Jeremiah 46

1 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremias the prophet against the Gentiles,

This is the word of Yahweh that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations.

2 Against Egypt, against the army of Pharao Nechao king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Charcamis, whom Nabuchodonosor the king of Babylon defeated, in the fourth year of Joakim the son of Josias king of Juda.

For Egypt: “This is about the army of Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt that was at Carchemish by the Euphrates river. This was the army that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah:

3 Prepare ye the shield and buckler, and go forth to battle.

Get the small shields and the large shields ready, and go forward to fight.

4 Harness the horses, and get up, ye horsemen: stand forth with helmets, furbish the spears, put on coats of mail.

Put the harness on the horses; mount up on the horses and take your stand with your helmets on; polish the spears and put on your armor.

5 What then? I have seen them dismayed, and turning their backs, their valiant ones slain: they fled apace, and they looked not back: terror was round about, saith the Lord.

What am I seeing here? They are filled with terror and are running away, for their soldiers are defeated. They are running for safety and are not looking back. Terror is all around—this is Yahweh's declaration—

6 Let not the swift flee away, nor the strong think to escape: they are overthrown, and fallen down, towards the north by the river Euphrates.

the swift cannot run away, and the soldiers cannot escape. They stumble in the north and fall beside the Euphrates River.

7 Who is this that cometh up as a flood: and his streams swell like those of rivers?

Who is this who rises like the Nile, whose waters toss up and down like the rivers?

8 Egypt riseth up like a flood, and the waves thereof shall be moved as rivers, and he shall say: I will go up and will cover the earth: I will destroy the city, and its inhabitants.

Egypt rises like the Nile, like rivers of water that rise and fall. Egypt says, 'I will go up and I will cover the earth. I will destroy cities and their inhabitants.

9 Get ye up on horses, and glory in chariots, and let the valiant men come forth, the Ethiopians, and the Libyans that hold the shield, and the Lydians that take, and shoot arrows.

Go up, horses. Be angry, you chariots. Let the soldiers go out, Cush and Put, men skillful with a shield, and Ludim, men skillful at bending their bows.'

10 For this is the day of the Lord the God of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may revenge himself of his enemies: the sword shall devour, and shall be filled, and shall be drunk with their blood: for there is a sacrifice of the Lord God of hosts in the north country, by the river Euphrates.

That day will be the day of vengeance for the Lord Yahweh of hosts, and he will avenge himself on his foes. The sword will devour and be satisfied. It will drink its fill of their blood. For there will be a sacrifice to the Yahweh Lord of hosts in the northern land by the Euphrates River.

11 Go up into Galaad, and take balm, O virgin daughter of Egypt: in vain dost thou multiply medicines, there shall be no cure for thee.

Go up to Gilead and obtain medicine, virgin daughter of Egypt. It is useless that you put much medicine on yourself. There is no cure for you.

12 The nations have heard of thy disgrace, and thy howling hath filled the land: for the strong hath stumbled against the strong, and both are fallen together.

The nations have heard of your disgrace. The earth is filled with your laments, for soldier stumbles against soldier; both of them fall together.”

13 The word that the Lord spoke to Jeremias the prophet, how Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon should come and strike the land of Egypt:

This is the word that Yahweh told Jeremiah the prophet when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came and attacked the land of Egypt:

14 Declare ye to Egypt, and publish it in Magdal, and let it be known in Memphis, and in Taphnis: say ye: Stand up, and prepare thyself: for the sword shall devour all round about thee.

“Announce in Egypt, and proclaim it in Migdol, Memphis, and Tahpanhes. 'Take your station and prepare yourself, for the sword will devour those around you.'

15 Why are thy valiant men come to nothing? they stood not: because the Lord hath overthrown them.

Why are your mighty ones face-down on the ground? They will not stand, because I, Yahweh, have pushed them to the ground.

16 He hath multiplied them that fall, and one hath fallen upon another, and they shall say: Arise, and let us return to our own people, and to the land our nativity, from the sword of the dove.

He increases the numbers of those who stumble. Each soldier falls against the next one. They are saying, 'Get up. Let us go home. Let us go back to our own people, to our native land. Let us leave this sword that is beating us down.'

17 Call ye the name of Pharao king Egypt, a tumult time hath brought.

They proclaimed there, 'Pharaoh the king of Egypt is only a noise, one who has let his opportunity slip away.'

18 As I live, (saith the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts, ) as Thabor is among the mountains, and as Carmel by the sea, so shall he come.

As I live—declares the King, whose name is Yahweh of hosts— someone will come like Mount Tabor and Mount Carmel by the sea.

19 Furnish thyself to go into captivity, thou daughter inhabitant of Egypt: for Memphis shall be made desolate, and shall be forsaken and uninhabited.

Pack for yourselves baggage to carry into exile, you who live in Egypt. For Memphis will become a waste, it will lie in ruins and no one will live there.

20 Egypt is like a fair and beautiful heifer: there shall come from the north one that shall goad her.

Egypt is a very beautiful young cow, but a stinging insect is coming from the north. It is coming.

21 Her hirelings also that lived in the midst of her, like fatted calves are turned back, and are fled away together, and they could not stand, for the day of their slaughter is come upon them, the time of their visitation.

The hired soldiers in her midst are like a fattened bull, but they will also turn away and run away. They will not stand together, for the day of their disaster is coming against them, the time of their punishment.

22 Her voice shall sound like brass, for they shall hasten with an army, and with axes they shall come against her, as hewers of wood.

Egypt hisses like a snake and crawls away, for her enemies are marching against her. They are going toward her like woodcutters with axes.

23 They have cut down her forest, saith the Lord, which cannot be counted: they are multiplied above locusts, and are without number.

They will cut down the forests—this is Yahweh's declaration—although it is very dense. For the enemies will be more numerous than locusts, unable to be counted.

24 The daughter of Egypt is confounded, and delivered into the hand of the people of the north.

The daughter of Egypt will be made ashamed. She will be given into the hand of people from the north.”

25 The Lord of hosts the God of Israel hath said: Behold I will visit upon the tumult of Alexandria, and upon Pharao, and upon Egypt, and upon her gods, and upon her kings, and upon Pharao, upon them that trust in him.

Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, says, “See, I am about to punish Amon of Thebes, Pharaoh, Egypt and her gods, her kings the Pharaohs, and those who trust in them.

26 And I will deliver them into the hand of them that seek their lives, into the hand of Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants: and afterwards it shall be inhabited, as in the days of old, saith the Lord.

I am giving them into the hand of the ones seeking their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his servants. Then after this Egypt will be inhabited as in previous days—this is Yahweh's declaration.

27 And thou my servant Jacob, fear not and be not thou dismayed, O Israel: for behold I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed out of the land of thy captivity: and Jacob shall return and be at rest, and prosper: and there shall be none to terrify him.

But you, my servant Jacob, do not fear. Do not be dismayed, Israel, for see, I am about to bring you back from far away, and your offspring from the land of their captivity. Then Jacob will return, find peace, and be secure, and there will be no one to terrify him.

28 And thou, my servant Jacob, fear not, saith the Lord: because I am with thee, for I will consume all the nations to which I have cast thee out: but thee I will not consume, but I will correct thee in judgment, neither will I spare thee as if thou wert innocent.

You, my servant Jacob, do not fear—this is Yahweh's declaration—for I am with you, so I will bring complete destruction against all the nations where I scattered you. But I will not destroy you completely. Yet I will discipline you justly and will certainly not leave you unpunished.”