Jeremiah 25

1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (the same was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon),

After Jehoiakim had been ruling Judah for almost four years, Yahweh gave me this message for all the people of Judah. It was during the year that King Nebuchadnezzar started to rule in Babylon.

2 which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying:

I spoke this message to all the people in Jerusalem and [other places in] Judah:

3 From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even unto this day, these three and twenty years, the word of Jehovah hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising up early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened.

“Yahweh has been giving me messages for 23 years. He started giving me messages when Josiah, the son of Amon, had been ruling Judah for almost 13 years. And I have faithfully told you those messages, but you have not paid any attention to them.

4 And Jehovah hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, (but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear),

Many times Yahweh has sent to you the prophets who served him, but you have not listened to them or paid any attention to what they said.

5 saying, Return ye now every one from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that Jehovah hath given unto you and to your fathers, from of old and even for evermore;

Each time their message was this: ‘Turn from all your evil behavior [MET], from all the evil things that you have continually been doing. If you do that, you will be able to stay in this land that Yahweh gave to you and to your ancestors, [to belong to you] forever.

6 and go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke me not to anger with the work of your hands; and I will do you no hurt.

Do not cause Yahweh to become angry by serving and worshiping idols that you have made with your hands. If you do not cause him to be angry, he will not punish/harm you.’

7 Yet ye have not hearkened unto me, saith Jehovah; that ye may provoke me to anger with the work of your hands to your own hurt.

And Yahweh says, ‘But you would not pay attention to the messages that I [gave to those prophets]. You caused me to become extremely angry by [your worshiping idols] that you had made with your own hands. That resulted in my punishing you.

8 Therefore thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Because ye have not heard my words,

So [now, I], the Commander of the armies of angels, say that because you have not paid attention to what I said,

9 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith Jehovah, and [I will send] unto Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about; and I will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and a hissing, and perpetual desolations.

I will gather all [the armies of] the nations that will come from the northeast. I have appointed King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon to lead them. I have appointed him to do my work for me. I will bring those [armies] to attack this land and nearby countries. I will completely destroy them, and cause them to be places that people are horrified about, and that people will (ridicule/act contemptuously toward), places that will be ruined forever.

10 Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the lamp.

I will cause happy singing and laughing to cease in your land. There will no longer be brides and bridegrooms talking [joyfully]. There will not be the sound of people grinding [grain] with millstones. There will be no lamps lit [in your houses].

11 And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.

All of this land will become a desert where no one will live. And [the people of] Israel and of the nearby countries will [will be exiled to Babylonia and] (work for/be slaves of) the kings of Babylon for seventy years.

12 And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith Jehovah, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans; and I will make it desolate for ever.

Then, after [they have been in Babylonia for] seventy years, I will punish the King of Babylonia and his people for the sins that they have committed. I will cause Babylonia to become a wasteland/desert forever.

13 And I will bring upon that land all my words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations.

I will cause them to experience all the terrible things that Jeremiah has written about—all the punishments that he predicted will happen to all those nations.

14 For many nations and great kings shall make bondmen of them, even of them; and I will recompense them according to their deeds, and according to the work of their hands.

The leaders of many nations will cause the people of Babylonia to become their slaves, like the people of Babylonia caused my people to become slaves. I will punish them like they deserve for [having caused my people to suffer].’”

15 For thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, unto me: Take this cup of the wine of wrath at my hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it.

Then Yahweh, the God [we] Israelis [worship], gave me [a vision. In the vision he was holding a cup of wine]. He said, “Take from me this cup that is full of [wine that represents] punishment [MTY]. I will cause all [the leaders of] the nations to which I will send you to drink [some of] the wine in this cup.

16 And they shall drink, and reel to and fro, and be mad, because of the sword that I will send among them.

When they drink [the wine], they will stagger and act like crazy people, because [they will realize that] I will (massacre many of their people/cause many of their people to be killed) [MTY] with swords.”

17 Then took I the cup at Jehovah’s hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom Jehovah had sent me:

So, [in the vision, ] I took that cup [full of wine] from Yahweh, and I took it to all the nations to which he sent me, and caused [the leaders of those] nations to drink [some of that wine].

18 [to wit], Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, a hissing, and a curse, as it is this day;

[I went to] Jerusalem and the [other] towns in Judah, and the king and [the other] officials drank [some of the wine] from that cup. And, starting from that day, they all [eventually] were removed from having authority, and became [people whom others] (ridiculed/acted contemptuously towards), who were despised, and cursed.

19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people;

[In the vision I went to] Egypt [and gave some of the wine] to the king and his officials and many of his people,

20 and all the mingled people, and all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of the Philistines, and Ashkelon, and Gaza, and Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod;

and to foreigners who were living there. [In the vision I also went to] Uz land and to Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and Ashdod [cities and gave some of the wine] to the kings [of those places].

21 Edom, and Moab, and the children of Ammon;

[Then in the vision I went to the] Edom, Moab, and Ammon [people-groups],

22 and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the isle which is beyond the sea;

and to Tyre and Sidon [cities] and to areas across the [Mediterranean] Sea, and [gave some of the wine] to the kings [of those places].

23 Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all that have the corners [of their hair] cut off;

[In the vision I then went] to Dedan, Tema, and Buz [cities in Arabia] and to other distant places (OR, places where people cut their hair short), [and gave some of the wine to leaders in those areas].

24 and all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the mingled people that dwell in the wilderness;

[In the vision I also went to other places in] Arabia and to the [kings of tribes] in the desert

25 and all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes;

and to the kings of the Zimri, Elam, and Media [people-groups],

26 and all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another; and all the kingdoms of the world, which are upon the face of the earth: and the king of Sheshach shall drink after them.

and to kings in countries to the north that are near [to Israel] and to countries that are far [from Israel], one after the other— [I went to] all the kingdoms in the world [HYP]. And finally, [in my vision I went to] Babylon, and gave [some of] the wine to the king of Babylon—the wine [that symbolized that Yahweh would punish the people of Babylon because he was angry with them] [MTY].

27 And thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink ye, and be drunken, and spew, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you.

Then [in the vision Yahweh said to me], “Tell them that this is what the Commander of the armies of angels, the God whom we Israelis [worship], says: ‘Drink [from this cup some of the wine that represents the punishment that I will give you]. Drink [a lot of it] and become drunk and vomit. You will fall down and not get up again, because I will cause you to be killed in wars [MTY] that I will send to you.

28 And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thy hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Ye shall surely drink.

If any of those to whom you give this wine [MTY] refuse to drink it, tell them that the Commander of the armies of angels says that they must drink it.

29 For, lo, I begin to work evil at the city which is called by my name; and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished; for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith Jehovah of hosts.

I am starting to cause the people of my own city to experience disaster. [Do you think that] you should not be punished [RHQ]? No, you will surely be punished [LIT] because I am causing there to be wars in all the nations on the earth. [That will surely happen because] I, the Commander of the armies of angels, have said it.’

30 Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them, Jehovah will roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he will mightily roar against his fold; he will give a shout, as they that tread [the grapes], against all the inhabitants of the earth.

Now tell them all those things that I have said, and also say this to them: ‘Yahweh will [shout to them] from his holy dwelling [in heaven] [MTY] and [it will sound like] the roar of a lion. He will shout like [SIM] people shout when they are treading on grapes [to make juice for wine]; he will shout to everyone on the earth.

31 A noise shall come even to the end of the earth; for Jehovah hath a controversy with the nations; he will enter into judgment with all flesh: as for the wicked, he will give them to the sword, saith Jehovah.

Even people in very remote places around the earth will hear him shouting, because he will say why he will judge and punish all the nations. He will cause the wicked people to be slaughtered with swords. [That will surely happen because] Yahweh has said it.’

32 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great tempest shall be raised up from the uttermost parts of the earth.

Then tell them that this is what the Commander of the armies of angels says: ‘Listen to this! There will be disasters in one nation after another. [I am preparing to punish them like] [MET] a great storm that starts in the most distant places on the earth.

33 And the slain of Jehovah shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth: they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung upon the face of the ground.

When that happens, [the corpses of] those whom I have [caused to be] slaughtered will fill the earth from the east to the west. And no one will mourn for them, and no one will gather their corpses to bury them. They will be [scattered] on the ground like manure.

34 Wail, ye shepherds, and cry; and wallow [in ashes], ye principal of the flock; for the days of your slaughter and of your dispersions are fully come, and ye shall fall like a goodly vessel.

You [evil] leaders, weep and moan! You who should take care of my people, [fall down and] roll in the dust/dirt. It is time for you to be slaughtered; you will fall down and be shattered like a fragile vase [shatters when it falls to the ground].

35 And the shepherds shall have no way to flee, nor the principal of the flock to escape.

You will not find any place to hide, there will be no place to which you can escape.

36 A voice of the cry of the shepherds, and the wailing of the principal of the flock! for Jehovah layeth waste their pasture.

[People will] listen to your leaders crying when [I], Yahweh, am ruining your nation.

37 And the peaceable folds are brought to silence because of the fierce anger of Jehovah.

Your peaceful meadows will become a wasteland/desert because I will be extremely angry.

38 He hath left his covert, as the lion; for their land is become an astonishment because of the fierceness of the oppressing [sword], and because of his fierce anger.

I will leave [my dwelling like] [SIM] a lion leaves its den [to attack other animals], and I will cause your land to become desolate when I, because I am very angry [with you], cause [your enemies to slaughter you with their] swords.’”