6:22 “This is what the Lord says:
‘Beware! An army 2 is coming from a land in the north.
A mighty nation is stirring into action in faraway parts of the earth.
10:22 Listen! News is coming even now. 3
The rumble of a great army is heard approaching 4 from a land in the north. 5
It is coming to turn the towns of Judah into rubble,
places where only jackals live.
1:6 Look, I am about to empower 6 the Babylonians,
that ruthless 7 and greedy 8 nation.
They sweep across the surface 9 of the earth,
seizing dwelling places that do not belong to them.
1 tn There is nothing in the Hebrew text for these words but it is implicit in the connection. Once again the significance of the vision is spelled out. Compare the translator’s note on v. 12.
2 tn Heb “people.”
3 tn Heb “The sound of a report, behold, it is coming.”
4 tn Heb “ coming, even a great quaking.”
5 sn Compare Jer 6:22.
6 tn Heb “raise up” (so KJV, ASV).
7 tn Heb “bitter.” Other translation options for this word in this context include “fierce” (NASB, NRSV); “savage” (NEB); or “grim.”
8 tn Heb “hasty, quick.” Some translate here “impetuous” (so NEB, NASB, NIV, NRSV) or “rash,” but in this context greed may very well be the idea. The Babylonians move quickly and recklessly ahead in their greedy quest to expand their empire.
9 tn Heb “the open spaces.”