Jeremiah 49
1 Concerning the sons of Ammon: “Thus said YHWH: Has Israel no sons? Has he no heir? Why has Malcam possessed Gad, And his people have dwelt in its 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, days are coming, A declaration of YHWH, And I have sounded a shout of battle in Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, And it has been for a heap—a desolation, And her daughters are burned with fire, And Israel has succeeded its heirs, said YHWH.
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, Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled, Cry, daughters of Rabbah, gird on sackcloth, Lament, and go to and fro by the hedges, For Malcam goes into captivity, 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 do you boast yourself in valleys? Your valley is flowing, O backsliding daughter, Who is trusting in her treasures: Who comes 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 am bringing fear in on you, A declaration of Lord YHWH of Hosts, From all around you, And you have each been driven out before it, And there is no gatherer of the wandering.
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 after this I return the captivity of the sons of Ammon, A declaration of YHWH.”
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 said YHWH of Hosts: Is wisdom no longer in Teman? Has counsel perished from the intelligent? Has 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, turn, go deep to dwell, you inhabitants of Dedan, For I brought the calamity of Esau on him, The time I inspected 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 gatherers have come to you, They do not leave gleanings, If thieves in the night, They have destroyed their sufficiency!
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 For I have made Esau bare, I have uncovered his secret places, And he is not able to be hidden, Spoiled [is] his seed, 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 orphans—I keep alive, And your widows—trust on Me,
But I will protect the orphans, and the widows [also] will [be able to] depend on me [to help them].”
12 For thus said YHWH: They whose judgment is not to drink of the cup, Do certainly drink, And you [are] he that is entirely acquitted! You are not acquitted, for you certainly drink.
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, A declaration of YHWH, That for a desolation, for a reproach, For a dry place, and for a reviling—is Bozrah, And all her cities are for continuous ruins.
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 report from YHWH, And an ambassador is sent among nations, Gather yourselves and come in against her, And rise for 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 behold, I have made you little among nations, 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 lifted you up, The pride of your heart, O dweller in clefts of the rock, Holding the high place of the height, For you make your nest high as an eagle, From there I bring you down, A declaration of YHWH.
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 And Edom has been for a desolation, Everyone passing by her is astonished, And hisses because of all her plagues.
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 the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, And its neighbors, said YHWH, No one dwells there, Nor does a son of man sojourn in her.
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 comes up as a lion, Because of the rising of the Jordan, To the enduring habitation, But I cause to rest, I cause him to run from off her, And who is chosen? I lay a charge concerning her, For who is like Me? And who convenes Me? And who [is] this shepherd who stands 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 YHWH, That He has counseled concerning Edom, And His plans that He has devised Concerning the inhabitants of Teman: Do little ones of the flock not drag them out, Does He not make their habitation desolate?
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 has shaken from the noise of their fall, The cry—its voice is heard at the Sea of Suph.
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 comes up as an eagle, and flies, And He spreads His wings over Bozrah, And the heart of the mighty of Edom has been in that day, As the heart of a travailing woman.”
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 and Arpad have been ashamed, For they have heard an evil report, They have been melted, sorrow [is] in the sea, It is not able to 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 has been feeble, She turned to flee, and fear strengthened her, Distress and pangs have seized her, as a travailing woman.
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 it is not left—the city of praise, The city of My joy!
That famous city, that I was [previously] pleased with, will be abandoned.
26 Therefore her young men fall in her broad places, And all the men of war are cut off in that day, A declaration of YHWH of Hosts.
Its young men will fall in the streets. Its soldiers will all be killed in one day.
27 And I have kindled a fire against the wall of Damascus, And it consumed palaces of Ben-Hadad!”
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 that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has struck: “Thus said YHWH: Arise, go up to Kedar, And spoil the sons 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 They take their tents and their flock, Their curtains, and all their vessels, And they carry away their camels for themselves, And they called concerning them, Fear [is] all around.
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, bemoan mightily, go deep to dwell, You inhabitants of Hazor—a declaration of YHWH, For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has given counsel against you, Indeed, he devises a scheme against them.
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 Rise, go up to a nation at rest, Dwelling confidently, a declaration of YHWH, It has no double gates nor bar, They 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 have been for a prey, And the multitude of their livestock for a spoil, And I have scattered them to every wind, Who cut off the corner [of the beard], And from all its passages I bring in their calamity, A declaration of YHWH.
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 has been for a habitation of dragons, A desolation for all time, No one dwells there, nor does a son of man sojourn 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 That which has been the word of YHWH to Jeremiah the prophet concerning 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 said YHWH of Hosts: Behold, I am breaking the bow of Elam, The beginning 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 I have brought four winds to Elam, From the four ends of the heavens, And have scattered them to all these winds, And there is no nation to where outcasts of Elam do not come in.
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 And I have frightened Elam before their enemies, And before those seeking their life, And I have brought calamity on them, The heat of My anger, A declaration of YHWH, And I have sent the sword after them, Until 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 have set My throne in Elam, And I have destroyed king and princes from there, A declaration of YHWH.
I, Yahweh, will judge them there [MTY], and [then] I will get rid of their king and [his] officials.
39 And it has come to pass, in the latter end of the days, I return the captivity of Elam, A declaration of YHWH!”
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.”
