Jeremiah 25

1 The word that hath been unto Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, — it [is] the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, —

This is the message that came to Jeremiah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, king of Judah, which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It concerned all the people of Judah.

2 Which Jeremiah the prophet hath spoken concerning all the people of Judah, even unto all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying:

So the prophet Jeremiah went and spoke to all the people of Judah and all of the people living in Jerusalem, telling them:

3 'From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah, and unto this day — this three and twentieth year — hath the word of Jehovah been unto me, and I speak unto you, rising early and speaking, and ye have not hearkened;

From the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah, son of Amon, king of Judah until now, twenty-three years in total, messages from the Lord have come to me, and I have told you what he said time and again, but you have not listened.

4 And Jehovah hath sent unto you all His servants, the prophets, rising early and sending, and ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear, saying:

Even though the Lord has sent all his servants the prophets to you time and again, you don't bother to listen or pay any attention.

5 'Turn back, I pray you, each from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell on the ground that Jehovah hath given to you and to your fathers from age unto age,

The consistent message has been: Give up your evil ways and the evil things you're doing so you can live in the country that the Lord has given to you and your forefathers forever.

6 And ye do not go after other gods to serve them, and to bow yourselves to them, nor do ye provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands, and I do no evil to you;

Don't follow other gods and worship them, and don't anger me by making idols. Then I won't do anything to hurt you.

7 And ye have not hearkened unto Me — an affirmation of Jehovah — so as to provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands for evil to you.

But you've hurt yourselves by not listening to me, declares the Lord, because you angered me by making idols.

8 'Therefore thus said Jehovah of Hosts, Because that ye have not obeyed My words,

So this is what the Lord Almighty says: Because you have not obeyed what I told you,

9 Lo, I am sending, and have taken all the families of the north — an affirmation of Jehovah — even unto Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and have brought them in against this land, and against its inhabitants, and against all these nations round about, and have devoted them, and appointed them for an astonishment, and for a hissing, and for wastes age-during.

watch as I summon all the people of the north, declares the Lord. I'm going to send for my servant Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, to attack this country and the people who live here, and all the surrounding nations. I will set them apart for destruction. I'm going to totally destroy you, and people will be horrified at what's happened to you and will mock you.

10 And I have destroyed from them the voice of rejoicing, and the voice of joy, voice of bridegroom and voice of bride, noise of millstones, and the light of lamps.

I will also put a stop to the cheerful sounds of celebration and the happy voices of the bride and bridegroom. No noise will come from millstones being used; no lamps will be lit.

11 And all this land hath been for a waste, for an astonishment, and these nations have served the king of Babylon seventy years.

This whole country will become an empty wasteland, and Judah and these other nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.

12 'And it hath come to pass, at the fulness of seventy years, I charge against the king of Babylon, and against that nation — an affirmation of Jehovah — their iniquity, and against the land of the Chaldeans, and have appointed it for desolations age-during.

However, when these seventy years are over, I'm going to punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the country of Babylonia, for their sin, declares the Lord. I will completely destroy them.

13 And I have brought in on that land all My words that I have spoken against it, all that is written in this book, that Jeremiah hath prophesied concerning all the nations.

I will bring down on that country everything I threatened to do, everything that's written in this book which Jeremiah prophesied against all the different nations.

14 For laid service on them — also them — have many nations and great kings, and I have given recompence to them according to their doing, and according to the work of their hands.

Many nations and powerful kings will make slaves of them, the Babylonians, and I will pay them back for the evil they've done.

15 'For thus said Jehovah God of Israel unto me, Take the wine cup of this fury out of My hand, and thou hast caused all the nations to drink it unto whom I am sending thee;

This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, told me: Take this cup I'm handing to you. It contains the wine of my anger. You are to make all the nations I send you to drink from it.

16 And they have drunk, and shaken themselves and shewn themselves foolish, because of the sword that I am sending among them.

They will drink and stumble around and go mad because of the war brought by the armies I'm sending to attack them.

17 'And I take the cup out of the hand of Jehovah, and cause all the nations to drink unto whom Jehovah sent me:

I took the cup the Lord handed to me and made all the nations he sent me to drink from it:

18 Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, And its kings, its heads, To give them to waste, to astonishment, To hissing, and to reviling, as [at] this day.

To Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, its kings and officials, destroying them so that people were horrified at what happened to them and mocked them and cursed them (and they are still like this today);

19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, and his servants, And his heads, and all his people,

to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and his officials, leaders, all his people

20 And all the mixed people, And all the kings of the land of Uz, And all the kings of the land of the Philistines, And Ashkelon, and Gazzah, and Ekron, And the remnant of Ashdod,

and all the foreigners living there; to all the kings of the country of Uz; to all the kings of the Philistines: Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and what's left of Ashdod;

21 Edom, and Moab, and the sons of Ammon,

to Edom, Moab, and the Ammonites;

22 And all the kings of Tyre, And all the kings of Zidon, And the kings of the isle that [is] beyond the sea,

to all the kings of Tyre and Sidon; to the kings of the Mediterranean sea coast;

23 Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, And all cutting the corners [of the beard],

to Dedan, Tema, Buz, and all those who trim their hair on the sides of their heads;

24 And all the kings of Arabia, And all the kings of the mixed people, Who are dwelling in the wilderness,

to all the kings of Arabia; and to all the kings of the different tribes living in the desert;

25 And all the kings of Zimri, And all the kings of Elam, And all the kings of Media,

to all the kings of Zimri, Elam, and Media;

26 And all the kings of the north, The near and the far off, one unto another, And all the kingdoms of the earth, That [are] on the face of the ground, And king Sheshach drinketh after them.

to all the kings of the north; in fact to all the kingdoms on earth whether close or far away, one after another. After all of them, the king of Babylon will drink it too.

27 And thou hast said unto them: Thus said Jehovah of Hosts God of Israel, Drink ye, yea drink abundantly, And vomit, and fall, and rise not, Because of the sword that I am sending among you.

Tell them this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Drink, make yourselves drunk, and vomit. Because of the war you'll be killed, falling down never to get up again.

28 And it hath come to pass, When they refuse to receive the cup out of thy hand to drink, That thou hast said unto them: Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, Ye do certainly drink.

If they should refuse to take the cup and drink from it, tell them that this is what the Lord Almighty says: You can't avoid drinking it—you have to!

29 For lo, in the city over which My name is called, I am beginning to do evil, And ye — ye are entirely acquitted! Ye are not acquitted, for a sword I am proclaiming, For all inhabitants of the land, An affirmation of Jehovah of Hosts.

Can't you see that I'm about to bring disaster down on my own city, so do you really think you wouldn't be punished as well? You won't go unpunished, for I am bringing war to everyone on earth, declares the Lord Almighty.

30 And thou, thou dost prophesy unto them all these words, and hast said unto them: Jehovah from the high place doth roar, And from His holy habitation giveth forth His voice, He surely roareth for His habitation, A shout as of treaders down, God answereth all the inhabitants of the land,

Give this whole message as a prophecy against them. Tell them: The Lord will thunder from high above. He will thunder loudly from the holy place where he lives. He will give a great roar against the sheepfolds. He will give a loud shout like people treading the grapes, frightening everyone who lives on earth.

31 Wasting hath come unto the end of the earth, For a controversy hath Jehovah with nations, He hath executed judgment for all flesh, The wicked! He hath given them to the sword, An affirmation of Jehovah.

The sound will reach everywhere on the earth because the Lord is accusing the nations. He is judging everyone, executing the wicked, declares the Lord.

32 Thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Lo, evil is going out from nation to nation, And a great whirlwind is stirred up from the sides of the earth.

This is what the Lord Almighty says: Watch out! Disaster is falling on one nation after another; an immense storm is building up in the far distance.

33 And the pierced of Jehovah have been in that day, From the end of the earth even unto the end of the earth, They are not lamented, nor gathered, nor buried, For dung on the face of the ground they are.

Those killed by the Lord at that time will cover the earth from one end to the other. No one will mourn them, or collect them, or bury them. They will be like piles of manure lying on the ground.

34 Howl, ye shepherds, and cry, And roll yourselves, ye honourable of the flock, For full have been your days, For slaughtering, and [for] your scatterings, And ye have fallen as a desirable vessel.

Cry out and weep, you shepherds! Roll around on the ground mourning, you leaders of the flock. The time for you to be killed has come; you will fall, smashed like the finest pottery.

35 And perished hath refuge from the shepherds, And escape from the honourable of the flock.

The shepherds won't be able to run away; the leaders of the flock won't escape.

36 A voice [is] of the cry of the shepherds, And a howling of the honourable of the flock, For Jehovah is spoiling their pasture.

Listen to the cries of the shepherds, the weeping of the leaders of the flock, for the Lord is destroying their pasturelands.

37 And the peaceable habitations have been cut down, Because of the fierceness of the anger of Jehovah.

The peaceful sheepfolds have been ruined because of the Lord's fierce anger.

38 He hath forsaken, as a young lion, His covert, Surely their land hath become a desolation, Because of the oppressing fierceness, And because of the fierceness of His anger!

The Lord has left his den like a lion, because their country has been devastated by the invading armies, and because of the Lord's fierce anger.