by[See ver. 29 above]
ca[See ver. 29 above]
ef[See ver. 11 above]
fc[See ver. 27 above]
fd[See ver. 27 above]
hj[See ver. 47 above]
ig[See ver. 63 above]

Jeremiah 50

Judgment on Babylon

1The word that the Lord spoke concerning aBabylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, bby Jeremiah the prophet:

2 Declare among the nations and proclaim,
set up a banner and proclaim,
conceal it not, and say:
cBabylon is taken,
dBel is put to shame,
Merodach is dismayed.
eHer images are put to shame,
her idols are dismayed.’
3For fout of the north a nation has come up against her, gwhich shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; hboth man and beast shall flee away.

4 i“In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, jthe people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, kweeping as they come, and they lshall seek the Lord their God. 5 mThey shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, nsaying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in an oeverlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.’

6 p“My people have been lost sheep. qTheir shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. 7All who found them have devoured them, rand their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, for sthey have sinned against the Lord, ttheir habitation of righteousness, the Lord, uthe hope of their fathers.’

8 vFlee from the midst of Babylon, wand go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock. 9For behold, I am stirring up and bringing against Babylon xa gathering of great nations, from the north country. And they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 yChaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, declares the Lord.

11 zThough you rejoice, though you exult,
O plunderers of my heritage,
though you frolic like a heifer in the pasture,
and neigh like stallions,
12your mother shall be utterly shamed,
and she who bore you shall be disgraced.
Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,
aaa wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
13 abBecause of the wrath of the Lord she shall not be inhabited
but shall be an utter desolation;
aceveryone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,
adand hiss because of all her wounds.
14 aeSet yourselves in array against Babylon all around,
afall you who bend the bow;
shoot at her, spare no arrows,
agfor she has sinned against the Lord.
15 ahRaise a shout against her all around;
she has surrendered;
her bulwarks have fallen;
aiher walls are thrown down.
For ajthis is the vengeance of the Lord:
take vengeance on her;
akdo to her as she has done.
16Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;
albecause of the sword of the oppressor,
amevery one shall turn to his own people,
and every one shall flee to his own land.
17 anIsrael is a hunted sheep aodriven away by lions. apFirst the king of Assyria aqdevoured him, and now at last arNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon ashas gnawed his bones. 18Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, atI am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, auas I punished the king of Assyria. 19 avI will restore Israel to his pasture, and awhe shall feed on axCarmel and in ayBashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in azGilead. 20In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, bainiquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for bbI will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.

21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim,
 Merathaim means double rebellion

and against the inhabitants of Pekod.
 Pekod means punishment

Kill, beand devote them to destruction,
That is, set apart ( devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction)


declares the Lord,
and do all that I have commanded you.
22 bgThe noise of battle is in the land,
and great destruction!
23 bhHow the hammer of the whole earth
is cut down and broken!
biHow Babylon bjhas become
a horror among the nations!
24 bkI set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,
and blyou did not know it;
you were found and caught,
because you opposed the Lord.
25The Lord has opened his armory
and brought out bmthe weapons of his wrath,
for the Lord God of hosts has a work to do
in the land of the Chaldeans.
26Come against her from every quarter;
open her granaries;
bnpile her up like heaps of grain, and devote her to destruction;
let nothing be left of her.
27Kill all boher bulls;
let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them, for their day has come,
bpthe time of their punishment.
28“A voice! They bqflee and escape from the land of Babylon, brto declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for bshis temple.

29 btSummon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow. buEncamp around her; let no one escape. bvRepay her according to her deeds; do to her according to all that she has done. For she has bwproudly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 30 bxTherefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, declares the Lord.

31 Behold, I am against you, O byproud one,
declares the Lord God of hosts,
bzfor your day has come,
the time when I will punish you.
32 caThe proud one shall stumble and fall,
with none to raise him up,
cband I will kindle a fire in his cities,
and it will devour all that is around him.
33Thus says the Lord of hosts: ccThe people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah with them. All who took them captive have held them fast; cdthey refuse to let them go. 34 ceTheir Redeemer is strong; cfthe Lord of hosts is his name. cgHe 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, declares the Lord,
and against the inhabitants of Babylon,
and against chher officials and her ciwise men!
36A sword against the diviners,
that they may become fools!
A sword against her cjwarriors,
that they may be destroyed!
37A sword against her horses and against her chariots,
and against all ckthe foreign troops in her midst,
that clthey may become women!
cmA sword against all her treasures,
that they may be plundered!
38 cnA drought against her waters,
that they may be dried up!
coFor it is a land of images,
and they are mad over idols.
39 cpTherefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon, and ostriches shall dwell in her. She shall never again have people, nor be inhabited for all generations. 40 cqAs when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring cities, declares the Lord, crso no man shall dwell there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.

41 csBehold, a people comes from the north;
a mighty nation and many kings
are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
42They lay hold of bow and spear;
they are cruel and have no mercy.
The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;
they ride on horses,
arrayed as a man for battle
against you, O daughter of Babylon!
43 “The king of Babylon heard the report of them,
and his hands fell helpless;
anguish seized him,
pain as of a woman in labor.
44 ctBehold, like a lion coming up from the thicket of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make them run away from her, and I will appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd cucan stand before me? 45Therefore hear cvthe plan that the Lord has made against Babylon, cwand the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: cxSurely the little ones of their flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 cyAt the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.”

Jeremiah 51

The Utter Destruction of Babylon

1 Thus says the Lord:
Behold, I will stir up czthe spirit of a destroyer
against Babylon,
against the inhabitants of Leb-kamai,
A code name for Chaldea

2and I will send to Babylon winnowers,
and dbthey shall winnow her,
and they shall empty her land,
when they come against her from every side
dcon the day of trouble.
3 ddLet not the archer bend his bow,
and let him not stand up in his armor.
Spare not her young men;
dedevote to destruction
That is, set apart ( devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction)
all her army.
4They shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans,
dgand wounded in her streets.
5 dhFor Israel and Judah have not been forsaken
by their God, the Lord of hosts,
but the land of the Chaldeans
Hebrew their land
is full of guilt
against the Holy One of Israel.
6 djFlee from the midst of Babylon;
let every one save his life!
dkBe not cut off in her punishment,
dlfor this is the time of the Lord’s vengeance,
the repayment he is rendering her.
7Babylon was dma golden cup in the Lord’s hand,
dnmaking all the earth drunken;
dothe nations drank of her wine;
therefore the nations went mad.
8 dpSuddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken;
dqwail for her!
drTake balm for her pain;
perhaps she may be healed.
9We would have healed Babylon,
but she was not healed.
dsForsake her, and dtlet us go
each to his own country,
for duher judgment has reached up to heaven
and has been lifted up even to the skies.
10 dvThe Lord has brought about our vindication;
dwcome, let us declare in Zion
the work of the Lord our God.
11 dxSharpen the arrows!
Take up the shields!
dyThe Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of dzthe Medes, because eahis purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, ebfor that is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance for echis temple.

12 ed“Set up a standard against the walls of Babylon;
eemake the watch strong;
set up watchmen;
prepare the ambushes;
effor the Lord has both planned and done
what he spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 egO you who dwell by many waters,
rich in treasures,
your end has come;
the thread of your life is cut.
14 ehThe Lord of hosts has sworn by himself:
Surely I will fill you with men, eias many as locusts,
ejand they shall raise the shout of victory over you.
15 ek“It is he who made the earth by his power,
who established the world by his wisdom,
and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.
16When he utters his voice there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.
17Every man is stupid and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,
for his images are false,
and there is no breath in them.
18They are worthless, a work of delusion;
at the time of their punishment they shall perish.
19Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob,
for he is the one who formed all things,
and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;
the Lord of hosts is his name.
20 “You are my hammer and weapon of war:
with you I elbreak nations in pieces;
with you I destroy kingdoms;
21with you I break in pieces the horse and his rider;
with you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer;
22with you I break in pieces man and woman;
with you I break in pieces emthe old man and the youth;
with you I break in pieces enthe young man and the young woman;
23with you I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock;
with you I break in pieces the farmer and his team;
with you I break in pieces eogovernors and commanders.
24 ep“I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, declares the Lord.

25 Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain,

declares the Lord,
which destroys the whole earth;
I will stretch out my hand against you,
and roll you down from the crags,
eqand make you a burnt mountain.
26No erstone shall be taken from you for a corner
and no stone for a foundation,
but you shall be esa perpetual waste,
declares the Lord.
27 et“Set up a standard on the earth;
eublow the trumpet among the nations;
evprepare ewthe nations for war against her;
summon against her exthe kingdoms,
eyArarat, Minni, and ezAshkenaz;
appoint a famarshal against her;
fbbring up horses like bristling locusts.
28 fcPrepare fdthe nations for war against her,
the kings of fethe Medes, ffwith their governors fgand deputies,
and every fhland under their dominion.
29 fiThe land trembles and writhes in pain,
fjfor the Lord’s purposes against Babylon stand,
to make the land of Babylon a desolation,
without inhabitant.
30The warriors of Babylon have ceased fighting;
they remain in their strongholds;
their strength has failed;
fkthey have become women;
flher dwellings are on fire;
fmher bars are broken.
31One fnrunner runs to meet another,
and one messenger to meet another,
to tell the king of Babylon
that his city is taken on every side;
32the fords have been foseized,
the marshes are burned with fire,
and the soldiers are in panic.
33For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:
fpThe daughter of Babylon is like fqa threshing floor
at the time when it is trodden;
yet a little while
and frthe time of her harvest will come.”
34 Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon fshas devoured me;
he has crushed me;
he has made me an empty vessel;
fthe has swallowed me like fua monster;
he has filled his stomach with my delicacies;
he has rinsed me out.
Or  he has expelled me

35The violence done to me and to my kinsmen be upon Babylon,”
let the inhabitant of Zion say.
“My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,”
let Jerusalem say.
36Therefore thus says the Lord:
Behold, fwI will plead your cause
and take vengeance for you.
fxI will dry up her sea
and fymake her fountain dry,
37and Babylon shall become fza heap of ruins,
gathe haunt of jackals,
gba horror gcand a hissing,
without inhabitant.
38 gd“They shall roar together gelike lions;
they shall growl like lionscubs.
39 gfWhile they are inflamed ggI will prepare them a feast
and ghmake them drunk, that they may become merry,
githen sleep a perpetual sleep
and not wake, declares the Lord.
40I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter,
like rams and male goats.
41 How gjBabylon
Hebrew Sheshach, a code name for Babylon
is taken,
glthe praise of the whole earth gmseized!
How Babylon has become
a horror among the nations!
42 gnThe sea has come up on Babylon;
she is covered with its tumultuous waves.
43Her cities have become a horror,
goa land of drought and a desert,
gpa land in which no one dwells,
and through which no son of man passes.
44And I will punish gqBel in Babylon,
and grtake out of his mouth gswhat he has swallowed.
gtThe nations shall no longer flow to him;
guthe wall of Babylon has fallen.
45 Go out of the midst of her, gvmy people!
Let every one save his life
from gwthe fierce anger of the Lord!
46Let not your heart faint, and be not fearful
gxat the report heard in the land,
gywhen a report comes in one year
and afterward a report in another year,
and violence is in the land,
gzand ruler is against ruler.
47 Therefore, behold, the days are coming
when haI will punish the images of Babylon;
hbher whole land shall be put to shame,
and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.
48 hcThen the heavens and the earth,
and all that is in them,
shall sing for joy over Babylon,
hdfor the destroyers shall come against them out of the north,

declares the Lord.
49Babylon must fall for the slain of Israel,
hejust as for Babylon have fallen the slain of all the earth.
50 hf“You who have escaped from the sword,
go, do not stand still!
Remember the Lord from far away,
and let Jerusalem come into your mind:
51 hg‘We are put to shame, for we have heard reproach;
hhdishonor has covered our face,
hifor foreigners have come
into the holy places of the Lord’s house.’
52 Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord,
when hjI will execute judgment upon her images,
hkand through all her land
the wounded shall groan.
53Though Babylon should hlmount up to heaven,
and though she should hmfortify her strong height,
yet destroyers would come from me against her,
declares the Lord.
54 hn“A voice! A cry from Babylon!
The noise of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!
55For the Lord is laying Babylon waste
and stilling her mighty voice.
hoTheir waves roar like many waters;
the noise of their voice is raised,
56for a destroyer has come upon her,
upon Babylon;
her warriors are taken;
their bows are broken in pieces,
hpfor the Lord is a God of recompense;
he will surely repay.
57 hqI will make drunk her officials and her wise men,
hrher governors, her commanders, and her warriors;
they shall sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake,
declares hsthe King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.
58 Thus says the Lord of hosts:
The broad htwall of Babylon
shall be leveled to the ground,
huand her high gates
shall be burned with fire.
hvThe peoples labor for nothing,
and hwthe nations weary themselves only for fire.”
59The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah hxthe son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon, hyin the fourth year of his reign. Seraiah was the quartermaster. 60 hzJeremiah wrote in a book all the disaster that should come upon Babylon, iaall these words that are written concerning Babylon. 61And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: “When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words, 62and say, ‘O Lord, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it off, so ibthat nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be icdesolate forever.’ 63When you finish reading this book, id, ietie a stone to it ifand cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, 64and say, igThus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her, ihand they shall become exhausted.’”

Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

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