Jeremiah 46–51

Destruction of Nations

Jeremiah 46–51 records prophecies about the destruction of several nations surrounding Israel and why each would be destroyed. Jeremiah prophesied that Egypt (see Jeremiah 46), Philistia (see Jeremiah 47), Moab (see Jeremiah 48), Ammon (see Jeremiah 49:1–6), Edom (see Jeremiah 49:7–22), Damascus (see Jeremiah 49:23–27), Kedar (see Jeremiah 49:28–29), Hazor (see Jeremiah 49:30–37), Elam (see Jeremiah 49:34–39), and Babylon (see Jeremiah 50–51) would all be destroyed.

Perhaps the purpose for all these messages of destruction is to teach, especially to the house of Israel, that not only will the Lord punish the wickedness of His people, He will also punish the wickedness of all people, regardless of their nation. The good news for Israel is that although the Lord will destroy all these other nations, He promised to preserve His people and not completely destroy them (see Jeremiah 46:27–28). The messages of destruction are also symbolic of the destruction of the wicked in the last days.