7 Nebuchadnezzar sent messengers to ask the people of nearby regions and cities to join him in this battle. His messengers went to the Persians and to regions west of Assyria, including Cilicia, Damascus, Lebanon, and Anti-Lebanon. They also went to the people who lived along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea
8 and to those living in the regions of Carmel, Gilead, northern Galilee, and Jezreel Valley.
9 Nebuchadnezzar even asked the people from the city of Samaria and its nearby towns, as well as those from Jerusalem, Bethany, Chelous, Kadesh, and those living as far west as the Nile River. His messengers went all the way to the Egyptian region of Goshen, including the cities of Tahpanhes, Raamses,
10 Tanis, and Memphis, until they reached the border of Ethiopia.
11 But all of these people ignored Nebuchadnezzar's message and refused to be his allies in his battle against Arphaxad. None of them thought Nebuchadnezzar was someone to fear, and so they sent his messengers back, empty-handed and embarrassed.
12 Nebuchadnezzar was so angry that he swore he would give up his entire kingdom, if he did not kill everyone who had refused to help him—all the people of Cilicia, Damascus, Syria, Moab, Ammon, Judea, and Egypt, as far as the coasts of the two seas.
13 In the seventeenth year of his rule, Nebuchadnezzar led his army into battle against Arphaxad. It was a complete victory for Nebuchadnezzar! He defeated all of Arphaxad's troops, including his entire cavalry and all his chariots.