Jeremiah 51:11-64

111Sharpen the arrows, fill the quivers! The Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, Because His plan is against Babylon to destroy it; For it is the 2vengeance of the Lord, vengeance for His temple.123Lift up a signal flag against the walls of Babylon; Post a strong guard, Station 4sentries, Set up an ambush! For the Lord has both 5planned and performed What He spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.13You who 6live by many waters, Abundant in 7treasures, Your end has come, The 8measure of your 910end.14The 11Lord of armies has sworn by Himself: “I will certainly fill you with a 12population like 13locusts, And they will cry out with shouts of victory over you.”

15It is 14He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom, And by His understanding He 15stretched out the heavens.16When He utters His 16voice, there is a roar of waters in the heavens, And He makes the 17clouds ascend from the end of the earth. He makes lightning for the rain And brings out 18wind from His storehouses.1719Every person is stupid, devoid of knowledge; Every goldsmith is put to shame by his 20idols, For his cast metal images are 21deceitful, And there is no breath in them.18They are 22worthless, a work of mockery; At the time of their punishment they will perish.19The 23portion of Jacob is not like these; For He is the 24Maker of everything, And of the 25tribe of His inheritance; The 26Lord of armies is His name.20He says, “You are My 2728war-club, My weapon of war; And with you I 29shatter nations, And with you I destroy kingdoms.21With you I 30shatter the horse and his rider, And with you I shatter the 31chariot and its rider,22And with you I shatter 32man and woman, And with you I shatter the old man and 33youth, And with you I shatter the young man and virgin,23And with you I shatter the shepherd and his flock, And with you I shatter the farmer and his team, And with you I shatter governors and officials.

24“But I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of 34Chaldea for 35all their evil that they have done in Zion before your eyes,” declares the Lord.25“Behold, 36I am against you, mountain of 37destruction That destroys the whole earth,” declares the Lord, “And I will stretch out My hand against you, And roll you down from the rocky cliffs, And I will make you a 38burnt out mountain.26They will not take from you even a stone for a corner Nor a stone for foundations, But you will be 39desolate forever,” declares the Lord.

2740Lift up a signal flag in the land, Blow a trumpet among the nations! Consecrate the nations against her, Summon against her the 41kingdoms of 42Ararat, Minni, and 43Ashkenaz; Appoint an officer against her, Bring up the 44horses like bristly locusts.28Consecrate the nations against her, The kings of the Medes, 45Their governors and all 46their officials, And every land 47under their control.29So the 48land quakes and writhes, For the plans of the Lord against Babylon stand, To make the land of Babylon 49A 50desolation without inhabitants.30The 51warriors of Babylon have ceased fighting, They stay in the strongholds; 52Their strength is 53exhausted, They are becoming 54like women; Their homes are set on fire, The 55bars of her gates are broken.31One 5657courier runs to meet 58another, And one 5960messenger to meet 61another, To tell the king of Babylon That his city has been captured from end to end;32The river crossing places have been seized, And they have burned the marshes with fire, And the men of war are terrified.

33For this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: “The daughter of Babylon is like a 62threshing floor At the time that 63it is tread down; In just a little while the time of 64harvest will come for her.”

34“Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has 65devoured me, he has crushed me, He has set me down like an 66empty vessel; He has 67swallowed me like a monster, He has filled his stomach with my delicacies; He has washed me away.35May the 68violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,” The 69inhabitant of Zion will say; And, “May my blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,” Jerusalem will say. 36Therefore this is what the Lord says: “Behold, I am going to 70plead your case And 71take vengeance for you; And 72I will dry up her 73sea And make her fountain dry.3774Babylon will become a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals, An 75object of horror and hissing, without inhabitants.38They will roar together like 76young lions, They will growl like lions’ cubs.39When they become heated up, I will serve them their banquet And 77make them drunk, so that they may rejoice in triumph, And may 78sleep a perpetual sleep And not wake up,” declares the Lord.40“I will bring them down like 79lambs 80to the slaughter, Like rams together with male goats.

41“How 8182Sheshak has been captured, And 83the praise of the whole earth has been seized! How Babylon has become an object of horror among the nations!42The 8485sea has come up over Babylon; She has been engulfed by its roaring waves.43Her cities have become an 86object of horror, A dry land and a desert, A land in which 87no one lives And through which no 88one of mankind passes.4489I will punish Bel in Babylon, And I will make what he has swallowed 90come out of his mouth; And the nations will no longer 91stream toward him. Even the 92wall of Babylon has fallen down!

45“93Come out from her midst, My people, And each of you 94save yourselves From the fierce anger of the Lord.46Now, 95so that your heart does not grow faint, And you are not afraid at the 96report that will be heard in the land-- For the report will come in 97one year, And after that 98another report in 99another year, And violence will be in the land With 100ruler against ruler--47Therefore behold, days are coming When I will punish the 101idols of Babylon; And her whole land will be 102put to shame. And all her slain will fall in her midst.48Then 103heaven and earth and everything that is in them Will shout for joy over Babylon, Because 104the destroyers will come to her from the north,” Declares the Lord.

49105Indeed, Babylon is to fall for the slain of Israel, As 106the slain of all the earth have also fallen for Babylon.50You 107who have escaped the sword, Go! Do not stay! 108Remember the Lord from far away, And let Jerusalem 109come to your mind.51110We are ashamed because we have heard rebuke; Disgrace has covered our faces, Because 111strangers have entered The holy places of the Lord’s house.

52“Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will punish her 112idols, And the mortally wounded will groan throughout her land.53Though Babylon 113ascends to the heavens, And though she fortifies 114her lofty stronghold, Destroyers will come from 115Me to her,” declares the Lord.

54The 116sound of an outcry from Babylon, And of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!55For the Lord is going to destroy Babylon, And He will make her loud 117noise vanish from her. And their 118waves will roar like many waters; The clamor of their voices 119sounds forth.56For the 120destroyer is coming against her, against Babylon, And her warriors will be captured, Their 121bows shattered; For the Lord is a God of 122retribution, He will fully repay.57“I will 123make her leaders and her wise men drunk, Her governors, her officials, and her warriors, So that they will sleep a 124perpetual sleep and not wake up,” 125Declares the King, whose name is the Lord of armies. 58This is what the Lord of armies says: “The broad 126wall of Babylon will be completely demolished, And her high 127gates will be set on fire; So the peoples will 128labor for nothing, And the nations become 129exhausted only for fire.”

59The 130command that Jeremiah the prophet 131gave Seraiah the son of 132Neriah, the grandson of Mahseiah, when he went with 133Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. (And Seraiah was quartermaster.) 60Jeremiah 134wrote 135on a single scroll all the disaster which would come against Babylon, that is, all these words which have been written concerning Babylon. 61Then Jeremiah said to Seraiah, “As soon as you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words aloud, 62and say, ‘You, Lord, have 136promised concerning this place to 137cut it off, so that there will be 138nothing living in it, 139whether man or animal; but it will be a permanent desolation.’ 63And as soon as you finish reading this 140scroll, you shall tie a stone to it and 141throw it into the middle of the Euphrates, 64and say, ‘Just so shall Babylon sink down and 142not rise again, because of the disaster that I am going to bring upon her; and they will become 143exhausted.’” 144To this point are the words of Jeremiah.