Old/New Testament
The Lord’s Messages About the Nations
46 These messages about different nations came to Jeremiah the prophet from the Lord.
Messages About Egypt
2 This message is about the nation of Egypt. It is about the army of Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt. His army was defeated at the town of Carchemish. Carchemish is on the Euphrates River. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon defeated the army of Pharaoh Neco at Carchemish in the fourth year that Jehoiakim[a] son of Josiah was king of Judah. The Lord said,
3 “Get your large and small shields ready.
March out for battle.
4 Get the horses ready.
Soldiers, get on your horses.
Go to your places for battle.
Put your helmets on.
Sharpen your spears.
Put your armor on.
5 What do I see?
That army is afraid.
The soldiers are running away.
Their brave soldiers are defeated.
They run away in a hurry.
They don’t look back.
There is danger all around.”
This is what the Lord said.
6 “Fast men cannot run away.
Strong soldiers cannot escape.
They will all stumble and fall.
This will happen in the north, by the Euphrates River.
7 Who is coming like the Nile River?
Who is coming like that strong, fast river?
8 It is Egypt that comes like the rising Nile River.
It is Egypt that comes like that strong, fast river.
Egypt says, ‘I will come and cover the earth.
I will destroy the cities and the people in them.’
9 Horse soldiers, charge into battle.
Chariot drivers, drive fast.
March on, brave soldiers.
Soldiers from Cush and Put, carry your shields.
Soldiers from Lydia, use your bows.
10 “But on that day, the Lord God All-Powerful will win.
He will give his enemies the punishment they deserve.
His sword will kill until it is finished,
until it has satisfied its thirst for blood.
Yes, the Lord God All-Powerful will kill them as a sacrifice
in the land of the north by the Euphrates River.
11 “Egypt, go to Gilead and get some medicine.
You will make up many medicines, but they will not help.
You will not be healed.
12 The nations will hear you crying.
Your cries will be heard all over the earth.
One ‘brave soldier’ will run into another ‘brave soldier.’
And both ‘brave soldiers’ will fall down together.”
13 This is the message the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about Nebuchadnezzar coming to attack Egypt.
14 “Announce this message in Egypt.
Tell it in the city of Migdol.
Tell it in Memphis and Tahpanhes.
‘Get ready for war,
because people all around you are being killed with swords.’
15 Egypt, your strong soldiers will be killed.
They will not be able to stand
because the Lord will push them down.
16 They will stumble again and again.
They will fall over each other.
They will say, ‘Get up; let’s go back to our own people.
Let us go back to our homeland.
Our enemy is defeating us.
We must get away.’
17 In their homelands, those soldiers will say,
‘Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, is only a lot of noise.
His time of glory is over.’”
18 This message is from the King.
The King is the Lord All-Powerful.
“I promise, as surely as I live, a powerful leader will come.
He will be like Mount Tabor or Mount Carmel among smaller mountains.
19 People of Egypt, pack your things.
Get ready for captivity,
because Memphis will be a ruined, empty land.
Those cities will be destroyed,
and no one will live there.
20 “Egypt is like a beautiful cow.
But a horsefly[b] is coming from the north[c] to attack her.
21 The hired soldiers in Egypt’s army are like fat calves.
They will all turn and run away.
They will not stand strong against the attack.
Their time of destruction is coming.
They will soon be punished.
22 Egypt is like a snake hissing
and trying to escape.
The enemy comes closer and closer,
and the Egyptian army is trying to slither away.
The enemy will attack Egypt with axes,
like men cutting down trees.”
23 This is what the Lord says:
“They will chop down Egypt’s forest.
There are many trees in that forest,
but they will all be cut down.
There are more enemy soldiers than locusts.
There are so many soldiers that no one can count them.
24 Egypt will be ashamed.
The enemy from the north will defeat her.”
25 The Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says, “Very soon I will punish Amon,[d] the god of Thebes, and I will punish Pharaoh, Egypt, and her gods. I will punish the kings of Egypt, and I will punish the people who depend on Pharaoh. 26 I will let all of them be defeated by their enemies—their enemies want to kill them. I will give the people to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his servants.
“Long ago, Egypt lived in peace. And after all these times of trouble, Egypt will live in peace again.” This is what the Lord said.
A Message for Northern Israel
27 “Jacob, my servant, do not be afraid.
Do not be frightened, Israel.
I will save you from those faraway places.
I will save your children from the countries where they are captives.
Jacob will have peace and safety again,
and no one will make him afraid.”
28 This is what the Lord says.
“Jacob, my servant, do not be afraid.
I am with you.
I sent you away to many different places.
But I will not destroy you completely.
But I will destroy all those nations.
You must be punished for the bad things you did.
So I will not let you escape your punishment.
I will discipline you, but I will be fair.”
A Message About the Philistine People
47 This is the message from the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet about the Philistines. This message came before Pharaoh attacked the city of Gaza.
2 This is what the Lord says:
“Look, the enemy is gathering in the north[e] like rising water.
They will come like a river spilling over its banks.
They will cover the whole country like a flood.
They will cover the towns and the people living in them.
Everyone in the country will cry for help.
Everyone will cry out in pain.
3 They will hear the sound of running horses,
the noisy chariots, the rumbling wheels.
Fathers will not be able to protect their children.
They will be too weak to help,
4 because the time has come to destroy all the Philistines.
The time has come to destroy Tyre and Sidon’s remaining helpers.
The Lord will destroy the Philistines,
the survivors from the Island of Crete.[f]
5 The people from Gaza will be sad and shave their heads.
The people from Ashkelon will be silenced.
Survivors from the valley, how long will you cut yourselves?[g]
6 “Sword of the Lord, you have not stopped.
How long will you keep fighting?
Go back into your scabbard[h]!
Stop! Be still!
7 But how can the sword of the Lord rest?
The Lord gave it a command.
He commanded it to attack
the city of Ashkelon and the seacoast.”
6 So we should be finished with the beginning lessons about Christ. We should not have to keep going back to where we started. We began our new life by turning away from the evil we did in the past and by believing in God. That’s when we were taught about baptisms,[a] laying hands on people,[b] the resurrection of those who have died, and the final judgment. Now we need to go forward to more mature teaching. 3 And that’s what we will do if God allows.
4-6 After people have left the way of Christ, can you make them change their lives again? I am talking about people who once learned the truth, received God’s gift, and shared in the Holy Spirit. They were blessed to hear God’s good message and see the great power of his new world. But then they left it all behind, and it is not possible to make them change again. That’s because those who leave Christ are nailing him to the cross again, shaming him before everyone.
7 Some people are like land that gets plenty of rain and produces a good crop for those who farm it. That kind of land has God’s blessing. 8 But other people are like land that grows only thorns and weeds. It is worthless and in danger of being cursed by God. It will be destroyed by fire.
9 Dear friends, I am not saying this because I think it is happening to you. We really expect that you will do better—that you will do the good things that will result in your salvation. 10 God is fair, and he will remember all the work you have done. He will remember that you showed your love to him by helping his people and that you continue to help them. 11 We want each of you to be willing and eager to show your love like that the rest of your life. Then you will be sure to get what you hope for. 12 We don’t want you to be lazy. We want you to be like those who, because of their faith and patience, will get what God has promised.
13 God made a promise to Abraham. And there is no one greater than God, so he made the promise with an oath in his own name—an oath that he would do what he promised. 14 He said, “I will surely bless you. I will give you many descendants.”[c] 15 Abraham waited patiently for this to happen, and later he received what God promised.
16 People always use the name of someone greater than themselves to make a promise with an oath. The oath proves that what they say is true, and there is no more arguing about it. 17 God wanted to prove that his promise was true. He wanted to prove this to those who would get what he promised. He wanted them to understand clearly that his purposes never change. So God said something would happen, and he proved what he said by adding an oath. 18 These two things cannot change: God cannot lie when he says something, and he cannot lie when he makes an oath.
So these two things are a great help to us who have come to God for safety. They encourage us to hold on to the hope that is ours. 19 This hope is like an anchor for us. It is strong and sure and keeps us safe. It goes behind the curtain.[d] 20 Jesus has already entered there and opened the way for us. He has become the high priest forever, just like Melchizedek.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International