36. Sword, kill the priests of Babylon. They will be like fools. Sword, kill the soldiers of Babylon. They will be full of fear.
37. Sword, kill the horses and chariots of Babylon. Sword, kill all the soldiers hired from other countries. They will be like frightened women. Sword, destroy the treasures of Babylon. Those treasures will be taken away.
38. Sword, strike the waters of Babylon. Those waters will be dried up. Babylon has many, many idols. These idols show that the people of Babylon are foolish. So bad things will happen to them.
39. Babylon will never again be filled with people. Wild dogs, ostriches, and other desert animals will live there. But no one will live there ever again.
40. God completely destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and the towns around them. In the same way no one will live in Babylon, and no one will ever go to live there.” This is what the Lord says.
41. “Look! There are people coming from the north. They come from a powerful nation. Many kings are coming together from all around the world.
42. Their armies have bows and spears. The soldiers are cruel. They have no mercy. The soldiers come riding on their horses; the sound is as loud as the roaring sea. They stand in their places, ready for battle. They are ready to attack you, city of Babylon.
43. The king of Babylon heard about those armies, and he is paralyzed with fear. He is overcome with fear and pain, like a woman giving birth.