Seventy Years of Captivity

1The word that came to Ieremiah, concerning all the people of Iudah in the fourth yeere of Iehoiakim the sonne of Iosiah King of Iudah that was in the first yeere of Nebuchad-nezzar King of Babel: 2The which Ieremiah the Prophet spake vnto all the people of Iudah, and to all the inhabitants of Ierusalem, saying, 3From the thirteenth yeere of Iosiah the sonne of Amon King of Iudah, euen vnto this day (that is the three and twentieth yeere) the word of the Lorde hath come vnto mee, and I haue spoken vnto you rising earely & speaking, but ye woulde not heare. 4And the Lord hath sent vnto you all his seruantes the Prophets, rising early & sending them, but yee would not heare, nor encline your eares to obey. 5They sayde, Turne againe now euery one from his euill way, and from the wickednes of your inuentions, and ye shall dwell in the lande that the Lord hath giuen vnto you, and to your fathers for euer and euer. 6And go not after other gods to serue them and to worshippe them, and prouoke me not to anger with the workes of your hands, and I will not punish you. 7Neuerthelesse ye would not heare me, saith the Lord, but haue prouoked mee to anger with the workes of your hands to your owne hurt.

8Therefore thus saith the Lord of hostes, Because ye haue not heard my wordes, 9Beholde, I will send and take to mee all the families of the North, saith the Lorde, and Nebuchad-nezzar the King of Babel my seruant, & will bring them against this lande, and against the inhabitantes thereof, and against all these nations rounde about, and will destroy them, and make them an astonishment and an hissing, and a continuall desolation. 10Moreouer I will take from them the voyce of mirth and the voyce of gladnesse, the voyce of the bridegrome and the voyce of the bride, the noise of the milstones, and the light of the candle. 11And this whole land shalbe desolate, and an astonishment, and these nations shall serue the King of Babel seuentie yeeres.

12And when the seuentie yeres are accomplished, I will visite the King of Babel and that nation, saith the Lorde, for their iniquities, euen the land of the Caldeans, and will make it a perpetuall desolation, 13And I will bring vpon that lande all my wordes which I haue pronounced against it, euen all that is written in this booke, which Ieremiah hath prophecied against all nations. 14For many nations, and great Kings shall euen serue themselues of them: thus will I recopense them according to their deedes, and according to the workes of their owne handes.

The Cup of God’s Wrath

15For thus hath the Lorde God of Israel spoken vnto me, Take the cuppe of wine of this mine indignation at mine hand, and cause all the nations, to whome I sende thee, to drinke it. 16And they shall drinke, and be moued and be mad, because of the sworde that I will sende among them.

17Then tooke I the cup at the Lordes hand, and made all people to drinke, vnto whome the Lorde had sent me: 18Euen Ierusalem, and the cities of Iudah, and the Kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them desolate, an astonishment, an hissing, and a curse, as appeareth this day: 19Pharaoh also, King of Egypt, and his seruants, and his princes, and all his people: 20And all sortes of people, and all the Kings of the lande of Vz: and all the Kings of the lande of the Philistims, and Ashkelon, and Azzah, and Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod: 21Edom, and Moab, and the Ammonites, 22And all the Kings of Tyrus, & all the kings of Zidon, and the Kings of the Yles, that are beyonde the Sea, 23And Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all that dwell in the vttermost corners, 24And all the Kings of Arabia, and all the Kings of Arabia, that dwell in the desert, 25And all the Kings of Zimri, and all the Kings of Elam, and all the Kings of the Medes, 26And all the Kings of the North, farre and neere one to another, and all the kingdomes of the worlde, which are vpon the earth, & the king of Sheshach shall drinke after them.

27Therefore say thou vnto them, Thus saith the Lord of hostes, the God of Israel, Drinke and bee drunken, and spewe and fall, and rise no more, because of the sworde, which I will sende among you. 28But if they refuse to take the cuppe at thine hande to drinke, then tell them, Thus saith the Lorde of hostes, Ye shall certainely drinke. 29For loe, I beginne to plague the citie, where my Name is called vpon, and shoulde you goe free? Ye shall not goe quite: for I will call for a sword vpon al the inhabitants of the earth, saith the Lorde of hostes.

30Therefore prophecie thou against them al these words, and say vnto them, The Lord shall roare from aboue, and thrust out his voyce from his holy habitation: he shall roare vpon his habitation, and crie aloude, as they that presse the grapes, against all the inhabitants of the earth.

31The sounde shall come to the endes of the earth: for the Lord hath a controuersie with the nations, and will enter into iudgement with all flesh, and he will giue them that are wicked, to the sworde, saith the Lord.

32Thus saith the Lorde of hostes, Behold, a plague shall goe foorth from nation to nation, and a great whirlewinde shalbe raised vp from the coastes of the earth,

33And the slaine of the Lorde shall be at that day, from one ende of the earth, euen vnto the other ende of the earth: they shall not bee mourned, neither gathered nor buried, but shalbe as the dongue vpon the grounde.

The Cry of the Shepherds

34Howle, ye shepherdes, and crie, and wallowe your selues in the ashes, ye principall of the flocke: for your dayes of slaughter are accomplished, and of your dispersion, and ye shall fall like precious vessels.

35And the flight shall faile from the shepherdes, and the escaping from the principall of the flocke.

36A voyce of the crye of the shepherdes, and an howling of the principall of the flocke shalbe heard: for the Lord hath destroyed their pasture.

37And the best pastures are destroyed because of the wrath and indignation of the Lorde.

38He hath forsaken his couert, as the lyon: for their land is waste, because of the wrath of the oppressor, & because of ye wrath of his indignatio.