Jeremiah 5:20-6:30

New American Standard Bible

²⁰“Declare this in the house of Jacob
And proclaim it in Judah, saying,
²¹‘Now hear this, you foolish and ^[a]senseless people,
Who have ^(A)eyes but do not see,
Who have ears but do not hear.
²²Do you not ^(B)fear Me?’ declares the Lord.
‘Do you not tremble in My presence?
For I have ^(C)placed the sand as a boundary for the sea,
An eternal limit, and it will not cross over it.
Though the waves toss, they cannot prevail;
Though they roar, they will not cross over it.
²³But this people has a ^(D)stubborn and rebellious heart;
They have turned aside and departed.
²⁴They do not say in their heart,
“Let us now fear the Lord our God,
Who ^(E)gives rain in its season,
Both ^(F)the autumn rain and the spring rain,
Who keeps for us
The ^(G)appointed weeks of the harvest.”
²⁵Your ^(H)wrongdoings have turned these away,
And your sins have kept good away from you.
²⁶For wicked people are found among My people,
They ^(I)watch like fowlers ^[b]lying in wait;
They set a trap,
They catch people.
²⁷Like a cage full of birds,
So their houses are full of ^(J)deceit;
Therefore they have become great and rich.
²⁸They are ^(K)fat, they are sleek,
They also ^[c]excel in deeds of wickedness;
They do not plead the cause,
The cause of the ^[d]^(L)orphan, so that they may be successful;
And they do not ^[e]defend the rights of the poor.
²⁹^(M)Shall I not punish them for these things?’ declares the Lord,
‘Or shall I not avenge Myself
On a nation such as this?’

³⁰“An appalling and ^(N)horrible thing
Has happened in the land:
³¹The ^(O)prophets prophesy falsely,
And the priests rule ^[f]on their own authority;
And My people ^(P)love it this way!
But what will you do ^[g]when the end comes?

The Coming Destruction of Jerusalem

6 “Flee to safety, you sons of ^(Q)Benjamin,
From the midst of Jerusalem!
Blow a trumpet in Tekoa
And raise a warning signal over ^[h]^(R)Beth-haccerem;
For evil looks down from the ^(S)north,
Along with a great destruction.
²The beautiful and ^(T)delicate one, ^(U)the daughter of Zion, I will destroy.
³^(V)Shepherds and their flocks will come to her,
They will ^(W)pitch their tents ^[i]around her,
They will pasture, each in his ^[j]place.
⁴‘^[k]^(X)Prepare for war against her;
Arise, and let’s ^[l]attack at ^(Y)noon.
Woe to us, for the day declines,
For the shadows of the evening lengthen!
⁵Arise, and let’s ^[m]attack by night
And ^(Z)destroy her ^[n]palaces!’”
⁶For this is what the Lord of armies says:
“^(AA)Cut down her trees
And pile up an ^(AB)assault ramp against Jerusalem.
This is the city to be punished,
In whose midst there is only ^(AC)oppression.
⁷^(AD)As a well ^[o]keeps its waters fresh,
So she ^[p]keeps fresh her wickedness.
^(AE)Violence and destruction are heard in her;
^(AF)Sickness and wounds are constantly before Me.
⁸^(AG)Be warned, Jerusalem,
Or ^[q]^(AH)I shall be alienated from you,
And make you a desolation,
An uninhabited land.”

⁹This is what the Lord of armies says:
“They will ^(AI)thoroughly glean the ^(AJ)remnant of Israel like the vine;
Pass your hand over the branches again
Like a grape gatherer.”
¹⁰To whom shall I speak and give warning,
That they may hear?
Behold, their ^(AK)ears are ^[r]closed
And they cannot listen.
Behold, ^(AL)the word of the Lord has become for them a rebuke;
They take no delight in it.
¹¹But I am ^(AM)full of the wrath of the Lord;
I am ^(AN)weary of holding it in.
“^(AO)Pour it out on the children in the street
And on the ^[s]gathering of young men together;
For both husband and wife shall be taken,
The old ^[t]and the very old.
¹²Their ^(AP)houses shall be turned over to others,
Their fields and their wives together;
For I will ^(AQ)stretch out My hand
Against the inhabitants of the land,” declares the Lord.
¹³“For ^(AR)from the least of them to the greatest of them,
Everyone is ^(AS)greedy for gain,
And from the prophet to the priest
Everyone deals falsely.
¹⁴They have ^(AT)healed the brokenness of My people superficially,
Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
But there is no peace.
¹⁵Were they ^(AU)ashamed because of the abomination they had done?
They were not ashamed at all,
Nor did they know even how to be ashamed.
Therefore they will fall among those who fall;
At the time that I punish them,
They will collapse,” says the Lord.

¹⁶This is what the Lord says:
“Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ^(AV)ancient paths,
Where the good way is, and walk in it;
Then ^(AW)you will find a resting place for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
¹⁷And I set ^(AX)watchmen over you, saying,
‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’
But they said, ‘We will not listen.’
¹⁸Therefore hear, you nations,
And know, you congregation, what is among them.
¹⁹^(AY)Hear, earth: behold, I am bringing disaster on this people,
The ^(AZ)fruit of their ^[u]plans,
Because they have not listened to My words,
And as for My Law, they have ^(BA)rejected it also.
²⁰^(BB)For what purpose does ^(BC)frankincense come to Me from Sheba,
And the ^[v]^(BD)sweet cane from a distant land?
^(BE)Your burnt offerings are not acceptable
And your sacrifices are not pleasing to Me.”
²¹Therefore, this is what the Lord says:
“Behold, ^(BF)I am ^[w]placing stumbling blocks before this people.
And they will stumble against them,
^(BG)Fathers and sons together;
Neighbor and ^[x]friend will perish.”

The Enemy from the North

²²This is what the Lord says:
“Behold, there is ^(BH)a people coming from the north land,
And a great nation will be stirred up from the ^(BI)remote parts of the earth.
²³They seize ^(BJ)bow and spear;
They are ^(BK)cruel and have no mercy;
Their voice ^(BL)roars like the sea,
And they ride on horses,
Lined up as a man for the battle
Against you, daughter of Zion!”
²⁴We have ^(BM)heard the report of it;
Our hands are limp.
^(BN)Anguish has seized us,
Pain like that of a woman in childbirth.
²⁵^(BO)Do not go out into the field,
And ^(BP)do not walk on the road;
For the enemy has a sword,
^(BQ)Terror is on every side.
²⁶Daughter of my people, ^(BR)put on sackcloth
And ^(BS)roll in ashes;
^[y]^(BT)Mourn as for an only son,
A most bitter mourning.
For suddenly the destroyer
Will come against us.

²⁷“I have ^(BU)made you an assayer and an examiner among My people,
So that you may know and put their way to the test.”
²⁸All of them are stubbornly rebellious,
^(BV)Going about as a slanderer;
They are ^(BW)bronze and iron.
They are, all of them, corrupt.
²⁹The bellows blow fiercely,
The lead is consumed by the fire;
In vain the refining goes on,
But the ^(BX)wicked are not ^[z]separated.
³⁰^(BY)They call them rejected silver,
Because the ^(BZ)Lord has rejected them.

Footnotes

Jeremiah 5:21 Lit without heart
Jeremiah 5:26 Perhaps, crouching down
Jeremiah 5:28 Lit pass over; or overlook deeds
Jeremiah 5:28 Or fatherless
Jeremiah 5:28 Lit judge
Jeremiah 5:31 Lit over their own hands
Jeremiah 5:31 Lit at the end of it
Jeremiah 6:1 I.e., house of the vineyard
Jeremiah 6:3 Lit against her round about
Jeremiah 6:3 Lit hand
Jeremiah 6:4 Lit Sanctify war
Jeremiah 6:4 Lit go up
Jeremiah 6:5 Lit go up
Jeremiah 6:5 Or fortified towers
Jeremiah 6:7 Lit keeps cold
Jeremiah 6:7 Lit keeps cold
Jeremiah 6:8 Lit my soul
Jeremiah 6:10 Lit uncircumcised
Jeremiah 6:11 Lit council
Jeremiah 6:11 Lit with fullness of days
Jeremiah 6:19 Or devices
Jeremiah 6:20 Lit good
Jeremiah 6:21 Lit giving
Jeremiah 6:21 Lit his friend
Jeremiah 6:26 Lit Make for yourself mourning
Jeremiah 6:29 Or drawn off

2 Kings 22:3-20

New American Standard Bible

³Now ^(A)in the eighteenth year of King Josiah, the king sent Shaphan, the son of Azaliah the son of Meshullam the scribe, to the house of the Lord, saying, ⁴“^(B)Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, and have him ^[a]count all the money brought into the house of the Lord, which the doorkeepers have collected from the people. ⁵^(C)And have them hand it over to the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the Lord, and have them give it to the workmen who are in the house of the Lord to repair the ^[b]damage to the house: ⁶to the carpenters, the builders, the masons, and for buying timber and cut stone to repair the house. ⁷However, ^(D)no accounting shall be made with them for the money handed over to them, because they deal honestly.”

The Lost Book

⁸Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “^(E)I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it. ⁹Then Shaphan the scribe came to the king and brought back word to the king and said, “Your servants have emptied out the money that was found in the house, and have handed it over to the workmen who have the oversight of the house of the Lord.” ¹⁰Moreover, Shaphan the scribe informed the king, saying, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read it in the presence of the king.

¹¹When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, ^(F)he tore his clothes. ¹²Then the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, ^(G)Ahikam the son of Shaphan, ^[c]^(H)Achbor the son of Micaiah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, ¹³“Go, inquire of the Lord for me and for the people and all Judah concerning the words of this book that has been found, for ^(I)the wrath of the Lord that burns against us is great, because our fathers did not listen to the words of this book, to act in accordance with everything that is written regarding us.”

Huldah Predicts

¹⁴So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of ^[d]^(J)Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe (and she lived in Jerusalem in the ^(K)Second Quarter); and they spoke to her. ¹⁵Then she said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘Tell the man who sent you to Me, ¹⁶“This is what the Lord says: ‘Behold, I am going to ^(L)bring disaster on this place and on its inhabitants, all the words of the book which the king of Judah has read. ¹⁷^(M)Since they have abandoned Me and have burned incense to other gods so that they may provoke Me to anger with all the work of their hands, My wrath burns against this place, and it shall not be quenched.’” ¹⁸But to ^(N)the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of the Lord, this is what you shall say to him: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘Regarding the words which you have heard, ¹⁹^(O)since your heart was tender and ^(P)you humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they would become ^(Q)an object of horror and a ^(R)curse, and you have ^(S)torn your clothes and wept before Me, I have indeed heard you,’ declares the Lord.” ²⁰Therefore, behold, I am going to gather you to your fathers, and ^(T)you will be gathered to your grave in peace, and your eyes will not look at all the devastation that I am going to bring on this place.’” So they brought back word to the king.

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Footnotes

2 Kings 22:4 Or total
2 Kings 22:5 Lit breach
2 Kings 22:12 In 2 Chr 34:20, Abdon, son of Micah
2 Kings 22:14 In 2 Chr 34:22, Tokhath, son of Hasrah

2 Chronicles 34:8-28

New American Standard Bible

Josiah Repairs the Temple

⁸^(A)Now in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, Maaseiah ^(B)an official of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz the secretary, to repair the house of the Lord his God. ⁹They came to ^(C)Hilkiah the high priest and gave him the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the ^[a]doorkeepers, had collected ^[b]from ^(D)Manasseh and Ephraim, and from all the remnant of Israel, from all Judah and Benjamin and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ¹⁰Then they handed it over to the workmen who had the oversight of the house of the Lord, and the workmen who were working in the house of the Lord ^[c]used it to restore and repair the house. ¹¹They in turn gave it to the carpenters and the builders to buy quarried stone and timber for couplings, and to make beams for the houses ^(E)which the kings of Judah had let go to ruin. ¹²^(F)The men did the work faithfully with foremen over them to supervise: Jahath and Obadiah, the Levites of the sons of Merari, Zechariah and Meshullam of the sons of the Kohathites, and ^(G)the Levites, all who were skillful with musical instruments. ¹³They were also in charge of ^(H)the burden bearers, and supervised all the workmen from job to job; and some of the Levites were scribes, and officials, and gatekeepers.

Hilkiah Discovers the Lost Book of the Law

¹⁴When they were bringing out the money which had been brought into the house of the Lord, ^(I)Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the Lord given by Moses. ¹⁵Hilkiah responded and said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the Lord.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan. ¹⁶Then Shaphan brought the book to the king and ^[d]reported further word to the king, saying, “Everything that was ^[e]entrusted to your servants, they are doing. ¹⁷They have also emptied out the money which was found in the house of the Lord, and have handed it over to the supervisors and the workmen.” ¹⁸Moreover, Shaphan the scribe informed the king, saying, “Hilkiah the priest gave me a book.” And Shaphan read from it in the presence of the king.

¹⁹When the king heard ^(J)the words of the Law, ^(K)he tore his clothes. ²⁰Then the king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, ^[f]Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, ²¹“Go, inquire of the Lord for me and for those who are left in Israel and Judah, concerning the words of the book which has been found; for ^(L)the wrath of the Lord which has poured out on us is great, because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord, to act in accordance with everything that is written in this book.”

Huldah, the Prophetess, Speaks

²²So Hilkiah and those ^[g]whom the king had told went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of ^[h]Tokhath, the son of Hasrah, the keeper of the wardrobe (she lived in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter); and they spoke to her regarding this. ²³Then she said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘Tell the man who sent you to Me, ²⁴this is what the Lord says: “Behold, ^(M)I am bringing ^[i]evil on this place and on its inhabitants, all ^(N)the curses written in the book which they have read in the presence of the king of Judah. ²⁵^(O)Since they have abandoned Me and have burned incense to other gods, so that they may provoke Me to anger with all the works of their hands, My wrath will be poured out on this place and it will not be quenched.”’ ²⁶But to the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of the Lord, this is what you shall say to him: ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: In regard to the words which you have heard, ²⁷“^(P)Because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and its inhabitants, and because you humbled yourself before Me, tore your clothes, and wept before Me, I have indeed heard you,” declares the Lord. ²⁸“Behold, I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be gathered to your grave in peace, so your eyes will not see all the evil which I am bringing on this place and its inhabitants.”’” And they brought back word to the king.