He wears his desire for justice ¹  like body armor, ²  and his desire to deliver is like a helmet on his head. ³  He puts on the garments of vengeance ⁴  and wears zeal like a robe.

He repays them for what they have done, dispensing angry judgment to his adversaries and punishing his enemies. ¹  He repays the coastlands. ² 

For I, the Lord, love justice and hate robbery and sin. I will repay them because of my faithfulness; ¹  I will make a permanent covenant with them.

I looked, but there was no one to help; I was shocked because there was no one offering support. ¹  So my right arm accomplished deliverance; my raging anger drove me on. ² 

“So, once more I will state my case ¹  against you,” says the Lord. “I will also state it against your children and grandchildren. ² 

The prophets prophesy lies. The priests exercise power by their own authority. ¹  And my people love to have it this way. But they will not be able to help you when the time of judgment comes! ² 

The fiery bellows of judgment burn fiercely. But there is too much dross to be removed. ¹  The process of refining them has proved useless. ²  The wicked have not been purged.

Your wise men will be put to shame. They will be dumbfounded and be brought to judgment. ¹  Since they have rejected the word of the Lord, what wisdom do they really have?

So then, listen to what I, the Lord God of Israel who rules over all, ¹  say. ²  ‘I will make these people eat the bitter food of suffering and drink the poison water of judgment. ³ 

A destructive army ¹  will come marching over the hilltops in the desert. For the Lord will use them as his destructive weapon ²  against ³  everyone from one end of the land to the other. No one will be safe. ⁴ 

I will make you serve your enemies ¹  in a land that you know nothing about. For my anger is like a fire that will burn against you.”

The Lord said, ¹  “So I will now let this wicked people know – I will let them know my mighty power in judgment. Then they will know that my name is the Lord.” ² 

I will send men against it to destroy it ¹  with their axes and hatchets. They will hack up its fine cedar panels and columns and throw them into the fire.

My judgment will carry off all your leaders like a storm wind! ¹  Your allies will go into captivity. Then you will certainly ²  be disgraced and put to shame because of all the wickedness you have done.

You may feel as secure as a bird nesting in the cedars of Lebanon. But oh how you ¹  will groan ²  when the pains of judgment come on you. They will be like those of a woman giving birth to a baby. ³ 

From earliest times, the prophets who preceded you and me invariably ¹  prophesied war, disaster, ²  and plagues against many countries and great kingdoms.

A curse on anyone who is lax in doing the Lord’s work! A curse on anyone who keeps from carrying out his destruction! ¹ 

Jeremiah recorded ¹  on one scroll all the judgments ²  that would come upon Babylon – all these prophecies ³  written about Babylon.

Then say, ‘In the same way Babylon will sink and never rise again because of the judgments ¹  I am ready to bring upon her; they will grow faint.’” The prophecies of Jeremiah end here. ² 

What follows is a record of what happened to Jerusalem and Judah because of the Lord’s anger when he drove them out of his sight. ¹  Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.