The officers of the city of Zoan are fools; the wise men who advise the king of Egypt give wrong advice. How can you say to him, ‘I am wise’? How can you say, ‘I am from the old family of the kings’?
Jeremiah received a message from the Lord for all the Jews living in Egypt—in the cities of Migdol, Tahpanhes, Memphis, and in southern Egypt. This was the message:
“Announce this message in Egypt, and preach it in Migdol. Preach it also in the cities of Memphis and Tahpanhes: ‘Get ready for war, because the battle is all around you.’
“ ‘This is what the Lord God says: I will destroy the idols and take away the statues of gods from the city of Memphis. There will no longer be a leader in Egypt, and I will spread fear through the land of Egypt.
Even if the people are not destroyed, Egypt will capture them; Memphis will bury them. Weeds will grow over their silver treasures, and thorns will drive them out of their tents.
I see someone who will come someday, someone who will come, but not soon. A star will come from Jacob; a ruler will rise from Israel. He will crush the heads of the Moabites and smash the skulls of the sons of Sheth.