1 T he Lord says, “See, I will raise up the spirit of a destroyer against Babylon and against the people of Chaldea.

Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, Against those who dwell in Leb Kamai, A destroying wind.

2 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.

And I will send winnowers to Babylon, Who shall winnow her and empty her land. For in the day of doom They shall be against her all around.

3 D o 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.

Against her let the archer bend his bow, And lift himself up against her in his armor. Do not spare her young men; Utterly destroy all her army.

4 T hey will fall down dead in the land of Babylon and be killed in their streets.”

Thus the slain shall fall in the land of the Chaldeans, And those thrust through in her streets.

5 F or 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.

For Israel is not forsaken, nor Judah, By his God, the Lord of hosts, Though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.”

6 R un 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.

Flee from the midst of Babylon, And every one save his life! Do not be cut off in her iniquity, For this is the time of the Lord ’s vengeance; He shall recompense her.

7 B abylon 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.

Babylon was a golden cup in the Lord ’s hand, That made all the earth drunk. The nations drank her wine; Therefore the nations are deranged.

8 A ll 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.

Babylon has suddenly fallen and been destroyed. Wail for her! Take balm for her pain; Perhaps she may be healed.

9 W e 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.

We would have healed Babylon, But she is not healed. Forsake her, and let us go everyone to his own country; For her judgment reaches to heaven and is lifted up to the skies.

10 T he Lord has taken our guilt away. Come and let us make the work of the Lord our God known in Zion.

The Lord has revealed our righteousness. Come and let us declare in Zion the work of the Lord our God.

11 M ake 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.

Make the arrows bright! Gather the shields! The Lord has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes. For His plan is against Babylon to destroy it, Because it is the vengeance of the Lord, The vengeance for His temple.

12 L ift 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.

Set up the standard on the walls of Babylon; Make the guard strong, Set up the watchmen, Prepare the ambushes. For the Lord has both devised and done What He spoke against the inhabitants of Babylon.

13 O you who live by many waters and have many riches, your end has come. Your life is being cut off.

O you who dwell by many waters, Abundant in treasures, Your end has come, The measure of your covetousness.

14 T he 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

The Lord of hosts has sworn by Himself: “Surely I will fill you with men, as with locusts, And they shall lift up a shout against you.”

15 H e made the earth by His power. He made the world by His wisdom. And by His understanding He spread out the heavens.

He has made the earth by His power; He has established the world by His wisdom, And stretched out the heaven by His understanding.

16 W hen 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.

When He utters His voice— There is a multitude of waters in the heavens: “He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; He makes lightnings for the rain; He brings the wind out of His treasuries.”

17 N o 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.

Everyone is dull-hearted, without knowledge; Every metalsmith is put to shame by the carved image; For his molded image is falsehood, And there is no breath in them.

18 T hey are of no worth, a false show. At the time of their punishment they will be destroyed.

They are futile, a work of errors; In the time of their punishment they shall perish.

19 H e 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.

The Portion of Jacob is not like them, For He is the Maker of all things; And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance. The Lord of hosts is His name.

20 H e says, “You are My battle-ax which I use in war. With you I destroy countries. With you I destroy nations.

“You are My battle-ax and weapons of war: For with you I will break the nation in pieces; With you I will destroy kingdoms;

21 W ith you I break in pieces the horse and its rider.

With you I will break in pieces the horse and its rider; With you I will break in pieces the chariot and its rider;

22 W ith 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.

With you also I will break in pieces man and woman; With you I will break in pieces old and young; With you I will break in pieces the young man and the maiden;

23 W ith 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

With you also I will break in pieces the shepherd and his flock; With you I will break in pieces the farmer and his yoke of oxen; And with you I will break in pieces governors and rulers.

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.

“And I will repay Babylon And all the inhabitants of Chaldea For all the evil they have done In Zion in your sight,” 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.

“Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, Who destroys all the earth,” says the Lord. “And I will stretch out My hand against you, Roll you down from the rocks, And make you a burnt mountain.

26 N ot 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.

They shall not take from you a stone for a corner Nor a stone for a foundation, But you shall be desolate forever,” says the Lord.

27 L ift 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.

Set up a banner in the land, Blow the trumpet among the nations! Prepare the nations against her, Call the kingdoms together against her: Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Appoint a general against her; Cause the horses to come up like the bristling locusts.

28 M ake the nations ready to fight against her. Make ready the kings of the Medes, their rulers and captains, and every land under their rule.

Prepare against her the nations, With the kings of the Medes, Its governors and all its rulers, All the land of his dominion.

29 T he 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.

And the land will tremble and sorrow; For every purpose of the Lord shall be performed against Babylon, To make the land of Babylon a desolation without inhabitant.

30 T he 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.

The mighty men of Babylon have ceased fighting, They have remained in their strongholds; Their might has failed, They became like women; They have burned her dwelling places, The bars of her gate are broken.

31 O ne 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.

One runner will run to meet another, And one messenger to meet another, To show the king of Babylon that his city is taken on all sides;

32 T he ways to cross the river have been stopped. The water grass has been burned with fire. And the soldiers are filled with fear.

The passages are blocked, The reeds they have burned with fire, And the men of war are terrified.

33 T he 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.”

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor When it is time to thresh her; Yet a little while And the time of her harvest 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.

“Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon Has devoured me, he has crushed me; He has made me an empty vessel, He has swallowed me up like a monster; He has filled his stomach with my delicacies, He has spit me out.

35 M ay 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.

Let the violence done to me and my flesh be upon Babylon,” The inhabitant of Zion will say; “And my blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea!” Jerusalem will say.

36 S o 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.

Therefore thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will plead your case and take vengeance for you. I will dry up her sea and make her springs dry.

37 B abylon will become a waste place, a place where wild dogs live. She will be an object of trouble and hate, where no people live.

Babylon shall become a heap, A dwelling place for jackals, An astonishment and a hissing, Without an inhabitant.

38 T ogether the people of Babylon make noise like young lions. They sound like a lion’s young ones.

They shall roar together like lions, They shall growl like lions’ whelps.

39 B ut 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.

In their excitement I will prepare their feasts; I will make them drunk, That they may rejoice, And sleep a perpetual sleep And not awake,” says the Lord.

40 “ I will bring them down like lambs to be killed, like rams and male goats. Babylon Is Destroyed

“I will bring them down Like lambs to the slaughter, Like rams with male goats.

41 “ How Babylon has been taken, the praise of the whole earth taken! How Babylon has become an object of trouble among the nations!

“Oh, how Sheshach is taken! Oh, how the praise of the whole earth is seized! How Babylon has become desolate among the nations!

42 T he sea has come up over Babylon. She has been covered with its many big waves.

The sea has come up over Babylon; She is covered with the multitude of its waves.

43 H er 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.

Her cities are a desolation, A dry land and a wilderness, A land where no one dwells, Through which no son of man passes.

44 A nd 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.

I will punish Bel in Babylon, And I will bring out of his mouth what he has swallowed; And the nations shall not stream to him anymore. Yes, the wall of Babylon shall fall.

45 “ Come out of her, My people. Save yourselves from the burning anger of the Lord.

“My people, go out of the midst of her! And let everyone deliver himself from the fierce anger of the Lord.

46 D o 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.

And lest your heart faint, And you fear for the rumor that will be heard in the land (A rumor will come one year, And after that, in another year A rumor will come, And violence in the land, Ruler against ruler),

47 S o 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.

Therefore behold, the days are coming That I will bring judgment on the carved images of Babylon; Her whole land shall be ashamed, And all her slain shall fall in her midst.

48 T hen 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.

Then the heavens and the earth and all that is in them Shall sing joyously over Babylon; For the plunderers shall come to her from the north,” says the Lord.

49 B abylon must fall because of the dead of Israel, just as the dead of all the earth have fallen because of Babylon.

As Babylon has caused the slain of Israel to fall, So at Babylon the slain of all the earth shall fall.

50 Y ou who have not been killed by the sword, go! Do not stay! Remember the Lord from far away, and think of Jerusalem.

You who have escaped the sword, Get away! Do not stand still! Remember the Lord afar off, And let Jerusalem come to your mind.

51 W e 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.

We are ashamed because we have heard reproach. Shame has covered our faces, For strangers have come into the sanctuaries 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.

“Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “That I will bring judgment on her carved images, And throughout all her land the wounded shall groan.

53 E ven if Babylon rises to the heavens and makes her high place strong, I will send destroyers against her,” says the Lord.

Though Babylon were to mount up to heaven, And though she were to fortify the height of her strength, Yet from Me plunderers would come to her,” says the Lord.

54 T he sound of a cry comes from Babylon! A noise comes from the land of the Babylonians because much is being destroyed!

The sound of a cry comes from Babylon, And great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans,

55 F or 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.

Because the Lord is plundering Babylon And silencing her loud voice, Though her waves roar like great waters, And the noise of their voice is uttered,

56 F or 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.

Because the plunderer comes against her, against Babylon, And her mighty men are taken. Every one of their bows is broken; For the Lord is the God of recompense, He will surely repay.

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.

“And I will make drunk Her princes and wise men, Her governors, her deputies, and her mighty men. And they shall sleep a perpetual sleep And not awake,” says the King, Whose name is the Lord of hosts.

58 T he 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

Thus says the Lord of hosts: “The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly broken, And her high gates shall be burned with fire; The people will labor in vain, And the nations, because of the fire; And they shall be weary.” Jeremiah’s Command to Seraiah

59 T his 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.

The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. And Seraiah was the quartermaster.

60 J eremiah wrote in a book all the trouble that would come upon Babylon. He wrote down all these words which have been written about Babylon.

So Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that would come upon Babylon, all these words that are written against Babylon.

61 T hen Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “As soon as you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words out loud.

And Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “When you arrive in Babylon and see it, and read all these words,

62 A nd 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.’

then you shall say, ‘O Lord, You have spoken against this place to cut it off, so that none shall remain in it, neither man nor beast, but it shall be desolate forever.’

63 W hen you have finished reading this book, tie a stone to it and throw it into the Euphrates River.

Now it shall be, when you have finished reading this book, that you shall tie a stone to it and throw it out into the Euphrates.

64 A nd 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.

Then you shall say, ‘Thus Babylon shall sink and not rise from the catastrophe that I will bring upon her. And they shall be weary.’” Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.