⁴¹ Look! An army is on the move
    from the northern regions.
A powerful nation and many kings are coming
    from the ends of the earth.
⁴² Equipped with bow and spear,
    they are cruel and show no mercy.
Their horsemen sound like the roaring sea,
    arrayed in battle formation against you,
    Daughter Babylon.
⁴³ The king of Babylon has heard reports of them
    and is panic-stricken;
    distress overwhelms him,
        pain like that of a woman in labor.

⁴⁴ Like a lion coming up from
        the jungle of the Jordan
    to a well-watered meadow,^[a]
        so I will suddenly chase down Babylon
        and single out its choicest of rams.
Who is like me?
    Who can direct me?
    What shepherd can withstand me?
⁴⁵ Therefore, listen to the counsel
    that the Lord has for Babylon
    and the plans he’s devised
        against the land of Babylon:
    The little ones of the flock
        will be dragged off,
        as their pasture watches
        in utter disbelief.^[b]
46 The earth quakes
    at the sound of Babylon’s capture;
        its screams echo throughout the world.