Jeremiah 48

Chapter 48

A Message about Moab

1 This message was given concerning Moab. This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says:
“What sorrow awaits the city of Nebo;
it will soon lie in ruins.
The city of Kiriathaim will be humiliated and captured;
the fortress will be humiliated and broken down.2 No one will ever brag about Moab again,
for in Heshbon there is a plot to destroy her.
‘Come,’ they say, ‘we will cut her off from being a nation.’
The town of Madmen,t too, will be silenced;
the sword will follow you there.3 Listen to the cries from Horonaim,
cries of devastation and great destruction.4 All Moab is destroyed.
Her little ones will cry out.t5 Her refugees weep bitterly,
climbing the slope to Luhith.
They cry out in terror,
descending the slope to Horonaim.6 Flee for your lives!
Hidet in the wilderness!7 Because you have trusted in your wealth and skill,
you will be taken captive.
Your god Chemosh, with his priests and officials,
will be hauled off to distant lands!8 “All the towns will be destroyed,
and no one will escape—
either on the plateaus or in the valleys,
for the LORD has spoken.9 Oh, that Moab had wings
so she could fly away,t
for her towns will be left empty,
with no one living in them.10 Cursed are those who refuse to do the LORD’s work,
who hold back their swords from shedding blood!11 “From his earliest history, Moab has lived in peace,
never going into exile.
He is like wine that has been allowed to settle.
He has not been poured from flask to flask,
and he is now fragrant and smooth.12 But the time is coming soon,” says the LORD,
“when I will send men to pour him from his jar.
They will pour him out,
then shatter the jar!13 At last Moab will be ashamed of his idol Chemosh,
as the people of Israel were ashamed of their gold calf at Bethel.t14 “You used to boast, ‘We are heroes,
mighty men of war.’15 But now Moab and his towns will be destroyed.
His most promising youth are doomed to slaughter,”
says the King, whose name is the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.16 “Destruction is coming fast for Moab;
calamity threatens ominously.17 You friends of Moab,
weep for him and cry!
See how the strong scepter is broken,
how the beautiful staff is shattered!18 “Come down from your glory
and sit in the dust, you people of Dibon,
for those who destroy Moab will shatter Dibon, too.
They will tear down all your towers.19 You people of Aroer,
stand beside the road and watch.
Shout to those who flee from Moab,
‘What has happened there?’20 “And the reply comes back,
‘Moab lies in ruins, disgraced;
weep and wail!
Tell it by the banks of the Arnon River:
Moab has been destroyed!’21 Judgment has been poured out on the towns of the plateau—
on Holon and Jahazt and Mephaath,22 on Dibon and Nebo and Beth-diblathaim,23 on Kiriathaim and Beth-gamul and Beth-meon,24 on Kerioth and Bozrah—
all the towns of Moab, far and near.25 “The strength of Moab has ended.
His arm has been broken,” says the LORD.26 “Let him stagger and fall like a drunkard,
for he has rebelled against the LORD.
Moab will wallow in his own vomit,
ridiculed by all.27 Did you not ridicule the people of Israel?
Were they caught in the company of thieves
that you should despise them as you do?28 “You people of Moab,
flee from your towns and live in the caves.
Hide like doves that nest
in the clefts of the rocks.29 We have all heard of the pride of Moab,
for his pride is very great.
We know of his lofty pride,
his arrogance, and his haughty heart.30 I know about his insolence,”
says the LORD,
“but his boasts are empty—
as empty as his deeds.31 So now I wail for Moab;
yes, I will mourn for Moab.
My heart is broken for the men of Kir-hareseth.t32 “You people of Sibmah, rich in vineyards,
I will weep for you even more than I did for Jazer.
Your spreading vines once reached as far as the Dead Sea,t
but the destroyer has stripped you bare!
He has harvested your grapes and summer fruits.33 Joy and gladness are gone from fruitful Moab.
The presses yield no wine.
No one treads the grapes with shouts of joy.
There is shouting, yes, but not of joy.

34 “Instead, their awful cries of terror can be heard from Heshbon clear across to Elealeh and Jahaz; from Zoar all the way to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. Even the waters of Nimrim are dried up now.
35 “I will put an end to Moab,” says the LORD, “for the people offer sacrifices at the pagan shrines and burn incense to their false gods.36 My heart moans like a flute for Moab and Kir-hareseth, for all their wealth has disappeared.37 The people shave their heads and beards in mourning. They slash their hands and put on clothes made of burlap.38 There is crying and sorrow in every Moabite home and on every street. For I have smashed Moab like an old, unwanted jar.

39 How it is shattered! Hear the wailing! See the shame of Moab! It has become an object of ridicule, an example of ruin to all its neighbors.”

40 This is what the LORD says:
“Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle,
spreading his wings over Moab.41 Its cities will fall,
and its strongholds will be seized.
Even the mightiest warriors will be in anguish
like a woman in labor.42 Moab will no longer be a nation,
for it has boasted against the LORD.43 “Terror and traps and snares will be your lot,
O Moab,” says the LORD.44 “Those who flee in terror will fall into a trap,
and those who escape the trap will step into a snare.
I will see to it that you do not get away,
for the time of your judgment has come,”
says the LORD.45 “The people flee as far as Heshbon
but are unable to go on.
For a fire comes from Heshbon,
King Sihon’s ancient home,
to devour the entire land
with all its rebellious people.46 “O Moab, they weep for you!
The people of the god Chemosh are destroyed!
Your sons and your daughters
have been taken away as captives.

47 But I will restore the fortunes of Moab
in days to come.
I, the LORD, have spoken!”
This is the end of Jeremiah’s prophecy concerning Moab.

JEREMIAH 48

What the [Lord] Says //about Moab

1  t The [Lord] All-Powerful, the God of Israel, told me to say to the nation of Moab:
The town of Nebo is doomed;
Kiriathaim will be captured
and disgraced,
and even its fortress
will be left in ruins.

2 No one honors you, Moab.
In Heshbon, enemies make plans
to end your life.
My sword will leave only silence
in your town named “Quiet.”t

3 The people of Horonaim
will cry for help,
as their town is attacked
and destroyed.

4 Moab will be shattered!
Your children will sob

5 and cry on their way up
to the town of Luhith;
on the road to Horonaim
they will tell of disasters.

6 Run for your lives!
Head into the desert
like a wild donkey.t

7 You thought you could be saved
by your power and wealth,
but you will be captured
along with your god Chemosh,
his priests, and officials.

8 Not one of your towns
will escape destruction.
I have told your enemies,
“Wipe out the valley
and the flatlands of Moab.

9 Spread salt on the ground
to kill the crops.t
Leave its towns in ruins,
with no one living there.

10 I want you to kill the Moabites,
and if you let them escape,
I will put a curse on you.”

11 Moab, you are like wine
left to settle undisturbed,
never poured from jar to jar.
And so, your nation continues
to prosper and improve.t

12 But now, I will send enemies
to pour out the wine
and smash the jars!

13 Then you will be ashamed,
because your god Chemosh
cannot save you,
just as Bethelt could not help
the Israelites.

14 You claim that your soldiers
are strong and brave.

15 But I am the [Lord],
the all-powerful King,
and I promise that enemies
will overpower your towns.
Even your best warriors
will die in the battle.

16 It won't be long now—
disaster will hit Moab!

17 I will order the nearby nations
to mourn for you and say,
“Isn't it sad? Moab ruled others,
but now its glorious power
has been shattered.”

18 People in the town of Dibon, t
you will be honored no more,
so have a seat in the dust.
Your walls will be torn down
when the enemies attack.

19 You people of Aroer, t
go wait beside the road,
and when refugees run by,
ask them, “What happened?”

20 They will answer,
“Moab has been defeated!
Weep with us in shame.
Tell everyone at the Arnon River
that Moab is destroyed.”

21 I will punish every town
that belongs to Moab,
but especially Holon,
Jahzah, Mephaath,

22 Dibon, Nebo,
Beth-Diblathaim,

23 Kiriathaim,
Beth-Gamul, Beth-Meon,

24 Kerioth, and Bozrah.t

25 My decision is final—
your army will be crushed,
and your power broken.

26 People of Moab, you claim
to be stronger than I am.
Now I will tell other nations
to make you drunk
and to laugh while you collapse
in your own vomit.

27 You made fun of my people
and treated them like criminals
caught in the act.

28 Now you must leave your towns
and live like doves
in the shelter of cliffs
and canyons.

29 I know about your pride,
and how you strut and boast.

30 But I also know bragging
will never save you.

31 So I will cry and mourn
for Moab
and its town of Kir-Heres.

32 People of Sibmah,
you were like a vineyard
heavy with grapes,
and with branches reaching
north to the town of Jazer
and west to the Dead Sea.t
But you have been destroyed,
and so I will weep for you,
as the people of Jazer weep
for the vineyards.

33 Harvest celebrations are gone
from the orchards and farms
of Moab.
I have silenced the shouts
of people making wine.

34 Weeping from Heshbon
can be heard as far
as Elealeh and Jahaz;
cries from Zoar are heard
in Horonaim
and Eglath-Shelishiyah.
And Nimrim Creek has run dry.

35 I will get rid of anyone
who burns incense
to the gods of Moab
or offers sacrifices
at their shrines.
I, the [Lord], have spoken.

36 In my heart I moan for Moab,
like a funeral song
played on a flute.
I mourn for the people
of the town of Kir-Heres,
because their wealth is gone.
*

37-38 The people of Moab
mourn on the rooftops
and in the streets.
Men cut off their beards,
people shave their heads;
they make cuts on their hands
and wear sackcloth.t
And it's all because I, the [Lord],
have shattered Moab like a jar
that no one wants.

39 Moab lies broken!
Listen to its people cry
as they turn away in shame.
Other nations are horrified
at what happened,
but still they mock her.

40 Moab, an enemy swoops down
like an eagle spreading its wings
over your land.

41 Your citiest and fortresses
will be captured,
and your warriors as fearful
as women giving birth.t

42 You are finished as a nation,
because you dared oppose me,
the [Lord].

43 Terror, pits, and traps
are waiting for you.

44 If you are terrified and run,
you will fall into a pit;
and if you crawl out of the pit,
you'll get caught in a trap.
The time has come
for you to be punished.
I, the [Lord], have spoken.

45 Near the city of Heshbon,
where Sihon once ruled,
tired refugees stand in shadows
cast by the flames
of their burning city.
Soon, the towns on other hilltops,
where those warlike people live,
will also go up in smoke.

46 People of Moab, you worshiped
Chemosh, your god,
but now you are done for,
and your children are prisoners
in a foreign country.

47 Yet someday, I will bring
your people back home.
I, the [Lord], have spoken.