Therefore shall her young men fall in the streets,.... Or "surely" (f); it is the form of an oath, according to Jarchi Cyrus, when he took Babylon, ordered proclamation to be made that the inhabitants should keep within doors; and that whoever were found in the streets should be put to death (g), as doubtless many were:

and all her men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the Lord; as Belshazzar and his guards were (h); see Daniel 5:30; compare with this Revelation 19:18.

(f) "certe". (g) Cyropaedia, l. 7. c. 23. (h) Ibid.

Jeremiah 50:30 is a repetition of Jeremiah 49:26. - Jeremiah 50:31. The Lord will now visit the presumption of Babylon. The day of punishment has arrived. On "behold, I am against thee," cf. Jeremiah 21:13. "O arrogance, pride!" is directly addressed to Babylon: in Jeremiah 50:32 also there is a like designation of Babylon as the personification of pride. On the words "for thy day is come," cf. Jeremiah 50:27. "And I will kindle a fire," etc., stands as in Jeremiah 21:14, where, however, "in its forest" is found instead of "in his cities." The former, indeed, is the reading rendered by the lxx in this passage; but they have acted quite arbitrarily in this, since Jeremiah, for the most part, varies individual words when he repeats a thought. "In his cities" does not suit very well, inasmuch as the other cities of the country belonged to Babylon, the μητρόπολις as hers, and in Jeremiah 51:43 they are spoken of as hers; cf. Jeremiah 19:15; Jeremiah 34:1; Jeremiah 49:13, etc.

Therefore shall her young men fall in the streets, and all her men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD.

30. (See on [996]Jer 49:26).

in the streets-The Babylonians were so discouraged by having lost some battles that they retired within their walls and would not again meet Cyrus in the field.

50:21-32 The forces are mustered and empowered to destroy Babylon. Let them do what God demands, and they shall bring to pass what he threatens. The pride of men's hearts sets God against them, and ripens them apace for ruin. Babylon's pride must be her ruin; she has been proud against the Holy One of Israel; who can keep those up whom God will throw down?