The Hebrew Prophets

"Take your positions surrounding Bavel, all you whose bows are strung; shoot at her, spare no arrows; because she sinned against ADONAI.

From all sides raise the war cry against her! Now she surrenders! Her buttresses fall, her walls are thrown down, for this is the vengeance of ADONAI. Avenge yourself on her! As she has done, do to her!

Cut off the sower from Bavel and the reaper with sickle at harvest-time. For fear of the destroying sword everyone returns to his own people, each one flees to his own land.

"Isra'el is a stray lamb, driven away by lions. First to devour him was Ashur's king; and the last to break his bones is this N'vukhadretzar king of Bavel."

Therefore ADONAI-Tzva'ot, the God of Isra'el, says: "I will punish the king of Bavel and his land as I punished the king of Ashur.

I will bring Isra'el back to his pasture, to graze on the Karmel and the Bashan, on the hills of Efrayim and in Gil'ad until he has his fill.

In those days, at that time," says ADONAI, "Isra'el's guilt will be sought, but there will be none, and Y'hudah's sins, but they won't be found; for I will pardon the remnant I leave.

"Attack the land of Meratayim; attack it and those living in P'kod. Waste them, utterly destroy them; do all I have ordered you," says ADONAI.

"The sound of battle is heard in the land, with great destruction!

How the hammer of the whole earth lies hacked apart and shattered! What an object of horror among the nations Bavel has become!

I set a trap and caught you, Bavel, before you knew it. You were discovered and seized, because you challenged ADONAI.

ADONAI has opened his store of arms and brought out the weapons of his wrath; for Adonai ELOHEI-Tzva'ot has work to do in the land of the Kasdim.

Attack her from every direction! Open her stores of grain! Pile her up like heaps of grain; destroy her completely; leave nothing!

Kill all her bulls! let them go down to be slaughtered! Woe to them! for their day has come, the time for them to be punished."

Hear the sound of the fugitives, of those escaping from Bavel, coming to proclaim in Tziyon the vengeance of ADONAI our God, vengeance over his temple.

"Call up archers against Bavel, all whose bows are strung. Besiege her from every side, let no one escape. Repay her for her deeds; as she has done, do to her. For she insulted ADONAI, the Holy One of Isra'el.

This is why her young men will fall in her open places, why all her warriors will be silenced on that day," says ADONAI.

"I am against you, arrogant [nation]," says Adonai ELOHEI-Tzva'ot. "For your day has come, the time for you to be punished.

The arrogant [nation] will stumble and fall, and no one will lift him up again. I will set his cities on fire, and it will devour everything around him."

Thus says ADONAI-Tzva'ot: "The people of Isra'el are oppressed, and so are the people of Y'hudah. Those who took them captive hold them fast; they refuse to let them go.

But their redeemer is strong; ADONAI-Tzva'ot is his name. He will thoroughly plead their cause, so that he can give rest to the land but unrest to those who live in Bavel.

ADONAI says, "A sword hangs over the Kasdim, and over those who live in Bavel, over her leaders and over her sages.

A sword hangs over the lying diviners; they will become fools. A sword hangs over her warriors; they will be disgraced.

A sword hangs over their horses, also over their chariots, also over the foreigners within her; they will become like women. A sword hangs over her treasures; they will be robbed.

A drought hangs over her waters; they will be dried up. For this is a land of idols; they go mad over these horrors of theirs.