Jeremiah 49
Contemporary English Version
What the Lord Says about Ammon
49 (A) The Lord has this to say about the nation of Ammon:
The people of Israel
have plenty of children
to inherit their lands.
So why have you worshipers
of the god Milcom[a]
taken over towns and land
belonging to the tribe of Gad?
2 Someday I will send an army
to attack you in Rabbah,
your capital city.
It will be left in ruins,
and the surrounding villages
will lie in ashes.
You took some of Israel's land,
but on that day
Israel will take yours!
3 Cry, people of Heshbon;[b]
your town will become
a pile of rubble.[c]
You will turn here and there,
but your path will be blocked.[d]
Put on sackcloth[e] and mourn,
you citizens of Rabbah,
because the idol you worship[f]
will be taken
to a foreign country,
along with its priests
and temple officials.
4 You rebellious Ammonites
trust your wealth and ask,
“Who could attack us?”
But I warn you not to boast
when your strength is fading.[g]
5 I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will send neighboring nations
to strike you with terror.
You will be scattered,
with no one to care
for your refugees.
6 Yet someday, I will bring
your people back home.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
What the Lord Says about Edom
7 (B)(C) The Lord All-Powerful says about Edom:
Wisdom and common sense
have vanished from Teman.[h]
8 I will send disaster to punish
you descendants of Esau,[i]
so anyone from Dedan[j]
had better turn around
and run back home.[k]
9 People who harvest grapes
leave some for the poor.
Thieves who break in at night
take only what they want.
10 But I will take everything
that belongs to you,
people of Edom,
and I will uncover every place
where you try to hide.
Then you will die,
and so will your children,
relatives, and neighbors.
11 But I can be trusted
to care for your orphans
and widows.
12 Even those nations that don't deserve to be punished will have to drink from the cup of my anger. So how can you possibly hope to escape? 13 I, the Lord, swear in my own name that your city of Bozrah[l] and all your towns will suffer a horrible fate. They will lie in ruins forever, and people will use the name “Bozrah” as a curse word.
14 I have sent a messenger
to command the nations
to prepare for war
against you people of Edom.
15 Your nation will be small,
yet hated by other nations.
16 Pride tricks you into thinking
that other nations
look at you with fear.[m]
You live along the cliffs
and high in the mountains
like the eagles,
but I am the Lord,
and I will bring you down.
17 People passing by your country
will be shocked and horrified
to see a disaster
18 (D) as bad as the destruction
of Sodom and Gomorrah
and towns nearby.
The towns of Edom will be empty.
19 (E) I, the Lord, will attack you
like a lion from the forest,
attacking sheep in a meadow
along the Jordan.
In a moment the flock runs,
and the land is empty.
Who will I choose to attack you?
I will do it myself!
No one can force me to fight
or chase me away.
20 Listen to my plans for you,
people of Edom.[n]
Your children will be dragged off
and your country destroyed.
21 The sounds of your destruction
will reach the Red Sea[o]
and cause the earth to shake.
22 An enemy will swoop down
to attack you,
like an eagle spreading its wings
and circling over Bozrah.
Your warriors will be as fearful
as women giving birth.[p]
What the Lord Says about Damascus
23 (F) The Lord says about Damascus:
The towns of Hamath and Arpad[q]
have heard your bad news.
They have lost hope,
and worries roll over them
like ocean waves.[r]
24 You people of Damascus
have lost your courage,
and in panic you turn to run,
gripped by fear and pain.[s]
25 Once I was pleased
with your famous city.
But now I warn you, “Escape
while you still can!”[t]
26 Soon, even your best soldiers
will lie dead in your streets.
I, the Lord All-Powerful,
have spoken.
27 I will set fire to your city walls
and burn down the fortresses
King Benhadad built.
Nebuchadnezzar and the People of the Desert
28 Here is what the Lord says about the Kedar tribe and the desert villages[u] that were conquered by King Nebuchadnezzar[v] of Babylonia:
Listen, you people of Kedar
and the other tribes
of the eastern desert.
I have told Nebuchadnezzar
to attack and destroy you.
29 His fearsome army
will surround you,
taking your tents and possessions,
your sheep and camels.
30 Run and hide,
you people of the desert
who live in villages![w]
Nebuchadnezzar has big plans
for you.
31 You have no city walls
and no neighbors to help,
yet you think you're safe—
so I told him to attack.
32 Then your camels
and large herds
will be yours no longer.
People of the Arabian Desert,[x]
disaster will strike you
from every side,
and you will be scattered
everywhere on earth.
33 Only jackals[y] will live
where your villages[z] once stood.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
What the Lord Says about Elam
34-35 Not long after Zedekiah[aa] became king of Judah, the Lord told me to say:
People of Elam,[ab]
I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will kill the archers
who make your army strong.
36 Enemies will attack
from all directions,
and you will be led captive
to every nation on earth.
37 Their armies will crush
and kill you,
and you will face the disaster
that my anger brings.
38 Your king and his officials
will die, and I will rule
in their place.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
39 But I promise that someday
I will bring your people
back to their land.
Footnotes
- 49.1 Milcom: The national god of Ammon, probably the same as the god Molech in 32.35.
- 49.3 Heshbon: See also 48.45; since Heshbon was near the border of Moab and Ammon, it was probably ruled by the country that was stronger at the time.
- 49.3 your town will become a pile of rubble: Or “because the town of Ai has been destroyed”; referring to an Ammonite town named Ai, not the town of that name near Bethel in the land of Israel.
- 49.3 You will turn … blocked: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.3 sackcloth: See the note at 4.8.
- 49.3 the idol you worship: Hebrew “Milcom” (see verse 1 and the note there).
- 49.4 when … fading: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.7,8 Teman: The name of a town in Edom, sometimes used as the name of the northern half of the nation of Edom; here it probably stands for the whole nation.
- 49.7,8 Esau: The ancestor of the nation of Edom.
- 49.7,8 Dedan: The name of a town in northwest Arabia, also used of the northwest region of Arabia along the Red Sea.
- 49.7,8 anyone … home: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.13 Bozrah: The main city and capital of Edom.
- 49.16 Pride … fear: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.20 Edom: The Hebrew text also uses the name “Teman” (see the note at 49.7,8).
- 49.21 Red Sea: Hebrew yam suph, here referring to the Gulf of Aqaba, since the term is extended to include the northeastern arm of the Red Sea (see also the note at Exodus 13.18).
- 49.22 as fearful … birth: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.23 Hamath and Arpad: Two towns in Syria that had been the capitals of small kingdoms allied with the more powerful kingdom whose capital was Damascus.
- 49.23 worries … waves: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.24 gripped by fear and pain: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.25 can: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 25.
- 49.28 desert villages: The Hebrew text has “kingdoms of Hazor,” which probably refers to several kingdoms of desert peoples who were not nomads, but who lived in small villages.
- 49.28 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2.
- 49.30 villages: See the note at 49.28.
- 49.32 People of the Arabian Desert: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 49.33 jackals: See the note at 9.11.
- 49.33 villages: See the note at 49.28.
- 49.34,35 Zedekiah: See the note at 1.3.
- 49.34,35 Elam: A nation east of Babylonia, attacked by Nebuchadnezzar about 596 b.c.
Jeremiah 49
New King James Version
Judgment on Ammon
49 Against the (A)Ammonites.
Thus says the Lord:
“Has Israel no sons?
Has he no heir?
Why then does [a]Milcom inherit (B)Gad,
And his people dwell in its cities?
2 (C)Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord,
“That I will cause to be heard an alarm of war
In (D)Rabbah of the Ammonites;
It shall be a desolate mound,
And her [b]villages shall be burned with fire.
Then Israel shall take possession of his inheritance,” says the Lord.
3 “Wail, O (E)Heshbon, for Ai is plundered!
Cry, you daughters of Rabbah,
(F)Gird yourselves with sackcloth!
Lament and run to and fro by the walls;
For [c]Milcom shall go into captivity
With his (G)priests and his princes together.
4 Why (H)do you boast in the valleys,
[d]Your flowing valley, O (I)backsliding daughter?
Who trusted in her (J)treasures, (K)saying,
‘Who will come against me?’
5 Behold, I will bring fear upon you,”
Says the Lord God of hosts,
“From all those who are around you;
You shall be driven out, everyone headlong,
And no one will gather those who wander off.
6 But (L)afterward I will bring back
The captives of the people of Ammon,” says the Lord.
Judgment on Edom
7 (M)Against Edom.
Thus says the Lord of hosts:
(N)“Is wisdom no more in Teman?
(O)Has counsel perished from the prudent?
Has their wisdom (P)vanished?
8 Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths, O inhabitants of (Q)Dedan!
For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him,
The time that I will punish him.
9 (R)If grape-gatherers came to you,
Would they not leave some gleaning grapes?
If thieves by night,
Would they not destroy until they have enough?
10 (S)But I have made Esau bare;
I have uncovered his secret places,
And he shall not be able to hide himself.
His descendants are plundered,
His brethren and his neighbors,
And (T)he is no more.
11 Leave your fatherless children,
I will preserve them alive;
And let your widows trust in Me.”
12 For thus says the Lord: “Behold, (U)those whose judgment was not to drink of the cup have assuredly drunk. And are you the one who will altogether go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you shall surely drink of it. 13 For (V)I have sworn by Myself,” says the Lord, “that (W)Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a [e]waste, and a curse. And all its cities shall be perpetual [f]wastes.”
14 (X)I have heard a message from the Lord,
And an ambassador has been sent to the nations:
“Gather together, come against her,
And rise up to battle!
15 “For indeed, I will make you small among nations,
Despised among men.
16 Your fierceness has deceived you,
The (Y)pride of your heart,
O you who dwell in the clefts of the rock,
Who hold the height of the hill!
(Z)Though you make your (AA)nest as high as the eagle,
(AB)I will bring you down from there,” says the Lord.
17 “Edom also shall be an astonishment;
(AC)Everyone who goes by it will be astonished
And will hiss at all its plagues.
18 (AD)As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah
And their neighbors,” says the Lord,
“No one shall remain there,
Nor shall a son of man dwell in it.
19 “Behold,(AE) he shall come up like a lion from (AF)the [g]floodplain of the Jordan
Against the dwelling place of the strong;
But I will suddenly make him run away from her.
And who is a chosen man that I may appoint over her?
For (AG)who is like Me?
Who will arraign Me?
And (AH)who is that shepherd
Who will withstand Me?”
20 (AI)Therefore hear the counsel of the Lord that He has taken against Edom,
And His purposes that He has proposed against the inhabitants of Teman:
Surely the least of the flock shall [h]draw them out;
Surely He shall make their dwelling places desolate with them.
21 (AJ)The earth shakes at the noise of their fall;
At the cry its noise is heard at the Red Sea.
22 Behold, (AK)He shall come up and fly like the eagle,
And spread His wings over Bozrah;
The heart of the mighty men of Edom in that day shall be
Like the heart of a woman in birth pangs.
Judgment on Damascus
23 (AL)Against Damascus.
(AM)“Hamath and Arpad are shamed,
For they have heard bad news.
They are fainthearted;
(AN)There is [i]trouble on the sea;
It cannot be quiet.
24 Damascus has grown feeble;
She turns to flee,
And fear has seized her.
(AO)Anguish and sorrows have taken her like a woman in [j]labor.
25 Why is (AP)the city of praise not deserted, the city of My joy?
26 (AQ)Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets,
And all the men of war shall be cut off in that day,” says the Lord of hosts.
27 “I(AR) will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus,
And it shall consume the palaces of Ben-Hadad.”
Judgment on Kedar and Hazor
28 (AS)Against Kedar and against the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon shall strike.
Thus says the Lord:
“Arise, go up to Kedar,
And devastate (AT)the men of the East!
29 Their (AU)tents and their flocks they shall take away.
They shall take for themselves their curtains,
All their vessels and their camels;
And they shall cry out to them,
(AV)‘Fear is on every side!’
30 “Flee, get far away! Dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of Hazor!” says the Lord.
“For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has taken counsel against you,
And has conceived a plan against you.
31 “Arise, go up to (AW)the wealthy nation that dwells securely,” says the Lord,
“Which has neither gates nor bars,
(AX)Dwelling alone.
32 Their camels shall be for booty,
And the multitude of their cattle for plunder.
I will (AY)scatter to all winds those [k]in the farthest corners,
And I will bring their calamity from all its sides,” says the Lord.
33 “Hazor (AZ)shall be a dwelling for jackals, a desolation forever;
No one shall reside there,
Nor son of man dwell in it.”
Judgment on Elam
34 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet against (BA)Elam, in the (BB)beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, 35 “Thus says the Lord of hosts:
‘Behold, I will break (BC)the [l]bow of Elam,
The foremost of their might.
36 Against Elam I will bring the four winds
From the four quarters of heaven,
And scatter them toward all those winds;
There shall be no nations where the outcasts of Elam will not go.
37 For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies
And before those who seek their life.
(BD)I will bring disaster upon them,
My fierce anger,’ says the Lord;
‘And I will send the sword after them
Until I have consumed them.
38 I will (BE)set My throne in Elam,
And will destroy from there the king and the princes,’ says the Lord.
39 ‘But it shall come to pass (BF)in the latter days:
I will bring back the captives of Elam,’ says the Lord.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 49:1 Heb. Malcam, lit. their king; an Ammonite god, 1 Kin. 11:5; Molech, Lev. 18:21
- Jeremiah 49:2 Lit. daughters
- Jeremiah 49:3 See v. 1
- Jeremiah 49:4 Lit. Your valley is flowing
- Jeremiah 49:13 ruin
- Jeremiah 49:13 ruins
- Jeremiah 49:19 Or thicket
- Jeremiah 49:20 Or drag them away
- Jeremiah 49:23 anxiety
- Jeremiah 49:24 childbirth
- Jeremiah 49:32 Lit. cut off at the corner, Jer. 9:26; 25:23
- Jeremiah 49:35 Power
Jeremiah 49
English Standard Version
Judgment on Ammon
49 (A)Concerning the Ammonites.
Thus says the Lord:
“Has Israel no sons?
Has he no heir?
Why then has (B)Milcom[a] (C)dispossessed Gad,
and his people settled in its cities?
2 Therefore, behold, the days are coming,
declares the Lord,
when I will cause (D)the battle cry to be heard
against (E)Rabbah of the Ammonites;
it shall become a desolate (F)mound,
and its villages shall be burned with fire;
then Israel shall dispossess those who dispossessed him,
says the Lord.
3 “Wail, O (G)Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste!
Cry out, O daughters of (H)Rabbah!
(I)Put on sackcloth,
lament, and run to and fro among the hedges!
For (J)Milcom shall go into exile,
(K)with his priests and his officials.
4 Why do you boast of your valleys,[b]
(L)O faithless daughter,
(M)who trusted in her treasures, saying,
‘Who will come against me?’
5 Behold, (N)I will bring terror upon you,
declares the Lord God of hosts,
from all who are around you,
and you shall be driven out, every man straight before him,
with none to gather the fugitives.
6 “But (O)afterward I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites, declares the Lord.”
Judgment on Edom
7 Concerning (P)Edom.
Thus says the Lord of hosts:
(Q)“Is wisdom no more in (R)Teman?
(S)Has counsel perished from the prudent?
(T)Has their wisdom vanished?
8 (U)Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of (V)Dedan!
For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him,
(W)the time when I punish him.
9 (X)If grape gatherers came to you,
would they not leave (Y)gleanings?
(Z)If thieves came by night,
would they not destroy only enough for themselves?
10 (AA)But I have stripped Esau bare;
(AB)I have uncovered his hiding places,
and he is not able to conceal himself.
His children are destroyed, and his brothers,
and his neighbors; and (AC)he is no more.
11 (AD)Leave your fatherless children; I will keep them alive;
(AE)and let your widows trust in me.”
12 For thus says the Lord: (AF)“If those who did not deserve to drink the cup must drink it, (AG)will you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you must drink. 13 (AH)For I have sworn by myself, declares the Lord, that (AI)Bozrah shall become (AJ)a horror, a taunt, a waste, and a curse, and all her cities shall be perpetual wastes.”
14 (AK)I have heard a message from the Lord,
and an envoy has been sent among the nations:
(AL)“Gather yourselves together and come against her,
and rise up for battle!
15 For behold, I will make you small among the nations,
despised among mankind.
16 The horror you inspire has deceived you,
and the pride of your heart,
you who live in the clefts of the rock,[c]
who hold the height of the hill.
Though you (AM)make your nest as high as the eagle's,
I will bring you down from there,
declares the Lord.
17 (AN)“Edom shall become a horror. (AO)Everyone who passes by it will be horrified (AP)and will hiss because of all its disasters. 18 (AQ)As when Sodom and Gomorrah and their (AR)neighboring cities were overthrown, says the Lord, (AS)no man shall dwell there, (AT)no man shall sojourn in her. 19 (AU)Behold, (AV)like a lion coming up from (AW)the jungle of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make him[d] run away from her. And I will appoint over her whomever I choose. (AX)For who is like me? (AY)Who will summon me? (AZ)What shepherd can stand before me? 20 Therefore hear the plan that the Lord has made against (BA)Edom and the purposes that he has formed against the inhabitants of (BB)Teman: (BC)Even the little ones of the flock shall be dragged away. Surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 21 At the sound of their fall (BD)the earth shall tremble; the sound of their cry shall be heard at the Red Sea. 22 Behold, (BE)one shall mount up and fly swiftly like an eagle and spread his wings against (BF)Bozrah, and the heart of the warriors of Edom shall be in that day like the heart (BG)of a woman in her birth pains.”
Judgment on Damascus
23 Concerning (BH)Damascus:
(BI)“Hamath and (BJ)Arpad are confounded,
for they have heard bad news;
they melt in fear,
(BK)they are troubled like the sea that cannot be quiet.
24 (BL)Damascus has become feeble, (BM)she turned to flee,
and panic seized her;
anguish and sorrows have taken hold of her,
as (BN)of a woman in labor.
25 How is (BO)the famous city not forsaken,
the city of my joy?
26 (BP)Therefore her young men shall fall in her squares,
and all her soldiers shall be destroyed in that day,
declares the Lord of hosts.
27 And (BQ)I will kindle a fire in the wall of (BR)Damascus,
and it shall devour the strongholds of (BS)Ben-hadad.”
Judgment on Kedar and Hazor
28 Concerning (BT)Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck down.
Thus says the Lord:
(BU)“Rise up, advance against (BV)Kedar!
Destroy (BW)the people of the east!
29 (BX)Their tents and their flocks shall be taken,
their (BY)curtains and all their goods;
their camels shall be led away from them,
and men shall cry to them: (BZ)‘Terror on every side!’
30 (CA)Flee, wander far away, dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of Hazor!
declares the Lord.
For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
has made a plan against you
and formed a purpose against you.
31 (CB)“Rise up, advance against a nation (CC)at ease,
(CD)that dwells securely,
declares the Lord,
(CE)that has no gates or bars,
that dwells alone.
32 (CF)Their camels shall become plunder,
their herds of livestock a spoil.
(CG)I will scatter to every wind
(CH)those who cut the corners of their hair,
and I will bring their calamity
from every side of them,
declares the Lord.
33 Hazor shall become (CI)a haunt of jackals,
an everlasting waste;
(CJ)no man shall dwell there;
(CK)no man shall sojourn in her.”
Judgment on Elam
34 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning (CL)Elam, in the beginning of the reign of (CM)Zedekiah king of Judah.
35 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Behold, I will break (CN)the bow of (CO)Elam, the mainstay of their might. 36 And I will bring upon (CP)Elam the four winds from the four quarters of heaven. And I will scatter them to all those winds, and there shall be no nation to which those driven out of (CQ)Elam shall not come. 37 I will (CR)terrify (CS)Elam before their enemies and before those who seek their life. I will bring disaster upon them, (CT)my fierce anger, declares the Lord. (CU)I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them, 38 and I will set my throne in (CV)Elam and destroy their king and officials, declares the Lord.
39 “But in the latter days (CW)I will restore the fortunes of (CX)Elam, declares the Lord.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 49:1 Or their king; also verse 3
- Jeremiah 49:4 Hebrew boast of your valleys, your valley flows
- Jeremiah 49:16 Or of Sela
- Jeremiah 49:19 Septuagint, Syriac them
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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