Charles Ellicott Commentary Jeremiah 51:55

"For Jehovah layeth Babylon waste, and destroyeth out of her the great voice; and their waves roar like many waters; the noise of their voice is uttered:" — Jeremiah 51:55 (ASV)

Because the Lord hath spoiled Babylon ... — In Jeremiah 51:54 the prophet hears the cry of the captured city. The great voice which Jehovah “destroys” or “makes to cease” is the stir and tumult of life that surged, as it were, through the city (Isaiah 18:12-13). The waves are those of the sea of the legions of her conqueror , and they roar while the voices that were heard before are hushed in the silence of death.