Jeremiah 46
International Children’s Bible
Messages About the Nations
46 The Lord spoke this word to Jeremiah the prophet about the nations:
2 This message is about Egypt: This message is about the army of King Neco, king of Egypt. His army was defeated at the city of Carchemish on the Euphrates River. It was defeated by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. This was in the fourth year that Jehoiakim son of Josiah was king of Judah. This is the Lord’s message to Egypt:
3 “Prepare your shields, large and small.
March out for battle!
4 Harness the horses.
Soldiers, get on your horses!
Go to your places for battle.
Put on your helmets!
Polish your spears.
Put on your armor!
5 What do I see?
That army is terrified.
The soldiers are running away.
Their warriors are defeated.
They run away quickly.
They don’t look back.
There is terror on every side!” says the Lord.
6 “The fast runners cannot run away.
The strong soldiers cannot escape.
They will stumble and fall
in the north, by the Euphrates River.
7 Who is this, rising up like the Nile River?
Who comes like that strong, fast river?
8 Egypt rises up like the Nile River.
It is Egypt that comes like that strong, fast river.
Egypt says, ‘I will rise up and cover the earth.
I will destroy cities and the people in them!’
9 Horsemen, charge into battle!
Chariot drivers, drive hard!
March on, brave soldiers—
soldiers from Cush and Put who carry shields.
March on, soldiers from Lydia who use bows.
10 “But that day belongs to the Master, the Lord of heaven’s armies.
At that time he will give those people the punishment they deserve.
The sword will kill until it is finished.
The sword will kill until it satisfies its thirst for blood.
This is because the Master, the Lord of heaven’s armies, will offer a sacrifice.
That sacrifice is Egypt’s army in the land of the north, by the Euphrates River.
11 “Go to Gilead and get some balm.
Go up, people of Egypt!
You will make up many medicines,
but you will not be healed.
12 The nations will hear of your shame.
Your cries will fill all the earth.
One warrior will run into another.
And both of them will fall down together!”
13 This is the message the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet. This message is about Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon as he came to attack Egypt:
14 “Announce this message in Egypt, and prophesy it in Migdol.
Preach this message also in Memphis and Tahpanhes:
‘Get ready for war.
The battle is all around you.’
15 Egypt, why will your warriors be killed?
They cannot stand because the Lord will push them down.
16 Those soldiers will stumble again and again.
They will fall over each other.
They will say, ‘Get up. Let’s go back
to our own people and our homeland.
We must get away from our enemy’s sword!’
17 In their homelands those soldiers will say,
‘The king of Egypt is only a lot of noise.
His time of glory is over!’”
18 The King’s name is the Lord of heaven’s armies.
He says, “As surely as I live,
a powerful leader will come.
He will be strong as great Mount Tabor is higher than other mountains.
He will be mighty as Mount Carmel is higher than the sea.
19 People of Egypt, pack your things
to be taken away as captives.
This is because Memphis will be destroyed.
The cities will be ruins, and no one will live there.
20 “Egypt is like a beautiful young cow.
But a horsefly is coming
from the north to attack her.
21 The hired soldiers in Egypt’s army
are like fat calves.
They will all turn and run away together.
They will not stand strong against the attack.
Their time of destruction is coming.
They will soon be punished.
22 Egypt is like a hissing snake that is trying to escape.
The enemy comes closer and closer.
They will come against Egypt with axes.
They are like men who cut down trees.
23 They will chop down Egypt’s army
as if it were a great forest,” says the Lord.
“There are more enemy soldiers than locusts.
There are too many soldiers to count.
24 The people of Egypt will be ashamed.
They will be handed over to the enemy from the north.”
25 The Lord of heaven’s armies, the God of Israel, says: “Very soon I will punish Amon, the god of Thebes. And I will punish Egypt, her king and her gods. And I will punish the people who depend on the king. 26 I will let all those people be defeated by their enemies. And those enemies want to kill them. I will give them to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. But in the future, Egypt will live in peace as it once did,” says the Lord.
A Message to Israel
27 “People of Jacob, my servants, don’t be afraid.
Don’t be frightened, Israel.
I will surely save you from those faraway places.
I will save your children from the lands where they are captives.
The people of Jacob will have peace and safety again.
And no one will make them afraid.
28 People of Jacob, my servants, do not be afraid.
I am with you,” says the Lord.
“I scattered you to many different nations.
And I will completely destroy all those nations.
But I will not completely destroy you.
I will punish you fairly.
But I cannot let you escape your punishment.”
Jeremiah 46
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition
Judgment on Egypt
46 The word of the Lord which came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations.
2 About Egypt. Concerning the army of Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphra′tes at Car′chemish and which Nebuchadrez′zar king of Babylon defeated in the fourth year of Jehoi′akim the son of Josi′ah, king of Judah:
3 “Prepare buckler and shield,
and advance for battle!
4 Harness the horses;
mount, O horsemen!
Take your stations with your helmets,
polish your spears,
put on your coats of mail!
5 Why have I seen it?
They are dismayed
and have turned backward.
Their warriors are beaten down,
and have fled in haste;
they look not back—
terror on every side!
says the Lord.
6 The swift cannot flee away,
nor the warrior escape;
in the north by the river Euphra′tes
they have stumbled and fallen.
7 “Who is this, rising like the Nile,
like rivers whose waters surge?
8 Egypt rises like the Nile,
like rivers whose waters surge.
He said, I will rise, I will cover the earth,
I will destroy cities and their inhabitants.
9 Advance, O horses,
and rage, O chariots!
Let the warriors go forth:
men of Ethiopia and Put who handle the shield,
men of Lud, skilled in handling the bow.
10 That day is the day of the Lord God of hosts,
a day of vengeance,
to avenge himself on his foes.
The sword shall devour and be sated,
and drink its fill of their blood.
For the Lord God of hosts holds a sacrifice
in the north country by the river Euphra′tes.
11 Go up to Gilead, and take balm,
O virgin daughter of Egypt!
in vain you have used many medicines;
there is no healing for you.
12 The nations have heard of your shame,
and the earth is full of your cry;
for warrior has stumbled against warrior;
they have both fallen together.”
Babylonia Will Strike Egypt
13 The word which the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of Nebuchadrez′zar king of Babylon to smite the land of Egypt:
14 “Declare in Egypt, and proclaim in Migdol;
proclaim in Memphis and Tah′panhes;
Say, ‘Stand ready and be prepared,
for the sword shall devour round about you.’
15 Why has Apis fled?[a]
Why did not your bull stand?
Because the Lord thrust him down.
16 Your multitude stumbled[b] and fell,
and they said one to another,
‘Arise, and let us go back to our own people
and to the land of our birth,
because of the sword of the oppressor.’
17 Call the name of Pharaoh, king of Egypt,
‘Noisy one who lets the hour go by.’
18 “As I live, says the King,
whose name is the Lord of hosts,
like Tabor among the mountains,
and like Carmel by the sea, shall one come.
19 Prepare yourselves baggage for exile,
O inhabitants of Egypt!
For Memphis shall become a waste,
a ruin, without inhabitant.
20 “A beautiful heifer is Egypt,
but a gadfly from the north has come upon her.
21 Even her hired soldiers in her midst
are like fatted calves;
yea, they have turned and fled together,
they did not stand;
for the day of their calamity has come upon them,
the time of their punishment.
22 “She makes a sound like a serpent gliding away;
for her enemies march in force,
and come against her with axes,
like those who fell trees.
23 They shall cut down her forest,
says the Lord,
though it is impenetrable,
because they are more numerous than locusts;
they are without number.
24 The daughter of Egypt shall be put to shame,
she shall be delivered into the hand of a people from the north.”
25 The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, said: “Behold, I am bringing punishment upon Amon of Thebes, and Pharaoh, and Egypt and her gods and her kings, upon Pharaoh and those who trust in him. 26 I will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their life, into the hand of Nebuchadrez′zar king of Babylon and his officers. Afterward Egypt shall be inhabited as in the days of old, says the Lord.
God Will Save Israel
27 “But fear not, O Jacob my servant,
nor be dismayed, O Israel;
for lo, I will save you from afar,
and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
28 Fear not, O Jacob my servant,
says the Lord,
for I am with you.
I will make a full end of all the nations
to which I have driven you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
I will chasten you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 46:15 Gk: Heb Why was it swept away
- Jeremiah 46:16 Gk: Heb He made many stumble
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
The Revised Standard Version of the Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1965, 1966 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.