I will send strangers to Babylon to winnow her and empty her land; for they will come against her from every side in her day of disaster.
Parallel translations
- WEB I will send to Babylon strangers, who will winnow her. They will empty her land; for in the day of trouble they will be against her all around.
- KJV And will send unto Babylon fanners, that shall fan her, and shall empty her land: for in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about.
- NKJV And I will send winnowers to Babylon, Who shall winnow her and empty her land. For in the day of doom They shall be against her all around.
- NASB “I will send foreigners to Babylon so that they may winnow her And devastate her land; For they will be opposed to her on every side On the day of her disaster.
- NLT Foreigners will come and winnow her, blowing her away as chaff. They will come from every side to rise against her in her day of trouble.
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
God will send foreigners to 'winnow' Babylon and empty her land, surrounding her in the day of trouble. Babylon will be scattered like chaff and stripped bare.
Overview
Winnowing imagery depicts judgment that separates and blows away what is worthless, leaving Babylon emptied. The encircling foreigners are the Medo-Persian armies God appoints as His agents. The picture of the wicked driven off like chaff recurs throughout Scripture and ultimately points to the final separation accomplished by Christ, who gathers His wheat and burns the chaff.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Jer 15:7I will scatter them with a winnowing fork at the gates of the land. I will bereave and destroy My people who have not turned from their ways.
- Matt 3:12His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
- Isa 41:16You will winnow them, and a wind will carry them away; a gale will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the LORD; you will glory in the Holy One of Israel.
- Jer 50:14–15Line up in formation around Babylon, all you who draw the bow! Shoot at her! Spare no arrows! For she has sinned against the LORD.
- Jer 50:32The arrogant one will stumble and fall with no one to pick him up. And I will kindle a fire in his cities to consume all those around him.”
- Ezek 5:12A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them.
- Jer 50:29Summon the archers against Babylon, all who string the bow. Encamp all around her; let no one escape. Repay her according to her deeds; do to her as she has done. For she has defied the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.
- Jer 51:27–28“Raise a banner in the land! Blow the ram’s horn among the nations! Prepare the nations against her. Summon the kingdoms against her—Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Appoint a captain against her; bring up horses like swarming locusts.
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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 51:2 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.