--- title: "The Destruction of Babylon" description: "Go up against the land of Merathaim, and against the residents of Pekod. Kill..." image: "" book: "Jeremiah" bookId: "JER" testament: "old" startChapter: 50 startVerse: 21 endChapter: 51 endVerse: 14 coversChapters: [50,51] aiTitle: "The Destruction of Babylon" aiDescription: "Go up against the land of Merathaim, and against the residents of Pekod. Kill..." hasAiStory: true location: "Babylon" persons: ["God","Israelites","Sons of Judah","Chaldeans","Kings of the Medes","Jeremiah","Seraiah"] hashtags: ["judgment","redemption","idolatry","prophetic","war"] genre: "prophecy" readingTime: 5 type: "adaptive" slug: "JER/the-destruction-of-babylon" canonicalId: "JER.50.21-51.14" chronologicalOrder: 1091 relatedSlugs: [] prevSlug: "JER/redemption-for-gods-people" nextSlug: "JER/praise-to-the-god-of-jacob" --- Go 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](/persons/god). “The noise of battle is in the land—the noise of great destruction. How the hammer of the whole earthlies broken and shattered!What a horror Babylon has becomeamong the nations! I laid a snare for you, O Babylon,and you were caught before you knew it.You were found and capturedbecause you challenged the LORD. The 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](/persons/chaldeans). Come against herfrom the farthest border.Break open her granaries;pile her up like mounds of grain.Devote her to destruction;leave her no survivors. Kill all her young bulls;let them go down to the slaughter.Woe to them, for their day has come—the time of their punishment. Listen to the fugitives and refugeesfrom the land of Babylon,declaring in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God,the vengeance for His temple. Summon 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. Therefore, her young men will fall in the streets,and all her warriors will be silenced in that day,”
declares the LORD. “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. The 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.” This is what the LORD of Hosts says:“The [sons of Israel](/persons/israelites) are oppressed,and the [sons of Judah](/persons/sons%20of%20judah) as well.All their captors hold them fast,refusing to release them. Their 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. A sword is against the Chaldeans,declares the LORD,against those who live in Babylon,and against her officials and wise men. A sword is against her false prophets,and they will become fools.A sword is against her warriors,and they will be filled with terror. A 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. A 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. So the desert creatures and hyenas will live thereand ostriches will dwell there.It will never again be inhabitedor lived in from generation to generation. As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrahalong with their neighbors,”
declares the LORD,“no one will dwell there;no man will abide there. Behold, an army is coming from the north;a great nation and many kings are stirred upfrom the ends of the earth. They 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. The king of Babylon has heard the report,and his hands hang limp.Anguish has gripped him,pain like that of a woman in labor. Behold, 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?” Therefore 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. At the sound of Babylon’s capture the earth will quake;a cry will be heard among the nations. ### Judgment on Babylon This is what the LORD says:“Behold, I will stir up against Babylonand against the people of Leb-kamaithe spirit of a destroyer. I will send strangers to Babylonto winnow her and empty her land;for they will come against her from every sidein her day of disaster. Do not let the archer bend his bowor put on his armor.Do not spare her young men;devote all her army to destruction! And they will fall slain in the land of the Chaldeans,and pierced through in her streets. For Israel and Judah have not been abandonedby their God, the LORD of Hosts,though their land is full of guiltbefore the Holy One of Israel.” Flee from Babylon! Escape with your lives!Do not be destroyed in her punishment.For this is the time of the LORD’s vengeance;He will pay her what she deserves. Babylon was a gold cup in the hand of the LORD,making the whole earth drunk.The nations drank her wine;therefore the nations have gone mad. Suddenly Babylon has fallen and been shattered.Wail for her; get her balm for her pain;perhaps she can be healed. “We tried to heal Babylon,but she could not be healed.Abandon her!Let each of us go to his own land,for her judgment extends to the skyand reaches to the clouds.” “The LORD has brought forth our vindication;come, let us tell in Zionwhat the LORD our God has accomplished.” Sharpen the arrows!Fill the quivers!The LORD has aroused the spiritof the [kings of the Medes](/persons/kings%20of%20the%20medes),because His plan is aimed at Babylonto destroy her,for it is the vengeance of the LORD—vengeance for His temple. Raise a banner against the walls of Babylon;post the guard;station the watchmen;prepare the ambush.For the LORD has both devised and accomplishedwhat He spoke against the people of Babylon. You who dwell by many waters,rich in treasures,your end has come;the thread of your life is cut. The LORD of Hosts has sworn by Himself:“Surely I will fill you up with men as with locusts,and they will shout in triumph over you.”

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