Jeremiah 51
1 Thus said Jehovah: Lo, I am stirring up against Babylon, And the inhabitants of Leb — My withstanders, A destroying wind,
Thus saith Jehovah: Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, And against them that dwell in the midst of mine adversaries, A destroying wind;
2 And I have sent to Babylon fanners, And they have fanned it, and they empty its land, For they have been against it, Round about — in the day of evil.
And I will send against Babylon winnowers, And they shall winnow her, and empty her land; For they shall come against her on every side.
3 Let not the treader tread his bow, Nor lift himself up in his coat of mail, Nor have ye pity on her young men, Devote ye to destruction all her host.
Against him that bendeth, let the archer bend his bow, And against him that lifteth himself up in his brigandine! And spare ye not her young men; Destroy ye utterly her whole host!
4 And fallen have the wounded in the land of the Chaldeans, And the pierced-through in her streets.
Thus shall they fall down slain in the land of the Chaldaeans, And thrust through in her streets.
5 For, not forsaken is Israel and Judah, By its God — by Jehovah of Hosts, For their land hath been full of guilt, Against the Holy One of Israel.
For Israel is not forsaken, nor Judah abandoned of his God, of Jehovah of hosts; For their land is full of guilt against the Holy One of Israel.
6 Flee ye from the midst of Babylon, And deliver ye each his soul, Be not cut off in its iniquity, For a time of vengeance it [is] to Jehovah, Recompence He is rendering to her.
Flee ye out of Babylon, And save ye every man his life, That ye be not cut off in her punishment! For this is the time of Jehovah's vengeance; He will render to her a recompense.
7 A golden cup [is] Babylon in the hand of Jehovah, Making drunk all the earth, Of its wine drunk have nations, Therefore boast themselves do nations.
Babylon has been a golden cup in the hand of Jehovah, That made all the earth drunken; The nations have drunken of her wine, Therefore the nations are mad.
8 Suddenly hath Babylon fallen, Yea, it is broken, howl ye for it, Take balm for her pain, if so be it may be healed.
Babylon is suddenly fallen, and broken; Howl ye over her; Bring ye balm for her wounds, If so be she may be healed.
9 We healed Babylon, and she was not healed, Forsake her, and we go, each to his land, For come unto the heavens hath its judgment, And it hath been lifted up unto the clouds.
“We would have healed Babylon, But she cannot be healed. Forsake her, and let us go every one to his own country! For her punishment reacheth to the heavens, And ascendeth even to the skies.”
10 Jehovah hath brought forth our righteousnesses, Come, and we recount in Zion the work of Jehovah our God.
Jehovah hath brought forth our deliverance; Come ye, and let us declare in Zion The work of Jehovah our God.
11 Cleanse ye the arrows, fill the shields, Stirred up hath Jehovah the spirit of the kings of Madia, For against Babylon His device [is] to destroy it, For the vengeance of Jehovah it [is], The vengeance of His temple.
Make sharp the arrows; put on the shields! Jehovah hath roused up the spirit of the kings of the Medes; For his purpose is against Babylon, to destroy it; For this is the vengeance of Jehovah, The vengeance for his temple.
12 Unto the walls of Babylon lift up an ensign, Strengthen the watch, Establish the watchers, prepare the ambush, For Jehovah hath both devised and done that which He spake, Concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.
Against the walls of Babylon set up a standard, Make strong the guard, appoint the watchmen, prepare the ambush! For Jehovah deviseth and doeth that which he spake Against the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 O dweller on many waters, abundant in treasures, Come in hath thine end, the measure of thy dishonest gain.
O thou that dwellest by great waters, That aboundest in treasures, Thine end is come; The measure of thy rapaciousness is full!
14 Sworn hath Jehovah of Hosts by Himself, That, Surely I have filled thee [with] men as the cankerworm, And they have cried against thee — shouting.
Jehovah of hosts hath sworn by himself, [[saying, ]] Surely I will fill thee with men, as with caterpillars, Who shall raise the war-shout against thee.
15 The maker of earth by His power, The establisher of the world by His wisdom, Who by His understanding stretched out the heavens,
He made the earth by his power, He established the world by his wisdom, And by his understanding he spread out the heavens.
16 At the voice He giveth forth, A multitude of waters [are] in the heavens, And He causeth vapours to come up from the end of the earth, Lightnings for rain He hath made, And He bringeth out wind from His treasures.
When he uttereth his voice there is an abundance of water in the heavens; He causeth clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth; He bringeth the wind from his storehouses.
17 Brutish hath been every man by knowledge, Put to shame hath been every refiner by a graven image, For false [is] his molten image, And there is no breath in them.
Brutish is every man who hath not this knowledge; By his images is every founder put to shame; For his molten work is deceit; There is no breath in it.
18 Vanity [are] they — work of errors, In the time of their inspection they perish.
They are vanity, deceptive work; In the time of their punishment shall they perish.
19 Not like these [is] the portion of Jacob, For He [is] former of all things, And [Israel is] the rod of His inheritance, Jehovah of Hosts [is] His name.
Not like them is he who is the portion of Jacob; He is the former of all things, And Israel is his allotted inheritance. Jehovah of hosts is his name.
20 An axe [art] thou to me — weapons of war, And I have broken in pieces by thee nations, And I have destroyed by thee kingdoms,
Thou hast been to me my battle-hammer, My weapon of war. And with thee I broke in pieces the nations, And with thee I destroyed the kingdoms.
21 And I have broken in pieces by thee horse and its rider, And I have broken in pieces by thee chariot and its charioteer,
And with thee I broke in pieces the horse and his rider, And with thee I broke in pieces the chariot and its driver.
22 And I have broken in pieces by thee man and woman, And I have broken in pieces by thee old and young, And I have broken in pieces by thee young man and virgin,
With thee I broke in pieces man and woman, And with thee I broke in pieces the old and the young, And with thee I broke in pieces the young man and the maiden.
23 And I have broken in pieces by thee shepherd and his drove, And I have broken in pieces by thee husbandman and his team, And I have broken in pieces by thee governors and prefects.
With thee I broke in pieces the shepherd and his flock, And with thee I broke in pieces the husbandman and his team; And with thee I broke in pieces prefects and governors.
24 And I have recompensed to Babylon, And to all inhabitants of Chaldea, All the evil that they have done in Zion, Before your eyes — an affirmation of Jehovah.
But now before your eyes will I repay to Babylon, And to all the inhabitants of Chaldaea, All the evil which they have done in Zion, saith Jehovah.
25 Lo, I [am] against thee, O destroying mount, An affirmation of Jehovah, That is destroying all the earth, And I have stretched out My hand against thee, And I have rolled thee from the rocks, And given thee for a burnt mountain.
O thou destroying mountain, that destroyest the whole earth, Behold, I am against thee, saith Jehovah! And I will stretch out my hand against thee, And roll thee down from the rocks, And make thee a burnt mountain,
26 And they take not out of thee a stone for a corner, And a stone for foundations, For desolations age-during art thou, An affirmation of Jehovah.
So that none shall take from thee a corner-stone, or a foundation-stone; But thou shalt be a perpetual desolation, saith Jehovah.
27 Lift ye up an ensign in the land, Blow a trumpet among nations, Sanctify against it nations, Summon against it the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz, Appoint against it an infant head, Cause the horse to ascend as the rough cankerworm.
Set ye up a standard in the land, Sound a trumpet among the nations; Enlist the nations against Babylon, Call together against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashchenaz; Appoint captains against her, Cause the horses to come up like the bristled locusts!
28 Sanctify against it the nations with the kings of Media, Its governors and all its prefects, And all the land of its dominion.
Enlist ye against her the nations, The kings of the Medes, and their prefects, And all their governors, And all the lands under their dominion,
29 And shake doth the land, and it is pained, For stood against Babylon have the purposes of Jehovah, To make the land of Babylon a desolation without inhabitant.
So that the earth shall tremble and quake! For the purpose of Jehovah against Babylon is to be fulfilled, To make the land of Babylon a desolation, without an inhabitant.
30 Ceased have the mighty of Babylon to fight, They have remained in strongholds, Failed hath their might, they have become woman, They have burnt her tabernacles, Broken have been her bars.
The mighty men of Babylon refuse to fight; They remain in their stronghold; Their strength hath failed; They have become women; Her habitations are burned; Her bars are broken.
31 Runner to meet runner doth run, And announcer to meet announcer, To announce to the king of Babylon, For, captured hath been his city — at the extremity.
Courier runs to meet courier, And messenger to meet messenger, To make known to the king of Babylon, That his city is taken from end to end;
32 And the passages have been captured, And the reeds they have burnt with fire, And the men of war have been troubled.
That the passages are taken, That the reeds are burned with fire, And that the men of war are struck with terror.
33 For thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, The daughter of Babylon [is] as a threshing-floor, The time of her threshing — yet a little, And come hath the time of her harvest.
For thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: The daughter of Babylon shall be like a thrashing-floor when it is thrashed; Yet a little while, and the time of harvest for her shall come.
34 Devoured us, crushed us, hath Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, He hath set us [as] an empty vessel, He hath swallowed us as a dragon, He hath filled his belly with my dainties, He hath driven us away.
Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, hath devoured us; He hath made an end of us; He hath made us empty vessels; He hath swallowed us up like a dragon; He hath filled his maw with our delicacies; He hath cast us out.
35 My wrong, and [that of] my flesh [is] on Babylon, Say doth the inhabitant of Zion, And my blood [is] on the inhabitants of Chaldea, Say doth Jerusalem.
“The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon!” Shall the inhabitant of Zion say; And, “My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldaeans!” shall Jerusalem say.
36 Therefore, thus said Jehovah: Lo, I am pleading thy cause, And I have avenged thy vengeance, And dried up its sea, and made its fountains dry.
Therefore, thus saith Jehovah: Behold, I will maintain thy cause, And take vengeance for thee; And I will dry up her sea, And make her springs dry.
37 And Babylon hath been for heaps, A habitation of dragons, An astonishment, and a hissing, without inhabitant.
And Babylon shall become heaps, The dwelling-place of jackals, An astonishment and a hissing, Without an inhabitant.
38 Together as young lions they roar, They have shaken themselves as lions' whelps.
Together shall they roar like lions; They shall yell like lions' whelps.
39 In their heat I make their banquets, And I have caused them to drink, so that they exult, And have slept a sleep age-during, And awake not — an affirmation of Jehovah.
In their heat I will prepare them a drink, And will make them drunk, so that they shall rejoice, And then sleep an everlasting sleep, And awake no more, saith Jehovah.
40 I cause them to go down as lambs to slaughter, As rams with he-goats.
I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, Like rams with he-goats.
41 How hath Sheshach been captured, Yea, caught is the praise of the whole earth, How hath Babylon been for an astonishment among nations.
How is Sheshach taken! How is the praise of the whole earth fallen! How is Babylon become an astonishment among the nations!
42 Come up against Babylon hath the sea, With a multitude of its billows it hath been covered.
The sea is come up over Babylon; With the roaring of its waves is she covered.
43 Its cities have been for a desolation, A dry land, and a wilderness, A land — none doth dwell in them, Nor pass over into them doth a son of man.
Her cities have become a desolation, A dry land and a desert, A land in which no man dwelleth, And which no son of man passeth through.
44 And I have seen after Bel in Babylon, And I have brought forth that which he swallowed — from his mouth, And flow no more unto him do nations, Also the wall of Babylon hath fallen.
I will punish Bel at Babylon, And bring forth from his mouth that which he hath swallowed, And the nations shall flow to him no more; Even the wall of Babylon shall fall.
45 Go forth from its midst, O My people, And deliver ye, each his soul, Because of the fierceness of the anger of Jehovah,
Go ye out of her, my people, And save ye every man his life From the fierce anger of Jehovah!
46 And lest your heart be tender, And ye be afraid of the report that is heard in the land, And come in a year hath the report, And after it in a year the report, And violence [is] in the land, ruler against ruler;
And let not your heart faint, And fear ye not on account of the rumors which are heard in the land, When in one year a rumor cometh, And after it in another year another rumor, And violence is in the land, Ruler against ruler.
47 Therefore, lo, days are coming, And I have seen after the graven images of Babylon. And all its land is ashamed, And all its pierced ones do fall in its midst.
Therefore, behold the days come When I will punish the graven images of Babylon, And her whole land shall be confounded; And all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.
48 And cried aloud against Babylon Have heavens and earth, and all that [is] in them, For, from the north come to it do the spoilers, An affirmation of Jehovah.
Then the heavens shall shout over Babylon, And the earth and all that is therein; For out of the North come spoilers against her, saith Jehovah.
49 Even Babylon [is] to fall, ye pierced of Israel, Even they of Babylon have fallen, Ye pierced of all the earth.
As Babylon caused the slain of Israel to fall, So at Babylon shall fall the slain of all the land.
50 Ye escaped of the sword, go on, stand not, Remember ye from afar Jehovah, And let Jerusalem come up on your heart.
Ye that have escaped her sword, go! Tarry not! Remember Jehovah afar off, And let Jerusalem come into your mind!
51 We have been ashamed, for we heard reproach, Covered hath shame our faces, For come in have strangers, against the sanctuaries of the house of Jehovah.
We have been confounded, because we have heard reproach; Shame hath covered our faces, For strangers have come into the sanctuaries of the house of Jehovah.
52 Therefore, lo, days are coming, An affirmation of Jehovah, And I have seen after its graven images, And in all its land groan doth the wounded.
Therefore, behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, When I will punish her graven images, And through all her land shall the wounded groan.
53 Because Babylon goeth up to the heavens, And because it fenceth the high place of its strength, From Me come into it do spoilers, An affirmation of Jehovah.
Though Babylon should mount up to the heavens, And make inaccessible the height of her strength, Yet from me shall spoilers come upon her, saith Jehovah.
54 A voice of a cry [is] from Babylon, And of great destruction from the land of the Chaldean.
Hark! a cry from Babylon, Of great destruction from the land of the Chaldaeans!
55 For Jehovah is spoiling Babylon, And hath destroyed out of it a great voice, And sounded have its billows as many waters, Given forth a noise hath their voice.
For Jehovah destroyeth Babylon, And bringeth to silence her loud tumult; Their waves roar like great waters; Their tumultuous noise resounds.
56 For come in against it — against Babylon — hath a spoiler, And captured have been its mighty ones, Broken have been their bows, For the God of recompences — Jehovah — doth certainly repay.
For the spoiler is come upon her, upon Babylon; And their mighty men are taken, And all their bows are broken; For Jehovah is a God of retribution; He will surely requite.
57 And I have caused its princes to drink, And its wise men, its governors, And its prefects, and its mighty ones, And they have slept a sleep age-during, And they awake not — an affirmation of the king, Jehovah of Hosts [is] His name.
And I will make drunk her princes, and her wise men, Her prefects, and her governors, and her mighty men; And they shall sleep an everlasting sleep, And shall no more awake, saith the King, Whose name is Jehovah of hosts.
58 Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, the wall of Babylon — The broad one — is utterly made bare, And her high gates with fire are burnt, And peoples labour in vain, And nations in fire, and have been weary!
Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: The broad walls of Babylon shall be razed to the foundations, And her high gates shall be burned with fire; So that nations shall have labored for naught, And kingdoms have wearied themselves for fire.
59 The word that Jeremiah the prophet hath commanded Seraiah son of Neriah, son of Maaseiah, in his going with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign — and Seraiah [is] a quiet prince;
The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah, the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, when he went with Zedekiah, the king of Judah, into Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign. This Seraiah was chief chamberlain.
60 and Jeremiah writeth all the evil that cometh unto Babylon on one book — all these words that are written concerning Babylon.
And Jeremiah wrote all the evil that was to come upon Babylon in one book, all these words that are written concerning Babylon.
61 And Jeremiah saith unto Seraiah, 'When thou dost enter Babylon, then thou hast seen, and hast read all these words,
And Jeremiah said to Seraiah, When thou comest to Babylon, see that thou read all these words,
62 and hast said: Jehovah, Thou, Thou hast spoken concerning this place, to cut it off, that there is none dwelling in it, from man even unto cattle, for it is a desolation age-during.
and say, O Jehovah, thou hast spoken against this place to destroy it, so that none shall remain in it, neither man nor beast, but that it shall remain desolate forever!
63 And it hath come to pass, when thou dost finish reading this book, thou dost bind to it a stone, and hast cast it into the midst of Phrat,
And when thou hast made an end of reading this book, bind a stone upon it, and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates,
64 and said, Thus sink doth Babylon, and it doth not arise, because of the evil that I am bringing in against it, and they have been weary.' Hitherto [are] words of Jeremiah.
and say: So shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise again from the evil which I bring upon her. And they shall utterly fail. Thus far the words of Jeremiah.
