A Study of Jeremiah 50
Babylon and the daughter of Babylon
The Dual Fulfillment of Bible Prophecy - Many Bible prophecies have both a short term and long term fulfillment. As we read the Bible, especially in the Old Testament, we find many times God spoke about what was to happen to a subject, a nation, a people. Some of the things happened right after He spoke about them and some of the things will happen far into the future. Especially in our days, the latter days, we have seen, are seeing and will continue to see, Bible Prophecy being fulfilled.
1 The word that the LORD spake against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet.
The Lord speaks judgment against the city and the nation, by His prophet, Jeremiah.
2 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.
Write this down and publish it to the whole world. Hold nothing back. Tell them Babylon is attacked and defeated, they are left in confusion. All the things she trusted in will be destroyed. Her economy will collapse.
3 For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
A nation to her North will be God's instrument to bring total destruction on the land. The people and even the animals will leave the nation. She shall be totally deserted.
4 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek the LORD their God.
At the right time, in the future, God will bring repentance to His people. They shall have one heart and one mind - to come home and seek the Lord their God.
5 They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the LORD in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten.
They shall seek out teachers who know the Lord. They will make a vow unto the Lord and determine to be obedient to the Lord forever.
6 My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace.
The children of God have been led into apostacy. They have taken teachers that have turned them from the Truth unto fables (2 Timothy 4:3,4). They don't remember how good they had it.
7 All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the LORD, the habitation of justice, even the LORD, the hope of their fathers.
Grievous wolves have entered in, ravishing the flock, speaking perverse things, drawing disciples to themselves. (Acts 20:29,,30). They have allowed this because they have sinned against the Lord, the One True God of their Fathers.
8 Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he goats before the flocks.
Come out from this abomination. Separate yourselves unto the Lord.
9 For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain.
God has determined to bring a strong judgment against Babylon. He has put it in the hearts of her Northern enemies to attack her. He will Supernaturally cause the enemy's weapons to accurately hit their mark. They will not waste their ammunition.
10 And Chaldea shall be a spoil: all that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith the LORD. Babylon's Fall is Certain
Her enemies shall take her treasures, her delicacies, her delights. They will be well rewarded. This will definitely happen. There is no appeal.
11 Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage, because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls;
The Lord says Babylon has stripped the nation of His Word and His Heritage. They have sinned against Him and celebrated and rejoiced in their iniquities. They have become a nation of rebellious, haughty gluttons. (If you are not starting to suspect that this dual prophecy is about the Babylon of 2500 years ago and a latter day nation that would take on the same traits as the original, please read on. Think about the USA and you will find a match. The proof offered will be unquestionable once you read both chapters 50 and 51 and Revelation 17 and 18.
12 Your mother shall be sore confounded; she that bare you shall be ashamed: behold, the hindermost of the nations shall be a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
Babylon had no mother so obviously the Lord is talking about a nation that would appear in the latter days ("hindermost of the nations" - one of the last to appear). The mother of the USA is England. She will still be around to watch her daughter decimated and it will cause her shame.
13 Because of the wrath of the LORD it shall not be inhabited, but it shall be wholly desolate: every one that goeth by Babylon shall be astonished, and hiss at all her plagues.
The wrath of the Lord begins at the Sixth Seal. Complete destruction by arrows coming from the North sounds like nuclear and/or biological missles from Russia, the only nation that could carry this out. There will be a lot of nations and peoples flying or sailing by that will take satisfaction that the USA has been judged severely.
14 Put yourselves in array against Babylon round about: all ye that bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows: for she hath sinned against the LORD.
A host of nations will join the attack. They will give it everything they've got. A reminder to all: The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God (Psalm 9:17).
15 Shout against her round about: she hath given her hand: her foundations are fallen, her walls are thrown down: for it is the vengeance of the LORD: take vengeance upon her; as she hath done, do unto her.
Isn't it amazing that the enemy we are now fighting, Islamic terrorists, shout, "allahu Akbar" when they attack? Who else does that? This latter day Babylon will help in her demise. She will actually help the enemy come in and rip her apart. Her once mighty defenses will crumble, so too her foundations. God will stir up her enemies to do this. The last thing the Lord says here: "as she hath done, do unto her", can only mean that Babylon is reaping the same destruction that she has done to others - nations and peoples.
16 Cut off the sower from Babylon, and him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest: for fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people, and they shall flee every one to his own land.
The people that have planted the fields and the people that will harvest what was planted will flee out of Babylon and will return home to where they came from. A nation of recent immigrants! Think about that.
17 Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away: first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.
Here, God is talking about the judgments He brought upon his children by the Kings of Assyria and Babylon during Jeremiah's days. The Israelites have been driven from their home into other lands.
18 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria.
This Divine Judgment was accomplished by the Persian king, Cyrus, in 539 BC.
19 And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead.
Now we can say with certainty that Jeremiah is prophesying about the nation of Israel being brought back into their former God given land, even Judea and Samaria.
Two of the many places prophesied:
Ezekiel 36:
24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. (Read the whole chapter for a clear understanding).
Ezekiel 38:
8 After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.
Israel became a nation again, May 14, 1948, some 2500 years after she was defeated and scattered by the King of Babylon.
20 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.
God will bring them back in unbelief (Ezekiel 36). He will have mercy on them and pardon them of their sins. This is His plan and He will work out their salvation.
21 Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod: waste and utterly destroy after them, saith the LORD, and do according to all that I have commanded thee.
Both Merathaim and Pekod were in ancient Babylon. They were both destroyed by their enemies.
22 A sound of battle is in the land, and of great destruction.
The enemy has attacked and is in the process of destroying Babylon.
23 How is the hammer of the whole earth cut asunder and broken! how is Babylon become a desolation among the nations!
There is only one nation on Earth that could be considered "the hammer of the whole earth". Ancient Babylon could never have claimed this title. This "hammer" could only be the USA. In this century and the last there are many, many countries that we have bombed, with our planes, helicopters and missles. As it is written in verse 15, the USA will reap what it has sewn.
24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon, and thou wast not aware: thou art found, and also caught, because thou hast striven against the LORD.
A snare is a contrivance often consisting of a rope with a noose for entangling birds or mammals. The nation will face a surprise situation where it believes it has the upper hand. Suddenly the tables will turn and it will become the victim, caught in a trap. It's because the nation has forcefully rebelled against the Lord.
25 The LORD hath opened his armoury, and hath brought forth the weapons of his indignation: for this is the work of the Lord GOD of hosts in the land of the Chaldeans.
The Lord has chosen His mighty weapons to avenge His Righteous Anger. Make no mistake! This judgment is from the Lord.
26 Come against her from the utmost border, open her storehouses: cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly: let nothing of her be left.
Steam in from her farthest border. Destroy her crops, her warehouses and don't stop until every single thing she own has been wasted.
27 Slay all her bullocks; let them go down to the slaughter: woe unto them! for their day is come, the time of their visitation.
Kill all the cattle. Cause them to be slaughtered. Time is up! They are in a world of hurt. Now judgment will begin. (We have seen the cattle slaughtered because of the drought. A great, last sign!)
28 The voice of them that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God, the vengeance of his temple.
Those children who have been obedient to the Lord to flee Babylon will proclaim to the church that God's wrath is ready to be poured out. The Bible declares: "...Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord" (Romans 12:19)
29 Call together the archers against Babylon: all ye that bend the bow, camp against it round about; let none thereof escape: recompense her according to her work; according to all that she hath done, do unto her: for she hath been proud against the LORD, against the Holy One of Israel.
The Lord has set His trap. He has called out His children. The disobedient and rebellious will not escape. What they have sewn, now they will reap. Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall (Proverbs 16:18 )
30 Therefore shall her young men fall in the streets, and all her men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD.
Her male citizens will be killed in their hometowns. Her soldiers will not be able to help. They will be prevented by the enemy.
31 Behold, I am against thee, O thou most proud, saith the Lord GOD of hosts: for thy day is come, the time that I will visit thee.
The nation is filled with pride. They are a very haughty people. The chosen day of God's visitation in judgment has arrived.
32 And the most proud shall stumble and fall, and none shall raise him up: and I will kindle a fire in his cities, and it shall devour all round about him.
The nation will make a fatal error. Her great military might will fail and no one will come to her rescue. Her cities will be burned with fire and the fires will consume the land.
33 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The children of Israel and the children of Judah were oppressed together: and all that took them captives held them fast; they refused to let them go.
God's people, the Christians and the Jews brought back into their promised land (see verse 19), will be persecuted and restrained. Their pleas, to let them do as they feel led, will fall on deaf ears.
34 Their Redeemer is strong; the LORD of hosts is his name: he shall throughly plead their cause, that he may give rest to the land, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.
Jesus Christ is their Redeemer and He is the LORD of hosts. He is the Almighty. He will intervene on their behalf. Their oppressors will be totally annihilated. (This is another key verse to reveal that there will be a mystery Babylon in the latter days).
35 A sword is upon the Chaldeans, saith the LORD, and upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and upon her wise men.
The battle will affect every inhabitant, from the common man, all the way up to the rulers and their advisors.
36 A sword is upon the liars; and they shall dote: a sword is upon her mighty men; and they shall be dismayed.
The deceivers and false prophets are defeated though they tell the rulers what they want to hear. The military is defeated and they shall realize their fight is futile.
37 A sword is upon their horses, and upon their chariots, and upon all the mingled people that are in the midst of her; and they shall become as women: a sword is upon her treasures; and they shall be robbed.
All their military transport is defeated. All the foreigners within her are defeated. The people will be afraid to fight. The enemy will steal all the money and everything of value.
38 A drought is upon her waters; and they shall be dried up: for it is the land of graven images, and they are mad upon their idols.
The lakes, rivers and steams are dryed up. (http://www.droughtmonitor.unl.edu/). The people have made themselves forbidden images and idols. They worship them like maniacs.
39 Therefore the wild beasts of the desert with the wild beasts of the islands shall dwell there, and the owls shall dwell therein: and it shall be no more inhabited for ever; neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.
The country will be deserted of its citizens. Wild beasts will make it their home. Never again will it be inhabited by humans.
40 As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD; so shall no man abide there, neither shall any son of man dwell therein.
God will do unto Babylon the same thing He did to Sodom and Gomorrah. The land will be deserted forever.
41 Behold, a people shall come from the north, and a great nation, and many kings shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.
The attack will start from the North. Many nations will be involved in the battle.
42 They shall hold the bow and the lance: they are cruel, and will not shew mercy: their voice shall roar like the sea, and they shall ride upon horses, every one put in array, like a man to the battle, against thee, O daughter of Babylon.
The enemy will be militarily well equipped. They will be loud and cruel and unmerciful. The term, "O daughter of Babylon" tells you it's not the original Babylon but a later nation that has the same characteristics and the same heritage. It can only be the USA.
43 The king of Babylon hath heard the report of them, and his hands waxed feeble: anguish took hold of him, and pangs as of a woman in travail.
What must it feel like for the President of the United States to suddenly realize that all his security and military might has failed and he is unthinkably vulnerable to be attacked and shot or taken prisoner? This term, "a woman in travail" is also used in 1 Thessalonians 5:3 expressing the same time frame as the judgment of the daughter of Babylon here. It says the people will be saying, "peace and safety" when sudden destruction happens.
44 Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the swelling of Jordan unto the habitation of the strong: but I will make them suddenly run away from her: and who is a chosen man, that I may appoint over her? for who is like me? and who will appoint me the time? and who is that shepherd that will stand before me?
The enemy will come in great strength against Israel from across the Jordan but God Almighty, Himself, will fight for Israel and make them so fearful they will suddenly retreat.
45 Therefore hear ye the counsel of the LORD, that he hath taken against Babylon; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely the least of the flock shall draw them out: surely he shall make their habitation desolate with them.
The destruction of latter day Babylon will start with a single individual of the enemy causing her military to go after him. This is exactly what happened on September 11, 2001. When the planes crashed into the Word Trade Center in NYC, war was declared on Ben Laden. President Bush even showed a poster of him, "wanted dead or alive". The least of the flock did draw them out to Afganistan.
46 At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth is moved, and the cry is heard among the nations.
This event lines up with the calamities that happen at the Sixth Seal and the Wrath of the Lamb.