Jeremiah Chapter 46 to 48 : Easy-to-Read Version  | SearchSearch | Next Version | Previous Page | Next Page |

Other Versions

Messages from the Lord About the Nations

46 These messages came to Jeremiah the prophet. These messages are about different nations.

Messages About Egypt

2This message is about the nation of Egypt. This message is about the army of Pharaoh Neco. Neco was the king of Egypt. His army was defeated at the town of Carchemish. Carchemish is on the Euphrates River. Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated the army of Pharaoh Neco at Carchemish in the fourth year that Jehoiakim was king of Judah.* Jehoiakim was the son of King Josiah. This is the Lord’s message to Egypt: 3“Get your large and small shields ready. March out for battle. 4Get the horses ready. Soldiers, get on your horses. Go to your places for battle. Put your helmets on. Sharpen your spears. Put your armor on. 5What do I see? That army is scared. The soldiers are running away. Their brave soldiers are defeated. They run away in a hurry. They don’t look back. There is danger all around.” The Lord said these things. 6“Fast men can’t run away. Strong soldiers can’t escape. They will all stumble and fall. This will happen in the north, by the Euphrates River. 7Who is coming like the Nile River? Who is coming like that strong, fast river? 8It is Egypt that comes like the rising Nile River. It is Egypt that comes like that strong, fast river. Egypt says, ‘I will come and cover the earth. I will destroy the cities and the people in them.’ 9Horse soldiers, charge into battle. Chariot drivers, drive fast. March on, brave soldiers. Soldiers from Cush and Put, carry your shields. Soldiers from Lydia, use your bows. 10“But at that time, our Master, the Lord All-Powerful, will win. At that time, he will give the punishment that they deserve. The Lord’s enemies will get the punishment that they should have. The sword will kill until it is finished. The sword will kill until it satisfies its thirst for blood. This will happen because there is a sacrifice for our Master, the Lord All-Powerful. That sacrifice is {Egypt’s army} in the land of the north, by the Euphrates River. 11“Egypt, go to Gilead and get some medicine. You will make up many medicines, but they will not help. You will not be healed. 12The nations will hear you crying. Your cries will be heard all over the earth. One ‘brave soldier’ will run into another ‘brave soldier.’ And both ‘brave soldiers’ will fall down together.” 13This is the message the Lord spoke to Jeremiah the prophet. This message is about Nebuchadnezzar coming to attack Egypt. 14“Announce this message in Egypt. Tell it in the city of Migdol. Tell it in Memphis and Tahpanhes. ‘Get ready for war. Why? Because people all around you are being killed with swords.’ 15Egypt, your strong soldiers will be killed. They won’t be able to stand because the Lord will push them down. 16Those soldiers will stumble again and again. They will fall over each other. They will say, ‘Get up, let us go back to our own people. Let us go back to our homeland. Our enemy is defeating us. We must get away.’ 17In their homelands, those soldiers will say, ‘Pharaoh king of Egypt is only a lot of noise. His time of glory is over.’” 18This message is from the King. The King is the Lord All-Powerful. “I promise, as surely as I live, a powerful leader} will come. He will be great like Mount Tabor and Mount Carmel near the sea. 19People of Egypt, pack your things. Get ready for captivity. Why? Because Memphis will be a ruined, empty land. Those cities will be destroyed, and no person will live there. 20“Egypt is like a beautiful cow. But a horsefly* is coming from the north* to bother her. 21The hired soldiers in Egypt’s army are like fat calves. They will all turn and run away. They will not stand strong against the attack. Their time of destruction is coming. They will soon be punished. 22Egypt is like a snake hissing and trying to escape. The enemy comes closer and closer, and the Egyptian army is trying to slither away (escape). The enemy will attack Egypt with axes, like men cutting down trees.” 23The Lord says these things. “They will chop down Egypt’s forest (army). There are many trees (soldiers) in that forest (army) but they will all be cut down. There are more enemy soldiers than locusts.* There are so many soldiers, that no person can count them. 24Egypt will be ashamed. The enemy from the north will defeat her. 25The Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says: “Very soon I will punish Amon,* the god of Thebes. And I will punish Pharaoh, Egypt, and her gods. I will punish the kings of Egypt. And I will punish the people that depend on Pharaoh. 26I will let all those people be defeated by their enemies—and those enemies want to kill them. I will give those people to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and his servants.” Long ago, Egypt lived in peace. And after all these times of trouble, Egypt will live in peace again.” The Lord said these things.

A Message for North Israel

27“Jacob,* my servant, don’t be afraid. Don’t be scared, Israel. I will save you from those faraway places. I will save your children from the countries where they are captives.* Jacob will have peace and safety again. And no person will make him afraid.” 28The Lord says these things. “Jacob, my servant, don’t be afraid. I am with you. I sent you away to many different places. But I will not destroy you completely. But I will destroy all those nations. You must be punished for the bad things you did. So I won’t let you escape your punishment. I will discipline you, but I will be fair.”

fourth year … Judah This was about 605 B.C.  horsefly A large insect that often flies around and bites cows and horses. north This refers to the army of Babylon coming from the north to attack the nation of Judah. locusts Insects like grasshoppers that could destroy a large crop very quickly. Amon For many centuries Amon was the most important god of Egypt. At the time of this prophecy he was not worshiped as much in northern Egypt. But he was still the most important god in southern Egypt, especially around the old Egyptian capital city of Thebes. Jacob Another name for Israel. See Gen. 32:22–28. captives People that were taken away like prisoners.


A Message About the Philistine People

47 This is the message from the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet. This message is about the Philistine people. This message came before Pharaoh attacked the city of Gaza. 2The Lord says: “Look, {the enemy soldiers are meeting together} in the north.* They will come like a fast river spilling over its banks. They will cover the whole country like a flood. They will cover the towns and the people living in them. Everyone living in that country will cry for help. 3They will hear the sound of running horses, the noisy chariots, the rumbling wheels. Fathers won’t be able to protect their children. They will be too weak to help. 4Why? Because the time has come to destroy all the Philistine people. The time has come to destroy Tyre and Sidon’s remaining helpers. The Lord will destroy the Philistine people. He will destroy the survivors from the Island of Crete.* 5The people from Gaza will be sad and shave their heads. The people from Ashkelon will be silenced. Survivors from the valley, how long will you cut yourselves?* 6“Sword of the Lord, you have not quit. How long will you keep fighting? Go back into your scabbard!* Stop! Be still! 7But how can the sword of the Lord rest? The Lord gave it a command. The Lord commanded it to attack the city of Ashkelon and the seacoast.”

north This refers to the army of Babylon coming from the north to attack the nation of Judah. Island of Crete Literally, “Island of Caphtor.” Sometimes this means Crete, and sometimes it means Cyprus. The Bible says the Philistines originally came from Caphtor. sad … cut yourselves The people did these things to show their sadness. scabbard A holder for a sword.


A Message About Moab

48 This message is about the country of Moab. This is what the Lord All- Powerful, the God of the people of Israel, says:* “It will be bad for Mount Nebo.* Mount Nebo will be ruined. The town of Kiriathaim will be humbled. It will be captured. The strong place will be humbled. It will be shattered. 2Moab will not be praised again. Men in Heshbon will plan Moab’s defeat. They will say, ‘Come, let us put an end to that nation.’ Madmenah, you will also be silenced. The sword will chase you. 3Listen to the cries from Horonaim. They are cries of much confusion and destruction. 4Moab will be destroyed. Her little children will cry for help. 5Moab’s people go up the path to Luhith. They are crying bitterly as they go. On the road down to the town of Horonaim, Cries of pain and suffering can be heard. 6Run away! Run for your lives! Run away like a tumbleweed* {blowing} through the desert. 7You trust in the things you made and in your wealth. So you will be captured. The god Chemosh* will be taken into captivity. And his priests and officials will be taken with him. 8The Destroyer will come against every town. Not one town will escape. The valley will be ruined. The high plain will be destroyed. The Lord said this would happen, so it will happen. 9Spread salt* over the fields in Moab. The country will be an empty desert. Moab’s towns will become empty. No people will live in them. 10If a person does not do what the Lord says, if he does not use his sword to kill those people, then bad things will happen to that person. 11“Moab has never known trouble. Moab is like wine left to settle. Moab has never been poured from one jar to another. He has not been taken into captivity. So he tastes like he did before. And his smell has not changed.” 12The Lord says these things. “But I will soon send men to pour you from your jars.* Then they will empty the jars and smash them to pieces.” 13Then the people of Moab will be ashamed of their false god, Chemosh.* The people of Israel trusted that {false god} in Bethel.* And the people of Israel were embarrassed {when that false god did not help them}. Moab will be like that. 14“You can’t say, ‘We are good soldiers. We are brave men in battle.’ 15The enemy will attack Moab. The enemy will enter those towns and destroy them. Her best young men will be killed in the slaughter.” This message is from the King. The King’s name is the Lord All Powerful. 16“The end of Moab is near. Moab will soon be destroyed. 17All of you people living around Moab should cry for that country. You people know how famous Moab is. So cry for him. Say, ‘The ruler’s power is broken. Moab’s power and glory is gone.’ 18“You people living in Dibon,* come down from your place of honor. Sit on the ground in the dust. Why? Because the Destroyer is coming. And he will destroy your strong cities. 19“You people living in Aroer, stand next to the road and watch. See the man running away. See that woman running away. Ask them what happened. 20“Moab will be ruined and filled with shame. Moab will cry and cry. Announce at the Arnon River,* that Moab is destroyed. 21People on the high plain have been punished. Judgment has come to the towns of Holon, Jahzah, and Mephaath, 22Judgment has come to the towns of Dibon, Nebo, and Beth Diblathaim, 23Judgment has come to the towns of Kiriathaim, Beth Gamul, and Beth Meon, 24Judgment has come to the towns of Kerioth and Bozrah. Judgment has come to all the towns of Moab, far and near. 25Moab’s strength has been cut off. Moab’s arm has been broken.” The Lord said these things. 26“Moab thought he was more important than the Lord. So punish Moab until he staggers like a drunk person. Moab will fall and roll around in his vomit. People will make fun of Moab. 27“Moab, you made fun of Israel. Israel was caught by a gang of thieves. Every time you spoke about Israel, you shook your head and acted like you were better than Israel. 28People in Moab, leave your towns. Go live among the rocks; be like a dove that makes its nest at the opening of a cave.” 29“We have heard about Moab’s pride. He was very proud. He thought he was important. He was always bragging. He was very, very proud.” 30The Lord says, “I know that Moab becomes angry quickly and brags about himself. But his boasts are lies. He can’t do the things he says. 31So, I cry for Moab. I cry for everyone in Moab. I cry for the men from Kir Hareseth. 32I cry with the people of Jazer for Jazer. Sibmah, in the past your vines spread all the way to the sea. They reached as far as the town of Jazer. But the Destroyer has taken your fruit and grapes. 33Joy and happiness are gone from the large vineyards* of Moab. I stopped the flow of wine from the winepresses.* There is no singing and dancing from people walking on the grapes to make wine. There are no shouts of joy. 34“The people of the towns of Heshbon and Elealeh are crying. Their cry is heard even as far away as the town of Jahaz. Their cry is heard from the town of Zoar, as far away as the towns of Horonaim and Eglath Shelishiyah. Even the waters of Nimrim are dried. 35I will stop Moab from making burnt offerings on the high places.* I will stop them from making sacrifices to their gods.” The Lord said those things. 36“I am very sad for Moab. My hearts cries like the sad sound of a flute playing a funeral song. I am sad for the people from Kir Hareseth. Their money and riches have all been taken away. 37Everyone has a shaved head. Everyone’s beard is cut off. Everyone’s hands are cut and bleeding.* Everyone is wearing their clothes of sadness around their waists. 38People are crying for the dead everywhere in Moab—on every housetop and in every public square. There is sadness because I have broken Moab like an empty jar.” The Lord said these things. 39“Moab is shattered. The people are crying. Moab surrendered. Now Moab is ashamed. People make fun of Moab—but the things that happened fill them with fear.” 40The Lord says, “Look! An eagle is diving down from the sky. It is spreading its wings over Moab. 41The towns of Moab will be captured. The strong hiding places will be defeated. At that time, Moab’s soldiers will be scared, like a woman that is having a baby. 42The nation of Moab will be destroyed. Why? Because they thought that they were more important than the Lord.” 43The Lord says these things: “People of Moab, fear, deep holes, and traps* wait for you. 44People will be afraid and run away, and they will fall into the deep holes. If anyone climbs out of the deep holes, he will be caught in the traps. I will bring the year of punishment to Moab.” The Lord said these things. 45“People have run from the powerful enemy. They ran to safety in the town Heshbon. {But there was no safety.} A fire started in Heshbon. That fire started in Sihon’s town* and it is destroying the leaders of Moab. It is destroying those proud people. 46It will be bad for you, Moab. Chemosh’s* people are being destroyed. Your sons and daughters are being taken away as prisoners and captives.* 47“Moab’s people will be taken away as captives. But in days to come, I will bring Moab’s people back.” This message is from the Lord. This ends the judgment on Moab.

This message … says See Isa. 15 for a similar message. Mount Nebo A mountain in Moab, a country east of Israel. tumbleweed A small bush short roots that is easily blown away by the wind. In Hebrew this word is like the name “Aroer,” an important city in Moab. Chemosh The god of the people of Moab. salt This is a word play, and we are not sure of the exact meaning of this Hebrew word. jars This probably means the cities in Moab. in Bethel This means the temple that King Jeroboam built in the town of Bethel. See 1 Kings 12:28–33. It is not clear whether the people still worshiped the Lord there, but in a wrong way. Or whether they worshiped a false god, perhaps the Canaanite god El or Baal. Dibon A town in the country of Moab. Arnon River An important river in Moab. vineyards A garden for growing grapes. winepresses A place for squeezing the juice from grapes. Sometimes this was only a shallow hole in a large rock in the ground. high places Special places where the people worshiped false gods. These places were often on hilltops, but not always. Some ‘high places’ were in valleys. Everyone … cut and bleeding The people did these things to show their sadness for people that had died. fear, deep holes, and traps This is a word play in Hebrew. The Hebrew words are: “Pahad, Pahat, and Pah.” Sihon’s town This was Heshbon. See Numbers 21:25–30. captives People that were taken away like prisoners. Here this means the Moabite people.

Other Versions