Open English Translation JER Chapter 48

48 Yisrael’s god, Commander-in-chief Yahweh says to Moav:

Nevo won’t end well because it’ll be devastated.

Kiriatayim has been humiliated and captured.

Its fortress has been disgraced and shattered.[ref]

2 No one will praise Moav again.

Their enemies in Heshbon plotted disaster against them, saying,

Let’s go and destroy it as a nation.

Madmen will be silenced after the sword finishes with you.

3 Listen, a cry of distress is coming from Horonayim,

where there’s ruin and terrible destruction.

4 Moav has been destroyed.

Its workers have made their cries heard.

5 They weeps as they climb Luhit hill,

because on the way down to Horonayim,

shouts of distress will heard because of the destruction.

6 Flee, save your lives

so you’ll be like a juniper bush in the wilderness.

7 Because of your trust in your practices and your wealth,

you too will be captured.

Then Kemosh will go away into captivity, along with its priests and leaders.

8 The destroyer will come to every city—no city will escape.

The valley will perish and the plain will be devastated, as Yahweh has said.

9 Give wings to Moav, because it must certainly fly away.

Its cities will become a wasteland without anyone living in them.

10 Anyone who’s slack doing Yahweh’s work should be cursed.

Anyone who’s afraid to use his sword to kill should be cursed.

11 Moav has felt secure since it was young.

Its like its wine that’s never been poured from container to container.

Its never gone into captivity.

so it still tastes as good as ever—

its nice aroma hasn’t unchanged.

12 But Yahweh declares that the time is coming

when I’ll send along those who’ll tip it over

and empty out all its pots and smash its jars.

13 Then Moav will be ashamed of their god Kemosh

just as Yisrael’s people were ashamed of the golden calf that they put their trust in at Beyt-El.

14 How can you Moav soldiers say, ‘We are warriors,

powerful fighting men’?

15 Moav will be devastated and its cities attacked.

Its finest young men have gone down to the place of slaughter.

That is the king’s declaration—his name is Commander-in-chief Yahweh.

16 Moav’s disaster is coming soon.

Calamity is rushing towards it.

17 You surrounding nations, wail,

and all you who know Moav’s fame, shout

‘Oh no, the strong staff, the splendid rod, has been broken.’

18 Come down from your place of honour

and sit on the ground that’s dry and thirsty,

you daughter living in Dibon city,

because the one who’ll destroy Moav will attack you—

the one who’ll destroy your fortications.

19 You people who live in Aroer city,

stand on the road and watch.

Ask the escaping men and women what happened there.

20 Moav has been humiliated because it’s been shattered.

Wail and cry out.

Tell the people at the Arnon river that Moav’s been devastated.

21 Now punishment has come to Moav’s high plateau:

to Holon, Yahtsah, Mefa’at, 22 Divon, Nevo, Beyt-Divlatayim, 23 Kiriatayim, Beyt-Gamul, Beyt-Meon, 24 Keriot, and Botsrah, and all of Moav’s towns, both near and far. 25 Moav’s power will be terminated and its dominance will be broken.

26 Make Moav drunk, because it acted proudly against Yahweh.

Let Moav wallow in its vomit,

and let it be an object of ridicule.

27 Didn’t Moav make Yisrael an object of ridicule?

Weren’t they thought of as thieves,

such that you shook your head when you spoke about them.

28 Abandon the cities and camp on the cliffs, you inhabitants of Moav,

≈ and become like a dove that’s nesting over the mouth of a hole in the rocks.

29 We’ve heard about Moav’s pride,

about its arrogance, haughtiness, pride, boastfulness,

and the conceit in its heart.

30 This is Yahweh’s declaration:

I myself know its arrogance

≈ and their hollow boasting about things they haven’t even done.

31 So I’ll wail for Moav,

≈ and I’ll cry out for all of Moav.

I’ll lament for the people of Kir-Heres.

32 I’ll weep for you more than I did for Yazer, you vine of Sivmah.

Your tendrils passed across the Salt Sea and reached as far as Yazer.

A destroyer has attacked your summer fruit and your grape harvest,

33 so celebration and happiness have been taken away from the fruit trees and from Moav itself.

I’ve put an end to the wine from their wine-pressing pits.

They won’t tread the grapes with happy shouts—

any shouts won’t be shouts of celebration.

34 From the shouts at Heshbon as far as Elealeh, their sound is heard at Yahaz, from Tsoar to Horonayim and Eglat-Shelishiyah, since even the water at Nimrim has dried up. 35 I will put an end to anyone in Moav who makes sacrifices on the hilltop shrines and burns incense to his gods. That is Yahweh’s declaration.

36 Because of all that, I groan inwardly for Moav and Kir-Hareset, like a flute at a funeral, knowing that all the wealth that they acquired will be lost. 37 Yes, every head will be shaved and all their beards will be clipped. They’ll all have cuts on their hands and be wearing sackcloth around their waists. 38 There’s wailing coming from every flat roof and from all the plazas in Moav because I’ve destroyed Moav like pottery that no one wants. That is Yahweh’s declaration. 39 How it’s been shattered. How they keep wailing. Moav turns its back in shame—it will become an object of derision and a terror to all those who are around it 40 because Yahweh says this:

Listen, the enemy will swoop down like an eagle and spread out his wings against Moav.

41 Keriyot has been captured, and its fortresses have been seized,

because on that day, Moav’s soldiers will be apprehensive like women in labour.

42 Then Moav will be destroyed and no longer be a people group,

because they thought they were better than Yahweh.

43 Terror, and pits and traps, are coming to you inhabitants of Moav.

That is Yahweh’s declaration.

44 Anyone who flees because of terror will fall into a pit,

and anyone who climbs out of the pit will be caught in a trap,

because I will bring this on them in the year when I punish them.

That is Yahweh’s declaration. 45 Those who flee will stand in the shadow of Heshbon city without any strength,

because will go out from Heshbon—flame from the middle of Sihon.

It’ll devour Moav’s forehead and the top of the heads of the rebellious people.

46 You won’t end well Moav. You worshippers of Kemosh will be destroyed

because your sons and daughters will be captured and taken away.

47 However, in future years, Moav’s judgement will end and I will restore Moav from captivity.

That is Yahweh’s declaration.