Jeremiah 48
New American Standard Bible
Prophecy against Moab
48 Concerning (A)Moab. This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says:
“Woe to (B)Nebo, for it has been destroyed;
(C)Kiriathaim has been put to shame, it has been captured;
The high stronghold has been put to shame and [a]shattered.
2 There is no longer praise for Moab;
In (D)Heshbon they have devised disaster against her:
‘Come and let’s cut her off from being a nation!’
You too, [b]Madmen, will be silenced;
The sword will follow you.
3 The sound of an outcry from (E)Horonaim,
‘Devastation and great destruction!’
4 Moab is broken,
Her little ones have sounded out a cry of distress.
5 For they will go up by the ascent of (F)Luhith
With continual weeping;
For at the descent of Horonaim
They have heard the [c]anguished cry of destruction.
6 (G)Flee, save yourselves,
So that you may be like a juniper in the wilderness.
7 For because of your (H)trust in your own achievements and treasures,
You yourself will also be captured;
And (I)Chemosh will go off into exile
Together with his priests and his leaders.
8 A destroyer will come to every city,
So that no city will escape;
The valley also will be ruined
And the (J)plateau will be destroyed,
As the Lord has said.
9 Give [d](K)wings to Moab,
For she will [e]flee away;
And her cities will become a (L)desolation,
Without inhabitants in them.
10 (M)Cursed is the one who does the Lord’s work (N)negligently,
And cursed is the one who restrains his (O)sword from blood.
11 “Moab has been (P)at ease since his youth;
He has also been (Q)peaceful, like wine on [f]its dregs,
And he has not been (R)poured from vessel to vessel,
Nor has he gone into exile.
Therefore [g]he retains his flavor,
And his aroma has not changed.
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 pour out his vessels and smash [h]his jars. 13 And Moab will be (S)ashamed of (T)Chemosh, just as the house of Israel was ashamed of (U)Bethel, their confidence.
14 How can you say, ‘We are (V)warriors,
And men competent for battle’?
15 Moab has been destroyed and [i]men have gone up to [j]his cities;
His choicest [k](W)young men have also gone down to the slaughter,”
Declares the (X)King, whose name is the Lord of armies.
16 “The disaster of Moab will (Y)soon come,
And his catastrophe has hurried quickly.
17 Mourn for him, all you who live around him,
And all of you who know his name;
Say, ‘How the mighty [l](Z)scepter has been broken,
A staff of splendor!’
18 (AA)Come down from your glory
And sit on the parched ground,
O (AB)daughter living in (AC)Dibon,
For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you,
He has ruined your strongholds.
19 Stand by the road and keep watch,
You inhabitant of (AD)Aroer;
(AE)Ask him who flees and her who escapes
And say, ‘What has happened?’
20 Moab has been put to shame, for it has been [m]shattered.
Wail and cry out;
Declare by the (AF)Arnon
That Moab has been destroyed.
21 “Judgment has also come upon the plain, upon Holon, (AG)Jahzah, and against (AH)Mephaath, 22 against Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, 23 against Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and (AI)Beth-meon, 24 against (AJ)Kerioth, Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. 25 The (AK)horn of Moab has been cut off, and his (AL)arm broken,” declares the Lord. 26 “(AM)Make him drunk, for he has [n]become (AN)arrogant toward the Lord; so Moab will [o]vomit, and he also will become a laughingstock. 27 Now was Israel not a (AO)laughingstock to you? Or was he [p](AP)caught among thieves? For whenever you speak about him you (AQ)shake your head in scorn.
28 Leave the cities and live among the (AR)rocky cliffs,
You inhabitants of Moab,
And be like a (AS)dove that nests
Beyond the mouth of the chasm.
29 (AT)We have heard of the pride of Moab—he is very proud—
Of his haughtiness, his (AU)pride, his arrogance, and [q]his self-exaltation.
30 I know his (AV)fury,” declares the Lord,
“But it is futile;
His idle boasts have accomplished nothing.
31 Therefore I will (AW)wail for Moab,
For all of Moab I will cry out;
[r]I will moan for the men of (AX)Kir-heres.
32 More than the (AY)weeping for (AZ)Jazer
I will weep for you, O vine of Sibmah!
Your tendrils stretched across the sea,
They reached to the sea of Jazer;
Upon your summer fruits and your grape harvest
The destroyer has fallen.
33 So (BA)joy and rejoicing are removed
From the fruitful field, and from the land of Moab.
And I have (BB)eliminated the wine from the wine presses;
No one will tread them with shouting,
The shouting will not be shouts of joy.
34 (BC)From the outcry at Heshbon to (BD)Elealeh, to Jahaz they have [s]raised their voice, from (BE)Zoar to Horonaim, and to Eglath-shelishiyah; for even the waters of Nimrim will become desolate. 35 And I will put an end to Moab,” declares the Lord, “the one who offers sacrifice on the (BF)high place and the one who [t](BG)burns incense to his gods.
36 “Therefore My (BH)heart makes a sound like flutes for Moab; My heart also makes a sound like flutes for the men of Kir-heres. Therefore they have (BI)lost the abundance it produced. 37 For (BJ)every head is shaved bald, and every beard cut short; there are gashes on all the hands, and (BK)sackcloth around the waists. 38 On all the (BL)housetops of Moab and in its public squares [u]there is mourning everywhere; for I have broken Moab like an undesirable (BM)vessel,” declares the Lord. 39 “How [v]shattered it is! How they have wailed! How Moab has turned his back—he is ashamed! So Moab will become a laughingstock and an (BN)object of terror to all around him.”
40 For this is what the Lord says:
“Behold, one will (BO)fly swiftly like an eagle
And (BP)spread out his wings against Moab.
41 Kerioth has been captured
And the strongholds have been seized,
So the (BQ)hearts of the warriors of Moab on that day
Will be like the heart of a (BR)woman in labor.
42 Moab will be (BS)destroyed from being a people
Because he has [w]become (BT)arrogant toward the Lord.
43 (BU)Terror, pit, and snare are coming upon you,
Inhabitant of Moab,” declares the Lord.
44 “The one who (BV)flees from the terror
Will fall into the pit,
And the one who climbs up out of the pit
Will be caught in the snare;
For I will bring upon her, upon Moab,
The year of their (BW)punishment,” declares the Lord.
45 “In the shadow of Heshbon
The fugitives stand without strength;
For a fire has spread out from Heshbon
And a (BX)flame from the midst of (BY)Sihon,
And it has devoured the (BZ)forehead of Moab
And the scalps of the [x]loud revelers.
46 (CA)Woe to you, Moab!
The people of (CB)Chemosh have perished;
For your sons have been taken away captive,
And your daughters into captivity.
47 Yet I will (CC)restore the fortunes of Moab
In the [y]latter days,” declares the Lord.
This is the extent of the judgment on Moab.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 48:1 Or dismayed
- Jeremiah 48:2 Heb Madmen; i.e., a city of Moab
- Jeremiah 48:5 Lit distresses of outcry
- Jeremiah 48:9 Or salt
- Jeremiah 48:9 Or fall in ruins
- Jeremiah 48:11 Lit his
- Jeremiah 48:11 Lit his flavor has stayed in him
- Jeremiah 48:12 Lit their
- Jeremiah 48:15 Lit one has
- Jeremiah 48:15 Lit her
- Jeremiah 48:15 I.e., warriors
- Jeremiah 48:17 Or rod
- Jeremiah 48:20 Or dismayed
- Jeremiah 48:26 Or magnified himself against
- Jeremiah 48:26 Lit vomit in his vomit
- Jeremiah 48:27 Or found
- Jeremiah 48:29 Lit elevation of his heart
- Jeremiah 48:31 Another reading is He
- Jeremiah 48:34 Lit given forth
- Jeremiah 48:35 Or offers up in smoke
- Jeremiah 48:38 Lit all of it is mourning
- Jeremiah 48:39 Or terrified
- Jeremiah 48:42 Or magnified himself against
- Jeremiah 48:45 Lit sons of uproar
- Jeremiah 48:47 Lit end of the days
Jeremiah 48
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Judgment on Moab
48 Concerning Moab.
Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:
Alas for Nebo, it is laid waste!
Kiriathaim is put to shame; it is taken;
the fortress is put to shame and broken down;(A)
2 the renown of Moab is no more.
In Heshbon they planned evil against her:
“Come, let us cut her off from being a nation!”
You also, O Madmen, shall be brought to silence;[a]
the sword shall pursue you.(B)
3 Listen! A cry goes up from Horonaim:
“Desolation and great destruction!”(C)
4 “Moab is destroyed!”
her little ones cry out.
5 For at the ascent of Luhith
they go[b] up weeping bitterly;
for at the descent of Horonaim
they have heard the distressing cry of anguish.(D)
6 Flee! Save yourselves!
Be like a wild ass[c] in the desert!(E)
7 Surely, because you trusted in your strongholds[d] and your treasures,
you also shall be taken;
Chemosh shall go out into exile,
with his priests and his attendants.(F)
8 The destroyer shall come upon every town,
and no town shall escape;
the valley shall perish,
and the plain shall be destroyed,
as the Lord has spoken.(G)
9 Set aside salt for Moab,
for she will surely fall;
her towns shall become a desolation,
with no inhabitant in them.(H)
10 Accursed is the one who is slack in doing the work of the Lord, and accursed is the one who keeps back the sword from bloodshed.(I)
11 Moab has been at ease from his youth,
settled like wine[e] on its dregs;
he has not been emptied from vessel to vessel,
nor has he gone into exile;
therefore his flavor has remained,
and his aroma is unspoiled.(J)
12 Therefore, the time is surely coming, says the Lord, when I shall send to him decanters to decant him and empty his vessels and break his jars in pieces. 13 Then Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence.(K)
14 How can you say, “We are heroes
and mighty warriors”?(L)
15 Moab is destroyed, and his towns have gone up,
and the choicest of his young men have gone down to slaughter,
says the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.(M)
16 The calamity of Moab is near at hand,
and his doom approaches swiftly.(N)
17 Mourn over him, all you his neighbors,
and all who know his name;
say, “How the mighty scepter is broken,
the glorious staff!”(O)
18 Come down from glory
and sit on the parched ground,
enthroned daughter Dibon!
For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you;
he has destroyed your strongholds.(P)
19 Stand by the road and watch,
you inhabitant of Aroer!
Ask the man fleeing and the woman escaping;
say, “What has happened?”(Q)
20 Moab is put to shame, for it is broken down;
wail and cry!
Tell it by the Arnon
that Moab is laid waste.(R)
21 Judgment has come upon the tableland, upon Holon, and Jahzah, and Mephaath, 22 and Dibon, and Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, 23 and Kiriathaim, and Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon, 24 and Kerioth, and Bozrah, and all the towns of the land of Moab, far and near.(S) 25 The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, says the Lord.(T)
26 Make him drunk because he magnified himself against the Lord; let Moab wallow in his vomit; he, too, shall become a laughingstock.(U) 27 Israel was a laughingstock for you, though he was not caught among thieves, but whenever you spoke of him you shook your head!(V)
28 Leave the towns, and live on the rock,
O inhabitants of Moab!
Be like the dove that nests
on the sides of the mouth of a gorge.(W)
29 We have heard of the pride of Moab—
he is very proud—
of his loftiness, his pride, and his arrogance,
and the haughtiness of his heart.(X)
30 I myself know his insolence, says the Lord;
his boasts are false;
his deeds are false.(Y)
31 Therefore I wail for Moab;
I cry out for all Moab;
for the people of Kir-heres I mourn.(Z)
32 More than for Jazer I weep for you,
O vine of Sibmah!
Your branches crossed over the sea,
reached as far as Jazer;[f]
upon your summer fruits and your vintage
the destroyer has fallen.(AA)
33 Gladness and joy have been taken away
from the fruitful land of Moab;
I have stopped the wine from the winepresses;
no one treads them with shouts of joy;
the shouting is not the shout of joy.(AB)
34 From the cry of Heshbon to Elealeh as far as Jahaz they utter their voice, from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. For even the waters of Nimrim have become desolate.(AC) 35 And I will bring to an end in Moab, says the Lord, those who offer sacrifice at a high place and make offerings to their gods.(AD) 36 Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans like a flute for the people of Kir-heres, for the riches they gained have perished.(AE)
37 For every head is shaved and every beard cut off; on all the hands there are gashes and on the loins sackcloth.(AF) 38 On all the housetops of Moab and in the squares there is nothing but lamentation, for I have broken Moab like a vessel that no one wants, says the Lord.(AG) 39 How it is broken! How they wail! How Moab has turned his back in shame! So Moab has become a derision and a horror to all his neighbors.(AH)
40 For thus says the Lord:
Look, he shall swoop down like an eagle
and spread his wings against Moab;(AI)
41 the towns[g] shall be taken
and the strongholds seized.
The hearts of the warriors of Moab, on that day,
shall be like the heart of a woman in labor.(AJ)
42 Moab shall be destroyed as a people,
because he magnified himself against the Lord.(AK)
43 Terror, pit, and trap
are before you, O inhabitants of Moab!
says the Lord.(AL)
44 Everyone who flees from the terror
shall fall into the pit,
and everyone who climbs out of the pit
shall be caught in the trap.
For I will bring these things[h] upon Moab
in the year of their punishment,
says the Lord.(AM)
45 In the shadow of Heshbon
fugitives stop exhausted,
for a fire has gone out from Heshbon,
a flame from the house of Sihon;
it has destroyed the forehead[i] of Moab,
the scalp of the people of tumult.[j](AN)
46 Woe to you, O Moab!
The people of Chemosh have perished,
for your sons have been taken captive
and your daughters into captivity.(AO)
47 Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab
in the latter days, says the Lord.
Thus far is the judgment on Moab.(AP)
Jeremiah 48
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
48 Against Moab thus saith the Lord of hosts the God of Israel: Woe to Nabo, for it is laid waste, and confounded: Cariathaim is taken: the strong city is confounded and hath trembled.
2 There is no more rejoicing in Moab over Hesebon: they have devised evil. Come, and let us cut it off from being a nation. Therefore shalt thou in silence hold thy peace, and the sword shall follow thee.
3 A voice of crying from Oronaim: waste, and great destruction.
4 Moab is destroyed: proclaim a cry for her little ones.
5 For by the ascent of Luith shall the mourner go up with weeping: for in the descent of Oronaim the enemies have heard a howling of destruction.
6 Flee, save your lives: and be as heath in the wilderness.
7 For because thou hast trusted in thy bulwarks, and in thy treasures, thou also shalt be taken: and Chamos shall go into captivity, his priests, and his princes together.
8 And the spoiler shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape: and the valleys shall perish, and the plains shall be destroyed, for the Lord hath spoken:
9 Give a flower to Moab, for in its flower it shall go out: and the cities thereof shall be desolate, and uninhabited.
10 Cursed be he that doth the work of the Lord deceitfully: and cursed be he that withholdeth his sword from blood.
11 Moab hath been fruitful from his youth, and hath rested upon his lees: and hath not been poured out from vessel to vessel, nor hath gone into captivity: therefore his taste hath remained in him, and his scent is not changed.
12 Therefore behold the days come, saith the Lord, and I will send him men that shall order and overturn his bottles, and they shall cast him down, and shall empty his vessels, and break their bottles one against another.
13 And Moab shall be ashamed of Chamos, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, in which they trusted.
14 How do you say: We are valiant, and stout men in battle?
15 Moab is laid waste, and they have cast down her cities: and her choice young men are gone down to the slaughter: saith the king, whose name is the Lord of hosts.
16 The destruction of Moab is near to come: the calamity thereof shall come on exceeding swiftly.
17 Comfort him, all you that are round about him, and all you that know his name, say: How is the strong staff broken, the beautiful rod?
18 Come down from thy glory, and sit in thirst, O dwelling of the daughter of Dibon: because the spoiler of Moab is come up to thee, he hath destroyed thy bulwarks.
19 Stand in the way, and look out, O habitation of Aroer: inquire of him that fleeth: and say to him that hath escaped: What Is done?
20 Moab is confounded, because he is overthrown: howl ye, and cry, tell ye it in Arnon, that Moab is wasted.
21 And judgment is come upon the plain country: upon Helon, and upon Jasa, and upon Mephaath.
22 And upon Dibon, and upon Nabo, and upon the house of Deblathaim,
23 And upon Cariathaim, and upon Bethgamul, and upon Bethmaon,
24 And upon Carioth, and upon Bosra: and upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near.
25 The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, saith the Lord.
26 Make him drunk, because he lifted up himself against the Lord: and Moab shall dash his hand in his own vomit, and he also shall be in derision.
27 For Israel hath been a derision unto thee: as though thou hadst found him amongst thieves: for thy words therefore, which thou hast spoken against him, thou shalt be led away captive.
28 Leave the cities, and dwell in the rock, you that dwell in Moab: and be ye like the dove that maketh her nest in the mouth of the hole in the highest place.
29 We have heard the pride of Moab, he is exceeding proud: his haughtiness, and his arrogancy, and his pride, and the loftiness of his heart.
30 I know, saith the Lord, his boasting, and that the strength thereof is not according to it, neither hath it endeavoured to do according as it was able.
31 Therefore will I lament for Moab, and I will cry out to all Moab, for the men of the brick wall that mourn.
32 O vineyard of Sabama, I will weep for thee, with the mourning of Jazer: thy branches are gone over the sea, they are come even to the sea of Jazer: the robber hath rushed in upon thy harvest and thy vintage.
33 Joy and gladness is taken away from Carmel, and from the land of Moab, and I have taken away the wine out of the presses: the treader of the grapes shall not sing the accustomed cheerful tune.
34 From the cry of Hesebon even to Eleale, and to Jasa, they have uttered their voice: from Segor to Oronaim, as a heifer of three years old: the waters also of Nemrim shall be very bad.
35 And I will take away from Moab, saith the Lord, him that offereth in the high places, and that sacrificeth to his gods.
36 Therefore my heart shall sound for Moab like pipes: and my heart a sound like pipes for the men of the brick wall: because he hath done more than he could, therefore they have perished.
37 For every head shall be bald, and every beard shall be shaven: all hands shall be tied together, and upon every back there shall be haircloth.
38 Upon all the housetops of Moab, and in the streets thereof general mourning: because I have broken Moab as an useless vessel, saith the Lord.
39 How is it overthrown, and they have howled! How hath Moab bowed down the neck, and is confounded! And Moab shall be a derision, and an example to all round about him.
40 Thus saith the Lord: Behold he shall fly as an eagle, and shall stretch forth his wings to Moab.
41 Carioth is taken, and the strong holds are won: and the heart of the valiant men of Moab in that day shall be as the heart of a woman in labour.
42 And Moab shall cease to be a people: because he hath gloried against the Lord.
43 Fear, and the pit, and the snare come upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab, saith the Lord.
44 He that shall flee from the fear, shall fall into the pit: and he that shall get up out of the pit, shall be taken in the snare: for I will bring upon Moab the year of their visitation, saith the Lord.
45 They that fled from the snare stood in the shadow of Hesebon: but there came a fire out of Hesebon, and a flame out of the midst of Seon, and it shall devour part of Moab. and the crown of the head of the children of tumult.
46 Woe to thee, Moab, thou hast perished, O people of Chamos: for thy sons, and thy daughters are taken captives.
47 And I will bring back the captivity of Moab in the last days, saith the Lord. Hitherto the judgments of Moab.
Jeremiah 48
The Message
Get Out While You Can!
48 1-10 The Message on Moab from God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel:
“Doom to Nebo! Leveled to the ground!
Kiriathaim demeaned and defeated,
The mighty fortress reduced to a molehill,
Moab’s glory—dust and ashes.
Conspirators plot Heshbon’s doom:
‘Come, let’s wipe Moab off the map.’
The city of Madmen will be struck mute,
as killing follows killing.
Listen! A cry out of Horonaim:
‘Disaster—doom and more doom!’
Moab will be shattered.
Her cries will be heard clear down in Zoar.
Up the ascent of Luhith
climbers weep,
And down the descent from Horonaim,
cries of loss and devastation.
Oh, run for your lives! Get out while you can!
Survive by your wits in the wild!
You trusted in thick walls and big money, yes?
But it won’t help you now.
Your big god Chemosh will be hauled off,
his priests and managers with him.
A wrecker will wreck every city.
Not a city will survive.
The valley fields will be ruined,
the plateau pastures destroyed, just as I told you.
Cover the land of Moab with salt.
Make sure nothing ever grows here again.
Her towns will all be ghost towns.
Nobody will ever live here again.
Sloppy work in God’s name is cursed,
and cursed all halfhearted use of the sword.
11-17 “Moab has always taken it easy—
lazy as a dog in the sun,
Never had to work for a living,
never faced any trouble,
Never had to grow up,
never once worked up a sweat.
But those days are a thing of the past.
I’ll put him to work at hard labor.
That will wake him up to the world of hard knocks.
That will smash his illusions.
Moab will be as ashamed of god Chemosh
as Israel was ashamed of her Bethel calf-gods,
the calf-gods she thought were so great.
For how long do you think you’ll be saying, ‘We’re tough.
We can beat anyone anywhere’?
The destruction of Moab has already begun.
Her choice young soldiers are lying dead right now.”
The King’s Decree—
his full name, God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
“Yes. Moab’s doom is on countdown,
disaster targeted and launched.
Weep for Moab, friends and neighbors,
all who know how famous he’s been.
Lament, ‘His mighty scepter snapped in two like a toothpick,
that magnificent royal staff!’
18-20 “Come down from your high horse, pampered beauty of Dibon.
Sit in dog dung.
The destroyer of Moab will come against you.
He’ll wreck your safe, secure houses.
Stand on the roadside,
pampered women of Aroer.
Interview the refugees who are running away.
Ask them, ‘What’s happened? And why?’
Moab will be an embarrassing memory, nothing left of the place.
Wail and weep your eyes out!
Tell the bad news along the Arnon river.
Tell the world that Moab is no more.
21-24 “My judgment will come to the plateau cities: on Holon, Jahzah, and Mephaath; on Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim; on Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon; on Kerioth, Bozrah, and all the cities of Moab, far and near.
25 “Moab’s link to power is severed.
Moab’s arm is broken.” God’s Decree.
The Sheer Nothingness of Moab
26-27 “Turn Moab into a drunken lush, drunk on the wine of my wrath, a dung-faced drunk, filling the country with vomit—Moab a falling-down drunk, a joke in bad taste. Wasn’t it you, Moab, who made crude jokes over Israel? And when they were caught in bad company, didn’t you cluck and gossip and snicker?
28 “Leave town! Leave! Look for a home in the cliffs,
you who grew up in Moab.
Try living like a dove
who nests high in the river gorge.
29-33 “We’ve all heard of Moab’s pride,
that legendary pride,
The strutting, bullying, puffed-up pride,
the insufferable arrogance.
I know”—God’s Decree—“his rooster-crowing pride,
the inflated claims, the sheer nothingness of Moab.
But I will weep for Moab,
yes, I will mourn for the people of Moab.
I will even mourn for the people of Kir-heres.
I’ll weep for the grapevines of Sibmah
and join Jazer in her weeping—
Grapevines that once reached the Dead Sea
with tendrils as far as Jazer.
Your summer fruit and your bursting grapes
will be looted by brutal plunderers,
Lush Moab stripped
of song and laughter.
And yes, I’ll shut down the winepresses,
stop all the shouts and hurrahs of harvest.
34 “Heshbon and Elealeh will cry out, and the people in Jahaz will hear the cries. They will hear them all the way from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. Even the waters of Nimrim will be dried up.
35 “I will put a stop in Moab”—God’s Decree—“to all hiking to the high places to offer burnt sacrifices to the gods.
36 “My heart moans for Moab, for the men of Kir-heres, like soft flute sounds carried by the wind. They’ve lost it all. They’ve got nothing.
37 “Everywhere you look are signs of mourning:
heads shaved, beards cut,
Hands scratched and bleeding,
clothes ripped and torn.
38 “In every house in Moab there’ll be loud lamentation, on every street in Moab, loud lamentation. As with a pottery jug that no one wants, I’ll smash Moab to bits.” God’s Decree.
39 “Moab ruined!
Moab shamed and ashamed to be seen!
Moab a cruel joke!
The stark horror of Moab!”
* * *
40-42 God’s verdict on Moab. Indeed!
“Look! An eagle is about to swoop down
and spread its wings over Moab.
The towns will be captured,
the fortresses taken.
Brave warriors will double up in pain, helpless to fight,
like a woman giving birth to a baby.
There’ll be nothing left of Moab, nothing at all,
because of his defiant arrogance against me.
43-44 “Terror and pit and trap
are what you have facing you, Moab.” God’s Decree.
“A man running in terror
will fall into a trap.
A man climbing out of a pit
will be caught in a trap.
This is my agenda for Moab
on doomsday.” God’s Decree.
45-47 “On the outskirts of Heshbon,
refugees will pull up short, worn out.
Fire will flame high from Heshbon,
a firestorm raging from the capital of Sihon’s kingdom.
It will burn off Moab’s eyebrows,
will scorch the skull of the braggarts.
That’s all for you, Moab!
You worshipers of Chemosh will be finished off!
Your sons will be trucked off to prison camps;
your daughters will be herded into exile.
But yet there’s a day that’s coming
when I’ll put things right in Moab.
“For now, that’s the judgment on Moab.”
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson