51 Yahweh says this:

Listen, I’m about to stir up a destructive wind against Babylon

and against the Babylonian people.

2 ≈ I’ll send foreigners into Babylon, and they’ll shake it down and devastate its land,

because they’ll come against it from all sides on that disastrous day.

3 Don’t let the archers shoot their arrows

≈ Don’t let their soldiers put on their armour.

Don’t spare their young men—

≈ Destroy their army completely.

4 Their wounded will fall in the land of the Chaldeans.

≈ Those who’re stabbed will fall in its streets,

5 because Yisrael and Yehudah haven’t been abandoned by their god, Commander-in-chief Yahweh,

even though their[fn] own land is filled with offenses committed against Yisrael’s holy one.

6 Escape quickly from out of Babylon—each person must save themself.

Don’t die there because of their wickedness

because now is the time of Yahweh’s vengeance.

He’ll repay Babylon for everything they’ve done.

7 Babylon was like a golden cup in Yahweh’s hand that made all the world drunk—

nations drank its wine and went mad.[ref]

8 Suddenly Babylon will fall and be destroyed.

Wail for it—give it medicine for its pain—perhaps it can be healed?

9 We tried to heal Babylon, but it never recovered,

so leave it and let everyone go back to their own region,

because its guilt has reached up to the heavens—

it’s piled up to the clouds.[ref]

10 Yahweh has now decided that we’ve served our time.

Let’s go and tell everyone in Tsiyyon (Zion) what our god Yahweh has done.

11 Sharpen your arrows and strap on your shields.

Yahweh is stirring up the spirit of the kings of the Medes in his plan to destroy Babylon

because of Yahweh’s vengeance—revenge for their destruction of his temple.

12 Lift up your banner over Babylon’s walls.

Reinforce the guards. Assign watchmen.

Prepare your ambushes because Yahweh will do what he has said concerning Babylon’s inhabitants.

13 You people who live by many water supplies and who are rich with treasures, your end has come.

The thread of your life is now cut short.[ref] 14 Commander-in-chief Yahweh has made an oath by his own life:

‘I’ll fill you with men, like a swarm of locusts,

and they’ll shout out against you.’