What the Lord Says about Ammon
1 The Lord has this to say about the nation of Ammon:
The people of Israel
have plenty of children
to inherit their lands.
So why have you worshipers
of the god Milcom
taken over towns and land
belonging to the tribe of Gad?
2Someday I will send an army
to attack you in Rabbah,
your capital city.
It will be left in ruins,
and the surrounding villages
will lie in ashes.
You took some of Israel's land,
but on that day
Israel will take yours!
3Cry, people of Heshbon;
your town will become
a pile of rubble.
You will turn here and there,
but your path will be blocked.
Put on sackcloth and mourn,
you citizens of Rabbah,
because the idol you worship
will be taken
to a foreign country,
along with its priests
and temple officials.
4You rebellious Ammonites
trust your wealth and ask,
“Who could attack us?”
But I warn you not to boast
when your strength is fading.
5I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will send neighboring nations
to strike you with terror.
You will be scattered,
with no one to care
for your refugees.
6Yet someday, I will bring
your people back home.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
What the Lord Says about Edom
7 The Lord All-Powerful says about Edom:
Wisdom and common sense
have vanished from Teman.
8I will send disaster to punish
you descendants of Esau,
so anyone from Dedan
had better turn around
and run back home.
9People who harvest grapes
leave some for the poor.
Thieves who break in at night
take only what they want.
10But I will take everything
that belongs to you,
people of Edom,
and I will uncover every place
where you try to hide.
Then you will die,
and so will your children,
relatives, and neighbors.
11But I can be trusted
to care for your orphans
and widows.
12Even those nations that don't deserve to be punished will have to drink from the cup of my anger. So how can you possibly hope to escape? 13I, the Lord, swear in my own name that your city of Bozrah and all your towns will suffer a horrible fate. They will lie in ruins forever, and people will use the name “Bozrah” as a curse word.
14I have sent a messenger
to command the nations
to prepare for war
against you people of Edom.
15Your nation will be small,
yet hated by other nations.
16Pride tricks you into thinking
that other nations
look at you with fear.
You live along the cliffs
and high in the mountains
like the eagles,
but I am the Lord,
and I will bring you down.
17People passing by your country
will be shocked and horrified
to see a disaster
18 as bad as the destruction
of Sodom and Gomorrah
and towns nearby.
The towns of Edom will be empty.
19 I, the Lord, will attack you
like a lion from the forest,
attacking sheep in a meadow
along the Jordan.
In a moment the flock runs,
and the land is empty.
Who will I choose to attack you?
I will do it myself!
No one can force me to fight
or chase me away.
20Listen to my plans for you,
people of Edom.
Your children will be dragged off
and your country destroyed.
21The sounds of your destruction
will reach the Red Sea
and cause the earth to shake.
22An enemy will swoop down
to attack you,
like an eagle spreading its wings
and circling over Bozrah.
Your warriors will be as fearful
as women giving birth.
What the Lord Says about Damascus
23 The Lord says about Damascus:
The towns of Hamath and Arpad
have heard your bad news.
They have lost hope,
and worries roll over them
like ocean waves.
24You people of Damascus
have lost your courage,
and in panic you turn to run,
gripped by fear and pain.
25Once I was pleased
with your famous city.
But now I warn you, “Escape
while you still can!”
26Soon, even your best soldiers
will lie dead in your streets.
I, the Lord All-Powerful,
have spoken.
27I will set fire to your city walls
and burn down the fortresses
King Benhadad built.
Nebuchadnezzar and the People of the Desert
28Here is what the Lord says about the Kedar tribe and the desert villages that were conquered by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia:
Listen, you people of Kedar
and the other tribes
of the eastern desert.
I have told Nebuchadnezzar
to attack and destroy you.
29His fearsome army
will surround you,
taking your tents and possessions,
your sheep and camels.
30Run and hide,
you people of the desert
who live in villages!
Nebuchadnezzar has big plans
for you.
31You have no city walls
and no neighbors to help,
yet you think you're safe—
so I told him to attack.
32Then your camels
and large herds
will be yours no longer.
People of the Arabian Desert,
disaster will strike you
from every side,
and you will be scattered
everywhere on earth.
33Only jackals will live
where your villages once stood.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
What the Lord Says about Elam
34-35Not long after Zedekiah became king of Judah, the Lord told me to say:
People of Elam,
I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will kill the archers
who make your army strong.
36Enemies will attack
from all directions,
and you will be led captive
to every nation on earth.
37Their armies will crush
and kill you,
and you will face the disaster
that my anger brings.
38Your king and his officials
will die, and I will rule
in their place.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
39But I promise that someday
I will bring your people
back to their land.