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For it is a land of graven images,

And they are mad upon things of horror.

³⁹Therefore the wild-cats with the jackals shall dwell there,

And the ostriches shall dwell therein; and it shall be no more inhabited for ever,

Neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.

⁴⁰As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah

And the neighbour cities thereof, saith the Lord;

So shall no man abide there,

Neither shall any son of man dwell therein.

 

⁴¹Behold, a people cometh from the north,

And a great nation, and many kings

Shall be roused from the uttermost parts of the earth.

⁴²They lay hold on bow and spear,

They are cruel, and have no compassion;

Their voice is like the roaring sea,

And they ride upon horses;

Set in array, as a man for war,

Against thee, O daughter of Babylon.

⁴³The king of Babylon hath heard the fame of them,

And his hands wax feeble;

Anguish hath taken hold of him,

And pain, as of a woman in travail.

⁴⁴Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan

Against the strong habitation;

For I will suddenly make them run away from it,

And whoso is chosen, him will I appoint over it;

For who is like Me? and who will appoint Me a time?

And who is that shepherd that will stand before Me?

⁴⁵Therefore hear ye the counsel of the Lord,

That He hath taken against Babylon,

And His purposes, that He hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans:

Surely the least of the flock shall drag them away,

Surely their habitation shall be appalled at them.

⁴⁶At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth quaketh,

And the cry is heard among the nations.

51Thus saith the Lord:

Behold, I will raise up against Babylon,

And against them that dwell in ^[1]Lebkamai, a destroying wind.

²And I will send unto Babylon strangers, that shall fan her,

And they shall empty her land;

For in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about.

³Let the archer bend his bow against her,

And let him lift himself up against her in his coat of mail;

And spare ye not her young men,

Destroy ye utterly all her host.

⁴And they shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans,

And thrust through in her streets.

⁵For Israel is not widowed, nor Judah,

Of his God, of the Lord of hosts;

For their land is full of guilt

Against the Holy One of Israel.

⁶Flee out of the midst of Babylon,

And save every man his life,

Be not cut off in her iniquity;

For it is the time of the Lord's vengeance;

He will render unto her a recompense.

1. That is, The heart of them that rises up against Me. According to ancient tradition, a cipher for Casdim, that is Chaldea.

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