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."
33
The LORD who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says, "The city of Babylon is like a threshing floor when cattle are walking on it. The time to destroy it will soon come."
34
The people of Jerusalem say, "Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylonia, has destroyed us. He has thrown us into a panic. He has emptied us out like a jar. Like a snake he has swallowed us up. He has filled his stomach with our rich food. Then he has spit us out of his mouth."
35
The people continue, "May the people of Babylon pay for the harmful things they have done to us. May those who live in Babylonia pay for spilling the blood of our people." That's what the people who live in Zion say.
36
So the LORD says, "I will stand up for you. I will pay the Babylonians back for what they did to you. I will dry up their water supply. I will make their springs run dry.
37
Babylon will have all of its buildings knocked down. It will be a home for wild dogs. No one will live there. People will be shocked at it. They will make fun of it.
38
All of its people roar like young lions. They growl like lion cubs.
39
They are stirred up. So I will set a big dinner in front of them. I will make them drunk. And they will shout and laugh. But then they will lie down and die. They will never wake up," announces the Lord.
40
"I will lead them down like lambs to be put to death. They will be like rams and goats that have been killed.
41
"Babylon will be captured! The whole earth was very proud of it. But it will be taken over by others! The nations will be shocked when it falls.
42
Babylon's enemies will sweep over it like an ocean. Like roaring waves they will cover it.
43
The towns of Babylonia will be empty. It will become a dry and desert land. No one will live there. No one will even travel through it.
44
I will punish the god Bel in Babylon. I will make Bel spit out what it has swallowed. The nations will not come and worship it anymore. And Babylon's walls will fall down.
45
"Come out of there, my people! Run for your lives! Run away from my burning anger.
46
You will hear about terrible things that are happening in Babylonia. But do not lose hope. Do not be afraid. You will hear one thing this year. And you will hear something else next year. You will hear about awful things in the land. You will hear about one ruler fighting against another.
47
I will punish the gods of Babylon. That time will certainly come. Then the whole land will be full of shame. Its people will lie down and die there.
48
So heaven and earth and everything in them will shout for joy. They will be glad because of what will happen to Babylon. Armies will attack it from the north. And they will destroy it," announces the Lord.
49
"Babylon's people have killed my people Israel. They have also killed people all over the earth. So now Babylon itself must fall.
50
You who have not been killed in the war against Babylon, leave! Do not wait! In a land far away remember me. And think about Jerusalem."
51
The people of Judah reply, "No one honors us anymore. People make fun of us. Our faces are covered with shame. People from other lands have entered the holy places of the LORD's house."
52
"But a new day is coming," announces the Lord. "At that time I will punish the gods of Babylon. And all through its land wounded people will groan.
53
What if Babylon reached all the way to the sky? What if it made its high walls even stronger? I would still send destroyers against it," announces the Lord.
54
"The noise of people screaming comes from Babylon. A terrible sound comes from its land. It is the sound of a mighty city being destroyed.
55
I will destroy Babylon. I will put an end to all of its noise. Waves of enemies will sweep through it like great waters. The roar of their voices will fill the air.
56
A destroying army will come against Babylon. The soldiers in the city will be captured. Their bows will be broken. I am the LORD God who pays people back. I will pay them back in full.
57
I will make Babylon's officials and wise men drunk. I will do the same thing to its governors, officers and soldiers. They will lie down and die. They will never wake up," announces the King. His name is The LORD Who Rules Over All.
58
The LORD who rules over all says, "Babylon's thick walls will fall down flat. Its high gates will be set on fire. The nations wear themselves out for no reason at all. Their hard work will only be burned up in the flames."
59
I gave a message to the staff officer Seraiah, the son of Neriah. I told him to take it with him to Babylon. He went there with Zedekiah, the king of Judah. He left in the fourth year of Zedekiah's rule. Neriah was the son of Mahseiah.
60
I had written about all of the trouble that would come on Babylon. I had written it down on a scroll. It included everything that had been recorded about Babylon.