Judgment on Elam – Part 2

Jeremiah 49:34-39 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, Thus said the LORD of hosts; Behold, I will break the bow of Elam, the chief of their might. And upon Elam will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation whither the outcasts of Elam shall not come. For I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies, and before them that seek their life: and I will bring evil upon them, even my fierce anger, said the LORD; and I will send the sword after them, till I have consumed them: And I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from thence the king and the princes, said the LORD. But it shall come to pass in the latter days, that I will bring again the captivity of Elam, said the LORD.

‘Elam’ was a country east of the Tigris river. It was subjected by Nebuchadnezzar as well as all other countries round about Babylon (49:34-39; 25:25; Dan. 2:37-38).

‘In the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah.’ This prophecy was given 11 years before Jerusalem was destroyed; the conquest of Elam could have been after Judah fell (49:34; 2Kin. 24:18; 25:2-3).

‘Bow of Elam, the chief of their might.’ Evidently, the Elamites depended mainly upon their skill with the bow to protect themselves.

‘Four quarters of heaven, and will scatter them toward all those winds.’ The term “four winds” is used several times in a symbolic sense to represent the four directions (Dan. 7:2; Matt. 24:31).

‘Evil upon them’ – The word evil is often used in the sense of judgment or punishment for sin. What sins Elam had been guilty of is not stated but we can suppose that they were the same as those which caused other nations of their time to be punished.

‘My throne in Elam’ – The throne of Nebuchadnezzar is spoken of here as God’s throne because it was God who gave the greatness of the Babylonian kingdom to Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 2:37-38; 4:17).

‘I will bring again the captivity of Elam.’ Elam is another of several nations God has promised to restore in the latter days: Elam (49:39); Moab (48:47); Ammon (48:6); Israel (23:20; 30:24; Deut. 4:30; Hos. 3:5; Acts 15:13-19).