Jeremiah 51
1 Thus, saith Yahweh—Behold me! stirring up against Babylon, And against the inhabitants of the centre of them who rise up against me, —A wind that destroyeth;
Thus saith the Lord: Behold I will raise up as it were a pestilential wind against Babylon and against the inhabitants thereof, who have lifted up their heart against me.
2 And I will send to Babylon winnowers, And they shall winnow her, And shall empty her land, —For they are against her round about in the day of calamity.
And I will send to Babylon fanners, and they shall fan her, and shall destroy her land: for they are come upon her on every side in the day of her affliction.
3 Let not the archer tread his bow, Nor lift himself up in his coat of mail, —And do not spare her young men, Devote to destruction all her host.
Let not him that bendeth, bend his bow, and let not, him go up that is armed with a coat of mail: spare not her young men, destroy all her army.
4 So shall they fall wounded in the land of Chaldea, —Yea thrust through, in her streets,
And the slain shall fall in the land of the Chaldeans, and the wounded in the regions thereof.
5 For Israel and Judah have not been widowed Of their God, Of Yahweh of hosts, —But, their land, hath been filled with punishment for guilt from the Holy One of Israel
For Israel and Juda have not been forsaken by their God the Lord of hosts: but their land hath been filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.
6 Flee out of the midst of Babylon And deliver ye every man his own life, Be not cut off in her punishment, —For it is Yahweh’s, time of avenging, A recompense, is he repaying unto her.
Flee ye from the midst of Babylon, and let every one save his own life: be not silent upon her iniquity: for it is the time of revenge from the Lord, he will I render unto her what she hath deserved.
7 A cup of gold, was Babylon in the hand of Yahweh, Making drunk all the earth, —Of her wine, have the nations drunk, For this cause have the nations been acting as men who are mad.
Babylon hath been a golden cup in the hand of the Lord, that made all the earth drunk: the nations have drunk of her wine, and therefore they have staggered.
8 Suddenly, hath Babylon fallen and been broken, —Howl ye over her Fetch balsam for her pain, Peradventure she shall be healed!
Babylon is suddenly fallen, and destroyed: howl for her, take balm for her pain, if so she may be healed.
9 We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed, Leave her and let us go every one to his own land, —For her judgment, reacheth unto the heavens, And mounteth as far as the skies.
We would have cured Babylon, but she is not healed: let us forsake her, and let us go every man to his own land: because her judgment hath reached even to the heavens, and is lifted up to the clouds.
10 Yahweh hath brought forth our righteousnesses, —Come and let us relate in Zion the work of Yahweh our God.
The Lord hath brought forth our justices: Come, and let us declare in Sion the work of the Lord our God.
11 Polish the arrows, Lay hold of the shields, —Yahweh hath roused the spirit of the kings of the Medes, For against Babylon, his purpose is, to destroy her, —For it is, The avenging of Yahweh, The avenging of his temple.
Sharpen the arrows, fill the quivers, the Lord hath raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes: and his mind is against Babylon to destroy it, because it is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance of his temple.
12 Against the walls of Babylon, Lift ye up a standard, Strengthen ye the watch, Station the watchmen, Make ready the ambuscades, —For Yahweh hath both planned and also performed that which he had spoken against the inhabitants of Babylon.
Upon the walls of Babylon set up the standard, strengthen the watch: set up the watchmen, prepare the ambushes: for the Lord hath both purposed, and done all that he spoke against the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 O thou who dwellest upon many waters, Who aboundest in treasures, —Come hath thine end! The measure of thine unrighteous gain!
O thou that dwellest upon many waters, rich in treasures, thy end is come for thy entire destruction.
14 Yahweh of hosts hath sworn, by his own soul: Surely I have filled thee with men as with locusts, And they have answered against thee with a shout.
The Lord of hosts hath sworn by himself, saying: I will fill thee with men as with locusts, and they shall lift up a joyful shout against thee.
15 He that Made the earth in his might, Established the world in his wisdom, —And in his understanding, stretched out the heavens
He that made the earth by his power, that hath prepared the world by his wisdom, and stretched out the heavens by his understanding.
16 By the voice that he uttered, there was a tumult of waters in the heavens, And he caused vapours to ascend from the end of the earth, —Lightnings for the rain, made he, And brought forth wind out of his treasures.
When he uttereth his voice the waters are multiplied in heaven: he lifteth up the clouds from the ends of the earth, he hath turned lightning into rain: and hath brought forth the wind out of his treasures.
17 Every son of earth had become too brutish to know, —Every goldsmith, hath been put to shame, by a graven image, —For a falsehood, is his molten image Seeing there is no breath in them:
Every man is become foolish by his knowledge: every founder is confounded by his idol, for what he hath cast is a lie, and there is no breath in them.
18 Vanity, they are, A handiwork of mockeries, —In the time of their visitation, shall they perish.
They are vain works, and worthy to be laughed at, in the time of their visitation they shall perish.
19 Not like these, is the portion of Jacob, For the fashioner of all things, is he! And the portion of his inheritance, —Yahweh of hosts, is his name.
The portion of Jacob is not like them: for he that made all things he it is, and Israel is the sceptre of his inheritance: the Lord of hosts is his name.
20 A war-club, art thou for me, Weapons of war; Therefore will I Beat down with thee—nations, and Destroy with thee—kingdoms;
Thou dashest together for me the weapons of war, and with thee I will dash nations together, and with thee I will destroy kingdoms:
21 and Beat down with thee—the horse and his rider, —and Beat down with thee—the chariot and its rider;
And with thee I will break in pieces the horse, and his rider, and with thee I will break in pieces the chariot, and him that getteth up into it:
22 and Beat down with thee—man and woman, and Beat down with thee—elder and youth, and Beat down with thee—young man and virgin;
And with thee I will break in pieces man and woman, and with thee I will break in pieces the old man and the child, and with thee I will break in pieces the young man and the virgin:
23 and Beat down with thee—the shepherd and his flock, and Beat down with thee—the plowman and his yoke; —and Beat down with thee—governors and deputies:
And with thee I will break in pieces the shepherd and his dock, and with thee I will break in pieces the husbandman and his yoke of oxen, and with thee I will break in pieces captains and rulers.
24 So will I recompense to Babylon, And to all the inhabitants of Chaldea, All their wickedness which they have committed against Zion before your eyes, —Declareth Yahweh.
And I will render to Babylon, and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil, that they have done in Sion, before your eyes, saith the Lord.
25 Behold me! against thee, O destroying mountain Declareth Yahweh, That destroyest all the earth, —Therefore will I stretch out my hand over thee, And roll thee down from the crags, And make of thee a burning mountain:
Behold I come against thee, thou destroying mountain, saith the Lord, which corruptest the whole earth: and I will stretch out my hand upon thee, and will roll thee down from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt mountain.
26 So shall they not fetch from thee A stone for a corner nor A stone for a foundation, —For desolations age-abiding, shalt thou become Declareth Yahweh.
And they shall not take of thee a stone for the corner, nor a stone for foundations, but thou shalt be destroyed for ever, saith the Lord.
27 Set ye up an ensign in the earth Blow ye a horn among the nations Hallow against her—nations, Summon against her the kingdoms of Ararat Minni, and Ashkenaz, —Set in charge against her a marshal, Bring up cavalry like hairy locusts:
Set ye up a standard in the land: sound with the trumpet among the nations: prepare the nations against her: call together against her the kings of Ararat, Menni, and Ascenez: number Taphsar against her, bring the horse as the stinging locust.
28 Hallow against her—nations, With the kings of Media, With her governors and all her deputies, —And with all the land of his dominion:
Prepare the nations against her, the kings of Media, their captains, and all their rulers, and all the land of their dominion.
29 Then did the land tremble and was in pain, —For the plans of Yahweh, had been established against Babylon, To make the land of Babylon an astonishment, without inhabitant.
And the land shall be in a commotion, and shall be troubled: for the design of the Lord against Babylon shall awake, to make the land of Babylon desert and uninhabitable.
30 The heroes of Babylon have ceased to fight They have remained in the strongholds, Parched is their might, They have become women, —They have set fire to her habitations, Broken are her bars!
The valiant men of Babylon have forborne to fight, they have dwelt in holds: their strength hath failed, and they are become as women: her dwelling places are burnt, her bars are broken.
31 Runner to meet runner, shall they run, And teller to meet teller, -To tell the king of Babylon, That captured is his city at the end!
One running post shall meet another, and messenger shall meet messenger: to tell the king of Babylon that his city is taken from one end to the other:
32 and The fords, have been seized, and The reeds, have they burned with fire; and The men of war, are dismayed!
And that the fords are taken, and the marshes are burnt with fire, and the men of war are affrighted.
33 For, thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, The daughter of Babylon, is like a threshing, floor at the time of treading her: Yet a little, and the time of harvest shall overtake her.
For thus saith the Lord of hosts the God of Israel: The daughter of Babylon is like a thrashingfloor, this is the time of her thrashing: yet a little while, and the time of her harvest shall come.
34 Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon—Hath devoured me Hath vexed me, Hath set me down as an empty vessel, He hath swallowed me like a sea-monster, He hath filled his belly with my dainties, —He hath driven me away!
Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon hath eaten me up, he hath devoured me: he hath made me as an empty vessel: he hath swallowed me up like a dragon, he hath filled his belly with my delicate meats, and he hath cast me out.
35 The violence done to me and to my flesh, be upon Babylon! Shall the inhabitress of Zion say, —Yea, my blood, be upon the inhabitant of Chaldea! Shall Jerusalem say.
The wrong done to me, and my flesh be upon Babylon, saith the habitation of Sion: and my blood upon the inhabitants of Chaldea, saith Jerusalem.
36 Therefore, Thus, saith Yahweh, Behold me! pleading thy cause, So then I will execute the avenging of thee; And will dry up her sea, And make dry her spring:
Therefore thus saith the Lord: Behold I will judge thy cause, and will take vengeance for thee, and I will make her sea desolate, and will dry up her spring.
37 Thus shall Babylon become—Heaps A habitation of jackals An astonishment, and A hissing, Without inhabitant.
And Babylon shall be reduced to heaps, a dwelling place for dragons, an astonishment and a hissing, because there is no inhabitant.
38 Together, like wild lions, shall they roar, —They have growled like lions’ whelps.
They shall roar together like lions, they shall shake their manes like young lions.
39 When they are heated, I will spread their banquets, And let them drink that they may become uproarious, So shall they sleep an age-abiding sleep and not wake, —Declareth Yahweh.
In their heat I will set them drink: and I will make them drunk, that they may slumber, and sleep an everlasting sleep, and awake no more, saith the Lord.
40 I will bring them down As fat lambs to slaughter, —As rams with he-goats.
I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, and like rams with kids.
41 How hath Sheshach, been captured! How hath the praise of all the earth been seized! How hath Babylon become an astonishment among the nations!
How is Sesach taken, and the renowned one of all the earth surprised? How is Babylon become an astonishment among the nations?
42 The sea, hath gone up over Babylon, —With the multitude of its rolling waves, is she covered.
The sea is come up over Babylon: she is covered with the multitude of the waves thereof.
43 Her cities have become, an astonishment, A land parched up, and a waste plain, —A land wherein shall no man dwell, Nor pass through them a son of the earth-born!
Her cities are become an astonishment, a land uninhabited and desolate, a land wherein none can dwell, nor son of man pass through it.
44 So will I bring punishment upon Bel in Babylon, And will bring forth what he hath swallowed out of his mouth, And the nations shall stream unto him no more, —Even the wall of Babylon hath fallen!
And I will visit against Bel in Babylon, and I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he had swallowed down: and the rations shall no more flow together to him, for the wall also of Babylon shall fall.
45 Come ye forth out of her midst O my people, And deliver ye every man his own life, —Because of the glow of the anger of Yahweh.
Go out of the midst of her, my people: that every man may save his life from the fierce wrath of the Lord.
46 And let not your heart be timid, nor be ye afraid, Because of the report that is reported in the earth When there shall come in one year, the report And after that in another year, the report, With violence in the earth, and ruler upon ruler.
And lest your hearts faint, and ye fear for the rumour that shall be heard in the land: and a rumour shall come in one year, and after this year another rumour: and iniquity in the land, and ruler upon ruler.
47 Therefore, lo! days coming when I will bring punishment upon the images of Babylon, And all her land, shall turn pale, —Yea, all her wounded, shall fall in her midst.
Therefore behold the days come, and I will visit the idols of Babylon: and her whole land shall be confounded, and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.
48 Then shall shout over Babylon—heavens and earth and all who are therein, —For out of the North, shall come to her the spoilers Declareth Yahweh.
And the heavens and the earth, and all things that are in them shall give praise for Babylon: for spoilers shall come to her from the north, saith the Lord.
49 Not only hath Babylon, caused the fall of the slain of Israel, —By Babylon, also have fallen the slain of all the earth.
And as Babylon caused that there should fall slain in Israel: so of Babylon there shall fall slain in all the earth.
50 Ye that have escaped the sword, depart do not stand still, —Remember, from afar Yahweh, Let, Jerusalem, come up on your heart: -
You that have escaped the sword, come away, stand not still: remember the Lord afar off, and let Jerusalem come into your mind.
51 We have turned pale for we have heard a reproach, Confusion, hath covered our faces, —For aliens have entered upon the hallowed places of the house of Yahweh!
We are confounded, because we have heard reproach: shame hath covered our faces: because strangers are come upon the sanctuaries of the house of the Lord.
52 Therefore, lo! days are coming, Declareth Yahweh, When I will bring punishment upon her images; And throughout all her land, shall the pierced one groan.
Therefore behold the days come, saith the Lord, and I will visit her graven things, and in all her land the wounded shall groan:
53 Though Babylon should mount the heavens, And though she should fortify her strong high-place, From me, should come spoilers unto her Declareth Yahweh.
If Babylon should mount up to heaven, and establish her strength on high: from me there should come spoilers upon her, saith the Lord.
54 A voice of outcry from Babylon! And a great crash from the land of the Chaldeans!
The noise of a cry from Babylon, and great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans:
55 For, Yahweh, is spoiling Babylon, And will destroy out of her the loud voice, —Though their waves have roared like many waters, Been uttered the loud boast of their voice.
Because the Lord hath laid Babylon waste, and destroyed out of her the great voice: and their wave shall roar like many waters: their voice hath made a noise:
56 For there hath come upon her—upon Babylon—a spoiler, And captured are their heroes And broken are their bows, —For, a GOD of recompenses, is Yahweh, He will surely repay.
Because the spoiler is come upon her, that is, upon Babylon, and her valiant men are taken, and their bow is weakened, because the Lord, who is a strong revenger, will surely repay.
57 Then will I make drunk—Her princes and her wise men, Her governors, and her deputies and her heroes, And they shall sleep an age-abiding sleep, and not wake, —Declareth the King, Yahweh of hosts, is his name.
And I will make her princes drunk. and her wise men, and her captains, and her rulers, and her valiant men: and they shall sleep an everlasting sleep, and shall awake no more, saith the whose name is Lord of hosts.
58 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts—The broad walls of Babylon, shall be laid utterly bare, And, her lofty gates, with fire, shall be burned, —And peoples shall labour for emptiness, And populations, for the fire, shall weary themselves.
Thus saith the Lord of hosts: That broad wall of Babylon shall be utterly broken down, and her high gates shall be burnt with fire, and the labours of the people shall come to nothing, and of the nations shall go to the fire, and shall perish.
59 The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah son of Neriah son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah into Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign, —now Seraiah, was travelling-marshal.
The word that Jeremias the prophet commanded Saraias the son of Nerias, the son of Maasias, when he went with king Sedecias to Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign: now Saraias was chief over the prophecy.
60 So Jeremiah wrote all the calamity which was to come unto Babylon in one scroll; even all these words which have been written against Babylon.
And Jeremias wrote in one book all the evil that was to come upon Babylon: all these words that are written against Babylon.
61 Then said Jeremiah unto Seraiah, —When thou comest into Babylon, then shalt thou look out and read all these words;
And Jeremias said to Saraias: When thou shalt come into Babylon, and shalt see, and shalt read all these words,
62 and thou shalt say—O Yahweh! thou, thyself, hast spoken against this place to cut it off, That there be in it no inhabitant Neither man nor beast, —But desolations age-abiding, shall it become!
Thou shalt say: O Lord, thou hast spoken against this place to destroy it: so that there should be neither man nor beast to dwell therein, and that it should be desolate for ever.
63 And it shall be when thou hast made an end of reading this scroll, that thou shalt bind thereunto a stone, and cast it in the midst of the Euphrates,
And when thou shalt have made an end of reading this book, thou shalt tie a stone to it, and shalt throw it into the midst of the Euphrates:
64 Then shalt thou say, —In like manner, shall Babylon sink and not rise Because of the calamity which I am about to bring thereupon: So shall they perish. Thus far, are, the words of Jeremiah.
And thou shalt say: Thus shall Babylon sink, and she shall not rise up from the affliction that I will bring upon her, and she shall be utterly destroyed. Thus far are the words of Jeremias.
