Jeremiah 48

Chapter context

What is happening in Jeremiah 48?

judgmenttearsnew covenantfalse worship

Jeremiah 48 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as fall of Jerusalem and later appendices. Jeremiah combines fierce warning, autobiographical anguish, symbolic action, the promise of a new covenant, and the trauma of Jerusalem’s fall. Read this chapter with the wider themes of judgment, tears, and new covenant in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.

¹ Against Moab thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Woe unto Nebo! for it is spoiled: Kiriathaim is confounded and taken: Misgab is confounded and dismayed. ² There shall be no more praise of Moab: in Heshbon they have devised evil against it; come, and let us cut it off from being a nation. Also thou shalt be cut down, O Madmen; the sword shall pursue thee. ³ A voice of crying shall be from Horonaim, spoiling and great destruction. ⁴ Moab is destroyed; her little ones have caused a cry to be heard. ⁵ For in the going up of Luhith continual weeping shall go up; for in the going down of Horonaim the enemies have heard a cry of destruction. ⁶ Flee, save your lives, and be like the heath in the wilderness. ⁷ For because thou hast trusted in thy works and in thy treasures, thou shalt also be taken: and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity with his priests and his princes together. ⁸ And the spoiler shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape: the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the LORD hath spoken. ⁹ Give wings unto Moab, that it may flee and get away: for the cities thereof shall be desolate, without any to dwell therein. ¹⁰ Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD deceitfully, and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood. ¹¹ Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent is not changed. ¹² Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will send unto him wanderers, that shall cause him to wander, and shall empty his vessels, and break their bottles. ¹³ And Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel their confidence. ¹⁴ How say ye, We are mighty and strong men for the war? ¹⁵ Moab is spoiled, and gone up out of her cities, and his chosen young men are gone down to the slaughter, saith the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts. ¹⁶ The calamity of Moab is near to come, and his affliction hasteth fast. ¹⁷ All ye that are about him, bemoan him; and all ye that know his name, say, How is the strong staff broken, and the beautiful rod! ¹⁸ Thou daughter that dost inhabit Dibon, come down from thy glory, and sit in thirst; for the spoiler of Moab shall come upon thee, and he shall destroy thy strong holds. ¹⁹ O inhabitant of Aroer, stand by the way, and espy; ask him that fleeth, and her that escapeth, and say, What is done? ²⁰ Moab is confounded; for it is broken down: howl and cry; tell ye it in Arnon, that Moab is spoiled, ²¹ And judgment is come upon the plain country; upon Holon, and upon Jahazah, and upon Mephaath, ²² And upon Dibon, and upon Nebo, and upon Bethdiblathaim, ²³ And upon Kiriathaim, and upon Bethgamul, and upon Bethmeon, ²⁴ And upon Kerioth, and upon Bozrah, and upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near. ²⁵ The horn of Moab is cut off, and his arm is broken, saith the LORD. ²⁶ Make ye him drunken: for he magnified himself against the LORD: Moab also shall wallow in his vomit, and he also shall be in derision. ²⁷ For was not Israel a derision unto thee? was he found among thieves? for since thou spakest of him, thou skippedst for joy. ²⁸ O ye that dwell in Moab, leave the cities, and dwell in the rock, and be like the dove that maketh her nest in the sides of the hole’s mouth. ²⁹ We have heard the pride of Moab, (he is exceeding proud) his loftiness, and his arrogancy, and his pride, and the haughtiness of his heart. ³⁰ I know his wrath, saith the LORD; but it shall not be so; his lies shall not so effect it. ³¹ Therefore will I howl for Moab, and I will cry out for all Moab; mine heart shall mourn for the men of Kirheres. ³² O vine of Sibmah, I will weep for thee with the weeping of Jazer: thy plants are gone over the sea, they reach even to the sea of Jazer: the spoiler is fallen upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage. ³³ And joy and gladness is taken from the plentiful field, and from the land of Moab; and I have caused wine to fail from the winepresses: none shall tread with shouting; their shouting shall be no shouting. ³⁴ From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh, and even unto Jahaz, have they uttered their voice, from Zoar even unto Horonaim, as an heifer of three years old: for the waters also of Nimrim shall be desolate. ³⁵ Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab, saith the LORD, him that offereth in the high places, and him that burneth incense to his gods. ³⁶ Therefore mine heart shall sound for Moab like pipes, and mine heart shall sound like pipes for the men of Kirheres: because the riches that he hath gotten are perished. ³⁷ For every head shall be bald, and every beard clipped: upon all the hands shall be cuttings, and upon the loins sackcloth. ³⁸ There shall be lamentation generally upon all the housetops of Moab, and in the streets thereof: for I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure, saith the LORD. ³⁹ They shall howl, saying, How is it broken down! how hath Moab turned the back with shame! so shall Moab be a derision and a dismaying to all them about him. ⁴⁰ For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab. ⁴¹ Kerioth is taken, and the strong holds are surprised, and the mighty men’s hearts in Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs. ⁴² And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people, because he hath magnified himself against the LORD. ⁴³ Fear, and the pit, and the snare, shall be upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab, saith the LORD. ⁴⁴ He that fleeth from the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that getteth up out of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for I will bring upon it, even upon Moab, the year of their visitation, saith the LORD. ⁴⁵ They that fled stood under the shadow of Heshbon because of the force: but a fire shall come forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and shall devour the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones. ⁴⁶ Woe be unto thee, O Moab! the people of Chemosh perisheth: for thy sons are taken captives, and thy daughters captives. ⁴⁷ Yet will I bring again the captivity of Moab in the latter days, saith the LORD. Thus far is the judgment of Moab.

Study helps

Glossary

Kiriathaim Place v. 1, 23: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Khirbet al Mukhayyat.
Misgab Place v. 1: Height, a town of Moab, or simply, the height=the citadel, some fortress so called; or perhaps a general name for the highlands of Moab, as some think ( Jer. 48:1 ). In Isa. 25:12 , the word is rendered “high fort. ”. Modern identification: Kerak.
Moab Place v. 1-2, 4, 7, 9, 11-20, 24-29, 31, 33, 35-36, 38-47: Biblical region. Modern identification: Kerak.
Nebo Place v. 1, 22: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Khirbet al Mukhayyat.
Heshbon Place v. 2, 34, 45: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Tell Hesban.
Madmen Place v. 2: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Dimnah.
Horonaim Place v. 3, 5, 34: Two caverns, a city of Moab to the south of the Arnon, built, apparently, upon an eminence, and a place of some importance ( Isa. 15:5 ; Jer. 48:3 , 5, 34). Modern identification: El Iraq.
Luhith Place v. 5: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Kathrabba.
City People v. 8: The earliest mention of city-building is that of Enoch, which was built by Cain ( Gen. 4:17 ). After the confusion of tongues, the descendants of Nimrod founded several cities (10:10-12).
Bethel Place v. 13: House of God. (1. ) A place in Central Palestine, about 10 miles north of Jerusalem, at the head of the pass of Michmash and Ai. It was originally the royal Canaanite city of Luz ( Gen. 28:19 ). Modern identification: Beitin.
Dibon Place v. 18, 22: Pining; wasting. (1. ) A city in Moab ( Num. 21:30 ); called also Dibon-gad (33:45), because it was built by Gad and Dimon ( Isa. 15:9 ). Modern identification: Tall Dhiban.
Aroer Place v. 19: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Arair.
Arnon Place v. 20: Biblical river. Modern identification: Wadi Mujib.
Holon Place v. 21: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Kerak.
Jahaz Place v. 21, 34: Trodden down. Modern identification: Khirbet el Medeiyineh.
Mephaath Place v. 21: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Umm ar Rasas.
Beth-diblathaim Place v. 22: House of two cakes of figs, a city of Moab, upon which Jeremiah (48:22) denounced destruction. It is called also Almon-diblathaim ( Num. 33:46 ) and Diblath ( Ezek. 6:14 ). (R. V., “Diblah. ”). Modern identification: Duleilat esh Sharqiyeh.
Beth-gamul Place v. 23: Camel-house, a city in the “plain country” of Moab denounced by the prophet ( Jer. 48:23 ); probably the modern Um-el-Jemal, near Bozrah, one of the deserted cities of the Hauran. Modern identification: Jumaiyil.
Beth-meon Place v. 23: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Ma‘in.
Bozrah Place v. 24: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Umm el Amad.
Kerioth Place v. 24, 41: Cities. (1. ) A town in the south of Judah ( Josh. 15:25 ). Judas the traitor was probably a native of this place, and hence his name Iscariot. Modern identification: Al Qurayyat.
Kir-hareseth Place v. 31, 36: Built fortress, a city and fortress of Moab, the modern Kerak, a small town on the brow of a steep hill about 6 miles from Rabbath-Moab and 10 miles from the Dead Sea.
Jazer Place v. 32: He (God) helps, a city of the Amorites on the east of Jordan, and assigned, with neighbouring places in Gilead, to Gad ( Num. 32:1 , 35; Josh. 13:25 ). It was allotted to the Merarite Levites (21:39). Modern identification: Khirbet Sara.
Salt Sea Place v. 32: (Heb. yam), signifies (1) “the gathering together of the waters,” the ocean ( Gen. 1:10 ); (2) a river, as the Nile ( Isa. 19:5 ), the Euphrates ( Isa. 21:1 ; Jer. 51:36 ); (3) the Red Sea. Modern identification: Dead Sea.
Sea of Jazer Place v. 32: ( Jer. 48:32 ), a lake, now represented by some ponds in the high valley in which the Ammonite city of Jazer lies, the ruins of which are called Sar. Modern identification: Khirbet Jazzir.
Sibmah Place v. 32: Coolness; fragrance, a town in Reuben, in the territory of Moab, on the east of Jordan ( Josh. 13:19 ); called also Shebam and Shibmah ( Num. 32:3 , 38). It was famous for its vines ( Isa. 16:9 ; Jer. 48:32 ). Modern identification: Qarn al Qubish.
Eglath-shelishiyah Place v. 34: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Al Safi.
Elealeh Place v. 34: Biblical settlement. Modern identification: Al ‘Al.
Nimrim Place v. 34: The stream of the leopards, a stream in Moab ( Isa. 15:6 ; Jer. 48:34 ); probably the modern Wady en-Nemeirah, a rich, verdant spot at the south-eastern end of the Dead Sea. Modern identification: Wadi en Numeirah.
Zoar Place v. 34: Small, a town on the east or south-east of the Dead Sea, to which Lot and his daughters fled from Sodom ( Gen. 19:22 , 23). It was originally called Bela (14:2, 8). Modern identification: Al Safi.
Sackcloth People v. 37: Cloth made of black goats’ hair, coarse, rough, and thick, used for sacks, and also worn by mourners ( Gen. 37:34 ; 42:25 ; 2 Sam. 3:31 ; Esther 4:1 , 2; Ps. 30:11 , etc. ), and as a sign of repentance ( Matt. 11:21 ).