Yeremia 51:6
Konteks51:6 Get out of Babylonia quickly, you foreign people. 1
Flee to save your lives.
Do not let yourselves be killed because of her sins.
For it is time for the Lord to wreak his revenge.
He will pay Babylonia 2 back for what she has done. 3
Yeremia 51:13
Konteks51:13 “You who live along the rivers of Babylon, 4
the time of your end has come.
You who are rich in plundered treasure,
it is time for your lives to be cut off. 5
Yeremia 51:52
Konteks51:52 Yes, but the time will certainly come,” 6 says the Lord, 7
“when I will punish her idols.
Throughout her land the mortally wounded will groan.
[51:6] 1 tn The words “you foreign people” are not in the text and many think the referent is the exiles of Judah. While this is clearly the case in v. 45 the referent seems broader here where the context speaks of every man going to his own country (v. 9).
[51:6] 3 tn Heb “paying to her a recompense [i.e., a payment in kind].”
[51:13] 4 sn Babylon was situated on the Euphrates River and was surrounded by canals (also called “rivers”).
[51:13] 5 tn Heb “You who live upon [or beside] many waters, rich in treasures, your end has come, the cubit of your cutting off.” The sentence has been restructured and paraphrased to provide clarity for the average reader. The meaning of the last phrase is debated. For a discussion of the two options see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:423. Most modern commentaries and English versions see an allusion to the figure in Isa 38:12 where the reference is to the end of life compared to a tapestry which is suddenly cut off from the loom. Hence, NRSV renders the last line as “the thread of your life is cut” and TEV renders “its thread of life is cut.” That idea is accepted also in HALOT 141 s.v. בצע Qal.1.
[51:52] 6 tn Heb “that being so, look, days are approaching.” Here לָכֵן (lakhen) introduces the Lord’s response to the people’s lament (v. 51). It has the force of “yes, but” or “that may be true.” See Judg 11:8 and BDB 486-87 s.v. כֵּן 3.d.
