Jeremiah 25

Prophecy of the Captivity

1The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the 1fourth year of 2Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (that was the 3first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), 2the word which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the 4people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, 3“From the 5thirteenth year of 6Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, 7these 8twenty-three years the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you 9again and again, but you have not listened. 4And the Lord has sent to you all His 10servants the prophets again and again, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear, 5saying, ‘11Turn now, everyone from his evil way and from the evil of your deeds, and live on the land which the Lord has given to you and your forefathers 12forever and ever; 6and 13do not follow other gods to 14serve them and to 15worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands, then I will do you no harm.’ 7Yet you have not listened to Me,” declares the Lord, “in order to 16provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm.

8“Therefore this is what the Lord of armies says: ‘Because you have not obeyed My words, 9behold, I will 17send and take all the families of the north,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will send to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, 18My servant, and will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants and against all these surrounding nations; and I will 19completely destroy them and 20make them an object of horror and 21hissing, and an everlasting place of ruins. 10Moreover, I will 22eliminate from them the voice of jubilation and the voice of joy, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride, the 23sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. 1124This entire land will be a place of ruins and an object of horror, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for 25seventy years.

Babylon Will Be Judged

12‘Then it will be 26when seventy years are completed I will 27punish the king of Babylon and that nation,’ declares the Lord, ‘for their wrongdoing, and the land of the Chaldeans; and 28I will make it an everlasting desolation. 13I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, all that is written in 29this book which Jeremiah has prophesied against 30all the nations. 14(31For 32many nations and great kings will make slaves of them, even them; and I will 33repay them according to their deeds and according to the work of their hands.)’”

15For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to me: “Take this 34cup of the wine of wrath from My hand and give it to all the nations to whom I send you, to drink from it. 16Then they will 35drink and loudly vomit and act insanely because of the sword that I am going to send among them.”

17So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand and 36gave it to all the nations to whom the Lord sent me, to drink from it: 18To 37Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, and its kings and its officials, to make them places of ruins, objects of horror, 38hissing, and a curse, as it is this day; 19To 39Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his officials, and all his people; 20and to all the 40foreign 41people, all the kings of the 42land of Uz, all the kings of the land of the 43Philistines (that is, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of 44Ashdod); 21To 45Edom, 46Moab, and the sons of 47Ammon; 22and to all the kings of 48Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of 49the coastlands which are beyond the sea; 23and to 50Dedan, Tema, 51Buz, and all who 52trim the corners of their hair; 24and to all the kings of 53Arabia and all the kings of the 54foreign 55people who live in the desert; 25and to all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of 56Elam, and all the kings of 57Media; 26and to all the kings of the north, near and far, one with another; and 58all the kingdoms of the earth which are on the face of the ground; and the king of 5960Sheshach shall drink it after them.

27“And you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: “61Drink, be drunk, vomit, fall down, and do not get up, because of the 62sword which I am sending among you.”’ 28And if they 63refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of armies says: “64You shall certainly drink! 29For behold, I am 65beginning to inflict disaster on this city which is 66called by My name, so should you be completely free from punishment? You will not be free from punishment, for 67I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth,” declares the Lord of armies.’

30“Therefore you shall prophesy against them all these words, and you shall say to them, ‘The 68Lord will 69roar from on high And raise His voice from His holy dwelling; He will roar forcefully against His 70fold. He will shout like those who tread the grapes, Against all the inhabitants of the earth.31A clamor has come to the end of the earth, Because the Lord has 71a controversy with the nations. He is entering into 72judgment with 73humanity; As for the wicked, He has turned them over to the sword,’ declares the Lord.”

32This is what the Lord of armies says: “Behold, evil is going out From 74nation to nation, And a great 75storm is being stirred up From the remotest parts of the earth.

33“Those 76put to death by the Lord on that day will be from one end of the earth to the 77other. They will 78not be mourned, gathered, or buried; they will be like 79dung on the face of the ground.34Wail, you shepherds, and cry out; 80Wallow in the dust, you masters of the flock; For the days of your 81slaughter and your dispersions 82have come, And you will fall like a precious vessel.3583There will be 84no sanctuary for the shepherds, Nor escape for the masters of the flock.36Hear the sound of the cry of the shepherds, And the wailing of the masters of the flock! For the Lord is destroying their pasture,37And the peaceful 85grazing places are devastated Because of the 86fierce anger of the Lord.38He has left His hiding place 87like the lion; For their land has become a horror Because of the fierceness of the 88oppressing sword And because of His fierce anger.”