Parallel Bible results for "jeremiah 51"

Jeremiah 51

Revised Standard Version RSV

1 Thus says the LORD: "Behold, I will stir up the spirit of a destroyer against Babylon, against the inhabitants of Chalde'a;

2 and I will send to Babylon winnowers, and they shall winnow her, and they shall empty her land, when they come against her from every side on the day of trouble.

3 Let not the archer bend his bow, and let him not stand up in his coat of mail. Spare not her young men; utterly destroy all her host.

4 They shall fall down slain in the land of the Chalde'ans, and wounded in her streets.

5 For Israel and Judah have not been forsaken by their God, the LORD of hosts; but the land of the Chalde'ans is full of guilt against the Holy One of Israel.

6 "Flee from the midst of Babylon, let every man save his life! Be not cut off in her punishment, for this is the time of the LORD's vengeance, the requital he is rendering her.

7 Babylon was a golden cup in the LORD's hand, making all the earth drunken; the nations drank of her wine, therefore the nations went mad.

8 Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been broken; wail for her! Take balm for her pain; perhaps she may be healed.

9 We would have healed Babylon, but she was not healed. Forsake her, and let us go each to his own country; for her judgment has reached up to heaven and has been lifted up even to the skies.

10 The LORD has brought forth our vindication; come, let us declare in Zion the work of the LORD our God.

11 "Sharpen the arrows! Take up the shields! The LORD has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because his purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, for that is the vengeance of the LORD, the vengeance for his temple.

12 Set up a standard against the walls of Babylon; make the watch strong; set up watchmen; prepare the ambushes; for the LORD has both planned and done what he spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.

13 O you who dwell by many waters, rich in treasures, your end has come, the thread of your life is cut.

14 The LORD of hosts has sworn by himself: Surely I will fill you with men, as many as locusts, and they shall raise the shout of victory over you.

15 "It is he who made the earth by his power, who established the world by his wisdom, and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.

16 When he utters his voice there is a tumult of waters in the heavens, and he makes the mist rise from the ends of the earth. He makes lightnings for the rain, and he brings forth the wind from his storehouses.

17 Every man is stupid and without knowledge; every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols; for his images are false, and there is no breath in them.

18 They are worthless, a work of delusion; at the time of their punishment they shall perish.

19 Not like these is he who is the portion of Jacob, for he is the one who formed all things, and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance; the LORD of hosts is his name.

20 "You are my hammer and weapon of war: with you I break nations in pieces; with you I destroy kingdoms;

21 with you I break in pieces the horse and his rider; with you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteer;

22 with you I break in pieces man and woman; with you I break in pieces the old man and the youth; with you I break in pieces the young man and the maiden;

23 with you I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock; with you I break in pieces the farmer and his team; with you I break in pieces governors and commanders.

24 "I will requite Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chalde'a before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, says the LORD.

25 "Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, says the LORD, which destroys the whole earth; I will stretch out my hand against you, and roll you down from the crags, and make you a burnt mountain.

26 No stone shall be taken from you for a corner and no stone for a foundation, but you shall be a perpetual waste, says the LORD.

27 "Set up a standard on the earth, blow the trumpet among the nations; prepare the nations for war against her, summon against her the kingdoms, Ar'arat, Minni, and Ash'kenaz; appoint a marshal against her, bring up horses like bristling locusts.

28 Prepare the nations for war against her, the kings of the Medes, with their governors and deputies, and every land under their dominion.

29 The land trembles and writhes in pain, for the LORD's purposes against Babylon stand, to make the land of Babylon a desolation, without inhabitant.

30 The warriors of Babylon have ceased fighting, they remain in their strongholds; their strength has failed, they have become women; her dwellings are on fire, her bars are broken.

31 One runner runs to meet another, and one messenger to meet another, to tell the king of Babylon that his city is taken on every side;

32 the fords have been seized, the bulwarks are burned with fire, and the soldiers are in panic.

33 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor at the time when it is trodden; yet a little while and the time of her harvest will come."

34 "Nebuchadrez'zar the king of Babylon has devoured me, he has crushed me; he has made me an empty vessel, he has swallowed me like a monster; he has filled his belly with my delicacies, he has rinsed me out.

35 The violence done to me and to my kinsmen be upon Babylon," let the inhabitant of Zion say. "My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chalde'a," let Jerusalem say.

36 Therefore thus says the LORD: "Behold, I will plead your cause and take vengeance for you. I will dry up her sea and make her fountain dry;

37 and Babylon shall become a heap of ruins, the haunt of jackals, a horror and a hissing, without inhabitant.

38 "They shall roar together like lions; they shall growl like lions' whelps.

39 While they are inflamed I will prepare them a feast and make them drunk, till they swoon away and sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake, says the LORD.

40 I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, like rams and he-goats.

41 "How Babylon is taken, the praise of the whole earth seized! How Babylon has become a horror among the nations!

42 The sea has come up on Babylon; she is covered with its tumultuous waves.

43 Her cities have become a horror, a land of drought and a desert, a land in which no one dwells, and through which no son of man passes.

44 And I will punish Bel in Babylon, and take out of his mouth what he has swallowed. The nations shall no longer flow to him; the wall of Babylon has fallen.

45 "Go out of the midst of her, my people! Let every man save his life from the fierce anger of the LORD!

46 Let not your heart faint, and be not fearful at the report heard in the land, when a report comes in one year and afterward a report in another year, and violence is in the land, and ruler is against ruler.

47 "Therefore, behold, the days are coming when I will punish the images of Babylon; her whole land shall be put to shame, and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.

48 Then the heavens and the earth, and all that is in them, shall sing for joy over Babylon; for the destroyers shall come against them out of the north, says the LORD.

49 Babylon must fall for the slain of Israel, as for Babylon have fallen the slain of all the earth.

50 "You that have escaped from the sword, go, stand not still! Remember the LORD from afar, and let Jerusalem come into your mind:

51 'We are put to shame, for we have heard reproach; dishonor has covered our face, for aliens have come into the holy places of the LORD's house.'

52 "Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will execute judgment upon her images, and through all her land the wounded shall groan.

53 Though Babylon should mount up to heaven, and though she should fortify her strong height, yet destroyers would come from me upon her, says the LORD.

54 "Hark! a cry from Babylon! The noise of great destruction from the land of the Chalde'ans!

55 For the LORD is laying Babylon waste, and stilling her mighty voice. Their waves roar like many waters, the noise of their voice is raised;

56 for a destroyer has come upon her, upon Babylon; her warriors are taken, their bows are broken in pieces; for the LORD is a God of recompense, he will surely requite.

57 I will make drunk her princes and her wise men, her governors, her commanders, and her warriors; they shall sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake, says the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.

58 "Thus says the LORD of hosts: The broad wall of Babylon shall be leveled to the ground and her high gates shall be burned with fire. The peoples labor for nought, and the nations weary themselves only for fire."

59 The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Serai'ah the son of Neri'ah, son of Mahsei'ah, when he went with Zedeki'ah king of Judah to Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign. Serai'ah was the quartermaster.

60 Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that should come upon Babylon, all these words that are written concerning Babylon.

61 And Jeremiah said to Serai'ah: "When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words,

62 and say, 'O LORD, thou hast said concerning this place that thou wilt cut it off, so that nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be desolate for ever.'

63 When you finish reading this book, bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of the Euphra'tes,

64 and say, 'Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the evil that I am bringing upon her.'" Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

GOD'S WORD Translation GW

1 This is what the LORD says: I will stir up a destructive wind against Babylon and against the people who live in Leb Kamai.

2 I will send people to winnow Babylon, to winnow it and strip its land bare. They will attack it from every direction on the day of trouble.

3 Have the archers bend their bows. Have them put on their armor. Don't spare Babylon's young men. Completely destroy its whole army.

4 Babylon's soldiers will fall down badly wounded in their streets. They will lie dead in their own land.

5 Israel and Judah haven't been abandoned by their God, the LORD of Armies, although their land is guilty of abandoning the Holy One of Israel.

6 Run away from Babylon! Run for your lives! You shouldn't die because of Babylon's crimes. This is the time for the vengeance of the LORD. He will pay the people of Babylon back for what they have done.

7 Babylon was a golden cup in the LORD's hand. It made the whole world drunk. The nations drank its wine. That is why the nations have gone insane.

8 Babylon will suddenly fall and be shattered. Cry for it. Bring medicine for its pain. Maybe it can be healed.

9 We wanted to heal Babylon, but it couldn't be healed. Let's abandon it and go to our own land. God has judged Babylon. Its judgment is complete.

10 The LORD has brought about our victory. Let's announce in Zion what the LORD our God has done.

11 Sharpen the arrows; fill the quivers. The LORD will stir up the spirit of the kings of the Medes because his plan is to destroy Babylon. The LORD will avenge his temple.

12 Raise your battle flag in front of the walls of Babylon. Strengthen the guards. Station watchmen. Prepare ambushes. The LORD will carry out his plans against the people who live in Babylon.

13 Babylon, you live beside many rivers and are rich with treasures, but your end has come. The thread of your life has been cut off.

14 The LORD of Armies has taken an oath on himself: "I will certainly fill you with many enemy armies. They will swarm like locusts. People will shout their victory over you."

15 The LORD made the earth by his power. He set up the world by his wisdom. He stretched out heaven by his understanding.

16 When he thunders, the water in the sky roars. He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth. He sends lightning with the rain. He brings wind out of his storehouses.

17 Everyone is stupid and ignorant. Metalsmiths are put to shame by their idols. Their statues are false [gods].

18 They can't breathe. They are worthless jokes. When they are punished, they will disappear.

19 Jacob's God isn't like them. He made everything, and Israel is the tribe that belongs to him. His name is the LORD of Armies.

20 "You are my war club and my weapon for battle. I will use you to crush nations. I will use you to destroy kingdoms.

21 I will use you to crush horses and their riders. I will use you to crush chariots and their drivers.

22 I will use you to crush men and women. I will use you to crush the old and the young. I will use you to crush young men and women.

23 I will use you to crush shepherds and their flocks. I will use you to crush farmers and their oxen. I will use you to crush governors and officials.

24 "In your presence I will pay back Babylon and all the people who live in Babylon for all the evil things that they did in Zion," declares the LORD.

25 "I am against you, Babylon, you destructive mountain. You have destroyed the whole earth," declares the LORD. "I will use my power against you, roll you off the cliffs, and make you a scorched mountain.

26 People won't find any stones in you to use as a cornerstone. They won't find any stones in you to use for a foundation. You will become permanent ruins," declares the LORD.

27 Raise your battle flag throughout the world. Blow the ram's horn among the nations. Prepare nations to attack Babylon. Tell the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz to attack it. Appoint a commander to lead the attack. Bring up horses like a swarm of locusts.

28 Prepare nations to attack Babylon. Prepare the king of the Medes, their governors, all their deputies, and all the countries that they rule.

29 The earth trembles and writhes in pain. The LORD carries out his plans against Babylon to make Babylon a wasteland so that no one will live there.

30 The warriors of Babylon have stopped fighting. They stay in their fortified cities. Their strength has failed. They have become women. Their buildings are set on fire. The bars across their gates are broken.

31 Runners run to meet runners. Messengers follow messengers. They inform the king of Babylon that his entire city is captured.

32 The river crossings have been taken. The enemy has burned its marshes, and its soldiers are terrified.

33 This is what the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says: The people of Babylon are like a threshing floor at the time it is trampled. Their harvest time will come soon.

34 King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has devoured us. He has thrown us into confusion. He has turned us into empty jars. He has swallowed us like a monster. He has filled his belly with our delicacies. Then he spit us out.

35 The people who live in Zion say, "May the violence done to us be done to Babylon." Jerusalem says, "May the people of Babylon be held responsible for our deaths."

36 This is what the LORD says: I am going to take up your cause and get revenge for you. I will dry up Babylon's sea and make its springs dry.

37 Babylon will become piles of rubble. It will become a dwelling place for jackals, something horrible, and an object of contempt, where no one lives.

38 Its people are like roaring lions and growling lion cubs.

39 When they are excited, I will prepare a feast for them and make them drunk so that they will shout and laugh. They will fall into a deep sleep and never wake up again, declares the LORD.

40 I will take them to be slaughtered like lambs, rams, and male goats.

41 "Sheshach has been captured. Babylon, the city that the whole world praised, has been taken captive.

42 What a horrifying sight Babylon will be to the nations! The sea will rise over Babylon, and its roaring waves will cover it.

43 Its cities will be ruined. It will become a desert, a land where no one lives and where no human travels.

44 I will punish Bel in Babylon. I will make Bel spit out everything that it has swallowed. Nations will no longer stream to Babylon, and its walls will fall.

45 "Leave it, my people! Run for your lives! Run from the burning anger of the LORD.

46 Don't lose courage or be afraid when rumors are heard in the land. One rumor comes one year; another rumor comes the next year. Rumors of violence are in the land. Rumors that one ruler will fight against another are in the land.

47 That is why the days are coming when I will punish Babylon's idols. The whole country will be put to shame, and all its soldiers will lie dead.

48 Then heaven and earth and everything in them will rejoice over Babylon, because destroyers from the north will attack it," declares the LORD.

49 Because the people of Babylon have killed many Israelites and because they have killed many people throughout the earth, Babylon must fall.

50 You people who escaped from the sword, leave! Don't just stand there. Remember the LORD in a distant land, and think about Jerusalem.

51 We have been put to shame, and we have been disgraced. Shame covers our faces, because foreigners have gone into the holy places of the LORD's temple.

52 "That is why the days are coming," declares the LORD, "when I will punish their idols, and those who are wounded will moan everywhere in the land.

53 The people of Babylon might go up to heaven. They might fortify their strongholds. But destroyers will still come from me against them," declares the LORD.

54 Cries of agony are heard from Babylon. Sounds of terrible destruction are heard from the land of the Babylonians.

55 The LORD will destroy Babylon. He will silence the loud noise coming from it. Waves of enemies will come roaring in like raging water. The noise will be heard everywhere.

56 A destroyer will attack Babylon, its soldiers will be captured, and their bows and arrows will be broken. "I, the LORD, am a God who punishes evil. I will certainly punish them.

57 I will make their officials and wise men drunk, along with their governors, officers, and soldiers. They will fall into a deep sleep and never wake up," declares the king, whose name is the LORD of Armies.

58 This is what the LORD of Armies says: The thick walls of Babylon will be leveled, and its high gates will be set on fire. People exhaust themselves for nothing. The nations wear themselves out only to have a fire.

59 This is the message that the prophet Jeremiah gave to Seraiah, son of Neriah and grandson of Mahseiah, when Seraiah went to Babylon with King Zedekiah of Judah in the fourth year of Zedekiah's rule. (Seraiah was the quartermaster.)

60 Jeremiah wrote on a scroll all the disasters that would happen to Babylon. He wrote all these things that have been written about Babylon.

61 Jeremiah said to Seraiah, "When you come to Babylon, see that you read all this.

62 Then say, 'LORD, you have threatened to destroy this place so that no person or animal will live here, and it will become a permanent ruin.'

63 When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and throw it into the middle of the Euphrates River.

64 Say, 'Babylon will sink like this scroll. It will never rise again because of the disasters that I will bring on it.'" The words of Jeremiah end here.