✝
← Bible
ARCBLIVREKJVVBL

Jeremiah 50

KJV · Chapter 50/52

1The word that the Lord spake against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet.

2Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Merodach is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces.

3For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.

4In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek the Lord their God.

5They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the Lord in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten.

6My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace.

7All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the Lord, the habitation of justice, even the Lord, the hope of their fathers.

8Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he goats before the flocks.

9For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain.

10And Chaldea shall be a spoil: all that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith the Lord.

11Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage, because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls;

12Your mother shall be sore confounded; she that bare you shall be ashamed: behold, the hindermost of the nations shall be a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.

13Because of the wrath of the Lord it shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate: every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished, and hiss at all her plagues.

14Put yourselves in array against Babylon round about: all ye that bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the Lord.

15Shout against her round about: she hath given her hand: her foundations are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of the Lord: take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her.

16Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people, and they shall flee every one to his own land.

17Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.

18Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria.

19And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead.

20In those days, and in that time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.

21Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: waste and utterly destroy after them, saith the Lord, and do according to all that I have commanded thee.

22A sound of battle is in the land, and of great destruction.

23How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken! how is Babylon become a desolation among the nations!

24I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the Lord.

25The Lord hath opened his armoury, and hath brought forth the weapons of his indignation: for this is the work of the Lord God of hosts in the land of the Chaldeans.

26Come against her from the utmost border, open her storehouses: cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly: let nothing of her be left.

27Slay all her bullocks; let them go down to the slaughter: woe unto them! for their day is come, the time of their visitation.

28The voice of them that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, the vengeance of his temple.

29Call together the archers against Babylon: all ye that bend the bow, camp against it round about; let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the Lord, against the Holy One of Israel.

30Therefore shall her young men fall in the streets, and all her men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the Lord.

31Behold, I am against thee, O thou most proud, saith the Lord God of hosts: for thy day is come, the time that I will visit thee.

32And the most proud shall stumble and fall, and none shall raise him up: and I will kindle a fire in his cities, and it shall devour all round about him.

33Thus saith the Lord of hosts; The children of Israel and the children of Judah were oppressed together: and all that took them captives held them fast; they refused to let them go.

34Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name: he shall throughly plead their cause, that he may give rest to the land, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.

35A sword is upon the Chaldeans, saith the Lord, and upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and upon her wise men.

36A sword is upon the liars; and they shall dote: a sword is upon her mighty men; and they shall be dismayed.

37A sword is upon their horses, and upon their chariots, and upon all the mingled people that are in the midst of her; and they shall become as women: a sword is upon her treasures; and they shall be robbed.

38A drought is upon her waters; and they shall be dried up: for it is the land of graven images, and they are mad upon their idols.

39Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the islands shall dwell there, and the owls shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.

40As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the Lord; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein.

41Behold, a people shall come from the north, and a great nation, and many kings shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.

42They shall hold the bow and the lance: they are cruel, and will not shew mercy: their voice shall roar like the sea, and they shall ride upon horses, every one put in array, like a man to the battle, against thee, O daughter of Babylon.

43The king of Babylon hath heard the report of them, and his hands waxed feeble: anguish took hold of him, and pangs as of a woman in travail.

44Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan unto the habitation of the strong: but I will make them suddenly run away from her: and who is a chosen man, that I may appoint over her? for who is like me? and who will appoint me the time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?

45Therefore hear ye the counsel of the Lord, that he hath taken against Babylon; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out: surely he shall make their habitation desolate with them.

46At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth is moved, and the cry is heard among the nations.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

A long prophecy begins against Babylon itself, the instrument of judgment God used against Judah, announcing that it too would fall, allowing the exiles to finally return home.

Explanation

This reveals an important prophetic principle: the nation God used as an instrument of discipline (Babylon) is not exempt from responsibility for its own arrogance and violence, and it too would face judgment in due time. The image of Israel as 'lost sheep' whose shepherds led them astray, but who will now seek the way back to Zion 'in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten,' connects this section directly to the promise of the New Covenant in chapter 31. The mention that 'Babylon has been a golden cup in the LORD's hand' that made the nations drunk shows how power used to dominate and exploit other peoples, even when it serves one of God's temporary purposes, has a limit and an account to settle.

Fun facts

  • The historical fall of Babylon to the Persian Empire under Cyrus the Great took place in 539 BC, about 70 years after the start of Babylonian rule over Judah, fulfilling the time frame Jeremiah had announced.
  • Bel and Merodach, mentioned as Babylonian deities that are 'confounded' and defeated, were names for Marduk, the chief god of the Babylonian pantheon, whose temple and statue were central to the empire's official religion.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Jeremiah 50:1Opens the longest oracle of the final block (chapters 50–51): against Babylon itself, the very empire God used to punish Judah — the instrument of judgment is about to be judged.
  2. Jeremiah 50:2Bel, another name for Marduk, and Merodach were Babylon’s chief gods. Announcing their humiliation means the fall of the city would be religious as well as military — the whole Babylonian pantheon disgraced.
  3. Jeremiah 50:3A nation from the north (Persia, under Cyrus, decades later) will attack Babylon and turn her land into a wasteland — the same fate Babylon once inflicted on Judah now turns back on her.
  4. Jeremiah 50:4Foresees Israel and Judah, reconciled as one people, seeking God together and weeping in repentance — a picture of reunification after the exile.
  5. Jeremiah 50:5Describes the people asking the way back to Zion, determined to make an everlasting covenant with God — a physical return joined to a spiritual one.
  6. Jeremiah 50:6Blames the leaders (“shepherds”) of Judah for leading the people astray, compared to lost sheep wandering from mountain to mountain, far from their true resting place.
  7. Jeremiah 50:7Explains that the enemies who attacked Israel felt justified, since the people had sinned against God — but that does not erase Babylon’s own guilt for going too far.
  8. Jeremiah 50:8Calls the exiled Jews to flee Babylon before her fall, comparing the needed urgency to lead rams going out ahead of the flock.
  9. Jeremiah 50:9Announces a coalition of great nations from the north (historically the Medes and Persians) that will attack Babylon with unerring arrows, like seasoned warriors who never miss their mark.
  10. Jeremiah 50:10Promises that Chaldea (another name for Babylon) will become spoil of war, with the plunderers finally satisfied with all they seize.
  11. Jeremiah 50:11Accuses the Babylonians of rejoicing as they plundered God’s people, compared to a fat heifer and neighing horses in delight — a joy that will soon turn to shame.
  12. Jeremiah 50:12Babylon’s “mother” (her nation of origin, personified) will be deeply ashamed, reduced to the least of the nations, a dry and empty wilderness.
  13. Jeremiah 50:13God’s wrath will leave the region uninhabited forever, and every traveler who passes by will be appalled at the total desolation.
  14. Jeremiah 50:14Calls archers from every side to attack Babylon without mercy, because she has sinned directly against God, not only against Judah.
  15. Jeremiah 50:15Describes the siege already underway — Babylon’s foundations and walls falling — and calls for her to be repaid exactly as she repaid others, a principle of matching justice.
  16. Jeremiah 50:16Calls for even Babylon’s farmers to be cut off, forcing the foreigners who lived there to flee back to their own lands before the sword — the total emptying of the empire’s mixed population.
  17. Jeremiah 50:17Compares Israel to a lamb chased by lions — first devoured by Assyria (which destroyed the northern kingdom), then by Babylon, which “broke his bones” — prey torn apart twice over.
  18. Jeremiah 50:18Promises that the same judgment that fell on Assyria (destroyed decades earlier by the Babylonians and Medes) will now fall on Babylon herself — no one escapes the same measure of justice.
  19. Jeremiah 50:19Promises to bring Israel back to her own fertile lands — Carmel, Bashan, the hill country of Ephraim, Gilead — regions known for abundant pasture, a return to lost plenty.
  20. Jeremiah 50:20Promises a forgiveness so complete that when Israel’s and Judah’s guilt is sought, it simply will not be found — total purification of the surviving remnant.
  21. Jeremiah 50:21Merathaim and Pekod were symbolic or regional names tied to Babylon (Merathaim means something like “double rebellion”); the order is for total, unhesitating destruction.
  22. Jeremiah 50:22The sound of war and great destruction filling the land — a sonic description of the final assault on Babylon.
  23. Jeremiah 50:23Calls Babylon the “hammer of the whole earth,” acknowledging the power she once had to crush other nations — now that same hammer lies broken, an object of horror.
  24. Jeremiah 50:24An image of a trap — Babylon was caught without even realizing it, precisely because she set herself directly against God — the fall catches the empire by surprise.
  25. Jeremiah 50:25Describes God opening His own armory to bring out the instruments of judgment — a military image applied to the divine action behind human armies.
  26. Jeremiah 50:26Calls invaders from distant lands to empty Babylon’s storehouses completely and destroy her as if threshing sheaves of grain, leaving nothing behind.
  27. Jeremiah 50:27Orders even Babylon’s young warriors to be killed, because the appointed day of her judgment has come.
  28. Jeremiah 50:28Describes fugitives escaping Babylon’s fall, carrying the news all the way to Zion, announcing that the vengeance came specifically because of the destruction of the temple.
  29. Jeremiah 50:29Calls archers from every side to surround Babylon so no one escapes, repaying her exactly as she did to others because of her arrogance against God.
  30. Jeremiah 50:30Repeats the formula used against Damascus in chapter 49: her young men will fall in the streets, and her soldiers will be silenced on that same day.
  31. Jeremiah 50:31God declares Himself directly against the “proud one” (Babylon herself, personified by her own arrogance), announcing that the day of divine visitation has finally come.
  32. Jeremiah 50:32Babylon’s pride will stumble and fall with no one to raise it up, and fire will consume her cities and everything around them completely.
  33. Jeremiah 50:33Acknowledges the oppression suffered by both Israel and Judah, held by captors who refused to let them go — the specific injustice that justifies what follows.
  34. Jeremiah 50:34Calls God a “strong Redeemer,” who will personally plead His people’s cause, bringing rest to the land and turmoil to the inhabitants of Babylon.
  35. Jeremiah 50:35Lists who the sword will strike: the Chaldeans themselves, the city’s inhabitants, her princes, and even her sages (Babylon’s famous counselors and astrologers).
  36. Jeremiah 50:36The sword also strikes the diviners and liars (Babylon’s famous magicians and astrologers), leaving them without reason, and her warriors, seized with terror.
  37. Jeremiah 50:37Threatens horses, chariots, and the mixed multiethnic population inside Babylon, comparing their terror to frightened women, and foresees the complete looting of her treasures.
  38. Jeremiah 50:38Announces drought over the rivers and canals that sustained Babylon, linking this punishment to idolatry — a land full of idols worshiped with an almost maddened fervor.
  39. Jeremiah 50:39After the fall, the site will be inhabited only by wild desert animals — the same image of desolation used for other condemned cities in these oracles.
  40. Jeremiah 50:40Repeats the comparison to Sodom and Gomorrah already used for Edom, reinforcing that Babylon will disappear as an inhabitable city forever.
  41. Jeremiah 50:41Describes the arrival of a mighty people from the north, with many kings rising up — the coalition of Medes and Persians that historically conquered Babylon in 539 BC.
  42. Jeremiah 50:42Details the weapons and cruelty of these invaders, comparing the roar of their advance to the sea, mounted on horses, ready to attack the “daughter of Babylon.”
  43. Jeremiah 50:43The king of Babylon himself, hearing news of the approaching attack, loses all strength and is seized with anguish like a woman in labor — the terror Babylon once caused in others now falls on her.
  44. Jeremiah 50:44Repeats almost word for word the image of the lion coming up from the Jordan, used earlier against Edom (49:19), reinforcing that no one can challenge God’s sovereign choice of who will carry out judgment.
  45. Jeremiah 50:45Repeats almost entirely verse 49:20 as well, but now applied to Babylon: even the weakest of her flock will be dragged away, and their pastures left desolate.
  46. Jeremiah 50:46Closes the chapter with the sheer scale of the event: the sound of Babylon’s fall will make the earth tremble, and the outcry of the news will spread among the nations.

Chapters

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243444546474849505152

Our apps

Our apps →

Bible in Stories

The Bible told as a story, with audio and videos.

📱 Get the app

World in Stories

True stories of humanity that sound made up.

App StoreGoogle Play

Feito! Pequenas Vitórias

A light daily routine for people who lose track of the day.

App StoreGoogle Play