Jeremiah 51:33

33 This is what the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says: "The city of Babylon is like a threshing floor, where people crush the grain at harvest time. The time to harvest Babylon is coming soon."

Jeremiah 51:33 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 51:33

For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel
"The Lord of hosts", the Lord God omnipotent, and can do all things; "the God of Israel", and therefore will plead their cause, and take vengeance on Babylon: the daughter of Babylon [is] like a threshing floor;
on which the nations of the earth had been threshed, or punished and destroyed; and now she was like a threshing floor, unto which should be gathered, and on which should be laid, her king, princes, and the people of the land, and be there beat and crushed to pieces. The Targum renders it the congregation of Babylon; and the Septuagint the houses of the king of Babylon; so the Arabic version: [it is] time to thresh her;
not the floor, but the sheaves on it: or, "it is the time to tread her" ^F21; as corn was trodden out by the oxen; or rather as threshing floors, being new laid with earth, were trodden, and so made hard and even, and by that means prepared for threshing against the harvest; when the corn would be ripe, cut down, and gathered in, and laid up, as follows: yet a little while, and the time of her harvest shall come;
when she would be ripe for ruin, and God would, by his instruments, put in the sickle of his wrath, and cut her down, her king, her princes, her cities, and her people; see ( Revelation 14:15 Revelation 14:16 ) . The Targum is,

``and yet a very little while, and spoilers shall come to her.''

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FOOTNOTES:

F21 (hkyrdh te) "tempus calcandi eam", Pagninus, Calvin; "tempus calcare eam", Montanus; "eo tempore quo illa calcari solet", Piscator.

Jeremiah 51:33 In-Context

31 One messenger follows another; messenger follows messenger. that his whole city has been captured.

32 The river crossings have been captured, and the swamplands are burning. All of Babylon's soldiers are terribly afraid."

33 This is what the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says: "The city of Babylon is like a threshing floor, where people crush the grain at harvest time. The time to harvest Babylon is coming soon."

34 "Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has defeated and destroyed us. In the past he took our people away, and we became like an empty jar. He was like a giant snake that swallowed us. He filled his stomach with our best things. Then he spit us out.

35 Babylon did terrible things to hurt us. Now let those things happen to Babylon," say the people of Jerusalem. "The people of Babylon killed our people. Now let them be punished for what they did," says Jerusalem.