Jeremiah 50
Evangelical Heritage Version
A Prophecy About Babylon and Israel
50 The word that the Lord spoke concerning Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, through Jeremiah the prophet:
2 Declare and proclaim this among the nations.
Set up a signal flag.
Proclaim and do not hide it.
Say this:
Babylon has been taken.
Bel has been put to shame.
Marduk is terrified.
Babylon’s images have been put to shame.
Her filthy idols are terrified.
3 A nation has come up against her out of the north.
It will make her land desolate,
and no one will dwell in it.
Both man and animal have wandered away.
They are gone.
4 In those days, and in that time, declares the Lord,
the people of Israel will come,
they and the people of Judah together with them.
They will come weeping,
and they will seek the Lord their God.
5 They will ask the way to Zion and turn toward it,
saying, “Come, join yourselves to the Lord
in an everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.”
6 My people have been lost sheep.
Their shepherds have led them astray.
They have turned them aside on the mountains.
They have gone from mountain to hill.
They have forgotten their resting place.
7 All who found them have devoured them.
Their enemies said, “We are not guilty,
because they sinned against the Lord,
who is their rightful pasture,
the Lord, the hope of their fathers.”
8 Flee from Babylon!
Leave the land of the Chaldeans.
Be like the male goats that lead the flock.
9 Watch, I will stir up and bring against Babylon
an assembly of great nations from the land of the north.
They will array themselves against her,
and she will be taken away captive from there.
Their arrows will be like those of a skilled warrior
who does not return empty-handed.
10 Chaldea will be plundered.
All who prey on her will have their fill, declares the Lord.
11 Because you are glad and rejoice,
you who plunder my inheritance,
because you leap like a heifer that treads out the grain,
and you neigh like strong horses,
12 your mother will be completely put to shame.
She who gave birth to you will be humiliated.
Watch, she will become the least of the nations,
a wilderness, a desert, a wasteland.
13 Because of the Lord’s wrath she will not be inhabited.
She will be completely desolate.
Everyone who passes by Babylon will be astonished.
Everyone will mock her because of all her wounds.
14 Line up for battle against Babylon and surround her.
All you who bend the bow, shoot at her.
Don’t save any arrows,
because she has sinned against the Lord.
15 Shout against her from all sides.
She surrenders!
Her fortifications[a] have fallen.
Her walls have been thrown down.
This is the vengeance of the Lord.
Take vengeance on her!
Do to her as she has done to others!
16 Cut off the sower from Babylon,
and the one who swings the sickle at harvest time.
They will each return to their own people.
They will each flee to their own land
because they fear the sword of the oppressor.
17 Israel is a scattered flock of sheep that lions have chased away.
First, the king of Assyria devoured him.
Now, the last to crush his bones was Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
18 Therefore this is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says:
I will certainly punish the king of Babylon and his land,
as I punished the king of Assyria.
19 I will restore Israel to his pasture.
He will feed on Carmel and in Bashan.
His soul will be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.
20 In those days and at that time, declares the Lord,
the guilt of Israel will be sought,
but there will be none.
The sins of Judah will be sought,
but they will not be found,
for I will forgive the survivors whom I spare.
21 Go up against the land of Merathaim
and against those who live in Pekod.
Kill them and destroy them, declares the Lord.
Do everything I have commanded you.
22 The noise of battle is in the land,
the noise of great destruction.
23 How the hammer of the whole earth
is smashed and broken to pieces!
How Babylon has become a horror among the nations!
24 I set a trap for you, Babylon,
and you were caught before you knew it.
You were found and captured,
because you fought against the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened his arsenal
and brought out his weapons of wrath,
for the Lord God of Armies has work to do
in the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come against her from far away.
Open up her granaries,
and pile her up like heaps of grain.
Destroy her completely.
Let nothing be left.
27 Kill all her young bulls.[b]
Let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them, for their day has come,
the time for their punishment.
28 Listen to the fugitives and refugees from Babylon!
They proclaim in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God,
vengeance for what was done to his temple.
29 Call the archers to Babylon,
all those who bend the bow.
Set up camp all around her.
Don’t let her escape.
Pay her back for her deeds.
Do to her what she has done,
because she has defied the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel.
30 Therefore her young men will fall in the streets.
All her soldiers will be silenced in that day, declares the Lord.
31 Look, I am against you, you proud one, declares the Lord God of Armies.
Your day has come,
the time for your punishment.
32 The proud king[c] will stumble and fall,
and no one will help him up.
In his cities I will start a fire
that will consume everyone around him.
33 This is what the Lord of Armies says.
The children of Israel and the children of Judah are oppressed.
All their captors hold them fast.
They refuse to let them go.
34 But their Redeemer is strong.
The Lord of Armies is his name.
He himself will take up their cause
so that he may bring rest to the earth,
and unrest to those who live in Babylon.
35 A sword against the Chaldeans, declares the Lord,
and against those who live in Babylon,
against her officials and her wise men!
36 A sword against her empty boasters!
They will become fools.
A sword against her strong warriors!
They will be filled with terror.
37 A sword against their horses and chariots!
All the foreigners in her ranks will become as weak as women.
A sword against her treasures!
They will be looted.
38 A sword against her waters!
They will be dried up,
because it is a land of idols,
and they are driven mad by those dreadful images.
39 That is why desert animals and hyenas[d] will live there,
and shrieking ostriches will dwell there.
It will never again be inhabited.
It will never be lived in from generation to generation.
40 Just as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah
and their neighboring cities, declares the Lord,
no one will dwell there.
No one will live there even as a temporary resident.
41 Look! A people comes from the north!
A great nation and many kings are being stirred up
from the ends of the earth.
42 They take up bow and spear.
They are cruel and merciless.
Their roar sounds like the sea.
They ride on horses,
arrayed in battle formation against you, daughter of Babylon.
43 The king of Babylon has heard the report about them,
and his hands hang limp.
Anguish grips him,
pains like a woman in labor.
44 Watch this!
Like a lion coming out of the thickets of the Jordan
into the pastures that are always green,
I will suddenly chase Babylon away from its land,
and I will appoint whomever I choose over it.
For who is like me?
Who can challenge me?
What shepherd can stand before me?
45 Therefore hear what the Lord has planned for Babylon,
and what he intends to do against the land of the Chaldeans:
Even the little ones of the flock will be dragged away.
He will make their pasture desolate because of them.
46 The earth will tremble at the noise of Babylon’s fall.
Their cry will be heard among the nations.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 50:15 The meaning of the Hebrew word translated fortifications is uncertain. The Greek reads battlements; the Latin reads foundations.
- Jeremiah 50:27 Perhaps a reference to young warriors
- Jeremiah 50:32 The Hebrew text does not contain the word king, but the pronouns shift from feminine to masculine, suggesting a reference to the king.
- Jeremiah 50:39 The meaning of this Hebrew term is uncertain.
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
King James Version
50 The word that the Lord spake against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet.
2 Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Merodach is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces.
3 For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
4 In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek the Lord their God.
5 They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the Lord in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten.
6 My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace.
7 All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the Lord, the habitation of justice, even the Lord, the hope of their fathers.
8 Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he goats before the flocks.
9 For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain.
10 And Chaldea shall be a spoil: all that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith the Lord.
11 Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage, because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls;
12 Your mother shall be sore confounded; she that bare you shall be ashamed: behold, the hindermost of the nations shall be a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
13 Because of the wrath of the Lord it shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate: every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished, and hiss at all her plagues.
14 Put yourselves in array against Babylon round about: all ye that bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the Lord.
15 Shout against her round about: she hath given her hand: her foundations are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of the Lord: take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her.
16 Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people, and they shall flee every one to his own land.
17 Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.
18 Therefore thus saith 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 Assyria.
19 And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead.
20 In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.
21 Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: waste and utterly destroy after them, saith the Lord, and do according to all that I have commanded thee.
22 A sound of battle is in the land, and of great destruction.
23 How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken! how is Babylon become a desolation among the nations!
24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the Lord.
25 The Lord hath opened his armoury, and hath brought forth 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 utmost border, open her storehouses: cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly: let nothing of her be left.
27 Slay all her bullocks; let them go down to the slaughter: woe unto them! for their day is come, the time of their visitation.
28 The voice of them that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, the vengeance of his temple.
29 Call together the archers against Babylon: all ye that bend the bow, camp against it round about; let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the Lord, against the Holy One of Israel.
30 Therefore shall her young men fall in the streets, and all her men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the Lord.
31 Behold, I am against thee, O thou most proud, saith the Lord God of hosts: for thy day is come, the time that I will visit thee.
32 And the most proud shall stumble and fall, and none shall raise him up: and I will kindle a fire in his cities, and it shall devour all round about him.
33 Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The children of Israel and the children of Judah were oppressed together: and all that took them captives held them fast; they refused to let them go.
34 Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name: he shall throughly plead their cause, that he may give rest to the land, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 A sword is upon the Chaldeans, saith the Lord, and upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and upon her wise men.
36 A sword is upon the liars; and they shall dote: a sword is upon her mighty men; and they shall be dismayed.
37 A sword is upon their horses, and upon their chariots, and upon all the mingled people that are in the midst of her; and they shall become as women: a sword is upon her treasures; and they shall be robbed.
38 A drought is upon her waters; and they shall be dried up: for it is the land of graven images, and they are mad upon their idols.
39 Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the islands shall dwell there, and the owls shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.
40 As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the Lord; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein.
41 Behold, a people shall come from the north, and a great nation, and many kings shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.
42 They shall hold the bow and the lance: they are cruel, and will not shew mercy: their voice shall roar like the sea, and they shall ride upon horses, every one put in array, like a man to the battle, against thee, O daughter of Babylon.
43 The king of Babylon hath heard the report of them, and his hands waxed feeble: anguish took hold of him, and pangs as of a woman in travail.
44 Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan unto the habitation 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? and who will appoint me the time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?
45 Therefore hear ye the counsel of the Lord, that he hath taken against Babylon; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out: surely he shall make their habitation desolate with them.
46 At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth is moved, and the cry is heard among the nations.
Jeremiah 50
New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised
Judgement on Babylon
50 The word that the Lord spoke concerning Babylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, by the prophet Jeremiah:
2 Declare among the nations and proclaim,
set up a banner and proclaim,
do not conceal it, say:
Babylon is taken,
Bel is put to shame,
Merodach is dismayed.
Her images are put to shame,
her idols are dismayed.
3 For out of the north a nation has come up against her; it shall make her land a desolation, and no one shall live in it; both human beings and animals shall flee away.
4 In those days and at that time, says the Lord, the people of Israel shall come, they and the people of Judah together; they shall come weeping as they seek the Lord their God. 5 They shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned towards it, and they shall come and join[a] themselves to the Lord by an everlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.
6 My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains; from mountain to hill they have gone, they have forgotten their fold. 7 All who found them have devoured them, and their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, because they have sinned against the Lord, the true pasture, the Lord, the hope of their ancestors.’
8 Flee from Babylon, and go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be like male goats leading the flock. 9 For I am going to stir up and bring against Babylon a company of great nations from the land of the north; and they shall array themselves against her; from there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like the arrows of a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 Chaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, says the Lord.
11 Though you rejoice, though you exult,
O plunderers of my heritage,
though you frisk about like a heifer on the grass,
and neigh like stallions,
12 your mother shall be utterly shamed,
and she who bore you shall be disgraced.
Lo, she shall be the last of the nations,
a wilderness, dry land, and a desert.
13 Because of the wrath of the Lord she shall not be inhabited,
but shall be an utter desolation;
everyone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled
and hiss because of all her wounds.
14 Take up your positions around Babylon,
all you that bend the bow;
shoot at her, spare no arrows,
for she has sinned against the Lord.
15 Raise a shout against her from all sides,
‘She has surrendered;
her bulwarks have fallen,
her walls are thrown down.’
For this is the vengeance of the Lord:
take vengeance on her,
do to her as she has done.
16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the wielder of the sickle in time of harvest;
because of the destroying sword
all of them shall return to their own people,
and all of them shall flee to their own land.
17 Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria devoured it, and now at the end King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon has gnawed its bones. 18 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I am going to punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I punished the king of Assyria. 19 I will restore Israel to its pasture, and it shall feed on Carmel and in Bashan, and on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead its hunger shall be satisfied. 20 In those days and at that time, says the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and none shall be found; for I will pardon the remnant that I have spared.
21 Go up to the land of Merathaim;[b]
go up against her,
and attack the inhabitants of Pekod[c]
and utterly destroy the last of them,[d]
says the Lord;
do all that I have commanded you.
22 The noise of battle is in the land,
and great destruction!
23 How the hammer of the whole earth
is cut down and broken!
How Babylon has become
a horror among the nations!
24 You set a snare for yourself and you were caught, O Babylon,
but you did not know it;
you were discovered and seized,
because you challenged the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened his armoury,
and brought out the weapons of his wrath,
for the Lord God of hosts has a task to do
in the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come against her from every quarter;
open her granaries;
pile her up like heaps of grain, and destroy her utterly;
let nothing be left of her.
27 Kill all her bulls,
let them go down to the slaughter.
Alas for them, their day has come,
the time of their punishment!
28 Listen! Fugitives and refugees from the land of Babylon are coming to declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for his temple.
29 Summon archers against Babylon, all who bend the bow. Encamp all around her; let no one escape. Repay her according to her deeds; just as she has done, do to her—for she has arrogantly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 30 Therefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, says the Lord.
31 I am against you, O arrogant one,
says the Lord God of hosts;
for your day has come,
the time when I will punish you.
32 The arrogant one shall stumble and fall,
with no one to raise him up,
and I will kindle a fire in his cities,
and it will devour everything around him.
33 Thus says the Lord of hosts: The people of Israel are oppressed, and so too are the people of Judah; all their captors have held them fast and refuse to let them go. 34 Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name. He will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 A sword against the Chaldeans, says the Lord,
and against the inhabitants of Babylon,
and against her officials and her sages!
36 A sword against the diviners,
so that they may become fools!
A sword against her warriors,
so that they may be destroyed!
37 A sword against her[e] horses and against her[f] chariots,
and against all the foreign troops in her midst,
so that they may become women!
A sword against all her treasures,
that they may be plundered!
38 A drought[g] against her waters,
that they may be dried up!
For it is a land of images,
and they go mad over idols.
39 Therefore wild animals shall live with hyenas in Babylon,[h] and ostriches shall inhabit her; she shall never again be peopled, or inhabited for all generations. 40 As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbours, says the Lord, so no one shall live there, nor shall anyone settle in her.
41 Look, a people is coming from the north;
a mighty nation and many kings
are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
42 They wield bow and spear,
they are cruel and have no mercy.
The sound of them is like the roaring sea;
they ride upon horses,
set in array as a warrior for battle,
against you, O daughter Babylon!
43 The king of Babylon heard news of them,
and his hands fell helpless;
anguish seized him,
pain like that of a woman in labour.
44 Like a lion coming up from the thickets of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly chase them away from her; and I will appoint over her whomsoever I choose.[i] For who is like me? Who can summon me? Who is the shepherd who can stand before me? 45 Therefore hear the plan that the Lord has made against Babylon, and the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely the little ones of the flock shall be dragged away; surely their[j] fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 At the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 50:5 Gk: Heb towards it. Come! They shall join
- Jeremiah 50:21 Or of Double Rebellion
- Jeremiah 50:21 Or of Punishment
- Jeremiah 50:21 Tg: Heb destroy after them
- Jeremiah 50:37 Cn: Heb his
- Jeremiah 50:37 Cn: Heb his
- Jeremiah 50:38 Another reading is A sword
- Jeremiah 50:39 Heb lacks in Babylon
- Jeremiah 50:44 Or and I will single out the choicest of her rams: Meaning of Heb uncertain
- Jeremiah 50:45 Syr Gk Tg Compare 49.20: Heb lacks their
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