Study Desk

Because you have trusted in your wealth and skill, you will be taken captive. Your god Chemosh, with his priests and officials, will be hauled off to distant lands!

"From his earliest history, Moab has lived in peace, never going into exile. He is like wine that has been allowed to settle. He has not been poured from flask to flask, and he is now fragrant and smooth.

But the time is coming soon," says the Lord , "when I will send men to pour him from his jar. They will pour him out, then shatter the jar!

At last Moab will be ashamed of his idol Chemosh, as the people of Israel were ashamed of their gold calf at Bethel.

But now Moab and his towns will be destroyed. His most promising youth are doomed to slaughter," says the King, whose name is the Lord of Heaven's Armies.

"The strength of Moab has ended. His arm has been broken," says the Lord .

"Let him stagger and fall like a drunkard, for he has rebelled against the Lord . Moab will wallow in his own vomit, ridiculed by all.

We have all heard of the pride of Moab, for his pride is very great. We know of his lofty pride, his arrogance, and his haughty heart.

I know about his insolence," says the Lord , "but his boasts are empty— as empty as his deeds.

This is what the Lord says: "Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle, spreading his wings over Moab.

"Cry out, O Heshbon, for the town of Ai is destroyed. Weep, O people of Rabbah! Put on your clothes of mourning. Weep and wail, hiding in the hedges, for your god Molech, with his priests and officials, will be hauled off to distant lands.

Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle, spreading his wings over Bozrah. Even the mightiest warriors will be in anguish like a woman in labor.

Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies, the God of Israel, says: "Now I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I punished the king of Assyria.

The Lord has opened his armory and brought out weapons to vent his fury. The terror that falls upon the Babylonians will be the work of the Sovereign Lord of Heaven's Armies.

Listen to the people who have escaped from Babylon, as they tell in Jerusalem how the Lord our God has taken vengeance against those who destroyed his Temple.

But the one who redeems them is strong. His name is the Lord of Heaven's Armies. He will defend them and give them rest again in Israel. But for the people of Babylon there will be no rest!

Sharpen the arrows! Lift up the shields! For the Lord has inspired the kings of the Medes to march against Babylon and destroy her. This is his vengeance against those who desecrated his Temple.

Raise the battle flag against Babylon! Reinforce the guard and station the watchmen. Prepare an ambush, for the Lord will fulfill all his plans against Babylon.

The Lord of Heaven's Armies has taken this vow and has sworn to it by his own name: "Your cities will be filled with enemies, like fields swarming with locusts, and they will shout in triumph over you."

The Lord made the earth by his power, and he preserves it by his wisdom. With his own understanding he stretched out the heavens.