"Meanwhile, Babylon's king is standing at the fork of the road, where he can head in either of two directions, and that's where he is practicing divination. Shaking his arrows, he's asking questions of his teraphim while he examines livers.

"Now, Son of Man, demarcate two pathways by which the sword of Babylon's king will arrive in the land. Both pathways will lead from a single land.

I'm going to strengthen the military might of the king of Babylon, put my own sword in his hand, and break Pharaoh's strength. Then Pharaoh will groan like a dying man right in front of the king of Babylon.

"Tell my rebellious house, "Don't you know what these things mean? Look! The king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, captured her king and princes, and took them with him to Babylon.

When I strengthen the military might of Babylon, the military might of Pharaoh will fail, and then they will learn that I am the LORD when I place my own sword in the hand of the king of Babylon. He will attack the land of Egypt.

Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: "I'm going to give the land of Egypt to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. He's going to carry off her wealth, confiscate her war implements, and use it all to pay wages for his army!