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Concerning Moab. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: “Woe to Nebo, for it is laid waste! Kiriathaim is put to shame and taken; the stronghold is put to shame and dismayed:
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The glory of Moab is no more! In Heshbon they have devised disaster against her: ‘Come, let us cut her off from being a nation!’ You also, O Madmen, shall be silenced; the sword shall pursue you.
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Listen! A cry from Horonaim: Desolation! Great destruction!
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Moab is broken to pieces! A cry is heard as far as Zoar.
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For they go up the ascent of Luhith weeping; surely on the road down to Horonaim they hear the cry of distress over the disaster.
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Flee, save your lives, and be like a wild donkey in the wilderness!
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For because you trusted in your strongholds and your treasures, you also shall be taken; Chemosh shall go into exile, together with his priests and his officials.
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The destroyer shall come upon every city; no city shall escape! The valley shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the LORD has spoken.
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Give wings to Moab, that it may flee away; her cities shall become a desolation, with no inhabitant in them.
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Cursed is the one who does the work of the LORD carelessly, and cursed is the one who keeps back his sword from bloodshed!
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Moab has been at ease from his youth, settled like wine on its dregs, not poured from vessel to vessel, nor has he gone into exile; therefore his taste has remained in him, and his scent has not changed.
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Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will send to him those who pour him out, and they shall empty his vessels and break his jars.
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Then Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh, as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence.
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How can you say, ‘We are mighty men, men of valor for battle’?
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The destroyer of Moab has come up against him; his chosen young men have gone down to slaughter, declares the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.
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The calamity of Moab is near at hand, and his disaster comes quickly.
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Mourn for him, all you who are around him, all who know his name! Say, ‘How the mighty scepter is broken, the staff of splendor!’
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Come down from your glory and sit in the dust, O inhabitant of Dibon; for the destroyer of Moab has come up against you, he has destroyed your strongholds.
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Stand by the road and look, O inhabitants of Aroer! Ask the one who flees and the one who escapes; say, “What has happened?”
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Moab is put to shame, for it is dismayed! Wail and cry out; declare by the Arnon River: Truly, Moab is laid waste!
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Judgment has come upon the highland country, upon the cities of Holon, Jahzah, Mephaath,
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Dibon, Nebo, Beth-diblathaim,
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Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, Beth-meon,
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Kerioth, Bozrah, and upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near.
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The horn of Moab’s strength is cut off, and his arm of power is broken! declares the LORD.
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Make him drunk, for he has magnified himself against the LORD! Moab will wallow in his vomit, and he himself will become a laughingstock.
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Was not Israel a laughingstock to you before? Was he found among thieves, that you shake your head whenever you speak of him?
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Leave the cities and dwell in the rocks, O inhabitants of Moab! Be like the dove that nests at the mouth of a cave.
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We have heard of the pride of Moab—how very proud he is—of his loftiness, his pride, his arrogance, and the haughtiness of his heart.
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I know his insolence, declares the LORD; his boastings are false, and his deeds are false.
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Therefore I will wail for Moab; I will cry out for all Moab; I will groan for the men of Kir-heres.
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More than weeping for Jazer I will weep for you, O vine of Sibmah! Your branches spread to the sea, they reached as far as Jazer. The destroyer has fallen upon your summer fruit and your grape harvest.
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Joy and gladness have been taken away from the orchards and from the land of Moab. I have caused wine to cease from the winepress; no one treads with shouting; the shout of joy is no more heard.
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Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voice is heard as far as Jahaz, from Zoar to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah; for even the waters of Nimrim have become desolate.
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declares the LORD: I will make an end in Moab of those who offer burnt offerings on the high places and burn incense to their god.
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Therefore my heart laments for Moab like a flute, and my heart laments for the men of Kir-heres; for the wealth they have gathered has perished.
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Indeed, every head is shaved and every beard cut off; on all hands are gashes, and sackcloth is on every waist.
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Above all the roofs of Moab and in its open squares there is nothing but mourning; yes, I have broken Moab like a vessel, so that no one delights in it, says the LORD.
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How dismayed it is! How Moab hides its face in shame! So Moab has become a laughingstock and a horror to all around it.
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For thus says the LORD: Behold, it comes flying like an eagle, and it spreads its wings over Moab.
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The cities are taken, the strongholds are seized. The heart of the warriors of Moab in that day shall be like the heart of a woman in labor.
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Moab shall be destroyed as a people, because it magnified itself against the LORD.
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Terror and the pit and the snare are upon you, O inhabitants of Moab! says the LORD.
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He who flees from the terror shall fall into the pit, and he who climbs out of the pit shall be caught in the snare. For I will bring all this upon Moab in the year of their punishment, says the LORD.
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In the shadow of Heshbon the fugitives stand still, exhausted; but fire goes out from Heshbon, a flame from the house of Sihon, and it devours the brow of Moab and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones.
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Woe to you, O Moab! You are undone, O people of Chemosh! For your sons have been taken captive, and your daughters into captivity.
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Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab in the latter days, says the LORD.”
Thus far is the word of judgment against Moab.
🏔️🍷🔥 Summary of Jeremiah 48 – Judgment on Moab: Pride Brought Low
Jeremiah 48 is one of the longest prophecies against a single nation in the Bible, this time directed at Moab, Israel’s eastern neighbor and an old enemy of God’s people. God condemns Moab’s pride, prosperity, and idolatry, which made them feel untouchable. City after city is named as destined for destruction, and Moab will cry out, weep, and flee. Yet at the end of the chapter, God includes a promise of restoration. This shows that the LORD’s wrath is not without mercy.
📌 1. The Cities of Moab Will Be Destroyed (verses 1–10)
“Woe to Nebo! It has been laid waste.”
➡️ Major cities of Moab such as Nebo, Kiriathaim, Heshbon, and others will fall.
➡️ God condemns anyone who is careless in carrying out this judgment — for this is a divine command.
🎯 There is no safe place in human systems when God has determined their downfall.
📌 2. Moab Will Be Put to Shame because of Its Pride (verses 11–17)
“Moab has lived securely from its youth…”
➡️ Moab is portrayed like wine left undisturbed—steady and prosperous.
➡️ Therefore, they became proud and self-confident, but God will shake them.
🎯 God opposes nations and individuals who are at ease without Him.
📌 3. The Cry and the Collapse of Moab’s Glory (verses 18–39)
“Weep, for Moab has been destroyed…”
➡️ Jeremiah describes lamentation and complete ruin over Moab.
➡️ The nation will flee, weep, and lose all its national pride.
➡️ Even the priests and religious leaders will perish.
🎯 Whatever is not from God will fall before His judgment.
📌 4. The Main Cause: Pride and Trust in Chemosh (verses 26–30)
“Because he magnified himself against the LORD…”
➡️ Moab was not only proud toward other nations, but also stood against the LORD spiritually.
➡️ They trusted in their god, Chemosh, but he could not save them.
🎯 Idols and ego can never withstand God’s justice.
📌 5. Promise of Restoration (verse 47)
“Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab in the latter days…”
➡️ God gives hope: Moab will one day be restored, as an expression of His mercy.
🎯 God is not angry forever — restoration is provided for any nation that repents.
📖 Main Teaching
- Nations or individuals who rely on prosperity and on themselves will be destroyed
- Spiritual and national pride brings ruin
- No idol can save from the wrath of God
- The Lord uses great nations (such as Babylon) as instruments of judgment
- The Lord’s wrath is balanced by mercy and a promise of restoration
✨ Spiritual Meaning (New Testament)
📖 James 4:6
“God opposes the proud, but shows mercy to the humble.”
➡️ Moab becomes a clear example of pride brought low.
📖 Luke 18:14
“Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled…”
➡️ Moab felt secure, but the Lord humbled them.
📖 Romans 11:22
“Consider the kindness and severity of God…”
➡️ Jeremiah 48 shows the two sides of God: wrath and restoration.
📖 Acts 17:30
“Now God commands all people… to repent.”
➡️ Moab was judged, yet hope of restoration was still given.
🕊️ “Moab has lived securely from his youth…” – Jeremiah 48:11
🕊️ “Because he magnified himself against the Lord…” – Jeremiah 48:26
🕊️ “Weep, for Moab has been destroyed…” – Jeremiah 48:20
🕊️ “I will restore the fortunes of Moab…” – Jeremiah 48:47
