Bible Strands
Jeremiah 50:46
At the sound of Babylon’s capture the earth will quake; a cry will be heard among the nations.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet delivers a divine oracle against Babylon and the land of the Chaldeans immediately following the announcement of Yahweh’s strategies to desolate their pasture and drag away their flocks.
The words — נִרְעַשָׁה (nir.'a.shah) translates literally as “it will quake,” and נִשְׁמַע (nish.ma') means “it will be heard,” anchoring the verse’s declaration in physical and auditory reality.
The thread — The pattern of the earth trembling at the sound of a conquered city’s downfall recurs in Jeremiah 49:21, Ezekiel 26:18, and Ezekiel 31:16.
Why it lands — The text states that Babylon’s capture will trigger a seismic event and a distress cry audible to all nations. This demands a reader to acknowledge that divine judgment operates on a geopolitical scale and produces unavoidable, widespread consequences.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth is moved, and the cry is heard among the nations.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 49:21 At the sound of their fall the earth will quake; their cry will resound to the Red Sea.
- Ezekiel 26:18 Now the coastlands tremble on the day of your downfall; the islands in the sea are dismayed by your demise.”’
- Ezekiel 31:16 I made the nations quake at the sound of its downfall, when I cast it down to Sheol with those who descend to the Pit. Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and best of Lebanon, all the well-watered trees, were consoled in the earth below.
- Revelation 18:9 Then the kings of the earth who committed sexual immorality and lived in luxury with her will weep and wail at the sight of the smoke rising from the fire that consumes her.
- Isaiah 14:9 Sheol beneath is eager to meet you upon your arrival. It stirs the spirits of the dead to greet you—all the rulers of the earth. It makes all the kings of the nations rise from their thrones.
- Ezekiel 32:10 I will cause many peoples to be appalled over you, and their kings will shudder in horror because of you when I brandish My sword before them. On the day of your downfall each of them will tremble every moment for his life.’