Jeremiah 50
1 This is the word that Yahweh declared about Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, by the hand of Jeremiah the prophet,
Yahweh gave to [me, ] Jeremiah the prophet, a message about Babylon [city] and the country of Babylonia.
2 “Report to the nations and cause them to listen. Lift up a signal and cause them to listen. Do not conceal it. Say, 'Babylon is taken. Bel is made ashamed. Marduk is dismayed. Its idols are put to shame; its images are dismayed.'
[This is what Yahweh says]: “Proclaim [DOU] [a message] among the nations; do not withhold any of it; raise up a signal flag to announce that Babylon will be captured. [Its chief god] Marduk, [whose other name is] Bel, will be completely disgraced, and all the [other] statues and idols will be shattered.
3 A nation from the north will arise against it, and make her land a desolation. No one will live in it; both man and beast will flee away.
[The army of] a nation will come from the north to attack Babylon and destroy the city very thoroughly, [with the result that] no one will live there [again]. Both people and animals will run away.”
4 In those days and at that time—this is Yahweh's declaration—the people of Israel and the people of Judah will come together to go with weeping and seek Yahweh their God.
“But [I, ] Yahweh, say that in the future, when that is about to happen, the people of Israel and the people of Judah will join together. They will be weeping and wanting [to worship] me, their God.
5 They will ask the way to Zion and will set off toward it, saying, We will go and join ourselves to Yahweh in an everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.”
They will inquire about the road to Jerusalem, [and then] they will start traveling [IDM] toward it. They will say [to each other], ‘We must return to Yahweh [again]!’ They will make an everlasting agreement with me that they will never forget.
6 My people have been a lost flock. Their shepherds have led them astray in the mountains; they have turned them around from hill to hill. They went, they forgot the place where they had lived.
My people have been [like] [MET] lost sheep. Their [leaders/rulers] have caused them [to abandon me] like [MET] shepherds who have allowed their sheep to wander in the hills and mountains. [My people are like] [MET] sheep that do not know the path to return to the sheepfold.
7 Everyone who went out to them devoured them. Their adversaries said, 'We are not guilty, because they sinned against Yahweh, their true home—Yahweh, the hope of their ancestors.'
All their enemies who found them attacked them. They said, ‘We did not sin [by attacking them], because they sinned against Yahweh; he is the one who provides what they need; he is the one to whom they should have remained faithful; he is the one whom their ancestors confidently expected [to help them].’
8 Leave from the midst of Babylon; go out from the land of the Chaldeans; be like male goats that leave before the rest of the flock does.
[But now, I say to the leaders of my people], ‘Flee from Babylon! Leave the land of Babylonia! Be like [SIM] male goats [that go] in front of [the rest of] the flock; [lead my people back to their own land].
9 For see, I am about to set in motion and raise up a group of great nations from the north against Babylon. They will arrange themselves against her. Babylon will be captured from there. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed.
[Do that] because I am going to gather an army of great nations to the north [of Babylon]. They will join together to attack Babylon and will capture it. Their arrows will be like [SIM] skilled warriors that always hit what they aim at.
10 Chaldea will become plunder. All those who plunder it will be satisfied—this is Yahweh's declaration.
Babylonia will be conquered, and those who conquer it will take away everything they want. [That will surely happen because I, ] Yahweh, have said it.’”
11 You rejoice, you celebrate the plundering of my inheritance; you jump around like a calf stamping in its pasture; you neigh like a powerful horse.
“You people [of Babylon] who (plundered/stole everything valuable from) my chosen people, now you are very happy [DOU]. You run around joyfully like [SIM] a calf in a meadow, and are happy like [SIM] male horses are happy when they are neighing.
12 So your mother will be greatly ashamed; the one who bore you will be embarrassed. See, she will be the least of nations, a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
But [soon] your people will be very disgraced [DOU] [as a result of being conquered]. Your country will be the most insignificant nation; it will be a desert, a dry and deserted land.
13 Because of Yahweh's anger, Babylon will not be inhabited, but will be a complete devastation. Everyone who passes by will shudder because of Babylon and will hiss because all of its wounds.
Because [I, ] Yahweh, am angry [with you people of Babylon], I will cause your city to become completely deserted. All who pass by will be horrified and will (gasp/be shocked) because of the destruction there.
14 Arrange yourselves against Babylon all around her. Everyone who bends a bow must shoot at her. Do not keep back any of your arrows, for she has sinned against Yahweh.
[All you nations that surround Babylon, ] prepare to attack it! Tell your archers to shoot at their enemies; shoot all of your arrows at them [LIT], because [the people/leaders of Babylon have sinned against me, ] Yahweh.
15 Raise a shout against her all around! She has surrendered; her towers have fallen; her walls are torn down, for this is Yahweh's vengeance. Take vengeance on her! Do to her just as she has done!
Shout [war-cries] against Babylon from all sides [of the city]. [The soldiers of] Babylon will surrender; the towers and walls will be torn down. It is [I, ] Yahweh, who will be getting revenge [on the people of Babylon], [so help me to] get revenge. Do to [the people of] Babylon what they have done to others!
16 Destroy both the farmer who sows seed and the one who uses a sickle at the time of harvest in Babylon. Let each person turn back to his own people from the oppressor's sword; let them flee to their own land.
Take away from Babylon those who plant [crops] and those who reap the harvests! Because of the swords carried by those who will attack [Babylon], [those people in Babylon who have come from other countries] should all run away, back to their own countries [DOU]!”
17 Israel is a sheep scattered and driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria devoured him; then after this, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon broke his bones.
“The Israeli [people] are [like] [MET] sheep that have been scattered by lions. First [the army of] the King of Assyria defeated them. Then [the army of] King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon smashed them.
18 Therefore Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, says this: See, I am about to punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I punished the king of Assyria.
So this is what I, the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom the Israeli people [worship], say: ‘Now I will punish the King of Babylon and the people of his land, like I punished the King of Assyria.
19 I will restore Israel to his homeland; he will graze on Carmel and Bashan. Then he will be satisfied in the hill country of Ephraim and Gilead.
And I will bring the people of Israel back to their own land where they will eat [the food that grows] in the fields of the Carmel and Bashan [regions], and [the people in] the hilly areas of Ephraim and Gilead will have all they want to eat.
20 In those days and at that time, says Yahweh, iniquity will be looked for in Israel, but none will be found. I will inquire about the sins of Judah, but none will be found, for I will forgive the remnant that I spare.”
At that time, there will not be people in Israel and in Judah who [are still guilty for having] sinned [DOU], because I will forgive the small group of people whom I enable to still be alive.’”
21 “Arise against the land of Merathaim, against it and the ones inhabiting Pekod. Put them to the sword and set them apart for destruction—this is Yahweh's declaration—do everything that I am commanding you.
“[So, I, Yahweh, say to the enemies of Babylonia, ]‘Attack [the people who live in] the Merathaim [region] and the people in the Pekod [region of Babylonia]. Pursue them, kill them, and completely get rid of them, as I have commanded you to do.
22 The sounds of battle and enormous destruction are in the land.
Shout your battle cries throughout the land; shout [when you are causing] great destruction.
23 How the hammer of all the lands has been cut apart and destroyed. How Babylon has become a destroyed place among the nations.
[The army of Babylon is like] [MET] the most powerful hammer on the earth, but it will be completely shattered. Babylon will be deserted among the [other] nations.’
24 I have set a trap for you and you were taken, Babylon, and you did not know it! You were found and captured, because you opposed Yahweh.
You [people of] Babylon, [listen, ] [because] I have set a trap for you; you will be caught [in that trap], because you fought against me.
25 Yahweh has opened his armory and is bringing out the weapons for carrying out his anger. There is work for the Lord Yahweh of hosts in the land of the Chaldeans.
[It is as though] I have opened the place where I store my weapons, and I have brought out [all] the weapons [to use against the people with whom] I am angry. [I, ] the Commander of the armies of angels, have [a lot of] work to do [to punish] the people of Babylonia.
26 Attack her from far away. Open her granaries and pile her up like heaps of grain. Set her apart for destruction. Leave no remnant of her.
[So, you enemies of Babylonia, ] come from distant lands and attack it. Break open the places where they store the grain. Crush the walls of the city and the houses and pile up [the rubble like] [SIM] heaps of grain. Destroy everything; do not leave anything that is not destroyed.
27 Kill all her bulls. Send them down to the place of slaughter. Woe to them, for their day has come—the time for their punishment.
Destroy all the [young men who are as strong as] [MET] bulls; take them to where you will slaughter them. It will be terrible for them, because it will be time for them to be punished.
28 There is the sound of those fleeing, of those who are survivors, from the land of Babylon. These will report the vengeance of Yahweh our God for Zion, and vengeance for his temple.”
Listen to the people who have fled and escaped from Babylon while they tell in Jerusalem how [I, ] Yahweh, have gotten revenge against those who destroyed my temple [in Jerusalem].
29 “Summon the archers against Babylon—all those who bend their bows. Camp against her, and let no one escape. Repay her for what she has done. Do to her by the measure she has used. For she had defied Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel.
Summon archers [DOU] to come to attack Babylon; surround the city in order that no one will escape. Do to [the people of] Babylon what they have done to others [DOU], because they have defied [me, ] the Holy One of the Israeli [people].
30 So her young men will fall in the city squares, and all her fighting men will be destroyed on that day —this is Yahweh's declaration.”
The young men of Babylon will fall in the streets; all their soldiers will be killed in one day.
31 “See, I am against you, proud one—this is the declaration of the Lord Yahweh of hosts— for your day has come, proud one, the time when I will punish you.
[I, ] the Commander of the armies of angels, say this: ‘You arrogant/proud people, it is now the time; it is the time [DOU] when I will punish you.
32 So the proud ones will stumble and fall. No one will raise them up. I will light a fire in their cities; it will devour everything around him.
[Your land is full of] proud people, but you will stumble and fall, and no one will lift you up [again]. I will light a fire in the cities in Babylonia that will burn up everything that is nearby.’
33 Yahweh of hosts says this: The people of Israel are oppressed, together with the people of Judah. All the ones who captured them still hold them; they refuse to let them go.
[I], the Commander of the armies of angels, also say this: ‘The people of Israel and Judah were (oppressed/treated cruelly); those who captured them guarded them carefully and would not allow them to leave [Babylon].
34 The one who rescues them is strong. Yahweh of hosts is his name. He will truly plead their case, in order to bring rest to the land, and to bring strife to the ones inhabiting Babylon.
But I am strong, and I will free them. I am the Commander of the armies of angels; I will defend my people and enable them [to return to] their land where they will have peace, but the people of Babylonia will not have peace.
35 A sword is against the Chaldeans—this is Yahweh's declaration— and against the inhabitants of Babylon, her leaders, and her wise men.
[I will send enemy soldiers carrying] swords [PRS] to strike the people of Babylonia; they will strike the officials and wise men and all the [other] people who live in Babylon.
36 A sword against those who say empty words! They will become fools! A sword against her soldiers! They will be filled with terror.
They will strike their false prophets with swords and they will become foolish. They will strike the [strongest] warriors of Babylonia, and they will all be terrified.
37 A sword is coming against their horses, their chariots and all of the people who are in the midst of Babylon, so they will become like women. A sword is coming against her storerooms, and they will be plundered.
They will strike their horses and chariots and the foreigners who are in the army of Babylonia, and they will [all] become [as weak] as [MET] women. They will seize [MTY] all the valuable things there in Babylon and take them away.
38 A drought is coming on her waters, so they will become dry. For she is a land of worthless idols, and they act like people made insane by their dreadful idols.
[I] cause the streams to become dry. [I will do all those things] because the [entire] land [of Babylonia] is filled with idols, and those [horrible] idols have caused the people [who worship them] to become crazy.
39 So desert beasts with the jackals will inhabit there, and the young of ostriches will live in her. For all time, she will no longer be inhabited. From generation to generation, she will not be lived in.
[Soon only] hyenas and [other] wild creatures will live there; and it will be a place where owls live. People will never live there again; it will be uninhabited forever [DOU].
40 Just as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighbors—this is Yahweh's declaration— no one will live there; no person will stay in her.”
[I will destroy Babylon] like I destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and the nearby towns; no one will [ever] live there [again] [DOU].
41 “See, a people is coming from the north; a great nation and many kings are being stirred up from the farthest parts of the earth.
Look! A [great] army will come from the north. A great nation far away with many kings is preparing [to attack you people of Babylon].
42 They will pick up bows and spears. They are cruel and have no compassion. Their sound is like the sea roar, and they are riding on horses, set out in order as men for battle, against you, daughter of Babylon.
Their [army] has bows [and arrows] and spears; they are [very] cruel, and do not act mercifully [to anyone]. [As] they ride along on [their] horses, the sound of the horses’ hooves is like [SIM] the roaring of the ocean [waves]; they are riding in battle formation to attack you, you people of Babylon.
43 The king of Babylon heard the reports about them and his hands fell limp in distress. Anguish seized him like a woman giving birth.
The King of Babylon says, “[I] have heard reports about the enemy [approaching]; [so I am very frightened, with the result that] I am weak. I am [very fearful, and] anguished/worried, like [SIM] a woman who is about to give birth to a baby.”
44 Behold! He goes up like a lion from the heights of the Jordan to the enduring grazing place For I will quickly cause them to run from it, and I will put someone who will be chosen in charge of it. For who is like me, and who will summon me? What shepherd is able to resist me?
I, [Yahweh], will come to Babylon [suddenly] like a lion comes out of the jungle and [leaps on the sheep that are eating] the good pastureland. I will quickly chase the people of Babylonia from their land. And [then] I will appoint for them [a leader] whom I will choose; [I will do that] because there is no one [RHQ] like me who can say that what I have done is not right. No ruler can [RHQ] oppose me.
45 So listen to the plans that Yahweh has decided against Babylon, the plans that he has planned against the land of the Chaldeans. They will certainly be dragged away, even the smallest flock. Their pasturelands will be turned into ruined places.
Listen to what I have planned to do to the people of Babylon [city] and the rest of Babylonia: [even] the little children will be dragged away, and I will completely destroy the people [MET] who live there.
46 At the sound of conquered Babylon the earth shakes, and their shout of distress is heard among the nations.”
When Babylon is destroyed, the noise will be extremely loud, with the result that the earth will shake, and the wailing of the people will be heard by the [people of other] nations.’”
