Jeremiah 49
1 [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?
Concerning the children of Ammon. Thus saith Jehovah: Hath Israel no sons? hath he no heir? Why is Malcam heir of Gad, and his people dwell in the cities thereof?
2 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.
Therefore behold, days come, saith Jehovah, that I will cause the clamour of war to be heard in Rabbah of the children of Ammon; and it shall be a desolate heap; and her towns shall be burned with fire; and Israel shall possess them that possessed him, saith Jehovah.
3 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).
Howl, Heshbon! for Ai is laid waste; cry, daughters of Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth, lament and run to and fro within the enclosures: for Malcam shall go into captivity, his priests and his princes together.
4 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!’
Wherefore gloriest thou in the valleys? Thy valley shall flow down, O backsliding daughter, that trusteth in her treasures, [saying, ] Who shall come against me?
5 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].'
Behold, I will bring a fear upon thee, saith the Lord Jehovah of hosts, from all that are about thee; and ye shall be driven out every man right forth; and none shall assemble the fugitives.
6 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.”
And afterwards I will turn the captivity of the children of Ammon, saith Jehovah.
7 [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.
Concerning Edom. Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Is there no more wisdom in Teman? is counsel perished from the prudent? is their wisdom spent?
8 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.
Flee, turn back, dwell deep down, ye inhabitants of Dedan! For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him, the time that I visit him.
9 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.
If grape-gatherers had come to thee, would they not have left a gleaning? If thieves by night, they would destroy only till they had enough.
10 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.
But I have made Esau bare, I have uncovered his secret places, that he is unable to hide himself: his seed is wasted, and his brethren, and his neighbours, and he is not.
11 But I will protect the orphans, and the widows [also] will [be able to] depend on me [to help them].”
Leave thine orphans, I will preserve them alive; and let thy widows trust in me.
12 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.
For thus saith Jehovah: Behold, they whose judgment was not to drink of the cup shall assuredly drink; and thou indeed, shouldest thou be altogether unpunished? Thou shalt not go unpunished, but thou shalt surely drink.
13 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.”
For I have sworn by myself, saith Jehovah, that Bozrah shall become an astonishment, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all the cities thereof shall be perpetual wastes.
14 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!”
I have heard a rumour from Jehovah, and an ambassador is sent among the nations: — Gather yourselves together, and come against her and rise up for the battle.
15 [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.
For behold, I have made thee small among the nations, despised among men.
16 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.
Thy terribleness, the pride of thy heart, hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, that holdest the height of the hill. Though thou shouldest make thy nest high as the eagle, I will bring thee down from thence, saith Jehovah.
17 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.
And Edom shall be an astonishment: every one that goeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss, because of all the plagues thereof.
18 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].
As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, and their neighbour cities, saith Jehovah, no one shall dwell there, neither shall a son of man sojourn therein.
19 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.
Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of the Jordan against the strong habitation; for I will make them suddenly run away from it; and who is a chosen [man] whom I shall appoint over her? For who is like me? and who will assign me a time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?
20 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.
Therefore hear the counsel of Jehovah, which he hath taken against Edom, and his purposes which he hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: The little ones of the flock shall certainly draw them away; he shall certainly make their habitation desolate for them.
21 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.
The earth quaketh at the sound of their fall; there is a cry, the sound whereof is heard in the Red sea.
22 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.”
Behold, he shall come up, and fly as an eagle, and spread forth his wings against Bozrah; and at that day the heart of the mighty men of Edom shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.
23 [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.
Concerning Damascus. Hamath is put to shame, and Arpad; for they have heard evil tidings, they are melted away: there is distress on the sea; it cannot be quiet.
24 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.
Damascus is grown feeble: she turneth herself to flee, and terror hath seized on her; trouble and sorrows have taken hold of her as of a woman in travail.
25 That famous city, that I was [previously] pleased with, will be abandoned.
How is not the town of praise forsaken, the city of my joy!
26 Its young men will fall in the streets. Its soldiers will all be killed in one day.
Therefore shall her young men fall in her streets, and all the men of war be cut off in that day, saith Jehovah of hosts.
27 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.”
And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Ben-Hadad.
28 [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].
Concerning Kedar, and concerning the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote. Thus saith Jehovah: Arise, go up to Kedar, and spoil the men of the east.
29 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!’
Their tents and their flocks shall they take; their curtains and all their vessels, and their camels, shall they carry away for themselves; and they shall cry unto them, Terror on every side!
30 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!’
Flee, wander very far, dwell deep down, ye inhabitants of Hazor, saith Jehovah; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath taken counsel against you, and hath conceived a purpose against you.
31 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.
Arise, get you up against the nation at ease, that dwelleth securely, saith Jehovah, which hath neither gates nor bars: they dwell alone.
32 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.
And their camels shall be a booty, and the multitude of their cattle a spoil; and I will scatter to every wind them that have the corners [of their beard] cut off, and I will bring their calamity from all sides thereof, saith Jehovah.
33 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].’”
And Hazor shall be a dwelling-place of jackals, a desolation for ever. No one shall dwell there, neither shall a son of man sojourn therein.
34 I received this message from Yahweh when King Zedekiah was starting to rule Judah.
The word of Jehovah that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,
35 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].
Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, the chief of their might.
36 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].
And upon Elam will I bring the four winds, from the four ends of the heavens, and I will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.
37 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.
And I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life; and I will bring evil upon them, my fierce anger, saith Jehovah; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them.
38 I, Yahweh, will judge them there [MTY], and [then] I will get rid of their king and [his] officials.
And I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from thence king and princes, saith Jehovah.
39 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.”
But it shall come to pass at the end of the days, I will turn the captivity of Elam, saith Jehovah.
