Here he comes— a single chariot, a pair of horses— He calls out and says, ‘Fallen, fallen is Babylon! All the images of her gods are smashed to the ground!’”
Come down, sit in the dust, virgin daughter Babylon; Sit on the ground, dethroned, daughter of the Chaldeans. No longer shall you be called dainty and delicate.
Among them I will put to an end the song of joy and the song of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstone and the light of the lamp.
Why do we remain here? Let us assemble and flee to the fortified cities, where we will meet our doom; For the Lord our God has doomed us, he has given us poisoned water to drink, because we have sinned against the Lord.
How solitary sits the city, once filled with people. She who was great among the nations is now like a widow. Once a princess among the provinces, now a toiling slave.
The elders of daughter Zion sit silently on the ground; They cast dust on their heads and dress in sackcloth; The young women of Jerusalem bow their heads to the ground.
To the measure of her boasting and wantonness repay her in torment and grief; for she said to herself, ‘I sit enthroned as queen; I am no widow, and I will never know grief.’