←Jeremiah 50→BSB

In This Chapter 5 people 22 places 54 terms

People

Israel 13 Nebuchadnezzar 2 Jeremiah (Son of Hilkiah) Jacob (Patriarch) Jeshurun (Israel)

Places

    Key Terms

    Deal With 8 Guilt (State) 6 Arrow 3 Appoint 3 Forgive (Grant Pardon) 3 Possession 2 Holy 2 Terror 2 Counsel 2 Covenant Covenant (NT) Covenant of Salt Guilty (Responsible) To Sin Sin Transgression Sin (Act) Sin (Incur Guilt) Guilt (Consequence) Guiltiness Trespass (Sin) Sinful Sin (Offense) To Stand Guilty Sin (Guilty) Sin (Wrongdoing) Guilty Considered Guilty Guilty Of Sin Previously Sin Against To Cause to Possess Possession Forgive Forgive (Remove Guilt) Spare (Release) Hand Over Forgiveness (Remove Guilt) Forgive (Wipe Out) Forgiveness (Pardon) Have Mercy To Cover (Forgive) Cover (Figurative) Forgiving Woe (Future Suffering) Visitation Be Holy Holy (Pure) Holy Thing Most Holy Place Holiness Holy (Devout) Hallow Sanctuary

    A Prophecy against Babylon

    ⓘ This message of judgment on Babylon is the...

    This message of judgment on Babylon is the longest for any nation except Judah. It mixes threats against Babylon with promises to restore Judah. Babylon acted as the Lord's agent to destroy other Near Eastern civilizations. However, Babylon was also guilty of its own sins. The Lord would judge Babylon by making her experience what she did to others (Jeremiah 50:15).

    1This is the word that the LORD spoke through Jeremiah the prophet concerning Babylon and the land of the Chaldeans:†

    2“Announce and declare to the nations;lift up a banner and proclaim it;hold nothing back when you say,‘Babylon is captured;Bel is put to shame;Marduk is shattered,her images are disgraced,her idols are broken in pieces.’
    3For a nation from the north will come against her;it will make her land a desolation.No one will live in it;both man and beast will flee.”

    Hope for Israel and Judah

    ⓘ This poem gave hope to the Israelite exiles...

    This poem gave hope to the Israelite exiles in Babylon. It contrasted with the judgment and oppression they faced. The divine Judge is also the divine Savior.
    4“In those days and at that time,declares the LORD,the children of Israel and the children of Judahwill come together, weeping as they come,and will seek the LORD their God.5They will ask the way to Zionand turn their faces toward it.They will come and join themselves to the LORDin an everlasting covenantthat will never be forgotten.
    6My people are lost sheep;their shepherds have led them astray,causing them to roam the mountains.They have wandered from mountain to hill;they have forgotten their resting place.7All who found them devoured them,and their enemies said,‘We are not guilty,for they have sinned against the LORD, their true pasture,the LORD, the hope of their fathers.’
    ⓘ The Lord told the Israelites to leave when...

    The Lord told the Israelites to leave when he commanded a large army from many nations, including Persia and its allies, to attack Babylon in 539 BC.
    8Flee from the midst of Babylon;depart from the land of the Chaldeans;be like the he-goats that lead the flock.9For behold, I stir up and bring against Babylonan assembly of great nations from the land of the north.They will line up against her;from the north she will be captured.Their arrows will be like skilled warriorswho do not return empty-handed.10Chaldea† will be plundered;all who plunder her will have their fill,”declares the LORD.

    Babylon’s Fall Is Certain

    ⓘ These verses vividly describe the defeat of Babylon...

    These verses vividly describe the defeat of Babylon by the Persian invasion (see Jeremiah 51; Isaiah 13:14; 21:1–10; 44:28; 47:1–5; Daniel 5). Babylon never became an important kingdom again. The city was destroyed in 485 BC. Archaeologists began excavating Babylon in 1899, uncovering its remains over several decades.
    11“Because you rejoice,because you sing in triumph—you who plunder My inheritance—because you frolic like a heifer treading grainand neigh like stallions,12your mother will be greatly ashamed;she who bore you will be disgraced.Behold, she will be the least of the nations,a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
    13Because of the wrath of the LORD,she will not be inhabited;she will become completely desolate.All who pass through Babylon will be horrifiedand will hiss at all her wounds.
    14Line up in formation around Babylon,all you who draw the bow!Shoot at her! Spare no arrows!For she has sinned against the LORD.15Raise a war cry against her on every side!She has thrown up her hands in surrender;her towers have fallen;her walls are torn down.
    Since this is the vengeance of the LORD,take out your vengeance upon her;as she has done,do the same to her.16Cut off the sower from Babylon,and the one who wields the sickle at harvest time.In the face of the oppressor’s sword,each will turn to his own people,each will flee to his own land.

    Redemption for God’s People

    ⓘ Another poetic section expresses sorrow for Israel's hardships...

    Another poetic section expresses sorrow for Israel's hardships and promises future recovery.
    17Israel is a scattered flock,chased away by lions.The first to devour himwas the king of Assyria;the last to crush his boneswas Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.”
    ⓘ Therefore: This word introduces two divine decrees. The...

    • Therefore: This word introduces two divine decrees. The first decree condemned Babylon to complete destruction, like the punishment the Lord gave Assyria (Nahum 3). Assyria fell in 612 BC; Babylon fell in 539 BC.

    • I will return Israel: The second divine decree promises to restore Israel, specifically the people of the northern tribes, whose land was defined by the mentioned landmarks.

    • Carmel is a mountain range near the Mediterranean Sea in the northwestern corner of Israel.

    • Bashan was a region in the highlands east of the Sea of Galilee.

    • The tribe of Ephraim lived in the hill country in central Israel west of the Jordan River.

    • Gilead was a highland area on the east side of the Jordan River, opposite Ephraim.

    18Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says:

    “I will punish the king of Babylon and his landas I punished the king of Assyria.19I will return Israel to his pasture,and he will graze on Carmel and Bashan;his soul will be satisfiedon the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.
    20In those days and at that time,declares the LORD,a search will be made for Israel’s guilt,but there will be none,and for Judah’s sins,but they will not be found;for I will forgivethe remnant I preserve.

    The Destruction of Babylon

    21Go up against the land of Merathaim,and against the residents of Pekod.Kill them† and devote them to destruction.†Do all that I have commanded you,”declares the LORD.22“The noise of battle is in the land—the noise of great destruction.23How the hammer of the whole earthlies broken and shattered!What a horror Babylon has becomeamong the nations!
    24I laid a snare for you, O Babylon,and you were caught before you knew it.You were found and capturedbecause you challenged the LORD.25The LORD has opened His armoryand brought out His weapons of wrath,for this is the work of the Lord GOD of Hostsin the land of the Chaldeans.
    26Come against herfrom the farthest border.Break open her granaries;pile her up like mounds of grain.Devote her to destruction;leave her no survivors.27Kill all her young bulls;let them go down to the slaughter.Woe to them, for their day has come—the time of their punishment.
    28Listen to the fugitives and refugeesfrom the land of Babylon,declaring in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God,the vengeance for His temple.
    ⓘ Skilled archers would kill the Babylonian soldiers, just...

    Skilled archers would kill the Babylonian soldiers, just as those soldiers had killed others in battle. This was the Lord’s way of judging the ruthless empire builders who had defied the one true God by worshiping other gods (Jeremiah 50:38).
    29Summon the archers against Babylon,all who string the bow.Encamp all around her;let no one escape.Repay her according to her deeds;do to her as she has done.For she has defied the LORD,the Holy One of Israel.30Therefore, her young men will fall in the streets,and all her warriors will be silenced in that day,”declares the LORD.
    ⓘ Due to the Lord's command, the proud Babylonian...

    Due to the Lord's command, the proud Babylonian Empire would never again become a powerful force in the world.
    31“Behold, I am against you, O arrogant one,”declares the Lord GOD of Hosts,“for your day has come,the time when I will punish you.32The arrogant one will stumble and fallwith no one to pick him up.And I will kindle a fire in his citiesto consume all those around him.”
    ⓘ The people of Israel and Judah had suffered...

    The people of Israel and Judah had suffered a lot. The Lord's redemption would protect them and give them peace in Israel. God is strong and can redeem just as he can punish.

    33This is what the LORD of Hosts says:

    “The sons of Israel are oppressed,and the sons of Judah as well.All their captors hold them fast,refusing to release them.34Their Redeemer is strong;the LORD of Hosts is His name.He will fervently plead their caseso that He may bring rest to the earth,but turmoil to those who live in Babylon.
    ⓘ Babylon would face the same violence it had...

    • Babylon would face the same violence it had inflicted on others. The same accusations were made against Babylon as against Israel, Judah, Egypt, and their neighbors. They all worshiped idols instead of the one true God.

    • The sword of destruction refers to the Persian army.
    35A sword is against the Chaldeans,declares the LORD,against those who live in Babylon,and against her officials and wise men.36A sword is against her false prophets,and they will become fools.A sword is against her warriors,and they will be filled with terror.37A sword is against her horses and chariotsand against all the foreigners in her midst,and they will become like women.A sword is against her treasuries,and they will be plundered.38A drought is upon her waters,and they will be dried up.For it is a land of graven images,and the people go mad over idols.†
    ⓘ Babylon's destruction would be complete, like the total...

    Babylon's destruction would be complete, like the total ruin of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24–25).
    39So the desert creatures and hyenas will live thereand ostriches† will dwell there.It will never again be inhabitedor lived in from generation to generation.40As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrahalong with their neighbors,”declares the LORD,“no one will dwell there;no man will abide there.
    41Behold, an army is coming from the north;a great nation and many kings are stirred upfrom the ends of the earth.42They grasp the bow and spear;†they are cruel and merciless.Their voice roars like the sea,and they ride upon horses,lined up like men in formationagainst you, O Daughter of Babylon.43The king of Babylon has heard the report,and his hands hang limp.Anguish has gripped him,pain like that of a woman in labor.
    ⓘ These verses are similar to Jeremiah 49:19–21, but...

    These verses are similar to Jeremiah 49:19–21, but they mention Babylon instead of Edom.
    44Behold, one will come up like a lionfrom the thickets of the Jordan to the watered pasture.For in an instant I will chase Babylon from her land.Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this?For who is like Me, and who can challenge Me?What shepherd can stand against Me?”
    45Therefore hear the plansthat the LORD has drawn up against Babylonand the strategies He has devisedagainst the land of the Chaldeans:Surely the little ones of the flock will be dragged away;certainly their pasture will be made desolate because of them.46At the sound of Babylon’s capture the earth will quake;a cry will be heard among the nations.