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Prophecy against Babylon
The word which the LORD spoke concerning Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, through Jeremiah the prophet:
The word which the LORD spoke concerning Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, through Jeremiah the prophet:
“Declare and proclaim among the nations.
Proclaim it and lift up a standard.
Do not conceal it but say,
‘Babylon has been captured,
Bel has been put to shame, Marduk has been shattered;
Her images have been put to shame, her idols have been shattered.’
Proclaim it and lift up a standard.
Do not conceal it but say,
‘Babylon has been captured,
Bel has been put to shame, Marduk has been shattered;
Her images have been put to shame, her idols have been shattered.’
For a nation will attack her from the north
and bring such destruction that no one will live there again.
Everything will be gone;
both people and animals will flee.
Hope for Israel and Judah
and bring such destruction that no one will live there again.
Everything will be gone;
both people and animals will flee.
Hope for Israel and Judah
“For a nation has come up against her out of the north; it will make her land an object of horror, and there will be no inhabitant in it. Both man and beast have wandered off, they have gone away!
“In those coming days,”
says the LORD,
“the people of Israel will return home
together with the people of Judah.
They will come weeping
and seeking the LORD their God.
says the LORD,
“the people of Israel will return home
together with the people of Judah.
They will come weeping
and seeking the LORD their God.
“In those days and at that time,” declares the LORD, “the sons of Israel will come, both they and the sons of Judah as well; they will go along weeping as they go, and it will be the LORD their God they will seek.
“They will ask for the way to Zion, turning their faces in its direction; they will come that they may join themselves to the LORD in an everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.
“My people have been lost sheep.
Their shepherds have led them astray
and turned them loose in the mountains.
They have lost their way
and can’t remember how to get back to the sheepfold.
Their shepherds have led them astray
and turned them loose in the mountains.
They have lost their way
and can’t remember how to get back to the sheepfold.
“My people have become lost sheep;
Their shepherds have led them astray.
They have made them turn aside on the mountains;
They have gone along from mountain to hill
And have forgotten their resting place.
Their shepherds have led them astray.
They have made them turn aside on the mountains;
They have gone along from mountain to hill
And have forgotten their resting place.
All who found them devoured them.
Their enemies said,
‘We did nothing wrong in attacking them,
for they sinned against the LORD,
their true place of rest,
and the hope of their ancestors.’
Their enemies said,
‘We did nothing wrong in attacking them,
for they sinned against the LORD,
their true place of rest,
and the hope of their ancestors.’
“All who came upon them have devoured them;
And their adversaries have said, ‘We are not guilty,
Inasmuch as they have sinned against the LORD who is the habitation of righteousness,
Even the LORD, the hope of their fathers.’
And their adversaries have said, ‘We are not guilty,
Inasmuch as they have sinned against the LORD who is the habitation of righteousness,
Even the LORD, the hope of their fathers.’
“But now, flee from Babylon!
Leave the land of the Babylonians.
Like male goats at the head of the flock,
lead my people home again.
Leave the land of the Babylonians.
Like male goats at the head of the flock,
lead my people home again.
“Wander away from the midst of Babylon
And go forth from the land of the Chaldeans;
Be also like male goats at the head of the flock.
And go forth from the land of the Chaldeans;
Be also like male goats at the head of the flock.
For I am raising up an army
of great nations from the north.
They will join forces to attack Babylon,
and she will be captured.
The enemies’ arrows will go straight to the mark;
they will not miss!
of great nations from the north.
They will join forces to attack Babylon,
and she will be captured.
The enemies’ arrows will go straight to the mark;
they will not miss!
“For behold, I am going to arouse and bring up against Babylon
A horde of great nations from the land of the north,
And they will draw up their battle lines against her;
From there she will be taken captive.
Their arrows will be like an expert warrior
Who does not return empty-handed.
A horde of great nations from the land of the north,
And they will draw up their battle lines against her;
From there she will be taken captive.
Their arrows will be like an expert warrior
Who does not return empty-handed.
“Chaldea will become plunder;
All who plunder her will have enough,” declares the LORD.
All who plunder her will have enough,” declares the LORD.
“You rejoice and are glad,
you who plundered my chosen people.
You frisk about like a calf in a meadow
and neigh like a stallion.
you who plundered my chosen people.
You frisk about like a calf in a meadow
and neigh like a stallion.
“Because you are glad, because you are jubilant,
O you who pillage My heritage,
Because you skip about like a threshing heifer
And neigh like stallions,
O you who pillage My heritage,
Because you skip about like a threshing heifer
And neigh like stallions,
Your mother will be greatly ashamed,
She who gave you birth will be humiliated.
Behold, she will be the least of the nations,
A wilderness, a parched land and a desert.
She who gave you birth will be humiliated.
Behold, she will be the least of the nations,
A wilderness, a parched land and a desert.
Because of the LORD’s anger,
Babylon will become a deserted wasteland.
All who pass by will be horrified
and will gasp at the destruction they see there.
Babylon will become a deserted wasteland.
All who pass by will be horrified
and will gasp at the destruction they see there.
“Because of the indignation of the LORD she will not be inhabited,
But she will be completely desolate;
Everyone who passes by Babylon will be horrified
And will hiss because of all her wounds.
But she will be completely desolate;
Everyone who passes by Babylon will be horrified
And will hiss because of all her wounds.
“Yes, prepare to attack Babylon,
all you surrounding nations.
Let your archers shoot at her; spare no arrows.
For she has sinned against the LORD.
all you surrounding nations.
Let your archers shoot at her; spare no arrows.
For she has sinned against the LORD.
“Draw up your battle lines against Babylon on every side,
All you who bend the bow;
Shoot at her, do not be sparing with your arrows,
For she has sinned against the LORD.
All you who bend the bow;
Shoot at her, do not be sparing with your arrows,
For she has sinned against the LORD.
Shout war cries against her from every side.
Look! She surrenders!
Her walls have fallen.
It is the LORD’s vengeance,
so take vengeance on her.
Do to her as she has done to others!
Look! She surrenders!
Her walls have fallen.
It is the LORD’s vengeance,
so take vengeance on her.
Do to her as she has done to others!
“Raise your battle cry against her on every side!
She has given herself up, her pillars have fallen,
Her walls have been torn down.
For this is the vengeance of the LORD:
Take vengeance on her;
As she has done to others, so do to her.
She has given herself up, her pillars have fallen,
Her walls have been torn down.
For this is the vengeance of the LORD:
Take vengeance on her;
As she has done to others, so do to her.
Take from Babylon all those who plant crops;
send all the harvesters away.
Because of the sword of the enemy,
everyone will run away and rush back to their own lands.
Hope for God’s People
send all the harvesters away.
Because of the sword of the enemy,
everyone will run away and rush back to their own lands.
Hope for God’s People
“Cut off the sower from Babylon
And the one who wields the sickle at the time of harvest;
From before the sword of the oppressor
They will each turn back to his own people
And they will each flee to his own land.
And the one who wields the sickle at the time of harvest;
From before the sword of the oppressor
They will each turn back to his own people
And they will each flee to his own land.
“Israel is a scattered flock, the lions have driven them away. The first one who devoured him was the king of Assyria, and this last one who has broken his bones is Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
Therefore, this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies,
the God of Israel, says:
“Now I will punish the king of Babylon and his land,
just as I punished the king of Assyria.
the God of Israel, says:
“Now I will punish the king of Babylon and his land,
just as I punished the king of Assyria.
“Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am going to punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I punished the king of Assyria.
And I will bring Israel home again to its own land,
to feed in the fields of Carmel and Bashan,
and to be satisfied once more
in the hill country of Ephraim and Gilead.
to feed in the fields of Carmel and Bashan,
and to be satisfied once more
in the hill country of Ephraim and Gilead.
‘And I will bring Israel back to his pasture and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan, and his desire will be satisfied in the hill country of Ephraim and Gilead.
In those days,” says the LORD,
“no sin will be found in Israel or in Judah,
for I will forgive the remnant I preserve.
The LORD’s Judgment on Babylon
“no sin will be found in Israel or in Judah,
for I will forgive the remnant I preserve.
The LORD’s Judgment on Babylon
‘In those days and at that time,’ declares the LORD, ‘search will be made for the iniquity of Israel, but there will be none; and for the sins of Judah, but they will not be found; for I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.’
“Against the land of Merathaim, go up against it,
And against the inhabitants of Pekod.
Slay and utterly destroy them,” declares the LORD,
“And do according to all that I have commanded you.
And against the inhabitants of Pekod.
Slay and utterly destroy them,” declares the LORD,
“And do according to all that I have commanded you.
“Let the battle cry be heard in the land,
a shout of great destruction.
a shout of great destruction.
“The noise of battle is in the land,
And great destruction.
And great destruction.
Babylon, the mightiest hammer in all the earth,
lies broken and shattered.
Babylon is desolate among the nations!
lies broken and shattered.
Babylon is desolate among the nations!
“How the hammer of the whole earth
Has been cut off and broken!
How Babylon has become
An object of horror among the nations!
Has been cut off and broken!
How Babylon has become
An object of horror among the nations!
Listen, Babylon, for I have set a trap for you.
You are caught, for you have fought against the LORD.
You are caught, for you have fought against the LORD.
“I set a snare for you and you were also caught, O Babylon,
While you yourself were not aware;
You have been found and also seized
Because you have engaged in conflict with the LORD.”
While you yourself were not aware;
You have been found and also seized
Because you have engaged in conflict with the LORD.”
The LORD has opened his armory
and brought out weapons to vent his fury.
The terror that falls upon the Babylonians
will be the work of the Sovereign LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
and brought out weapons to vent his fury.
The terror that falls upon the Babylonians
will be the work of the Sovereign LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
The LORD has opened His armory
And has brought forth the weapons of His indignation,
For it is a work of the Lord GOD of hosts
In the land of the Chaldeans.
And has brought forth the weapons of His indignation,
For it is a work of the Lord GOD of hosts
In the land of the Chaldeans.
Yes, come against her from distant lands.
Break open her granaries.
Crush her walls and houses into heaps of rubble.
Destroy her completely, and leave nothing!
Break open her granaries.
Crush her walls and houses into heaps of rubble.
Destroy her completely, and leave nothing!
Come to her from the farthest border;
Open up her barns,
Pile her up like heaps
And utterly destroy her,
Let nothing be left to her.
Open up her barns,
Pile her up like heaps
And utterly destroy her,
Let nothing be left to her.
Destroy even her young bulls —
it will be terrible for them, too!
Slaughter them all!
For Babylon’s day of reckoning has come.
it will be terrible for them, too!
Slaughter them all!
For Babylon’s day of reckoning has come.
Put all her young bulls to the sword;
Let them go down to the slaughter!
Woe be upon them, for their day has come,
The time of their punishment.
Let them go down to the slaughter!
Woe be upon them, for their day has come,
The time of their punishment.
Listen to the people who have escaped from Babylon,
as they tell in Jerusalem
how the LORD our God has taken vengeance
against those who destroyed his Temple.
as they tell in Jerusalem
how the LORD our God has taken vengeance
against those who destroyed his Temple.
There is a sound of fugitives and refugees from the land of Babylon,
To declare in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God,
Vengeance for His temple.
To declare in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God,
Vengeance for His temple.
“Send out a call for archers to come to Babylon.
Surround the city so none can escape.
Do to her as she has done to others,
for she has defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.
Surround the city so none can escape.
Do to her as she has done to others,
for she has defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.
“Summon many against Babylon,
All those who bend the bow:
Encamp against her on every side,
Let there be no escape.
Repay her according to her work;
According to all that she has done, so do to her;
For she has become arrogant against the LORD,
Against the Holy One of Israel.
All those who bend the bow:
Encamp against her on every side,
Let there be no escape.
Repay her according to her work;
According to all that she has done, so do to her;
For she has become arrogant against the LORD,
Against the Holy One of Israel.
Her young men will fall in the streets and die.
Her soldiers will all be killed,”
says the LORD.
Her soldiers will all be killed,”
says the LORD.
“Therefore her young men will fall in her streets,
And all her men of war will be silenced in that day,” declares the LORD.
And all her men of war will be silenced in that day,” declares the LORD.
“See, I am your enemy, you arrogant people,”
says the Lord, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
“Your day of reckoning has arrived —
the day when I will punish you.
says the Lord, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
“Your day of reckoning has arrived —
the day when I will punish you.
“Behold, I am against you, O arrogant one,”
Declares the Lord GOD of hosts,
“For your day has come,
The time when I will punish you.
Declares the Lord GOD of hosts,
“For your day has come,
The time when I will punish you.
O land of arrogance, you will stumble and fall,
and no one will raise you up.
For I will light a fire in the cities of Babylon
that will burn up everything around them.”
and no one will raise you up.
For I will light a fire in the cities of Babylon
that will burn up everything around them.”
“The arrogant one will stumble and fall
With no one to raise him up;
And I will set fire to his cities
And it will devour all his environs.”
With no one to raise him up;
And I will set fire to his cities
And it will devour all his environs.”
This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says:
“The people of Israel and Judah have been wronged.
Their captors hold them and refuse to let them go.
“The people of Israel and Judah have been wronged.
Their captors hold them and refuse to let them go.
Thus says the LORD of hosts,
“The sons of Israel are oppressed,
And the sons of Judah as well;
And all who took them captive have held them fast,
They have refused to let them go.
“The sons of Israel are oppressed,
And the sons of Judah as well;
And all who took them captive have held them fast,
They have refused to let them go.
But the one who redeems them is strong.
His name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
He will defend them
and give them rest again in Israel.
But for the people of Babylon
there will be no rest!
His name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.
He will defend them
and give them rest again in Israel.
But for the people of Babylon
there will be no rest!
“Their Redeemer is strong, the LORD of hosts is His name;
He will vigorously plead their case
So that He may bring rest to the earth,
But turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.
He will vigorously plead their case
So that He may bring rest to the earth,
But turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.
“The sword of destruction will strike the Babylonians,”
says the LORD.
“It will strike the people of Babylon —
her officials and wise men, too.
says the LORD.
“It will strike the people of Babylon —
her officials and wise men, too.
“A sword against the Chaldeans,” declares the LORD,
“And against the inhabitants of Babylon
And against her officials and her wise men!
“And against the inhabitants of Babylon
And against her officials and her wise men!
The sword will strike her wise counselors,
and they will become fools.
The sword will strike her mightiest warriors,
and panic will seize them.
and they will become fools.
The sword will strike her mightiest warriors,
and panic will seize them.
“A sword against the oracle priests, and they will become fools!
A sword against her mighty men, and they will be shattered!
A sword against her mighty men, and they will be shattered!
The sword will strike her horses and chariots
and her allies from other lands,
and they will all become like women.
The sword will strike her treasures,
and they all will be plundered.
and her allies from other lands,
and they will all become like women.
The sword will strike her treasures,
and they all will be plundered.
“A sword against their horses and against their chariots
And against all the foreigners who are in the midst of her,
And they will become women!
A sword against her treasures, and they will be plundered!
And against all the foreigners who are in the midst of her,
And they will become women!
A sword against her treasures, and they will be plundered!
“A drought on her waters, and they will be dried up!
For it is a land of idols,
And they are mad over fearsome idols.
For it is a land of idols,
And they are mad over fearsome idols.
“Soon Babylon will be inhabited by desert animals and hyenas.
It will be a home for owls.
Never again will people live there;
it will lie desolate forever.
It will be a home for owls.
Never again will people live there;
it will lie desolate forever.
“Therefore the desert creatures will live there along with the jackals;
The ostriches also will live in it,
And it will never again be inhabited
Or dwelt in from generation to generation.
The ostriches also will live in it,
And it will never again be inhabited
Or dwelt in from generation to generation.
“As when God overthrew Sodom
And Gomorrah with its neighbors,” declares the LORD,
“No man will live there,
Nor will any son of man reside in it.
And Gomorrah with its neighbors,” declares the LORD,
“No man will live there,
Nor will any son of man reside in it.
“Look! A great army is coming from the north.
A great nation and many kings
are rising against you from far-off lands.
A great nation and many kings
are rising against you from far-off lands.
“Behold, a people is coming from the north,
And a great nation and many kings
Will be aroused from the remote parts of the earth.
And a great nation and many kings
Will be aroused from the remote parts of the earth.
They are armed with bows and spears.
They are cruel and show no mercy.
As they ride forward on horses,
they sound like a roaring sea.
They are coming in battle formation,
planning to destroy you, Babylon.
They are cruel and show no mercy.
As they ride forward on horses,
they sound like a roaring sea.
They are coming in battle formation,
planning to destroy you, Babylon.
“They seize their bow and javelin;
They are cruel and have no mercy.
Their voice roars like the sea;
And they ride on horses,
Marshalled like a man for the battle
Against you, O daughter of Babylon.
They are cruel and have no mercy.
Their voice roars like the sea;
And they ride on horses,
Marshalled like a man for the battle
Against you, O daughter of Babylon.
The king of Babylon has heard reports about the enemy,
and he is weak with fright.
Pangs of anguish have gripped him,
like those of a woman in labor.
and he is weak with fright.
Pangs of anguish have gripped him,
like those of a woman in labor.
“The king of Babylon has heard the report about them,
And his hands hang limp;
Distress has gripped him,
Agony like a woman in childbirth.
And his hands hang limp;
Distress has gripped him,
Agony like a woman in childbirth.
“I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan,
leaping on the sheep in the pasture.
I will chase Babylon from its land,
and I will appoint the leader of my choice.
For who is like me, and who can challenge me?
What ruler can oppose my will?”
leaping on the sheep in the pasture.
I will chase Babylon from its land,
and I will appoint the leader of my choice.
For who is like me, and who can challenge me?
What ruler can oppose my will?”
“Behold, one will come up like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan to a perennially watered pasture; for in an instant I will make them run away from it, and whoever is chosen I will appoint over it. For who is like Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd who can stand before Me?”
Listen to the LORD’s plans against Babylon
and the land of the Babylonians.
Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep,
and their homes will be destroyed.
and the land of the Babylonians.
Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep,
and their homes will be destroyed.
Therefore hear the plan of the LORD which He has planned against Babylon, and His purposes which He has purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: surely they will drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; surely He will make their pasture desolate because of them.