Jeremiah 51:30

30 Babylon's soldiers have stopped fighting. They remain in their forts. Their strength is all gone. They have become like weak women. Their buildings are set on fire. The heavy metal bars on their gates are broken.

Jeremiah 51:30 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 51:30

The mighty men of Babylon have forborne to fight
Or, "ceased from fighting" ^F8 for it seems, upon Cyrus's first coming, the king of Babylon and his army gave him battle; but being overthrown, they retired to the city ^F9, and dared never fight more: they have remained in [their] holds;
in the towers and fortresses of Babylon, never daring to sally out of the city, or appear in the field of battle any more; even though Cyrus sent the king of Babylon a personal challenge, to end the quarrel by a single combat ^F11: their might hath failed;
their courage sunk and was gone; they had no heart to face their enemy: they became as women;
as weak as they, as the Targum; timorous and fearful, having no courage left in them, and behaved more like women than men: they have burnt her dwelling places;
that is, the enemy burnt their houses, when they entered into the city, to inject terror into them: her bars are broken;
the bars of the gates of the city, or of the palaces of the king and nobles, and of the houses of the people, by the soldiers, to get the plunder; see ( Isaiah 45:1 Isaiah 45:2 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F8 (Mxlhl wldx) "cessaverunt a praelio", V. L. "desinent pugnare", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "cessarunt pugnare", Schmidt. So Pagninus, Montanus.
F9 Xenophon, Cyropaedia, l. 5. c. 19. Herodot. l. 1. sive Clio. c. 190.
F11 Xenophon, ib. l. 5. c. 10.

Jeremiah 51:30 In-Context

28 Prepare yourselves for battle against Babylonia. Prepare the kings of the Medes. Prepare their governors and all of their officials. Prepare all of the countries they rule over.

29 The Babylonians tremble and shake with fear. My plans against them stand firm. I plan to destroy their land completely. Then no one will live there.

30 Babylon's soldiers have stopped fighting. They remain in their forts. Their strength is all gone. They have become like weak women. Their buildings are set on fire. The heavy metal bars on their gates are broken.

31 One messenger after another comes to the king of Babylonia. All of them announce that his entire city is captured.

32 The places where people go across the Euphrates River have been captured. The swamps have been set on fire. And the soldiers are terrified."