“Deploy your shields, small and large; advance for battle!
Parallel translations
- WEB “Prepare the buckler and shield, and draw near to battle!
- KJV Order ye the buckler and shield, and draw near to battle.
- NKJV “Order the buckler and shield, And draw near to battle!
- NASB “Set up the buckler and shield, And advance to the battle!
- NLT “Prepare your shields, and advance into battle!
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
A summons calls Egypt's soldiers to prepare their shields and march to battle. The poetic command sets the scene for Egypt's coming defeat.
Overview
With vivid imagery, the oracle ironically musters Egypt's troops for a battle they are destined to lose. The call to arms heightens the drama of the prophecy as the proud army advances. This portrayal of human might marshaled in vain reminds readers that no military preparation can prevail against God's decree, whose ultimate victory is won not by sword but through Christ's triumph.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Isa 21:5They prepare a table, they lay out a carpet, they eat, they drink! Rise up, O princes, oil the shields!
- Nah 3:14Draw your water for the siege; strengthen your fortresses. Work the clay and tread the mortar; repair the brick kiln!
- Nah 2:1One who scatters advances against you, O Nineveh. Guard the fortress! Watch the road! Brace yourselves! Summon all your strength!
- Jer 51:11–12Sharpen the arrows! Fill the quivers! The LORD has aroused the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because His plan is aimed at Babylon to destroy her, for it is the vengeance of the LORD—vengeance for His temple.
- Joel 3:9Proclaim this among the nations: “Prepare for war; rouse the mighty men; let all the men of war advance and attack!
- Isa 8:9–10Huddle together, O peoples, and be shattered; pay attention, all you distant lands; prepare for battle, and be shattered; prepare for battle, and be shattered!
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 46:3 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.