Jeremiah 50:2 kjv
Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Merodach is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces.
Jeremiah 50:2 nkjv
"Declare among the nations, Proclaim, and set up a standard; Proclaim?do not conceal it? Say, 'Babylon is taken, Bel is shamed. Merodach is broken in pieces; Her idols are humiliated, Her images are broken in pieces.'
Jeremiah 50:2 niv
"Announce and proclaim among the nations, lift up a banner and proclaim it; keep nothing back, but say, 'Babylon will be captured; Bel will be put to shame, Marduk filled with terror. Her images will be put to shame and her idols filled with terror.'
Jeremiah 50:2 esv
"Declare among the nations and proclaim, set up a banner and proclaim, conceal it not, and say: 'Babylon is taken, Bel is put to shame, Merodach is dismayed. Her images are put to shame, her idols are dismayed.'
Jeremiah 50:2 nlt
This is what the LORD says: "Tell the whole world,
and keep nothing back.
Raise a signal flag
to tell everyone that Babylon will fall!
Her images and idols will be shattered.
Her gods Bel and Marduk will be utterly disgraced.
Jeremiah 50 2 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jeremiah 50:2 | "Declare among the nations and proclaim, and lift up a signal; proclaim it, and conceal it not; say, ‘Babylon is taken; Bel is put to shame; the images of Marduk are broken; her high places are put to shame; her idols are broken.’" | Clear prophetic announcement of judgment against Babylon. |
| Isaiah 13:1 | "The oracle concerning Babylon that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw." | Isaiah also prophesied Babylon's destruction. |
| Isaiah 21:9 | "For thus says the LORD to me: ‘Go, set a watchman. Let him announce what he sees.’" | Echoes the call to announce divine pronouncements. |
| Jeremiah 51:44 | "And I will punish Bel in Babylon, and I will make him vomit what he has swallowed..." | Further detail on God's judgment against Babylonian idols. |
| Jeremiah 51:47 | "Therefore, behold, the days are coming when I will put my judgment on the gods of Babylon..." | Reinforces the divine judgment on Babylonian idolatry. |
| Daniel 5:1-30 | The fall of Babylon during Belshazzar's feast. | Historical fulfillment of Babylon's downfall. |
| Revelation 18:2 | "He cried out with a mighty voice, ‘Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!’" | New Testament reference to Babylon's fall, often symbolic. |
| Revelation 14:8 | "Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her passionate fornication." | Similar prophetic declaration of Babylon's collapse. |
| Psalm 96:5 | "For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the LORD made the heavens." | Contrast between the Lord and pagan deities. |
| Psalm 115:2 | "Why should the nations say, ‘Where is their God?’" | Questions about the efficacy of idols. |
| Jeremiah 10:11 | "Thus shall you say to them: ‘The gods who have not made the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.’" | Directly condemns non-deity idols. |
| 1 Corinthians 10:20 | "No, I sacrifice it to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to be sharers with demons." | Connects idolatry with demonic activity. |
| Romans 1:22-23 | "Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things." | Describes the folly of idolatry. |
| Isaiah 46:1 | "Bel bows down; Nebo stoops; their idols are on beasts and livestock..." | Describes the shame of Babylonian idols carried in procession. |
| Jeremiah 43:12 | "and I will kindle a fire in the temples of the gods of Egypt, and he shall burn them and carry them captive." | God's judgment against idols of other nations too. |
| Ezekiel 26:7-14 | Prophecy against Tyre, another powerful city with gods. | Pattern of judgment against powerful, idolatrous cities. |
| Nahum 3:4-7 | Prophecy against Nineveh, showing shame upon its gods. | Similar judgment and humiliation of idols. |
| Zephaniah 2:15 | "This is the exultant city that lived carelessly, that said in its heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else.’ How it has become a desolation, a place for beasts to lie down!" | Describes a city's pride leading to devastation, like Babylon. |
| Acts 17:29 | "Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, or like something artfully formed by human craft and thought." | Exalts God above created images. |
| 2 Kings 17:16 | "and they cast away all the commandments of the LORD their God and made for themselves cast metal images, two calves..." | Example of Israelite idolatry and its consequences. |
Jeremiah 50 verses
Jeremiah 50 2 Meaning
The verse declares the proclamation of a great announcement concerning Babylon, stating it will be captured and utterly destroyed, causing great shame and dismay among its idols. This signifies the divine judgment against a nation characterized by false worship and oppressive power.
Jeremiah 50 2 Context
Jeremiah 50 is part of a larger prophetic oracle against Babylon, commencing in chapter 50. This chapter is one of the final oracles in Jeremiah’s book and addresses the future judgment and ultimate restoration related to Babylon. The historical backdrop is Jeremiah prophesying during the Babylonian exile of Judah. Babylon was the superpower that conquered Jerusalem and exiled its people. Therefore, this oracle speaks directly to the hopes of the exiles who longed for the downfall of their oppressors. The "nations" addressed would include Israel (Judah) and other surrounding peoples affected by Babylon's might. The announcement is meant to be public, not secret, signifying that God's judgment will be undeniable.
Jeremiah 50 2 Word analysis
- "Declare" (Hebrew: qara’) - To call out, proclaim, announce. Implies a public, authoritative declaration.
- "among the nations" (Hebrew: bagoyim) - Among the peoples, Gentiles. Refers to the surrounding ethnic groups.
- "proclaim" (Hebrew: ‘iqre’u) - To cry aloud, summon. A strong emphasis on calling attention to the message.
- "lift up a signal" (Hebrew: nasu ma’ar) - To raise a banner, a standard. A visual signal for people to gather and listen, often used in warfare or for significant pronouncements.
- "proclaim it" (Hebrew: qir’u) - Imperative form of qara’, repeating the call for proclamation.
- "conceal it not" (Hebrew: al-tachtephukh) - Do not hide it, do not hold it back. An emphatic command against withholding this important message.
- "say" (Hebrew: lemor) - Literally "to say," introducing direct speech.
- "Babylon is taken" (Hebrew: babhel nilkah) - Babylon has been captured. A simple, declarative statement of her doom.
- "Bel is put to shame" (Hebrew: bel bahol) - Bel (a chief Babylonian deity, often identified with Marduk) is confounded or disgraced.
- "the images of Marduk are broken" (Hebrew: ’emulney marduk) - The idols or sculptures of Marduk (the principal god of Babylon) are shattered.
- "her high places are put to shame" (Hebrew: galeyhah bahul) - Her places of worship, particularly prominent ones, are disgraced.
- "her idols are broken" (Hebrew: ta‘boteyhah nehrezu) - Her disgusting images, abominations, are smashed. This emphasizes the ultimate powerlessness of Babylon's gods.
Jeremiah 50 2 Bonus section
The prophecies concerning Babylon in Jeremiah 50 and 51 are some of the most extensive and detailed in the Old Testament, painting a picture of utter destruction. The enemies who will be used to bring about Babylon's downfall are described later in chapter 50, implying a coalition of nations. The mention of "Bel" and "Marduk" is significant because Marduk was the patron deity of Babylon, and his supposed supremacy was central to Babylonian theology and royal power. The breaking of his images represents the shattering of Babylon’s spiritual and national pride, proving that Yahweh is the only true God. The parallelism in the verse (shame upon idols, breaking of idols) reinforces the totality of the judgment. This prophecy’s fulfillment is historically tied to the conquests of Cyrus the Great, who conquered Babylon in 539 BCE.
Jeremiah 50 2 Commentary
This verse marks a pivotal moment in Jeremiah’s prophecy against Babylon. The repeated imperatives to proclaim and not conceal underscore the gravity and certainty of Babylon's fall. The specific mention of Bel and Marduk, along with their broken idols and places of worship, highlights God's comprehensive victory over the religious and political power structures of Babylon. It signifies that the gods who were thought to protect Babylon were in fact powerless against the Lord. This declaration served as a powerful message of hope to the exiles, assuring them of divine justice and the eventual end of their oppression.