The Meaning of Jeremiah 51:48 Explained

Jeremiah 51:48

KJV: Then the heaven and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing for Babylon: for the spoilers shall come unto her from the north, saith the LORD.

YLT: And cried aloud against Babylon Have heavens and earth, and all that is in them, For, from the north come to it do the spoilers, An affirmation of Jehovah.

Darby: And the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, shall shout aloud over Babylon; for out of the north the spoilers shall come against her, saith Jehovah.

ASV: Then the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing for joy over Babylon; for the destroyers shall come unto her from the north, saith Jehovah.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then the heaven  and the earth,  and all that [is] therein, shall sing  for Babylon:  for the spoilers  shall come  unto her from the north,  saith  the LORD. 

What does Jeremiah 51:48 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The whole earth-and heaven-would rejoice because of the coming enemy of Babylon that would descend on her from the north (cf. Revelation 16:19).

Chapter Summary: Jeremiah 51

1  The severe judgment of God against Babylon, in revenge of Israel
59  Jeremiah delivers the book of this prophecy to Seraiah, to be cast into Euphrates,
64  in token of the perpetual sinking of Babylon

What do the individual words in Jeremiah 51:48 mean?

And shall sing joyously over Babylon the heavens and the earth and all that [is] in them for from the north shall come to her the plunderers says Yahweh
וְרִנְּנ֤וּ עַל־ בָּבֶל֙ שָׁמַ֣יִם וָאָ֔רֶץ וְכֹ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר בָּהֶ֑ם כִּ֧י מִצָּפ֛וֹן יָבוֹא־ לָ֥הּ הַשּׁוֹדְדִ֖ים נְאֻם־ יְהוָֽה

וְרִנְּנ֤וּ  And  shall  sing  joyously 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: רוּן 
Sense: to overcome.
עַל־  over 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
בָּבֶל֙  Babylon 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: בָּבֶל  
Sense: Babel or Babylon, the ancient site and/or capital of Babylonia (modern Hillah) situated on the Euphrates.
שָׁמַ֣יִם  the  heavens 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: שָׁמַיִם  
Sense: heaven, heavens, sky.
וָאָ֔רֶץ  and  the  earth 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
וְכֹ֖ל  and  all 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
אֲשֶׁ֣ר  that  [is] 
Parse: Pronoun, relative
Root: אֲשֶׁר 
Sense: (relative part.).
בָּהֶ֑ם  in  them 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine plural
מִצָּפ֛וֹן  from  the  north 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, feminine singular
Root: צָפֹון  
Sense: north (of direction), northward.
יָבוֹא־  shall  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
לָ֥הּ  to  her 
Parse: Preposition, third person feminine singular
הַשּׁוֹדְדִ֖ים  the  plunderers 
Parse: Article, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: שָׁדַד  
Sense: to deal violently with, despoil, devastate, ruin, destroy, spoil.
נְאֻם־  says 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: נְאֻם  
Sense: (Qal) utterance, declaration (of prophet).
יְהוָֽה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.