Jeremiah 50:33-46

33 Thus says the LORD of hosts, "The sons of Israel are oppressed, And the sons of Judah as well; And ¹all who took them captive have held them fast, They have refused to let them go.

34 "Their ²Redeemer is strong, ³the LORD of hosts is His name; He will vigorously ⁴plead their case So that He may ⁵bring rest to the earth, But turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.

35 "A ⁶sword against the Chaldeans," declares the LORD, "And against the inhabitants of Babylon And against her ⁷officials and her ⁸wise men!

36 "A sword against the ⁹oracle priests, and they will become fools! A sword against her ¹⁰mighty men, and they will be ¹¹shattered!

37 "A sword against their ¹²horses and against their chariots And against all the ¹³foreigners who are in the midst of her, And they will become ¹⁴women! A sword against her treasures, and they will be plundered!

38 "A ¹⁵drought on her waters, and they will be dried up! For it is a land of ¹⁶idols, And they are mad over fearsome idols.

39 "Therefore the ¹⁷desert creatures will live there along with the jackals; The ostriches also will live in it, And it will ¹⁸never again be inhabited Or dwelt in from generation to generation.

40 "As when God overthrew ¹⁹Sodom And Gomorrah with its neighbors," declares the LORD, "No man will live there, Nor will any son of man reside in it.

41 "Behold, a people is coming ²⁰from the north, And a great nation and many kings Will be aroused from the remote parts of the earth.

42 "They ²¹seize their bow and javelin; They are ²²cruel and have no mercy. Their ²³voice roars like the sea; And they ride on ²⁴horses, ²⁵Marshalled like a man for the battle Against you, O daughter of Babylon.

43 "The ²⁶king of Babylon has heard the report about them, And his hands hang limp; ²⁷Distress has gripped him, Agony like a woman in childbirth.

44 "²⁸Behold, one will come up like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan to a perennially watered pasture; for in an instant I will make them run away from it, and whoever is ²⁹chosen I will appoint over it. For who is ³⁰like Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd who can ³¹stand before Me?"

45 Therefore hear the ³²plan of the LORD which He has planned against Babylon, and His purposes which He has purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: ³³surely * they will drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; surely * He will make their pasture desolate because of them.

46 At the shout, "Babylon has been seized!" the ³⁴earth is shaken, and an ³⁵outcry is heard among the nations.

Jeremiah 50:33-46 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 50

This and the following chapter contain a long prophecy concerning the destruction of Babylon; and which is expressed in such language, that it may be, and is to be, accommodated to the destruction of mystical Babylon; and several passages in the book of the Revelation are borrowed from hence; and it is intermixed with promises and prophecies of the deliverance of God's people from thence, and of the conversion of the Jews, and the restoration of them to their own which will be at that time; see Jer 50:4,5,8,19,20,33,34. The destruction of Babylon in general is proclaimed and declared, and the manner and cause of it, Jer 50:1-13; then the enemies of Babylon are stirred up and animated to proceed against her, and execute the judgments of God upon her, Jer 50:14-30. Next follows the Lord's controversy with her, because of her pride and oppression of his people; and threatens her with the sword, drought, and utter destruction, Jer 50:31-40; and then a description is given of her enemies, that should be the instruments of her destruction, Jer 50:41-44; and the chapter is closed with observing, that this is all according to the counsel and purpose of God, Jer 50:45,46.

Cross References

• 1. Isaiah 14:17; Isaiah 58:6
• 2. Proverbs 23:11; Isaiah 43:14; Jeremiah 15:21; Jeremiah 31:11; Revelation 18:8
• 3. Isaiah 47:4; Jeremiah 32:18; Jeremiah 51:19
• 4. Jeremiah 51:36; Micah 7:9
• 5. Isaiah 14:3-7
• 6. Jeremiah 47:6; Hosea 11:6
• 7. Daniel 5:1, 2
• 8. Daniel 5:7, 8
• 9. Isaiah 44:25
• 10. Jeremiah 49:22
• 11. Nahum 3:13
• 12. Psalms 20:7, 8; Jeremiah 51:21, 22
• 13. Jeremiah 25:20; Ezekiel 30:5
• 14. Jeremiah 48:41; Jeremiah 51:30; Nahum 3:13
• 15. Isaiah 44:27; Jeremiah 51:32, 36; Revelation 16:12
• 16. Is 46:1, 6, 7
• 17. Isaiah 13:21; Isaiah 34:14; Revelation 18:2
• 18. Isaiah 13:20; Jeremiah 25:12
• 19. Genesis 19:24, 25; Isaiah 13:19; Jeremiah 49:18; Luke 17:28-30; 2 Peter 2:6; Jude 7
• 20. Isaiah 13:2-5; Jeremiah 6:22; Jeremiah 50:3, 9; Jeremiah 51:27, 28
• 21. Jeremiah 6:23
• 22. Isaiah 13:17, 18; Isaiah 47:6
• 23. Isaiah 5:30
• 24. Jeremiah 8:16; Jeremiah 47:3; Habakkuk 1:8
• 25. Jeremiah 50:9, 14; Joel 2:5
• 26. Jeremiah 51:31
• 27. Jeremiah 30:6; Jeremiah 49:24
• 28. Jeremiah 49:19-21
• 29. Numbers 16:5
• 30. Isaiah 46:9
• 31. Job 41:10; Jeremiah 30:21
• 32. Psalms 33:11; Isaiah 14:24; Jeremiah 51:10, 11
• 33. Jeremiah 49:20
• 34. Jeremiah 10:10; Jeremiah 49:21; Ezekiel 26:18; Ezekiel 31:16
• 35. Isaiah 5:7; Isaiah 15:5; Jeremiah 46:12; Jeremiah 51:54; Ezekiel 27:28

Footnotes

• [a] Or their "land"
• [b] Or "dismayed"
• [c] Lit "his"
• [d] Lit "his"
• [e] Lit "mixed multitude"
• [f] Another reading is "sword"
• [g] Lit "pride"
• [h] Or "an enduring habitation"
• [i] Or "habitation"
• [j] Lit "voice"