And when he comes, he will destroy the land of Egypt. He will bring death to those destined for death, captivity to those destined for captivity, and war to those destined for war.
Parallel translations
- WEB He will come, and will strike the land of Egypt; such as are for death shall be put to death, and such as are for captivity to captivity, and such as are for the sword to the sword.
- KJV And when he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt, and deliver such as are for death to death; and such as are for captivity to captivity; and such as are for the sword to the sword.
- BSB He will come and strike down the land of Egypt, bringing death to those destined for death, captivity to those destined for captivity, and the sword to those destined for the sword.
- NKJV When he comes, he shall strike the land of Egypt and deliver to death those appointed for death, and to captivity those appointed for captivity, and to the sword those appointed for the sword.
- NASB He will also come and strike the land of Egypt; those who are meant for death will be given over to death, and those for captivity to captivity, and those for the sword to the sword.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Babylon will strike Egypt, with each person appointed to death, captivity, or sword. God's judgment is thorough and sovereignly ordered.
Overview
The verse describes the comprehensive scope of Babylon's conquest, echoing earlier oracles against Judah. The threefold allotment of death, captivity, and sword shows judgment falling according to God's appointment, not chance. Such sober warnings of inescapable judgment magnify the mercy of the gospel, where Christ bears the judgment due to sinners who flee to Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Jer 15:2It shall happen, when they tell you, ‘Where shall we go out?’ Then you shall tell them, ‘Yahweh says: “Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for captivity, to captivity.”’
- Jer 44:13For I will punish those who dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence;
- Ezek 29:19–20Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off her multitude, and take her plunder, and take her prey; and it shall be the wages for his army.
- Zech 11:9Then I said, “I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other’s flesh.”
- Jer 25:19Pharaoh king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people;
- Isa 19:1–25The burden of Egypt: “Behold, Yahweh rides on a swift cloud, and comes to Egypt. The idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence; and the heart of Egypt will melt within it.
- Ezek 30:1–26Yahweh’s word came again to me, saying,
- Ezek 5:12A third part of you will die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed within you. A third part will fall by the sword around you. A third part I will scatter to all the winds, and will draw out a sword after them.
- Job 20:29This is the portion of a wicked man from God, the heritage appointed to him by God.”
- Jer 46:1–26Yahweh’s word which came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 43:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.