Jeremiah 48

1 Of Moab. Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Woe unto Nebo! for it is spoiled; Kiriathaim is put to shame, it is taken; Misgab is put to shame and dismayed.

Concerning Moab: “Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: Woe to Nebo, for it is spoiled, Kiriathaim has been captured [and] put to shame, The high tower has been put to shame, Indeed, it has been broken down.

2 The praise of Moab is no more; in Heshbon they have devised evil against her: 'Come, and let us cut her off from being a nation.' Thou also, O Madmen, shalt be brought to silence; the sword shall pursue thee.

There is no longer praise of Moab, In Heshbon they devised evil against her: Come, and we cut it off from [being] a nation, Also, O Madmen, you are cut off, A sword goes after you.

3 Hark! a cry from Horonaim, spoiling and great destruction!

A voice of a cry [is] from Horonaim, Spoiling and great destruction.

4 Moab is destroyed; her little ones have caused a cry to be heard.

Moab has been destroyed, Her little ones have caused a cry to be heard.

5 For by the ascent of Luhith with continual weeping shall they go up; for in the going down of Horonaim they have heard the distressing cry of destruction.

For the ascent of Luhith with weeping, Weeping goes up, For in the descent of Horonaim Adversaries have heard a cry of desolation.

6 Flee, save your lives, and be like a tamarisk in the wilderness.

Flee, deliver yourselves, You are as a naked thing in a wilderness.

7 For, because thou hast trusted in thy works and in thy treasures, thou also shalt be taken; and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity, his priests and his princes together.

For because of your trusting in your works, And in your treasures, even you are captured, And Chemosh has gone out in a removal, His priests and his heads together.

8 And the spoiler shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape; the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed; as the LORD hath spoken.

And a spoiler comes to every city, And no city escapes, And the valley has perished, And the plain has been destroyed, as YHWH said.

9 Give wings unto Moab, for she must fly and get away; and her cities shall become a desolation, without any to dwell therein.

Give wings to Moab, that she may go forth and flee away, And her cities are for a desolation, Without an inhabitant in them.

10 Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD with a slack hand, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood.

Cursed [is] he who is doing the work of YHWH slothfully, And cursed [is] he Who is withholding his sword from blood.

11 Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity; therefore his taste remaineth in him, and his scent is not changed.

Moab is secure from his youth, And he [is] at rest for his preserved things, And he has not been emptied out from vessel to vessel, And he has not gone into captivity, Therefore his taste has remained in him, And his fragrance has not been changed.

12 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will send unto him them that tilt up, and they shall tilt him up; and they shall empty his vessels, and break their bottles in pieces.

Therefore, behold, days are coming, A declaration of YHWH, And I have sent wanderers to him, And they have caused him to wander, And they empty out his vessels, And they dash his bottles in pieces.

13 And Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Beth-el their confidence.

And Moab has been ashamed because of Chemosh, As the house of Israel has been ashamed Because of Beth-El, their confidence.

14 How say ye: 'We are mighty men, and valiant men for the war'?

How do you say, We [are] mighty, And men of strength for battle?

15 Moab is spoiled, and they are gone up into her cities, and his chosen young men are gone down to the slaughter, saith the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.

Moab is spoiled, and has gone up [from] her cities, And the choice of its young men Have gone down to slaughter, An affirmation of the King, YHWH of Hosts [is] His Name.

16 The calamity of Moab is near to come, and his affliction hasteth fast.

The destruction of Moab is near to come, And his calamity has hurried exceedingly.

17 Bemoan him, all ye that are round about him, and all ye that know his name; say: 'How is the strong staff broken, the beautiful rod!'

Bemoan for him, all you around him, And all knowing his name, say, How it has been broken, the staff of strength, The rod of beauty!

18 O thou daughter that dwellest in Dibon, come down from thy glory, and sit in thirst; for the spoiler of Moab is come up against thee, he hath destroyed thy strongholds.

Come down from glory, sit in thirst, O inhabitant, daughter of Dibon, For a spoiler of Moab has come up to you, He has destroyed your fortifications.

19 O inhabitant of Aroer, stand by the way, and watch; ask him that fleeth, and her that escapeth; say: 'What hath been done?'

Stand on the way, and watch, O inhabitant of Aroer, Ask the fugitive and escaped, Say, What has happened?

20 Moab is put to shame, for it is dismayed; wail and cry; tell ye it in Arnon, that Moab is spoiled.

Moab has been put to shame, For it has been broken down, Howl and cry, declare in Arnon, For Moab is spoiled,

21 And judgment is come upon the country of the Plain; upon Holon, and upon Jahzah, and upon Mephaath;

And judgment has come to the land of the plain—to Holon, And to Jahazah, and on Mephaath,

22 and upon Dibon, and upon Nebo, and upon Beth-diblathaim;

And on Dibon, and on Nebo, And on Beth-Diblathaim, and on Kirathaim,

23 and upon Kiriathaim, and upon Beth-gamul, and upon Beth-meon;

And on Beth-Gamul, and on Beth-Meon,

24 and upon Kerioth, and upon Bozrah, and upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near.

And on Kerioth, and on Bozrah, And on all cities of the land of Moab, The far off and the near.

25 The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, saith the LORD.

The horn of Moab has been cut down, And his arm has been broken, A declaration of YHWH.

26 Make ye him drunken, for he magnified himself against the LORD; and Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he also shall be in derision.

Declare him drunk, For he made himself great against YHWH And Moab has struck in his vomit, And he has been for a derision—even he.

27 For was not Israel a derision unto thee? Was he found among thieves? For as often as thou speakest of him, thou waggest the head.

And was Israel not the derision to you? Was he found among thieves? For since your words concerning him, You bemoan yourself.

28 O ye that dwell in Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock; and be like the dove that maketh her nest in the sides of the pit's mouth.

Forsake cities, and dwell in a rock, You inhabitants of Moab, And be as a dove making a nest in the passages of a pit’s mouth.

29 We have heard of the pride of Moab; he is very proud; his loftiness, and his pride, and his haughtiness, and the assumption of his heart.

We have heard of the arrogance of Moab, Exceedingly proud! His haughtiness, and his arrogance, And his pride, and the height of his heart,

30 I know his arrogancy, saith the LORD, that it is ill-founded; his boastings have wrought nothing well-founded.

I have known, a declaration of YHWH, His wrath, and [it is] not right, His boastings—they have done nothing right.

31 Therefore will I wail for Moab; yea, I will cry out for all Moab; for the men of Kir-heres shall my heart moan.

Therefore I howl for Moab, even for Moab—all of it, I cry for men of Kir-Heres, it mourns,

32 With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for thee, O vine of Sibmah; thy branches passed over the sea, they reached even to the sea of Jazer; upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage the spoiler is fallen.

With the weeping of Jazer, I weep for you, O vine of Sibmah, Your branches have passed over a sea, They have come to the Sea of Jazer, On your summer fruits, and on your harvest, A spoiler has fallen.

33 And gladness and joy is taken away from the fruitful field, and from the land of Moab; and I have caused wine to cease from the winepresses; none shall tread with shouting; the shouting shall be no shouting.

And joy and gladness have been removed from the fruitful field, Even from the land of Moab, And I have caused wine to cease from winepresses, Shouting does not proceed, The shouting [is] not shouting!

34 From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh, even unto Jahaz have they uttered their voice, from Zoar even unto Horonaim, a heifer of three years old; for the Waters of Nimrim also shall be desolate.

Because of the cry of Heshbon to Elealeh, They have given their voice to Jahaz, From Zoar to Horonaim, A heifer of the third [year], For even [the] waters of Nimrim become desolations.

35 Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab, saith the LORD, him that offereth in the high place, and him that offereth to his gods.

And I have caused to cease in Moab, A declaration of YHWH, Him who is offering in a high place, And him who is making incense to his god.

36 Therefore my heart moaneth for Moab like pipes, and my heart moaneth like pipes for the men of Kir-heres; therefore the abundance that he hath gotten is perished.

Therefore My heart sounds as pipes for Moab, And My heart sounds as pipes for men of Kir-Heres, Therefore the abundance he made perished.

37 For every head is bald, and every beard clipped; upon all the hands are cuttings, and upon the loins sackcloth.

For every head [is] bald, and every beard diminished, On all hands—cuttings, and on the loins—sackcloth.

38 On all the housetops of Moab and in the broad places thereof there is lamentation every where; for I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure, saith the LORD.

On all roofs of Moab, and in her broad-places, All of it—lamentation, For I have broken Moab as a vessel in which there is no pleasure,” A declaration of YHWH.

39 'How is it broken down!' wail ye! 'How hath Moab turned the back with shame!' So shall Moab become a derision and a dismay to all that are round about him.

“How it has been broken down! They have howled, How Moab has turned the neck ashamed! And Moab has been for a derision And for a terror to all around her.”

40 For thus saith the LORD: Behold, he shall swoop as a vulture, and shall spread out his wings against Moab.

For thus said YHWH: “Behold, he flees as an eagle, And has spread his wings to Moab.

41 The cities are taken, and the strongholds are seized, and the heart of the mighty men of Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.

The cities have been captured, And the strongholds are caught, And the heart of the mighty of Moab Has been in that day as the heart of a distressed woman.

42 And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he hath magnified himself against the LORD.

And Moab has been destroyed from [being] a people, For he exerted himself against YHWH.

43 Terror, and the pit, and the trap, are upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab, saith the LORD.

Fear, and a snare, and a trap, [are] for you, O inhabitant of Moab—a declaration of YHWH,

44 He that fleeth from the terror shall fall into the pit; and he that getteth up out of the pit shall be taken in the trap; for I will bring upon her, even upon Moab, the year of their visitation, saith the LORD.

Whoever is fleeing because of the fear falls into the snare, And whoever is coming up from the snare is captured by the trap, For I bring to her—to Moab—The year of their inspection, A declaration of YHWH.

45 In the shadow of Heshbon the fugitives stand without strength; for a fire is gone forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and it devoureth the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones.

In the shadow of Heshbon fugitives have stood powerless, For fire has gone forth from Heshbon, And a flame from within Sihon, And it consumes the corner of Moab, And the crown of the sons of Shaon.

46 Woe unto thee, O Moab! The people of Chemosh is undone; for thy sons are taken away captive, and thy daughters into captivity.

Woe to you, O Moab, The people of Chemosh have perished, For your sons were taken with the captives, And your daughters with the captivity.

47 Yet will I turn the captivity of Moab in the end of days, saith the LORD. Thus far is the judgment of Moab.

And I have turned back [to] the captivity of Moab, In the latter end of the days,” A declaration of YHWH! “Until now [is] the judgment of Moab.”