Study Desk

This will be your proof that I will do what I say.' This is what the Lord says: ‘Pharaoh Hophra is the king of Egypt. His enemies want to kill him. I will give Pharaoh Hophra to his enemies. Just as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah to his enemy Nebuchadnezzar, in the same way I will give Pharaoh Hophra to his enemies.'"

This message is about the nation of Egypt. It is about the army of Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt. His army was defeated at the town of Carchemish. Carchemish is on the Euphrates River. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon defeated the army of Pharaoh Neco at Carchemish in the fourth year that Jehoiakim son of Josiah was king of Judah. The Lord said,

"But on that day, the Lord God All-Powerful will win. He will give his enemies the punishment they deserve. His sword will kill until it is finished, until it has satisfied its thirst for blood. Yes, the Lord God All-Powerful will kill them as a sacrifice in the land of the north by the Euphrates River.

In their homelands, those soldiers will say, ‘Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, is only a lot of noise. His time of glory is over.'"

I will let all of them be defeated by their enemies—their enemies want to kill them. I will give the people to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his servants. "Long ago, Egypt lived in peace. And after all these times of trouble, Egypt will live in peace again." This is what the Lord said.

"You 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.

"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 as he did before, and his smell has not changed."

"The people of Moab thought they were greater than the Lord . So punish them until they act like a drunk, falling and rolling around in his vomit. Then people will make fun of them.

The Lord says, "I know Moab gets angry quickly and brags about himself, but his boasts are lies. He cannot do what he says.

"People in Heshbon, cry because the town of Ai is destroyed! Women in Rabbah of Ammon, cry! Put on sackcloth and cry. Run to the city for safety, because the enemy will take away the god Milcom, with his priests and officials.

But I will take everything from Esau. I will find all his hiding places. He will not be able to hide from me. His children, relatives, and neighbors will all die.

No one will be left to care for his children. His wives will have no one to depend on."

Just as an eagle flies high to see the animal it will attack, so the Lord will spread his wings over Bozrah. And Edom's soldiers will be filled with fear like a woman giving birth.

I will show Elam that I am in control, and I will destroy its king and his officials." This message is from the Lord .

The Lord will show his anger, so no one will live there. Babylon will be completely empty. Everyone who passes by Babylon will be afraid. They will shake their heads when they see how badly it has been destroyed.

So this is what the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will soon punish the king of Babylon and his country as I punished the king of Assyria.

"‘I will bring Israel back to his own fields. He will eat food that grows on Mount Carmel and in the land of Bashan. He will eat and be full. He will eat on the hills in the lands of Ephraim and Gilead.'"

The Lord has opened up his storeroom and brought out the weapons of his anger. The Lord God All-Powerful brought out those weapons, because he has work to do in the land of the Chaldeans.

People are running out of Babylon. They are escaping from that country and coming to Zion. They are telling everyone the good news about what the Lord is doing. The Lord our God is giving Babylon the punishment it deserves. The Lord is destroying Babylon, because it destroyed his Temple!

But God will get them back. His name is the Lord God All-Powerful. He will defend them very strongly. He will argue their case so that he can let their land rest. But there will be no rest for those living in Babylon."