Jeremiah 48

¹Of Moab. The Lord of armies, the God of Israel, has said: Sorrow on Nebo, for it has been made waste; Kiriathaim has been put to shame and is taken: the strong place is put to shame and broken down.

²The praise of Moab has come to an end; as for Heshbon, evil has been designed against her; come, let us put an end to her as a nation. But your mouth will be shut, O Madmen; the sword will go after you.

³There is the sound of crying from Horonaim, wasting and great destruction;

⁴Moab is broken; her cry has gone out to Zoar.

⁵For by the slope of Luhith they will go up, weeping all the way; for on the way down to Horonaim the cry of destruction has come to their ears.

⁶Go in flight, get away with your lives, and let your faces be turned to Aroer in the Arabah.

⁷For because you have put your faith in your strong places, you, even you, will be taken: and Chemosh will go out as a prisoner, his priests and his rulers together.

⁸And the attacker will come against every town, not one will be safe; and the valley will be made waste, and destruction will come to the lowland, as the Lord has said.

⁹Put up a pillar for Moab, for she will come to a complete end: and her towns will become a waste, without anyone living in them.

¹⁰Let him be cursed who does the Lord's work half-heartedly; let him be cursed who keeps back his sword from blood.

¹¹From his earliest days, Moab has been living in comfort; like wine long stored he has not been drained from vessel to vessel, he has never gone away as a prisoner: so his taste is still in him, his smell is unchanged.

¹²So truly, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will send to him men who will have him turned over till there is no more wine in his vessels, and his wine-skins will be completely broken.

¹³And Moab will be shamed on account of Chemosh, as the children of Israel were shamed on account of Beth-el their hope.

¹⁴How say you, We are men of war and strong fighters?

¹⁵He who makes Moab waste has gone up against her; and the best of her young men have gone down to their death, says the King, whose name is the Lord of armies.

¹⁶The fate of Moab is near, and trouble is coming on him very quickly.

¹⁷All you who are round about him, give signs of grief for him, and all you who have knowledge of his name, say, How is the strong rod broken, even the beautiful branch!

¹⁸Come down from your glory, O people of Dibon, and take your seat in the place of the waste; for the attacker of Moab has gone up against you, sending destruction on your strong places.

¹⁹O daughter of Aroer, take your station by the way, on the watch: questioning him who is in flight, and her who has got away safe, say, What has been done?

²⁰Moab has been put to shame, she is broken: make loud sounds of grief, crying out for help; give the news in Arnon, that Moab has been made waste.

²¹And punishment has come on the lowlands; on Holon and Jahzah, and on Mephaath,

²²And on Dibon, and on Nebo, and on Beth-diblathaim,

²³And on Kiriathaim, and on Beth-gamul, and on Beth-meon,

²⁴And on Kerioth, and on Bozrah, and on all the towns of the land of Moab, far and near.

²⁵The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, says the Lord.

²⁶Make him full of wine, for his heart has been lifted up against the Lord: and Moab will be rolling in the food he was not able to keep down, and everyone will be making sport of him.

²⁷For did you not make sport of Israel? was he taken among thieves? for whenever you were talking about him, you were shaking your head over him.

²⁸O people of Moab, go away from the towns and take cover in the rock; be like the dove of the Arabah, which makes her living-place in holes.

²⁹We have had word of the pride of Moab, how great it is; how he is lifted up in pride; and his great opinion of himself, and that his heart is lifted up.

³⁰I have knowledge of his wrath, says the Lord, that it is nothing; his high-sounding words have done nothing.

³¹For this cause I will give cries of grief for Moab, crying out for Moab, even for all of it; I will be sorrowing for the men of Kir-heres.

³²My weeping for you, O vine of Sibmah, will be more than the weeping of Jazer: your branches have gone over the sea, stretching even to Jazer: destruction has come down on your summer fruits and your cut grapes.

³³All joy is gone; no longer are they glad for the fertile field and for the land of Moab; I have made the wine come to an end from the crushing vessels: no longer will the grapes be crushed with the sound of glad voices.

³⁴The cry of Heshbon comes even to Elealeh; to Jahaz their voice is sounding; from Zoar even to Horonaim and to Eglath-shelishiyah: for the waters of Nimrim will become dry.

³⁵And I will put an end in Moab, says the Lord, to him who is making offerings in the high place and burning perfumes to his gods.

³⁶So my heart is sounding for Moab like the sound of pipes, and my heart is sounding like pipes for the men of Kir-heres: for the wealth he has got for himself has come to an end.

³⁷For everywhere the hair of the head and the hair of the face is cut off: on every hand there are wounds, and haircloth on every body.

³⁸On all the house-tops of Moab and in its streets there is weeping everywhere; for Moab has been broken like a vessel in which there is no pleasure, says the Lord.

³⁹How is it broken down! how is Moab's back turned in shame! so Moab will be a cause of sport and of fear to everyone round about him.

⁴⁰For the Lord has said, See, he will come like an eagle in flight, stretching out his wings against Moab.

⁴¹Kerioth is taken, and the strong places have been forced, and the hearts of Moab's men of war in that day will be like the heart of a woman in birth-pains.

⁴²And Moab will come to an end as a people, because he has been lifting himself up against the Lord.

⁴³Fear and death and the net have come on you, O people of Moab, says the Lord.

⁴⁴He who goes in flight from the fear will be overtaken by death; and he who gets free from death will be taken in the net: for I will make this come on Moab, even the year of their punishment, says the Lord.

⁴⁵Those who went in flight from the fear are waiting under the shade of Heshbon: for a fire has gone out from Heshbon and a flame from the house of Sihon, burning up the pride of Moab and the crown of the head of the violent ones.

⁴⁶Sorrow is yours, O Moab! the people of Chemosh are overcome: for your sons have been taken away as prisoners, and your daughters made servants.

⁴⁷But still, I will let the fate of Moab be changed in the last days, says the Lord.

Jeremiah 48

¹Of Moab. "Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: 'Woe to Nebo! for it is laid waste; Kiriathaim is disappointed, it is taken; Misgab is put to shame and broken down.

²The praise of Moab is no more; in Heshbon they have devised evil against her: "Come, and let us cut her off from being a nation." You also, Madmen, shall be brought to silence: the sword shall pursue you.

³The sound of a cry from Horonaim, "desolation and great destruction!"

⁴Moab is destroyed; her little ones have caused a cry to be heard.

⁵For by the ascent of Luhith with continual weeping shall they go up; for at the descent of Horonaim they have heard the distress of the cry of destruction.

⁶"Flee, save your lives, and be like the heath in the wilderness."

⁷For, because you have trusted in your works and in your treasures, you also shall be taken: and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity, his priests and his princes together.

⁸The destroyer shall come on every city, and no city shall escape; the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed; as the Lord has spoken.

⁹Give wings to Moab, that she may fly and get her away: and her cities shall become a desolation, without any to dwell therein.'

¹⁰Cursed is he who does the work of the Lord negligently; and cursed is he who keeps back his sword from blood.

¹¹'Moab has been at ease from his youth, and he has settled on his lees, and has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither has he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remains in him, and his scent is not changed.

¹²Therefore behold, the days come,' says the Lord, 'that I will send to him those who pour off, and they shall pour him off; and they shall empty his vessels, and break their bottles in pieces.

¹³Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel their confidence.

¹⁴How can you say, "We are mighty men, and valiant men for the war?"

¹⁵Moab is laid waste, and they are gone up into his cities, and his chosen young men are gone down to the slaughter,' says the King, whose name is the Lord of hosts.

¹⁶The calamity of Moab is near to come, and his affliction hurries fast.

¹⁷All you who are around him, bemoan him, and all you who know his name; say, "How is the strong staff broken, the beautiful rod!"

¹⁸You daughter who dwells in Dibon, come down from your glory, and sit in thirst; for the destroyer of Moab has come up against you, he has destroyed your strongholds.

¹⁹Inhabitant of Aroer, stand by the way, and watch: ask him who flees, and her who escapes; say, "What has been done?"

²⁰"Moab is disappointed; for it is broken down: wail and cry; tell it by the Arnon, that Moab is laid waste."

²¹Judgment has come on the plain country, on Holon, and on Jahzah, and on Mephaath,

²²and on Dibon, and on Nebo, and on Beth Diblathaim,

²³and on Kiriathaim, and on Beth Gamul, and on Beth Meon,

²⁴and on Kerioth, and on Bozrah, and on all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near.

²⁵The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken,' says the Lord.

²⁶'Make him drunken; for he magnified himself against the Lord: and Moab shall wallow in his vomit, and he also shall be in derision.

²⁷For wasn't Israel a derision to you? Was he found among thieves? For as often as you speak of him, you shake your head.

²⁸You inhabitants of Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock; and be like the dove that makes her nest over the mouth of the abyss.

²⁹We have heard of the pride of Moab. He is very proud; his loftiness, and his pride, and his arrogance, and the haughtiness of his heart.

³⁰I know his wrath,' says the Lord, 'that it is nothing; his boastings have worked nothing.

³¹Therefore will I wail for Moab; yes, I will cry out for all Moab: for the men of Kir Heres shall they mourn.

³²With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for you, vine of Sibmah: your branches passed over the sea, they reached even to the sea of Jazer: on your summer fruits and on your vintage the destroyer is fallen.

³³Gladness and joy is taken away from the fruitful field and from the land of Moab; and I have caused wine to cease from the wine presses: none shall tread with shouting; the shouting shall be no shouting.

³⁴From the cry of Heshbon even to Elealeh, even to Jahaz have they uttered their voice, from Zoar even to Horonaim, to Eglath Shelishiyah: for the waters of Nimrim also shall become desolate.

³⁵Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab,' says the Lord, 'him who offers in the high place, and him who burns incense to his gods.

³⁶Therefore my heart sounds for Moab like pipes, and my heart sounds like pipes for the men of Kir Heres: therefore the abundance that he has gotten is perished.

³⁷For every head is bald, and every beard clipped: on all the hands are cuttings, and on the waist sackcloth.

³⁸On all the housetops of Moab and in its streets there is lamentation every where; for I have broken Moab like a vessel in which none delights,' says the Lord.

³⁹How it is broken down! How they wail! How Moab has turned the back with shame! So shall Moab become a derision and a terror to all who are around him.'

⁴⁰For thus says the Lord: 'Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread out his wings against Moab.

⁴¹Kerioth is taken, and the strongholds are seized, and the heart of the mighty men of Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.

⁴²Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he has magnified himself against the Lord.

⁴³Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are on you, inhabitant of Moab, says the Lord.

⁴⁴He who flees from the fear shall fall into the pit; and he who gets up out of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for I will bring on him, even on Moab, the year of their visitation,' says the Lord.

⁴⁵'Those who fled stand without strength under the shadow of Heshbon; for a fire is gone forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and has devoured the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones.

⁴⁶Woe to you, O Moab! The people of Chemosh is undone; for your sons are taken away captive, and your daughters into captivity.

⁴⁷Yet will I bring back the captivity of Moab in the latter days,' says the Lord. Thus far is the judgment of Moab."