The command is given once again for the invading force to Go up against the land of Merathaim, and against the inhabitants of Pekod.
Both Merathaim and Pekod are used as nicknames for the whole nation of Babylon. Both names are a play on words. The root word for Merathaim
is mrh
and it means to rebel
and the form of the word has a double meaning, land of double rebellion,
or rebel of rebels.
The Hebrew root for Pekod
is pqd
and means to punish,
or land of doom.
Babylon is therefore described as a land of complete rebellion and doom.1
21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim, and against the inhabitants of Pekod. Kill, and devote them to destruction,declares the LORD, and do all that I have commanded you.