¹⁵ “He made the earth by his power;
    he founded the world by his wisdom^(A)
    and stretched^(B) out the heavens by his understanding.^(C)
16 When he thunders,^(D) the waters in the heavens roar;
    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain^(E)
    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.^(F)

¹⁷ “Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;
    every goldsmith is shamed by his idols.
The images he makes are a fraud;^(G)
    they have no breath in them.
¹⁸ They are worthless,^(H) the objects of mockery;
    when their judgment comes, they will perish.
¹⁹ He who is the Portion^(I) of Jacob is not like these,
    for he is the Maker of all things,
including the people of his inheritance^(J)—
    the Lord Almighty is his name.

²⁰ “You are my war club,^(K)
    my weapon for battle—
with you I shatter^(L) nations,^(M)
    with you I destroy kingdoms,
²¹ with you I shatter horse and rider,^(N)
    with you I shatter chariot^(O) and driver,
²² with you I shatter man and woman,
    with you I shatter old man and youth,
    with you I shatter young man and young woman,^(P)
23 with you I shatter shepherd and flock,
    with you I shatter farmer and oxen,
    with you I shatter governors and officials.^(Q)

²⁵ “I am against^(T) you, you destroying mountain,
    you who destroy the whole earth,”^(U)
declares the Lord.
“I will stretch out my hand^(V) against you,
    roll you off the cliffs,
    and make you a burned-out mountain.^(W)
26 No rock will be taken from you for a cornerstone,
    nor any stone for a foundation,
    for you will be desolate^(X) forever,”
declares the Lord.

²⁷ “Lift up a banner^(Y) in the land!
    Blow the trumpet among the nations!
Prepare the nations for battle against her;
    summon against her these kingdoms:^(Z)
    Ararat,^(AA) Minni and Ashkenaz.^(AB)
Appoint a commander against her;
    send up horses like a swarm of locusts.^(AC)
28 Prepare the nations for battle against her—
    the kings of the Medes,^(AD)
their governors and all their officials,
    and all the countries they rule.^(AE)
29 The land trembles^(AF) and writhes,
    for the Lord’s purposes^(AG) against Babylon stand—
to lay waste^(AH) the land of Babylon
    so that no one will live there.^(AI)
30 Babylon’s warriors^(AJ) have stopped fighting;
    they remain in their strongholds.
Their strength is exhausted;
    they have become weaklings.^(AK)
Her dwellings are set on fire;^(AL)
    the bars^(AM) of her gates are broken.
³¹ One courier^(AN) follows another
    and messenger follows messenger
to announce to the king of Babylon
    that his entire city is captured,^(AO)
32 the river crossings seized,
    the marshes set on fire,^(AP)
    and the soldiers terrified.^(AQ)”

“Daughter Babylon^(AR) is like a threshing floor^(AS)
    at the time it is trampled;
    the time to harvest^(AT) her will soon come.^(AU)”

³⁴ “Nebuchadnezzar^(AV) king of Babylon has devoured^(AW) us,^(AX)
    he has thrown us into confusion,
    he has made us an empty jar.
Like a serpent he has swallowed us
    and filled his stomach with our delicacies,
    and then has spewed^(AY) us out.
³⁵ May the violence^(AZ) done to our flesh^[b] be on Babylon,”
    say the inhabitants of Zion.
“May our blood be on those who live in Babylonia,”
    says Jerusalem.^(BA)

“See, I will defend your cause^(BB)
    and avenge^(BC) you;
I will dry up^(BD) her sea
    and make her springs dry.
³⁷ Babylon will be a heap of ruins,
    a haunt^(BE) of jackals,
an object of horror and scorn,^(BF)
    a place where no one lives.^(BG)
38 Her people all roar like young lions,^(BH)
    they growl like lion cubs.
³⁹ But while they are aroused,
    I will set out a feast for them
    and make them drunk,^(BI)
so that they shout with laughter—
    then sleep forever^(BJ) and not awake,”
declares the Lord.^(BK)
40 “I will bring them down
    like lambs to the slaughter,
    like rams and goats.^(BL)

⁴¹ “How Sheshak^[c](BM) will be captured,^(BN)
    the boast of the whole earth seized!
How desolate^(BO) Babylon will be
    among the nations!
⁴² The sea will rise over Babylon;
    its roaring waves^(BP) will cover her.
⁴³ Her towns will be desolate,
    a dry and desert^(BQ) land,
a land where no one lives,
    through which no one travels.^(BR)
44 I will punish Bel^(BS) in Babylon
    and make him spew out^(BT) what he has swallowed.
The nations will no longer stream to him.
    And the wall^(BU) of Babylon will fall.

⁴⁵ “Come out^(BV) of her, my people!
    Run^(BW) for your lives!
    Run from the fierce anger^(BX) of the Lord.
⁴⁶ Do not lose heart^(BY) or be afraid^(BZ)
    when rumors^(CA) are heard in the land;
one rumor comes this year, another the next,
    rumors of violence in the land
    and of ruler against ruler.
⁴⁷ For the time will surely come
    when I will punish the idols^(CB) of Babylon;
her whole land will be disgraced^(CC)
    and her slain will all lie fallen within her.^(CD)
48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
    will shout^(CE) for joy over Babylon,
for out of the north^(CF)
    destroyers^(CG) will attack her,”
declares the Lord.

⁴⁹ “Babylon must fall because of Israel’s slain,
    just as the slain in all the earth
    have fallen because of Babylon.^(CH)
50 You who have escaped the sword,
    leave^(CI) and do not linger!
Remember^(CJ) the Lord in a distant land,^(CK)
    and call to mind Jerusalem.”

⁵¹ “We are disgraced,^(CL)
    for we have been insulted
    and shame covers our faces,
because foreigners have entered
    the holy places of the Lord’s house.”^(CM)

⁵² “But days are coming,” declares the Lord,
    “when I will punish her idols,^(CN)
and throughout her land
    the wounded will groan.^(CO)
53 Even if Babylon ascends to the heavens^(CP)
    and fortifies her lofty stronghold,
    I will send destroyers^(CQ) against her,”
declares the Lord.

⁵⁴ “The sound of a cry^(CR) comes from Babylon,
    the sound of great destruction^(CS)
    from the land of the Babylonians.^[d]
55 The Lord will destroy Babylon;
    he will silence^(CT) her noisy din.
Waves^(CU) of enemies will rage like great waters;
    the roar of their voices will resound.
⁵⁶ A destroyer^(CV) will come against Babylon;
    her warriors will be captured,
    and their bows will be broken.^(CW)
For the Lord is a God of retribution;
    he will repay^(CX) in full.
⁵⁷ I will make her officials^(CY) and wise^(CZ) men drunk,^(DA)
    her governors, officers and warriors as well;
they will sleep^(DB) forever and not awake,”
    declares the King,^(DC) whose name is the Lord Almighty.

“Babylon’s thick wall^(DD) will be leveled
    and her high gates^(DE) set on fire;
the peoples^(DF) exhaust^(DG) themselves for nothing,
    the nations’ labor is only fuel for the flames.”^(DH)