Jeremiah 49:7-22
Prophecy against Edom
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“If grape gatherers came to you,
Would they not leave some ungleaned grapes [on the vines]?
If thieves came by night,
Would they not destroy [only] what is enough [for them]?
10
“But I have stripped Esau (Edom) bare;
I have uncovered his hiding places
And he cannot hide himself.
His descendants have been destroyed along with his brothers (relatives) and his neighbors;
And he is no more.
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“Leave your orphans behind; I will [do what is needed to] keep them alive.
And let [those who are] your widows trust and confide in Me.”
“If grape gatherers came to you,
Would they not leave some ungleaned grapes [on the vines]?
If thieves came by night,
Would they not destroy [only] what is enough [for them]?
“But I have stripped Esau (Edom) bare;
I have uncovered his hiding places
And he cannot hide himself.
His descendants have been destroyed along with his brothers (relatives) and his neighbors;
And he is no more.
“Leave your orphans behind; I will [do what is needed to] keep them alive.
And let [those who are] your widows trust and confide in Me.”
12 For thus says the Lord, “Behold, those (Israel) who were not sentenced to drink the cup [of wrath] shall certainly drink it, and are you to remain unpunished? You will not be acquitted and go unpunished, but you will certainly drink [from the cup of wrath and judgment].(B)
13 For I have sworn [an oath] by Myself,” says the Lord, “that (d)Bozrah will become an object of horror, a reproach, a ruin, and a curse; and all its cities will become (e)perpetual ruins.”
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I have heard a report from the Lord,
And a messenger has been sent to the nations, saying,
“Gather together and come against her,
And rise up for the battle.”
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“As for Your terror,
The pride and arrogance of your heart have deceived you,
O you who live in the clefts of the rock (Sela also called (f)Petra),
Who hold and occupy the height of the hill.
Though you make your nest as high as the eagle’s,
I will bring you down from there,” says the Lord.
I have heard a report from the Lord,
And a messenger has been sent to the nations, saying,
“Gather together and come against her,
And rise up for the battle.”
“As for Your terror,
The pride and arrogance of your heart have deceived you,
O you who live in the clefts of the rock (Sela also called (f)Petra),
Who hold and occupy the height of the hill.
Though you make your nest as high as the eagle’s,
I will bring you down from there,” says the Lord.
17 “Edom will become an object of horror; everyone who goes by it will be astonished and shall hiss [scornfully] at all its plagues and disasters.
18 As [it was] in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah with their neighboring cities,” says the Lord, “no man will live there, nor will a son of man dwell in it.
19 See, one will come like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan against the enduring habitation [of Edom] and its watered pastures; for in an instant I will make (g)him (Edom) run from his land. I will appoint over him the one whom I choose. For who is like Me, and who will summon Me [into court] and prosecute Me [for this]? Who is the [earthly] shepherd who can stand [defiantly] before Me?”
20 Therefore hear the plan of the Lord which He has devised against Edom, and [hear] what He has purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: surely they will be dragged away, even the little ones of the flock; surely He will make their dwelling place desolate because of them.
21 The earth has quaked at the noise of their downfall. There is an outcry! The sound of its noise has been heard at the Red Sea.
22 Behold, He will mount up and fly swiftly like an eagle and spread His wings against [the city of] Bozrah; and in that day the heart of the mighty warriors of Edom will be like the heart of a woman in childbirth.(D)
Footnotes:
a.
Jeremiah 49:7: Teman was an important stronghold located in central Edom. It was about three miles from Sela (Petra). Teman was also used as a generic name to represent all of Edom.
b.
Jeremiah 49:8: A tribal settlement and trading center on Edom’s southeastern border.
c.
Jeremiah 49:8: The Edomites were the descendants of Esau, Jacob’s elder twin brother. Because of his godlessness he and his descendants were cursed.
d.
Jeremiah 49:13: Located in northern Edom, between Petra and the Dead Sea, the area was famous for its dyed garments.
e.
Jeremiah 49:13: How except by divine inspiration could the prophets have foretold that Edom’s desolation would be perpetual? After 2,500 years the statement is so literally true that in the land of Edom, where millions once lived, there are only a few people barely existing, and the land is in ruins. For there was no prophecy that Edom would recover “in the latter days” (48:47), as was predicted for Moab and Ammon, but Edom’s desolation was to be lasting. The short book of Obadiah presents an interesting further clarification of God’s reason for this exceptional treatment of Edom. It was the outcome of a deception and a family quarrel between two brothers, Jacob and Esau, which erupted into acts of violence and which continued from Genesis to the Gospels (see Gen 27).
f.
Jeremiah 49:16: Petra, once an important Roman province in Edom, was lost for many centuries but rediscovered in 1812. On the height above its ruins is the great high place. Other evidence of idolatry has been found on neighboring heights.
g.
Jeremiah 49:19: In about 550 b.c. the Nabataeans completely overthrew the Edomites and drove them from their land. They took control of the great Middle Eastern trade routes and made Petra (Sela) their capital city.