A Message About Ammon

49 This message is about the Ammonite people.The Lord says: “Ammonite people, do you think that the people of Israel don’t have children? Do you think there are no children to take the land when the parents die? Maybe that is why Milcom* took Gad’s* land?” ²The Lord says, “The time will come in Rabbah of Ammon* when people hear the sounds of battle. Rabbah of Ammon will be destroyed. It will be an empty hill covered with destroyed buildings. And the towns around it will be burned. Those people forced the people of Israel to leave their own land. But later, Israel will force them to leave.” The Lord said these things. ³“People in Heshbon, cry! Why? Because the town of Ai is destroyed. Women in Rabbah of Ammon, cry! Put on your clothes of sadness and cry. Run to the city for safety. Why? {Because the enemy is coming.} They take away the god, Milcom.* And they will take away Milcom’s priests and officials. ⁴You brag about your strength. But you are losing your strength. You trust your money will save you. You think no one would even think of attacking you.” ⁵But the Lord All-Powerful says this: “I will bring troubles to you from every side. You will all run away. And no one will be able to bring you together again.” ⁶“The Ammonite people will be taken away as captives. But the time will come that I will bring the Ammonite people back.” This message is from the Lord.

A Message About Edom

⁷This message is about Edom. The Lord All-Powerful says: “Is there no more wisdom in Teman*? Are the wise men of Edom not able to give good advice? Have they lost their wisdom? ⁸You people living in Dedan, run away! Hide! Why? Because I will punish Esau* for the bad things he did. ⁹“Workers pick grapes from grapevines. But they leave a few grapes on the plants. If thieves come at night, they don’t take everything. ¹⁰But I will take everything from Esau.* I will find all of his hiding places. He will not be able to hide from me. His children, relatives, and neighbors will all die. ¹¹No person will be left to care for his children. His wives will have no one to depend on.” ¹²This is what the Lord says, “Some people don’t deserve to be punished—but they suffer. But Edom, you deserve to be punished—so you will really be punished. You will not escape the punishment you deserve. You will be punished.” ¹³The Lord says, “By my own power, I make this promise: I promise that the city of Bozrah will be destroyed. That city will become a ruined pile of rocks. People will use that city as an example when they ask for bad things to happen to other cities. People will insult that city. And all the towns around Bozrah will become ruins forever.” ¹⁴I heard a message from the Lord: The Lord sent a messenger to the nations. This is the message: “Gather your armies together! Get ready for battle! March against the nation of Edom! ¹⁵Edom, I will make you become not important. Every person will hate you. ¹⁶Edom, you scared other nations. So you thought you were important. But your pride has fooled you. You live in those caves, high on the cliff. Your home is high in the hills. But even if you build your home as high as an eagle’s nest, I will bring you down from there.” The Lord said these things. ¹⁷“Edom will be destroyed. People will be shocked to see the destroyed cities. People will whistle from amazement at the destroyed cities. ¹⁸Edom will be destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah* and the towns around them. No people will live there.” The Lord said these things. ¹⁹“Sometimes a lion will come from the thick bushes near the Jordan River. And that lion will go into the fields where people put their sheep and cattle. I am like that lion. I will go to Edom. And I will scare those people. I will make them run away. None of their young men will stop me. No one is like me. No one will challenge me. None of their shepherds (leaders) will stand up against me.” ²⁰So listen to what the Lord has planned to do to the people of Edom. Listen to what the Lord has decided to do to the people in Teman.* The enemy will drag away the young kids of Edom’s flock (people). Edom’s pastures will be empty because of what they did. ²¹At the sound of Edom’s fall, the earth will shake. Their cry will be heard all the way to the Red Sea. ²²The Lord will be like an eagle flying over the animal that it will attack. The Lord will be like an eagle spreading its wings over Bozrah. At that time, Edom’s soldiers will become very scared. They will be crying from fear like a woman having a baby.

A Message About Damascus

²³This message is about the city of Damascus: “The towns of Hamath and Arpad are afraid. They are afraid because they heard the bad news. They are discouraged. They are worried and scared. ²⁴The city of Damascus has become weak. The people want to run away. The people are ready to panic. The people feel pain and suffering like a woman having a baby. ²⁵“Damascus, is a happy city. The people have not left that ‘fun city’ yet. ²⁶So the young men will die in the public squares of that city. All of her soldiers will be killed at that time.” The Lord All-Powerful said these things. ²⁷“I will set the walls of Damascus on fire. The fire will completely burn up the strong forts of Ben-Hadad.”*

A Message About Kedar and Hazor

²⁸This message is about the family group of Kedar and the rulers of Hazor.* Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, defeated them. The Lord says: “Go and attack the family group of Kedar. Destroy the people of the East. ²⁹Their tents and flocks will be taken away. Their tent and all their riches will be carried off. Their enemy will take away the camels. Men will shout this to them: ‘Terrible things are happening all around us.’ ³⁰Run away quickly! People in Hazor, find a good place to hide.” This message is from the Lord. “Nebuchadnezzar made plans against you. He thought of a smart plan to defeat you. ³¹“There is a nation that feels safe. That nation feels secure. That nation does not have gates or fences to protect it. No people live near them. The Lord says, ‘Attack that nation!’ ³²The enemy will steal their camels and take their large herds of cattle. The enemy will steal their large herds. Those people cut the corners of their beards.* Well, I will make them run away to the far corners of the earth. And I will bring terrible troubles to them from everywhere.” This message is from the Lord. ³³“The land of Hazor will become a place where only wild dogs live. No person will live there. No person will live in that place. It will become an empty desert forever.”

A Message About Elam

³⁴Early in the time when Zedekiah was king of Judah, Jeremiah the prophet received a message from the Lord. This message is about the nation of Elam.* ³⁵The Lord All-Powerful says, “I will break Elam’s bow very soon. The bow is Elam’s strongest weapon. ³⁶I will bring the four winds against Elam. I will bring them from the four corners of the skies. I will send the people of Elam to every place on the earth where the four winds blow. Elam’s captives will be carried away to every nation. ³⁷I will break Elam to pieces while their enemies are watching. I will break Elam in front of those people that want to kill them. I will bring terrible troubles to them. I will show them how angry I am.” This message is from the Lord. “I will send a sword to chase Elam. The sword will chase them until I have killed them all. ³⁸I will show Elam that I am in control. And I will destroy her king and his officials.” This message is from the Lord. ³⁹“But in the future, I will make good things happen to Elam.” This message is from the Lord.

Milcom The god of the Ammonite people. Gad’s One of the family groups of Israel. Their land was on the east side of the Jordan River, near the country of Ammon. Rabbah of Ammon The capital city of the Ammonite people. Teman This town was in the northern part of Edom. Esau Jacob’s twin brother. But here this means Edom whose people were descendants of Esau. Sodom and Gomorrah Two cities that God destroyed because the people were so evil. Teman This town was in the northern part of Edom. Ben-Hadad This was the name of several of the kings of Aram- Damascus. family group of Kedar and the rulers of Hazor Kedar was the name of an Arab family group that lived in the desert southeast of the land of Judah. corners of their beards The Jewish men did not cut their beards like the Arabs did. Elam A nation east of Babylon.