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?

This is what the Lord says about the Ammonites: Don't the Israelites have any children? Don't they have heirs to inherit their property? So why has Milcom taken over the territory belonging to the tribe of Gad? Why are his people living in their towns?

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.

Watch out! The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will signal the attack on the Ammonite town of Rabbah. It will be turned into a pile of ruins, and its villages will be burned down. Then the Israelites will drive out the people who took over their land, says the Lord.

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).

Weep, people of Heshbon, for the town of Ai has been destroyed. Cry for help, people of Rabbah! Put on clothes made of sackcloth and start mourning; run to and fro inside your city walls, because your god Milcom will go into exile along with his priests and leaders.

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!’

Why do you boast that your valleys are so productive, you unfaithful people? You trust in your wealth, saying, “Who would dare attack us?”

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].'

Watch out! I'm going to bring the surrounding nations to terrorize you, declares the Lord God Almighty. You will all be driven out and scattered, and no one will be able to gather you refugees together again.

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.”

However, later on I will bring you Ammonites back from exile, declares the Lord.

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.

This is what the Lord Almighty says about Edom: Aren't there any wise people left in Teman? Isn't there any good advice from those with insight? Has their wisdom rotted away?

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.

Turn and run away! Find somewhere to hide, people of Dedan, because I'm bringing disaster down on you descendants of Esau when I punish you.

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 people harvesting grapes came to you, they'd leave some behind, wouldn't they? If thieves came during the night, they'd only steal what they wanted, wouldn't they?

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'm going to strip the whole country of bare, leaving its people with nowhere to hide. All of Esau's descendants will be destroyed, along with their relatives and friends—they will all be gone.

11 But I will protect the orphans, and the widows [also] will [be able to] depend on me [to help them].”

However, you can leave your orphans to me because I will protect them. Have your widows put their 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.

This is what the Lord says: If those who were not required to drink from the cup of judgment had to do so, how could you not be punished yourselves? You won't go unpunished, because you have to drink it too.

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.”

I made myself a solemn promise, declares the Lord, that the town of Bozrah will become a place that horrifies people, a complete humiliation, a pile of ruins, and a name that's used as a curse word. All its surrounding towns will also be left in ruins forever.

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 received this message from the Lord. He has sent a messenger to the nations: Get yourselves ready to attack Edom! Prepare for 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.

Watch as I will make you insignificant compared to other nations—everyone will look down on you.

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.

The fear you once created in others, and your pride in yourselves, has fooled you into overconfidence, you people living on the rocky mountain tops. Though you make your homes high out of reach like an eagle's nest, I will tear you down, even from there, declares the Lord.

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.

People will be horrified at what's happened to Edom. Everyone passing by will be shocked, and will sneer at all its damage.

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].

Just as Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed, along with their neighboring towns, says the Lord, nobody will live there—they will become uninhabited.

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.

Watch out! I'm going to come like a lion from the tangled undergrowth beside the Jordan to attack the animals grazing the green pasture. In fact I'm going to chase the Edomites from their land very quickly. Who will I choose to conquer them? Who is like me? Who can challenge me? Which leader could oppose 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.

So listen to what the Lord has planned to do to Edom and the people of Teman: Their children will be dragged away like lambs from the flock, and because of them their pasture will become a wasteland.

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.

When they fall, the sound they make will make the earth shake; their cries will be heard all the way to 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.”

Watch as an enemy like an eagle flies high, then swoops down, spreading its wings as it attacks Bozrah. At that time Edom's warriors will be as scared as a woman in labor.

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.

A prophecy about Damascus: The towns of Hamath and Arpad are disturbed, because they've received bad news. They are fearful, restless like the sea. Nothing can calm their worries.

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.

The people of Damascus are demoralized—they turn and run away in panic, overcome by pain and anguish like a woman in labor.

25 That famous city, that I was [previously] pleased with, will be abandoned.

Why isn't the city that is praised deserted, the city that made me happy?

26 Its young men will fall in the streets. Its soldiers will all be killed in one day.

For on that day its young men will die in its streets, all its defenders will be killed, declares the Lord 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.”

I'm going to set fire to the walls of Damascus; that will burn down the fortresses 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].

A prophecy about the land of Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor that were attacked by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. This is what the Lord says: Go and attack Kedar; destroy the people 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!’

Take their tents and their flocks! Carry off their tent curtains and all their possessions! Take their camels for yourselves. Shout out to them: “Terror is everywhere!”

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!’

Run! Get away as far as you can! Find somewhere to hide, people of Hazor, declares the Lord. For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has made plans to attack and destroy 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.

Go and attack that self-satisfied nation that thinks it's safe, declares the Lord. They don't have any barred gates and have no allies.

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.

Their camels and large herds will be plunder for you. I will scatter them everywhere, these desert people who trim their hair on the sides of their heads. I will bring disaster down on them from all directions, declares the Lord.

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].’”

Hazor will become a place where jackals live, a place abandoned forever. No one will live there; it will become uninhabited.

34 I received this message from Yahweh when King Zedekiah was starting to rule Judah.

This is the Lord's message that came to Jeremiah the prophet about Elam. This was at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah.

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].

This is what the Lord Almighty says: Look! I'm going to smash the bows of the Elamites, the weapon they rely on for their power.

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].

I will bring winds from all directions to attack Elam, and I will scatter them in all directions. There won't be a nation that doesn't have some of Elam's exiles.

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.

I will smash the Elamites in front of their enemies, before those who want to kill them. In my furious anger I will bring disaster down on them, declares the Lord. I will chase them down with the sword until I have destroyed them.

38 I, Yahweh, will judge them there [MTY], and [then] I will get rid of their king and [his] officials.

I will set up my throne in Elam, and destroy its king and officials, declares the Lord.

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.”

However, later on I will bring the Elamites back from exile, declares the Lord.