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Babylon Is Destroyed

51 The Lord says, “See, I will raise up the spirit of a destroyer against Babylon and against the people of Chaldea. I will send strangers to destroy Babylon like a wind that blows straw away. For they will be against her on every side and leave her land empty in the day of her trouble. Do not let the bow-man use his bow. Do not let him stand up in his heavy battle-clothes. Do not leave her young men alive, but destroy all of her army. They will fall down dead in the land of Babylon and be killed in their streets.”

For Israel and Judah have not been left alone by their God, the Lord of All, even though their land is full of guilt against the Holy One of Israel. Run away from Babylon! Let every man save his life! Do not be destroyed in her punishment, for it is time for the Lord to punish her. He will make her pay for her sins. Babylon has been a gold cup in the Lord’s hand, making all the earth drunk. The nations have drunk her wine, and so the nations have gone wild. All at once Babylon has fallen and been broken. Cry over her with a loud voice. Bring healing oil for her pain. It may be that she will be healed. We would have healed Babylon, but she was not healed. Leave her alone, and let each of us go to his own country. For she is being judged from as far as heaven and lifted even to the skies. 10 The Lord has taken our guilt away. Come and let us make the work of the Lord our God known in Zion.

11 Make the arrows sharp! Take the body-coverings! The Lord has moved the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because He is planning to destroy Babylon. It is the punishment of the Lord, the punishment for what was done to His house of worship. 12 Lift up a flag on the walls of Babylon. Have many keep watch. Put the watchmen in their places. And get men ready to fight against her by surprise. For the Lord has both planned and done what He said about the people of Babylon. 13 O you who live by many waters and have many riches, your end has come. Your life is being cut off. 14 The Lord of All has promised by Himself, saying, “For sure I will fill you with men, as with many locusts. And they will call out that they have won the war against you.”

A Song of Praise

15 He made the earth by His power. He made the world by His wisdom. And by His understanding He spread out the heavens. 16 When He speaks, there is a storm of waters in the heavens. He makes the clouds rise from the ends of the earth. He makes lightning for the rain, and brings the wind from His store-houses. 17 No man thinks well, and he is without learning. Every man who works with gold is put to shame by his false gods. For the objects of worship that he makes are false, and there is no breath in them. 18 They are of no worth, a false show. At the time of their punishment they will be destroyed. 19 He Who is the Share of Jacob is not like these. For He is the Maker of All. And Israel is the family who receives His gifts. The Lord of All is His name.

20 He says, “You are My battle-ax which I use in war. With you I destroy countries. With you I destroy nations. 21 With you I break in pieces the horse and its rider. 22 With you I destroy the war-wagon and its driver. With you I destroy man and woman. With you I destroy old man and boy. With you I destroy young man and young woman. 23 With you I destroy the shepherd and his flock. With you I destroy the farmer and his oxen. And with you I destroy rulers and captains.

Babylon Is Punished

24 “I will punish Babylon and all the people of Chaldea for all their sins that they have done in Zion in front of your eyes,” says the Lord. 25 “See, I am against you, O destroying mountain, who destroys the whole earth,” says the Lord. “I will put out My hand against you and roll you down from the high rocks. I will make you a burned-out mountain. 26 Not even a stone will be taken from you for a corner stone, or a stone to be used to build upon. But you will be a waste forever,” says the Lord.

27 Lift up a flag in the land! Sound the horn among the nations! Make the nations ready to fight against Babylon. Call against her the nations of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Choose a captain to go against her. Bring up the horses like many locusts. 28 Make the nations ready to fight against her. Make ready the kings of the Medes, their rulers and captains, and every land under their rule. 29 The land shakes and moves in its pain. For the Lord’s plans against Babylon stand, to make the land of Babylon a waste land without people. 30 The powerful soldiers of Babylon have stopped fighting. They stay in their strong-places. Their strength is gone. They have become like women. Their houses are set on fire, and the iron parts of her gates are broken. 31 One man with news runs to meet another, and he runs to meet another. They run to tell the king of Babylon that his city has been taken from end to end. 32 The ways to cross the river have been stopped. The water grass has been burned with fire. And the soldiers are filled with fear.

33 The Lord of All, the God of Israel, says, “The daughter of Babylon is like the grain floor when it is being stepped on and made hard. In a little while her gathering time will come.”

34 “Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has destroyed me, and has crushed me. He has made me like an empty pot. He has eaten me up like a large, angry animal. He has filled his stomach with my good food, and he has washed me away. 35 May the hurt done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,” the person living in Zion will say. “May my blood be upon the people of Babylon,” Jerusalem will say.

36 So the Lord says, “See, I will help you in your cause and punish Babylon for you. I will dry up her sea, and make her well dry. 37 Babylon will become a waste place, a place where wild dogs live. She will be an object of trouble and hate, where no people live. 38 Together the people of Babylon make noise like young lions. They sound like a lion’s young ones. 39 But when they are hot, I will give them a special supper and make them drunk. Then they will be happy and fall asleep, and will never wake up,” says the Lord. 40 “I will bring them down like lambs to be killed, like rams and male goats.

Babylon Is Destroyed

41 “How Babylon has been taken, the praise of the whole earth taken! How Babylon has become an object of trouble among the nations! 42 The sea has come up over Babylon. She has been covered with its many big waves. 43 Her cities have become an object of trouble, a dry land and a desert. It is a land where no man lives, and where no man passes through. 44 And I will punish the false god of Bel in Babylon. I will make what he has eaten come out of his mouth. The nations will no longer come to him. The wall of Babylon will fall.

45 “Come out of her, My people. Save yourselves from the burning anger of the Lord. 46 Do not let your heart become weak. Do not be afraid at the news that will be heard in the land. For news will come this year, and other news will come the next. There will be fighting in the land, with ruler against ruler. 47 So the days are coming when I will punish the false gods of Babylon. Her whole land will be put to shame, and all her dead will fall within her. 48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them will call out for joy over Babylon. For the destroyers will come to her from the north,” says the Lord.

49 Babylon must fall because of the dead of Israel, just as the dead of all the earth have fallen because of Babylon. 50 You who have not been killed by the sword, go! Do not stay! Remember the Lord from far away, and think of Jerusalem. 51 We are ashamed because much has been said against us. Our faces are covered with shame, for strangers have gone into the holy places of the Lord’s house.

52 “But the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when I will punish her false gods. And those who are hurt will cry in pain through all her land. 53 Even if Babylon rises to the heavens and makes her high place strong, I will send destroyers against her,” says the Lord.

54 The sound of a cry comes from Babylon! A noise comes from the land of the Babylonians because much is being destroyed! 55 For the Lord will destroy Babylon. He will quiet her loud voice. Their waves will sound like many waters, and the noise of their voices is loud. 56 For the destroyer is coming against Babylon, and her strong men will be taken. Their bows are broken. For the Lord is a God Who makes the sinner pay for his sin, and He will be sure to punish. 57 “I will make her leaders and her wise men, her rulers, her captains, and her strong men of war drunk. Then they will fall asleep and never wake up,” says the King, Whose name is the Lord of All. 58 The Lord of All says, “The wide wall of Babylon will be broken to the ground. Her high gates will be set on fire. So the people will work hard for nothing, and because of the fire nations become tired.”

Jeremiah’s Word Gets to Babylon

59 This is the word which Jeremiah the man of God told Seraiah the son of Neriah, the grandson of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his rule. Seraiah was the head captain of the house. 60 Jeremiah wrote in a book all the trouble that would come upon Babylon. He wrote down all these words which have been written about Babylon. 61 Then Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “As soon as you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words out loud. 62 And say, ‘O Lord, You have said that this place will be destroyed, so that there will be nothing living in it, not man or animal. It is to be a waste place forever.’ 63 When you have finished reading this book, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates River. 64 And say, ‘In this way Babylon will go down and not rise again, because of the trouble I am going to bring upon her. And her people will fall.’” The words of Jeremiah end here.

51 This is what the Lord says:

“See, I will stir(A) up the spirit of a destroyer
    against Babylon(B) and the people of Leb Kamai.[a]
I will send foreigners(C) to Babylon
    to winnow(D) her and to devastate her land;
they will oppose her on every side
    in the day(E) of her disaster.
Let not the archer string his bow,(F)
    nor let him put on his armor.(G)
Do not spare her young men;
    completely destroy[b] her army.
They will fall(H) down slain in Babylon,[c]
    fatally wounded in her streets.(I)
For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken(J)
    by their God, the Lord Almighty,
though their land[d] is full of guilt(K)
    before the Holy One of Israel.

“Flee(L) from Babylon!
    Run for your lives!
    Do not be destroyed because of her sins.(M)
It is time(N) for the Lord’s vengeance;(O)
    he will repay(P) her what she deserves.
Babylon was a gold cup(Q) in the Lord’s hand;
    she made the whole earth drunk.
The nations drank her wine;
    therefore they have now gone mad.
Babylon will suddenly fall(R) and be broken.
    Wail over her!
Get balm(S) for her pain;
    perhaps she can be healed.

“‘We would have healed Babylon,
    but she cannot be healed;
let us leave(T) her and each go to our own land,
    for her judgment(U) reaches to the skies,
    it rises as high as the heavens.’

10 “‘The Lord has vindicated(V) us;
    come, let us tell in Zion
    what the Lord our God has done.’(W)

11 “Sharpen the arrows,(X)
    take up the shields!(Y)
The Lord has stirred up the kings(Z) of the Medes,(AA)
    because his purpose(AB) is to destroy Babylon.
The Lord will take vengeance,(AC)
    vengeance for his temple.(AD)
12 Lift up a banner(AE) against the walls of Babylon!
    Reinforce the guard,
station the watchmen,(AF)
    prepare an ambush!(AG)
The Lord will carry out his purpose,(AH)
    his decree against the people of Babylon.
13 You who live by many waters(AI)
    and are rich in treasures,(AJ)
your end has come,
    the time for you to be destroyed.(AK)
14 The Lord Almighty has sworn by himself:(AL)
    I will surely fill you with troops, as with a swarm of locusts,(AM)
    and they will shout(AN) in triumph over you.

15 “He made the earth by his power;
    he founded the world by his wisdom(AO)
    and stretched(AP) out the heavens by his understanding.(AQ)
16 When he thunders,(AR) the waters in the heavens roar;
    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning with the rain(AS)
    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.(AT)

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

20 “You are my war club,(AY)
    my weapon for battle—
with you I shatter(AZ) nations,(BA)
    with you I destroy kingdoms,
21 with you I shatter horse and rider,(BB)
    with you I shatter chariot(BC) 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,(BD)
23 with you I shatter shepherd and flock,
    with you I shatter farmer and oxen,
    with you I shatter governors and officials.(BE)

24 “Before your eyes I will repay(BF) Babylon(BG) and all who live in Babylonia[e] for all the wrong they have done in Zion,” declares the Lord.

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

27 “Lift up a banner(BM) in the land!
    Blow the trumpet among the nations!
Prepare the nations for battle against her;
    summon against her these kingdoms:(BN)
    Ararat,(BO) Minni and Ashkenaz.(BP)
Appoint a commander against her;
    send up horses like a swarm of locusts.(BQ)
28 Prepare the nations for battle against her—
    the kings of the Medes,(BR)
their governors and all their officials,
    and all the countries they rule.(BS)
29 The land trembles(BT) and writhes,
    for the Lord’s purposes(BU) against Babylon stand—
to lay waste(BV) the land of Babylon
    so that no one will live there.(BW)
30 Babylon’s warriors(BX) have stopped fighting;
    they remain in their strongholds.
Their strength is exhausted;
    they have become weaklings.(BY)
Her dwellings are set on fire;(BZ)
    the bars(CA) of her gates are broken.
31 One courier(CB) follows another
    and messenger follows messenger
to announce to the king of Babylon
    that his entire city is captured,(CC)
32 the river crossings seized,
    the marshes set on fire,(CD)
    and the soldiers terrified.(CE)

33 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says:

“Daughter Babylon(CF) is like a threshing floor(CG)
    at the time it is trampled;
    the time to harvest(CH) her will soon come.(CI)

34 “Nebuchadnezzar(CJ) king of Babylon has devoured(CK) us,(CL)
    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(CM) us out.
35 May the violence(CN) done to our flesh[f] be on Babylon,”
    say the inhabitants of Zion.
“May our blood be on those who live in Babylonia,”
    says Jerusalem.(CO)

36 Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“See, I will defend your cause(CP)
    and avenge(CQ) you;
I will dry up(CR) her sea
    and make her springs dry.
37 Babylon will be a heap of ruins,
    a haunt(CS) of jackals,
an object of horror and scorn,(CT)
    a place where no one lives.(CU)
38 Her people all roar like young lions,(CV)
    they growl like lion cubs.
39 But while they are aroused,
    I will set out a feast for them
    and make them drunk,(CW)
so that they shout with laughter—
    then sleep forever(CX) and not awake,”
declares the Lord.(CY)
40 “I will bring them down
    like lambs to the slaughter,
    like rams and goats.(CZ)

41 “How Sheshak[g](DA) will be captured,(DB)
    the boast of the whole earth seized!
How desolate(DC) Babylon will be
    among the nations!
42 The sea will rise over Babylon;
    its roaring waves(DD) will cover her.
43 Her towns will be desolate,
    a dry and desert(DE) land,
a land where no one lives,
    through which no one travels.(DF)
44 I will punish Bel(DG) in Babylon
    and make him spew out(DH) what he has swallowed.
The nations will no longer stream to him.
    And the wall(DI) of Babylon will fall.

45 “Come out(DJ) of her, my people!
    Run(DK) for your lives!
    Run from the fierce anger(DL) of the Lord.
46 Do not lose heart(DM) or be afraid(DN)
    when rumors(DO) 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(DP) of Babylon;
her whole land will be disgraced(DQ)
    and her slain will all lie fallen within her.(DR)
48 Then heaven and earth and all that is in them
    will shout(DS) for joy over Babylon,
for out of the north(DT)
    destroyers(DU) 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.(DV)
50 You who have escaped the sword,
    leave(DW) and do not linger!
Remember(DX) the Lord in a distant land,(DY)
    and call to mind Jerusalem.”

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

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

54 “The sound of a cry(EF) comes from Babylon,
    the sound of great destruction(EG)
    from the land of the Babylonians.[h]
55 The Lord will destroy Babylon;
    he will silence(EH) her noisy din.
Waves(EI) of enemies will rage like great waters;
    the roar of their voices will resound.
56 A destroyer(EJ) will come against Babylon;
    her warriors will be captured,
    and their bows will be broken.(EK)
For the Lord is a God of retribution;
    he will repay(EL) in full.
57 I will make her officials(EM) and wise(EN) men drunk,(EO)
    her governors, officers and warriors as well;
they will sleep(EP) forever and not awake,”
    declares the King,(EQ) whose name is the Lord Almighty.

58 This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Babylon’s thick wall(ER) will be leveled
    and her high gates(ES) set on fire;
the peoples(ET) exhaust(EU) themselves for nothing,
    the nations’ labor is only fuel for the flames.”(EV)

59 This is the message Jeremiah the prophet gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah,(EW) the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah(EX) king of Judah in the fourth(EY) year of his reign. 60 Jeremiah had written on a scroll(EZ) about all the disasters that would come upon Babylon—all that had been recorded concerning Babylon. 61 He said to Seraiah, “When you get to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud. 62 Then say, ‘Lord, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither people nor animals will live in it; it will be desolate(FA) forever.’ 63 When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates.(FB) 64 Then say, ‘So will Babylon sink to rise no more(FC) because of the disaster I will bring on her. And her people(FD) will fall.’”(FE)

The words of Jeremiah end(FF) here.

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 51:1 Leb Kamai is a cryptogram for Chaldea, that is, Babylonia.
  2. Jeremiah 51:3 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
  3. Jeremiah 51:4 Or Chaldea
  4. Jeremiah 51:5 Or Almighty, / and the land of the Babylonians
  5. Jeremiah 51:24 Or Chaldea; also in verse 35
  6. Jeremiah 51:35 Or done to us and to our children
  7. Jeremiah 51:41 Sheshak is a cryptogram for Babylon.
  8. Jeremiah 51:54 Or Chaldeans