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Common English Bible CEB
1 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations.
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This is what the LORD told the prophet Jeremiah concerning the nations.
2 About Egypt. 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 the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:
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About Egypt! A message for the army of Pharaoh Neco, Egypt's king, which was defeated by Babylon's Nebuchadnezzar at Carchemish near the Euphrates River in the fourth year of Judah's King Jehoiakim, Josiah's son:
3 “Prepare buckler and shield, and advance for battle!
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Grab your shields and prepare for war!
4 Harness the horses; mount, O horsemen! Take your stations with your helmets, polish your spears, put on your armor!
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Saddle the horses; mount the stallions! Take your positions with helmets on! Polish your spears; put on your armor!
5 Why have I seen it? They are dismayed and have turned backward. Their warriors are beaten down and have fled in haste; they look not back— terror on every side! declares the Lord.
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Why do I see them terrified, retreating in haste? Their soldiers are crushed, running for cover, and they don't turn back. Panic lurks at every turn, declares the LORD.
6 “The swift cannot flee away, nor the warrior escape; in the north by the river Euphrates they have stumbled and fallen.
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The swift can't flee; the mighty can't escape. Up north by the Euphrates River, they stagger and fall.
7 “Who is this, rising like the Nile, like rivers whose waters surge?
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Who is this that rises like the Nile, whose banks overflow?
8 Egypt rises like the Nile, like rivers whose waters surge. He said, ‘I will rise, I will cover the earth, I will destroy cities and their inhabitants. ’
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It's Egypt that rises like the Nile, whose banks overflow, who declares, "I will arise and cover the earth and destroy cities and inhabitants."
9 Advance, O horses, and rage, O chariots! Let the warriors go out: men of Cush and Put who handle the shield, men of Lud, skilled in handling the bow.
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Charge, you horses; advance, you chariots! Attack, you soldiers with your shield in hand, you people of Cush and Put with your bow drawn, you archers from Lud.
10 That day is the day of the Lord God of hosts, a day of vengeance, to avenge himself on his foes. The sword shall devour and be sated and drink its fill of their blood. For the Lord God of hosts holds a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.
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But that day belongs to the LORD God of heavenly forces; it's a day of reckoning, settling scores with enemies. The sword will devour until it has had its fill of blood. The LORD God of heavenly forces is preparing a sacrifice in the north by the Euphrates River.
11 Go up to Gilead, and take balm, O virgin daughter of Egypt! In vain you have used many medicines; there is no healing for you.
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Go up to Gilead and seek balm, virgin Daughter Egypt. You search out remedies in vain, for your disease is incurable.
12 The nations have heard of your shame, and the earth is full of your cry; for warrior has stumbled against warrior; they have both fallen together. ”
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Nations hear of your shame; the earth is filled with your sobs. Soldier stumbles over soldier; together they go down.
13 The word that the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to strike the land of Egypt:
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This is the word that the LORD spoke to the prophet Jeremiah about the military offensive of Babylon's King Nebuchadnezzar against the land of Egypt:
14 “Declare in Egypt, and proclaim in Migdol; proclaim in Memphis and Tahpanhes; say, ‘Stand ready and be prepared, for the sword shall devour around you. ’
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Tell Egypt, warn Migdol, alert Memphis and Tahpanhes! Say: "Brace yourselves for what's coming. War is breaking out from every side!"
15 Why are your mighty ones face down? They do not stand because the Lord thrust them down.
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Why have your mighty fallen? Why haven't they stood their ground? Because the LORD has struck them down.
16 He made many stumble, 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, because of the sword of the oppressor. ’
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He's tripped them up; they fall over each other and say, "Let's get out of here and go home to our people, where we were born, far away from the oppressor's sword."
17 Call the name of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, ‘Noisy one who lets the hour go by. ’
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There they call Pharaoh, Egypt's king, Loudmouth—Nothing But Hot Air!
18 “As I live, declares the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts, like Tabor among the mountains and like Carmel by the sea, shall one come.
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As I live, declares the king, whose name is the LORD of heavenly forces, one is coming just as surely as Tabor is in the mountains and Carmel is by the sea.
19 Prepare yourselves baggage for exile, O inhabitants of Egypt! For Memphis shall become a waste, a ruin, without inhabitant.
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Get what you need for deportation, you inhabitants of Egypt. Memphis will be reduced to a wasteland, a ruin with no one left.
20 “A beautiful heifer is Egypt, but a biting fly from the north has come upon her.
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Egypt is a beautiful, yes, beautiful heifer, but a horsefly from the north is coming to bite her.
21 Even her hired soldiers in her midst are like fattened calves; yes, they have turned and fled together; they did not stand, for the day of their calamity has come upon them, the time of their punishment.
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Even her mercenaries are like well-fed calves; they too will retreat and run for cover; they won't survive. The day of disaster has come to haunt them, the time of their punishment.
22 “She makes a sound like a serpent gliding away; for her enemies march in force and come against her with axes like those who fell trees.
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Like the sound of a snake hissing as it slithers away is Egypt as armies approach in force; they come against her with axes, like woodcutters.
23 They shall cut down her forest, declares the Lord, though it is impenetrable, because they are more numerous than locusts; they are without number.
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They destroy her dense forest, though it is vast, because they outnumber locusts and can't be counted, declares the LORD.
24 The daughter of Egypt shall be put to shame; she shall be delivered into the hand of a people from the north. ”
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Daughter Egypt will be humiliated, handed over to people from the north.
25 The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, said: “Behold, I am bringing punishment upon Amon of Thebes, and Pharaoh and Egypt and her gods and her kings, upon Pharaoh and those who trust in him.
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This is what the LORD of heavenly forces, the God of Israel, proclaims: I'm going to punish Amon of Thebes, Egypt and its gods and kings, as well as Pharaoh and all who rely on him.
26 I will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their life, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. Afterward Egypt shall be inhabited as in the days of old, declares the Lord.
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I will hand them over to those who seek to kill them, namely Babylon's King Nebuchadnezzar and his servants. But afterward Egypt will dwell like it did a long time ago, declares the LORD.
27 “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.
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But don't be afraid, my servant Judah; don't lose heart, Israel. I will deliver you from a faraway place and your children from the land of their exile. My people Jacob will again be safe and sound, with no one harassing them.
28 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. I will discipline you in just measure, and I will by no means leave you unpunished. ”
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So don't be afraid, my servant Jacob, declares the LORD. I'm with you; I will put an end to all the nations where I have scattered you. But I won't put an end to you. I won't let you avoid punishment; I will discipline you as you deserve.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2025
Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible