Jeremiah 48:24-41

24Kerioth and Bozrah. He will punish all the towns of Moab, near or far away.

25Moab has lost its power. Its strength has finished.’ That is what the Lord says.

26‘Moab has turned against me. So my anger will make him like a person who is drunk. He will lie down in the place where he has been sick. People will laugh at him.

27You people of Moab laughed at my people, the Israelites. Why did you insult them? You said that they were no better than a group of robbers.

28Now you must all leave your towns. Go and live among the rocks. Live like doves that make their nests high up among the rocks.

29We have heard that Moab's people are very proud. They think that they are better than everyone else. We know how much they boast.’

30The Lord says, ‘I know about Moab's proud thoughts. But their pride is false. Whatever they do, it will be useless.

31So I am sad for Moab. I am crying for all their people. I weep for the people of Kir-Heres.

32I weep for the vines of Sibmah, more than Jazer weeps. The branches of those vines reached across the sea as far as Jazer. But the cruel enemy will destroy all the fruit that grows on your vines and trees.

33People will no longer be happy in the land where this fruit grows. I will stop them making wine from their grapes. They will not stamp on their grapes and shout with joy. Instead, the shouts will be shouts about trouble.

34In Heshbon and Elealeh people cry out because of their pain. The noise reaches as far as Jahaz. It reaches from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-Shelishiyah. Even the Nimrim river has become dry.’

35The Lord says this: ‘I will remove the people of Moab who worship other gods. They offer sacrifices to them and they burn incense at their altars.

36So I am very sad for the people of Moab. I weep like a flute that plays a funeral song. I am sad for the people of Kir-Heres, because all their riches will disappear.

37All the men will be very upset. They will cut the hair off their heads and their faces. They will use knives to cut their hands. They will wear sackcloth as their clothes.

38People are standing on the roofs of their houses. They are standing in the streets. They are all crying and weeping. They are sad because I have destroyed Moab. I have broken it in pieces, like a jar that I no longer want.’ That is what the Lord says.

39‘Yes, Moab will be like a broken jar. Its people will weep with loud voices. They will turn away because they are ashamed. All the nations around there will laugh at Moab. They will see the terrible trouble that it has received.’

40The Lord says, ‘Look at the enemy that suddenly arrives! It comes like an eagle that flies down to catch its food.

41The enemy will take Moab's towns and its strong buildings. Moab's soldiers will be afraid, like a woman who will soon give birth.