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Jeremiah46

Jeremiah 46 contains prophecies against Egypt, primarily detailing its defeat by Nebuchadrezzar at Carchemish and a subsequent invasion. The Lord describes Egypt's military might being overwhelmed and its hired soldiers fleeing, declaring a day of vengeance upon Pharaoh and the nation. Despite this judgment, a concluding promise assures Israel that they will be saved from captivity and corrected in measure, not utterly destroyed.

Introduction to the Oracles Against Egypt

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the LORD’s word which came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations. ​
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Of Egypt: concerning the army of Pharaoh Necoh king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon struck in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah. ​

The Defeat at Carchemish (605 BC)

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Prepare the buckler and shield, and draw near to battle!
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Harness the horses, and get up, you horsemen, and stand up with your helmets; furbish the spears, put on the coats of mail.
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Why have I seen it? they are dismayed and are turned backward; and their mighty ones are beaten down, and have fled apace, and don’t look back: terror is on every side, says the LORD.
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Don’t let the swift flee away, nor the mighty man escape; in the north by the river Euphrates have they stumbled and fallen.
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Who is this who rises up like the Nile, whose waters toss themselves like the rivers? ​
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Egypt rises up like the Nile, and his waters toss themselves like the rivers: and he says, I will rise up, I will cover the earth; I will destroy cities and its inhabitants.
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Go up, you horses; and rage, you chariots; and let the mighty men go out: Cush and Put, who handle the shield; and the Ludim, who handle and bend the bow. ​
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For that day is of the Lord, the LORD of Hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries: and the sword shall devour and be satiate, and shall drink its fill of their blood; for the Lord, the LORD of Hosts, has a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates. ​
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Go up into Gilead, and take balm, virgin daughter of Egypt: in vain do you use many medicines; there is no healing for you. ​
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The nations have heard of your shame, and the earth is full of your cry; for the mighty man has stumbled against the mighty, they are fallen both of them together.

Prophecy of Nebuchadnezzar's Invasion of Egypt

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The word that the LORD spoke to Jeremiah the prophet, how that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon should come and strike the land of Egypt. ​
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Declare in Egypt, and publish in Migdol, and publish in Memphis and in Tahpanhes: say, Stand up, and prepare; for the sword has devoured around you. ​
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Why are your strong ones swept away? they didn’t stand, because the LORD pushed them. ​
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He made many to stumble, yes, they fell one on another: and they said, Arise, and let us go again to our own people, and to the land of our birth, from the oppressing sword.
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They cried there, Pharaoh king of Egypt is but a noise; he has let the appointed time pass by. ​
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As I live, says the King, whose name is the LORD of Hosts, surely like Tabor among the mountains, and like Carmel by the sea, so shall he come. ​
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You daughter who dwells in Egypt, furnish yourself to go into captivity; for Memphis shall become a desolation, and shall be burnt up, without inhabitant. ​
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Egypt is a very beautiful heifer; but destruction out of the north has come, it has come.
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Also her hired men in the midst of her are like calves of the stall; for they also are turned back, they are fled away together, they didn’t stand: for the day of their calamity has come on them, the time of their visitation. ​
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The sound of it shall go like the serpent; for they shall march with an army, and come against her with axes, as wood cutters. ​
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They shall cut down her forest, says the LORD, though it can’t be searched; because they are more than the locusts, and are innumerable.
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The daughter of Egypt shall be disappointed; she shall be delivered into the hand of the people of the north.
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The LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: Behold, I will punish Amon of No, and Pharaoh, and Egypt, with her gods, and her kings; even Pharaoh, and those who trust in him: ​
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and I will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants; and afterwards it shall be inhabited, as in the days of old, says the LORD. ​

Assurance for Israel

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But don’t you be afraid, Jacob my servant, neither be dismayed, Israel: for, behold, I will save you from afar, and your seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be quiet and at ease, and no one shall make him afraid. ​
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Don’t you be afraid, O Jacob my servant, says the LORD; for I am with you: for I will make a full end of all the nations where I have driven you; but I will not make a full end of you, but I will correct you in measure, and will in no way leave you unpunished. ​

Study Notes for Jeremiah 46

Verse 1

This chapter begins the collection of 'Oracles Against the Nations' (chapters 46–51), demonstrating that Yahweh’s sovereignty extends far beyond Judah to judge all global powers, starting with Egypt.

Verse 2

The Battle of Carchemish (605 BC) was a decisive turning point, marking the final collapse of Assyrian power, the end of Egyptian influence in the Levant, and the beginning of Babylonian dominance under Nebuchadrezzar.

Verse 7

Egypt is compared to the Nile River, which rises annually as a massive, overwhelming flood. This imagery reflects Egypt’s self-perception as an unstoppable world power.

Verse 9

The list of allies—Ethiopians (Cush), Libyans (Put), and Lydians (Lud)—highlights the extensive coalition that Egypt mustered, yet which failed spectacularly against Babylon.

Verse 10

The defeat is portrayed as 'the day of the Lord GOD of hosts,' where the battle is viewed as a sacrificial feast. God uses Babylon to exact vengeance and judgment upon his adversaries, fulfilling his divine purpose.

Verse 11

Gilead was famous for its medicinal balm. The metaphor signifies that Egypt’s military and political wounds are mortal; no amount of international maneuvering or internal effort can bring about recovery.

Verse 13

This section shifts from the historical defeat at Carchemish to a future prophecy concerning Babylon’s invasion of the Egyptian homeland itself, likely occurring later around 568 BC.

Verse 14

Migdol, Noph (Memphis), and Tahpanhes were key cities in Lower Egypt. Publishing the prophecy in these locations emphasizes that the invasion will penetrate the heart of the country.

Verse 15

The collapse of the Egyptian army is not due to Babylonian superiority alone, but because the Lord himself is driving them away, demonstrating divine control over geopolitical events.

Verse 17

Pharaoh is dismissed as 'but a noise' or 'a boast.' His reputation as a great power has been exposed as hollow, and he missed the critical time to defend his territory.

Verse 18

Mount Tabor and Mount Carmel were majestic, prominent landmarks. This oath stresses the absolute certainty and visibility of Nebuchadnezzar’s devastating arrival.

Verse 19

Noph (Memphis) was an ancient capital and religious center. The call for the inhabitants to prepare for exile confirms the total nature of the coming judgment.

Verse 21

The 'hired men' are mercenary troops (like those listed in v. 9). They are compared to 'fatted bullocks'—well-fed and ready for slaughter—who flee when the day of judgment arrives.

Verse 22

The comparison to a serpent suggests a defeated army retreating with a low, hissing sound. This is contrasted with the Babylonian army approaching with the destructive force of woodcutters wielding axes.

Verse 25

No (Thebes) was the great capital of Upper Egypt, signifying that God’s judgment targets not only the political leadership (Pharaoh) but also the core religious structures ('their gods').

Verse 26

While Egypt is delivered into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar, the oracle concludes with a promise of eventual restoration and re-inhabitation, typical of God's redemptive purpose even for foreign nations.

Verse 27

This section serves as a crucial theological contrast: while foreign nations face utter destruction, Israel, God’s covenant servant, is promised salvation and restoration from exile.

Verse 28

God assures Jacob that he will not make a 'full end' of them, as he will with other nations. Israel’s suffering is defined as correction (discipline), not ultimate condemnation, confirming the enduring nature of the covenant.

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