17“Look, I will stir up the Medes against Babylon.

They cannot be tempted by silver

or bribed with gold.

18The attacking armies will shoot down the young men with arrows.

They will have no mercy on helpless babies

and will show no compassion for children.”

19Babylon, the most glorious of kingdoms,

the flower of Chaldean pride,

will be devastated like Sodom and Gomorrah

when God destroyed them.

20Babylon will never be inhabited again.

It will remain empty for generation after generation.

Nomads will refuse to camp there,

and shepherds will not bed down their sheep.

21Desert animals will move into the ruined city,

and the houses will be haunted by howling creatures.

Owls will live among the ruins,

and wild goats will go there to dance.

22Hyenas will howl in its fortresses,

and jackals will make dens in its luxurious palaces.

Babylon’s days are numbered;

its time of destruction will soon arrive.