The Destruction of Edom (Jeremiah 49:7–22)
1 Brenton The vision of Obdias. Thus saith the Lord God to Idumea; I have heard a report from the Lord, and he has sent forth a message to the nations. BSB BSB: This is the vision of Obadiah: This is what the Lord GOD says about Edom—We have heard a message from the LORD; an envoy has been sent among the nations to say, “Rise up, and let us go to battle against her!”—
2 Brenton Arise ye, and let us rise up against her to war. BSB BSB: “Behold, I will make you small among the nations; you will be deeply despised.
3 Brenton Behold, I have made thee small among the Gentiles: thou art greatly dishonoured. The pride of thine heart has elated thee, dwelling as thou dost in the holes of the rocks, as one that exalts his habitation, saying in his heart, Who will bring me down to the ground? BSB BSB: The pride of your heart has deceived you, O dwellers in the clefts of the rocks whose habitation is the heights, who say in your heart, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’
4 Brenton If thou shouldest mount up as the eagle, and if thou shouldest make thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord. BSB BSB: Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I will bring you down,” declares the LORD.
5 Brenton If thieves came in to thee, or robbers by night, where wouldest thou have been cast away? would they not have stolen just enough for themselves? and if grape-gatherers went in to thee, would they not leave a gleaning? BSB BSB: “If thieves came to you, if robbers by night—oh, how you will be ruined—would they not steal only what they wanted? If grape gatherers came to you, would they not leave some gleanings?
6 Brenton How has Esau been searched out, and how have his hidden things been detected? BSB BSB: But how Esau will be pillaged, his hidden treasures sought out!
7 Brenton They sent thee to thy coasts: all the men of thy covenant have withstood thee; thine allies have prevailed against thee, they have set snares under thee: they have no understanding. BSB BSB: All the men allied with you will drive you to the border; the men at peace with you will deceive and overpower you. Those who eat your bread will set a trap for you without your awareness of it.
8 Brenton In that day, saith the Lord, I will destroy the wise men out of Idumea, and understanding out of the mount of Esau. BSB BSB: In that day, declares the LORD, will I not destroy the wise men of Edom and the men of understanding in the mountains of Esau?
9 Brenton And thy warriors from Thæman shall be dismayed, to the end that man may be cut off from the mount of Esau. BSB BSB: Then your mighty men, O Teman, will be terrified, so that everyone in the mountains of Esau will be cut down in the slaughter.
10 Brenton Because of the slaughter and the sin committed against thy brother Jacob, shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever. BSB BSB: Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame and cut off forever.
11 Brenton From the day that thou stoodest in opposition to him , in the days when foreigners were taking captive his forces, and strangers entered into his gates, and cast lots on Jerusalem, thou also wast as one of them. BSB BSB: On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gate and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were just like one of them.
12 Brenton And thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day of strangers; nor shouldest thou have rejoiced against the children of Juda in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have boasted in the day of their affliction. BSB BSB: But you should not gloat in that day, your brother’s day of misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast proudly in the day of their distress.
13 Brenton Neither shouldest thou have gone into the gates of the people in the day of their troubles; nor yet shouldest thou have looked upon their gathering in the day of their destruction, nor shouldest thou have attacked their host in the day of their perishing. BSB BSB: You should not enter the gate of My people in the day of their disaster, nor gloat over their affliction in the day of their disaster, nor loot their wealth in the day of their disaster.
14 Brenton Neither shouldest thou have stood at the opening of their passages, to destroy utterly those of them that were escaping; neither shouldest thou have shut up his fugitives in the day of affliction. BSB BSB: Nor should you stand at the crossroads to cut off their fugitives, nor deliver up their survivors in the day of their distress.
The Deliverance of Israel 15 Brenton For the day of the Lord is near upon all the Gentiles: as thou hast done, so shall it be done to thee: thy recompense shall be returned on thine own head. BSB BSB: For the Day of the LORD is near for all the nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your recompense will return upon your own head.
16 Brenton For as thou hast drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the nations drink wine; they shall drink, and go down, and be as if they were not. BSB BSB: For as you drank on My holy mountain, so all the nations will drink continually. They will drink and gulp it down; they will be as if they had never existed.
17 Brenton But on mount Sion there shall be deliverance, and there shall be a sanctuary; and the house of Jacob shall take for an inheritance those that took them for an inheritance. BSB BSB: But on Mount Zion there will be deliverance, and it will be holy, and the house of Jacob will reclaim their possession.
18 Brenton And the house of Jacob shall be fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau shall be for stubble; and Israel shall flame forth against them, and shall devour them, and there shall not be a corn-field left to the house of Esau; because the Lord has spoken. BSB BSB: Then the house of Jacob will be a blazing fire, and the house of Joseph a burning flame; but the house of Esau will be stubble—Jacob will set it ablaze and consume it. Therefore no survivor will remain from the house of Esau.” For the LORD has spoken.
19 Brenton And they that dwell in the south shall inherit the mount of Esau, and they in the plain the Philistines: and they shall inherit the mount of Ephraim, and the plain of Samaria, and Benjamin, and the land of Galaad. BSB BSB: Those from the Negev will possess the mountains of Esau; those from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines. They will occupy the fields of Ephraim and Samaria, and Benjamin will possess Gilead.
20 Brenton And this shall be the domain of the captivity of the children of Israel, the land of the Chananites as far as Sarepta; and the captives of Jerusalem shall inherit as far as Ephratha; they shall inherit the cities of the south. BSB BSB: And the exiles of this host of the Israelites will possess the land of the Canaanites as far as Zarephath; and the exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the cities of the Negev.
21 Brenton And they that escape shall come up from mount Sion, to take vengeance on the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord's. BSB BSB: The deliverers will ascend Mount Zion to rule over the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will belong to the LORD.