Jeremiah 49

Prophecies against Ammon

1 About the Ammonites, this is what the Lord says:

Does Israel have no sons?
Is he without an heir?
Why then has Milcom dispossessed Gad
and his people settled in their cities?
2 Therefore look, the days are coming-
[this is] the Lord's declaration-
when I will make the shout of battle heard
against Rabbah of the Ammonites.
It will become a desolate mound,
and its villages will be burned down.
Israel will dispossess their dispossessors,
says the Lord.
3 Wail, Heshbon, for Ai is devastated;
cry out, daughters of Rabbah!
Clothe yourselves with sackcloth, and lament;
run back and forth within your walls,
because Milcom will go into exile
together with his priests and officials.
4 Why do you brag about your valleys,
your flowing valley,
you faithless daughter?
You who trust in your treasures
[and boast], "Who can attack me?"
5 Look, I am about to bring terror on you-
[this is] the declaration of
the Lord God of Hosts-
from all those around you.
You will be banished, each man headlong,
with no one to gather up the fugitives.

6 But after that, I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites.
[This is] the Lord's declaration.

Prophecies against Edom

7 About Edom, this is what the Lord of Hosts says:

Is there no longer wisdom in Teman?
Has counsel perished from the prudent?
Has their wisdom rotted away?
8 Run! Turn back! Lie low,
residents of Dedan,
for I will bring Esau's calamity on him
at the time I punish him.
9 If grape harvesters came to you,
wouldn't they leave some gleanings?
Were thieves to come in the night,
they would destroy only what they wanted.
10 But I will strip Esau bare;
I will uncover his secret places.
He will try to hide himself, but he will be unable.
His descendants will be destroyed
along with his relatives and neighbors.
He will exist no longer.

11 Abandon your fatherless; I will preserve them;
let your widows trust in Me.
12 "For this is what the Lord says: If those who do not deserve to drink the cup must drink it, can you possibly remain unpunished? You will not remain unpunished, for you must drink [it] too.

13 For by Myself I have sworn"-[this is] the Lord's declaration-"Bozrah will become a desolation, a disgrace, a ruin, and a curse, and all her cities will become ruins forever."

14 I have heard a message from the Lord;
a messenger has been sent among the nations:
Assemble yourselves to come against her.
Rise up for war!

15 Look, I will certainly make you insignificant among the nations,
despised among humanity.

16 As to the terror you cause,
your presumptuous heart has deceived you.
You who live in the clefts of the rock,
you who occupy the mountain summit,
though you elevate your nest like the eagle,
even from there I will bring you down.
[This is] the Lord's declaration.
17 "Edom will become a desolation. Everyone who passes by her will be horrified and scoff because of all her wounds.

18 As when Sodom and Gomorrah were overthrown along with their neighbors," says the Lord, "no one will live there; no human being will even stay in it as a temporary resident.

19 "Look, it will be like a lion coming from the thickets of the Jordan to the watered grazing land. Indeed, I will chase Edom away from her [land] in a flash. I will appoint whoever is chosen for her. For who is like Me? Who will summon Me? Who is the shepherd who can stand against Me?"
20 Therefore, hear the plans that the Lord has drawn up against Edom and the strategies He has devised against the people of Teman: The flock's little lambs will certainly be dragged away, and their grazing land will be made desolate because of them. 21 At the sound of their fall the earth will quake; the sound of her cry will be heard at the Red Sea.

22 Look! It will be like an eagle soaring upward, then swooping down and spreading its wings over Bozrah. In that day the hearts of Edom's warriors will be like the heart of a woman with contractions.

Prophecies against Damascus

23 About Damascus:

Hamath and Arpad are put to shame,
for they have heard a bad report and are agitated;
in the sea there is anxiety that cannot be calmed.
24 Damascus has become weak;
she has turned to run;
panic has gripped her.
Distress and labor pains have seized her
like a woman in labor.
25 How can the city of praise not be abandoned,
the town that brings Me joy?
26 Therefore, her young men will fall in her public squares;
all the warriors will perish in that day.
[This is] the declaration of
the Lord of Hosts.

27 I will set fire to the wall of Damascus;
it will consume Ben-hadad's citadels.

Prophecies against Kedar and Hazor

28 About Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar, Babylon's king, defeated, this is what the Lord says:

Rise up, go against Kedar,
and destroy the people of the east!
29 They will take their tents and their flocks
along with their tent curtains and all their equipment.
They will take their camels for themselves.
They will call out to them:
Terror is on every side!

30 Run! Escape quickly! Lie low,
residents of Hazor-
[this is] the Lord's declaration-
for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
has drawn up a plan against you;
he has devised a strategy against you.

31 Rise up, go up against a nation at ease,
one living in security.
[This is] the Lord's declaration.
They have no doors, not even a gate bar;
they live alone.
32 Their camels will become plunder,
and their massive herds of cattle will become spoil.
I will scatter them to the wind in every direction,
those who shave their temples;
I will bring calamity on them across all their borders.
[This is] the Lord's declaration.

33 Hazor will become a jackals' den,
a desolation forever.
No one will live there;
no human being will even stay in it as a temporary resident.

Prophecies against Elam

34 [This is] the word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet about Elam at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah.

35 This is what the Lord of Hosts says:

I am about to shatter Elam's bow,
the source of their might.
36 I will bring the four winds against Elam
from the four corners of the heavens,
and I will scatter them to all these winds.
There will not be a nation
to which Elam's banished ones will not go.
37 I will devastate Elam before their enemies,
before those who want to take their lives.
I will bring disaster on them,
My burning anger.
[This is] the Lord's declaration.
I will send the sword after them
until I finish them off.

38 I will set My throne in Elam,
and I will destroy the king and officials from there.
[This is] the Lord's declaration.

39 In the last days,
I will restore the fortunes of Elam.
[This is] the Lord's declaration.

Jeremiah 49

Judgment Against Ammon

1 The Lord spoke about the Ammonites.s
“Do you think there are not any people of the nation of Israel remaining?
Do you think there are not any of them remaining to reinherit their land?
Is that why you people who worship the god Milcoms
have taken possession of the territory of Gad and live in his cities?t

2 Because you did that,
I, the Lord, affirm thatt a time is coming
when I will make Rabbah, the capital city of Ammon,
hear the sound of the battle cry.
It will become a mound covered with ruins.t
Its villages will be burned to the ground.t
Then Israel will take back its land
from those who took their land from them.
I, the Lord, affirm it!t

3 Wail, you people in Heshbon, because Ai in Ammon is destroyed.
Cry out in anguish, you people in the villages surroundingt Rabbah.
Put on sackcloth and cry out in mourning.
Run about covered with gashes.s
For your god Milcom will go into exile
along with his priests and officials.s

4 Why do you brag about your great power?
Your power is ebbing away,t you rebellious people of Ammon,t
who trust in your riches and say,
‘Who would dare to attack us?’

5 I will bring terror on you from every side,”
says the Lord God who rules over all.t
“You will be scattered in every direction.t
No one will gather the fugitives back together.

6 Yet in days to come
I will reverse Ammon’s ill fortune.”t
says the Lord.t

Judgment Against Edom

7 The Lord who rules over allt spoke about Edom.s
“Is wisdom no longer to be found in Teman?s
Can Edom’s counselors not give her any good advice?t
Has all of their wisdom turned bad?t

8 Turn and flee! Take up refuge in remote places,t
you people who live in Dedan.s
For I will bring disaster on the descendants of Esau.
I have decided it is time for me to punish them.t

9 If grape pickers came to pick your grapes,
would they not leave a few grapes behind?t
If robbers came at night,
would they not pillage only what they needed?t

10 But I will strip everything away from Esau’s descendants.
I will uncover their hiding places so they cannot hide.
Their children, relatives, and neighbors will all be destroyed.
Not one of them will be left!

11 Leave your orphans behind and I will keep them alive.
Your widows too can depend on me.”t
12 For the Lord says, “If even those who did not deserve to drink from the cup of my wrath must drink from it, do you think you will go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, but must certainly drink from the cup of my wrath.ts

13 For I solemnly swear,”t says the Lord, “that Bozrahs will become a pile of ruins. It will become an object of horror and ridicule, an example to be used in curses.t All the towns around it will lie in ruins forever.”

14 I said,t “I have heard a message from the Lord.
A messenger has been sent among the nations to say,
‘Gather your armies and march out against her!
Prepare to do battle with her!’”t

15 The Lord says to Edom,t
“I will certainly make you small among nations.
I will make you despised by all humankind.

16 The terror you inspire in otherst
and the arrogance of your heart have deceived you.
You may make your home in the clefts of the rocks;
you may occupy the highest places in the hills.t
But even if you made your home where the eagles nest,
I would bring you down from there,”
says the Lord.

17 “Edom will become an object of horror.
All who pass by it will be filled with horror;
they will hiss out their scorn
because of all the disasters that have happened to it.s

18 Edom will be destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah
and the towns that were around them.
No one will live there.
No human being will settle in it,”
says the Lord.

19 “A lion coming up from the thick undergrowth along the Jordant
scatters the sheep in the pastureland around it.t
So too I will chase the Edomites off their land.t
Then I will appoint over it whomever I choose.t
For there is no one like me, and there is no one who can call me to account.t
There is not rulert who can stand up against me.

20 So listen to what I, the Lord, have planned against Edom,
what I intend to do tot the people who live in Teman.s
Their little ones will be dragged off.
I will completely destroy their land because of what they have done.t

21 The people of the earth will quake when they hear of their downfall.t
Their cries of anguish will be heard all the way to the Gulf of Aqaba.t

22 Look! Like an eagle with outspread wings,
a nation will soar up and swoop down on Bozrah.
At that time the soldiers of Edom will be as fearful
as a woman in labor.”s

Judgment Against Damascus

23 The Lord spoket about Damascus.s
“The people of Hamath and Arpadts will be dismayed
because they have heard bad news.
Their courage will melt away because of worry.
Their hearts will not be able to rest.s

24 The people of Damascus will lose heart and turn to flee.
Panic will grip them.
Pain and anguish will seize them
like a woman in labor.

25 How deserted will that once-famous cityt be,
that city that was once filled witht joy!s

26 For her young men will fall in her city squares.
All her soldiers will be destroyed at that time,”
says the Lord who rules over all.t

27 “I will set fire to the walls of Damascus;
it will burn up the palaces of Ben Hadad.”s

Judgment Against Kedar and Hazor

28 The Lord spoke about Kedars and the kingdoms of Hazors that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered.
“Army of Babylon,t go and attack Kedar.
Lay waste those who live in the eastern desert.s

29 Their tents and their flocks will be taken away.
Their tent curtains, equipment, and camels will be carried off.
People will shoutt to them,
‘Terror is all around you!’”s

30 The Lord says,t “Flee quickly, you who live in Hazor.s
Take up refuge in remote places.t
For King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has laid out plans to attack you.
He has formed his strategy on how to defeat you.”t

31 The Lord says,t “Army of Babylon,t go and attack
a nation that lives in peace and security.
They have no gates or walls to protect them.t
They live all alone.

32 Their camels will be taken as plunder.
Their vast herds will be taken as spoil.
I will scatter to the four winds
those desert peoples who cut their hair short at the temples.t
I will bring disaster against them
from every direction,” says the Lord.t

33 “Hazor will become a permanent wasteland,
a place where only jackals live.s
No one will live there.
No human being will settle in it.”s

Judgment Against Elam

34 Early in the reignt of King Zedekiah of Judah, the Lord spoke to the prophet Jeremiah about Elam.ts

35 The Lord who rules over all said,
“I will kill all the archers of Elam,
who are the chief source of her military might.t

36 I will cause enemies to blow through Elam from every direction
like the winds blowing in from the four quarters of heaven.
I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds.
There will not be any nation where the refugees of Elam will not go.t

37 I will make the people of Elam terrified of their enemies,
who are seeking to kill them.
I will vent my fierce anger
and bring disaster upon them,”t says the Lord.t
“I will send armies chasing after themt
until I have completely destroyed them.

38 I will establish my sovereignty over Elam.t
I will destroy their king and their leaders,”t says the Lord.t

39 “Yet in days to come
I will reverse Elam’s ill fortune.”ts
says the Lord.t