Jeremiah 51 39

Jeremiah 51:39 kjv

In their heat I will make their feasts, and I will make them drunken, that they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake, saith the LORD.

Jeremiah 51:39 nkjv

In their excitement I will prepare their feasts; I will make them drunk, That they may rejoice, And sleep a perpetual sleep And not awake," says the LORD.

Jeremiah 51:39 niv

But while they are aroused, I will set out a feast for them and make them drunk, so that they shout with laughter? then sleep forever and not awake," declares the LORD.

Jeremiah 51:39 esv

While they are inflamed I will prepare them a feast and make them drunk, that they may become merry, then sleep a perpetual sleep and not wake, declares the LORD.

Jeremiah 51:39 nlt

And while they lie inflamed with all their wine,
I will prepare a different kind of feast for them.
I will make them drink until they fall asleep,
and they will never wake up again,"
says the LORD.

Jeremiah 51 verses

Jeremiah 51 39 meaning

God declares a decisive and strategic judgment against Babylon. He will orchestrate a deceptive feast, making them drunk and leading them to revel in false security. This drunken celebration will be the prelude to their swift and irreversible downfall, resulting in a "perpetual sleep"—a metaphor for their complete and final destruction as an empire, from which they will never recover or reawaken to power.

Jeremiah 51 39 Context

Jeremiah chapter 51 continues the detailed prophecy of judgment against Babylon, which began in chapter 50. These chapters pronounce divine retribution on Babylon for its arrogance, idolatry, and for being God's instrument of judgment against Judah but exceeding its commission through extreme cruelty. The overarching theme is the restoration of Israel and the comprehensive destruction of their oppressor. Jeremiah 51:39 falls within a passage (vv. 35-58) that specifically details the nature of Babylon's demise. The verse paints a picture of God's strategic, even cunning, judgment, where Babylon's customary revelry and pride are turned into instruments of its downfall. Historically, ancient Babylon was renowned for its lavish feasts and drinking, epitomized later in Belshazzar's feast in Daniel 5. The prophecy speaks to a time when Babylon feels secure and celebrates, only to be struck down decisively, serving as a powerful polemic against their gods and their self-sufficiency.

Jeremiah 51 39 Word analysis

• I will prepare: The Hebrew is integrated into "make them drunk" (וְהִשְׁכַּרְתִּי, vəhishkartiy - and I will make them drunk), with "feast" (mishteh) preceding. This construction signifies God as the active orchestrator. It highlights divine agency in Babylon's doom, demonstrating His sovereignty over historical events.
• a feast (מִשְׁתֶּה, mishteh): This word commonly refers to a joyous banquet or drinking party. Here, it is laden with dark irony. What is typically a scene of celebration becomes a trap of judgment, leading not to joy but to destruction. This choice of word underlines Babylon's self-indulgence and false sense of security.
• make them drunk (וְהִשְׁכַּרְתִּי, vəhishkartiy): Derived from shakar, meaning "to be or become drunk." The Hiphil (causative) form means "I will cause them to be drunk." This indicates God Himself actively brings about their inebriated state. Drunkenness in Scripture often symbolizes a loss of reason, vulnerability, moral decay, or divine judgment (like drinking from God's cup of wrath).
• so that they will revel (יַעֲלֹזוּ, ya'alozu): From 'alaz, meaning "to exult, rejoice, be joyful." This describes their reaction to the intoxicating feast—a heedless, boastful rejoicing. This unthinking merriment further underscores their spiritual and physical stupor, making them unprepared for the sudden blow of judgment. It is their arrogance amplified.
• and then sleep: The verb here (וְיָשְׁנוּ, vəyashnu) literally means "and they will sleep." This directly follows their revelry, establishing a cause-and-effect. This sleep is more than mere rest; it is the entry point to their ultimate demise.
• a perpetual sleep (שְׁנַת-עוֹלָם, shnat-'olam): "Sleep" (shenah) metaphorically refers to death or inactivity. "Perpetual" ('olam) implies an enduring or everlasting duration. Combined, this phrase denotes not a temporary nap but a permanent, irreversible state of death and ruin for the Babylonian empire as a political and world power. It signifies the end of their historical influence.
• from which they will not wake (וְלֹא יָקִיצוּ, vəlo' yaqitsu): Yaquitsu comes from yqits, "to wake up." The negative "not" emphatically confirms the finality of their sleep. There will be no recovery, no resurrection of the Babylonian empire to its former glory. This reinforces the comprehensive nature of God's judgment.
• declares the LORD (נְאֻם יְהוָה, ne'um YHWH): This is a common prophetic formula that authenticates the message as coming directly from Yahweh, the sovereign God of Israel. It serves as an authoritative signature, guaranteeing the absolute certainty and reliability of the prophecy's fulfillment.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "I will prepare a feast for them and make them drunk": This phrase unveils God's ingenious method of judgment. Rather than a direct, immediate strike, He manipulates Babylon's own characteristic vices—its love for lavish celebrations and overindulgence—into the very instrument of its destruction. It's a strategic "trap" set by God, where Babylon unwittingly participates in its own downfall through what it perceives as celebration.
• "so that they will revel": This highlights the deceived state of Babylon. Their joy is predicated on a false sense of security, fueled by divine design. Their boisterous exultation demonstrates their lack of foresight and spiritual discernment, oblivious to the impending doom that this very revelry precedes.
• "and then sleep a perpetual sleep, from which they will not wake": This climactic statement depicts the outcome: complete and final destruction. The "sleep" symbolizes their death, inactivity, and the end of their imperial power. "Perpetual" and "will not wake" emphasize the absolute and irreversible nature of this judgment, ensuring that Babylon will never rise again to prominence. This is not simply a defeat but an eternal cessation of its status as a world-dominating force.

Jeremiah 51 39 Bonus section

• The imagery of a feast turned fatal connects metaphorically to the historical fall of Babylon. Though the city didn't fall because of an explicit, sudden drunken stupor leading to total collapse on one specific night, the Medo-Persian conquest by Cyrus often coincided with a period of general complacency and overconfidence within the city walls, where grand festivals were common, particularly according to accounts in Herodotus and Xenophon, echoing Daniel 5.
• The "sleep" in this context is purely a metaphor for the final, political, and cultural demise of Babylon as a world-dominating power, not necessarily referencing the literal sleep of individuals' souls in death or any specific afterlife doctrine. Its focus is on the empire's ultimate end.
• The passage functions as a stark reversal. Babylon, the great power that had brought many nations to their knees and inflicted spiritual "drunkenness" (Jer 51:7) through its idolatry and oppression, is now subjected to the very same condition, orchestrated by God, to seal its own destruction. This poetic justice highlights God's ultimate vindication of His people.

Jeremiah 51 39 Commentary

Jeremiah 51:39 presents a vivid and ironic picture of God's judgment on Babylon. It describes God's deliberate act of orchestrating Babylon's own festive, self-indulgent nature into a mechanism for its ruin. The feast, a symbol of pleasure and power, becomes a precursor to weakness and total collapse. Babylon, known for its revelry and intoxication—both literally and in its making other nations spiritually drunk—is now to experience divine intoxication leading to its own demise. This "perpetual sleep" is not merely a military defeat but a theological declaration of its complete and irreversible removal from the stage of world dominance. It demonstrates God's sovereignty, transforming the enemy's strength (celebration, power) into its ultimate undoing, affirming the certainty of His justice and the triumph of His covenant people.