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Jeremiah 2:4-19
New King James Version
Jeremiah 2:4-19
New King James Version
4 Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob and all the families of the house of Israel. 5 Thus says the Lord:
(A)“What injustice have your fathers found in Me,
That they have gone far from Me,
(B)Have followed [a]idols,
And have become idolaters?
6 Neither did they say, ‘Where is the Lord,
Who (C)brought us up out of the land of Egypt,
Who led us through (D)the wilderness,
Through a land of deserts and pits,
Through a land of drought and the shadow of death,
Through a land that no one crossed
And where no one dwelt?’
7 I brought you into (E)a bountiful country,
To eat its fruit and its goodness.
But when you entered, you (F)defiled My land
And made My heritage an abomination.
8 The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’
And those who handle the (G)law did not know Me;
The rulers also transgressed against Me;
(H)The prophets prophesied by Baal,
And walked after things that do not profit.
9 “Therefore (I)I will yet [b]bring charges against you,” says the Lord,
“And against your children’s children I will bring charges.
10 For pass beyond the coasts of [c]Cyprus and see,
Send to [d]Kedar and consider diligently,
And see if there has been such a (J)thing.
11 (K)Has a nation changed its gods,
Which are (L)not gods?
(M)But My people have changed their Glory
For what does not profit.
12 Be astonished, O heavens, at this,
And be horribly afraid;
Be very desolate,” says the Lord.
13 “For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me, the (N)fountain of living waters,
And hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water.
14 “Is Israel (O)a servant?
Is he a homeborn slave?
Why is he plundered?
15 (P)The young lions roared at him, and growled;
They made his land waste;
His cities are burned, without inhabitant.
16 Also the people of [e]Noph and (Q)Tahpanhes
Have [f]broken the crown of your head.
17 (R)Have you not brought this on yourself,
In that you have forsaken the Lord your God
When (S)He led you in the way?
18 And now why take (T)the road to Egypt,
To drink the waters of (U)Sihor?
Or why take the road to (V)Assyria,
To drink the waters of [g]the River?
19 Your own wickedness will (W)correct you,
And your backslidings will rebuke you.
Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing
That you have forsaken the Lord your God,
And the [h]fear of Me is not in you,”
Says the Lord God of hosts.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 2:5 vanities or futilities
- Jeremiah 2:9 contend with
- Jeremiah 2:10 Heb. Kittim, representative of western cultures
- Jeremiah 2:10 In northern Arabian desert, representative of eastern cultures
- Jeremiah 2:16 Memphis in ancient Egypt
- Jeremiah 2:16 Or grazed
- Jeremiah 2:18 The Euphrates
- Jeremiah 2:19 dread
Jeremiah 2:4-19
New International Version
Jeremiah 2:4-19
New International Version
4 Hear the word of the Lord, you descendants of Jacob,
all you clans of Israel.
5 This is what the Lord says:
“What fault did your ancestors find in me,
that they strayed so far from me?
They followed worthless idols(A)
and became worthless(B) themselves.
6 They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord,
who brought us up out of Egypt(C)
and led us through the barren wilderness,
through a land of deserts(D) and ravines,(E)
a land of drought and utter darkness,
a land where no one travels(F) and no one lives?’
7 I brought you into a fertile land
to eat its fruit and rich produce.(G)
But you came and defiled my land
and made my inheritance detestable.(H)
8 The priests did not ask,
‘Where is the Lord?’
Those who deal with the law did not know me;(I)
the leaders(J) rebelled against me.
The prophets prophesied by Baal,(K)
following worthless idols.(L)
9 “Therefore I bring charges(M) against you again,”
declares the Lord.
“And I will bring charges against your children’s children.
10 Cross over to the coasts of Cyprus(N) and look,
send to Kedar[a](O) and observe closely;
see if there has ever been anything like this:
11 Has a nation ever changed its gods?
(Yet they are not gods(P) at all.)
But my people have exchanged their glorious(Q) God
for worthless idols.
12 Be appalled at this, you heavens,
and shudder with great horror,”
declares the Lord.
13 “My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken(R) me,
the spring of living water,(S)
and have dug their own cisterns,
broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
14 Is Israel a servant, a slave(T) by birth?
Why then has he become plunder?
15 Lions(U) have roared;
they have growled at him.
They have laid waste(V) his land;
his towns are burned(W) and deserted.(X)
16 Also, the men of Memphis(Y) and Tahpanhes(Z)
have cracked your skull.
17 Have you not brought this on yourselves(AA)
by forsaking(AB) the Lord your God
when he led you in the way?
18 Now why go to Egypt(AC)
to drink water from the Nile[b]?(AD)
And why go to Assyria(AE)
to drink water from the Euphrates?(AF)
19 Your wickedness will punish you;
your backsliding(AG) will rebuke(AH) you.
Consider then and realize
how evil and bitter(AI) it is for you
when you forsake(AJ) the Lord your God
and have no awe(AK) of me,”
declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 2:10 In the Syro-Arabian desert
- Jeremiah 2:18 Hebrew Shihor; that is, a branch of the Nile
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.