1 Concerning the Ammonites, thus sayth the Lord; hath Israel no sonnes? Hath he no heire? Why then doth their king inherit God, and his people dwell in his cities?
2 Therfore behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will cause an alarme of warre to be heard in Rabbah of the Ammonites, and it shall be a desolate heape, and her daughters shall be burnt with fire: then shall Israel be heire vnto them that were his heires, saith the Lord.
3 Howle, O Heshbon, for Ai is spoiled: cry yee daughters of Rabbah, gird yee with sackcloth: lament and runne to and fro by the hedges: for their king shall goe into captiuitie: and his priests and his princes together.
4 Wherfore gloriest thou in the valleys, thy flowing valley, O backsliding daughter? That trusted in her treasures, saying; Who shall come vnto mee?
5 Behold, I will bring a feare vpon thee, saith the Lord God of hostes, from all those that be about thee, and yee shall be driuen out euery man right forth, and none shal gather vp him that wandereth.
6 And afterward I will bring againe the captiuitie of the children of Ammon, saith the Lord.
7 ¶ Concerning Edom thus saith the Lord of hosts, Is wisedome no more in Teman? is counsell perished from the prudent? is their wisedom vanished?
8 Flee ye, turne backe, dwell deepe, O inhabitants of Dedan: for I will bring the calamitie of Esau vpon him, the time that I will visite him.
9 If grape gatherers come to thee, would they not leaue some gleaning grapes? If theeues by night, they will destroy till they haue enough.
10 But I haue made Esau bare, I haue vncouered his secret places, and he shall not be able to hide himselfe: his seed is spoiled, and his brethren and his neighbours, and he is not.
11 Leaue thy fatherlesse children, I will preserue them aliue: and let thy widowes trust in me.
12 For thus saith the Lord, Behold, they whose iudgement was not to drinke of the cup, haue assuredly drunken, and art thou he that shall altogether go vnpunished? thou shalt not go vnpunished, but thou shalt surely drinke of it.
13 For I haue sworne by my selfe, saith the Lord, that Bozrah shall become a desolation, a reproch, a waste, and a curse, and all the cities thereof shall be perpetuall wastes.
14 I haue heard a rumor from the Lord, & an ambassadour is sent vnto the heathen, saying, Gather ye together & come against her, & rise vp to the battell.
15 For lo, I wil make thee smal among the heathen, and despised among men.
16 Thy terriblenesse hath deceiued thee, and the pride of thine heart, O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rocke, that holdest the height of the hill: thogh thou shouldest make thy nest as high as the eagle, I will bring thee downe from thence, saith the Lord.
17 Also Edom shalbe a desolation: euery one þt goeth by it shalbe astonished, and shall hisse at all the plagues thereof,
18 As in the ouerthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, and the neighbour cities thereof, saith the Lord: no man shall abide there, neither shall a sonne of man dwell in it.
19 Behold, he shal come vp like a lyon from the swelling of Iordane against the habitation of the strong: but I wil suddenly make him runne away from her, and who is a chosen man that I may appoynt ouer her? For who is like mee? And who will appoint me the time? Who is that shepheard that will stand before mee?
20 Therfore heare the counsell of the Lord, that he hath taken against Edom, & his purposes that hee hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: surely the least of the flocke shall draw them out: surely hee shall make their habitations desolate with them.
21 The earth is moued at the noise of their fall: at the crie, the noise thereof was heard in the red Sea.
22 Behold, he shall come vp and flie as the eagle, and spread his wings ouer Bozrah: and at that day shall the heart of the mightie men of Edom, be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.
23 ¶ Concerning Damascus, Hamath is confounded, & Arpad, for they haue heard euil tidings, they are faint hearted, there is sorrow on the sea, it can not be quiet.
24 Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth her selfe to flee, and feare hath seised on her: anguish and sorrowes haue taken her as a woman in trauell.
25 How is the citie of praise not left, the citie of my ioy?
26 Therefore her yong men shal fall in her streets, and all the men of warre shall bee cut off in that day, saith the Lord of hosts.
27 And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus, and it shal consume the palaces of Ben-hadad.
28 ¶ Concerning Kedar, and concerning the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchad-rezzar king of Babylon shall smite, Thus saith the Lord: Arise ye, goe vp to Kedar, and spoile the men of the East.
29 Their tents and their flocks shall they take away: they shal take to themselues their curtaines and all their vessels, and their camels, and they shal crie vnto them, Feare is on euery side.
30 ¶ Flee, get you farre off, dwell deepe, O ye inhabitants of Hazor, saith the Lord: for Nebuchad-rezzar king of Babylon hath taken counsel against you, and hath conceiued a purpose against you.
31 Arise, get you vp vnto the wealthy nation that dwelleth without care, saith the Lord, which haue neither gates nor barres, which dwell alone.
32 And their camels shall be a bootie, and the multitude of their cattell a spoile, and I will scatter into all winds them that are in the vtmost corners, and I will bring their calamitie from all sides thereof, saith the Lord.
33 And Hazor shall be a dwelling for dragons, and a desolation for euer; there shall no man abide there, nor any sonne of man dwell in it.
34 ¶ The word of the Lord that came to Ieremiah the Prophet against Elam in the beginning of the reigne of Zedekiah king of Iudah, saying,
35 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Behold, I will breake the bow of Elam, the chiefe of their might.
36 And vpon Elam will I bring the foure windes from the foure quarters of heauen, and will scatter them towards all those windes, and there shall be no nation, whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come.
37 For I will cause Elam to bee dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seeke their life: and I will bring euill vpon them, euen my fierce anger, saith the Lord, and I will send the sword after them, till I haue consumed them.
38 And I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from thence the king and the princes, saith the Lord.
39 ¶ But it shall come to passe in the later daies, that I wil bring againe the captiuitie of Elam, saith the Lord.
Prophecies relative to the Ammonites. (1-6) The Edomites. (7-22) The Syrians. (23-27) The Kedarenes. (28-33) The Elamites. (34-39)1-6. Might often prevails against right among men, yet that might shall be controlled by the Almighty, who judges aright; and those will find themselves mistaken, who, like the Ammonites, think every thing their own on which they can lay their hands. The Lord will call men to account for every instance of dishonesty, especially to the destitute.
7-22 The Edomites were old enemies to the Israel of God. But their day is now at hand; it is foretold, not only to warn them, but for the sake of the Israel of God, whose afflictions were aggravated by them. Thus Divine judgments go round from nation to nation; the earth is full of commotion, and nothing can escape the ministers of Divine vengeance. The righteousness of God is to be observed amidst the violence of men.
23-27 How easily God can dispirit those nations that have been most celebrated for valour! Damascus waxes feeble. It was a city of joy, having all the delights of the sons of men. But those deceive themselves who place their happiness in carnal joys.
28-33 Nebuchadnezzar would make desolation among the people of Kedar, who dwelt in the deserts of Arabia. He who conquered many strong cities, will not leave those unconquered that dwell in tents. He will do this to gratify his own covetousness and ambition; but God orders it for correcting an unthankful people, and for warning a careless world to expect trouble when they seem most safe. They shall flee, get far off, and dwell deep in the deserts; they shall be dispersed. But privacy and obscurity are not always protection and security.
34-39 The Elamites were the Persians; they acted against God's Israel, and must be reckoned with. Evil pursues sinners. God will make them know that he reigns. Yet the destruction of Elam shall not be for ever. But this promise was to have its full accomplishment in the days of the Messiah. In reading the Divine assurance of the destruction of all the enemies of the church, the believer sees that the issue of the holy war is not doubtful. It is blessed to recollect, that He who is for us, is more than all against us. And he will subdue the enemies of our souls.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.