Jeremiah 40-52

New American Standard Bible 1995

Jeremiah Remains in Judah

40 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord after ^(A)Nebuzaradan captain of the bodyguard had released him from ^(B)Ramah, when he had taken him bound in ^(C)chains among all the exiles of Jerusalem and Judah who were being exiled to Babylon. ² Now the captain of the bodyguard had taken Jeremiah and said to him, “The ^(D)Lord your God promised this calamity against this place; ³ and the Lord has brought it on and done just as He promised. Because you people ^(E)sinned against the Lord and did not listen to His voice, therefore this thing has happened to you. ⁴ But now, behold, I am ^(F)freeing you today from the chains which are on your hands. If ^[a]you would prefer to come with me to Babylon, come along, and I will ^[b]look after you; but if ^[c]you would prefer not to come with me to Babylon, ^[d]never mind. Look, the ^(G)whole land is before you; go wherever it seems good and right for you to go.” ⁵ As ^[e]Jeremiah was still not going back, ^[f]he said, “Go on back then to ^(H)Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has ^(I)appointed over the cities of Judah, and stay with him among the people; or else go anywhere it seems right for you to go.” So the captain of the bodyguard gave him a ^(J)ration and a ^(K)gift and let him go. ⁶ Then Jeremiah went to ^(L)Mizpah to ^(M)Gedaliah the son of Ahikam and stayed with him among the people who were left in the land.

^7 (N)Now all the ^[g]commanders of the forces that were in the field, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam over the land and that he had put him in charge of the men, women and ^[h]children, those of the ^(O)poorest of the land who had not been exiled to Babylon. ⁸ So they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah, along with ^(P)Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and ^(Q)Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the ^(R)Netophathite, and ^(S)Jezaniah the son of the ^(T)Maacathite, both they and their men. ⁹ Then Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, ^(U)swore to them and to their men, saying, “^(V)Do not be afraid of serving the Chaldeans; stay in the land and serve the king of Babylon, that it may go well with you. ¹⁰ Now as for me, behold, I am going to stay at Mizpah to ^(W)stand for you before the Chaldeans who come to us; but as for you, ^(X)gather in wine and ^(Y)summer fruit and oil and put them in your storage vessels, and live in your cities that you have taken over.” ¹¹ Likewise, also all the Jews who were in ^(Z)Moab and among the sons of ^(AA)Ammon and in ^(AB)Edom and who were in all the other countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant for Judah, and that he had appointed over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan. ¹² Then all the Jews ^(AC)returned from all the places to which they had been driven away and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah, and gathered in wine and summer fruit in great abundance.

¹³ Now Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces that were in the field came to Gedaliah at Mizpah ¹⁴ and said to him, “Are you well aware that Baalis the king of the sons of ^(AD)Ammon has sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to take your life?” But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam did not believe them. ¹⁵ Then Johanan the son of Kareah spoke secretly to Gedaliah in Mizpah, saying, “^(AE)Let me go and kill Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and not a man will know! Why should he ^(AF)take your life, so that all the Jews who are gathered to you would be scattered and the ^(AG)remnant of Judah would perish?” ¹⁶ But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said to Johanan the son of Kareah, “^(AH)Do not do this thing, for you are telling a lie about Ishmael.”

Gedaliah Is Murdered

41 ^(AI)In the seventh month ^(AJ)Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal ^[i]family and one of the chief officers of the king, along with ten men, came to Mizpah to ^(AK)Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. While they ^(AL)were eating bread together there in Mizpah, ² Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him arose and ^(AM)struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword and ^(AN)put to death the one ^(AO)whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land. ³ Ishmael also struck down all the Jews who were with him, that is with Gedaliah at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans who were found there, the men of war.

⁴ Now it happened on the ^[j]next day after the killing of Gedaliah, when no one knew about it, ⁵ that eighty men ^(AP)came from ^(AQ)Shechem, from ^(AR)Shiloh, and from ^(AS)Samaria with ^(AT)their beards shaved off and their clothes torn and ^[k]their bodies ^(AU)gashed, having grain offerings and incense in their hands to bring to the ^(AV)house of the Lord. ⁶ Then Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them, ^(AW)weeping as he went; and as he met them, he said to them, “Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam!” ⁷ Yet it turned out that as soon as they came inside the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the men that were with him ^(AX)slaughtered them and cast them into the cistern. ⁸ But ten men who were found among them said to Ishmael, “Do not put us to death; for we have ^(AY)stores of wheat, barley, oil and honey hidden in the field.” So he refrained and did not put them to death along with their companions.

⁹ Now as for the cistern where Ishmael had cast all the corpses of the men whom he had struck down ^[l]because of Gedaliah, it was the ^(AZ)one that King Asa had made on ^(BA)account of Baasha, king of Israel; Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with the slain. ¹⁰ Then Ishmael took captive all the ^(BB)remnant of the people who were in Mizpah, the ^(BC)king’s daughters and all the people who were left in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard had put under the charge of Gedaliah the son of Ahikam; thus Ishmael the son of Nethaniah took them captive and proceeded to cross over to the sons of ^(BD)Ammon.

Johanan Rescues the People

¹¹ But Johanan the son of Kareah and all the ^(BE)commanders of the forces that were with him heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done. ¹² So they took all the men and went to ^(BF)fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and they found him by the ^(BG)great ^[m]pool that is in Gibeon. ¹³ Now as soon as all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah and the commanders of the forces that were with him, they were glad. ¹⁴ So all the people whom Ishmael had taken captive from Mizpah turned around and came back, and went to Johanan the son of Kareah. ¹⁵ But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah ^(BH)escaped from Johanan with eight men and went to the sons of Ammon. ¹⁶ Then Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces that were with him took from Mizpah ^(BI)all the remnant of the people whom he had ^[n]recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, after he had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, that is, the men who were ^[o]soldiers, the women, the ^[p]children, and the eunuchs, whom he had brought back from Gibeon. ¹⁷ And they went and stayed in ^[q](BJ)Geruth Chimham, which is beside Bethlehem, in order to ^(BK)proceed into Egypt ¹⁸ because of the Chaldeans; for they were ^(BL)afraid of them, since Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom ^(BM)the king of Babylon had appointed over the land.

Warning against Going to Egypt

42 Then all the ^[r]commanders of the forces, ^(BN)Johanan the son of Kareah, Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people ^(BO)both small and great approached ² and said to Jeremiah the prophet, “Please let our ^(BP)petition ^[s]come before you, and ^(BQ)pray for us to the Lord your God, that is for all this remnant; because we are left but a ^(BR)few out of many, as your own eyes now see us, ³ that the Lord your God may tell us the ^(BS)way in which we should walk and the thing that we should do.” ⁴ Then Jeremiah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you. Behold, I am going to ^(BT)pray to the Lord your God in accordance with your words; and I will tell you the whole ^[t]message which the ^(BU)Lord will answer you. I will ^(BV)not keep back a word from you.” ⁵ Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the ^(BW)Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act in accordance with the whole ^[u]message with which the Lord your God will send you to us. ⁶ Whether it is ^[v]pleasant or ^[w]unpleasant, we will ^(BX)listen to the voice of the Lord our God to whom we are sending you, so that it may go ^(BY)well with us when we listen to the voice of the Lord our God.”

⁷ Now at the ^(BZ)end of ten days the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah. ⁸ Then he called for Johanan the son of Kareah and all the ^[x]commanders of the forces that were with him, and for all the people both small and great, ⁹ and said to them, “Thus ^(CA)says the Lord the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition before Him: ¹⁰ ‘If you will indeed stay in this land, then I will ^(CB)build you up and not tear you down, and I will plant you and not uproot you; for I ^[y]will ^(CC)relent concerning the calamity that I have inflicted on you. ^11 (CD)Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, whom you are now fearing; do not be afraid of him,’ declares the Lord, ‘for ^(CE)I am with you to save you and deliver you from his hand. ¹² I will also show you compassion, so that ^(CF)he will have compassion on you and restore you to your own soil. ¹³ But if you are going to say, “We will ^(CG)not stay in this land,” so as not to listen to the voice of the Lord your God, ¹⁴ saying, “No, but we will ^(CH)go to the land of Egypt, where we will not see war or ^(CI)hear the sound of a trumpet or hunger for bread, and we will stay there”; ¹⁵ then ^[z]in that case listen to the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “If you really set your ^[aa]mind to enter ^(CJ)Egypt and go in to reside there, ¹⁶ then the ^(CK)sword, which you are afraid of, will overtake you there in the land of Egypt; and the famine, about which you are anxious, will follow closely after you there in Egypt, and you will die there. ¹⁷ So all the men who set their ^[ab]mind to go to Egypt to reside there will die by the ^(CL)sword, by famine and by pestilence; and they will ^(CM)have no survivors or refugees from the calamity that I am going to bring on them.”’”

¹⁸ For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “As My ^(CN)anger and wrath have been poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so My wrath will be poured out on you when you enter Egypt. And you will become a ^(CO)curse, an object of horror, an imprecation and a reproach; and ^(CP)you will see this place no more.” ¹⁹ The Lord has spoken to you, O remnant of Judah, “Do not ^(CQ)go into Egypt!” You should clearly ^(CR)understand that today I have ^(CS)testified against you. ²⁰ For you have only ^[ac](CT)deceived yourselves; for it is you who sent me to the Lord your God, saying, “Pray for us to the Lord our God; and whatever the Lord our God says, tell us so, and we will do it.” ²¹ So I have ^(CU)told you today, but you have ^(CV)not ^[ad]obeyed the Lord your God, even in whatever He has sent me to tell you. ²² Therefore you should now clearly understand that you will ^(CW)die by the sword, by famine and by pestilence, in the ^(CX)place where you wish to go to reside.

In Egypt Jeremiah Warns of Judgment

43 But as soon as Jeremiah, whom the Lord their God had sent, had ^(CY)finished telling all the people all the words of the Lord their God—that is, all these words— ² Azariah the ^(CZ)son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are ^(DA)telling a lie! The Lord our God has not sent you to say, ‘You are not to enter Egypt to reside there’; ³ but ^(DB)Baruch the son of Neriah is inciting you against us to give us over into the hand of the Chaldeans, so they will put us to death or exile us to Babylon.” ⁴ So ^(DC)Johanan the son of Kareah and all the ^[ae]commanders of the forces, and all the people, ^(DD)did not obey the voice of the Lord to ^(DE)stay in the land of Judah. ⁵ But Johanan the son of Kareah and all the ^[af]commanders of the forces took the ^(DF)entire remnant of Judah who had returned from all the nations to which they had been driven away, in order to reside in the land of Judah— ⁶ the men, the women, the ^[ag]children, the ^(DG)king’s daughters and ^(DH)every person that Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam ^[ah]and grandson of Shaphan, together with ^(DI)Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch the son of Neriah— ⁷ and they entered the land of Egypt (for they did not obey the voice of the Lord) and went in as far as ^(DJ)Tahpanhes.

⁸ Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah in ^(DK)Tahpanhes, saying, ⁹ “Take some large stones in your ^[ai]hands and hide them in the mortar in the ^[aj]brick terrace which is at the entrance of Pharaoh’s ^[ak]palace in Tahpanhes, in the sight of ^[al]some of the Jews; ¹⁰ and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Behold, I am going to send and get ^(DL)Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, ^(DM)My servant, and I am going to set his throne right over these stones that I have hidden; and he will spread his ^(DN)canopy over them. ¹¹ He will also come and ^(DO)strike the land of Egypt; those who are meant for death will be given over to death, and those for captivity to captivity, and ^(DP)those for the sword to the sword. ¹² And ^[am]I shall set fire to the temples of the ^(DQ)gods of Egypt, and he will burn them and take them captive. So he will ^(DR)wrap himself with the land of Egypt as a shepherd wraps himself with his garment, and he will depart from there safely. ¹³ He will also shatter the ^[an]obelisks of ^[ao]Heliopolis, which is in the land of Egypt; and the temples of the gods of Egypt he will burn with fire.”’”

Conquest of Egypt Predicted

44 The word that came to Jeremiah for all the Jews living in the land of Egypt, those who were living in ^(DS)Migdol, ^(DT)Tahpanhes, ^(DU)Memphis, and the land of ^(DV)Pathros, saying, ² “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘You yourselves have seen all the calamity that I have brought on Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah; and behold, this day they are in ^(DW)ruins and no one lives in them, ^3 (DX)because of their wickedness which they committed so as to ^(DY)provoke Me to anger by continuing to ^(DZ)burn ^[ap]sacrifices and to ^(EA)serve other gods whom they had not known, neither they, you, nor your fathers. ⁴ Yet I ^(EB)sent you all My servants the prophets, ^[aq]again and again, saying, “Oh, do not do this ^(EC)abominable thing which I hate.” ⁵ But ^(ED)they did not listen or incline their ears to turn from their wickedness, so as not to burn ^[ar]sacrifices to other gods. ⁶ Therefore My ^(EE)wrath and My anger were poured out and burned in the ^(EF)cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, so they have become a ruin and a ^(EG)desolation as it is this day. ⁷ Now then thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, “Why are you ^(EH)doing great harm to yourselves, so as to ^(EI)cut off from you man and woman, child and infant, from among Judah, leaving yourselves without remnant, ^8 (EJ)provoking Me to anger with the works of your hands, ^(EK)burning ^[as]sacrifices to other gods in the land of Egypt, where you are entering to reside, so that you might be cut off and become a ^(EL)curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth? ⁹ Have you forgotten the ^(EM)wickedness of your fathers, the wickedness of the kings of Judah, and the wickedness of their wives, your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? ¹⁰ But they ^(EN)have not become ^[at]contrite even to this day, nor have they feared nor ^(EO)walked in My law or My statutes, which I have set before you and before your fathers.”’

¹¹ “Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am going to ^(EP)set My face against you for ^[au]woe, even to cut off all Judah. ¹² And I will ^(EQ)take away the remnant of Judah who have set their ^[av]mind on entering the land of Egypt to reside there, and they will all ^[aw](ER)meet their end in the land of Egypt; they will fall by the sword and meet their end by famine. Both small and great will die by the sword and famine; and they will become a ^(ES)curse, an object of horror, an imprecation and a reproach. ¹³ And I will ^(ET)punish those who live in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, with the sword, with famine and with pestilence. ¹⁴ So there will be ^(EU)no refugees or survivors for the remnant of Judah who have entered the land of Egypt to reside there and then to return to the land of Judah, to which they are ^[ax](EV)longing to return and live; for none will ^(EW)return except a few refugees.’”

¹⁵ Then ^(EX)all the men who were aware that their wives were burning ^[ay]sacrifices to other gods, along with all the women who were standing by, as a large assembly, ^[az]including all the people who were living in Pathros in the land of Egypt, responded to Jeremiah, saying, ¹⁶ “As for the ^[ba](EY)message that you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord, ^(EZ)we are not going to listen to you! ¹⁷ But rather we will certainly ^(FA)carry out every word that has proceeded from our mouths, ^[bb]by burning ^[bc]sacrifices to the ^(FB)queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, just as ^(FC)we ourselves, our forefathers, our kings and our princes did in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then we had ^(FD)plenty of ^[bd]food and were well off and saw no ^[be]misfortune. ¹⁸ But since we stopped burning ^[bf]sacrifices to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have ^(FE)lacked everything and have ^[bg]met our end by the sword and by famine.” ¹⁹ “And,” said the women, “when we were ^(FF)burning ^[bh]sacrifices to the queen of heaven and ^[bi]were pouring out drink offerings to her, was it ^(FG)without our husbands that we made for her sacrificial cakes ^[bj]in her image and poured out drink offerings to her?”

Calamity for the Jews

²⁰ Then Jeremiah said to all the people, to the men and women—even to all the people who were giving him such an answer—saying, ²¹ “As for the ^[bk](FH)smoking sacrifices that you burned in the cities of Judah and in the ^(FI)streets of Jerusalem, you and your forefathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the Lord ^(FJ)remember them and did not all this come into His ^[bl]mind? ²² So the Lord was ^(FK)no longer able to endure it, ^(FL)because of the evil of your deeds, because of the abominations which you have committed; thus your land has become a ^(FM)ruin, an object of horror and a curse, without an inhabitant, as it is this day. ²³ Because you have burned ^[bm]sacrifices and have sinned against the Lord and ^(FN)not obeyed the voice of the Lord or ^(FO)walked in His law, His statutes or His testimonies, therefore this ^(FP)calamity has befallen you, as it has this day.”

²⁴ Then Jeremiah said to all the people, including all the women, “^(FQ)Hear the word of the Lord, all Judah who are ^(FR)in the land of Egypt, ²⁵ thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, as follows: ‘As for you and your wives, you have spoken with your mouths and fulfilled it with your hands, saying, “We will ^(FS)certainly perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn ^[bn]sacrifices to the queen of heaven and pour out drink offerings to her.” ^[bo](FT)Go ahead and confirm your vows, and certainly perform your vows!’ ^26 [bp]Nevertheless hear the word of the Lord, all Judah who are living in the land of Egypt, ‘Behold, I have ^(FU)sworn by My great name,’ says the Lord, ‘^(FV)never shall My name be invoked again by the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, “^(FW)As the Lord ^[bq]God lives.” ²⁷ Behold, I am watching over them ^(FX)for harm and not for good, and ^(FY)all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt will ^[br]meet their end by the sword and by famine until they ^[bs]are completely gone. ^28 (FZ)Those who escape the sword will return out of the land of Egypt to the land of Judah ^[bt](GA)few in number. Then all the remnant of Judah who have gone to the land of Egypt to reside there will know ^(GB)whose word will stand, Mine or theirs. ²⁹ This will be the ^(GC)sign to you,’ declares the Lord, ‘that I am going to punish you in this place, so that you may know that ^(GD)My words will surely stand against you for harm.’ ³⁰ Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I am going to give over ^(GE)Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt to the hand of his enemies, to the hand of those who seek his life, just as I gave over ^(GF)Zedekiah king of Judah to the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who was his enemy and was seeking his life.’”

Message to Baruch

45 This is the message which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to ^(GG)Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had ^(GH)written down these words in a book ^[bu]at Jeremiah’s dictation, in the ^(GI)fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying: ² “Thus says the Lord the God of Israel to you, O Baruch: ³ ‘You said, “Ah, woe is me! For the Lord has added sorrow to my pain; I am ^(GJ)weary with my groaning and have found no rest.”’ ⁴ Thus you are to say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Behold, ^(GK)what I have built I am about to tear down, and what I have planted I am about to uproot, that is, the whole land.” ⁵ But you, are you ^(GL)seeking great things for yourself? Do not seek them; for behold, I am going to ^(GM)bring disaster on all flesh,’ declares the Lord, ‘but I will ^(GN)give your life to you as booty in all the places where you may go.’”

Defeat of Pharaoh Foretold

46 That which came as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet ^(GO)concerning the nations.

² To ^(GP)Egypt, concerning the army of ^(GQ)Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt, which was by the Euphrates River at ^(GR)Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated in the ^(GS)fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

¹³ This is the ^[ch]message which the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the ^(HR)coming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to ^(HS)smite the land of Egypt:

²⁵ The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, says, “Behold, I am going to punish Amon of ^(IQ)Thebes, and ^(IR)Pharaoh, and Egypt along with her ^(IS)gods and her kings, even Pharaoh and those who ^(IT)trust in him. ²⁶ I shall give them over to the ^[cq]power of those who are ^(IU)seeking their lives, even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of his ^[cr]officers. ^(IV)Afterwards, however, it will be inhabited as in the days of old,” declares the Lord.

Prophecy against Philistia

47 That which came as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the ^(JC)Philistines, before Pharaoh ^[cs]conquered ^(JD)Gaza. ² Thus says the Lord:

Prophecy against Moab

48 Concerning ^(JR)Moab. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel,

¹² Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will send to him those who tip vessels, and they will tip him over, and they will empty his vessels and shatter ^[dd]his jars. ¹³ And Moab will be ^(KJ)ashamed of ^(KK)Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of ^(KL)Bethel, their confidence.

²¹ “Judgment has also come upon the plain, upon Holon, ^(KX)Jahzah and against ^(KY)Mephaath, ²² against Dibon, Nebo and Beth-diblathaim, ²³ against Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul and ^(KZ)Beth-meon, ²⁴ against ^(LA)Kerioth, Bozrah and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. ²⁵ The ^(LB)horn of Moab has been cut off and his ^(LC)arm broken,” declares the Lord. ²⁶ “^(LD)Make him drunk, for he has ^[dk]become ^(LE)arrogant toward the Lord; so Moab will ^[dl]wallow in his vomit, and he also will become a laughingstock. ²⁷ Now was not Israel a ^(LF)laughingstock to you? Or was he ^[dm](LG)caught among thieves? For each time you speak about him you ^(LH)shake your head in scorn.

^34 (LT)From the outcry at Heshbon even to ^(LU)Elealeh, even to Jahaz they have ^[dp]raised their voice, from ^(LV)Zoar even to Horonaim and to Eglath-shelishiyah; for even the waters of Nimrim will become desolate. ³⁵ I will make an end of Moab,” declares the Lord, “the one who offers sacrifice on the ^(LW)high place and the one who ^[dq](LX)burns incense to his gods.

³⁶ “Therefore My ^(LY)heart ^[dr]wails for Moab like flutes; My heart also ^[ds]wails like flutes for the men of Kir-heres. Therefore they have ^(LZ)lost the abundance it produced. ³⁷ For ^(MA)every head is bald and every beard cut short; there are gashes on all the hands and ^(MB)sackcloth on the loins. ³⁸ On all the ^(MC)housetops of Moab and in its streets ^[dt]there is lamentation everywhere; for I have broken Moab like an undesirable ^(MD)vessel,” declares the Lord. ³⁹ “How ^[du]shattered it is! How they have wailed! How Moab has turned his back—he is ashamed! So Moab will become a laughingstock and an ^(ME)object of terror to all around him.”

⁴⁰ For thus says the Lord:

Thus far the judgment on Moab.

Prophecy against Ammon

49 Concerning the sons of ^(MU)Ammon. Thus says the Lord:

Prophecy against Edom

¹² For thus says the Lord, “Behold, those ^[el]who were not sentenced to drink the ^(NV)cup will certainly drink it, and are you the one who will be ^(NW)completely acquitted? You will not be acquitted, but you will certainly drink it. ¹³ For I have ^(NX)sworn by Myself,” declares the Lord, “that ^(NY)Bozrah will become an ^(NZ)object of horror, a reproach, a ruin and a curse; and all its cities will become perpetual ruins.”

¹⁷ “Edom will become an ^(OG)object of horror; everyone who passes by it will be horrified and will ^(OH)hiss at all its wounds. ¹⁸ Like the ^(OI)overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah with its neighbors,” says the Lord, “^(OJ)no one will live there, nor will a son of man reside in it. ^19 (OK)Behold, one will come up like a lion from the ^[en](OL)thickets of the Jordan against ^[eo]a perennially watered pasture; for in an instant I will make him run away from it, and whoever is ^(OM)chosen I shall appoint over it. For who is ^(ON)like Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd ^(OO)who can stand against Me?”

²⁰ Therefore hear the ^(OP)plan of the Lord which He has planned against Edom, and His purposes which He has purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: surely they will drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; surely He will make their ^[ep]pasture ^(OQ)desolate because of them. ²¹ The ^(OR)earth has quaked at the noise of their downfall. There is an outcry! The noise of it has been heard at the ^[eq]Red Sea. ²² Behold, ^[er]He will mount up and ^(OS)swoop like an eagle and spread out His wings ^[es]against Bozrah; and the ^(OT)hearts of the mighty men of Edom in that day will be like the heart of a woman in labor.

Prophecy against Damascus

Prophecy against Kedar and Hazor

²⁸ Concerning ^(PE)Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated. Thus says the Lord,

Prophecy against Elam

³⁴ That which came as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet concerning ^(PQ)Elam, ^(PR)at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying:

Prophecy against Babylon

50 The word which the Lord spoke concerning ^(PZ)Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, through Jeremiah the prophet:

³ For a nation has come up against her out of the ^(QF)north; it will make her land ^(QG)an object of horror, and there will be ^(QH)no inhabitant in it. Both man and beast have wandered off, they have gone away!

⁴ “In those days and at that time,” declares the Lord, “the sons of Israel will come, both they and the sons of Judah ^(QI)as well; they will go along ^(QJ)weeping as they go, and it will be ^(QK)the Lord their God they will seek. ⁵ They will ^(QL)ask for the way to Zion, turning their faces ^[fd]in its direction; ^[fe]they ^[ff]will come that they may join themselves to the Lord in an ^(QM)everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.

¹⁷ “Israel is a ^(RM)scattered ^[fr]flock, the ^(RN)lions have driven them away. The first one who devoured him was the ^(RO)king of Assyria, and this last one who has broken his bones is ^(RP)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. ¹⁸ Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am going to punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I ^(RQ)punished the king of Assyria. ¹⁹ And I will ^(RR)bring Israel back to his pasture and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan, and his ^[fs]desire will be satisfied in the ^(RS)hill country of Ephraim and Gilead. ²⁰ In those days and at that time,’ declares the Lord, ‘search will be made for the iniquity of Israel, but ^(RT)there will be none; and for the sins of Judah, but they will not be found; for I will pardon those ^(RU)whom I leave as a remnant.’

⁴⁴ “^(TT)Behold, one will come up like a lion from the ^[gn]thicket of the Jordan to ^[go]a perennially watered pasture; for in an instant I will make them run away from it, and whoever is ^(TU)chosen I will appoint over it. For who is ^(TV)like Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd who can ^(TW)stand before Me?” ⁴⁵ Therefore hear the ^(TX)plan of the Lord which He has planned against Babylon, and His purposes which He has purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: ^(TY)surely they will drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; surely He will make their ^[gp]pasture desolate because of them. ⁴⁶ At the ^[gq]shout, “Babylon has been seized!” the ^(TZ)earth is shaken, and an ^(UA)outcry is heard among the nations.

Babylon Judged for Sins against Israel

51 Thus says the Lord:

²⁴ “But I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of ^(VV)Chaldea for ^(VW)all their evil that they have done in Zion before your eyes,” declares the Lord.

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

³⁶ Therefore thus says the Lord,

⁵⁸ Thus says the Lord of hosts,

⁵⁹ The ^[ip]message which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of ^(YQ)Neriah, the grandson of Mahseiah, when he went with ^(YR)Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. (Now Seraiah was quartermaster.) ⁶⁰ So Jeremiah ^(YS)wrote in a single ^[iq]scroll all the calamity which would come upon Babylon, that is, all these words which have been written concerning Babylon. ⁶¹ Then Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “As soon as you come to Babylon, then see that you read all these words aloud, ⁶² and say, ‘You, O Lord, have ^[ir]promised concerning this place to ^(YT)cut it off, so that there will be ^(YU)nothing dwelling in it, ^[is]whether man or beast, but it will be a perpetual desolation.’ ⁶³ And as soon as you finish reading this ^[it]scroll, you will tie a stone to it and ^(YV)throw it into the middle of the Euphrates, ⁶⁴ and say, ‘Just so shall Babylon sink down and ^(YW)not rise again because of the calamity that I am going to bring upon her; and they will become ^(YX)exhausted.’” ^(YY)Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

The Fall of Jerusalem

52 ^(YZ)Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was ^[iu](ZA)Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of ^(ZB)Libnah. ² He did ^(ZC)evil in the sight of the Lord like all that ^(ZD)Jehoiakim had done. ³ For through the ^(ZE)anger of the Lord this came about in Jerusalem and Judah until He cast them out from His presence. And Zedekiah ^(ZF)rebelled against the king of Babylon. ^4 (ZG)Now it came about in the ninth year of his reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, camped against it and built a ^(ZH)siege wall all around ^[iv]it. ^5 (ZI)So the city was under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. ⁶ On the ninth day of the ^(ZJ)fourth month the ^(ZK)famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. ⁷ Then the city was ^(ZL)broken into, and all the ^(ZM)men of war fled and went forth from the city at night by way of the gate between the two walls which was by the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were ^[iw](ZN)all around the city. And they went by way of the Arabah. ⁸ But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and ^(ZO)overtook Zedekiah in the ^[ix]plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. ⁹ Then they captured the king and ^(ZP)brought him up to the king of Babylon at ^(ZQ)Riblah in the land of ^(ZR)Hamath, and he ^[iy]passed sentence on him. ¹⁰ The king of Babylon ^(ZS)slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also slaughtered all the ^[iz]princes of Judah in Riblah. ¹¹ Then he ^(ZT)blinded the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him with bronze fetters and brought him to Babylon and put him in prison until the day of his death.

^12 (ZU)Now on the tenth day of the fifth month, which was the ^(ZV)nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, ^(ZW)Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard, ^[ja]who was in the service of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. ¹³ He ^(ZX)burned the house of the Lord, the ^(ZY)king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; even every large house he burned with fire. ¹⁴ So all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard ^(ZZ)broke down all the walls around Jerusalem. ¹⁵ Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard ^(AAA)carried away into exile some of the poorest of the people, the rest of the people who were left in the city, the ^[jb](AAB)deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon and the rest of the artisans. ¹⁶ But ^(AAC)Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and ^[jc]plowmen.

¹⁷ Now the bronze ^(AAD)pillars which belonged to the house of the Lord and the ^(AAE)stands and the bronze ^(AAF)sea, which were in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried all their bronze to Babylon. ¹⁸ They also took away the ^(AAG)pots, the shovels, the snuffers, the basins, the ^[jd]pans and all the bronze vessels which were used in temple service. ¹⁹ The captain of the guard also took away the ^(AAH)bowls, the firepans, the basins, the pots, the lampstands, the ^[je]pans and the drink offering bowls, what was fine gold and what was fine silver. ²⁰ The two pillars, the one sea, and the twelve bronze bulls that were under ^[jf]the sea, and the stands, which King Solomon had made for the house of the Lord—the bronze of all these vessels was ^(AAI)beyond weight. ²¹ As for the pillars, the ^(AAJ)height of each pillar was eighteen ^[jg]cubits, and ^[jh]it was twelve cubits in ^(AAK)circumference and four fingers in thickness, and hollow. ²² Now a ^(AAL)capital of bronze was on it; and the height of each capital was five cubits, with network and ^(AAM)pomegranates upon the capital all around, all of bronze. And the second pillar was like these, including pomegranates. ²³ There were ninety-six ^[ji]exposed pomegranates; all ^(AAN)the pomegranates numbered a hundred on the network all around.

²⁴ Then the captain of the guard took ^(AAO)Seraiah the chief priest and ^(AAP)Zephaniah the second priest, with the three ^[jj](AAQ)officers of the temple. ²⁵ He also took from the city one official who was overseer of the men of war, and seven ^[jk]of the ^(AAR)king’s advisers who were found in the city, and the scribe of the commander of the army who mustered the people of the land, and sixty men of the people of the land who were found in the midst of the city. ²⁶ Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and ^(AAS)brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. ²⁷ Then the king of Babylon ^(AAT)struck them down and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was ^(AAU)led away into exile from its land.

²⁸ These are the people whom ^(AAV)Nebuchadnezzar carried away into exile: in the ^[jl]seventh year 3,023 Jews; ²⁹ in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar 832 persons from Jerusalem; ³⁰ in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, ^(AAW)Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried into exile 745 Jewish people; there were 4,600 persons in all.

^31 (AAX)Now it came about in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth of the month, that ^[jm]Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, ^[jn](AAY)showed favor to Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. ^32 (AAZ)Then he spoke kindly to him and set his throne above the thrones of the kings who were with him in Babylon. ³³ So ^[jo]Jehoiachin ^(ABA)changed his prison clothes, and ^[jp](ABB)had his meals in ^[jq]the king’s presence regularly all the days of his life. ³⁴ For his allowance, a ^(ABC)regular allowance was given him by the king of Babylon, a daily portion all the days of his life until the day of his death.