Jeremiah 49
1 Concerning the Ammonites, thus says the LORD; Has Israel no sons? has he no heir? why then does their king inherit Gad, and his people dwell in his cities?
[This message is] about the Ammon people-group. This is what Yahweh says: “There are [RHQ] plenty of Israeli people left to occupy [the land of the tribe of] Gad. So, why are [RHQ] [the people who worship the god] Molech living in those towns?
2 Therefore, behold, the days come, says the LORD, that I will cause an alarm of war to be heard in Rabbah of the Ammonites; and it shall be a desolate heap, and her daughters shall be burned with fire: then shall Israel be heir to them that were his heirs, said the LORD.
There will be a time when I will sound the battle-cry [for their enemies] to attack [their capital city], Rabbah. [Then] it will become a heap of ruins, and [all] the nearby towns will be burned. Then [the people of] Israel will again possess the land that the Ammon people-group took away from them.
3 Howl, O Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled: cry, you daughters of Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth; lament, and run to and fro by the hedges; for their king shall go into captivity, and his priests and his princes together.
You people of Heshbon [city] [MTY], wail, because Ai [town nearby] will be destroyed. You people of Rabbah [city], weep; put on (rough clothing/sackcloth) [to show you are mourning]; run back and forth [in confusion] inside the city walls, because [your god] Milcom, along with its priests and officials, will be taken away (in exile/to other countries).
4 Why glory you in the valleys, your flowing valley, O backsliding daughter? that trusted in her treasures, saying, Who shall come to me?
You are [RHQ] very proud of your very fertile valleys, [but they will soon be ruined]. You rebellious people, you trusted in your wealth, and you said, ‘Certainly no [RHQ] army will be able to attack us!’
5 Behold, I will bring a fear on you, says the Lord GOD of hosts, from all those that be about you; and you shall be driven out every man right forth; and none shall gather up him that wanders.
But listen to this: 'I, the Commander of the armies of angels, will cause you to become terrified. You will all be forced to flee [to other countries], and no one will be able to bring you together [again].'
6 And afterward I will bring again the captivity of the children of Ammon, says the LORD.
But some day I will enable the Ammon people-group to return to their land. [That will surely happen, because I, ] Yahweh, have said it.”
7 Concerning Edom, thus says the LORD of hosts; Is wisdom no more in Teman? is counsel perished from the prudent? is their wisdom vanished?
[This message is] about the Edom people-group. This is what the Commander of the armies of angels says: “It seems that [RHQ] there are no wise people in Teman [district in Edom]! There are no people left who can give others [good] advice. The people who were wise [PRS] have disappeared.
8 Flee you, turn back, dwell deep, O inhabitants of Dedan; for I will bring the calamity of Esau on him, the time that I will visit him.
You people of Dedan [city in the south of Edom], turn and flee and hide in deep [caves], because when I cause the Edom people-group to experience disaster, I will punish you, too.
9 If grape gatherers come to you, would they not leave some gleaning grapes? if thieves by night, they will destroy till they have enough.
Those who harvest grapes always [RHQ] leave some on the vines. When thieves come at night, they surely [RHQ] steal only as much as they want.
10 But I have made Esau bore, I have uncovered his secret places, and he shall not be able to hide himself: his seed is spoiled, and his brothers, and his neighbors, and he is not.
But I will cause everything in Edom to be destroyed, and there will be nothing left, and there will be no place for people to hide. [Many of] [HYP] the children, their relatives and their neighbors, will die, and Edom will not exist any more.
11 Leave your fatherless children, I will preserve them alive; and let your widows trust in me.
But I will protect the orphans, and the widows [also] will [be able to] depend on me [to help them].”
12 For thus says the LORD; Behold, they whose judgment was not to drink of the cup have assuredly drunken; and are you he that shall altogether go unpunished? you shall not go unpunished, but you shall surely drink of it.
And this is [also] what Yahweh says: “If those who do not deserve to suffer [MET] must suffer, you people of Edom must [RHQ] suffer much more [DOU]! You will not escape being punished.
13 For I have sworn by myself, says the LORD, that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all the cities thereof shall be perpetual wastes.
I, Yahweh, have solemnly promised, using my own name, that [your chief city] Bozrah will become a place that people will be horrified about. It will be a heap of ruins. People will make fun of it and use its name when they curse people. All the nearby towns and villages will be a ruins forever.”
14 I have heard a rumor from the LORD, and an ambassador is sent to the heathen, saying, Gather you together, and come against her, and rise up to the battle.
I heard this message from Yahweh: “I have sent an ambassador to [many] nations, [to tell them to] gather together to attack Edom. They must prepare for battle!”
15 For, see, I will make you small among the heathen, and despised among men.
[And Yahweh says to the people of Edom, ] “I will cause your nation to become very unimportant among the [other] nations. They will all despise your country.
16 Your terribleness has deceived you, and the pride of your heart, O you that dwell in the clefts of the rock, that hold the height of the hill: though you should make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there, says the LORD.
You have caused [people of other nations] to be terrified, and you [MTY] have been very proud, but you have deceived yourselves. You live in caves in the rock cliffs; [you think that you are safe there because] you live high up there. But even if you make your homes as high up as the eagles’ nests, I will cause you to come [crashing] down.
17 Also Edom shall be a desolation: every one that goes by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss at all the plagues thereof.
Edom will become a place about which people are horrified; people who pass by will be horrified and will (gasp/be shocked) when they see the destruction.
18 As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbor cities thereof, says the LORD, no man shall abide there, neither shall a son of man dwell in it.
Edom will be destroyed as [completely as] Sodom and Gomorrah and the nearby towns were destroyed [long ago]. [As a result, ] no one will live there [any more] [DOU].
19 Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan against the habitation of the strong: but I will suddenly make him run away from her: and who is a chosen man, that I may appoint over her? for who is like me? and who will appoint me the time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?
I will come to Edom [suddenly] like [SIM] a lion comes out of the jungle and [leaps on the sheep that are] eating in the good pastureland. I will quickly chase the people of Edom from their land. And [then] I will appoint for them a leader whom I will choose; [I can do that] because there is no one [RHQ] like me who can object to what I do. No ruler can oppose me.
20 Therefore hear the counsel of the LORD, that he has taken against Edom; and his purposes, that he has purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out: surely he shall make their habitations desolate with them.
Listen to what I have planned to do to the people of Teman [town] and [the rest of] Edom: Even the little children will be dragged away, and I will completely get rid of the people [MET] who live there.
21 The earth is moved at the noise of their fall, at the cry the noise thereof was heard in the Red sea.
When Edom is destroyed, the noise [will be extremely great], with the result that the earth will shake, and the wailing of the people will be heard [as far away as] the Red Sea.
22 Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread his wings over Bozrah: and at that day shall the heart of the mighty men of Edom be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.
Look! The enemy troops will swoop/rush down over Bozrah like an eagle spreads its wings when it swoops down [to seize an animal]. On that day, [even the strongest] warriors of Edom will [be afraid] like [SIM] a woman who is about to give birth.”
23 Concerning Damascus. Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea; it cannot be quiet.
[This message is] about Damascus. [This is what Yahweh says]: “[The people in the nearby cities of] Hamath and Arpad are confused, because they have heard bad news [about Damascus]. They are very anxious and restless, like [SIM] a sea in a big storm.
24 Damascus is waxed feeble, and turns herself to flee, and fear has seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
The people of Damascus have become very weak, and [they all] have (panicked/fled [because] they are very afraid). The people are anguished and in pain like [SIM] a woman [experiences] who is about to give birth.
25 How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
That famous city, that I was [previously] pleased with, will be abandoned.
26 Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, says the LORD of hosts.
Its young men will fall in the streets. Its soldiers will all be killed in one day.
27 And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad.
And I, the Commander of the armies of angels, will start a fire to burn the walls that surround Damascus, and the palaces of [King] Ben-Hadad will be burned down.”
28 Concerning Kedar, and concerning the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon shall smite, thus says the LORD; Arise you, go up to Kedar, and spoil the men of the east.
[This is a message] about the Kedar [people-group] and the kingdom of Hazor which [the army of] Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon attacked. This is what Yahweh says: “[I will cause an army to] advance to attack Kedar and destroy those people who live east [of Judah].
29 Their tents and their flocks shall they take away: they shall take to themselves their curtains, and all their vessels, and their camels; and they shall cry to them, Fear is on every side.
Their tents and their flocks [of sheep] will be captured. The curtains [in their tents] and their camels and their other possessions will be taken away. [Everywhere] men will shout, ‘We are terrified [because terrible things are happening] all around us!’
30 Flee, get you far off, dwell deep, O you inhabitants of Hazor, says the LORD; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon has taken counsel against you, and has conceived a purpose against you.
So [I, ] Yahweh, say, ‘Run away [quickly]! You people who live in Hazor, go and hide in deep [caves], because King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon wants to attack you [with his army]; he is planning to destroy you!’
31 Arise, get you up to the wealthy nation, that dwells without care, says the LORD, which have neither gates nor bars, which dwell alone.
But I say [to Nebuchadnezzar], ‘Go up and attack that nation whose people feel secure; they do not have allies [who will help them] and do not have [walls with] gates that have bars in them.
32 And their camels shall be a booty, and the multitude of their cattle a spoil: and I will scatter into all winds them that are in the utmost corners; and I will bring their calamity from all sides thereof, says the LORD.
Your troops will seize their camels and [other] livestock. I will scatter in every direction [IDM] those people who live in remote places (OR, who cut their hair short). I will cause them to experience disasters from every direction.
33 And Hazor shall be a dwelling for dragons, and a desolation for ever: there shall no man abide there, nor any son of man dwell in it.
Hazor will become a place where jackals/wolves live, and it will be deserted forever. No one will live there again; no one will settle there [DOU].’”
34 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,
I received this message from Yahweh when King Zedekiah was starting to rule Judah.
35 Thus says the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, the chief of their might.
This is what the Commander of the armies of angels says: “The men of Elam are famous (archers/men who shoot arrows well); that is how they have made their country very powerful. But I will get rid of them [MET].
36 And on Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation where the outcasts of Elam shall not come.
I will bring their enemies from all directions [IDM, DOU], and they will scatter the people of Elam in all directions. The people of Elam will be exiled to every nation on the earth [LIT, HYP].
37 For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil on them, even my fierce anger, says the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them:
Because I am very angry with the people of Elam, I will enable their enemies to smash Elam; I will cause the people of Elam to experience great disasters. I will enable their enemies, who want to kill them, to pursue them [and kill them] with swords until I completely get rid of all of them.
38 And I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from there the king and the princes, says the LORD.
I, Yahweh, will judge them there [MTY], and [then] I will get rid of their king and [his] officials.
39 But it shall come to pass in the latter days, that I will bring again the captivity of Elam, says the LORD.
But some day, I will enable the people of Elam to return to their land. [That will surely happen because I, ] Yahweh, have said it.”
