48:1 The Lord God of Israel who rules over all 1 spoke about Moab. 2
“Sure to be judged is Nebo! Indeed, 3 it will be destroyed!
Kiriathaim 4 will suffer disgrace. It will be captured!
Its fortress 5 will suffer disgrace. It will be torn down! 6
48:2 People will not praise Moab any more.
The enemy will capture Heshbon 7 and plot 8 how to destroy Moab, 9
saying, ‘Come, let’s put an end to that nation!’
City of Madmen, you will also be destroyed. 10
A destructive army will march against you. 11
48:3 Cries of anguish will arise in Horonaim,
‘Oh, the ruin and great destruction!’
48:4 “Moab will be crushed.
Her children will cry out in distress. 12
48:5 Indeed they will climb the slopes of Luhith,
weeping continually as they go. 13
For on the road down to Horonaim
they will hear the cries of distress over the destruction. 14
48:6 They will hear, ‘Run! Save yourselves!
Even if you must be like a lonely shrub in the desert!’ 15
48:7 “Moab, you trust in the things you do and in your riches.
So you too will be conquered.
Your god Chemosh 16 will go into exile 17
along with his priests and his officials.
48:8 The destroyer will come against every town.
Not one town will escape.
The towns in the valley will be destroyed.
The cities on the high plain will be laid waste. 18
I, the Lord, have spoken! 19
48:9 Set up a gravestone for Moab,
for it will certainly be laid in ruins! 20
Its cities will be laid waste
and become uninhabited.”
48:10 A curse on anyone who is lax in doing the Lord’s work!
A curse on anyone who keeps from carrying out his destruction! 21
48:11 “From its earliest days Moab has lived undisturbed.
It has never been taken into exile.
Its people are like wine allowed to settle undisturbed on its dregs,
never poured out from one jar to another.
They are like wine which tastes like it always did,
whose aroma has remained unchanged. 22
48:12 But the time is coming when I will send
men against Moab who will empty it out.
They will empty the towns of their people,
then will lay those towns in ruins. 23
I, the Lord, affirm it! 24
48:13 The people of Moab will be disappointed by their god Chemosh.
They will be as disappointed as the people of Israel were
when they put their trust in the calf god at Bethel. 25
48:14 How can you men of Moab say, ‘We are heroes,
men who are mighty in battle?’
48:15 Moab will be destroyed. Its towns will be invaded.
Its finest young men will be slaughtered. 26
I, the King, the Lord who rules over all, 27 affirm it! 28
48:16 Moab’s destruction is at hand.
Disaster will come on it quickly.
48:17 Mourn for that nation, all you nations living around it,
all of you nations that know of its fame. 29
Mourn and say, ‘Alas, its powerful influence has been broken!
Its glory and power have been done away!’ 30
48:18 Come down from your place of honor;
sit on the dry ground, 31 you who live in Dibon. 32
For the one who will destroy Moab will attack you;
he will destroy your fortifications.
48:19 You who live in Aroer, 33
stand by the road and watch.
Question the man who is fleeing and the woman who is escaping.
Ask them, ‘What has happened?’
48:20 They will answer, ‘Moab is disgraced, for it has fallen!
Wail and cry out in mourning!
Announce along the Arnon River
that Moab has been destroyed.’
48:21 “Judgment will come on the cities on the high plain: 34 on Holon, Jahzah, and Mephaath, 48:22 on Dibon, Nebo, and Beth Diblathaim, 48:23 on Kiriathaim, Beth Gamul, and Beth Meon, 48:24 on Kerioth and Bozrah. It will come on all the towns of Moab, both far and near. 48:25 Moab’s might will be crushed. Its power will be broken. 35 I, the Lord, affirm it! 36
48:26 “Moab has vaunted itself against me.
So make him drunk with the wine of my wrath 37
until he splashes 38 around in his own vomit,
until others treat him as a laughingstock.
48:27 For did not you people of Moab laugh at the people of Israel?
Did you think that they were nothing but thieves, 39
that you shook your head in contempt 40
every time you talked about them? 41
48:28 Leave your towns, you inhabitants of Moab.
Go and live in the cliffs.
Be like a dove that makes its nest
high on the sides of a ravine. 42
48:29 I have heard how proud the people of Moab are,
I know how haughty they are.
I have heard how arrogant, proud, and haughty they are,
what a high opinion they have of themselves. 43
48:30 I, the Lord, affirm that 44 I know how arrogant they are.
But their pride is ill-founded.
Their boastings will prove to be false. 45
48:31 So I will weep with sorrow for Moab.
I will cry out in sadness for all of Moab.
I will moan 46 for the people of Kir Heres.
48:32 I will weep for the grapevines of Sibmah
just like the town of Jazer weeps over them. 47
Their branches once spread as far as the Dead Sea. 48
They reached as far as the town of Jazer. 49
The destroyer will ravage
her fig, date, 50 and grape crops.
48:33 Joy and gladness will disappear
from the fruitful land of Moab. 51
I will stop the flow of wine from the winepresses.
No one will stomp on the grapes there and shout for joy. 52
The shouts there will be shouts of soldiers,
not the shouts of those making wine. 53
48:34 Cries of anguish raised from Heshbon and Elealeh
will be sounded as far as Jahaz. 54
They will be sounded from Zoar as far as Horonaim and Eglath Shelishiyah.
For even the waters of Nimrim will be dried up.
48:35 I will put an end in Moab
to those who make offerings at her places of worship. 55
I will put an end to those who sacrifice to other gods.
I, the Lord, affirm it! 56
48:36 So my heart moans for Moab
like a flute playing a funeral song.
Yes, like a flute playing a funeral song,
my heart moans for the people of Kir Heres.
For the wealth they have gained will perish.
48:37 For all of them will shave their heads in mourning.
They will all cut off their beards to show their sorrow.
They will all make gashes in their hands.
They will all put on sackcloth. 57
48:38 On all the housetops in Moab
and in all its public squares
there will be nothing but mourning.
For I will break Moab like an unwanted jar.
I, the Lord, affirm it! 58
48:39 Oh, how shattered Moab will be!
Oh, how her people will wail!
Oh, how she will turn away 59 in shame!
Moab will become an object of ridicule,
a terrifying sight to all the nations that surround her.”
48:40 For the Lord says,
“Look! Like an eagle with outspread wings
a nation will swoop down on Moab. 60
48:41 Her towns 61 will be captured.
Her fortresses will be taken.
At that time the soldiers of Moab will be frightened
like a woman in labor. 62
48:42 Moab will be destroyed and no longer be a nation, 63
because she has vaunted herself against the Lord.
48:43 Terror, pits, and traps 64 are in store
for the people who live in Moab. 65
I, the Lord, affirm it! 66
48:44 Anyone who flees at the sound of terror
will fall into a pit.
Anyone who climbs out of the pit
will be caught in a trap. 67
For the time is coming
when I will punish the people of Moab. 68
I, the Lord, affirm it! 69
48:45 In the shadows of the walls of Heshbon
those trying to escape will stand helpless.
For a fire will burst forth from Heshbon.
Flames will shoot out from the former territory of Sihon.
They will burn the foreheads of the people of Moab,
the skulls of those war-loving people. 70
48:46 Moab, you are doomed! 71
You people who worship Chemosh will be destroyed.
Your sons will be taken away captive.
Your daughters will be carried away into exile. 72
48:47 Yet in days to come
I will reverse Moab’s ill fortune.” 73
says the Lord. 74
The judgment against Moab ends here.
49:1 The Lord spoke about the Ammonites. 75
“Do you think there are not any people of the nation of Israel remaining?
Do you think there are not any of them remaining to reinherit their land?
Is that why you people who worship the god Milcom 76
have taken possession of the territory of Gad and live in his cities? 77
49:2 Because you did that,
I, the Lord, affirm that 78 a time is coming
when I will make Rabbah, the capital city of Ammon,
hear the sound of the battle cry.
It will become a mound covered with ruins. 79
Its villages will be burned to the ground. 80
Then Israel will take back its land
from those who took their land from them.
I, the Lord, affirm it! 81
49:3 Wail, you people in Heshbon, because Ai in Ammon is destroyed.
Cry out in anguish, you people in the villages surrounding 82 Rabbah.
Put on sackcloth and cry out in mourning.
Run about covered with gashes. 83
For your god Milcom will go into exile
along with his priests and officials. 84
49:4 Why do you brag about your great power?
Your power is ebbing away, 85 you rebellious people of Ammon, 86
who trust in your riches and say,
‘Who would dare to attack us?’
49:5 I will bring terror on you from every side,”
says the Lord God who rules over all. 87
“You will be scattered in every direction. 88
No one will gather the fugitives back together.
49:6 Yet in days to come
I will reverse Ammon’s ill fortune.” 89
says the Lord. 90
49:7 The Lord who rules over all 91 spoke about Edom. 92
“Is wisdom no longer to be found in Teman? 93
Can Edom’s counselors not give her any good advice? 94
Has all of their wisdom turned bad? 95
49:8 Turn and flee! Take up refuge in remote places, 96
you people who live in Dedan. 97
For I will bring disaster on the descendants of Esau.
I have decided it is time for me to punish them. 98
49:9 If grape pickers came to pick your grapes,
would they not leave a few grapes behind? 99
If robbers came at night,
would they not pillage only what they needed? 100
49:10 But I will strip everything away from Esau’s descendants.
I will uncover their hiding places so they cannot hide.
Their children, relatives, and neighbors will all be destroyed.
Not one of them will be left!
49:11 Leave your orphans behind and I will keep them alive.
Your widows too can depend on me.” 101
49:12 For the Lord says, “If even those who did not deserve to drink from the cup of my wrath must drink from it, do you think you will go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, but must certainly drink from the cup of my wrath. 102 49:13 For I solemnly swear,” 103 says the Lord, “that Bozrah 104 will become a pile of ruins. It will become an object of horror and ridicule, an example to be used in curses. 105 All the towns around it will lie in ruins forever.”
49:14 I said, 106 “I have heard a message from the Lord.
A messenger has been sent among the nations to say,
‘Gather your armies and march out against her!
Prepare to do battle with her!’” 107
49:15 The Lord says to Edom, 108
“I will certainly make you small among nations.
I will make you despised by all humankind.
49:16 The terror you inspire in others 109
and the arrogance of your heart have deceived you.
You may make your home in the clefts of the rocks;
you may occupy the highest places in the hills. 110
But even if you made your home where the eagles nest,
I would bring you down from there,”
says the Lord.
49:17 “Edom will become an object of horror.
All who pass by it will be filled with horror;
they will hiss out their scorn
because of all the disasters that have happened to it. 111
49:18 Edom will be destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah
and the towns that were around them.
No one will live there.
No human being will settle in it,”
says the Lord.
49:19 “A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan 112
scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it. 113
So too I will chase the Edomites off their land. 114
Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose. 115
For there is no one like me, and there is no one who can call me to account. 116
There is no 117 ruler 118 who can stand up against me.
49:20 So listen to what I, the Lord, have planned against Edom,
what I intend to do to 119 the people who live in Teman. 120
Their little ones will be dragged off.
I will completely destroy their land because of what they have done. 121
49:21 The people of the earth will quake when they hear of their downfall. 122
Their cries of anguish will be heard all the way to the Gulf of Aqaba. 123
49:22 Look! Like an eagle with outspread wings,
a nation will soar up and swoop down on Bozrah.
At that time the soldiers of Edom will be as fearful
as a woman in labor.” 124
49:23 The Lord spoke 125 about Damascus. 126
“The people of Hamath and Arpad 127 will be dismayed
because they have heard bad news.
Their courage will melt away because of worry.
Their hearts will not be able to rest. 128
49:24 The people of Damascus will lose heart and turn to flee.
Panic will grip them.
Pain and anguish will seize them
like a woman in labor.
49:25 How deserted will that once-famous city 129 be,
that city that was once filled with 130 joy! 131
49:26 For her young men will fall in her city squares.
All her soldiers will be destroyed at that time,”
says the Lord who rules over all. 132
49:27 “I will set fire to the walls of Damascus;
it will burn up the palaces of Ben Hadad.” 133
49:28 The Lord spoke about Kedar 134 and the kingdoms of Hazor 135 that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered.
“Army of Babylon, 136 go and attack Kedar.
Lay waste those who live in the eastern desert. 137
49:29 Their tents and their flocks will be taken away.
Their tent curtains, equipment, and camels will be carried off.
People will shout 138 to them,
‘Terror is all around you!’” 139
49:30 The Lord says, 140 “Flee quickly, you who live in Hazor. 141
Take up refuge in remote places. 142
For King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has laid out plans to attack you.
He has formed his strategy on how to defeat you.” 143
49:31 The Lord says, 144 “Army of Babylon, 145 go and attack
a nation that lives in peace and security.
They have no gates or walls to protect them. 146
They live all alone.
49:32 Their camels will be taken as plunder.
Their vast herds will be taken as spoil.
I will scatter to the four winds
those desert peoples who cut their hair short at the temples. 147
I will bring disaster against them
from every direction,” says the Lord. 148
49:33 “Hazor will become a permanent wasteland,
a place where only jackals live. 149
No one will live there.
No human being will settle in it.” 150
49:34 Early in the reign 151 of King Zedekiah of Judah, the Lord spoke to the prophet Jeremiah about Elam. 152
49:35 The Lord who rules over all said,
“I will kill all the archers of Elam,
who are the chief source of her military might. 153
49:36 I will cause enemies to blow through Elam from every direction
like the winds blowing in from the four quarters of heaven.
I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds.
There will not be any nation where the refugees of Elam will not go. 154
49:37 I will make the people of Elam terrified of their enemies,
who are seeking to kill them.
I will vent my fierce anger
and bring disaster upon them,” 155 says the Lord. 156
“I will send armies chasing after them 157
until I have completely destroyed them.
49:38 I will establish my sovereignty over Elam. 158
I will destroy their king and their leaders,” 159 says the Lord. 160
49:39 “Yet in days to come
I will reverse Elam’s ill fortune.” 161
says the Lord. 162
50:1 The Lord spoke concerning Babylon and the land of Babylonia 163 through the prophet Jeremiah. 164
50:2 “Announce 165 the news among the nations! Proclaim it!
Signal for people to pay attention! 166
Declare the news! Do not hide it! Say:
‘Babylon will be captured.
Bel 167 will be put to shame.
Marduk will be dismayed.
Babylon’s idols will be put to shame.
Her disgusting images 168 will be dismayed. 169
50:3 For a nation from the north 170 will attack Babylon.
It will lay her land waste.
People and animals will flee out of it.
No one will inhabit it.’
50:4 “When that time comes,” says the Lord, 171
“the people of Israel and Judah will return to the land together.
They will come back with tears of repentance
as they seek the Lord their God. 172
50:5 They will ask the way to Zion;
they will turn their faces toward it.
They will come 173 and bind themselves to the Lord
in a lasting covenant that will never be forgotten. 174
50:6 “My people have been lost sheep.
Their shepherds 175 have allow them to go astray.
They have wandered around in the mountains.
They have roamed from one mountain and hill to another. 176
They have forgotten their resting place.
50:7 All who encountered them devoured them.
Their enemies who did this said, ‘We are not liable for punishment!
For those people have sinned against the Lord, their true pasture. 177
They have sinned against the Lord in whom their ancestors 178 trusted.’ 179
50:8 “People of Judah, 180 get out of Babylon quickly!
Leave the land of Babylonia! 181
Be the first to depart! 182
Be like the male goats that lead the herd.
50:9 For I will rouse into action and bring against Babylon
a host of mighty nations 183 from the land of the north.
They will set up their battle lines against her.
They will come from the north and capture her. 184
Their arrows will be like a skilled soldier 185
who does not return from the battle empty-handed. 186
50:10 Babylonia 187 will be plundered.
Those who plunder it will take all they want,”
says the Lord. 188
50:11 “People of Babylonia, 189 you plundered my people. 190
That made you happy and glad.
You frolic about like calves in a pasture. 191
Your joyous sounds are like the neighs of a stallion. 192
50:12 But Babylonia will be put to great shame.
The land where you were born 193 will be disgraced.
Indeed, 194 Babylonia will become the least important of all nations.
It will become a dry and barren desert.
50:13 After I vent my wrath on it Babylon will be uninhabited. 195
It will be totally desolate.
All who pass by will be filled with horror and will hiss out their scorn
because of all the disasters that have happened to it. 196
50:14 “Take up your battle positions all around Babylon,
all you soldiers who are armed with bows. 197
Shoot 198 all your arrows at her! Do not hold any back! 199
For she has sinned against the Lord.
50:15 Shout the battle cry from all around the city.
She will throw up her hands in surrender. 200
Her towers 201 will fall.
Her walls will be torn down.
Because I, the Lord, am wreaking revenge, 202
take out your vengeance on her!
Do to her as she has done!
50:16 Kill all the farmers who sow the seed in the land of Babylon.
Kill all those who wield the sickle at harvest time. 203
Let all the foreigners return to their own people.
Let them hurry back to their own lands
to escape destruction by that enemy army. 204
50:17 “The people of Israel are like scattered sheep
which lions have chased away.
First the king of Assyria devoured them. 205
Now last of all King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has gnawed their bones. 206
50:18 So I, the Lord God of Israel who rules over all, say: 207
‘I will punish the king of Babylon and his land
just as I punished the king of Assyria.
50:19 But I will restore the flock of Israel to their own pasture.
They will graze on Mount Carmel and the land of Bashan.
They will eat until they are full 208
on the hills of Ephraim and the land of Gilead. 209
50:20 When that time comes,
no guilt will be found in Israel.
No sin will be found in Judah. 210
For I will forgive those of them I have allowed to survive. 211
I, the Lord, affirm it!’” 212
50:21 The Lord says, 213
“Attack 214 the land of Merathaim
and the people who live in Pekod! 215
Pursue, kill, and completely destroy them! 216
Do just as I have commanded you! 217
50:22 The noise of battle can be heard in the land of Babylonia. 218
There is the sound of great destruction.
50:23 Babylon hammered the whole world to pieces.
But see how that ‘hammer’ has been broken and shattered! 219
See what an object of horror
Babylon has become among the nations!
50:24 I set a trap for you, Babylon;
you were caught before you knew it.
You fought against me.
So you were found and captured. 220
50:25 I have opened up the place where my weapons are stored. 221
I have brought out the weapons for carrying out my wrath. 222
For I, the Lord God who rules over all, 223
have work to carry out in the land of Babylonia. 224
50:26 Come from far away and attack Babylonia! 225
Open up the places where she stores her grain!
Pile her up in ruins! 226 Destroy her completely! 227
Do not leave anyone alive! 228
50:27 Kill all her soldiers! 229
Let them be slaughtered! 230
They are doomed, 231 for their day of reckoning 232 has come,
the time for them to be punished.”
50:28 Listen! Fugitives and refugees are coming from the land of Babylon.
They are coming to Zion to declare there
how the Lord our God is getting revenge,
getting revenge for what they have done to his temple. 233
50:29 “Call for archers 234 to come against Babylon!
Summon against her all who draw the bow!
Set up camp all around the city!
Do not allow anyone to escape!
Pay her back for what she has done.
Do to her what she has done to others.
For she has proudly defied me, 235
the Holy One of Israel. 236
50:30 So her young men will fall in her city squares.
All her soldiers will be destroyed at that time,”
says the Lord. 237
50:31 “Listen! I am opposed to you, you proud city,” 238
says the Lord God who rules over all. 239
“Indeed, 240 your day of reckoning 241 has come,
the time when I will punish you. 242
50:32 You will stumble and fall, you proud city;
no one will help you get up.
I will set fire to your towns;
it will burn up everything that surrounds you.” 243
50:33 The Lord who rules over all 244 says,
“The people of Israel are oppressed.
So too are the people of Judah. 245
All those who took them captive are holding them prisoners.
They refuse to set them free.
50:34 But the one who will rescue them 246 is strong.
He is known as the Lord who rules over all. 247
He will strongly 248 champion their cause.
As a result 249 he will bring peace and rest to the earth,
but trouble and turmoil 250 to the people who inhabit Babylonia. 251
50:35 “Destructive forces will come against the Babylonians,” 252 says the Lord. 253
“They will come against the people who inhabit Babylonia,
against her leaders and her men of wisdom.
50:36 Destructive forces will come against her false prophets; 254
they will be shown to be fools! 255
Destructive forces will come against her soldiers;
they will be filled with terror! 256
50:37 Destructive forces will come against her horses and her 257 chariots.
Destructive forces will come against all the foreign troops within her; 258
they will be as frightened as women! 259
Destructive forces will come against her treasures;
they will be taken away as plunder!
50:38 A drought will come upon her land;
her rivers and canals will be dried up. 260
All of this will happen because her land is filled with idols. 261
Her people act like madmen because of 262 those idols they fear. 263
50:39 Therefore desert creatures and jackals will live there.
Ostriches 264 will dwell in it too. 265
But no people will ever live there again.
No one will dwell there for all time to come. 266
50:40 I will destroy Babylonia just like I did
Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring towns.
No one will live there. 267
No human being will settle in it,”
says the Lord. 268
50:41 “Look! An army is about to come from the north.
A mighty nation and many kings 269 are stirring into action
in faraway parts of the earth.
50:42 Its soldiers are armed with bows and spears.
They are cruel and show no mercy.
They sound like the roaring sea
as they ride forth on their horses.
Lined up in formation like men going into battle,
they are coming against you, fair Babylon! 270
50:43 The king of Babylon will become paralyzed with fear 271
when he hears news of their coming. 272
Anguish will grip him,
agony like that of a woman giving birth to a baby. 273
50:44 “A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordan
scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it.
So too I will chase the Babylonians off of their land.
Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose.
For there is no one like me.
There is no one who can call me to account.
There is no ruler that can stand up against me.
50:45 So listen to what I, the Lord, have planned against Babylon,
what I intend to do to the people who inhabit the land of Babylonia. 274
Their little ones will be dragged off.
I will completely destroy their land because of what they have done.
50:46 The people of the earth will quake when they hear Babylon has been captured.
Her cries of anguish will be heard by the other nations.” 275
51:1 The Lord says,
“I will cause a destructive wind 276 to blow
against 277 Babylon and the people who inhabit Babylonia. 278
51:2 I will send people to winnow Babylonia like a wind blowing away chaff. 279
They will winnow her and strip her land bare. 280
This will happen when 281 they come against her from every direction,
when it is time to destroy her. 282
51:3 Do not give her archers time to string their bows
or to put on their coats of armor. 283
Do not spare any of her young men.
Completely destroy 284 her whole army.
51:4 Let them fall 285 slain in the land of Babylonia, 286
mortally wounded in the streets of her cities. 287
51:5 “For Israel and Judah will not be forsaken 288
by their God, the Lord who rules over all. 289
For the land of Babylonia is 290 full of guilt
against the Holy One of Israel. 291
51:6 Get out of Babylonia quickly, you foreign people. 292
Flee to save your lives.
Do not let yourselves be killed because of her sins.
For it is time for the Lord to wreak his revenge.
He will pay Babylonia 293 back for what she has done. 294
51:7 Babylonia had been a gold cup in the Lord’s hand.
She had made the whole world drunk.
The nations had drunk from the wine of her wrath. 295
So they have all gone mad. 296
51:8 But suddenly Babylonia will fall and be destroyed. 297
Cry out in mourning over it!
Get medicine for her wounds!
Perhaps she can be healed!
51:9 Foreigners living there will say, 298
‘We tried to heal her, but she could not be healed.
Let’s leave Babylonia 299 and each go back to his own country.
For judgment on her will be vast in its proportions.
It will be like it is piled up to heaven, stacked up into the clouds.’ 300
51:10 The exiles from Judah will say, 301
‘The Lord has brought about a great deliverance for us! 302
Come on, let’s go and proclaim in Zion
what the Lord our God has done!’
51:11 “Sharpen 303 your arrows!
Fill your quivers! 304
The Lord will arouse a spirit of hostility in 305 the kings of Media. 306
For he intends to destroy Babylonia.
For that is how the Lord will get his revenge –
how he will get his revenge for the Babylonians’ destruction of his temple. 307
51:12 Give the signal to attack Babylon’s wall! 308
Bring more guards! 309
Post them all around the city! 310
Put men in ambush! 311
For the Lord will do what he has planned.
He will do what he said he would do to the people of Babylon. 312
51:13 “You who live along the rivers of Babylon, 313
the time of your end has come.
You who are rich in plundered treasure,
it is time for your lives to be cut off. 314
51:14 The Lord who rules over all 315 has solemnly sworn, 316
‘I will fill your land with enemy soldiers.
They will swarm over it like locusts. 317
They will raise up shouts of victory over it.’
51:15 He is the one who 318 by his power made the earth.
He is the one who by his wisdom fixed the world in place,
by his understanding he spread out the heavens.
51:16 When his voice thunders, the waters in the heavens roar.
He makes the clouds rise from the far-off horizons.
He makes the lightning flash out in the midst of the rain.
He unleashes the wind from the places where he stores it.
51:17 All idolaters will prove to be stupid and ignorant.
Every goldsmith will be disgraced by the idol he made.
For the image he forges is merely a sham.
There is no breath in any of those idols.
51:18 They are worthless, objects to be ridiculed.
When the time comes to punish them, they will be destroyed.
51:19 The Lord, who is the portion of the descendants of Jacob, is not like them.
For he is the one who created everything,
including the people of Israel whom he claims as his own. 319
He is known as the Lord who rules over all. 320
51:20 “Babylon, 321 you are my war club, 322
my weapon for battle.
I used you to smash nations. 323
I used you to destroy kingdoms.
51:21 I used you to smash horses and their riders. 324
I used you to smash chariots and their drivers.
51:22 I used you to smash men and women.
I used you to smash old men and young men.
I used you to smash young men and young women.
51:23 I used you to smash shepherds and their flocks.
I used you to smash farmers and their teams of oxen.
I used you to smash governors and leaders.” 325
51:24 “But I will repay Babylon
and all who live in Babylonia
for all the wicked things they did in Zion
right before the eyes of you Judeans,” 326
says the Lord. 327
51:25 The Lord says, 328 “Beware! I am opposed to you, Babylon! 329
You are like a destructive mountain that destroys all the earth.
I will unleash my power against you; 330
I will roll you off the cliffs and make you like a burned-out mountain. 331
51:26 No one will use any of your stones as a cornerstone.
No one will use any of them in the foundation of his house.
For you will lie desolate forever,” 332
says the Lord. 333
51:27 “Raise up battle flags throughout the lands.
Sound the trumpets calling the nations to do battle.
Prepare the nations to do battle against Babylonia. 334
Call for these kingdoms to attack her:
Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. 335
Appoint a commander to lead the attack. 336
Send horses 337 against her like a swarm of locusts. 338
51:28 Prepare the nations to do battle against her. 339
Prepare the kings of the Medes.
Prepare their governors and all their leaders. 340
Prepare all the countries they rule to do battle against her. 341
51:29 The earth will tremble and writhe in agony. 342
For the Lord will carry out his plan.
He plans to make the land of Babylonia 343
a wasteland where no one lives. 344
51:30 The soldiers of Babylonia will stop fighting.
They will remain in their fortified cities.
They will lose their strength to do battle. 345
They will be as frightened as women. 346
The houses in her cities will be set on fire.
The gates of her cities will be broken down. 347
51:31 One runner after another will come to the king of Babylon.
One messenger after another will come bringing news. 348
They will bring news to the king of Babylon
that his whole city has been captured. 349
51:32 They will report that the fords have been captured,
the reed marshes have been burned,
the soldiers are terrified. 350
51:33 For the Lord God of Israel who rules over all says,
‘Fair Babylon 351 will be like a threshing floor
which has been trampled flat for harvest.
The time for her to be cut down and harvested
will come very soon.’ 352
51:34 “King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon
devoured me and drove my people out.
Like a monster from the deep he swallowed me.
He filled his belly with my riches.
He made me an empty dish.
He completely cleaned me out.” 353
51:35 The person who lives in Zion says,
“May Babylon pay for the violence done to me and to my relatives.”
Jerusalem says,
“May those living in Babylonia pay for the bloodshed of my people.” 354
51:36 Therefore the Lord says,
“I will stand up for your cause.
I will pay the Babylonians back for what they have done to you. 355
I will dry up their sea.
I will make their springs run dry. 356
51:37 Babylon will become a heap of ruins.
Jackals will make their home there. 357
It will become an object of horror and of hissing scorn,
a place where no one lives. 358
51:38 The Babylonians are all like lions roaring for prey.
They are like lion cubs growling for something to eat. 359
51:39 When their appetites are all stirred up, 360
I will set out a banquet for them.
I will make them drunk
so that they will pass out, 361
they will fall asleep forever,
they will never wake up,” 362
says the Lord. 363
51:40 “I will lead them off to be slaughtered
like lambs, rams, and male goats.” 364
51:41 “See how Babylon 365 has been captured!
See how the pride of the whole earth has been taken!
See what an object of horror
Babylon has become among the nations! 366
51:42 The sea has swept over Babylon.
She has been covered by a multitude 367 of its waves. 368
51:43 The towns of Babylonia have become heaps of ruins.
She has become a dry and barren desert.
No one lives in those towns any more.
No one even passes through them. 369
51:44 I will punish the god Bel in Babylon.
I will make him spit out what he has swallowed.
The nations will not come streaming to him any longer.
Indeed, the walls of Babylon will fall.” 370
51:45 “Get out of Babylon, my people!
Flee to save your lives
from the fierce anger of the Lord! 371
51:46 Do not lose your courage or become afraid
because of the reports that are heard in the land.
For a report will come in one year.
Another report will follow it in the next.
There will be violence in the land
with ruler fighting against ruler.”
51:47 “So the time will certainly come 372
when I will punish the idols of Babylon.
Her whole land will be put to shame.
All her mortally wounded will collapse in her midst. 373
51:48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
will sing for joy over Babylon.
For destroyers from the north will attack it,”
says the Lord. 374
51:49 “Babylon must fall 375
because of the Israelites she has killed, 376
just as the earth’s mortally wounded fell
because of Babylon. 377
51:50 You who have escaped the sword, 378
go, do not delay. 379
Remember the Lord in a faraway land.
Think about Jerusalem. 380
51:51 ‘We 381 are ashamed because we have been insulted. 382
Our faces show our disgrace. 383
For foreigners have invaded
the holy rooms 384 in the Lord’s temple.’
51:52 Yes, but the time will certainly come,” 385 says the Lord, 386
“when I will punish her idols.
Throughout her land the mortally wounded will groan.
51:53 Even if Babylon climbs high into the sky 387
and fortifies her elevated stronghold, 388
I will send destroyers against her,” 389
says the Lord. 390
51:54 Cries of anguish will come from Babylon,
the sound of great destruction from the land of the Babylonians.
51:55 For the Lord is ready to destroy Babylon,
and put an end to her loud noise.
Their waves 391 will roar like turbulent 392 waters.
They will make a deafening noise. 393
51:56 For a destroyer is attacking Babylon. 394
Her warriors will be captured;
their bows will be broken. 395
For the Lord is a God who punishes; 396
he pays back in full. 397
51:57 “I will make her officials and wise men drunk,
along with her governors, leaders, 398 and warriors.
They will fall asleep forever and never wake up,” 399
says the King whose name is the Lord who rules over all. 400
51:58 This is what the Lord who rules over all 401 says,
“Babylon’s thick wall 402 will be completely demolished. 403
Her high gates will be set on fire.
The peoples strive for what does not satisfy. 404
The nations grow weary trying to get what will be destroyed.” 405
51:59 This is the order Jeremiah the prophet gave to Seraiah son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, when he went to King Zedekiah of Judah in Babylon during the fourth year of his reign. 406 (Seraiah was a quartermaster.) 407 51:60 Jeremiah recorded 408 on one scroll all the judgments 409 that would come upon Babylon – all these prophecies 410 written about Babylon. 51:61 Then Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “When you arrive in Babylon, make sure 411 you read aloud all these prophecies. 412 51:62 Then say, ‘O Lord, you have announced that you will destroy this place so that no people or animals live in it any longer. Certainly it will lie desolate forever!’ 51:63 When you finish reading this scroll aloud, tie a stone to it and throw it into the middle of the Euphrates River. 413 51:64 Then say, ‘In the same way Babylon will sink and never rise again because of the judgments 414 I am ready to bring upon her; they will grow faint.’”
The prophecies of Jeremiah end here. 415
25:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 25:2 “Son of man, turn toward 416 the Ammonites 417 and prophesy against them. 25:3 Say to the Ammonites, ‘Hear the word of the sovereign Lord: This is what the sovereign Lord says: You said “Aha!” about my sanctuary when it was desecrated, about the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and about the house of Judah when they went into exile. 25:4 So take note, 418 I am about to make you slaves of 419 the tribes 420 of the east. They will make camps among you and pitch their tents among you. They will eat your fruit and drink your milk. 25:5 I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels and Ammon 421 a resting place for sheep. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 25:6 For this is what the sovereign Lord says: Because you clapped your hands, stamped your feet, and rejoiced with intense scorn 422 over the land of Israel, 25:7 take note, I have stretched out my hand against you, and I will hand you over as plunder 423 to the nations. I will cut you off from the peoples and make you perish from the lands. I will destroy you; then you will know that I am the Lord.’”
25:8 “This is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘Moab 424 and Seir say, “Look, the house of Judah is like all the other nations.” 25:9 So look, I am about to open up Moab’s flank, 425 eliminating the cities, 426 including its frontier cities, 427 the beauty of the land – Beth Jeshimoth, Baal Meon, and Kiriathaim. 25:10 I will hand it over, 428 along with the Ammonites, 429 to the tribes 430 of the east, so that the Ammonites will no longer be remembered among the nations. 25:11 I will execute judgments against Moab. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”
25:12 “This is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘Edom 431 has taken vengeance against the house of Judah; they have made themselves fully culpable 432 by taking vengeance 433 on them. 434 25:13 So this is what the sovereign Lord says: I will stretch out my hand against Edom, and I will kill the people and animals within her, 435 and I will make her desolate; from Teman to Dedan they will die 436 by the sword. 25:14 I will exact my vengeance upon Edom by the hand of my people Israel. They will carry out in Edom my anger and rage; they will experience 437 my vengeance, declares the sovereign Lord.’”
25:15 “This is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘The Philistines 438 have exacted merciless revenge, 439 showing intense scorn 440 in their effort to destroy Judah 441 with unrelenting hostility. 442 25:16 So this is what the sovereign Lord says: Take note, I am about to stretch out my hand against the Philistines. I will kill 443 the Cherethites 444 and destroy those who remain on the seacoast. 25:17 I will exact great vengeance upon them with angry rebukes. 445 Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I exact my vengeance upon them.’”
26:1 In the eleventh year, on the first day of the month, 446 the word of the Lord came to me: 26:2 “Son of man, because Tyre 447 has said about Jerusalem, 448 ‘Aha, the gateway of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I will become rich, 449 now that she 450 has been destroyed,’ 26:3 therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, 451 I am against you, 452 O Tyre! I will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves. 26:4 They will destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers. I will scrape her soil 453 from her and make her a bare rock. 26:5 She will be a place where fishing nets are spread, surrounded by the sea. For I have spoken, declares the sovereign Lord. She will become plunder for the nations, 26:6 and her daughters 454 who are in the field will be slaughtered by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
26:7 “For this is what the sovereign Lord says: Take note that 455 I am about to bring King Nebuchadrezzar 456 of Babylon, king of kings, against Tyre from the north, with horses, chariots, and horsemen, an army and hordes of people. 26:8 He will kill your daughters in the field with the sword. He will build a siege wall against you, erect a siege ramp against you, and raise a great shield against you. 26:9 He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and tear down your towers with his weapons. 457 26:10 He will cover you with the dust kicked up by his many horses. 458 Your walls will shake from the noise of the horsemen, wheels, and chariots when he enters your gates like those who invade through a city’s broken walls. 459 26:11 With his horses’ hoofs he will trample all your streets. He will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will tumble down to the ground. 26:12 They will steal your wealth and loot your merchandise. They will tear down your walls and destroy your luxurious 460 homes. Your stones, your trees, and your soil he will throw 461 into the water. 462 26:13 I will silence 463 the noise of your songs; the sound of your harps will be heard no more. 26:14 I will make you a bare rock; you will be a place where fishing nets are spread. You will never be built again, 464 for I, the Lord, have spoken, declares the sovereign Lord.
26:15 “This is what the sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Oh, how the coastlands will shake at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan, at the massive slaughter in your midst! 26:16 All the princes of the sea will vacate 465 their thrones. They will remove their robes and strip off their embroidered clothes; they will clothe themselves with trembling. They will sit on the ground; they will tremble continually and be shocked at what has happened to you. 466 26:17 They will sing this lament over you: 467
“‘How you have perished – you have vanished 468 from the seas,
O renowned city, once mighty in the sea,
she and her inhabitants, who spread their terror! 469
26:18 Now the coastlands will tremble on the day of your fall;
the coastlands by the sea will be terrified by your passing.’ 470
26:19 “For this is what the sovereign Lord says: When I make you desolate like the uninhabited cities, when I bring up the deep over you and the surging 471 waters overwhelm you, 26:20 then I will bring you down to bygone people, 472 to be with those who descend to the pit. I will make you live in the lower parts of the earth, among 473 the primeval ruins, with those who descend to the pit, so that you will not be inhabited or stand 474 in the land of the living. 26:21 I will bring terrors on you, and you will be no more! Though you are sought after, you will never be found again, declares the sovereign Lord.”
27:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 27:2 “You, son of man, sing a lament for Tyre. 475 27:3 Say to Tyre, who sits at the entrance 476 of the sea, 477 merchant to the peoples on many coasts, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘O Tyre, you have said, “I am perfectly beautiful.”
27:4 478 Your borders are in the heart of the seas;
your builders have perfected your beauty.
27:5 They crafted 479 all your planks out of fir trees from Senir; 480
they took a cedar from Lebanon to make your mast.
27:6 They made your oars from oaks of Bashan;
they made your deck 481 with cypresses 482 from the Kittean isles. 483
27:7 Fine linen from Egypt, woven with patterns, was used for your sail
to serve as your banner;
blue and purple from the coastlands of Elishah 484 was used for your deck’s awning.
27:8 The leaders 485 of Sidon 486 and Arvad 487 were your rowers;
your skilled 488 men, O Tyre, were your captains.
27:9 The elders of Gebal 489 and her skilled men were within you, mending cracks; 490
all the ships of the sea and their mariners were within you to trade for your merchandise. 491
27:10 Men of Persia, Lud, 492 and Put were in your army, men of war.
They hung shield and helmet on you; they gave you your splendor.
27:11 The Arvadites 493 joined your army on your walls all around,
and the Gammadites 494 were in your towers.
They hung their quivers 495 on your walls all around;
they perfected your beauty.
27:12 “‘Tarshish 496 was your trade partner because of your abundant wealth; they exchanged silver, iron, tin, and lead for your products. 27:13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your clients; they exchanged slaves and bronze items for your merchandise. 27:14 Beth Togarmah exchanged horses, chargers, 497 and mules for your products. 27:15 The Dedanites 498 were your clients. Many coastlands were your customers; they paid 499 you with ivory tusks and ebony. 27:16 Edom 500 was your trade partner because of the abundance of your goods; they exchanged turquoise, purple, embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and rubies for your products. 27:17 Judah and the land of Israel were your clients; they traded wheat from Minnith, 501 millet, honey, olive oil, and balm for your merchandise. 27:18 Damascus was your trade partner because of the abundance of your goods and of all your wealth: wine from Helbon, white wool from Zahar, 27:19 and casks of wine 502 from Izal 503 they exchanged for your products. Wrought iron, cassia, and sweet cane were among your merchandise. 27:20 Dedan was your client in saddlecloths for riding. 27:21 Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your trade partners; for lambs, rams, and goats they traded with you. 27:22 The merchants of Sheba and Raamah engaged in trade with you; they traded the best kinds of spices along with precious stones and gold for your products. 27:23 Haran, Kanneh, Eden, merchants from Sheba, Asshur, and Kilmad were your clients. 27:24 They traded with you choice garments, purple clothes and embroidered work, and multicolored carpets, bound and reinforced with cords; these were among your merchandise. 27:25 The ships of Tarshish 504 were the transports for your merchandise.
“‘So you were filled and weighed down in the heart of the seas.
27:26 Your rowers have brought you into surging waters.
The east wind has wrecked you in the heart of the seas.
27:27 Your wealth, products, and merchandise, your sailors and captains,
your ship’s carpenters, 505 your merchants,
and all your fighting men within you,
along with all your crew who are in you,
will fall into the heart of the seas on the day of your downfall.
27:28 At the sound of your captains’ cry the waves will surge; 506
27:29 They will descend from their ships – all who handle the oar,
the sailors and all the sea captains – they will stand on the land.
27:30 They will lament loudly 507 over you and cry bitterly.
They will throw dust on their heads and roll in the ashes; 508
27:31 they will tear out their hair because of you and put on sackcloth,
and they will weep bitterly over you with intense mourning. 509
27:32 As they wail they will lament over you, chanting:
“Who was like Tyre, like a tower 510 in the midst of the sea?”
27:33 When your products went out from the seas,
you satisfied many peoples;
with the abundance of your wealth and merchandise
you enriched the kings of the earth.
27:34 Now you are wrecked by the seas, in the depths of the waters;
your merchandise and all your company have sunk 511 along with you. 512
27:35 All the inhabitants of the coastlands are shocked at you,
and their kings are horribly afraid – their faces are troubled.
27:36 The traders among the peoples hiss at you;
you have become a horror, and will be no more.’”
28:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 28:2 “Son of man, say to the prince 513 of Tyre, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘Your heart is proud 514 and you said, “I am a god; 515
I sit in the seat of gods, in the heart of the seas” –
yet you are a man and not a god,
though you think you are godlike. 516
28:3 Look, you are wiser than Daniel; 517
no secret is hidden from you. 518
28:4 By your wisdom and understanding you have gained wealth for yourself;
you have amassed gold and silver in your treasuries.
28:5 By your great skill 519 in trade you have increased your wealth,
and your heart is proud because of your wealth.
28:6 “‘Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says:
Because you think you are godlike, 520
28:7 I am about to bring foreigners 521 against you, the most terrifying of nations.
They will draw their swords against the grandeur made by your wisdom, 522
and they will defile your splendor.
28:8 They will bring you down to the pit, and you will die violently 523 in the heart of the seas.
28:9 Will you still say, “I am a god,” before the one who kills you –
though you are a man and not a god –
when you are in the power of those who wound you?
28:10 You will die the death of the uncircumcised 524 by the hand of foreigners;
for I have spoken, declares the sovereign Lord.’”
28:11 The word of the Lord came to me: 28:12 “Son of man, sing 525 a lament for the king of Tyre, and say to him, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘You were the sealer 526 of perfection,
full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.
28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God. 527
Every precious stone was your covering,
the ruby, topaz, and emerald,
the chrysolite, onyx, and jasper,
the sapphire, turquoise, and beryl; 528
your settings and mounts were made of gold.
On the day you were created they were prepared.
28:14 I placed you there with an anointed 529 guardian 530 cherub; 531
you were on the holy mountain of God;
you walked about amidst fiery stones.
28:15 You were blameless in your behavior 532 from the day you were created,
until sin was discovered in you.
28:16 In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence, 533 and you sinned;
so I defiled you and banished you 534 from the mountain of God –
the guardian cherub expelled you 535 from the midst of the stones of fire.
28:17 Your heart was proud because of your beauty;
you corrupted your wisdom on account of your splendor.
I threw you down to the ground;
I placed you before kings, that they might see you.
28:18 By the multitude of your iniquities, through the sinfulness of your trade,
you desecrated your sanctuaries.
So I drew fire out from within you;
it consumed you,
and I turned you to ashes on the earth
before the eyes of all who saw you.
28:19 All who know you among the peoples are shocked at you;
you have become terrified and will be no more.’”
28:20 The word of the Lord came to me: 28:21 “Son of man, turn toward 536 Sidon 537 and prophesy against it. 28:22 Say, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘Look, I am against you, 538 Sidon,
and I will magnify myself in your midst.
Then they will know that I am the Lord
when I execute judgments on her
and reveal my sovereign power 539 in her.
28:23 I will send a plague into the city 540 and bloodshed into its streets;
the slain will fall within it, by the sword that attacks it 541 from every side.
Then they will know that I am the Lord.
28:24 “‘No longer will Israel suffer from the sharp briers 542 or painful thorns of all who surround and scorn them. 543 Then they will know that I am the sovereign Lord.
28:25 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: When I regather the house of Israel from the peoples where they are dispersed, I will reveal my sovereign power 544 over them in the sight of the nations, and they will live in their land that I gave to my servant Jacob. 28:26 They will live securely in it; they will build houses and plant vineyards. They will live securely 545 when I execute my judgments on all those who scorn them and surround them. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.’”
29:1 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day of the month, 546 the word of the Lord came to me: 29:2 “Son of man, turn toward 547 Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt. 29:3 Tell them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘Look, I am against 548 you, Pharaoh king of Egypt,
the great monster 549 lying in the midst of its waterways,
who has said, “My Nile is my own, I made it for myself.” 550
29:4 I will put hooks in your jaws
and stick the fish of your waterways to your scales.
I will haul you up from the midst of your waterways,
and all the fish of your waterways will stick to your scales.
29:5 I will leave you in the wilderness,
you and all the fish of your waterways;
you will fall in the open field and will not be gathered up or collected. 551
I have given you as food to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the skies.
29:6 Then all those living in Egypt will know that I am the Lord
because they were a reed staff 552 for the house of Israel;
29:7 when they grasped you with their hand, 553 you broke and tore 554 their shoulders,
and when they leaned on you, you splintered and caused their legs to be unsteady. 555
29:8 “‘Therefore, this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to bring a sword against you, and I will kill 556 every person and every animal. 29:9 The land of Egypt will become a desolate ruin. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
Because he said, “The Nile is mine and I made it,” 29:10 I am against 557 you and your waterways. I will turn the land of Egypt into an utter desolate ruin from Migdol 558 to Syene, 559 as far as the border with Ethiopia. 29:11 No human foot will pass through it, and no animal’s foot will pass through it; it will be uninhabited for forty years. 29:12 I will turn the land of Egypt into a desolation in the midst of desolate lands; for forty years her cities will lie desolate in the midst of ruined cities. I will scatter Egypt among the nations and disperse them among foreign countries.
29:13 “‘For this is what the sovereign Lord says: At the end of forty years 560 I will gather Egypt from the peoples where they were scattered. 29:14 I will restore the fortunes of Egypt, and will bring them back 561 to the land of Pathros, to the land of their origin; there they will be an insignificant kingdom. 29:15 It will be the most insignificant of the kingdoms; it will never again exalt itself over the nations. I will make them so small that they will not rule over the nations. 29:16 It will never again be Israel’s source of confidence, but a reminder of how they sinned by turning to Egypt for help. 562 Then they will know that I am the sovereign Lord.’”
29:17 In the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, 563 the word of the Lord came to me: 29:18 “Son of man, King Nebuchadrezzar 564 of Babylon made his army labor hard against Tyre. 565 Every head was rubbed bald and every shoulder rubbed bare; yet he and his army received no wages from Tyre for the work he carried out against it. 29:19 Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am about to give the land of Egypt to King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon. He will carry off her wealth, capture her loot, and seize her plunder; it will be his army’s wages. 29:20 I have given him the land of Egypt as his compensation for attacking Tyre 566 , because they did it for me, declares the sovereign Lord. 29:21 On that day I will make Israel powerful, 567 and I will give you the right to be heard 568 among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
30:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 30:2 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘Wail, “Alas, the day is here!” 569
30:3 For the day is near,
the day of the Lord is near;
it will be a day of storm clouds, 570
it will be a time of judgment 571 for the nations.
30:4 A sword will come against Egypt
and panic will overtake Ethiopia
when the slain fall in Egypt
and they carry away her wealth
and dismantle her foundations.
30:5 Ethiopia, Put, Lud, all the foreigners, 572 Libya, and the people 573 of the covenant land 574 will die by the sword along with them.
30:6 “‘This is what the Lord says:
Egypt’s supporters will fall;
her confident pride will crumble. 575
From Migdol to Syene 576 they will die by the sword within her,
declares the sovereign Lord.
30:7 They will be desolate among desolate lands,
and their cities will be among ruined cities.
30:8 They will know that I am the Lord
when I ignite a fire in Egypt
and all her allies are defeated. 577
30:9 On that day messengers will go out from me in ships to frighten overly confident Ethiopia; panic will overtake them on the day of Egypt’s doom; 578 for beware – it is coming!
30:10 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt,
by the hand of King Nebuchadrezzar 579 of Babylon.
30:11 He and his people with him,
the most terrifying of the nations, 580
will be brought there to destroy the land.
They will draw their swords against Egypt,
and fill the land with corpses.
30:12 I will dry up the waterways
and hand the land over to 581 evil men.
I will make the land and everything in it desolate by the hand of foreigners.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
30:13 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
I will destroy the idols,
and put an end to the gods of Memphis.
There will no longer be a prince from the land of Egypt;
so I will make the land of Egypt fearful. 582
30:14 I will desolate Pathros,
I will ignite a fire in Zoan,
and I will execute judgments on Thebes.
30:15 I will pour out my anger upon Pelusium, 583
the stronghold of Egypt;
I will cut off 584 the hordes of Thebes.
30:16 I will ignite a fire in Egypt;
Syene 585 will writhe in agony,
Thebes will be broken down,
and Memphis will face enemies every day.
30:17 The young men of On and of Pi-beseth 586 will die by the sword;
and the cities will go 587 into captivity.
30:18 In Tahpanhes the day will be dark 588
when I break the yoke of Egypt there.
Her confident pride will cease within her;
a cloud will cover her, and her daughters will go into captivity.
30:19 I will execute judgments on Egypt.
Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”
30:20 In the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh day of the month, 589 the word of the Lord came to me: 30:21 “Son of man, I have broken the arm 590 of Pharaoh king of Egypt. 591 Look, it has not been bandaged for healing or set with a dressing so that it might become strong enough to grasp a sword. 30:22 Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, 592 I am against 593 Pharaoh king of Egypt, and I will break his arms, the strong arm and the broken one, and I will make the sword drop from his hand. 30:23 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them among foreign countries. 30:24 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and I will place my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan like the fatally wounded before the king of Babylon. 594 30:25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall limp. Then they will know that I am the Lord when I place my sword in the hand of the king of Babylon and he extends it against the land of Egypt. 30:26 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them among foreign countries. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
31:1 In the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month, 595 the word of the Lord came to me: 31:2 “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and his hordes:
“‘Who are you like in your greatness?
31:3 Consider Assyria, 596 a cedar in Lebanon, 597
with beautiful branches, like a forest giving shade,
and extremely tall;
its top reached into the clouds.
31:4 The water made it grow;
underground springs made it grow tall.
Rivers flowed all around the place it was planted,
while smaller channels watered all the trees of the field. 598
31:5 Therefore it grew taller than all the trees of the field;
its boughs grew large and its branches grew long,
because of the plentiful water in its shoots. 599
31:6 All the birds of the sky nested in its boughs;
under its branches all the beasts of the field gave birth,
in its shade all the great 600 nations lived.
31:7 It was beautiful in its loftiness, in the length of its branches;
for its roots went down deep to plentiful waters.
31:8 The cedars in the garden of God could not eclipse it,
nor could the fir trees 601 match its boughs;
the plane trees were as nothing compared to its branches;
no tree in the garden of God could rival its beauty.
31:9 I made it beautiful with its many branches;
all the trees of Eden, in the garden of God, envied it.
31:10 “‘Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Because it was tall in stature, and its top reached into the clouds, and it was proud of its height, 31:11 I gave it over to the leader of the nations. He has judged it thoroughly, 602 as its sinfulness deserves. I have thrown it out. 31:12 Foreigners from the most terrifying nations have cut it down and left it to lie there on the mountains. In all the valleys its branches have fallen, and its boughs lie broken in the ravines of the land. All the peoples of the land 603 have departed 604 from its shade and left it. 31:13 On its ruins all the birds of the sky will live, and all the wild animals 605 will walk 606 on its branches. 31:14 For this reason no watered trees will grow so tall; their tops will not reach into the clouds, nor will the well-watered ones grow that high. 607 For all of them have been appointed to die in the lower parts of the earth; 608 they will be among mere mortals, 609 with those who descend to the pit.
31:15 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: On the day it 610 went down to Sheol I caused observers to lament. 611 I covered it with the deep and held back its rivers; its plentiful water was restrained. I clothed Lebanon in black for it, and all the trees of the field wilted because of it. 31:16 I made the nations shake at the sound of its fall, when I threw it down to Sheol, along with those who descend to the pit. 612 Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and the best of Lebanon, all that were well-watered, were comforted in the earth below. 31:17 Those who lived in its shade, its allies 613 among the nations, also went down with it to Sheol, to those killed by the sword. 31:18 Which of the trees of Eden was like you in majesty and loftiness? You will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the lower parts of the earth; you will lie among the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword! This is what will happen to Pharaoh and all his hordes, declares the sovereign Lord.’”
32:1 In the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, on the first of the month, 614 the word of the Lord came to me: 32:2 “Son of man, sing a lament for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say to him:
“‘You were like a lion 615 among the nations,
but you are a monster in the seas;
you thrash about in your streams,
stir up the water with your feet,
and muddy your 616 streams.
32:3 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘I will throw my net over you 617 in the assembly of many peoples;
and they will haul you up in my dragnet.
32:4 I will leave you on the ground,
I will fling you on the open field,
I will allow 618 all the birds of the sky to settle 619 on you,
and I will permit 620 all the wild animals 621 to gorge themselves on you.
32:5 I will put your flesh on the mountains,
and fill the valleys with your maggot-infested carcass. 622
32:6 I will drench the land with the flow
of your blood up to the mountains,
and the ravines will be full of your blood. 623
32:7 When I extinguish you, I will cover the sky;
I will darken its stars.
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon will not shine. 624
32:8 I will darken all the lights in the sky over you,
and I will darken your land,
declares the sovereign Lord.
32:9 I will disturb 625 many peoples,
when I bring about your destruction among the nations,
among countries you do not know.
32:10 I will shock many peoples with you,
and their kings will shiver with horror because of you.
When I brandish my sword before them,
every moment each one will tremble for his life, on the day of your fall.
32:11 “‘For this is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘The sword of the king of Babylon 626 will attack 627 you.
32:12 By the swords of the mighty warriors I will cause your hordes to fall –
all of them are the most terrifying among the nations.
They will devastate the pride of Egypt,
and all its hordes will be destroyed.
32:13 I will destroy all its cattle beside the plentiful waters;
and no human foot will disturb 628 the waters 629 again,
nor will the hooves of cattle disturb them.
32:14 Then I will make their waters calm, 630
and will make their streams flow like olive oil, declares the sovereign Lord.
32:15 When I turn the land of Egypt into desolation
and the land is destitute of everything that fills it,
when I strike all those who live in it,
then they will know that I am the Lord.’
32:16 This is a lament; they will chant it.
The daughters of the nations will chant it.
They will chant it over Egypt and over all her hordes,
declares the sovereign Lord.”
32:17 In the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day of the month, 631 the word of the Lord came to me: 32:18 “Son of man, wail 632 over the horde of Egypt. Bring it down; 633 bring 634 her 635 and the daughters of powerful nations down to the lower parts of the earth, along with those who descend to the pit. 32:19 Say to them, 636 ‘Whom do you surpass in beauty? 637 Go down and be laid to rest with the uncircumcised!’ 32:20 They will fall among those killed by the sword. The sword is drawn; they carry her and all her hordes away. 32:21 The bravest of the warriors will speak to him from the midst of Sheol along with his allies, saying: ‘The uncircumcised have come down; they lie still, killed by the sword.’
32:22 “Assyria is there with all her assembly around her grave, 638 all of them struck down by the sword. 639 32:23 Their 640 graves are located in the remote slopes of the pit. 641 Her assembly is around her grave, all of them struck down by the sword, those who spread terror in the land of the living.
32:24 “Elam is there with all her hordes around her grave; all of them struck down by the sword. They went down uncircumcised to the lower parts of the earth, those who spread terror in the land of the living. Now they will bear their shame with those who descend to the pit. 32:25 Among the dead they have made a bed for her, along with all her hordes around her grave. 642 All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for their terror had spread in the land of the living. They bear their shame along with those who descend to the pit; they are placed among the dead.
32:26 “Meshech-Tubal is there, along with all her hordes around her grave. 643 All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for they spread their terror in the land of the living. 32:27 They do not lie with the fallen warriors of ancient times, 644 who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, having their swords placed under their heads and their shields on their bones, 645 when the terror of these warriors was in the land of the living.
32:28 “But as for you, in the midst of the uncircumcised you will be broken, and you will lie with those killed by the sword.
32:29 “Edom is there with her kings and all her princes. Despite their might they are laid with those killed by the sword; they lie with the uncircumcised and those who descend to the pit.
32:30 “All the leaders of the north are there, along with all the Sidonians; despite their might they have gone down in shameful terror with the dead. They lie uncircumcised with those killed by the sword, and bear their shame with those who descend to the pit.
32:31 “Pharaoh will see them and be consoled over all his hordes who were killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his army, declares the sovereign Lord. 32:32 Indeed, I terrified him in the land of the living, yet he will lie in the midst of the uncircumcised with those killed by the sword, Pharaoh and all his hordes, declares the sovereign Lord.”
35:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 35:2 “Son of man, turn toward 646 Mount Seir, 647 and prophesy against it. 35:3 Say to it, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
“‘Look, I am against you, Mount Seir;
I will stretch out my hand against you
and turn you into a desolate ruin.
35:4 I will lay waste your cities;
and you will become desolate.
Then you will know that I am the Lord!
35:5 “‘You have shown unrelenting hostility and poured the people of Israel onto the blades of a sword 648 at the time of their calamity, at the time of their final punishment. 35:6 Therefore, as surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, I will subject you to bloodshed, and bloodshed will pursue you. Since you did not hate bloodshed, bloodshed will pursue you. 35:7 I will turn Mount Seir into a desolate ruin; 649 I will cut off 650 from it the one who passes through or returns. 35:8 I will fill its mountains with its dead; on your hills and in your valleys and in all your ravines, those killed by the sword will fall. 35:9 I will turn you into a perpetual desolation, and your cities will not be inhabited. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
35:10 “‘You said, “These two nations, these two lands 651 will be mine, and we will possess them,” 652 – although the Lord was there – 35:11 therefore, as surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, I will deal with you according to your anger, and according to your envy, by which you acted spitefully against them. I will reveal myself to them when I judge you. 35:12 Then you will know that I, the Lord, have heard all the insults you spoke against the mountains of Israel, saying, “They are desolate, they have been given to us for food.” 35:13 You exalted yourselves against me with your speech 653 and hurled many insults against me 654 – I have heard them all! 35:14 This is what the sovereign Lord says: While the whole earth rejoices, I will turn you into a desolation. 35:15 As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel because it was desolate, so will I deal with you – you will be desolate, Mount Seir, and all of Edom – all of it! Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”
1 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” For this title see 7:3 and the study note on 2:19.
2 sn Moab was a country east of the Dead Sea whose boundaries varied greatly over time. Basically, it was the tableland between the Arnon River about halfway up the Dead Sea and the Zered River which is roughly at the southern tip of the Dead Sea. When the Israelites entered Palestine they were forbidden to take any of the Moabite territory but they did capture the kingdom of Sihon north of the Arnon which Sihon had taken from Moab. Several of the towns mentioned in the oracles of judgment against Moab here are in this territory north of the Arnon and were assigned to Reuben and Gad. Several are mentioned on the famous Moabite Stone which details how Mesha king of Moab recovered from Israel many of these cities during the reign of Joram (852-841
3 tn Heb “Woe to Nebo for it is destroyed.” For the use of the Hebrew particle “Woe” (הוֹי, hoy) see the translator’s note on 22:13. The translation has taken this form because the phrase “Woe to” probably does not convey the proper meaning or significance to the modern reader. The verbs again are in the tense (Hebrew prophetic perfect) that views the action as if it were as good as done. The particle כִּי (ki) probably is causal but the asseverative works better in the modified translation.
4 sn Nebo and Kiriathaim were both north of the Arnon and were assigned to Reuben (Num 32:3, Josh 13:19). They are both mentioned on the Moabite Stone as having been recovered from Israel.
5 tn Or “Misgab.” The translation here follows the majority of commentaries and English versions. Only REB sees this as a place name, “Misgab,” which is otherwise unknown. The constant use of this word to refer to a fortress, the presence of the article on the front of it, and the lack of any reference to a place of this name anywhere else argues against it being a place name. However, the fact that the verbs that accompany it are feminine while the noun for “fortress” is masculine causes some pause.
6 tn For the meaning of the verb here see BDB 369 s.v. חָתַת Qal.1 and compare usage in Isa 7:8; 30:31.
7 sn Heshbon was originally a Moabite city but was captured by Sihon king of Og and made his capital (Num 21:26-30). It was captured from Sihon and originally assigned to the tribe of Reuben (Num 32:37; Josh 13:17). Later it was made a Levitical city and was assigned to the tribe of Gad (Josh 21:39). It formed the northern limits of Moab. It was located about eighteen miles east of the northern tip of the Dead Sea.
8 sn There is a wordplay in Hebrew on the word “Heshbon” and the word “plot” (חָשְׁבוּ, khoshvu).
9 tn Heb “In Heshbon they plot evil against her [i.e., Moab].” The “they” is undefined, but it would scarcely be Moabites living in Heshbon. Hence TEV and CEV are probably correct in seeing a reference to the enemy which would imply the conquest of this city which lay on the northern border of Moab.
10 tn The meaning of this line is somewhat uncertain. The translation here follows all the modern English versions and commentaries in reading the place name “Madmen” even though the place is otherwise unknown and the Greek, Syriac, and Latin version all read this word as an emphasizing infinitive absolute of the following verb “will be destroyed,” i.e. דָּמוֹם יִדֹּמּוּ (damom yiddommu). Some see this word as a variant of the name Dimon in Isa 15:9 which in turn is a playful variant of the place name Dibon. There is once again a wordplay on the word “Madmen” and “will be destroyed”: מַדְמֵן (madmen) and יִדֹּמּוּ (yiddommu). For the meaning of the verb = “perish” or “be destroyed” see Jer 8:14; Ps 31:18.
11 tn Heb “A sword will follow after you.” The sword is again figurative of destructive forces, here the army of the Babylonians.
12 tc The reading here follows the Qere צְעִירֶיהָ (tsÿ’ireha) which is the same noun found in Jer 14:3 in the sense of “servants.” Here it refers to the young ones, i.e., the children (cf. the use of the adjective BDB 859 s.v. I צָעִיר 2 and see Gen 43:33). Many of the modern commentaries and a few of the modern English versions follow the Greek version and read “their cry is heard as far as Zoar” (reading צֹעֲרָה, tso’arah; see, for example, J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 699, n. 4, and BDB 858 s.v. צֹעַר). However, that leaves the verb with an indefinite subject (the verb is active 3rd plural not passive) not otherwise identified in the preceding context. Many of the modern English versions such as NRSV, NJPS, NIV retain the Hebrew as the present translation has done. In this case the masculine plural noun furnishes a logical subject for the verb.
13 tn Or “Indeed her fugitives will…” It is unclear what the subject of the verbs are in this verse. The verb in the first two lines “climb” (יַעֲלֶה, ya’aleh) is third masculine singular and the verb in the second two lines “will hear” (שָׁמֵעוּ, shame’u) is third common plural. The causal particles at the beginning of the two halves of the verse suggest some connection with the preceding, so the translation assumes that the children are still the subject. In this case the singular verb would be a case of the distributive singular already referred to in the translator’s note on 46:15. The parallel passage in Isa 15:5 refers to the “fugitives” (בְּרִיחֶהָ, bÿrikheha) with the same singular verb as here and that may be the implied subject here.
14 tn Heb “the distresses of the cry of destruction.” Many commentaries want to leave out the word “distresses” because it is missing from the Greek version and the parallel passage in Isa 15:5. However, it is in all the Hebrew
15 tc The meaning of this line is uncertain. The translation follows one reading of the Hebrew text. The Greek version reads “Be like a wild donkey in the desert!” There are three points of debate in this line: the syntax of the verb form “be” (תִהְיֶינָה, tihyenah) and the text and meaning of the word translated “shrub” in the Hebrew text. This word only occurs with this meaning here and in Jer 17:6. A related word occurs in Ps 102:17 (102:18 HT). Elsewhere this spelling refers to the place name Aroer which was a place in Moab on the edge of the Arnon River. Most commentators do not feel that a reference to that place is appropriate here because it was not in the desert. The Greek version reads “like a wild donkey” (reading כְּעָרוֹד [kÿ’arod] in place of כַּעֲרוֹעֵר [ka’aro’er]). That would make an appropriate simile here because the wild donkey enjoys its freedom and is hard to capture. G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, and T. G. Smothers (Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 312) explain the simile of the “shrub” as referring to the marginal and rudimentary existence of a displaced person. That may not be as optimistic as the reference to the wild donkey but it does give an appropriate meaning. The third feminine plural has been explained as the singular noun + suffix = “yourselves” (נַפְשְׁכֶם, nafshÿkhem) used as a collective (so S. R. Driver, Jeremiah, 368, with cross reference to GKC 462-63 §145.c). J. Bright (Jeremiah [AB], 314, n. e-e) follows a suggestion of D. N. Freedman in seeing the form (תִהְיֶינָה, tihyenah) as a mistake for the 2nd masculine plural plus energic (תִהְיוּן, tihyun). Given the number of other textual corruptions in this passage, this is possible. The resultant meaning in either case is the same.
16 sn Chemosh was the national god of Moab (see also Numb 21:29). Child sacrifice appears to have been a part of his worship (2 Kgs 3:27). Solomon built a high place in Jerusalem for him (1 Kgs 11:7), and he appears to have been worshiped in Israel until Josiah tore that high place down (2 Kgs 23:13).
17 sn The practice of carrying off the gods of captive nations has already been mentioned in the study note on 43:12. See also Isa 46:1-2 noted there.
18 tn Heb “The valley will be destroyed and the tableland be laid waste.” However, in the context this surely refers to the towns and not to the valley and the tableland itself.
19 tn Heb “which/for/as the
20 tn Or “Scatter salt over Moab for it will certainly be laid in ruins.” The meaning of these two lines is very uncertain. The Hebrew of these two lines presents several difficulties. It reads תְּנוּ־צִיץ לְמוֹאָב נָצֹא תֵּצֵא (tÿnu-tsits lÿmo’av natso’ tetse’). Of the five words two are extremely problematic and the meaning of the second affects also the meaning of the last word which normally means “go out.” The word צִיץ (tsits) regularly refers to a blossom or flower or the diadem on the front of Aaron’s mitre. BDB 851 s.v. II צִיץ gives a nuance “wings (coll)” based on the interpretation of Abu Walid and some medieval Jewish interpreters who related it to an Aramaic root. But BDB says that meaning is dubious and refers to the Greek which reads σημεῖα (shmeia, “sign” or “sign post”). Along with KBL 802 s.v. I צִיץ and HALOT 959 s.v. II צִיץ, BDB suggests that the Greek presupposes the word צִיּוּן (tsiyyun) which refers to a road marker (Jer 31:21) or a gravestone (2 Kgs 23:17). That is the meaning followed here. Several modern commentaries and English versions have followed a proposal by W. Moran that the word is related to a Ugaritic word meaning salt (cf., e.g., J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 320). However, HALOT 959 s.v. II צִיץ questions the validity of this on philological grounds saying that the meaning of salt does not really fit the Ugaritic either. The present translation follows the suggestions of the lexicons here and reads the word as though the Greek supported the meaning “gravestone.” The other difficulty is with the word נָצֹא (natso’), which looks like a Qal infinitive absolute of an otherwise unattested root which BDB s.v. נָצָא says is defined in Gesenius’ Thesaurus as “fly.” However, see the meaning and the construction of an infinitive absolute of one root with that of another as highly improbable. Hence, most modern lexicons either emend the forms to read נָצֹה תִּצֶּה (natsoh titseh) from the root נָצָה (natsah) meaning “to fall into ruins” (so KBL 629 s.v. נָצָה Qal, and see among others J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 700, n. 10, who notes that final א [aleph] and final ה [hey] are often confused; see the discussion and examples in GKC 216-17 §75.nn-rr). This is the option that this translation as well as a number of modern ones have taken. A second option is to see נָצֹא (natso’) as an error for יָצֹא (yatso’) and read the text in the sense of “she will certainly surrender,” a meaning that the verb יָצָא (yatsa’) has in 1 Sam 11:3; Isa 36:6. The best discussion of this option as well as a discussion on the problem of reading צִיץ (tsits) as salt is found in G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers, Jeremiah 26-52 (WBC), 313-14.
21 tn Heb “who withholds his sword from bloodshed.” This verse is an editorial aside (or apostrophe) addressed to the Babylonian destroyers to be diligent in carrying out the work of the
22 tn Heb “Therefore his taste remains in him and his aroma is not changed.” The metaphor is changed into a simile in an attempt to help the reader understand the figure in the context.
23 tn Heb “Therefore, behold the days are coming, oracle of Yahweh, when I will send against him decanters [those who pour from one vessel to another] and they will decant him [pour him out] and they will empty his vessels and break their jars in pieces.” The verse continues the metaphor from the preceding verse where Moab/the people of Moab are like wine left undisturbed in a jar, i.e., in their native land. In this verse the picture is that of the decanter emptying the wine from the vessels and then breaking the jars. The wine represents the people and the vessels the cities and towns where the people lived. The verse speaks of the exile of the people and the devastation of the land. The metaphor has been interpreted so it conveys meaning to the average reader.
24 tn Heb “Oracle of the
25 tn Heb “Moab will be ashamed because of Chemosh as the house of Israel was ashamed because of Bethel, their [source of] confidence.” The “shame” is, of course, the disappointment, disillusionment because of the lack of help from these gods in which they trusted (for this nuance of the verb see BDB 101 s.v. בּוֹשׁ Qal.2 and compare usage in Jer 2:13; Isa 20:5). Because of the parallelism, some see the reference to Bethel to be a reference to a West Semitic god worshiped by the people of Israel (see J. P. Hyatt, “Bethel [Deity],” IDB 1:390 for the arguments). However, there is no evidence in the OT that such a god was worshiped in Israel, and there is legitimate evidence that northern Israel placed its confidence in the calf god that Jeroboam set up in Bethel (cf. 1 Kgs 12:28-32; Hos 10:5; 8:5-6; Amos 7:10-17).
26 tn Heb “will go down to the slaughter.”
27 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of the translation and meaning of this title see the study note on 2:19.
28 tn Heb “Oracle of the King whose name is Yahweh of armies.” The first person form has again been adopted because the
29 tn For the use of the word “name” (שֵׁם, shem) to “fame” or “repute” see BDB 1028 s.v. שֵׁם 2.b and compare the usage in Ezek 16:14; 2 Chr 26:15.
30 tn Heb “How is the strong staff broken, the beautiful rod.” “How” introduces a lament which is here rendered by “Alas.” The staff and rod refer to the support that Moab gave to others not to the fact that she ruled over others which was never the case. According to BDB 739 s.v. עוֹז 1 the “strong staff” is figurative of political power.
31 tn Heb “sit in thirst.” The abstract “thirst” is put for the concrete, i.e., thirsty or parched ground (cf. Deut 8:19; Isa 35:7; Ps 107:33) for the concrete. There is no need to emend to “filth” (צֹאָה [tso’ah] for צָמָא [tsama’]) as is sometimes suggested.
32 tn Heb “inhabitant of Daughter Dibon.” “Daughter” is used here as often in Jeremiah for the personification of a city, a country, or its inhabitants. The word “inhabitant” is to be understood as a collective as also in v. 19.
33 sn Aroer is probably the Aroer that was located a few miles south and west of Dibon on the edge of the Arnon River. It had earlier been the southern border of Sihon, king of Heshbon, and had been allotted to the tribe of Reuben (Josh 13:16). However, this whole territory had earlier been taken over by the Arameans (2 Kgs 10:33), later by the Assyrians, and at this time was in the hands of the Moabites.
34 sn See the study note on Jer 48:8 for reference to this tableland or high plain that lay between the Arnon and Heshbon.
35 tn Heb “The horn of Moab will be cut off. His arm will be broken.” “Horn” and “arm” are both symbols of strength (see BDB 902 s.v. קֶרֶן 2 [and compare usage in Lam 2:3] and BDB 284 s.v. זְרוֹעַ 2 [and compare usage in 1 Sam 2:31]). The figures have been interpreted for the sake of clarity.
36 tn Heb “Oracle of the
37 tn Heb “Make him drunk because he has magnified himself against the
38 tn The meaning of this word is uncertain. It is usually used of clapping the hands or the thigh in helpless anger or disgust. Hence J. Bright (Jeremiah [AB], 321) paraphrases “shall vomit helplessly.” HALOT 722 s.v. II סָפַק relates this to an Aramaic word and see a homonym meaning “vomit” or “spew out.” The translation is that of BDB 706 s.v. סָפַק Qal.3, “splash (fall with a splash),” from the same root that refers to slapping or clapping the thigh.
39 tn Heb “were they caught among thieves?”
40 tn Heb “that you shook yourself.” But see the same verb in 18:16 in the active voice with the object “head” in a very similar context of contempt or derision.
41 tc The reading here presupposes the emendation of דְבָרֶיךָ (dÿvarekha, “your words”) to דַבֶּרְךָ (dabberkha, “your speaking”), suggested by BHS (cf. fn c) on the basis of one of the Greek versions (Symmachus). For the idiom cf. BDB 191 s.v. דַּי 2.c.α.
42 tn Heb “in the sides of the mouth of a pit/chasm.” The translation follows the suggestion of J. Bright, Jeremiah (AB), 321. The point of the simile is inaccessibility.
43 tn Heb “We have heard of the pride of Moab – [he is] exceedingly proud – of his haughtiness, and his pride, and his haughtiness, and the loftiness of his heart.” These words are essentially all synonyms, three of them coming from the same Hebrew root (גָּאָה, ga’ah) and one of the words being used twice (גָּאוֹן). Since the first person singular is used in the next verse, the present translation considers the “we” of this verse to refer to the plural of majesty or the plural referring to the divine council in such passages as Gen 1:26; 3:22; 11:7; Isa 6:8 and has translated in the singular to avoid possible confusion of who the “we” are. Most understand the reference to be to Jeremiah and his fellow Judeans.
44 tn Heb “Oracle of the
45 tn The meaning of this verse is somewhat uncertain: Heb “I know, oracle of the
46 tc The translation is based on the emendation of the Hebrew third masculine singular (יֶהְגֶּה, yehggeh) to the first singular (אֶהְגֶּה, ’ehgeh). This emendation is assumed by almost all of the modern English versions and commentaries even though the textual evidence for it is weak (only one Hebrew
47 tc Or “I will weep for the grapevines of Sibmah more than I will weep over the town of Jazer.” The translation here assumes that there has been a graphic confusion of מ (mem) with כְּ (kaf) or בְּ (bet). The parallel passage in Isa 16:9 has the preposition בְּ and the Greek version presupposes a comparative idea “as with.” Many of the modern English versions render the passage with the comparative מִן (min) as in the alternate translation, but it is unclear what the force of the comparison would be here. The verse is actually in the second person, an apostrophe or direct address to the grapevine(s) of Sibmah. However, the translation has retained the third person throughout because such sudden shifts in person are uncommon in contemporary English literature and retaining the third person is smoother. The Hebrew text reads: “From/With the weeping of Jazer I will weep for you, vine of Sibmah. Your tendrils crossed over the sea. They reached unto the sea of Jazer. Upon your summer fruit and your vintage [grape harvest] the destroyer has fallen.”
48 tn Heb “crossed over to the Sea.”
49 tn Or “reached the sea of Jazer.” The Sea is generally taken to be a reference to the Dead Sea. The translation presupposes that the word “sea” is to be omitted before “Jazer.” The word is missing from two Hebrew
50 tn Heb “her summer fruit.” See the translator’s note on 40:10 for the rendering here. According to BDB 657 s.v. נָפַל Qal.4.a, the verb means to “fall upon” or “attack” but in the context it is probably metonymical for attack and destroy.
51 tn Heb “from the garden land, even from the land of Moab.” Comparison with the parallel passage in Isa 16:10 and the translation of the Greek text here (which has only “the land of Moab”) suggest that the second phrase is appositional to the first.
52 tn Heb “no one will tread [the grapes] with shout of joy.”
53 tn Heb “shouts will not be shouts.” The text has been expanded contextually to explain that the shouts of those treading grapes in winepresses will come to an end (v. 33a-d) and be replaced by the shouts of the soldiers who trample down the vineyards (v. 32e-f). Compare 25:30 and 51:41 for the idea.
54 tn The meaning of this verse is very uncertain. The ambiguity of the syntax and the apparent elliptical nature of this text makes the meaning of this verse uncertain. The Hebrew text reads: “From the cry of Heshbon unto Elealeh unto Jahaz they utter their voice from Zoar unto Horonaim Eglath Shelishiyah.” The translation and interpretation here are based on interpreting the elliptical syntax here by the parallel passage in Isaiah 15:4-6 where cries of anguish rise from Heshbon and Elealeh which are heard all the way to Jahaz. The people flee southward arriving at Zoar and Eglath Shelishiyah where they voice the news of the destruction in the north. Hence, the present translation interprets the phrase “from the cry of Heshbon unto Elealeh” to be parallel to “Heshbon and Elealeh cry out” and take the preposition “from” with the verb “they utter their voice,” i.e., with the cry of Heshbon and Elealeh. The impersonal “they raise their voice” is then treated as a passive and made the subject of the whole verse. There is some debate about the identification of the waters of Nimrim. They may refer to the waters of the Wadi Nimrim which enters the Jordan about eight miles north of the Dead Sea or those of the Wadi en-Numeirah which flows into the southern tip of the Dead Sea from about ten miles south. Most commentators take the reference to be the latter because of association with Zoar. However, if the passage is talking about the destruction in the north which is reported in the south by the fleeing refugees, the reference is probably to the Wadi Nimrim in the north.
55 tn Heb “high place[s].” For the meaning and significance of this term see the study note on 7:31.
56 tn Heb “Oracle of the
57 tn Heb “upon every loin [there is] sackcloth.” The word “all” is restored here before “loin” with a number of Hebrew
58 tn Heb “Oracle of the
59 tn Heb “turn her back.”
60 tn Heb “Behold! Like an eagle he will swoop and will spread his wings against Moab.” The sentence has been reordered in English to give a better logical flow and the unidentified “he” has been identified as “a nation.” The nation is, of course, Babylon, but it is nowhere identified so the referent has been left ambiguous.
61 tn Parallelism argues that the word קְרִיּוֹת (qÿriyyot) be understood as the otherwise unattested feminine plural of the noun קִרְיָה (qiryah, “city”) rather than the place name Kerioth mentioned in v. 24 (cf. HALOT 1065 s.v. קִרְיָה). Both this noun and the parallel term “fortresses” are plural but are found with feminine singular verbs, being treated either as collectives or distributive plurals (cf. GKC 462-63 §145.c or 464 §145.l).
62 tn Heb “The heart of the soldiers of Moab will be like the heart of a woman in labor.”
63 tn Heb “Moab will be destroyed from [being] a people.”
64 sn There is an extended use of assonance here and in the parallel passage in Isa 24:17. The Hebrew text reads פַּחַד וָפַחַת וָפָח (pakhad vafakhat vafakh). The assonance is intended to underscore the extensive trouble that is in store for them.
65 tn Heb “are upon you, inhabitant of Moab.” This is another example of the rapid switch in person or direct address (apostrophe) in the midst of a third person description or prediction which the present translation typically keeps in the third person for smoother English style.
66 tn Heb “Oracle of the
67 sn Jer 48:43-44a are in the main the same as Isa 24:17-18 which shows that the judgment was somewhat proverbial. For a very similar kind of argumentation see Amos 5:19; judgment is unavoidable.
68 tn Heb “For I will bring upon her, even upon Moab, the year of her punishment.”
69 tn Heb “Oracle of the
70 tn Or “of those noisy boasters.” Or “They will burn up the frontiers of Moab. They will burn up the mountain heights of those war-loving people.” The meaning of this verse is not entirely certain because of the highly figurative nature of the last two lines. The Hebrew text has been translated somewhat literally here. The Hebrew text reads: “In the shadow of Heshbon those fleeing stand without strength. For a fire goes forth from Heshbon, a flame from the midst of Sihon. And it devours the forehead of Moab and the skull of the sons of noise.” The meaning of the first part is fairly clear because v. 2 has already spoken of the conquest of Heshbon and a plot formed there to conquer the rest of the nation. The fire going forth from Heshbon would hence refer here to the conflagrations of war spreading from Heshbon to the rest of the country. The reference to the “midst of Sihon” is to be understood metonymically as a reference for the ruler to what he once ruled (cf. E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 583). The last two lines must refer to more than the fugitives who stopped at Heshbon for protection because it refers to the forehead of Moab (a personification of the whole land or nation). It is unclear, however, why reference is made to the foreheads and skulls of the Moabites, other than the fact that this verse seems to be a readaptation or reuse of Num 24:17 where the verb used with them is “smite” which fits nicely in the sense of martial destruction. Translated rather literally, it appears here to refer to the destruction by the fires of war of the Moabites, the part (forehead and skulls) put for the whole. TEV sees a reference here to the “frontiers” and “mountain heights” of Moab and this would work nicely for “foreheads” which is elsewhere used of the corner or border of a land in Neh 9:22. The word “crown” or “skull” might be a picturesque metaphor for the mountain heights of a land, but the word is never used elsewhere in such a figurative way. TEV (and CEV) which follows it might be correct here but there is no way to validate it. The meaning “war-loving people” for the phrase “sons of noise” is based on the suggestion of BDB 981 s.v. שָׁאוֹן 1 which relates the phrase to the dominant use for שָׁאוֹן (sha’on) and is adopted also by TEV, CEV, and C. von Orelli, Jeremiah, 341. REB “braggarts” and NIV “noisy boasters” seem to base the nuance on the usage of שָׁאוֹן (sha’on) in Jer 46:17 where Pharaoh is referred to as an empty noise and the reference to Moab’s arrogance and boasting in 48:29.
71 tn Heb “Woe to you, Moab.” For the usage of this expression see 4:13, 31; 13:17 and the translator’s note on 4:13 and 10:19.
72 tn Heb “Your sons will be taken away into captivity, your daughters into exile.”
73 tn See 29:14; 30:3 and the translator’s note on 29:14 for the idiom used here.
74 tn Heb “Oracle of the
75 sn Ammonites. Ammon was a small kingdom to the north and east of Moab which was in constant conflict with the Transjordanian tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh over territorial rights to the lands north and south of the Jabbok River. Ammon mainly centered on the city of Rabbah which is modern Amman. According to Judg 11:13 the Ammonites claimed the land between the Jabbok and the Arnon but this was land taken from them by Sihon and Og and land that the Israelites captured from the latter two kings. The Ammonites attempted to expand into the territory of Israel in the Transjordan in the time of Jephthah (Judg 10-11) and the time of Saul (1 Sam 11). Apparently when Tiglath Pileser carried away the Israelite tribes in Transjordan in 733
76 tc The reading here and in v. 3 follows the reading of the Greek, Syriac, and Latin versions and 1 Kgs 11:5, 33; 2 Kgs 23:13. The Hebrew reads “Malcom” both here, in v. 3, and Zeph 1:5. This god is to be identified with the god known elsewhere as Molech (cf. 1 Kgs 11:7).
77 tn Heb “Does not Israel have any sons? Does not he have any heir [or “heirs” as a collective]? Why [then] has Malcom taken possession of Gad and [why] do his [Malcom’s] people live in his [Gad’s] land?” A literal translation here will not produce any meaning without major commentary. Hence the meaning that is generally agreed on is reflected in an admittedly paraphrastic translation. The reference is to the fact that the Ammonites had taken possession of the cities that had been deserted when the Assyrians carried off the Transjordanian tribes in 733
78 tn Heb “oracle of the
79 tn Heb “a desolate tel.” For the explanation of what a “tel” is see the study note on 30:18.
80 tn Heb “Its daughters will be burned with fire.” For the use of the word “daughters” to refer to the villages surrounding a larger city see BDB 123 s.v. I בַּת 4 and compare the usage in Judg 1:27.
81 tn Heb “says the
82 tn Or “you women of Rabbah”; Heb “daughters of Rabbah.” It is difficult to tell whether the word “daughters” is used here in the same sense that it has in v. 2 (see the translator’s note there) or in the literal sense of “daughters.” The former has been preferred because the cities themselves (e.g., Heshbon) are called to wail in the earlier part of the verse and the term “daughters” has been used in the previous verse of the surrounding villages.
83 tc Or “Run back and forth inside the walls of your towns.” Or “slash yourselves with gashes.” The meaning of this line is uncertain. The Hebrew text reads “run back and forth among the walls.” The word “run back and forth” is generally taken as a Hitpolel of a verb that means to “go about” in the Qal and to “go back and forth” in the Polel (cf. BDB 1002 s.v. I שׁוּט). The noun that follows in the Hebrew means “wall, hedge” and is quite commonly modified by the noun צֹאן (tso’n, “sheep”) referring to sheepfolds (cf., e.g., Num 32:36; 1 Sam 24:3). But the phrase “run back and forth among the sheepfolds” yields little meaning here. In Ps 89:40 (89:41 HT) the word “wall” is used in parallelism with fortified cities and refers to the walls of the city. That is the sense that is assumed in one of the alternate translations with the words “of your towns” being supplied in the translation for clarification. However, that figure is a little odd in a context which speaks of mourning rites. Hence, some emend the word “walls” (גְּדֵרוֹת, gÿderot) to “gashes” (גְּדֻדוֹת, gÿdudot), a word that has occurred in a similar context in Jer 48:37. That would involve only the common confusion of ר and ד. That is the reading adopted here and fits the context nicely. NRSV appears to go one step further and read the verb as a Hitpolel from a root that is otherwise used only as a noun to mean “whip” or “scourge.” NRSV reads “slash yourselves with whips” which also makes excellent sense in the context but is not supported by any parallel use of the verb.
84 sn Compare Jer 48:7 and the study note there.
85 tn Or “Why do you brag about your valleys, about the fruitfulness of your valleys.” The meaning of the first two lines of this verse are uncertain primarily due to the ambiguity of the expression זָב עִמְקֵךְ (zav ’imqekh). The form זָב (zav) is either a Qal perfect or Qal participle of a verb meaning flow. It is common in the expression “a land flowing with milk and honey” and is also common to refer to the seminal discharge or discharge of blood which makes a man or woman unclean. BDB 264 s.v. זוּב Qal.2 sees it as an abbreviation of the idea of “flowing with milk and honey” and sees it as referring to the fertility of Ammon’s valley. However, there are no other examples of such an ellipsis. Several of the modern English versions and commentaries have taken the word עֵמֶק (’emeq) not as a reference to a valley but to the homonym cited in the note on 47:5 and see the reference here to the flowing away of Ammon’s strength. That interpretation is followed here. Instead of explaining the plural ending on עֲמָקִים (’amaqim) as being an enclitic ם (mem) as others who follow this interpretation (e.g., J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 325), the present translation understands the plural as a plural of amplification (cf. GKC 397-98 §124.e and compare the noun “might” in Isa 40:26).
86 tn Heb “apostate daughter.” This same term is applied to Israel in Jer 31:22 but seems inappropriate here to Ammon because she had never been loyal to the
87 tn Heb “The Lord Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of the rendering here and of the significance of this title see the study note on 2:19.
88 tn Heb “You will be scattered each man [straight] before him.”
89 tn See Jer 29:14; 30:3 and the translator’s note on 29:14 for the idiom used here.
90 tn Heb “Oracle of the
91 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” See the study note on 2:19 for this title.
92 sn Edom was a kingdom to the south and east of Judah. Its borders varied over time but basically Edom lay in the hundred mile strip between the Gulf of Aqaba on the south and the Zered River on the north. It straddled the Arabah leading down from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba, having as its northern neighbors both Judah and Moab. A long history of hostility existed between Israel and Edom, making Edom one of the favorite objects of the prophets’ oracles of judgment (cf., e.g., Isa 21:11-12; 34:5-15; 63:1-6; Amos 1:11-12; Ezek 25:12-14; 35:1-15; Obad 1-16). Not much is known about Edom at this time other than the fact that they participated in the discussions regarding rebellion against Nebuchadnezzar in 594
93 sn Teman was the name of one of Esau’s descendants, the name of an Edomite clan and the name of the district where they lived (Gen 36:11, 15, 34). Like the name Bozrah, it is used poetically for all of Edom (Jer 49:20; Ezek 25:13).
94 tn Heb “Has counsel perished from men of understanding?”
95 tn The meaning of this last word is based on the definition given in KBL 668 s.v. II סָרַח Nif and HALOT 726 s.v. II סָרַח Nif, which give the nuance “to be [or become] corrupt” rather than that of BDB 710 s.v. סָרַח Niph who give the nuance “let loose (i.e., to be dismissed; to be gone)” from a verb that is elsewhere used of the overhanging of a curtains or a cliff.
96 tn Heb “make deep to dwell.” The meaning of this phrase is debated. Some take it as a reference for the Dedanites who were not native to Edom to go down from the heights of Edom and go back home (so G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers, Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 330). The majority of commentaries, however, take it as a reference to the Dedanites disassociating themselves from the Edomites and finding remote hiding places to live in (so J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 718). For the options see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:375.
97 sn Dedan. The Dedanites were an Arabian tribe who lived to the southeast of Edom. They are warned here to disassociate themselves from Edom because Edom is about to suffer disaster.
98 tn Heb “For I will bring the disaster of Esau upon him, the time when I will punish him.” Esau was the progenitor of the tribes and nation of Edom (cf. Gen 36:1, 8, 9, 19).
99 tn The translation of this verse is generally based on the parallels in Obad 5. There the second line has a ה interrogative in front of it. The question can still be assumed because questions can be asked in Hebrew without a formal marker (cf. GKC 473 §150.a and BDB 519 s.v. לֹא 1.a[e] and compare usage in 2 Kgs 5:26).
100 tn The tense and nuance of the verb translated “pillage” are both different than the verb in Obad 5. There the verb is the imperfect of גָּנַב (ganav, “to steal”). Here the verb is the perfect of a verb which means to “ruin” or “spoil.” The English versions and commentaries, however, almost all render the verb here in much the same way as in Obad 5. The nuance must mean they only “ruin, destroy” (by stealing) only as much as they need (Heb “their sufficiency”), and the verb is used as metonymical substitute, effect for cause. The perfect must be some kind of a future perfect; “would they not have destroyed only…” The negative question is carried over by ellipsis from the preceding lines.
101 tn Or “Their children and relatives will all be destroyed. And none of their neighbors will say, ‘Leave your orphans with me and I’ll keep them alive. Your widows can trust in me.’” This latter interpretation is based on a reading in a couple of the Greek versions (Symmachus and Lucian) and is accepted by a number of the modern commentaries, (J. Bright, J. A. Thompson, W. L. Holladay, and G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers). However, the majority of modern English versions do not follow it and lacking any other Hebrew or versional evidence it is probable that this is an interpretation to explain the mitigation of what appears as a prophecy of utter annihilation. There have been other cases in Jeremiah where a universal affirmation (either positive or negative) has been modified in the verses that follow. The verb in the second line תִּבְטָחוּ (tivtakhu) is highly unusual; it is a second masculine plural form with a feminine plural subject. The form is explained in GKC 127-28 §47.k and 160-61 §60.a, n. 1 as a pausal substitution for the normal form תִּבְטַחְנָה (tivtakhnah) and a similar form in Ezek 37:7 cited as a parallel.
102 tn The words “of my wrath” after “cup” in the first line and “from the cup of my wrath” in the last line are not in the text but are implicit in the metaphor. They have been supplied in the translation for clarity.
103 tn Heb “I swear by myself.” See 22:5 and the study note there.
104 sn Bozrah appears to have been the chief city in Edom, its capital city (see its parallelism with Edom in Isa 34:6; 63:1; Jer 49:22). The reference to “its towns” (translated here “all the towns around it”) could then be a reference to all the towns in Edom. It was located about twenty-five miles southeast of the southern end of the Dead Sea apparently in the district of Teman (see the parallelism in Amos 1:12).
105 tn See the study note on 24:9 for the rendering of this term.
106 tn The words “I said” are not in the text but it is generally agreed that the words that follow are Jeremiah’s. These words are supplied in the translation to make clear that the speaker has shifted from the
107 tn Heb “Rise up for battle.” The idea “against her” is implicit from the context and has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
108 tn The words “The
109 tn The meaning of this Hebrew word (תִּפְלֶצֶת, tifletset) is uncertain because it occurs only here. However, it is related to a verb root that refers to the shaking of the pillars (of the earth) in Job 9:6 and a noun (מִפְלֶצֶת, mifletset) that refers to “horror” or “shuddering” used in Job 21:6; Isa 21:4; Ezek 7:18; Ps 55:6. This is the nuance that is accepted by BDB, KBL, HAL and a majority of the modern English versions. The suffix is an objective genitive. The fact that the following verb is masculine singular suggests that the text here (הִשִּׁיא אֹתָךְ, hishi’ ’otakh) is in error for הִשִּׁיאָתָךְ (hishi’atakh; so G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers, Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 327, n. 16.a).
110 tn The Hebrew text of the first four lines reads: “Your terror [= the terror you inspire] has deceived you, [and] the arrogance of your heart, you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, who occupy the heights of the hill.” The sentence is broken up and restructured to better conform with English style.
111 sn This verse is very similar to Jer 19:8 where the same judgment is pronounced on Jerusalem. For the meaning of some of the terms here (“hiss out their scorn” and “all the disasters that have happened to it”) see the notes on that verse.
112 tn See the study note on Jer 12:5 for the rendering of this term.
113 tn “The pasture-ground on the everflowing river” according to KBL 42 s.v. I אֵיתָן 1. The “everflowing river” refers to the Jordan.
114 tn Heb “Behold, like a lion comes up from the thicket of the Jordan into the pastureland of everflowing water so [reading כֵּן (ken) for כִּי (ki); or “indeed” (reading כִּי as an asseverative particle with J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 719, n. 6)] I will suddenly chase him [Edom] from upon it [the land].” The sentence has been restructured to better conform with contemporary English style and the significance of the simile drawn from the comparison has been spelled out for the sake of clarity. The form אַרְגִּיעָה (’argi’ah) is functioning here as an adverbial modifier in a verbal hendiadys (cf. GKC 386 §120.g).
115 tn For the use of the interrogative מִי (mi) in the sense of “whoever” and functioning like an adjective see BDB 567 s.v. מִי g and compare the usage in Prov 9:4, 16.
116 tn For the meaning of this verb in the sense of “arraign” or “call before the bar of justice” compare Job 9:19 and see BDB 417 s.v. יָעַד Hiph.
117 tn The interrogative מִי (mi) is rendered “there is no one” in each of the last three occurrences in this verse because it is used in a rhetorical question that expects the answer “no one” or “none” and is according to BDB 566 s.v. מִי f(c) equivalent to a rhetorical negative.
118 tn The word “shepherd” (רֹעֶה, ro’eh) has been used often in the book of Jeremiah to refer metaphorically to the ruler or leader (cf. BDB 945 s.v. I רָעָה Qal.1.d(2) and compare usage, e.g., in Jer 2:8; 23:1).
119 tn Heb “Therefore listen to the plan of the
120 sn Teman here appears to be a poetic equivalent for Edom, a common figure of speech in Hebrew poetry where the part is put for the whole. “The people of Teman” is thus equivalent to all the people of Edom.
121 tn Heb “They will surely drag them off, namely the young ones of the flock. He will devastate their habitation [or their sheepfold] on account of them.” The figure of the lion among the flock of sheep appears to be carried on here where the people are referred to as a flock and their homeland is referred to as a sheepfold. It is hard, however, to carry the figure over here into the translation, so the figures have been interpreted instead. Both of these last two sentences are introduced by a formula that indicates a strong affirmative oath (i.e., they are introduced by אִם לֹא [’im lo’; cf. BDB 50 s.v. אִם 1.b(2)]). The subject of the verb “they will drag them off” is the indefinite third plural which may be taken as a passive in English (cf. GKC 460 §144.g). The subject of the last line is the
122 tn Heb “The earth will quake when at the sound of their downfall.” However, as in many other places “earth” stands here metonymically for the inhabitants or people of the earth (see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 578-79, and compare usage in 2 Sam 15:23; Ps 66:4).
123 tn Heb “the Red Sea,” of which the Gulf of Aqaba formed the northeastern arm. The land of Edom once reached this far according to 1 Kgs 9:26.
124 sn Compare Jer 48:40-41 for a similar prophecy about Moab. The parallelism here suggests that Bozrah, like Teman in v. 20, is a poetic equivalent for Edom.
125 tn The words “The
126 sn Damascus is a city in Syria, located below the eastern slopes of the Anti-lebanon Mountains. It was the capital of the Aramean state that was in constant hostility with Israel from the time of David until its destruction by the Assyrians in 732
127 tn Heb “Hamath and Arpad.” There is no word for people in the text. The cities are being personified. However, since it is really the people who are involved and it is clearer for the modern reader, the present translation supplies the words “people of” both here and in v. 24. The verbs in vv. 23-25 are all to be interpreted as prophetic perfects, the tense of the Hebrew verb that views an action as though it were as good as done. The verbs are clearly future in vv. 26-27 which begin with a “therefore.”
128 tc The meaning of this verse is very uncertain. The Hebrew text apparently reads “Hamath and Arpad are dismayed. They melt away because they have heard bad news. Anxiety is in the sea; it [the sea] cannot be quiet.” Many commentaries and English versions redivide the verse and read “like the sea” for “in the sea” (כַּיָּם [kayyam] for בַּיָּם [bayyam]) and read the feminine singular noun דְּאָגָה (dÿ’agam) as though it were the third masculine plural verb דָּאֲגוּ (da’agu): “They are troubled like the sea.” The translation follows the emendation proposed in BHS and accepted by a number of commentaries (e.g., J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 333; J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 723, n. 1). That emendation involves reading נָמֹג לִבָּם מִדְּאָגָה (namog libbam middÿ’agah) instead of נָמֹגוּ בַּיָּם דְּאָגָה (namogu bayyam dÿ’agah). The translation also involves a double reading of “heart,” for the sake of English style, once in the sense of courage (BDB 525 s.v. לֵב 10) because that is the nuance that best fits “melts” in the English idiom and once in the more general sense of hearts as the seat of fear, anxiety, worry. The double translation is a concession to English style.
129 tn Heb “city of praise.”
130 tn Heb “city of joy.”
131 tc Or “Why has that famous city not been abandoned, that city I once took delight in?” The translation follows the majority of modern commentaries in understanding לֹא (lo’, “not”) before “abandoned” as a misunderstanding of the emphatic ל (lamed; so J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 723, n. 3, and J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 333, n. c; see also IBHS 211-12 §11.2.10i and HALOT 485-86 s.v. II לְ for the phenomenon). The particle is missing from the Vulgate. The translation also follows the versions in omitting the suffix on the word “joy” that is found in the Hebrew text (see BHS note b for a listing of the versions). This gives a better connection with the preceding and the following verse than the alternate translation.
132 tn Heb “Oracle of Yahweh of armies.” For this title for God see the study note on 2:19.
133 sn Ben-Hadad was a common name borne by a number of the kings of Damascus, e.g., one during the time of Asa around 900
134 sn Kedar appears to refer to an Arabic tribe of nomads descended from Ishmael (Gen 25:13). They are associated here with the people who live in the eastern desert (Heb “the children of the east”; בְּנֵי־קֶדֶם, bÿne-qedem). In Isa 21:16 they are associated with the Temanites and the Dedanites, Arabic tribes in the north Arabian desert. They were sheep breeders (Isa 60:7) who lived in tents (Ps 120:5) and unwalled villages (Isa 42:11). According to Assyrian records they clashed with Assyria from the time of Shalmaneser in 850 until the time of Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal in the late seventh century. According to the Babylonian Chronicles, Nebuchadnezzar defeated them in 599
135 sn Hazor. Nothing is know about this Hazor other than what is said here in vv. 28, 30, 33. They appear to also be nomadic tent dwellers who had a loose association with the Kedarites.
136 tn The words “Army of Babylon” are not in the Hebrew text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
137 sn Heb “the children of the east.” Nothing much is known about them other than their association with the Midianites and Amalekites in their attack on Israel in the time of Gideon (Judg 6:3, 33) and the fact that God would let tribes from the eastern desert capture Moab and Ammon in the future (Ezek 25:4, 10). Midian and Amalek were consider to be located in the region in north Arabia east of Ezion Geber. That would put them in the same general locality as the region of Kedar. The parallelism here suggests that they are the same as the people of Kedar. The words here are apparently addressed to the armies of Nebuchadnezzar.
138 tn Or “Let their tents…be taken….Let their tent…be carried…. Let people shout….”
139 sn This expression is a favorite theme in the book of Jeremiah. It describes the terrors of war awaiting the people of Judah and Jerusalem (6:25), the Egyptians at Carchemish (46:5), and here the Kedarites.
140 tn Heb “Oracle of the
141 map For location see Map1-D2; Map2-D3; Map3-A2; Map4-C1.
142 tn Heb “Make deep to dwell.” See Jer 49:8 and the translator’s note there. The use of this same phrase here argues against the alternative there of going down from a height and going back home.
143 tn Heb “has counseled a counsel against you, has planned a plan against you.”
144 tn Heb “Oracle of the
145 tn The words “Army of Babylon” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
146 tn Heb “no gates and no bar,” i.e., “that lives securely without gates or bars.” The phrase is used by the figure of species for genus (synecdoche) to refer to the fact that they have no defenses, i.e., no walls, gates, or bars on the gates. The figure has been interpreted in the translation for the benefit of the average reader.
147 tn See the translator’s note at Jer 9:26 and compare the usage in 9:26 and 25:23.
148 tn Heb “Oracle of the
149 sn Compare Jer 9:11.
150 sn Compare Jer 49:18 and 50:40 where the same thing is said about Edom and Babylon.
151 tn Or “In the beginning of the reign.” For a discussion of the usage of the terms here see the translator’s note on 28:1. If this refers to the accession year the dating would be 598/97
152 tn Heb “That which came [as] the word of the
153 tn Heb “I will break the bow of Elam, the chief source of their might.” The phrase does not mean that God will break literal bows or that he will destroy their weapons (synecdoche of species for genus) or their military power (so Hos 1:5). Because of the parallelism, the “bow” here stands for the archers who wield the bow, and were the strongest force (or chief contingent) in their military.
154 tn Or more simply, “I will bring enemies against Elam from every direction. / And I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds. // There won’t be any nation / where the refugees of Elam will not go.” Or more literally, “I will bring the four winds against Elam / from the four quarters of heaven. / I will scatter….” However, the winds are not to be understood literally here. God isn’t going to “blow the Elamites” out of Elam with natural forces. The winds must figuratively represent enemy forces that God will use to drive them out. Translating literally would be misleading at this point.
155 tn Heb “I will bring disaster upon them, even my fierce anger.”
156 tn Heb “Oracle of the
157 tn Heb “I will send the sword after them.”
158 tn Or “I will sit in judgment over Elam”; Heb “I will set up my throne in Elam.” Commentators are divided over whether this refers to a king sitting in judgment over his captured enemies or whether it refers to formally establishing his rule over the country. Those who argue for the former idea point to the supposed parallels in 1:15 (which the present translation understands not to refer to this but to setting up siege) and 43:8-13. The parallelism in the verse here, however, argues that it refers to the
159 tn Heb “I will destroy king and leaders from there.”
160 tn Heb “Oracle of the
161 tn See Jer 29:14; 30:3 and the translator’s note on 29:14 for the idiom used here.
162 tn Heb “Oracle of the
163 tn Heb “the land of the Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.
164 tn Heb “The word which the
165 tn The verbs are masculine plural. Jeremiah is calling on other unnamed messengers to spread the news.
166 tn Heb “Raise a signal flag.”
167 sn Bel was originally the name or title applied to the Sumerian storm god. During the height of Babylon’s power it became a title that was applied to Marduk who was Babylon’s chief deity. As a title it means “Lord.” Here it is a poetical parallel reference to Marduk mentioned in the next line.
168 tn The Hebrew word used here (גִּלּוּלִים, gillulim) is always used as a disdainful reference to idols. It is generally thought to have originally referred to “dung pellets” (cf. KBL 183 s.v. גִלּוּלִים). It is only one of several terms used in this way, such as “worthless things” (אַלִילִים, ’alilim), “vanities,” or “empty winds” (הֲבָלִים, havalim).
169 tn The verbs here are all in the tense that views the actions as though they were already done (the Hebrew prophetic perfect). The verbs in the next verse are a mixture of prophetic perfects and imperfects which announce future actions.
170 sn A nation from the north refers to Medo-Persia which at the time of the conquest of Babylon in 539
171 tn Heb “oracle of the
172 tn Heb “and the children of Israel will come, they and the children of Judah together. They shall go, weeping as they go, and they will seek the
173 tc The translation here assumes that the Hebrew בֹּאוּ (bo’u; a Qal imperative masculine plural) should be read בָּאוּ (ba’u; a Qal perfect third plural). This reading is presupposed by the Greek version of Aquila, the Latin version, and the Targum (see BHS note a, which mistakenly assumes that the form must be imperfect).
174 sn See Jer 32:40 and the study note there for the nature of this lasting agreement.
175 sn The shepherds are the priests, prophets, and leaders who have led Israel into idolatry (2:8).
176 sn The allusion here, if it is not merely a part of the metaphor of the wandering sheep, is to the worship of the false gods on the high hills (2:20, 3:2).
177 tn This same Hebrew phrase “the habitation of righteousness” is found in Jer 31:23 in relation to Jerusalem in the future as “the place where righteousness dwells.” Here, however, it refers to the same entity as “their resting place” in v. 6 and means “true pasture.” For the meaning of “pasture” for the word נָוֶה (naveh) see 2 Sam 7:8 and especially Isa 65:10 where it is parallel with “resting place” for the flocks. For the meaning of “true” for צֶדֶק (tsedeq) see BDB 841 s.v. צֶדֶק 1. For the interpretation adopted here see G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers, Jeremiah 26-52 (WBC), 365. The same basic interpretation is reflected in NRSV, NJPS, and God’s Word.
178 tn Heb “fathers.”
179 sn These two verses appear to be a poetical summary of the argument of Jer 2 where the nation is accused of abandoning its loyalty to God and worshiping idols. Whereas those who tried to devour Israel were liable for punishment when Israel was loyal to God (2:3), the enemies of Israel who destroyed them (i.e., the Babylonians [but also the Assyrians], 50:17) argue that they are not liable for punishment because the Israelites have sinned against the
180 tn The words “People of Judah” are not in the Hebrew text but are implicit from the context. They have been supplied in the translation to clarify the subject of the address.
181 tn Heb “the land of the Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.
182 tn The words “Be the first to leave” are not in the text but spell out the significance of the simile that follows. They have been supplied in the translation for clarity.
183 sn Some of these are named in Jer 51:27-28.
184 tn Heb “She will be captured from there (i.e., from the north).”
185 tc Read Heb ַָמשְׂכִּיל (moskil) with a number of Hebrew
186 tn Or more freely, “Their arrows will be as successful at hitting their mark // as a skilled soldier always returns from battle with plunder.”
187 tn Heb “The land of the Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.
188 tn Heb “Oracle of the
189 tn The words “People of Babylonia” are not in the text but they are implicit in the reference in the next verse to “your mother” which refers to the city and the land as the mother of its people. These words have been supplied in the translation to identify the referent of “you” and have been added for clarity.
190 tn Or “my land.” The word can refer to either the land (Jer 2:7, 16:8) or the nation/people (Jer 12:7, 8, 9).
191 tc Reading כְּעֶגְלֵי דֶשֶׁא (kÿ’egle deshe’) or כְּעֵגֶל בַּדֶּשֶׁא (kÿ’egel baddeshe’) as presupposed by the Greek and Latin versions (cf. BHS note d-d) in place of the reading in the Hebrew text כְּעֶגְלָה דָשָׁה (kÿ’eglah dashah, “like a heifer treading out the grain”) which does not fit the verb (פּוּשׁ [push] = “spring about” [BDB 807 s.v. I פּוּשׁ] or “paw the ground” [KBL 756 s.v. פּוּשׁ] and compare Mal 3:20 for usage). This variant reading is also accepted by J. Bright, J. A. Thompson, F. B. Huey, and G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers.
192 tn Heb “Though you rejoice, though you exult, you who have plundered my heritage, though you frolic like calves in a pasture and neigh like stallions, your mother…” The particle כִּי (ki) introduces a concessive protasis according to BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.c(a). Many interpret the particle as introducing the grounds for the next verse, i.e., “because…” The translation here will reflect the concessive by beginning the next verse with “But.” The long protasis has been broken up and restructured to better conform with contemporary English style.
193 tn Heb “Your mother will be utterly shamed, the one who gave you birth…” The word “mother” and the parallel term “the one who gave you birth” are used metaphorically for the land of Babylonia. For the figure compare the usage in Isa 50:1 (Judah) and Hos 2:2, 5 (2:4, 7 HT) and see BDB 52 s.v. אֵם 2 and 408 s.v. יָלַד Qal.2.c.
194 tn Heb “Behold.” For the use of this particle see the translator’s note on 1:6.
195 tn Heb “From [or Because of] the wrath of the
196 sn Compare Jer 49:17 and the study note there and see also the study notes on 18:16 and 19:8.
197 tn Heb “all you who draw the bow.”
198 tc The verb here should probably be read as a Qal imperative יְרוּ (yÿru) from יָרָה (yarah) with a few Hebrew
199 tn Heb “Shoot at her! Don’t save any arrows!”
200 tn Heb “She has given her hand.” For the idiom here involving submission/surrender see BDB 680 s.v. נָתַן Qal.1.z and compare the usage in 1 Chr 29:24; 2 Chr 30:8. For a different interpretation, however, see the rather complete discussion in G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, and T. G. Smothers (Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 366) who see this as a reference to making a covenant. The verb in this line and the next two lines are all Hebrew perfects and most translators and commentaries see them as past. God’s Word, however, treats them as prophetic perfects and translates them as future. This is more likely in the light of the imperatives both before and after.
201 tn The meaning of this word is uncertain. The definition here follows that of HALOT 91 s.v. אָשְׁיָה, which defines it on the basis of an Akkadian word and treats it as a loanword.
202 tn Heb “Because it is the
203 tn Heb “Cut off the sower from Babylon, and the one who wields the sickle at harvest time.” For the meaning “kill” for the root “cut off” see BDB 503 s.v. כָּרַת Qal.1.b and compare usage in Jer 11:19. The verb is common in this nuance in the Hiphil, cf. BDB 504 s.v. כָּרַת Hiph, 2.b.
204 tn Heb “Because of [or out of fear of] the sword of the oppressor, let each of them turn toward his [own] people and each of them flee to his [own] country.” Compare a similar expression in 46:16 where the reference was to the flight of the mercenaries. Here it refers most likely to foreigners who are counseled to leave Babylon before they are caught up in the destruction. Many of the commentaries and English versions render the verbs as futures but they are more likely third person commands (jussives). Compare the clear commands in v. 8 followed by essentially the same motivation. The “sword of the oppressor,” of course, refers to death at the hands of soldiers wielding all kinds of weapons, chief of which has been a reference to the bow (v. 14).
205 sn The king of Assyria devoured them. This refers to the devastation wrought on northern Israel by the kings of Assyria beginning in 738
206 tn The verb used here only occurs this one time in the Hebrew Bible. It is a denominative from the Hebrew word for “bones” (עֶצֶם, ’etsem). BDB 1126 s.v. עֶָצַם, denom Pi, define it as “break his bones.” HALOT 822 s.v. II עָצַם Pi defines it as “gnaw on his bones.”
207 tn Heb “Therefore thus says Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” The first person is again adopted because the
208 tn Heb “their soul [or hunger/appetite] will be satisfied.”
209 sn The metaphor of Israel as a flock of sheep (v. 17) is continued here. The places named were all in Northern Israel and in the Transjordan, lands that were lost to the Assyrians in the period 738-722
210 tn Heb “In those days and at that time, oracle of the
211 sn Compare Jer 31:34 and 33:8.
212 tn Heb “Oracle of the
213 tn Heb “Oracle of the
214 sn The commands in this verse and in vv. 26-27 are directed to the armies from the north who are referred to in v. 3 as “a nation from the north” and in v. 9 as a “host of mighty nations from the land of the north.” The addressee in this section shifts from one referent to another.
215 sn Merathaim…Pekod. It is generally agreed that the names of these two regions were chosen for their potential for wordplay. Merathaim probably refers to a region in southern Babylon near where the Tigris and Euphrates come together before they empty into the Persian Gulf. It was known for its briny waters. In Hebrew the word would mean “double rebellion” and would stand as an epithet for the land of Babylon as a whole. Pekod refers to an Aramean people who lived on the eastern bank of the lower Tigris River. They are mentioned often in Assyrian texts and are mentioned in Ezek 23:23 as allies of Babylon. In Hebrew the word would mean “punishment.” As an epithet for the land of Babylon it would refer to the fact that Babylon was to be punished for her double rebellion against the
216 tn Heb “Smite down and completely destroy after them.” The word translated “kill” or “smite down” is a word of uncertain meaning and derivation. BDB 352 s.v. III חָרַב relates it to an Aramaic word meaning “attack, smite down.” KBL 329-30 s.v. II חָרַב sees it as a denominative from the word חֶרֶב (kherev, “sword”), a derivation which many modern commentaries accept and reflect in a translation “put to the sword.” KBL, however, gives “to smite down; to slaughter” which is roughly the equivalent of the meaning assigned to it in BDB. The word only occurs here and in v. 27 in the Qal and in 2 Kgs 3:23 in the Niphal where it means something like “attacked one another, fought with one another.” Many commentators question the validity of the word “after them” (אַחֲרֵיהֶם, ’akharehem) which occurs at the end of the line after “completely destroy.” The Targum reads “the last of them” (אַחֲרִיתָם, ’akharitam) which is graphically very close and accepted by some commentators. The present translation has chosen to represent “after them” by a paraphrase at the beginning “pursue them.”
217 tn Heb “Do according to all I have commanded you.”
218 tn The words “of Babylonia” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They have been supplied in the translation to clarify the referent.
219 tn Heb “How broken and shattered is the hammer of all the earth!” The “hammer” is a metaphor for Babylon who was God’s war club to shatter the nations and destroy kingdoms just like Assyria is represented in Isa 10:5 as a rod and a war club. Some readers, however, might not pick up on the metaphor or identify the referent, so the translation has incorporated an identification of the metaphor and the referent within it. “See how” and “See what” are an attempt to capture the nuance of the Hebrew particle אֵיךְ (’ekh) which here expresses an exclamation of satisfaction in a taunt song (cf. BDB 32 s.v. אֵיךְ 2 and compare usage in Isa 14:4, 12; Jer 50:23).
220 tn Heb “You were found [or found out] and captured because you fought against the
221 tn Or “I have opened up my armory.”
222 tn Heb “The
223 tn Heb “the Lord Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of this rendering and the significance of this title see the study note on 2:19.
224 tn The words “of Babylonia” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They have been supplied in the translation to clarify the referent.
225 tn Heb “Come against her from the end.” There is a great deal of debate about the meaning of “from the end” (מִקֵּץ, miqqets). Some follow the suggestion of F. Giesebrecht in BDB 892 s.v. קָצֶה 3 and emend the text to מִקָּצֶה (miqqatseh) on the basis of the presumed parallel in Jer 51:31 which is interpreted as “on all sides,” i.e., “from every quarter/side.” However, the phrase does not mean that in Jer 51:31 but is used as it is elsewhere of “from one end to another,” i.e., in its entirety (so Gen 19:4). The only real parallel here is the use of the noun קֵץ (qets) with a suffix in Isa 37:24 referring to the remotest part, hence something like from the end (of the earth), i.e., from a far away place. The referent “her” has been clarified here to refer to Babylonia in case someone might not see the connection between v. 25d and v. 26.
226 tn Heb “Pile her up like heaps.” Many commentators understand the comparison to be to heaps of grain (compare usage of עֲרֵמָה (’aremah) in Hag 2:16; Neh 13:15; Ruth 3:7). However, BDB 790 s.v. עֲרֵמָה is more likely correct that this refers to heaps of ruins (compare the usage in Neh 4:2 [3:34 HT]).
227 sn Compare Jer 50:21 and see the study note on 25:9.
228 tn Heb “Do not let there be to her a remnant.” According to BDB 984 s.v. שְׁאֵרִית this refers to the last remnant of people, i.e., there won’t be any survivors. Compare the usage in Jer 11:23.
229 tn Heb “Kill all her young bulls.” Commentators are almost universally agreed that the reference to “young bulls” is figurative here for the princes and warriors (cf. BDB 831 s.v. פַּר 2.f, which compares Isa 34:7 and Ezek 39:18). This is virtually certain because of the reference to the time coming for them to be punished; this would scarcely fit literal bulls. For the verb rendered “kill” here see the translator’s note on v. 21.
230 tn Heb “Let them go down to the slaughter.”
231 tn Or “How terrible it will be for them”; Heb “Woe to them.” See the study note on 22:13 and compare the usage in 23:1; 48:1.
232 tn The words “of reckoning” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
233 tn Heb “Hark! Fugitives and refugees from the land of Babylon to declare in Zion the vengeance of the
234 tn For this word see BDB 914 s.v. III רַב and compare usage in Prov 26:10 and Job 16:12 and compare the usage of the verb in Gen 49:23. Based on this evidence, it is not necessary to emend the form to רֹבִים (rovim) as many commentators contend.
235 tn Heb “for she has acted insolently against the
236 sn The Holy One of Israel is a common title for the
237 tn Heb “Oracle of the
238 tn Heb “Behold, I am against you, proud one.” The word “city” is not in the text but it is generally agreed that the word is being used as a personification of the city which had “proudly defied” the
239 tn Heb “oracle of the Lord Yahweh of armies.” For the rendering of this title and an explanation of its significance see the study note on 2:19.
240 tn The particle כִּי (ki) is probably asseverative here (so J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 739, n. 13, and cf. BDB 472 s.v. כִּי 1.e for other examples). This has been a common use of this particle in the book of Jeremiah.
241 tn The words “of reckoning” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
242 sn Compare v. 27.
243 tn Heb “And the proud one will fall and there will be no one to help him up. I will start a fire in his towns and it will consume all that surround him.” The personification continues but now the stance is indirect (third person) rather than direct (second person). It is easier for the modern reader who is not accustomed to such sudden shifts if the second person is maintained. The personification of the city (or nation) as masculine is a little unusual; normally cities and nations are personified as feminine, as daughters or mothers.
244 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of this title see the study note on 2:19.
245 tn Heb “Oppressed are the people of Israel and the people of Judah together,” i.e., both the people of Israel and Judah are oppressed. However, neither of these renderings is very poetic. The translation seeks to achieve the same meaning with better poetic expression.
246 sn Heb “their redeemer.” The Hebrew term “redeemer” referred in Israelite family law to the nearest male relative who was responsible for securing the freedom of a relative who had been sold into slavery. For further discussion of this term as well as its metaphorical use to refer to God as the one who frees Israel from bondage in Egypt and from exile in Assyria and Babylonia see the study note on 31:11.
247 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies is his name.” For the rendering of this title see the study note on 2:19.
248 tn Or “he will certainly champion.” The infinitive absolute before the finite verb here is probably functioning to intensify the verb rather than to express the certainty of the action (cf. GKC 333 §112.n and compare usage in Gen 43:3 and 1 Sam 20:6 listed there).
249 tn This appears to be another case where the particle לְמַעַן (lÿma’an) introduces a result rather than giving the purpose or goal. See the translator’s note on 25:7 for a listing of other examples in the book of Jeremiah and also the translator’s note on 27:10.
250 tn Heb “he will bring rest to the earth and will cause unrest to.” The terms “rest” and “unrest” have been doubly translated to give more of the idea underlying these two concepts.
251 tn This translation again reflects the problem often encountered in these prophecies where the
252 tn Heb “the Chaldeans.” For explanation of the rendering see the study note on 21:4. There is no verb in this clause. Therefore it is difficult to determine whether this should be understood as a command or as a prediction. The presence of vav (ו) consecutive perfects after a similar construction in vv. 36b, d, 37c, 38a and the imperfects after “therefore” (לָכֵן, lakhen) all suggest the predictive or future nuance. However, the vav consecutive perfect could be used to carry on the nuance of command (cf. GKC 333 §112.q) but not in the sense of purpose as NRSV, NJPS render them.
253 tn Heb “Oracle of the
254 tn The meaning and the derivation of the word translated “false prophets” is uncertain. The same word appears in conjunction with the word for “diviners” in Isa 44:25 and probably also in Hos 11:6 in conjunction with the sword consuming them “because of their counsel.” BDB 95 s.v. III בַּד b sees this as a substitution of “empty talk” for “empty talkers” (the figure of metonymy) and refer to them as false prophets. KBL 108 s.v. II בַּד emends the form in both places to read בָּרִים (barim) in place of בַּדִּים (baddim) and defines the word on the basis of Akkadian to mean “soothsayer” (KBL 146 s.v. V בָּר). HALOT 105 s.v. V בַּד retains the pointing, derives it from an Amorite word found in the Mari letters, and defines it as “oracle priest.” However, G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, and T. G. Smothers (Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 368) call this identification into question because the word only occurs in one letter from Mari and its meaning is uncertain there. It is hazardous to emend the text in two places, perhaps even three, in light of no textual evidence in any of the passages and to define the word on the basis of an uncertain parallel. Hence the present translation opts here for the derivation and extended definition given in BDB.
255 tn This translation follows the suggestion of BDB 383 s.v. I יָאַל Niph.2. Compare the usage in Isa 19:13 and Jer 5:4.
256 tn The verb here (חָתַת, khatat) could also be rendered “be destroyed” (cf. BDB 369 s.v. חָתַת Qal.1 and compare the usage in Jer 48:20, 39). However, the parallelism with “shown to be fools” argues for the more dominant usage of “be dismayed” or “be filled with terror.” The verb is found in parallelism with both בּוֹשׁ (bosh, “be ashamed, dismayed”) and יָרֵא (yare’, “be afraid”) and can refer to either emotion. Here it is more likely that they are filled with terror because of the approaching armies.
257 tn Hebrew has “his” in both cases here whereas the rest of the possessive pronouns throughout vv. 35-37 are “her.” There is no explanation for this switch unless the third masculine singular refers as a distributive singular to the soldiers mentioned in the preceding verse (cf. GKC 464 §145.l). This is probably the case here, but to refer to “their horses and their chariots” in the midst of all the “her…” might create more confusion than what it is worth to be that pedantic.
258 tn Or “in the country,” or “in her armies”; Heb “in her midst.”
259 tn Heb “A sword against his horses and his chariots and against all the mixed company [or mixed multitude] in her midst and they will become like women.” The sentence had to be split up because it is too long and the continuation of the second half with its consequential statement would not fit together with the first half very well. Hence the subject and verb have been repeated. The Hebrew word translated “foreign troops” (עֶרֶב, ’erev) is the same word that is used in 25:20 to refer to the foreign peoples living in Egypt and in Exod 12:38 for the foreign people that accompanied Israel out of Egypt. Here the word is translated contextually to refer to foreign mercenaries, an identification that most of the commentaries and many of the modern English versions accept (see, e.g., J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 355; NRSV; NIV). The significance of the simile “they will become like women” has been spelled out for the sake of clarity.
260 tc Heb “a drought against her waters and they will dry up.” Several of the commentaries and modern English versions accept the emendation proposed by BHS and read here “sword” (חֶרֶב [kherev] in place of חֹרֶב [khorev], the change of only one vowel) in keeping with the rest of the context. According to BHS this reading is supported by the Lucianic and Hexaplaric recensions of the LXX (the Greek version) and the Syriac version. In this case the drying up of the waters (of the canals) is attributed to neglect brought about by war conditions. However, it is just as likely that these versions are influenced by the repetition of the word “sword” as the Hebrew and the other versions are influenced by the concept of “drying up” of the waters to read “drought.” Hence the present translation, along with the majority of modern English versions, retains the Hebrew “drought.”
261 tn Heb “for it is a land of idols.” The “for,” however, goes back to the whole context not just to the preceding prediction (cf. BDB 473-74 s.v. כִּי 1.c and compare usage in Isa 21:6 listed there).
262 tc Or “Her people boast in.” This translation is based on the reading of the majority of Hebrew
263 tn Heb “by the terrors.” However, as HALOT 40 s.v. אֵימָה indicates these are “images that cause terror” (a substitution of the effect for the cause). The translation of this line follows the interpretation of the majority of modern English versions and all the commentaries consulted. NIV, NCV, and God’s Word reflect a different syntax, understanding the subject to be the idols just mentioned rather than “her people” which is supplied here for the sake of clarity (the Hebrew text merely says “they.”) Following that lead, one could render “but those idols will go mad with terror.” This makes excellent sense in the context which often refers to effects (vv. 36b, d, 37c, 38b) of the war that is coming. However, that interpretation does not fit as well with the following “therefore/so,” which basically introduces a judgment or consequence after an accusation of sin.
264 tn The identification of this bird has been called into question by G. R. Driver, “Birds in the Old Testament,” PEQ 87 (1955): 137-38. He refers to this bird as an owl. That identification, however, is not reflected in any of the lexicons including the most recent, which still gives “ostrich” (HALOT 402 s.v. יַעֲנָה) as does W. S. McCullough, “Ostrich,” IDB 3:611. REB, NIV, NCV, and God’s Word all identify this bird as “owl/desert owl.”
265 tn Heb “Therefore desert creatures will live with jackals and ostriches will live in it.”
266 tn Heb “It will never again be inhabited nor dwelt in unto generation and generation.” For the meaning of this last phrase compare the usage in Ps 100:5 and Isaiah 13:20. Since the first half of the verse has spoken of animals living there, it is necessary to add “people” and turn the passive verbs into active ones.
267 tn Heb “‘Like [when] God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring towns,’ oracle of the
268 tn Heb “Oracle of the
269 sn A mighty nation and many kings is an allusion to the Medo-Persian empire and the vassal kings who provided forces for the Medo-Persian armies.
270 tn Heb “daughter Babylon.” The word “daughter” is a personification of the city of Babylon and its inhabitants.
271 tn Heb “his hands will drop/hang limp.” For the meaning of this idiom see the translator’s note on 6:24.
272 tn Heb “The king of Babylon hears report of them and his hands hang limp.” The verbs are translated as future because the passage is prophetic and the verbs may be interpreted as prophetic perfects (the action viewed as if it were as good as done). In the parallel passage in 6:24 the verbs could be understood as present perfects because the passage could be viewed as in the present. Here it is future.
273 sn Compare Jer 6:22-24 where almost the same exact words as 50:41-43 are applied to the people of Judah. The repetition of prophecies here and in the following verses emphasizes the talionic nature of God’s punishment of Babylon; as they have done to others, so it will be done to them (cf. 25:14; 50:15).
274 tn The words “of Babylonia” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They have been supplied in the translation to clarify the referent.
275 tn Heb “among the nations.” With the exception of this phrase, the different verb in v. 46a, the absence of a suffix on the word for “land” in v. 45d, the third plural suffix instead of the third singular suffix on the verb for “chase…off of,” this passage is identical with 49:19-21 with the replacement of Babylon or the land of the Chaldeans for Edom. For the translation notes explaining the details of the translation here see the translator’s notes on 49:19-21.
276 sn The destructive wind is a figurative reference to the “foreign people” who will “winnow” Babylon and drive out all the people (v. 2). This figure has already been used in 4:11-12 and in 49:36. See the study note on 4:11-12 and the translator’s notes on 22:22 and 49:36.
277 tn Or “I will arouse the spirit of hostility of a destroying nation”; Heb “I will stir up against Babylon…a destroying wind [or the spirit of a destroyer].” The word רוּחַ (ruakh) can refer to either a wind (BDB 924 s.v. רוּחַ 2.a) or a spirit (BDB 925 s.v. רוּחַ 2.g). It can be construed as either a noun followed by an adjectival participle (so, “a destroying wind”) or a noun followed by another noun in the “of” relationship (a construct or genitival relationship; so, “spirit of a destroyer”). The same noun with this same verb is translated “stir up the spirit of” in 1 Chr 5:26; 2 Chr 21:16; 36:22; Hag 1:14; and most importantly in Jer 51:11 where it refers to the king of the Medes. However, the majority of the exegetical tradition (all the commentaries consulted and all the English versions except NASB and NIV) opt for the “destructive wind” primarily because of the figure of winnowing that is found in the next verse. The translation follows the main line exegetical tradition here for that same reason.
278 sn Heb “the people who live in Leb-qamai.” “Leb-qamai” is a code name for “Chaldeans” formed on the principle of substituting the last letter of the alphabet for the first, the next to the last for the second, and so on. This same principle is used in referring to Babylon in 25:26 and 51:41 as “Sheshach.” See the study note on 25:26 where further details are given. There is no consensus on why the code name is used because the terms Babylon and Chaldeans (= Babylonians) have appeared regularly in this prophecy or collection of prophecies.
279 tn Or “I will send foreign people against Babylonia.” The translation follows the reading of the Greek recensions of Aquila and Symmachus and the Latin version (the Vulgate). That reading is accepted by the majority of modern commentaries and several of the modern versions (e.g., NRSV, REB, NAB, and God’s Word). It fits better with the verb that follows it than the reading of the Hebrew text and the rest of the versions. The difference in the two readings is again only the difference in vocalization, the Hebrew text reading זָרִים (zarim) and the versions cited reading זֹרִים (zorim). If the Hebrew text is followed, there is a wordplay between the two words, “foreigners” and “winnow.” The words “like a wind blowing away chaff” have been supplied in the translation to clarify for the reader what “winnow” means.
280 tn Or “They will strip her land bare like a wind blowing away chaff.” The alternate translation would be necessary if one were to adopt the alternate reading of the first line (the reading of the Hebrew text). The explanation of “winnow” would then be necessary in the second line. The verb translated “strip…bare” means literally “to empty out” (see BDB 132 s.v. בָּקַק Polel). It has been used in 19:7 in the Qal of “making void” Judah’s plans in a wordplay on the word for “bottle.” See the study note on 19:7 for further details.
281 tn This assumes that the particle כִּי (ki) is temporal (cf. BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.a). This is the interpretation adopted also by NRSV and G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers, Jeremiah 26-52 (WBC), 349. J. Bright (Jeremiah [AB], 345) and J. A. Thompson (Jeremiah [NICOT], 747, n. 3) interpret it as asseverative or emphatic, “Truly, indeed.” Many of the modern English versions merely ignore it. Reading it as temporal makes it unnecessary to emend the following verb as Bright and Thompson do (from הָיוּ [hayu] to יִהְיוּ [yihyu]).
282 tn Heb “in the day of disaster.”
283 tc The text and consequent meaning of these first two lines are uncertain. Literally the Masoretic reads “against let him string let him string the one who strings his bow and against let him raise himself up in his coat of armor.” This makes absolutely no sense and the ancient versions and Hebrew
284 sn For the concept underlying this word see the study note on “utterly destroy” in Jer 25:9 and compare the usage in 50:21, 26.
285 tn The majority of English versions and the commentaries understand the vav (ו) consecutive + perfect as a future here “They will fall.” However, it makes better sense in the light of the commands in the previous verse to understand this as an indirect third person command (= a jussive; see GKC 333 §112.q, r) as REB and NJPS do.
286 tn Heb “the land of the Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.
287 tn The words “cities” is not in the text. The text merely says “in her streets” but the antecedent is “land” and must then refer to the streets of the cities in the land.
288 tn Heb “widowed” (cf. BDB 48 s.v. אַלְמָן, an adjective occurring only here but related to the common word for “widow”). It is commonly translated as has been done here.
289 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of this rendering see the study note on 2:19.
290 tn Or “all, though their land was…” The majority of the modern English versions understand the land here to refer to the land of Israel and Judah (the text reads “their land” and Israel and Judah are the nearest antecedents). In this case the particle כִּי (ki) is concessive (cf. BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.c[b]). Many of the modern commentaries understand the referent to be the land of the Chaldeans/Babylonians. However, most of them feel that the line is connected as a causal statement to 51:2-4 and see the line as either textually or logically out of place. However, it need not be viewed as logically out of place. It is parallel to the preceding and gives a second reason why they are to be destroyed. It also forms an excellent transition to the next lines where the exiles and other foreigners are urged to flee and not get caught up in the destruction which is coming “because of her sin.” It might be helpful to note that both the adjective “widowed” and the suffix on “their God” are masculine singular, looking at Israel and Judah as one entity. The “their” then goes back not to Israel and Judah of the preceding lines but to the “them” in v. 4. This makes for a better connection with the following and understands the particle כִּי in its dominant usage not an extremely rare one (see the comment in BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.c[b]). This interpretation is also reflected in RSV.
291 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 50:29.
292 tn The words “you foreign people” are not in the text and many think the referent is the exiles of Judah. While this is clearly the case in v. 45 the referent seems broader here where the context speaks of every man going to his own country (v. 9).
293 tn Heb “her.”
294 tn Heb “paying to her a recompense [i.e., a payment in kind].”
295 tn The words “of her wrath” are not in the Hebrew text but are supplied in the translation to help those readers who are not familiar with the figure of the “cup of the
296 tn Heb “upon the grounds of such conditions the nations have gone mad.”
297 tn The verbs in this verse and the following are all in the Hebrew perfect tense, a tense that often refers to a past action or a past action with present results. However, as the translator’s notes have indicated, the prophets use this tense to view the actions as if they were as good as done (the Hebrew prophetic perfect). The stance here is ideal, viewed as already accomplished.
298 tn The words “Foreigners living there will say” are not in the text but are implicit from the third line. These words are generally assumed by the commentaries and are explicitly added in TEV and NCV which are attempting to clarify the text for the average reader.
299 tn Heb “Leave/abandon her.” However, it is smoother in the English translation to make this verb equivalent to the cohortative that follows.
300 tn This is an admittedly very paraphrastic translation that tries to make the figurative nuance of the Hebrew original understandable for the average reader. The Hebrew text reads: “For her judgment [or punishment (cf. BDB 1078 s.v. מִשְׁפָּט 1.f) = ‘execution of judgment’] touches the heavens, and is lifted up as far as the clouds.” The figure of hyperbole or exaggeration is being used here to indicate the vastness of Babylon’s punishment which is the reason to escape (vv. 6, 9c). For this figure see Deut 1:28 in comparison with Num 13:28 and see also Deut 9:1. In both of the passages in Deut it refers to an exaggeration about the height of the walls of fortified cities. The figure also may be a play on Gen 11:4 where the nations gather in Babylon to build a tower that reaches to the skies. The present translation has interpreted the perfects here as prophetic because it has not happened yet or they would not be encouraging one another to leave and escape. For the idea here compare 50:16.
301 tn The words “The exiles from Judah will say” are not in the text but are implicit from the words that follow. They are supplied in the translation to clearly identify for the reader the referent of “us.”
302 tn There is some difference of opinion as to the best way to render the Hebrew expression here. Literally it means “brought forth our righteousnesses.” BDB 842 s.v. צְדָקָה 7.b interprets this of the “righteous acts” of the people of Judah and compares the usage in Isa 64:6; Ezek 3:20; 18:24; 33:13. However, Judah’s acts of righteousness (or more simply, their righteousness) was scarcely revealed in their deliverance. Most of the English versions and commentaries refer to “vindication” i.e., that the
303 sn The imperatives here and in v. 12 are directed to the soldiers in the armies of the kings from the north (here identified as the kings of Media [see also 50:3, 9; 51:27-28]). They have often been addressed in this prophecy as though they were a present force (see 50:14-16; 50:21 [and the study note there]; 50:26, 29; 51:3) though the passage as a whole is prophetic of the future. This gives some idea of the ideal stance that the prophets adopted when they spoke of the future as though already past (the use of the Hebrew prophetic perfect which has been referred to often in the translator’s notes).
304 tn The meaning of this word is debated. The most thorough discussion of this word including etymology and usage in the OT and Qumran is in HALOT 1409-10 s.v. שֶׁלֶט, where the rendering “quiver” is accepted for all the uses of this word in the OT. For a more readily accessible discussion for English readers see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:422-23. The meaning “quiver” fits better with the verb “fill” than the meaning “shield” which is adopted in BDB 1020 s.v. שֶׁלֶט. “Quiver” is the meaning adopted also in NRSV, REB, NAB, and NJPS.
305 tn Heb “The
306 sn Media was a country in what is now northwestern Iran. At the time this prophecy was probably written they were the dominating force in the northern region, the most likely enemy to Babylon. By the time Babylon fell in 538
307 tn Heb “For it is the vengeance of the
308 tn Heb “Raise a banner against the walls of Babylon.”
309 tn Heb “Strengthen the watch.”
310 tn Heb “Station the guards.”
311 tn Heb “Prepare ambushes.”
312 tn Heb “For the
313 sn Babylon was situated on the Euphrates River and was surrounded by canals (also called “rivers”).
314 tn Heb “You who live upon [or beside] many waters, rich in treasures, your end has come, the cubit of your cutting off.” The sentence has been restructured and paraphrased to provide clarity for the average reader. The meaning of the last phrase is debated. For a discussion of the two options see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:423. Most modern commentaries and English versions see an allusion to the figure in Isa 38:12 where the reference is to the end of life compared to a tapestry which is suddenly cut off from the loom. Hence, NRSV renders the last line as “the thread of your life is cut” and TEV renders “its thread of life is cut.” That idea is accepted also in HALOT 141 s.v. בצע Qal.1.
315 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.” For an explanation of this rendering see the study note on 2:19.
316 tn Heb “has sworn by himself.” See the study note on 22:5 for background.
317 tn Heb “I will fill you with men like locusts.” The “you” refers to Babylon (Babylon is both the city and the land it ruled, Babylonia) which has been alluded to in the preceding verses under descriptive titles. The words “your land” have been used because of the way the preceding verse has been rendered, alluding to people rather than to the land or city. The allusion of “men” is, of course, to enemy soldiers and they are here compared to locusts both for their quantity and their destructiveness (see Joel 1:4). For the use of the particles כִּי אִם (ki ’im) to introduce an oath see BDB 475 s.v. כִּי אִם 2.c and compare usage in 2 Kgs 5:20; one would normally expect אִם לֹא (cf. BDB 50 s.v. אִם 1.b[2]).
318 tn The participle here is intended to be connected with “
319 tn Heb “For he is the former of all [things] and the tribe of his inheritance.” This is the major exception to the verbatim repetition of 10:12-16 in 51:15-19. The word “Israel” appears before “the tribe of his inheritance” in 10:16. It is also found in a number of Hebrew
320 sn With the major exception discussed in the translator’s note on the preceding line vv. 15-19 are a verbatim repetition of 10:12-16 with a few minor variations in spelling. There the passage was at the end of a section in which the
321 tn Or “Media.” The referent is not identified in the text; the text merely says “you are my war club.” Commentators in general identify the referent as Babylon because Babylon has been referred to as a hammer in 50:23 and Babylon is referred to in v. 25 as a “destroying mountain” (compare v. 20d). However, S. R. Driver, Jeremiah, 317, n. c maintains that v. 24 speaks against this. It does seem a little inconsistent to render the vav consecutive perfect at the beginning of v. 24 as future while rendering those in vv. 20b-23 as customary past. However, change in person from second masculine singular (vv. 20b-23) to the second masculine plural in “before your very eyes” and its position at the end of the verse after “which they did in Zion” argue that a change in address occurs there. Driver has to ignore the change in person and take “before your eyes” with the verb “repay” at the beginning to maintain the kind of consistency he seeks. The vav (ו) consecutive imperfect can be used for either the customary past (GKC 335-36 §112.dd with cross reference back to GKC 331-32 §112.e) or the future (GKC 334 §112.x). Hence the present translation has followed the majority of commentaries (and English versions like TEV, NCV, CEV, NIrV) in understanding the referent as Babylon and v. 24 being a transition to vv. 25-26 (cf., e.g., J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 356-57, and J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 756-57). If the referent is understood as Media then the verbs in vv. 20-23 should all be translated as futures. See also the translator’s note on v. 24.
322 tn This Hebrew word (מַפֵּץ, mappets) only occurs here in the Hebrew Bible, but its meaning is assured from the use of the verbs that follow which are from the same root (נָפַץ, nafats) and there is a cognate noun מַפָּץ (mappats) that occurs in Ezek 9:2 in the sense of weapon of “smashing.”
323 tn Heb “I smash nations with you.” This same structure is repeated throughout the series in vv. 20c-23.
324 tn Heb “horse and its rider.” However, the terms are meant as generic or collective singulars (cf. GKC 395 §123.b) and are thus translated by the plural. The same thing is true of all the terms in vv. 21-23b. The terms in vv. 20c-d, 23c are plural.
325 tn These two words are Akkadian loan words into Hebrew which often occur in this pairing (cf. Ezek 23:6, 12, 23; Jer 51:23, 28, 57). BDB 688 s.v. סָגָן (sagan) gives “prefect, ruler” as the basic definition for the second term but neither works very well in a modern translation because “prefect” would be unknown to most readers and “ruler” would suggest someone along the lines of a king, which these officials were not. The present translation has chosen “leaders” by default, assuming there is no other term that would be any more appropriate in light of the defects noted in “prefect” and “ruler.”
326 tn Or “Media, you are my war club…I will use you to smash…leaders. So before your very eyes I will repay…for all the wicked things they did in Zion.” For explanation see the translator’s note on v. 20. The position of the phrase “before your eyes” at the end of the verse after “which they did in Zion” and the change in person from second masculine singular in vv. 20b-23 (“I used you to smite”) to second masculine plural in “before your eyes” argue that a change in referent/addressee occurs in this verse. To maintain that the referent in vv. 20-23 is Media/Cyrus requires that this position and change in person be ignored; “before your eyes” then is attached to “I will repay.” The present translation follows J. A. Thompson (Jeremiah [NICOT], 757) and F. B. Huey (Jeremiah, Lamentations [NAC], 423) in seeing the referent as the Judeans who had witnessed the destruction of Zion/Jerusalem. The word “Judean” has been supplied for the sake of identifying the referent for the modern reader.
327 tn Heb “Oracle of the
328 tn Heb “Oracle of the
329 tn The word “Babylon” is not in the text but is universally understood as the referent. It is supplied in the translation here to clarify the referent for the sake of the average reader.
330 tn Heb “I will reach out my hand against you.” See the translator’s note on 6:12 for explanation.
331 tn Heb “I am against you, oh destroying mountain that destroys all the earth. I will reach out my hand against you and roll you down from the cliffs and make you a mountain of burning.” The interpretation adopted here follows the lines suggested by S. R. Driver, Jeremiah, 318, n. c and reflected also in BDB 977 s.v. שְׂרֵפָה. Babylon is addressed as a destructive mountain because it is being compared to a volcano. The
332 tn This is a fairly literal translation of the original which reads “No one will take from you a stone for a cornerstone nor a stone for foundations.” There is no unanimity of opinion in the commentaries, many feeling that the figure of the burned mountain continues and others feeling that the figure here shifts to a burned city whose stones are so burned that they are useless to be used in building. The latter is the interpretation adopted here (see, e.g., F. B. Huey, Jeremiah, Lamentations [NAC], 423; W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 2:426; NCV).
333 tn Heb “Oracle of the
334 tn Heb “Raise up a standard on the earth. Blow a ram’s horn among the nations. Consecrate nations against her.” According to BDB 651 s.v. נֵס 1, the raising of a standard was a signal of a war – a summons to assemble and attack (see usage in Isa 5:26; 13:2; Jer 51:12). The “blowing of the ram’s horn” was also a signal to rally behind a leader and join in an attack (see Judg 3:27; 6:34). For the meaning of “consecrate nations against her” see the study note on 6:4. The usage of this phrase goes back to the concept of holy war where soldiers had to be consecrated for battle by the offering of a sacrifice. The phrase has probably lost its ritual usage in later times and become idiomatic for making necessary preparations for war.
335 sn Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz are three kingdoms who were located in the Lake Van, Lake Urmia region which are now parts of eastern Turkey and northwestern Iran. They were kingdoms which had been conquered and made vassal states by the Medes in the early sixth century. The Medes were the dominant country in this region from around 590
336 tn The translation of this line is uncertain because it includes a word which only occurs here and in Nah 3:17 where it is found in parallelism with a word that is only used once and whose meaning in turn is uncertain. It is probably related to the Akkadian word tupsharru which refers to a scribe (Heb “a tablet writer”). The exact function of this official is disputed. KBL 356 s.v. טִפְסָר relates it to a “recruiting officer,” a sense which is reflected in NAB. The majority of modern English versions render “commander” or “marshal” following the suggestion of BDB 381 s.v. טִפְסָר. G. L. Keown, P. J. Scalise, T. G. Smothers (Jeremiah 26-52 [WBC], 351) translate “recruiter (scribe)” but explain the function on p. 371 as that of recording the plunder captured in war. The rendering here follows that of TEV and God’s Word and is the nuance suggested by the majority of modern English versions who rendered “appoint a marshal/commander against it.”
337 sn This is probably a poetic or shorthand way of referring to the cavalry and chariotry where horse is put for “rider” and “driver.”
338 tn Heb “Bring up horses like bristly locusts.” The meaning of the Hebrew word “bristly” (סָמָר, samar) is uncertain because the word only occurs here. It is generally related to a verb meaning “to bristle” which occurs in Job 4:15 and Ps 119:120. Exactly what is meant by “bristly” in connection with “locust” is uncertain, though most relate it to a stage of the locust in which its wings are still encased in a rough, horny casing. J. A. Thompson (Jeremiah [NICOT], 759) adds that this is when the locust is very destructive. However, no other commentary mentions this. Therefore the present translation omits the word because it is of uncertain meaning and significance. For a fuller discussion of the way the word has been rendered see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:427.
339 tn See the first translator’s note on 51:27 and compare also 6:4 and the study note there.
340 tn See the translator’s note at 51:23 for the rendering of the terms here.
341 tc The Hebrew text has a confusing switch of possessive pronouns in this verse: “Consecrate the nations against her, the kings of the Medes, her governors and prefects, and all the land of his dominion.” This has led to a number of different resolutions. The LXX (the Greek version) renders the word “kings” as singular and levels all the pronouns to “his,” paraphrasing the final clause and combining it with “king of the Medes” to read “and of all the earth.” The Latin Vulgate levels them all to the third masculine plural, and this is followed by the present translation as well as a number of other modern English versions (NASB, NIV, NRSV, TEV, NCV). The ASV and NJPS understand the feminine to refer to Media, i.e., “her governors and all her prefects” and understand the masculine in the last line to be a distributive singular referring back to the lands each of the governors and prefects ruled over. This is probably correct but since governors and prefects refer to officials appointed over provinces and vassal states it amounts to much the same interpretation that the Latin Vulgate, the present translation, and other modern English versions have given.
342 sn The figure here is common in the poetic tradition of the
343 tn Heb “For the plans of the
344 tn The verbs in this verse and v. 30 are all in the past tense in Hebrew, in the tense that views the action as already as good as done (the Hebrew prophetic perfect). The verb in v. 31a, however, is imperfect, viewing the action as future; the perfects that follow are all dependent on that future. Verse 33 looks forward to a time when Babylon will be harvested and trampled like grain on the threshing floor and the imperatives imply a time in the future. Hence the present translation has rendered all the verbs in vv. 29-30 as future.
345 tn Heb “Their strength is dry.” This is a figurative nuance of the word “dry” which BDB 677 s.v. נָשַׁת Qal.1 explain as meaning “fails.” The idea of “strength to do battle” is implicit from the context and is supplied in the translation here for clarity.
346 tn Heb “They have become women.” The metaphor has been turned into a simile and the significance of the comparison drawn out for the sake of clarity. See 50:37 for the same figure.
347 tn Heb “Her dwelling places have been set on fire. Her bars [i.e., the bars on the gates of her cities] have been broken.” The present translation has substituted the word “gates” for “bars” because the intent of the figure is to show that the bars of the gates have been broken giving access to the city. “Gates” makes it easier for the modern reader to understand the figure.
348 tn Heb “Runner will run to meet runner and…” The intent is to portray a relay of runners carrying the news that follows on in vv. 31d-33 to the king of Babylon. The present translation attempts to spell out the significance.
349 tn Heb “Runner will run to meet runner and messenger to meet messenger to report to the king of Babylon that his city has been taken in [its] entirety.” There is general agreement among the commentaries that the first two lines refer to messengers converging on the king of Babylon from every direction bringing news the sum total of which is reported in the lines that follow. For the meaning of the last phrase see BDB 892 s.v. קָצֶה 3 and compare the usage in Gen 19:4 and Isa 56:11. The sentence has been broken down and restructured to better conform with contemporary English style.
350 tn The words “They will report that” have been supplied in the translation to show the linkage between this verse and the previous one. This is still a part of the report of the messengers. The meaning of the word translated “reed marshes” has seemed inappropriate to some commentators because it elsewhere refers to “pools.” However, all the commentaries consulted agree that the word here refers to the reedy marshes that surrounded Babylon. (For a fuller discussion regarding the meaning of this word and attempts to connect it with a word meaning “fortress” see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 2:427.)
351 sn Heb “Daughter Babylon.” See the study note at 50:42 for explanation.
352 tn Heb “Daughter Babylon will be [or is; there is no verb and the tense has to be supplied from the context] like a threshing floor at the time one tramples it. Yet a little while and the time of the harvest will come for her.” It is generally agreed that there are two figures here: one of leveling the threshing floor and stamping it into a smooth, hard surface and the other of the harvest where the grain is cut, taken to the threshing floor, and threshed by trampling the sheaves of grain to loosen the grain from the straw, and finally winnowed by throwing the mixture into the air (cf., e.g., J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 760). The translation has sought to convey those ideas as clearly as possible without digressing too far from the literal.
353 tn This verse is extremely difficult to translate because of the shifting imagery, the confusion over the meaning of one of the verbs, and the apparent inconsistency of the pronominal suffixes here with those in the following verse which everyone agrees is connected with it. The pronominal suffixes are first common plural but the versions all read them as first common singular which the Masoretes also do in the Qere. That reading has been followed here for consistency with the next verse which identifies the speaker as the person living in Zion and the personified city of Jerusalem. The Hebrew text reads: “Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon devoured me [cf. 50:7, 17] and threw me into confusion. He set me down an empty dish. He swallowed me like a monster from the deep [cf. BDB 1072 s.v. תַּנִּין 3 and compare usage in Isa 27:1; Ezek 29:3; 32:2]. He filled his belly with my dainties. He rinsed me out [cf. BDB s.v. דּוּח Hiph.2 and compare the usage in Isa 4:4].” The verb “throw into confusion” has proved troublesome because its normal meaning does not seem appropriate. Hence various proposals have been made to understand it in a different sense. The present translation has followed W. L. Holladay (Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 2:428) in understanding the verb to mean “disperse” or “route” (see NAB). The last line has seemed out of place and has often been emended to read “he has spewed me out” (so NIV, NRSV, a reading that presupposes הִדִּיחָנִי [hiddikhani] for הֱדִיחָנִי [hedikhani]). The reading of the MT is not inappropriate if it is combined with the imagery of an empty jar and hence is retained here (see F. B. Huey, Jeremiah, Lamentations [NAC], 425, n. 59; H. Freedman, Jeremiah [SoBB], 344; NJPS). The lines have been combined to keep the imagery together.
354 tn Heb “‘The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,’ says the one living in Zion. ‘My blood be upon those living in Chaldea,’ says Jerusalem.” For the usage of the genitive here in the phrase “violence done to me and my relatives” see GKC 414 §128.a (a construct governing two objects) and IBHS 303 §16.4d (an objective genitive). For the nuance of “pay” in the sense of retribution see BDB 756 s.v. עַל 7.a(b) and compare the usage in Judg 9:24. For the use of שְׁאֵר (shÿ’er) in the sense of “relatives” see BDB 985 s.v. שְׁאֵר 2 and compare NJPS. For the use of “blood” in this idiom see BDB 197 s.v. דָּם 2.k and compare the usage in 2 Sam 4:11; Ezek 3:18, 20. The lines have been reversed for better English style.
355 tn Heb “I will avenge your vengeance [= I will take vengeance for you; the phrase involves a verb and a cognate accusative].” The meaning of the phrase has been spelled out in more readily understandable terms.
356 tn Heb “I will dry up her [Babylon’s] sea and make her fountain dry.” “Their” has been substituted for “her” because “Babylonians” has been inserted in the previous clause and is easier to understand than the personification of Babylon = “her.”
357 tn Heb “a heap of ruins, a haunt for jackals.” Compare 9:11.
358 tn Heb “without an inhabitant.”
359 tn Heb “They [the Babylonians] all roar like lions. They growl like the cubs of lions.” For the usage of יַחְדָו (yakhdav) meaning “all” see Isa 10:8; 18:6; 41:20. The translation strives to convey in clear terms what is the generally accepted meaning of the simile (cf., e.g., J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 358, and J. A. Thompson, Jeremiah [NICOT], 762).
360 tn Heb “When they are hot.”
361 tc The translation follows the suggestion of KBL 707 s.v. עָלַז and a number of modern commentaries (e.g., Bright, J. A. Thompson, and W. L. Holladay) in reading יְעֻלְּפוּ (ye’ullÿfu) for יַעֲלֹזוּ (ya’alozu) in the sense of “swoon away” or “grow faint” (see KBL 710 s.v. עָלַף Pual). That appears to be the verb that the LXX (the Greek version) was reading when they translated καρωθῶσιν (karwqwsin, “they will be stupefied”). For parallel usage KBL cites Isa 51:20. This fits the context much better than “they will exult” in the Hebrew text.
362 sn The central figure here is the figure of the cup of the
363 tn Heb “Oracle of the
364 tn Heb “I will bring them down like lambs to be slaughtered, like rams and he goats.”
365 sn Heb “Sheshach.” For an explanation of the usage of this name for Babylon see the study note on Jer 25:26 and that on 51:1 for a similar phenomenon. Babylon is here called “the pride of the whole earth” because it was renowned for its size, its fortifications, and its beautiful buildings.
366 tn Heb “How Sheshach has been captured, the pride of the whole earth has been seized! How Babylon has become an object of horror among the nations!” For the usage of “How” here see the translator’s note on 50:23.
367 tn For the meaning “multitude” here rather than “tumult” see BDB 242 s.v. הָמוֹן 3.c, where reference is made that this refers to a great throng of people under the figure of an overwhelming mass of waves. The word is used of a multitude of soldiers, or a vast army in 1 Sam 14:16; 1 Kgs 20:13, 18 (cf. BDB 242 s.v. הָמוֹן 3.a for further references).
368 tn Heb “The sea has risen up over Babylon. She has been covered by the multitude of its waves.”
369 tn Heb “Its towns have become a desolation, [it has become] a dry land and a desert, a land which no man passes through them [referring to “her towns”] and no son of man [= human being] passes through them.” Here the present translation has followed the suggestion of BHS and a number of the modern commentaries in deleting the second occurrence of the word “land,” in which case the words that follow are not a relative clause but independent statements. A number of modern English versions appear to ignore the third feminine plural suffixes which refer back to the cities and refer the statements that follow to the land.
370 tn Heb “And I will punish Bel in Babylon…And the nations will not come streaming to him anymore. Yea, the walls of Babylon have fallen.” The verbs in the first two lines are vav consecutive perfects and the verb in the third line is an imperfect all looking at the future. That indicates that the perfect that follows and the perfects that precede are all prophetic perfects. The translation adopted seemed to be the best way to make the transition from the pasts which were adopted in conjunction with the taunting use of אֵיךְ (’ekh) in v. 41 to the futures in v. 44. For the usage of גַּם (gam) to indicate a climax, “yea” or “indeed” see BDB 169 s.v. גַּם 3. It seemed to be impossible to render the meaning of v. 44 in any comprehensible way, even in a paraphrase.
371 tn Heb “Go out from her [Babylon’s] midst, my people. Save each man his life from the fierce anger of the
372 tn Heb “That being so, look, days are approaching.” לָכֵן (lakhen) often introduces the effect of an action. That may be the case here, the turmoil outlined in v. 46 serving as the catalyst for the culminating divine judgment described in v. 47. Another possibility is that לָכֵן here has an asseverative force (“certainly”), as in Isa 26:14 and perhaps Jer 5:2 (see the note there). In this case the word almost has the force of “for, since,” because it presents a cause for an accompanying effect. See Judg 8:7 and the discussion of Isa 26:14 in BDB 486-87 s.v. כֵּן 3.d.
373 tn Or “all her slain will fall in her midst.” In other words, her people will be overtaken by judgment and be unable to escape. The dead will lie in heaps in the very heart of the city and land.
374 tn Heb “Oracle of the
375 tn The infinitive construct is used here to indicate what is about to take place. See IBHS 610 §36.2.3g.
376 tn Heb “the slain of Israel.” The words “because of” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The preceding context makes it clear that Babylon would be judged for its atrocities against Israel (see especially 50:33-34; 51:10, 24, 35).
377 tn The juxtaposition of גַם…גַם (gam...gam), often “both…and,” here indicates correspondence. See BDB 169 s.v. גַּם 4. Appropriately Babylon will fall slain just as her victims, including God’s covenant people, did.
378 sn God’s exiled people are told to leave doomed Babylon (see v. 45).
379 tn Heb “don’t stand.”
380 tn Heb “let Jerusalem go up upon your heart.” The “heart” is often viewed as the seat of one’s mental faculties and thought life.
381 sn The exiles lament the way they have been humiliated.
382 tn Heb “we have heard an insult.”
383 tn Heb “disgrace covers our face.”
384 tn Or “holy places, sanctuaries.”
385 tn Heb “that being so, look, days are approaching.” Here לָכֵן (lakhen) introduces the Lord’s response to the people’s lament (v. 51). It has the force of “yes, but” or “that may be true.” See Judg 11:8 and BDB 486-87 s.v. כֵּן 3.d.
386 tn Heb “Oracle of the
387 tn Or “ascends [into] heaven.” Note the use of the phrase in Deut 30:12; 2 Kgs 2:11; and Amos 9:2.
388 tn Heb “and even if she fortifies her strong elevated place.”
389 tn Heb “from me destroyers will go against her.”
390 tn Heb “Oracle of the
391 tn The antecedent of the third masculine plural pronominal suffix is not entirely clear. It probably refers back to the “destroyers” mentioned in v. 53 as the agents of God’s judgment on Babylon.
392 tn Or “mighty waters.”
393 tn Heb “and the noise of their sound will be given,”
394 tn Heb “for a destroyer is coming against her, against Babylon.”
395 tn The Piel form (which would be intransitive here, see GKC 142 §52.k) should probably be emended to Qal.
396 tn Or “God of retribution.”
397 tn The infinitive absolute emphasizes the following finite verb. Another option is to translate, “he certainly pays one back.” The translation assumes that the imperfect verbal form here describes the
398 sn For discussion of the terms “governors” and “leaders” see the note at Jer 51:23.
399 sn See the note at Jer 51:39.
400 tn For the title “Yahweh of armies” see the study note on Jer 2:19.
401 sn See the note at Jer 2:19.
402 tn The text has the plural “walls,” but many Hebrew
403 tn The infinitive absolute emphasizes the following finite verb. Another option is to translate, “will certainly be demolished.”
404 tn Heb “for what is empty.”
405 tn Heb “and the nations for fire, and they grow weary.”
406 sn This would be 582
407 tn Heb “an officer of rest.”
408 tn Or “wrote.”
409 tn Or “disaster”; or “calamity.”
410 tn Heb “words” (or “things”).
411 tn Heb “see [that].”
412 tn Heb “words” (or “things”).
413 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied for clarity.
414 tn Or “disaster”; or “calamity.”
415 sn The final chapter of the book of Jeremiah does not mention Jeremiah or record any of his prophecies.
416 tn Heb “set your face toward.”
417 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon.” Ammon was located to the east of Israel.
418 tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates being aware of or taking notice of something and has been translated here with a verb (so also throughout the chapter).
419 tn Heb “Look I am about to give you for a possession to.”
420 tn Heb “sons.”
421 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon.”
422 tn Heb “with all your scorn in (the) soul.”
423 tc The translation here follows the marginal reading (Qere) of the Hebrew text. The consonantal text (Kethib) is meaningless.
424 sn Moab was located immediately south of Ammon.
425 tn Heb “shoulder.”
426 tn Heb “from the cities.” The verb “eliminating” has been added in the translation to reflect the privative use of the preposition (see BDB 583 s.v. מִן 7.b).
427 tn Heb “from its cities, from its end.”
428 tn Heb “I will give it for a possession.”
429 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon” (twice in this verse).
430 tn Heb “the sons.”
431 sn Edom was located south of Moab.
432 tn Heb “and they have become guilty, becoming guilty.” The infinitive absolute following the finite verb makes the statement emphatic and draws attention to the degree of guilt incurred by Edom due to its actions.
433 tn Heb “and they have taken vengeance.”
434 sn Edom apparently in some way assisted in the destruction of Jerusalem in 587/6
435 tn Heb “and I will cut off from her man and beast.”
436 tn Heb “fall.”
437 tn Heb “know.”
438 sn The Philistines inhabited the coastal plain by the Mediterranean Sea, west of Judah.
439 tn Heb “have acted with vengeance and taken vengeance with vengeance.” The repetition emphasizes the degree of vengeance which they exhibited, presumably toward Judah.
440 tn Heb “with scorn in (the) soul.”
441 tn The object is not specified in the Hebrew text, but has been clarified as “Judah” in the translation.
442 tn Heb “to destroy (with) perpetual hostility.” Joel 3:4-8 also speaks of the Philistines taking advantage of the fall of Judah.
443 tn In Hebrew the verb “and I will cut off” sounds like its object, “the Cherethites,” and draws attention to the statement.
444 sn This is a name for the Philistines, many of whom migrated to Palestine from Crete.
445 tn Heb “with acts of punishment of anger.”
446 tc Date formulae typically include the month. According to D. I. Block (Ezekiel [NICOT], 2:34, n. 27) some emend to “in the twelfth year in the eleventh month” based partially on the copy of the LXX from Alexandrinus, where Albright suggested that “eleventh month” may have dropped out due to haplography.
447 sn Tyre was located on the Mediterranean coast north of Israel.
448 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
449 tn Heb “I will be filled.”
450 sn That is, Jerusalem.
451 tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) draws attention to something and has been translated here as a verb.
452 tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8. The Hebrew text switches to a second feminine singular form here, indicating that personified Jerusalem is addressed (see vv. 5-6a). The address to Jerusalem continues through v. 15. In vv. 16-17 the second masculine plural is used, as the people are addressed.
453 tn Or “debris.”
454 sn That is, the towns located inland that were under Tyre’s rule.
455 tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) draws attention to something.
456 tn Heb “Nebuchadrezzar” is a variant and more correct spelling of Nebuchadnezzar, as the Babylonian name Nabu-kudurri-usur has an an “r” rather than an “n.”
457 tn Heb “swords.”
458 tn Heb “From the abundance of his horses he will cover you (with) their dust.”
459 tn Heb “like those who enter a breached city.”
460 tn Heb “desirable.”
461 tn Heb “set.”
462 tn Heb “into the midst of the water.”
463 tn Heb “cause to end.”
464 sn This prophecy was fulfilled by Alexander the Great in 332
465 tn Heb “descend from.”
466 tn Heb “and they will be astonished over you.”
467 tn Heb “and they will lift up over you a lament and they will say to you.”
468 tn Heb “O inhabitant.” The translation follows the LXX and understands a different Hebrew verb, meaning “cease,” behind the consonantal text. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel [WBC], 2:72, and D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:43.
469 tn Heb “she and her inhabitants who placed their terror to all her inhabitants.” The relationship of the final prepositional phrase to what precedes is unclear. The preposition probably has a specifying function here, drawing attention to Tyre’s inhabitants as the source of the terror mentioned prior to this. In this case, one might paraphrase verse 17b: “she and her inhabitants, who spread their terror; yes, her inhabitants (were the source of this terror).”
470 tn Heb “from your going out.”
471 tn Heb “many.”
472 tn Heb “to the people of antiquity.”
473 tn Heb “like.” The translation assumes an emendation of the preposition כְּ (kÿ, “like”), to בְּ (bÿ, “in, among”).
474 tn Heb “and I will place beauty.” This reading makes little sense; many, following the lead of the LXX, emend the text to read “nor will you stand” with the negative particle before the preceding verb understood by ellipsis; see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:73. D. I. Block (Ezekiel [NICOT], 2:47) offers another alternative, taking the apparent first person verb form as an archaic second feminine form and translating “nor radiate splendor.”
475 tn Heb “lift up over Tyre a lament.”
476 tn Heb “entrances.” The plural noun may reflect the fact that Tyre had two main harbors.
477 sn Rome, another economic power, is described in a similar way in Rev 17:1.
478 tn The city of Tyre is described in the following account as a merchant ship.
479 tn Heb “built.”
480 tn Perhaps the hull or deck. The term is dual, so perhaps it refers to a double-decked ship.
481 tn Or “hull.”
482 tc The Hebrew reads “Your deck they made ivory, daughter of Assyria.” The syntactically difficult “ivory” is understood here as dittography and omitted, though some construe this to refer to ivory inlays. “Daughter of Assyria” is understood here as improper word division and the vowels repointed as “cypresses.”
483 tn Heb “from the coastlands (or islands) of Kittim,” generally understood to be a reference to the island of Cyprus, where the Phoenicians had a trading colony on the southeast coast. Many modern English versions have “Cyprus” (CEV, TEV), “the coastlands of Cyprus” (NASB), “the coasts of Cyprus” (NIV, NRSV), or “the southern coasts of Cyprus” (NLT).
484 sn This is probably a reference to Cyprus.
485 tc The MT reads “the residents of”; the LXX reads “your rulers who dwell in.” With no apparent reason for the LXX to add “the rulers” many suppose something has dropped out of the Hebrew text. While more than one may be possible, Allen’s proposal, positing a word meaning “elders,” is the most likely to explain the omission in the MT from a graphic standpoint and also provides a parallel to the beginning of v. 9. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:81.a parallel to v. 9.
486 map For location see Map1-A1; JP3-F3; JP4-F3.
487 sn Sidon and Arvad, like Tyre, were Phoenician coastal cities.
488 tn Or “wise.”
489 sn Another Phoenician coastal city located between Sidon and Arvad.
490 tn Heb “strengthening damages.” Here “to strengthen” means to repair. The word for “damages” occurs several times in 1 Kgs 12 about some type of damage to the temple, which may have referred to or included cracks. Since the context describes Tyre in its glory, we do not expect this reference to damages to be of significant scale, even if there are repairmen. This may refer to using pitch to seal the seams of the ship, which had to be done periodically and could be considered routine maintenance rather than repair of damage.
491 sn The reference to “all the ships of the sea…within you” suggests that the metaphor is changing; previously Tyre had been described as a magnificent ship, but now the description shifts back to an actual city. The “ships of the sea” were within Tyre’s harbor. Verse 11 refers to “walls” and “towers” of the city.
492 sn See Gen 10:22.
493 tn Heb “sons of Arvad.”
494 sn The identity of the Gammadites is uncertain.
495 tn See note on “quivers” in Jer 51:11 on the meaning of Hebrew שֶׁלֶט (shelet) and also M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:553.
496 sn Tarshish refers to a distant seaport sometimes believed to be located in southern Spain (others identified it as Carthage in North Africa). In any event it represents here a distant, rich, and exotic port which was a trading partner of Tyre.
497 tn The way in which these horses may have been distinguished from other horses is unknown. Cf. ASV “war-horses” (NASB, NIV, NRSV, CEV all similar); NLT “chariot horses.”
498 tn Heb “sons of Dedan.”
499 tn Heb “they returned as your gift.”
500 tc Many Hebrew
501 sn The location is mentioned in Judg 11:33.
502 tc The MT leaves v. 18 as an incomplete sentence and begins v. 19 with “and Dan and Javan (Ionia) from Uzal.” The LXX mentions “wine.” The translation follows an emendation assuming some confusions of vav and yod. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:82.
503 sn According to L. C. Allen (Ezekiel [WBC], 2:82), Izal was located between Haran and the Tigris and was famous for its wine.
504 tn Or perhaps “Large merchant ships.” The expression “ships of Tarshish” may describe a class of vessel, that is, large oceangoing merchant ships.
505 tn Heb “your repairers of damage.” See v. 9.
506 tn Compare this phrase to Isa 57:20 and Amos 8:8. See M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:561.
507 tn Heb “make heard over you with their voice.”
508 tn Note a similar expression to “roll in the ashes” in Mic 1:10.
509 tn Heb “and they will weep concerning you with bitterness of soul, (with) bitter mourning.”
510 tn As it stands, the meaning of the Hebrew text is unclear. The translation follows the suggestion of M. Dahood, “Accadian-Ugaritic dmt in Ezekiel 27:32,” Bib 45 (1964): 83-84. Several other explanations and emendations have been offered. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:83, and D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:85-86, for a list of options.
511 tn Heb “fallen.”
512 tn Heb “in the midst of you.”
513 tn Or “ruler” (NIV, NCV).
514 tn Heb “lifted up.”
515 tn Or “I am divine.”
516 tn Heb “and you made your heart (mind) like the heart (mind) of gods.”
517 sn Or perhaps “Danel” (so TEV), referring to a ruler known from Canaanite legend. See the note on “Daniel” in 14:14. A reference to Danel (preserved in legend at Ugarit, near the northern end of the Phoenician coast) makes more sense here when addressing Tyre than in 14:14.
518 sn The tone here is sarcastic, reflecting the ruler’s view of himself.
519 tn Or “wisdom.”
520 tn Heb “because of your making your heart like the heart of gods.”
521 sn This is probably a reference to the Babylonians.
522 tn Heb “they will draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom.”
523 tn Heb “you will die the death of the slain.”
524 sn The Phoenicians practiced circumcision, so the language here must be figurative, indicating that they would be treated in a disgraceful manner. Uncircumcised peoples were viewed as inferior, unclean, and perhaps even sub-human. See 31:18 and 32:17-32, as well as the discussion in D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:99.
525 tn Heb “lift up.”
526 tn For a discussion of possible nuances of this phrase, see M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:580-81.
527 sn The imagery of the lament appears to draw upon an extrabiblical Eden tradition about the expulsion of the first man (see v. 14 and the note there) from the garden due to his pride. The biblical Eden tradition speaks of cherubs placed as guardians at the garden entrance following the sin of Adam and Eve (Gen 3:24), but no guardian cherub like the one described in verse 14 is depicted or mentioned in the biblical account. Ezekiel’s imagery also appears to reflect Mesopotamian and Canaanite mythology at certain points. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:119-20.
528 tn The exact identification of each gemstone is uncertain. The list should be compared to that of the priest in Exod 28:17-20, which lists twelve stones in rows of three. The LXX apparently imports the Exod 28 list. See reference to the types of stones in L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.
529 tn Or “winged”; see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.
530 tn The meaning of this phrase in Hebrew is uncertain. The word translated here “guards” occurs in Exod 25:20 in reference to the cherubim “covering” the ark.
531 tn Heb “you (were) an anointed cherub that covers and I placed you.” In the Hebrew text the ruler of Tyre is equated with a cherub, and the verb “I placed you” is taken with what follows (“on the holy mountain of God”). However, this reading is problematic. The pronoun “you” at the beginning of verse 14 is feminine singular in the Hebrew text; elsewhere in this passage the ruler of Tyre is addressed with masculine singular forms. It is possible that the pronoun is a rare (see Deut 5:24; Num 11:15) or defectively written (see 1 Sam 24:19; Neh 9:6; Job 1:10; Ps 6:3; Eccl 7:22) masculine form, but it is more likely that the form should be repointed as the preposition “with” (see the LXX). In this case the ruler of Tyre is compared to the first man, not to a cherub. If this emendation is accepted, then the verb “I placed you” belongs with what precedes and concludes the first sentence in the verse. It is noteworthy that the verbs in the second and third lines of the verse also appear at the end of the sentence in the Hebrew text. The presence of a conjunction at the beginning of “I placed you” is problematic for the proposal, but it may reflect a later misunderstanding of the syntax of the verse. For a defense of the proposed emendation, see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.
532 tn Heb “ways.”
533 tn Heb “they filled your midst with violence.”
534 tn Heb “I defiled you.” The presence of the preposition “from” following the verb indicates that a verb of motion is implied as well. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.
535 tn Heb “and I expelled you, O guardian cherub.” The Hebrew text takes the verb as first person and understands “guardian cherub” as a vocative, in apposition to the pronominal suffix on the verb. However, if the emendation in verse 14a is accepted (see the note above), then one may follow the LXX here as well and emend the verb to a third person perfect. In this case the subject of the verb is the guardian cherub. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.
536 tn Heb “set your face against.”
537 sn Sidon was located 25 miles north of Tyre.
538 tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.
539 tn Or “reveal my holiness.” God’s “holiness” is fundamentally his transcendence as sovereign ruler of the world. The revelation of his authority and power through judgment is in view in this context.
540 tn Heb “into it”; the referent of the feminine pronoun has been specified in the translation for clarity.
541 tn Heb “by a sword against it.”
542 sn Similar language is used in reference to Israel’s adversaries in Num 33:55; Josh 23:13.
543 tn Heb “and there will not be for the house of Israel a brier that pricks and a thorn that inflicts pain from all the ones who surround them, the ones who scorn them.”
544 tn Or “reveal my holiness.” See verse 22.
545 sn This promise was given in Lev 25:18-19.
546 tn January 7, 587
547 tn Heb “set your face against.”
548 tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.
549 tn Heb “jackals,” but many medieval Hebrew
550 sn In Egyptian theology Pharaoh owned and controlled the Nile. See J. D. Currid, Ancient Egypt and the Old Testament, 240-44.
551 tc Some Hebrew
552 sn Compare Isa 36:6.
553 tn The Hebrew consonantal text (Kethib) has “by your hand,” but the marginal reading (Qere) has simply “by the hand.” The LXX reads “with their hand.”
554 tn Or perhaps “dislocated.”
555 tn Heb “you caused to stand for them all their hips.” An emendation which switches two letters but is supported by the LXX yields the reading “you caused all their hips to shake.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:103. In 2 Kgs 18:21 and Isa 36:6 trusting in the Pharaoh is compared to leaning on a staff. The oracle may reflect Hophra’s attempt to aid Jerusalem (Jer 37:5-8).
556 tn Heb “I will cut off from you.”
557 tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.
558 sn This may refer to a site in the Egyptian Delta which served as a refuge for Jews (Jer 44:1; 46:14).
559 sn Syene is known today as Aswan.
560 sn In Ezek 4:4-8 it was said that the house of Judah would suffer forty years.
561 tc Thus the Masoretic Text. The LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate translate as though the Hebrew read “cause to inhabit.”
562 tn Heb “reminding of iniquity when they turned after them.”
563 sn April 26, 571
564 tn Heb “Nebuchadrezzar” is a variant and more correct spelling of Nebuchadnezzar, as the Babylonian name Nabu-kudurri-usur has an “r” rather than an “n” (so also in v. 19).
565 sn Nebuchadnezzar besieged Tyre from 585 to 571
566 tn Heb “for which he worked,” referring to the assault on Tyre (v. 18).
567 tn Heb “I will cause a horn to sprout for the house of Israel.” The horn is used as a figure for military power in the OT (Ps 92:10). A similar expression is made about the Davidic dynasty in Ps 132:17.
568 tn Heb “I will grant you an open mouth.”
569 tn Heb “Alas for the day.”
570 tn Heb “a day of clouds.” The expression occurs also in Joel 2:2 and Zeph 1:15; it recalls the appearance of God at Mount Sinai (Exod 19:9, 16, 18).
571 tn Heb “a time.” The words “of judgment” have been added in the translation for clarification (see the following verses).
572 tn The same expression appears in Exod 12:38; Jer 25:20; 50:37; Neh 13:3. It may refer to foreign mercenaries serving in the armies of the nations listed here.
573 tn Heb “sons.”
574 tn The expression “sons of the covenant land” possibly refers to Jews living in Egypt (Jer 44).
575 tn Heb “come down.”
576 sn Syene is known as Aswan today.
577 tn Heb “all who aid her are broken.”
578 tn Heb “in the day of Egypt.” The word “doom” has been added in the translation to clarify the nature of this day.
579 tn Heb “Nebuchadrezzar” is a variant and more correct spelling of Nebuchadnezzar, as the Babylonian name Nabu-kudurri-usur has an “r” rather than an “n.”
580 tn The Babylonians were known for their cruelty (2 Kgs 25:7).
581 tn Heb “and I will sell the land into the hand of.”
582 tn Heb “I will put fear in the land of Egypt.”
583 tn Heb “Sin” (so KJV, NASB), a city commonly identified with Pelusium, a fortress on Egypt’s northeastern frontier.
584 tn Or “kill.”
585 tc The LXX reads “Syene,” which is Aswan in the south. The MT reads Sin, which has already been mentioned in v. 15.
586 sn On and Pi-beseth are generally identified with the Egyptian cities of Heliopolis and Bubastis.
587 tn Heb “they will go.” The pronoun and verb are feminine plural, indicating that the cities just mentioned are the antecedent of the pronoun and the subject of the verb. The translation makes this clear by stating the subject as “the cities.”
588 sn In Zeph 1:15 darkness is associated with the day of the
589 tn April 29, 587
590 sn The expression “breaking the arm” indicates the removal of power (Ps 10:15; 37:17; Job 38:15; Jer 48:25).
591 sn This may refer to the event recorded in Jer 37:5.
592 tn The word h!nn@h indicates becoming aware of something and has been translated here as a verb.
593 tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.
594 tn Heb “him”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
595 sn June 21, 587
596 sn Either Egypt, or the Lord compares Egypt to Assyria, which is described in vv. 3-17 through the metaphor of a majestic tree. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:185. Like Egypt, Assyria had been a great world power, but in time God brought the Assyrians down. Egypt should learn from history the lesson that no nation, no matter how powerful, can withstand the judgment of God. Rather than following the text here, some prefer to emend the proper name Assyria to a similar sounding common noun meaning “boxwood” (see Ezek 27:6), which would make a fitting parallel to “cedar of Lebanon” in the following line. In this case vv. 3-18 in their entirety refer to Egypt, not Assyria. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:121-27.
597 sn Lebanon was know for its cedar trees (Judg 9:15; 1 Kgs 4:33; 5:6; 2 Kgs 14:9; Ezra 3:7; Pss 29:5; 92:12; 104:16).
598 tn Heb “Waters made it grow; the deep made it grow tall. It (the deep) was flowing with its rivers around the place it (the tree) was planted, it (the deep) sent out its channels to all the trees of the field.”
599 tn Heb “when it sends forth.” Repointing the consonants of the Masoretic text would render the proposed reading “shoots” (cf. NRSV).
600 tn Or “many.”
601 tn Or “cypress trees” (cf. NASB, NLT); NIV “pine trees.”
602 tn Heb “acting he has acted with regard to it.” The infinitive absolute precedes the main verb to emphasize the certainty and decisiveness of the action depicted.
603 tn Or “earth” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
604 tn Heb “gone down.”
605 tn Heb “the beasts of the field,” referring to wild as opposed to domesticated animals.
606 tn Heb “be.”
607 tn Heb “and they will not stand to them in their height, all the drinkers of water.”
608 tn Heb “for death, to the lower earth.”
609 tn Heb “the sons of men.”
610 tn Or “he.”
611 tn Heb “I caused lamentation.” D. I. Block (Ezekiel [NICOT], 2:194-95) proposes an alternative root which would give the meaning “I gated back the waters,” i.e., shut off the water supply.
612 sn For the expression “going down to the pit,” see Ezek 26:20; 32:18, 24, 29.
613 tn Heb “its arm.”
614 sn This would be March 3, 585
615 tn The lion was a figure of royalty (Ezek 19:1-9).
616 tc The Hebrew reads “their streams”; the LXX reads “your streams.”
617 tn The expression “throw my net” is common in Ezekiel (12:13; 17:20; 19:8).
618 tn Or “cause.”
619 tn Heb “live.”
620 tn Or “cause.”
621 tn Heb “the beasts of the field,” referring to wild as opposed to domesticated animals.
622 tc The Hebrew text is difficult here, apparently meaning “your height.” Following Symmachus and the Syriac, it is preferable to emend the text to read “your maggots.” See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:203.
623 tn Heb “from you.”
624 tn Heb “will not shine its light.” For similar features of cosmic eschatology, see Joel 2:10; 4:15; Amos 5:18-20; Zeph 1:5.
625 tn Heb “I will provoke the heart of.”
626 sn The king of Babylon referred to here was Nebuchadnezzar (Ezek 21:19).
627 tn Heb “approach.”
628 tn Heb “muddy.”
629 tn Heb “them,” that is, the waters mentioned in the previous line. The translation clarifies the referent.
630 tn Heb “sink,” that is, to settle and become clear, not muddied.
631 tn March 17, 585
632 tn The Hebrew verb is used as a response to death (Jer 9:17-19; Amos 5:16).
633 sn Through this prophetic lament given by God himself, the prophet activates the judgment described therein. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:217, and L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:136-37.
634 tn Heb “Bring him down, her and the daughters of the powerful nations, to the earth below.” The verb “bring down” appears in the Hebrew text only once. Because the verb takes several objects here, the repetition of the verb in the translation improves the English style.
635 tn This apparently refers to personified Egypt.
636 tc The LXX places this verse after v. 21.
637 tn Heb “pleasantness.”
638 tn Heb “around him his graves.” The masculine pronominal suffixes are problematic; the expression is best emended to correspond to the phrase “around her grave” in v. 23. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:219.
639 tn Heb “all of them slain, the ones felled by the sword.” See as well vv. 23-24.
640 tn Heb “whose.”
641 tn The only other occurrence of the phrase “remote slopes of the pit” is in Isa 14:15.
642 tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).
643 tn Heb “around him her graves,” but the expression is best emended to read “around her grave” (see vv. 23-24).
644 tc Heb “of the uncircumcised.” The LXX reads, probably correctly, “from of old” rather than “of the uncircumcised.” The phrases are very similar in spelling. The warriors of Meshech-Tubal are described as uncircumcised, so it would be odd for them to not be buried with the uncircumcised. Verse 28 specifically says that they would lie with the uncircumcised.
645 tn Heb “and their iniquities were over their bones.” The meaning of this statement is unclear; in light of the parallelism (see “swords”) it is preferable to emend “their iniquities” to “their swords.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:135.
646 tn Heb “set your face against.”
647 sn Mount Seir is to be identified with Edom (Ezek 35:15), home of Esau’s descendants (Gen 25:21-30).
648 tn Or “gave over…to the power of the sword.” This phrase also occurs in Jer 18:21 and Ps 63:10.
649 tc The translation reads with some manuscripts לְשִׁמְמָה וּמְשַׁמָּה (lÿshimmah umÿshammah, “desolate ruin”) as in verse 3 and often in Ezekiel. The majority reading reverses the first mem (מ) with the shin (שׁ) resulting in the repetition of the word desolate: לְשִׁמְמָה וּשְׁמָמָה (lÿshimmah ushÿmamah).
650 tn Or “kill.”
651 sn The reference is to Israel and Judah.
652 tn Heb “it.”
653 tn Heb “your mouth.”
654 tn Heb “and you multiplied against me your words.” The Hebrew verb occurs only here and in Prov 27:6, where it refers to the “excessive” kisses of an enemy. The basic idea of the verb appears to be “to be abundant.” Here it occurs in the causative (Hiphil) stem.