Jeremiah 46

1 This is the word [message from God, divine utterance] of the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] about [concerning, against] the nations [Gentiles, non-Hebrew peoples]—the word [declaration, prophetic message] that came [was given, existed] to Jeremiah [whom Jehovah has appointed] the prophet [one who speaks for God] word study 2 concerning Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa] and the army [Helech, strength or power] of Pharaoh Neco [Pharaoh-necho, an Egyptian king] king of Egypt [a land and its people], which was defeated [to be smitten, struck down] at Carchemish [a major city in Syria] on the Euphrates River [a flood] by Nebuchadnezzar [a powerful king of Babylon] king of Babylon [Babel, a city and empire of confusion] in the fourth year of Jehoiakim [Jehovah raises up, a king of Judah] the son of Josiah [whom Jehovah heals, a king of Judah] king of Judah [a tribe and region of Israel]: word study 3 “Deploy [prepare, set in order] your shields [buckler, protective device], small [like a breastplate] and large [for full coverage]; advance [draw near, approach] for battle [war, conflict, fight]! word study 4 Harness [prepare, bind] the horses [swallow, chariot horses]; mount [get up, ascend] the steeds [horses]; take your positions [stand, place yourselves] with helmets [head-dresses, protective head coverings] on! Polish [sharpen, furbish] your spears [lances, javelins]; put on [clothe yourselves with] armor [coats of mail, protective covering]! word study 5 Why [for what reason, on account of what] am I seeing [perceiving, beholding] this? They [the warriors, the mighty ones] are terrified [dismayed, shattered], they [the soldiers, the brave] are retreating [turning back, fleeing]; their warriors [mighty men, champions] are defeated [crushed, beaten down], they flee [run away, escape] in haste [quickly, swiftly] without looking [turning, facing] back; terror [fear, dread] is on every side [all around, surrounding them]!” declares [says, utters] the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God]. word study 6 “The swift [fastest, quickest] cannot flee [escape, run away], and the warrior [mighty man, strong one] cannot escape [be delivered, slip away]! In the north [toward the north, northern direction] by the River Euphrates [Euphrates River, a major waterway] they stumble [trip, lose balance] and fall [collapse, be defeated]. word study 7 Who [the one coming into view] is this, rising [as a flood, coming up] like the Nile, like rivers [streams, watercourses] whose waters [liquid, source of refreshment] churn [shake violently, are agitated, toss themselves]? word study 8 Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa] rises like the Nile [a life-giving river], and its waters churn [or toss themselves] like rivers [a flood], boasting [or proudly declaring], ‘I will rise [or ascend] and cover [or overwhelm] the earth [the land or world]; I will destroy [or bring to ruin] the cities [or towns] and their people [or inhabitants].’ word study 9 Advance [go up, ascend], O horses [swallow, chariot horses]! Race furiously [rage, drive like crazy], O chariots [vehicles, teams of horses]! Let the warriors [mighty men, strong men] come forth— Cush [Ethiopia, the region south of Egypt] and Put [Libya, descendants of Ham] carrying their shields [protection, defense], men of Lydia [Lydians, descendants of Lud] drawing the bow [a weapon]. word study 10 For that day [belonging to the Lord, a day of reckoning] belongs to the Lord [Adonay, the sovereign God] GOD [Yehovah] of Hosts [armies, heavenly forces], a day [period of time, season] of vengeance [punishment, retribution] against His foes [enemies, adversaries]. The sword [cutting instrument] will devour [eat, consume] until it is satisfied [filled, content], until it is quenched [satisfied, filled to the full] with their blood [life force]. For the Lord [Adonay, the sovereign God] GOD [Yehovah] of Hosts [armies, heavenly forces] will hold [conduct, carry out] a sacrifice [offering, act of worship] in the land [earth, territory] of the north [Zaphon, a direction] by the River [stream, current] Euphrates [Perath, a major river]. word study 11 Go up [ascend to a higher place] to Gilead [a mountainous region, rocky region] for balm [fragrant resin, medicine], O Virgin [chaste, untouched] Daughter of Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa]! In vain [to no purpose, without result] you try [use, attempt] many remedies [medicines, treatments], but for you there is no [absence of, none] healing [restoration to health, wholeness]. word study 12 The nations [Gentile, non-Hebrew peoples] have heard of your shame [dishonor, humiliation], and your outcry [cry of anguish, shout of distress] fills the earth [land, world], because warrior [mighty man, strong fighter] stumbles over warrior [mighty man, champion] and both of them have fallen [come down, been defeated] together [unitedly, as one].” word study 13 This is the word [a message or declaration] that the LORD [Yehovah, the self-existent God] spoke [to communicate or declare] to Jeremiah [whom Jehovah has appointed] the prophet [a spokesperson for God] about the coming [approach or arrival] of Nebuchadnezzar [a powerful king] king of Babylon [a city and empire of confusion] to strike [to smite or hit] the land [a country or territory] of Egypt [a nation in northeastern Africa]: word study 14 “Announce [declare openly, proclaim] it in Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa], and proclaim [publish, make known] it in Migdol [a fortified city, a tower]; proclaim [publish, sound] it in Memphis [Noph, the capital city] and Tahpanhes [a city filled with pity]: ‘Take [stand, place] your positions [yourselves, get into line] and prepare [establish, set up] yourself, for the sword [a cutting instrument] devours [eats, consumes] those around [surrounding, encompassing] you [your surroundings, your neighborhood].’ word study 15 Why [for what reason] have your [mighty, strong] warriors [valiant men] been laid low [swept away]? They cannot stand [remain upright], for [because] the LORD [Yehovah] has thrust [pushed down] them down [away, out]. word study 16 They continue to stumble [trip and fall]; indeed, they have fallen [been defeated, failed] over one another [neighbour, friend]. They say, ‘Get up [rise, stand]! Let us return [turn back, go again] to our people [nation, family] and to the land [earth, territory] of our birth [native country, relatives], away from the sword [cutting instrument, oppression] of the oppressor [one who treats violently, wrongs].’ word study 17 There [in that place, at that time] they will cry out: ‘Pharaoh [the king of Egypt, a powerful ruler] king of Egypt was all [nothing but] noise [a loud, empty sound, a tumult]; he has let [passed by, failed to seize] the appointed time [a designated meeting, a sacred season] pass him by [go by unused, unseized].’ word study 18 As surely as I live, declares the King [the sovereign Ruler], whose name [identity, character] is the LORD [Yehovah] of Hosts [armies, heavenly forces], there will come one who is like Tabor [a mountain] among the mountains [elevated places] and like Carmel [a fruitful hill] by the sea [a large body of water, the Mediterranean]. word study 19 Pack your bags [furnish yourself, make ready the vessels of a prisoner] for exile, O daughter [female child, woman] dwelling [to sit, to remain] in Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa]! For Memphis [Noph, the capital city of Egypt] will be laid waste [become a desolation], destroyed [burned up] and uninhabited [without an inhabitant, left desolate]. word study 20 Egypt [a very fair and beautiful heifer, like a young cow] is a beautiful heifer [a young female calf, nearly grown], but a gadfly [stinging fly, destruction] from the north [Zaphon, a direction or location] is coming [to go or come, approaching] against her [to attack, like a horsefly bites a cow]. word study 21 Even the mercenaries [hired soldiers, fighters for payment] among her are like fattened calves [fat oxen, calves of the stall]. They too will turn back [retreat, flee]; together [unitedly, in unity] they will flee [run away, escape], they will not stand their ground [refuse to stand, unable to stand], for the day [time, period] of calamity [disaster, oppression] is coming upon them— the time [season, occasion] of their punishment [visitation, reckoning]. word study 22 Egypt will hiss [like a fleeing snake, retreating swiftly] like a fleeing serpent [a snake], for the enemy [a powerful and hostile force] will advance in force [with strength and might]; with axes [tools for chopping, as hewers of wood] they will come against her like woodsmen [skilled tree cutters] cutting down trees [strong and firm objects, like a tree or a wooden plank]. word study 23 They will chop down her forest [like a thick forest, a dense thicket], declares the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God], dense though it may be [though it cannot be searched], for they are more numerous [innumerable, multiplied] than locusts [grasshoppers, a swarm of locusts]; they cannot be counted [are without number, have no numbering]. word study 24 The Daughter [female child] of Egypt [a country in northeastern Africa, or its people] will be put to shame [ashamed, confounded, or disappointed]; she will be delivered [given, or handed over] into the hands [power, or control] of the people [a nation, or a group of individuals] of the north [a direction, or a location, Zaphon].” word study 25 The LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] of Hosts [a large group of people or things, often referring to an army], the God [Elohim, the one supreme God] of Israel [the symbolic name of Jacob, also referring to his descendants], says: “Behold [look, see], I am about to punish [visit, oversee] Amon [the Egyptian deity, originally the local God of Thebes] god of Thebes [No, the ancient capital of Upper Egypt], along with Pharaoh [the king of Egypt, a powerful leader], Egypt [the land and its people] with her gods [the Egyptian pantheon] and kings [royal persons], and those who trust [have confidence, faith] in Pharaoh [the ruler of Egypt]. word study 26 I will deliver them into the hands of those who seek their lives—of Nebuchadnezzar [a powerful ruler] king of Babylon and his officers [servants, attendants]. But after this [later, in the future], Egypt will be inhabited [dwelling, living] as in days of old [former times, past ages], declares the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God]. word study 27 But you, O Jacob [my faithful servant, descendant of the patriarch] My servant, do not be afraid [fearful or terrified], and do not be dismayed [completely broken or shattered], O Israel [God’s chosen people]. For I will surely save [rescue, deliver] you out of a distant [far-off, remote] place, your descendants [seed, offspring] from the land [earth, territory] of their captivity [exile, bondage]! Jacob [the nation of Israel, named after the patriarch] will return [come back, turn back] to quiet [peace, stillness] and ease [rest, prosperity], with no one to make him afraid [tremble with fear, be terrified]. word study 28 And you [My chosen servant], My servant Jacob [Israel, the one who wrestles with God], do not be afraid [do not fear or dread], declares the LORD [Yehovah, the self-existent God], for I am with you [present and accompanying you]. Though I will completely destroy [bring to an end, annihilate] all the nations [Gentile nations, non-Hebrew peoples] to which I have banished [driven or scattered] you, I will not completely destroy [utterly consume or annihilate] you. Yet I will discipline [correct or chasten] you justly [in righteousness, with fairness], and will by no means leave you unpunished [without correction, unscathed].” word study