Gedaliah Murdered
JEREMIAH 41 [†] v In the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, one of the chief officers of the king, came with ten men to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, at w Mizpah. As they x ate bread together there at Mizpah, 2[†] y Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men with him rose up and struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, with the sword, and killed him, z whom the king of Babylon had appointed governor in the land. 3[†]Ishmael also struck down all the Judeans who were with Gedaliah at w Mizpah, and the Chaldean soldiers who happened to be there.
4[†]On the day after the murder of Gedaliah, before anyone knew of it, 5eighty men arrived from a Shechem and b Shiloh and c Samaria, with d their beards shaved and e their clothes torn, and d their bodies gashed, f bringing grain offerings and incense to present at the temple of the LORD. 6And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah came out from g Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he came. As he met them, he said to them, “Come in to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam.” 7When they came into the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the men with him slaughtered them and cast them into a cistern. 8But there were ten men among them who said to Ishmael, “Do not put us to death, for we have h stores of wheat, barley, oil, and honey hidden in the fields.” So he refrained and did not put them to death with their companions.
9Now the cistern into which Ishmael had thrown all the bodies of the men whom he had struck down along with [1] Gedaliah was the large cistern that i King Asa had made for defense against i Baasha king of Israel; Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with the slain. 10[†]Then Ishmael took captive all the rest of the people who were in Mizpah, j the king’s daughters and all the people who were left at Mizpah, whom k Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah took them captive and set out to cross over to l the Ammonites.
11[†]But when m Johanan the son of Kareah and n all the leaders of the forces with him heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, 12they took all their men and went to fight against Ishmael the son of Nethaniah. They came upon him at o the great pool that is in p Gibeon. 13[†]And when all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah and q all the leaders of the forces with him, they rejoiced. 14 r So all the people whom Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah turned around and came back, and went to Johanan the son of Kareah. 15But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to s the Ammonites. 16Then Johanan the son of Kareah and q all the leaders of the forces with him took from Mizpah all the rest of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, after he had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam—soldiers, t women, children, and eunuchs, whom Johanan brought back from u Gibeon. 17And they went and stayed at Geruth v Chimham near w Bethlehem, intending to go to Egypt 18because of the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, x whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land.
Warning Against Going to Egypt
JEREMIAH 42 [†]Then y all the commanders of the forces, and z Johanan the son of Kareah and Jezaniah the son of a Hoshaiah, and all the people b from the least to the greatest, came near 2and said to Jeremiah the prophet, “Let c our plea for mercy come before you, and d pray to the LORD your God for us, for all e this remnant— f because we are left with but a few, as your eyes see us— 3that g the LORD your God may show us the way we should go, and the thing that we should do.” 4Jeremiah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you. Behold, I will pray to the LORD your God according to your request, and h whatever the LORD answers you I will tell you. h I will keep nothing back from you.” 5Then they said to Jeremiah, i “May the LORD be a true and j faithful witness against us k if we do not act according to all the word l with which the LORD your God sends you to us. 6Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, m that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God.”
7[†] n At the end of ten days the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah. 8Then he summoned z Johanan the son of Kareah and y all the commanders of the forces who were with him, and all the people b from the least to the greatest, 9and said to them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, o to whom you sent me to present your plea for mercy before him: 10[†]If you will remain in this land, p then I will build you up and not pull you down; I will plant you, and not pluck you up; q for I relent of the disaster that I did to you. 11[†] r Do not fear the king of Babylon, r of whom you are afraid. s Do not fear him, declares the LORD, s for I am with you, to save you and to deliver you from his hand. 12 t I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and let you remain in your own land. 13[†] u But if you say, ‘We will not remain in this land,’ disobeying the voice of the LORD your God 14and saying, ‘No, v we will go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see war or w hear the sound of the trumpet or x be hungry for bread, and we will dwell there,’ 15then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: y If you set your faces to enter Egypt z and go to live there, 16then the sword a that you fear shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine of which you are afraid shall follow close after you to Egypt, b and there you shall die. 17All the men who set their faces to go to Egypt to live there shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. They shall have c no remnant or survivor from the disaster that I will bring upon them.
18[†]“For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: d As my anger and my wrath were poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my wrath will be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. e You shall become an execration, a horror, a curse, and a taunt. You shall see this place no more. 19[†]The LORD has said to you, O remnant of Judah, f ‘Do not go to Egypt.’ g Know for a certainty that I have warned you this day 20that you have gone astray at the cost of your lives. h For you sent me to the LORD your God, saying, h ‘Pray for us to the LORD our God, and i whatever the LORD our God says declare to us and we will do it.’ 21And I have this day declared it to you, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in anything j that he sent me to tell you. 22 k Now therefore know for a certainty that you shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence in the place where you desire to go to live.”
Jeremiah Taken to Egypt
JEREMIAH 43 When Jeremiah finished speaking to all the people all these words of the LORD their God, with which the LORD their God had sent him to them, 2Azariah the son of l Hoshaiah and m Johanan the son of Kareah and n all the insolent men said to Jeremiah, “You are telling a lie. The LORD our God did not send you to say, o ‘Do not go to Egypt to live there,’ 3but p Baruch the son of Neriah q has set you against us, r to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon.” 4[†]So m Johanan the son of Kareah and all s the commanders of the forces and all the people did not obey the voice of the LORD, to remain in the land of Judah. 5But Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces took t all the remnant of Judah who had returned to live in the land of Judah from all the nations to which they had been driven— 6 u the men, the women, the children, v the princesses, and every person whom w Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with x Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan; also Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch the son of Neriah. 7[†]And they came into the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the LORD. And they arrived at y Tahpanhes.
8Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah in y Tahpanhes: 9[†]“Take in your hands large stones and hide them in the mortar in the pavement that is at the entrance to Pharaoh’s palace in y Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah, 10and say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, z my servant, a and I will set his throne above these stones that I have hidden, and he will spread his royal canopy over them. 11He shall come b and strike the land of Egypt, c giving over to the pestilence those who are doomed to the pestilence, to captivity those who are doomed to captivity, and to the sword those who are doomed to the sword. 12[†] d I shall kindle a fire e in the temples of the gods of Egypt, and he shall burn them f and carry them away captive. g And he shall clean the land of Egypt g as a shepherd cleans his cloak of vermin, and he shall go away from there in peace. 13[†]He shall break the h obelisks of Heliopolis, which is in the land of Egypt, e and the temples of the gods of Egypt he shall burn with fire.’”
Judgment for Idolatry
JEREMIAH 44 [†]The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Judeans who lived in the land of Egypt, at i Migdol, at j Tahpanhes, at Memphis, and in the land of k Pathros, 2“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: You have seen all the disaster that I brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah. Behold, this day l they are a desolation, and no one dwells in them, 3because of the evil that they committed, m provoking me to anger, n in that they went to make offerings o and serve other gods that they knew not, neither they, nor you, nor your fathers. 4[†] p Yet I persistently sent to you all my servants the prophets, saying, ‘Oh, do not do this abomination that I hate!’ 5 q But they did not listen q or incline their ear, to turn from their evil and make no offerings to other gods. 6 r Therefore my wrath and my anger were poured out and kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, s and they became a waste and a desolation, as at this day. 7And now thus says the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel: Why do you commit this great evil t against yourselves, to cut off from you u man and woman, u infant and child, from the midst of Judah, leaving you no remnant? 8[†] m Why do you provoke me to anger with the works of your hands, n making offerings to other gods in the land of Egypt where you have come to live, so that you may be cut off and become v a curse and a taunt among all the nations of the earth? 9[†]Have you forgotten the evil of your fathers, w the evil of the kings of Judah, x the evil of their [1] wives, your own evil, y and the evil of your wives, which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 10They have not humbled themselves even to this day, z nor have they feared, nor walked in my law and my statutes that I set before you and before your fathers.
11[†]“Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: a Behold, I will set my face against you for harm, to cut off all Judah. 12I will take the remnant of Judah who have b set their faces to come to the land of Egypt to live, and they shall all be consumed. c In the land of Egypt they shall fall; by the sword and by famine c they shall be consumed. d From the least to the greatest, they shall die by the sword and by famine, e and they shall become an oath, a horror, v a curse, and a taunt. 13 f I will punish those who dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence, 14 g so that none of the remnant of Judah who have come to live in the land of Egypt shall escape or survive h or return to the land of Judah, to which they desire to return to dwell there. For they shall not return, i except some fugitives.”
15Then all the men who knew that j their wives had made offerings to other gods, and all the women who stood by, a great assembly, all the people who lived in k Pathros in the land of Egypt, answered Jeremiah: 16“As for the word that you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, l we will not listen to you. 17[†] m But we will do everything that we have vowed, make offerings to n the queen of heaven o and pour out drink offerings to her, p as we did, both we and our fathers, our kings and our officials, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For then we had plenty of food, and prospered, and saw no disaster. 18But since we left off making offerings to n the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked everything q and have been consumed by the sword and by famine.” 19And the women said, [2] “When we made offerings to the queen of heaven r and poured out drink offerings to her, was it s without our husbands’ approval that we made cakes for her bearing her image and poured out drink offerings to her?”
20Then Jeremiah said to all the people, t men and women, all the people who had given him this answer: 21[†] u “As for the offerings that you offered in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, you and your fathers, your kings and your officials, and the people of the land, v did not the LORD remember them? Did it not come into his mind? 22 w The LORD could no longer bear your evil deeds and x the abominations that you committed. y Therefore your land has become z a desolation and a waste and a curse, a without inhabitant, as it is this day. 23It is because you made offerings b and because you sinned against the LORD and did not obey the voice of the LORD or walk in his law and in his statutes and in his testimonies c that this disaster has happened to you, as at this day.”
24Jeremiah said to all the people and all the women, “Hear the word of the LORD, d all you of Judah who are in the land of Egypt. 25Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: e You and your wives have declared with your mouths, and have fulfilled it with your hands, saying, ‘We will surely perform our vows that we have made, f to make offerings to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings to her.’ Then confirm your vows and perform your vows! 26[†]Therefore hear the word of the LORD, d all you of Judah who dwell in the land of Egypt: g Behold, I have sworn by my great name, says the LORD, h that my name shall no more be invoked by the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, i saying, ‘As the Lord GOD lives.’ 27 j Behold, I am watching over them for disaster and not for good. k All the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, until there is an end of them. 28 l And those who escape the sword shall return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah, m few in number; and all the remnant of Judah, who came to the land of Egypt to live, n shall know whose word will stand, mine or theirs. 29[†]This shall be the sign to you, declares the LORD, that I will punish you in this place, in order that you may know that o my words will surely stand against you for harm: 30Thus says the LORD, Behold, I will give p Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies q and into the hand of those who seek his life, as I gave r Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who was his enemy and sought his life.”
Message to Baruch
JEREMIAH 45 [†]The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to s Baruch the son of Neriah, t when he wrote these words in a book at the dictation of Jeremiah, u in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: 2“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to you, O Baruch: 3[†]You said, v ‘Woe is me! For the LORD has added sorrow to my pain. w I am weary with my groaning, x and I find no rest.’ 4[†]Thus shall you say to him, Thus says the LORD: y Behold, what I have built I am breaking down, and what I have planted I am plucking up—that is, the whole land. 5[†]And z do you seek great things for yourself? Seek them not, for behold, a I am bringing disaster upon all flesh, declares the LORD. But I will give you b your life as a prize of war in all places to which you may go.”
Judgment on Egypt
JEREMIAH 46 [†]The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet c concerning the nations.
2[†]About Egypt. d Concerning the army of Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates at Carchemish and which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated in e the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:
3 f “Prepare buckler and shield,
and advance for battle!
4 g Harness the horses;
mount, O horsemen!
Take your stations with your helmets,
f polish your spears,
put on your armor!
5 Why have I seen it?
They are dismayed
and have turned backward.
Their h warriors are beaten down
and have fled in haste;
i they look not back—
j terror on every side!
declares the LORD.
6 “The swift cannot flee away,
nor the warrior escape;
d in the north by the river Euphrates
k they have stumbled and fallen.
7 “Who is this, l rising like the Nile,
like rivers m whose waters surge?
8 Egypt rises like the Nile,
like rivers m whose waters surge.
He said, ‘I will rise, I will cover the earth,
I will destroy cities and their inhabitants.’
9 n Advance, O horses,
and rage, O chariots!
Let the warriors go out:
men of Cush and o Put who handle the shield,
p men of Lud, skilled in handling the bow.
10[†] q That day is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts,
r a day of vengeance,
s to avenge himself on his foes.
t The sword shall devour and be sated
and drink its fill of their blood.
For the Lord GOD of hosts holds u a sacrifice
v in the north country w by the river Euphrates.
11[†] x Go up to Gilead, and take x balm,
O virgin daughter of Egypt!
In vain you have used many medicines;
y there is no healing for you.
12 The nations have heard of your shame,
and the earth is full of your cry;
z for warrior has stumbled against warrior;
they have both fallen together.”
13The word that the LORD spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of a Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to strike the land of Egypt:
14 “Declare in Egypt, and proclaim in b Migdol;
proclaim in b Memphis and b Tahpanhes;
say, c ‘Stand ready and be prepared,
for d the sword shall devour around you.’
15[†] Why are your mighty ones face down?
They do not stand [1]
because the LORD thrust them down.
16 He made many stumble, f and they fell,
and they said one to another,
‘Arise, and let us go back to our own people
and to the land of our birth,
g because of the sword of the oppressor.’
17 Call the name of h Pharaoh, king of Egypt,
‘Noisy one who lets the hour go by.’
18[†] i “As I live, declares the King,
j whose name is the LORD of hosts,
like k Tabor among the mountains
and like l Carmel by the sea, shall one come.
19[†] m Prepare yourselves baggage for exile,
O n inhabitants of Egypt!
For o Memphis shall become a waste,
a ruin, p without inhabitant.
20 “A beautiful q heifer is Egypt,
but a biting fly r from the north has come upon her.
21 Even her hired soldiers in her midst
are like s fattened calves;
yes, they have turned and fled together;
they did not stand,
for the day of their calamity has come upon them,
t the time of their punishment.
22 “She makes u a sound like a serpent gliding away;
for her enemies march in force
and come against her with axes
v like those who fell trees.
23 v They shall cut down her forest,
declares the LORD,
though it is impenetrable,
because w they are more numerous than locusts;
they are without number.
24 The daughter of Egypt shall be put to shame;
she shall be delivered into the hand of r a people from the north.”
25[†]The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, said: “Behold, I am bringing punishment upon x Amon of y Thebes, and Pharaoh and Egypt z and her gods and her kings, upon Pharaoh and those who trust in him. 26[†] a I will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their life, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. b Afterward Egypt shall be inhabited c as in the days of old, declares the LORD.
27[†] d “But fear not, O Jacob my servant,
nor be dismayed, O Israel,
for behold, I will save you from far away,
and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
28 d Fear not, O Jacob my servant,
declares the LORD,
for I am with you.
I will make a full end of all the nations
to which I have driven you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
e I will discipline you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.”
Judgment on the Philistines
JEREMIAH 47 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet f concerning the Philistines, before Pharaoh struck down g Gaza.
2[†] “Thus says the LORD:
h Behold, waters are rising i out of the north,
h and shall become an overflowing torrent;
they shall overflow j the land and all that fills it,
the city and those who dwell in it.
Men shall cry out,
and every inhabitant of the land shall wail.
3 At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his stallions,
l at the rushing of his chariots, at the rumbling of their wheels,
the fathers m look not back to their children,
so feeble are their hands,
4[†] because of the day that is coming to destroy
all f the Philistines,
to cut off from n Tyre and Sidon
every helper that remains.
For the LORD is destroying the Philistines,
o the remnant of the coastland of p Caphtor.
5[†] q Baldness has come upon Gaza;
r Ashkelon has perished.
O remnant of their valley,
s how long will you gash yourselves?
How long till you are quiet?
Put yourself into your scabbard;
rest and be still!
7 How can it [1] be quiet
u when the LORD has given it a charge?
Against v Ashkelon and against the seashore
w he has appointed it.”
Judgment on Moab
JEREMIAH 48 [†] x Concerning Moab.
Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
“Woe to y Nebo, for it is laid waste!
z Kiriathaim is put to shame, it is taken;
the fortress is put to shame a and broken down;
2[†] the renown of Moab is no more.
In b Heshbon they planned disaster against her:
‘Come, let us cut her off c from being a nation!’
You also, O d Madmen, shall be brought to silence;
the sword shall pursue you.
3[†] “A voice! A cry from e Horonaim,
‘Desolation and great destruction!’
4 Moab is destroyed;
her little ones have made a cry.
5[†] e For at the ascent of Luhith
they go up weeping; [1]
for e at the descent of Horonaim
they have heard the distressed cry [2] of destruction.
6 Flee! Save yourselves!
You will be like f a juniper in the desert!
7[†] For, g because you trusted in your works and your treasures,
you also shall be taken;
and h Chemosh i shall go into exile
with j his priests and his officials.
8[†] k The destroyer shall come upon every city,
and no city shall escape;
the valley shall perish,
and l the plain shall be destroyed,
as the LORD has spoken.
9 “Give wings to Moab,
for she would fly away;
her cities shall become a desolation,
with no inhabitant in them.
10[†] m “Cursed is he who does n the work of the LORD with slackness, and cursed is he who keeps back his sword from bloodshed.
11[†] “Moab has been at ease from his youth
and has o settled on his dregs;
he has not been emptied from vessel to vessel,
nor has he gone into exile;
so his taste remains in him,
and his scent is not changed.
12[†]“Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I shall send to him pourers who will pour him, and empty his vessels and break his [3] jars in pieces. 13[†]Then p Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as q the house of Israel was ashamed of r Bethel, their confidence.
14 “How do you say, ‘We are heroes
and mighty men of war’?
15[†] The destroyer of s Moab and his cities has come up,
and the choicest of his young men have t gone down to slaughter,
declares u the King, u whose name is the LORD of hosts.
16[†] The calamity of Moab is near at hand,
and his affliction hastens swiftly.
17 v Grieve for him, all you who are around him,
and all who know his name;
say, w ‘How the mighty scepter is broken,
the glorious staff.’
18 x “Come down from your glory,
and sit on the parched ground,
O inhabitant of y Dibon!
For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you;
he has destroyed your strongholds.
19 z Stand by the way z and watch,
O inhabitant of a Aroer!
Ask him who flees and her who escapes;
say, ‘What has happened?’
20[†] Moab is put to shame, for it is broken;
v wail and cry!
Tell it beside b the Arnon,
that s Moab is laid waste.
21[†]“Judgment has come upon c the tableland, upon Holon, and d Jahzah, and Mephaath, 22and y Dibon, and e Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, 23and f Kiriathaim, and Beth-gamul, and g Beth-meon, 24and h Kerioth, and i Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. 25 j The horn of Moab is cut off, and k his arm is broken, declares the LORD.
26[†] l “Make him drunk, m because he magnified himself against the LORD, so that Moab shall l wallow in his vomit, n and he too shall be held in derision. 27 o Was not Israel a derision to you? p Was he found among thieves, that whenever you spoke of him q you wagged your head?
28 r “Leave the cities, and dwell in the rock,
O inhabitants of Moab!
Be s like the dove that nests
in the sides of the mouth of a gorge.
29[†] t We have heard of the pride of Moab—
he is very proud—
of his loftiness, his pride, and his arrogance,
and the haughtiness of his heart.
30 I know his insolence, declares the LORD;
u his boasts are false,
his deeds are false.
31[†] v Therefore I wail for Moab;
I cry out for all Moab;
for the men of w Kir-hareseth I mourn.
32 More than for x Jazer I weep for you,
a Your branches passed over the sea,
reached to the Sea of x Jazer;
on your summer fruits and your grapes
the destroyer has fallen.
33[†] b Gladness and joy have been taken away
from the fruitful land of Moab;
I have made the wine cease from the winepresses;
no one treads them with shouts of joy;
the shouting is not the shout of joy.
34 c “From the outcry at Heshbon even to Elealeh, as far as Jahaz they utter their voice, from Zoar to d Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. For the waters of Nimrim also have become desolate. 35[†]And I will bring to an end in Moab, declares the LORD, him who offers sacrifice in e the high place and makes offerings to his god. 36[†]Therefore my heart moans for Moab like a flute, and my heart moans like a flute for the men of f Kir-hareseth. g Therefore the riches they gained have perished.
37 h “For every head is shaved and every beard cut off. i On all the hands are gashes, and j around the waist is sackcloth. 38On all the housetops of Moab and in the squares there is nothing but lamentation, for I have broken Moab like k a vessel for which no one cares, declares the LORD. 39How it is broken! How they wail! l How Moab has turned his back in shame! So Moab m has become a derision and a horror to all that are around him.”
40[†] For thus says the LORD:
“Behold, n one shall fly swiftly like an eagle
o and spread his wings against Moab;
41 p the cities shall be taken
and the strongholds seized.
q The heart of the warriors of Moab shall be in that day
like the heart of r a woman in her birth pains;
42[†] Moab shall be s destroyed and be no longer a people,
because t he magnified himself against the LORD.
43[†] u Terror, pit, and snare
are before you, O inhabitant of Moab!
declares the LORD.
44 He who flees from the terror
shall fall into the pit,
and he who climbs out of the pit
shall be caught in the snare.
v For I will bring these things upon Moab,
the year of their punishment,
declares the LORD.
45[†] “In the shadow of Heshbon
fugitives stop without strength,
for fire came out from Heshbon,
flame from the house of Sihon;
it has destroyed w the forehead of Moab,
the crown of w the sons of tumult.
46 x Woe to you, O Moab!
The people of y Chemosh are undone,
for your sons have been taken captive,
and your daughters into captivity.
47[†] z Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab
in the latter days, declares the LORD.”
Thus far is the judgment on Moab.
Judgment on Ammon
JEREMIAH 49 [†] a Concerning the Ammonites.
Thus says the LORD:
“Has Israel no sons?
Has he no heir?
Why then has b Milcom c dispossessed Gad,
and his people settled in its cities?
2[†] Therefore, behold, the days are coming,
declares the LORD,
when I will cause d the battle cry to be heard
against e Rabbah of the Ammonites;
it shall become a desolate f mound,
and its villages shall be burned with fire;
then Israel shall dispossess those who dispossessed him,
says the LORD.
3[†] “Wail, O g Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste!
Cry out, O daughters of e Rabbah!
h Put on sackcloth,
lament, and run to and fro among the hedges!
For i Milcom shall go into exile,
j with his priests and his officials.
4 Why do you boast of your valleys, [1]
k O faithless daughter,
l who trusted in her treasures, saying,
‘Who will come against me?’
5[†] Behold, m I will bring terror upon you,
declares the Lord GOD of hosts,
from all who are around you,
and you shall be driven out, every man straight before him,
with none to gather the fugitives.
6[†]“But n afterward I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites, declares the LORD.”
Judgment on Edom
Thus says the LORD of hosts:
p “Is wisdom no more in p Teman?
q Has counsel perished from the prudent?
q Has their wisdom vanished?
8[†] r Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of s Dedan!
For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him,
t the time when I punish him.
9 u If grape gatherers came to you,
would they not leave v gleanings?
u If thieves came by night,
would they not destroy only enough for themselves?
10 w But I have stripped Esau bare;
u I have uncovered his hiding places,
and he is not able to conceal himself.
His children are destroyed, and his brothers,
and his neighbors; and x he is no more.
11[†] y Leave your fatherless children; I will keep them alive;
y and let your widows trust in me.”
12For thus says the LORD: z “If those who did not deserve to drink the cup must drink it, a will you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you must drink. 13[†] b For I have sworn by myself, declares the LORD, that c Bozrah shall become d a horror, a taunt, a waste, and a curse, and all her cities shall be perpetual wastes.”
14 e I have heard a message from the LORD,
and an envoy has been sent among the nations:
f “Gather yourselves together and come against her,
and rise up for battle!
15 For behold, I will make you small among the nations,
despised among mankind.
16 The horror you inspire has deceived you,
and the pride of your heart,
you who live in the clefts of the rock, [2]
who hold the height of the hill.
Though you g make your nest as high as the eagle’s,
I will bring you down from there,
declares the LORD.
17 h “Edom shall become a horror. i Everyone who passes by it will be horrified i and will hiss because of all its disasters. 18 j As when Sodom and Gomorrah and their k neighboring cities were overthrown, says the LORD, l no man shall dwell there, l no man shall sojourn in her. 19 m Behold, n like a lion coming up from o the jungle of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make him [3] run away from her. And I will appoint over her whomever I choose. p For who is like me? q Who will summon me? r What shepherd can stand before me? 20Therefore hear the plan that the LORD has made against s Edom and the purposes that he has formed against the inhabitants of t Teman: u Even the little ones of the flock shall be dragged away. Surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 21At the sound of their fall v the earth shall tremble; the sound of their cry shall be heard at the Red Sea. 22Behold, w one shall mount up and fly swiftly like an eagle and spread his wings against x Bozrah, and the heart of the warriors of Edom shall be in that day like the heart y of a woman in her birth pains.”
Judgment on Damascus
a “Hamath and b Arpad are confounded,
for they have heard bad news;
they melt in fear,
c they are troubled like the sea that cannot be quiet.
24[†] z Damascus has become feeble, d she turned to flee,
and panic seized her;
anguish and sorrows have taken hold of her,
as y of a woman in labor.
25 How is e the famous city not forsaken,
the city of my joy?
26 f Therefore her young men shall fall in her squares,
and all her soldiers shall be destroyed in that day,
declares the LORD of hosts.
27 And g I will kindle a fire in the wall of z Damascus,
and it shall devour the strongholds of h Ben-hadad.”
Judgment on Kedar and Hazor
28[†]Concerning i Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck down.
Thus says the LORD:
j “Rise up, advance against i Kedar!
Destroy k the people of the east!
29 l Their tents and their flocks shall be taken,
their l curtains and all their goods;
their camels shall be led away from them,
and men shall cry to them: m ‘Terror on every side!’
30[†] n Flee, wander far away, dwell in the depths,
O inhabitants of Hazor!
declares the LORD.
For Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
has made a plan against you
and formed a purpose against you.
31 j “Rise up, advance against a nation o at ease,
p that dwells securely,
declares the LORD,
p that has no gates or bars,
that dwells alone.
32 q Their camels shall become plunder,
their herds of livestock a spoil.
r I will scatter to every wind
s those who cut the corners of their hair,
and I will bring their calamity
from every side of them,
declares the LORD.
33 Hazor shall become t a haunt of jackals,
an everlasting waste;
u no man shall dwell there;
u no man shall sojourn in her.”
Judgment on Elam
34[†]The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning v Elam, in the beginning of the reign of w Zedekiah king of Judah.
35Thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I will break x the bow of v Elam, the mainstay of their might. 36[†]And I will bring upon v Elam the four winds from the four quarters of heaven. And I will scatter them to all those winds, and there shall be no nation to which those driven out of v Elam shall not come. 37I will y terrify v Elam before their enemies and before those who seek their life. I will bring disaster upon them, z my fierce anger, declares the LORD. a I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them, 38and I will set my throne in v Elam and destroy their king and officials, declares the LORD.
39[†]“But in the latter days b I will restore the fortunes of v Elam, declares the LORD.”
Judgment on Babylon
JEREMIAH 50 [†]The word that the LORD spoke concerning c Babylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, d by Jeremiah the prophet:
2 “Declare among the nations and proclaim,
set up a banner and proclaim,
conceal it not, and say:
e ‘Babylon is taken,
f Bel is put to shame,
Merodach is dismayed.
e Her images are put to shame,
her idols are dismayed.’
3[†]“For g out of the north a nation has come up against her, h which shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; i both man and beast shall flee away.
4[†] j “In those days and in that time, declares the LORD, j the people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, k weeping as they come, and they l shall seek the LORD their God. 5 m They shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, n saying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the LORD in an o everlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.’
6[†] p “My people have been lost sheep. q Their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. 7[†]All who found them have devoured them, r and their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, for s they have sinned against the LORD, t their habitation of righteousness, the LORD, u the hope of their fathers.’
8 v “Flee from the midst of Babylon, v and go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock. 9For behold, I am stirring up and bringing against Babylon w a gathering of great nations, from the north country. And they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 x Chaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, declares the LORD.
11[†] y “Though you rejoice, though you exult,
O plunderers of my heritage,
though you frolic like a heifer in the pasture,
and neigh like stallions,
12 your mother shall be utterly shamed,
and she who bore you shall be disgraced.
Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,
z a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
13 a Because of the wrath of the LORD she shall not be inhabited
but shall be an utter desolation;
b everyone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,
b and hiss because of all her wounds.
14[†] c Set yourselves in array against Babylon all around,
d all you who bend the bow;
shoot at her, spare no arrows,
e for she has sinned against the LORD.
15 f Raise a shout against her all around;
she has surrendered;
her bulwarks have fallen;
g her walls are thrown down.
For h this is the vengeance of the LORD:
take vengeance on her;
i do to her as she has done.
16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;
j because of the sword of the oppressor,
k every one shall turn to his own people,
and every one shall flee to his own land.
17 l “Israel is a hunted sheep m driven away by lions. n First the king of Assyria o devoured him, and now at last p Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon q has gnawed his bones. 18[†]Therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, r I am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, s as I punished the king of Assyria. 19 t I will restore Israel to his pasture, and t he shall feed on u Carmel and in u Bashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in u Gilead. 20[†]In those days and in that time, declares the LORD, v iniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for w I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.
21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim, [1]
and against the inhabitants of Pekod. [2]
Kill, x and devote them to destruction, [3]
declares the LORD,
and do all that I have commanded you.
22 y The noise of battle is in the land,
and great destruction!
23 z How the hammer of the whole earth
is cut down and broken!
a horror among the nations!
24[†] c I set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,
and d you did not know it;
you were found and caught,
because you opposed the LORD.
25[†] The LORD has opened his armory
and brought out e the weapons of his wrath,
for the Lord GOD of hosts has a work to do
in the land of the Chaldeans.
26[†] Come against her from every quarter;
open her granaries;
f pile her up like heaps of grain, and devote her to destruction;
let nothing be left of her.
let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them, for their day has come,
h the time of their punishment.
28“A voice! They i flee and escape from the land of Babylon, j to declare in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God, vengeance for k his temple.
29 l “Summon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow. l Encamp around her; let no one escape. m Repay her according to her deeds; do to her according to all that she has done. For she has n proudly defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel. 30[†] o Therefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, declares the LORD.
31[†] “Behold, I am against you, O n proud one,
declares the Lord GOD of hosts,
p for your day has come,
the time when I will punish you.
32[†] n The proud one shall stumble and fall,
with none to raise him up,
q and I will kindle a fire in his cities,
and it will devour all that is around him.
33[†]“Thus says the LORD of hosts: r The people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah with them. All who took them captive have held them fast; s they refuse to let them go. 34[†] t Their Redeemer is strong; u the LORD of hosts is his name. v He will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 “A sword against the Chaldeans, declares the LORD,
and against the inhabitants of Babylon,
and against w her officials and her x wise men!
36 A sword against the diviners,
that they may become fools!
A sword against her y warriors,
that they may be destroyed!
37[†] A sword against her horses and against her chariots,
and against all z the foreign troops in her midst,
that a they may become women!
b A sword against all her treasures,
that they may be plundered!
38[†] c A drought against her waters,
that they may be dried up!
d For it is a land of images,
and they are mad over idols.
39[†] e “Therefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon, and ostriches shall dwell in her. She shall never again have people, nor be inhabited for all generations. 40 f As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring cities, declares the LORD, g so no man shall dwell there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.
41 h “Behold, a people comes from the north;
a mighty nation and many kings
are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
42 They lay hold of bow and spear;
they are cruel and have no mercy.
The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;
they ride on horses,
arrayed as a man for battle
against you, O daughter of Babylon!
43 “The king of Babylon heard the report of them,
and his hands fell helpless;
anguish seized him,
pain as of a woman in labor.
44 i “Behold, like a lion coming up from the thicket of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make them run away from her, and I will appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd j can stand before me? 45Therefore hear k the plan that the LORD has made against Babylon, k and the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: l Surely the little ones of their flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 m At the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.”
The Utter Destruction of Babylon
JEREMIAH 51 [†] Thus says the LORD:
“Behold, I will stir up n the spirit of a destroyer
against Babylon,
against the inhabitants of Leb-kamai, [1]
2[†] and I will send to Babylon winnowers,
and o they shall winnow her,
and they shall empty her land,
when they come against her from every side
p on the day of trouble.
3 q Let not the archer bend his bow,
and let him not stand up in his armor.
Spare not her young men;
r devote to destruction [2] all her army.
4 They shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans,
s and wounded in her streets.
5[†] t For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken
by their God, the LORD of hosts,
but the land of the Chaldeans [3] is full of guilt
against the Holy One of Israel.
6 u “Flee from the midst of Babylon;
let every one save his life!
v Be not cut off in her punishment,
w for this is the time of the LORD’s vengeance,
the repayment he is rendering her.
7[†] Babylon was x a golden cup in the LORD’s hand,
y making all the earth drunken;
z the nations drank of her wine;
therefore the nations went mad.
8 a Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken;
b wail for her!
c Take balm for her pain;
perhaps she may be healed.
9[†] We would have healed Babylon,
but she was not healed.
d Forsake her, and e let us go
each to his own country,
for f her judgment has reached up to heaven
and has been lifted up even to the skies.
10 g The LORD has brought about our vindication;
h come, let us declare in Zion
the work of the LORD our God.
Take up the shields!
j The LORD has stirred up the spirit of the kings of k the Medes, because l his purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, m for that is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance for m his temple.
12[†] n “Set up a standard against the walls of Babylon;
o make the watch strong;
set up watchmen;
prepare the ambushes;
l for the LORD has both planned and done
what he spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.
13 p O you who dwell by many waters,
rich in treasures,
your end has come;
the thread of your life is cut.
14[†] q The LORD of hosts has sworn by himself:
Surely I will fill you with men, r as many as locusts,
s and they shall raise the shout of victory over you.
15[†] t “It is he who made the earth by his power,
who established the world by his wisdom,
and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.
16 When he utters his voice there is a tumult of waters in the heavens,
and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.
17 Every man is stupid and without knowledge;
every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols,
for his images are false,
and there is no breath in them.
18 They are worthless, a work of delusion;
at the time of their punishment they shall perish.
19 Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob,
for he is the one who formed all things,
and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;
the LORD of hosts is his name.
20[†] “You are my hammer and weapon of war:
with you I u break nations in pieces;
with you I destroy kingdoms;
21 with you I break in pieces the horse and his rider;
with you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer;
22 with you I break in pieces man and woman;
with you I break in pieces v the old man and the youth;
with you I break in pieces v the young man and the young woman;
23 with you I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock;
with you I break in pieces the farmer and his team;
with you I break in pieces w governors and commanders.
24 x “I will repay Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, declares the LORD.
25[†] “Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain,
declares the LORD,
which destroys the whole earth;
I will stretch out my hand against you,
and roll you down from the crags,
y and make you a burnt mountain.
26 No z stone shall be taken from you for a corner
and no stone for a foundation,
but you shall be a a perpetual waste,
declares the LORD.
27 b “Set up a standard on the earth;
c blow the trumpet among the nations;
d prepare e the nations for war against her;
summon against her f the kingdoms,
g Ararat, Minni, and h Ashkenaz;
appoint a i marshal against her;
j bring up horses like bristling locusts.
28 d Prepare e the nations for war against her,
the kings of k the Medes, l with their governors l and deputies,
and every m land under their dominion.
29 n The land trembles and writhes in pain,
o for the LORD’s purposes against Babylon stand,
to make the land of Babylon a desolation,
without inhabitant.
30 The warriors of Babylon have ceased fighting;
they remain in their strongholds;
their strength has failed;
p they have become women;
q her dwellings are on fire;
r her bars are broken.
31[†] One s runner runs to meet another,
and one messenger to meet another,
to tell the king of Babylon
that his city is taken on every side;
32 the fords have been t seized,
the marshes are burned with fire,
and the soldiers are in panic.
33 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:
u The daughter of Babylon is like u a threshing floor
at the time when it is trodden;
yet a little while
and v the time of her harvest will come.”
34[†] “Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon w has devoured me;
he has crushed me;
he has made me an empty vessel;
x he has swallowed me like y a monster;
he has filled his stomach with my delicacies;
he has rinsed me out. [4]
35 The violence done to me and to my kinsmen be upon Babylon,”
let the inhabitant of Zion say.
“My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,”
let Jerusalem say.
36[†] Therefore thus says the LORD:
“Behold, z I will plead your cause
and take vengeance for you.
a I will dry up her sea
and b make her fountain dry,
37 and Babylon shall become c a heap of ruins,
d the haunt of jackals,
without inhabitant.
38 f “They shall roar together g like lions;
they shall growl like lions’ cubs.
39 h While they are inflamed h I will prepare them a feast
and i make them drunk, that they may become merry,
i then sleep a perpetual sleep
and not wake, declares the LORD.
40 I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter,
like rams and male goats.
41 “How j Babylon [5] is taken,
k the praise of the whole earth l seized!
How Babylon has become
a horror among the nations!
42 m The sea has come up on Babylon;
she is covered with its tumultuous waves.
43 Her cities have become a horror,
n a land of drought and a desert,
o a land in which no one dwells,
and through which no son of man passes.
44[†] And I will punish p Bel in Babylon,
and q take out of his mouth r what he has swallowed.
s The nations shall no longer flow to him;
t the wall of Babylon has fallen.
45 “Go out of the midst of her, u my people!
Let every one save his life
from v the fierce anger of the LORD!
46 Let not your heart faint, and be not fearful
w at the report heard in the land,
x when a report comes in one year
and afterward a report in another year,
and violence is in the land,
x and ruler is against ruler.
47 “Therefore, behold, the days are coming
when y I will punish the images of Babylon;
z her whole land shall be put to shame,
and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.
48[†] a Then the heavens and the earth,
and all that is in them,
shall sing for joy over Babylon,
b for the destroyers shall come against them out of the north,
declares the LORD.
49[†] Babylon must fall for the slain of Israel,
c just as for Babylon have fallen the slain of all the earth.
50[†] d “You who have escaped from the sword,
go, do not stand still!
Remember the LORD from far away,
and let Jerusalem come into your mind:
51 e ‘We are put to shame, for we have heard reproach;
e dishonor has covered our face,
f for foreigners have come
into the holy places of the LORD’s house.’
52 “Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD,
when y I will execute judgment upon her images,
g and through all her land
the wounded shall groan.
53 Though Babylon should h mount up to heaven,
and though she should i fortify her strong height,
yet destroyers would come from me against her,
declares the LORD.
54 j “A voice! A cry from Babylon!
The noise of great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!
55 For the LORD is laying Babylon waste
and stilling her mighty voice.
k Their waves roar like many waters;
the noise of their voice is raised,
56 for a destroyer has come upon her,
upon Babylon;
her warriors are taken;
their bows are broken in pieces,
l for the LORD is a God of recompense;
he will surely repay.
57[†] m I will make drunk her officials and her wise men,
n her governors, her commanders, and her warriors;
they shall sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake,
declares o the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.
58[†] “Thus says the LORD of hosts:
The broad p wall of Babylon
shall be leveled to the ground,
q and her high gates
shall be burned with fire.
r The peoples labor for nothing,
and s the nations weary themselves only for fire.”
59[†]The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah t the son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon, u in the fourth year of his reign. Seraiah was the quartermaster. 60[†] v Jeremiah wrote in a book all the disaster that should come upon Babylon, w all these words that are written concerning Babylon. 61And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: “When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words, 62and say, ‘O LORD, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it off, so x that nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be y desolate forever.’ 63[†]When you finish reading this book, z a tie a stone to it z and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, 64and say, z ‘Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her, b and they shall become exhausted.’”
Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.
The Fall of Jerusalem Recounted
JEREMIAH 52 [†] c Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 2And he did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, d according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 3For because of the anger of the LORD it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that he cast them out from his presence.
And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 4[†] e And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem, and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it. 5So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 6On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. 7Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled and went out from the city by night by the way of a gate between the two walls, by the king’s garden, and the Chaldeans were around the city. And they went in the direction of the Arabah. 8But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. 9Then they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he passed sentence on him. 10The king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and also slaughtered all the officials of Judah at f Riblah. 11 g He put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in chains, and the king of Babylon took him to Babylon, and put him in prison g till the day of his death.
The Temple Burned
12[†] h In the fifth month, on i the tenth day of the month—that was j the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard, who k served the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem. 13And he burned the house of the LORD, and the king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. 14[†]And all the army of the Chaldeans, who were with the captain of the guard, broke down all the walls around Jerusalem. 15And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive some of the poorest of the people and the rest of the people who were left in the city and l the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the artisans. 16But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.
17And the m pillars of bronze that were in the house of the LORD, and the stands and the n bronze sea that were in the house of the LORD, the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and o carried all the bronze to Babylon. 18And they took away p the pots and the shovels and the snuffers and the basins and the dishes for incense and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service; 19 q also the small bowls and the fire pans and the basins and the pots and r the lampstands and s the dishes for incense s and the bowls for drink offerings. What was of gold the captain of the guard took away as gold, and what was of silver, as silver. 20As for the two pillars, the one sea, t the twelve bronze bulls that were under the sea, [1] and the stands, which Solomon the king had made for the house of the LORD, the bronze of all these things was beyond weight. 21As for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, [2] u its circumference was twelve cubits, and its thickness was four fingers, and it was hollow. 22On it was a capital of bronze. The height of the one capital was v five cubits. A network and pomegranates, all of bronze, were around the capital. And the second pillar had the same, with pomegranates. 23There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides; all the pomegranates were a hundred upon the network all around.
The People Exiled to Babylon
24[†]And the captain of the guard took w Seraiah the chief priest, and x Zephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold; 25[†]and from the city he took an officer who had been in command of the men of war, and y seven men of the king’s council, who were found in the city; and the secretary of the commander of the army, who mustered the people of the land; and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the midst of the city. 26And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at z Riblah. 27And the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at z Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was taken into exile out of its land.
28[†]This is the number of the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: a in the seventh year, 3,023 Judeans; 29 b in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem 832 persons; 30in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Judeans 745 persons; all the persons were 4,600.
Jehoiachin Released from Prison
31[†] c And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed [3] d Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. 32[†]And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of e the kings who were with him in Babylon. 33So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, 34and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, until the day of his death, as long as he lived.