heard among the nations.
Make it heard and (C)lift up a standard.
Do not conceal it but say,
‘(D)Babylon has been captured;
(E)Bel has been put to shame; [a]Marduk has been [b]shattered;
Her (F)images have been put to shame; her idols have been shattered.’
3 For a nation has come up against her out of the (G)north; it will make her land (H)an object of horror, and there will be (I)no inhabitant in it. Both man and beast have wandered off; they have gone away!
4 “In those days and at that time,” declares Yahweh, “the sons of Israel will come, both they and the sons of Judah (J)as well; they will go along (K)weeping as they go, and it will be (L)Yahweh their God they will seek. 5 They will (M)ask for the way to Zion—turning their faces [c]in its direction and saying, ‘[d]Come!’—in order that they may join themselves to Yahweh in an (N)everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.
6 “My people have become (O)lost sheep;
(P)Their shepherds have led them astray.
They have made them turn away on the (Q)mountains;
They have gone along from mountain to hill
And have forgotten their (R)resting place.
7 All who came out against them have devoured them;
And their adversaries have said, ‘(S)We are not guilty,
Inasmuch as they have sinned against Yahweh, who is the (T)abode of righteousness,
Even Yahweh, the (U)hope of their fathers.’
8 “Wander away from the (V)midst of Babylon
And [e]go forth from the land of the Chaldeans;
Be also like male goats [f]at the head of the flock.
9 For behold, I am going to (W)arouse and bring up against Babylon
An assembly of great nations from the land of the north,
And they will arrange their battle lines against her;
From there she will be taken captive.
Their arrows will be like [g]a warrior who makes one childless
Who does not return empty-handed.
10 [h](X)Chaldea will become spoil;
All who take her spoil will have enough,” declares Yahweh.
11 “Because you are glad, because you exult,
O you who (Y)plunder My inheritance,
Because you skip about [i]like a threshing (Z)heifer
And neigh like [j]valiant steeds,
12 Your (AA)mother [k]will be greatly ashamed;
She who gave you birth [l]will be humiliated.
Behold, she will be the least of the nations,
A (AB)wilderness, a parched land, and a desert.
13 Because of the wrath of Yahweh she will (AC)not be inhabited,
But she will be (AD)completely desolate;
Everyone who passes by Babylon (AE)will be in desolation
And will hiss because of all her wounds.
14 Arrange your battle lines against Babylon on every side,
All you who [m]bend the bow;
Shoot at her, do not be sparing with your arrows,
For she has (AF)sinned against Yahweh.
15 Raise a loud shout against her on every side!
She has (AG)given [n]herself up, her pillars have fallen,
Her (AH)walls have been pulled down.
For this is the (AI)vengeance of Yahweh:
Take vengeance on her;
(AJ)As she has done to others, so do to her.
16 Cut off the (AK)sower from Babylon
And the one who seizes the sickle at the time of harvest;
From before [o]the (AL)sword of the oppressor
(AM)They will each turn back to his own people,
And they will each flee to his own land.
17 “Israel is a (AN)scattered [p]flock; the (AO)lions have banished them away. The first one who devoured him was the (AP)king of Assyria, and this last one who has broken his bones is (AQ)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. 18 Therefore thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am going to punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I (AR)punished the king of Assyria. 19 And I will [q](AS)return Israel back to his pasture, and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan, and his [r]desire will be satisfied in the (AT)hill country of Ephraim and Gilead. 20 In those days and at that time,’ declares Yahweh, ‘search will be made for the iniquity of Israel, but (AU)there will be none; and for the sins of Judah, but they will not be found; for I will pardon those (AV)whom I leave as a remnant.’
21 “Against the land of [s]Merathaim, go up against it,
And against the inhabitants of [t](AW)Pekod.
Put them to the sword and [u]devote them to destruction,” declares Yahweh,
“And do according to all that I have commanded you.
22 The (AX)noise of battle is in the land,
And great destruction.
23 How the (AY)hammer of the whole earth
Has been cut in pieces and broken!
How Babylon has become
An object of horror among the nations!
24 I (AZ)set a snare for you, and you were also (BA)caught, O Babylon,
But you yourself did not know;
You have been found and also seized
Because you have engaged in (BB)conflict with Yahweh.”
25 Yahweh has opened His armory
And has brought forth the (BC)weapons of His indignation,
For it is a (BD)work of Lord Yahweh of hosts
In the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come to her from the [v]farthest border;
(BE)Open up her barns;
Pile her up like heaps,
And [w](BF)devote her to destruction;
Let nothing of her remain.
27 (BG)Put all her young bulls to the sword;
Let them (BH)go down to the slaughter!
Woe be upon them, for their (BI)day has come,
The time of their punishment.
28 There is a (BJ)sound of those who flee and escape from the land of Babylon,
To declare in Zion the (BK)vengeance of Yahweh our God,
Vengeance for His (BL)temple.
29 “Summon [x]many against Babylon,
All those who [y]bend the bow:
Encamp against her on every side,
Let there be no escape[z].
Repay her according to her work;
(BM)According to all that she has done, so do to her;
For she has become (BN)arrogant against Yahweh,
Against the Holy One of Israel.
30 Therefore her (BO)young men will fall in her open squares,
And all her men of war will be [aa](BP)silenced in that day,” declares Yahweh.
31 “Behold, (BQ)I am against you, O [ab]arrogant one,”
Declares Lord Yahweh of hosts,
“For your day has come,
The time [ac]when I will punish you.
32 The [ad](BR)arrogant one will stumble and fall
With no one to raise him up;
And I will (BS)set fire to his cities,
And it will devour him on every side.”
33 Thus says Yahweh of hosts,
“The sons of Israel are oppressed,
And the sons of Judah as well;
And (BT)all who took them captive have held them fast;
They have refused to let them go.
34 Their (BU)Redeemer is strong, (BV)Yahweh of hosts is His name;
He will vigorously (BW)plead their case
So that He may (BX)bring relief to [ae]the earth,
But turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 A (BY)sword against the Chaldeans,” declares Yahweh,
“And against the inhabitants of Babylon
And against her (BZ)officials and her (CA)wise men!
36 A sword against the (CB)oracle priests, and they will become fools!
A sword against her (CC)mighty men, and they will be [af](CD)shattered!
37 A sword against [ag]their (CE)horses and against [ah]their chariots
And against all the [ai](CF)foreigners who are in the midst of her,
And they will become (CG)women!
A sword against her treasures, and they will be plundered!
38 A [aj](CH)drought on her waters, and they will be dried up!
For it is a land of (CI)graven images,
And they are mad over terrifying idols.
39 “Therefore the (CJ)desert creatures will live there along with the jackals;
The ostriches also will live in it,
And it will (CK)never again be lived in
Or dwelt in from generation to generation.
40 As when God overthrew (CL)Sodom
And Gomorrah with its neighbors,” declares Yahweh,
“No man will live there,
Nor will any son of man sojourn in it.
41 “Behold, a people is coming (CM)from the north,
And a great nation and many kings
Will be aroused from the remote parts of the earth.
42 They (CN)seize their bow and [ak]javelin;
They are (CO)cruel and have no compassion.
Their (CP)voice roars like the sea;
And they ride on (CQ)horses,
(CR)Arranged like a man for the battle
Against you, O daughter of Babylon.
43 The (CS)king of Babylon has heard the report about them,
And his hands hang limp;
(CT)Distress has taken hold of him,
Agony like a woman in childbirth.
44 “(CU)Behold, one will come up like a lion from the [al]thicket of the Jordan to an enduring pasture; for in an instant I will make them run away from it, and whoever is (CV)chosen I will appoint over it. For who is (CW)like Me, and who will [am]summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd who can (CX)stand before Me?” 45 Therefore hear the (CY)counsel of Yahweh which He has counseled against Babylon, and His purposes which He has purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: (CZ)surely they will drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; surely He will make their [an]pasture desolate because of them. 46 At the sound, “Babylon has been seized!” the (DA)earth is shaken, and an (DB)outcry is heard among the nations.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 50:2 Heb Merodach
- Jeremiah 50:2 Or dismayed
- Jeremiah 50:5 Lit hither
- Jeremiah 50:5 Gr they will come and join themselves
- Jeremiah 50:8 Or let them go forth
- Jeremiah 50:8 Or in front of
- Jeremiah 50:9 Some mss and versions an expert warrior
- Jeremiah 50:10 Or The Chaldeans
- Jeremiah 50:11 Or in the grass
- Jeremiah 50:11 Lit mighty ones
- Jeremiah 50:12 Or has become
- Jeremiah 50:12 Or has become
- Jeremiah 50:14 Lit tread (in order to string)
- Jeremiah 50:15 Lit her hand
- Jeremiah 50:16 Or the oppressing sword
- Jeremiah 50:17 Lit sheep
- Jeremiah 50:19 Or restore
- Jeremiah 50:19 Lit soul
- Jeremiah 50:21 Lit double rebellion
- Jeremiah 50:21 Lit punishment
- Jeremiah 50:21 Lit put under the ban
- Jeremiah 50:26 Lit end
- Jeremiah 50:26 Or put her under the ban
- Jeremiah 50:29 Or archers
- Jeremiah 50:29 Lit tread (in order to string)
- Jeremiah 50:29 Some mss add to her
- Jeremiah 50:30 Or made lifeless, destroyed
- Jeremiah 50:31 Lit arrogance
- Jeremiah 50:31 Or of your punishment
- Jeremiah 50:32 Lit arrogance
- Jeremiah 50:34 Or their land
- Jeremiah 50:36 Or dismayed
- Jeremiah 50:37 Lit his
- Jeremiah 50:37 Lit his
- Jeremiah 50:37 Lit mixed multitude
- Jeremiah 50:38 Or sword
- Jeremiah 50:42 Or scimitar
- Jeremiah 50:44 Lit pride
- Jeremiah 50:44 Or cause Me to testify, cf. Job 9:19
- Jeremiah 50:45 Or habitation
Jeremiah 50
New King James Version
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.
2 “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.’
3 (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.
4 “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.
5 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.’
6 “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.
7 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.’
8 “Move(S) from the midst of Babylon,
Go out of the land of the Chaldeans;
And be like the [d]rams before the flocks.
9 (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.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 50:2 lift
- Jeremiah 50:2 Or Marduk; a Babylonian god
- Jeremiah 50:3 Or wander
- Jeremiah 50:8 male goats
- Jeremiah 50:9 So with some Heb. mss., LXX, Syr.; MT, Tg., Vg. a warrior who makes childless
- Jeremiah 50:11 Or neigh like steeds
- Jeremiah 50:21 Or Attack with the sword
- Jeremiah 50:29 Qr., some Heb. mss., LXX, Tg. add to her
- Jeremiah 50:31 So with MT, Tg.; LXX, Vg. The time of your punishment
- Jeremiah 50:38 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; Syr. sword; LXX omits A drought is
- Jeremiah 50:44 Or thicket
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
