1. The word the Lord spoke against Babylon, against the land of the Chaldeans, through Jeremiah the prophet:
2. Proclaim this among the nations, announce it!Announce it, do not hide it, but say:Babylon is captured, Bel put to shame, Marduk terrified;its images are put to shame, its idols shattered.
3. A nation from the north advances against it,making the land desolateSo that no one can live there;human beings and animals have fled.
4. In those days and at that time—oracle of the Lord—Israelite and Judahite shall come together,Weeping as they come, to seek the Lord, their God;
5. They shall ask for Zion,seeking out the way.“Come, let us join ourselves to the Lordin an everlasting covenant, never to be forgotten.”
6. Lost sheep were my people,their shepherds misled them,leading them astray on the mountains;From mountain to hill they wandered,forgetting their fold.
7. Whoever happened upon them devoured them;their enemies said, “We are not guilty,Because they sinned against the Lord,the abode of justice, the hope of their ancestors.”
8. Flee from the midst of Babylon,leave the land of the Chaldeans,be like rams at the head of the flock.
9. See, I am stirring up against Babylona band of great nations from the land of the north;They are arrayed against her,from there she shall be taken.Their arrows are like the arrows of a skilled warriorwho never returns empty-handed.
10. Chaldea shall become plunder;all its plunderers shall be enriched—oracle of the Lord.
11. Yes, rejoice and exult,you that plunder my heritage;Frisk like calves on the grass,neigh like stallions!
12. Your mother will indeed be put to shame,she that bore you shall be abashed;See, the last of the nations,a wilderness, a dry wasteland.