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Jeremiah 50 describes God opening a storehouse of weapons to judge Babylon, echoing Jeremiah 10 where wind, rain, and hail are kept, reflecting ancient Near Eastern cosmology. Sirach repeats the image, describing fire and hail kept for divine vengeance.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Jeremiah 50:25
Hebrew Bible
24 I set a trap for you, Babylon; you were caught before you knew it. You fought against me; so you were found and captured. 25 I have opened up the place where my weapons are stored. I have brought out the weapons for carrying out my wrath. For I, the Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies, have work to carry out in the land of Babylonia. 26 Come from far away and attack Babylonia! Open up the places where she stores her grain. Pile her up in ruins. Destroy her completely! Do not leave anyone alive!
Date: 500–401 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Sirach 39:30
Ben Sira, Ecclesiasticus
Deuterocanon
28 There are winds that are created for vengeance, and in their fury they lay on their scourges heavily. In the time of reckoning, they pour out their strength, and will appease the wrath of him who made them. 29 Fire, hail, famine, and death— all these are created for vengeance— 30 wild beasts’ teeth, scorpions, adders, and a sword punishing the ungodly to destruction. 31 They will rejoice in his commandment, and will be made ready upon earth when needed. In their seasons, they won’t disobey his command. 32 Therefore from the beginning I was convinced, and I thought it through and left it in writing:
Date: 195–180 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... Yahweh has a 'storehouse' for rain, hail, or snow (see 10:13); this is the only occurrence of the word in the Hebrew Scriptures for Yahweh's storehouse of weapons, though it occurs in Sirach 39:30. Yahweh has the work of battle to do with the Babylonians! ..."
William Lee Holladay, Jeremiah 2: A Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah, Chapters 26-52 (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1989), 455.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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