Her cities have become a desolation, a dry and arid land, a land where no one lives, where no son of man passes through.
Parallel translations
- WEB Her cities have become a desolation, a dry land, and a desert, a land in which no man dwells, neither does any son of man pass by it.
- KJV Her cities are a desolation, a dry land, and a wilderness, a land wherein no man dwelleth, neither doth any son of man pass thereby.
- NKJV Her cities are a desolation, A dry land and a wilderness, A land where no one dwells, Through which no son of man passes.
- NASB “Her cities have become an object of horror, A dry land and a desert, A land in which no one lives And through which no one of mankind passes.
- NLT Her cities now lie in ruins; she is a dry wasteland where no one lives or even passes by.
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's cities become a desolation, a dry and barren desert where no one lives or passes by. The land is left utterly empty and abandoned.
Overview
From the imagery of overwhelming waters the picture shifts to a parched, lifeless desert, both conveying total desolation. No inhabitant remains and no traveler ventures through. The completeness of this judgment fulfills God's word against Babylon and stands as a perpetual witness that rebellion against God ends in barrenness, while life is found only in Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Isa 13:20She will never be inhabited or settled from generation to generation; no nomad will pitch his tent there, no shepherd will rest his flock there.
- Jer 2:6They did not ask, ‘Where is the LORD who brought us up from the land of Egypt, who led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and pits, a land of drought and darkness, a land where no one travels and no one lives?’
- Jer 51:29The earth quakes and writhes because the LORD’s intentions against Babylon stand: to make the land of Babylon a desolation, without inhabitant.
- Jer 50:39–40So the desert creatures and hyenas will live there and ostriches will dwell there. It will never again be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation.
- Jer 50:12your mother will be greatly ashamed; she who bore you will be disgraced. Behold, she will be the least of the nations, a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
- Jer 51:37Babylon will become a heap of rubble, a haunt for jackals, an object of horror and scorn, without inhabitant.
- Ezek 29:10–11therefore I am against you and against your rivers. I will turn the land of Egypt into a ruin, a desolate wasteland from Migdol to Syene, and as far as the border of Cush.
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 51:43 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.