The Broken Covenant

11 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, ² “Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem; ³ and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ^(A)“Cursed is the man who does not obey the words of this covenant ⁴ which I commanded your fathers in the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt, ^(B)from the iron furnace, saying, ^(C)‘Obey My voice, and do according to all that I command you; so shall you be My people, and I will be your God,’ ⁵ that I may establish the ^(D)oath which I have sworn to your fathers, to give them ^(E)‘a land flowing with milk and honey,’ as it is this day.” ’ ”

And I answered and said, ^[a]“So be it, Lord.”

⁶ Then the Lord said to me, “Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: ‘Hear the words of this covenant ^(F)and do them. ⁷ For I earnestly exhorted your fathers in the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, until this day, ^(G)rising early and exhorting, saying, “Obey My voice.” ^8 (H)Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but ^(I)everyone ^[b]followed the dictates of his evil heart; therefore I will bring upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but which they have not done.’ ”

⁹ And the Lord said to me, ^(J)“A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ¹⁰ They have turned back to ^(K)the iniquities of their forefathers who refused to hear My words, and they have gone after other gods to serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers.”

¹¹ Therefore thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will surely bring calamity on them which they will not be able to ^[c]escape; and ^(L)though they cry out to Me, I will not listen to them. ¹² Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and ^(M)cry out to the gods to whom they offer incense, but they will not save them at all in the time of their trouble. ¹³ For according to the number of your ^(N)cities were your gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem you have set up altars to that shameful thing, altars to burn incense to Baal.

¹⁴ “So ^(O)do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble.

¹⁷ “For the Lord of hosts, ^(U)who planted you, has pronounced doom against you for the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done against themselves to provoke Me to anger in offering incense to Baal.”

Jeremiah’s Life Threatened

¹⁸ Now the Lord gave me knowledge of it, and I know it; for You showed me their doings. ¹⁹ But I was like a docile lamb brought to the slaughter; and I did not know that they had devised schemes against me, saying, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, ^(V)and let us cut him off from ^(W)the land of the living, that his name may be remembered no more.”

²¹ “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the men of ^(Z)Anathoth who seek your life, saying, ^(AA)‘Do not prophesy in the name of the Lord, lest you die by our hand’— ²² therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Behold, I will punish them. The young men shall die by the sword, their sons and their daughters shall ^(AB)die by famine; ²³ and there shall be no remnant of them, for I will bring catastrophe on the men of Anathoth, even ^(AC)the year of their punishment.’ ”

The Rebellions of Israel

20 It came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that ^(A)certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the Lord, and sat before me. ² Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ³ “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Have you come to inquire of Me? As I live,” says the Lord God, ^(B)“I will not be inquired of by you.” ’ ⁴ Will you judge them, son of man, will you judge them? Then ^(C)make known to them the abominations of their fathers.

⁵ “Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “On the day when ^(D)I chose Israel and raised My hand in an oath to the descendants of the house of Jacob, and made Myself ^(E)known to them in the land of Egypt, I raised My hand in an oath to them, saying, ^(F)‘I am the Lord your God.’ ⁶ On that day I raised My hand in an oath to them, ^(G)to bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, ^(H)‘flowing with milk and honey,’ ^(I)the glory of all lands. ⁷ Then I said to them, ‘Each of you, ^(J)throw away ^(K)the abominations which are before his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with ^(L)the idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’ ⁸ But they rebelled against Me and would not ^[a]obey Me. They did not all cast away the abominations which were before their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, ‘I will ^(M)pour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.’ ^9 (N)But I acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles among whom they were, in whose sight I had made Myself ^(O)known to them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt.

¹⁰ “Therefore I ^(P)made them go out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. ^11 (Q)And I gave them My statutes and ^[b]showed them My judgments, ^(R)‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them.’ ¹² Moreover I also gave them My ^(S)Sabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them. ¹³ Yet the house of Israel ^(T)rebelled against Me in the wilderness; they did not walk in My statutes; they ^(U)despised My judgments, ^(V)‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them’; and they greatly ^(W)defiled My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My fury on them in the ^(X)wilderness, to consume them. ^14 (Y)But I acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles, in whose sight I had brought them out. ¹⁵ So ^(Z)I also raised My hand in an oath to them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, ^(AA)‘flowing with milk and honey,’ ^(AB)the glory of all lands, ^16 (AC)because they despised My judgments and did not walk in My statutes, but profaned My Sabbaths; for ^(AD)their heart went after their idols. ^17 (AE)Nevertheless My eye spared them from destruction. I did not make an end of them in the wilderness.

¹⁸ “But I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols. ¹⁹ I am the Lord your God: ^(AF)Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments, and do them; ^20 (AG)hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God.’

²¹ “Notwithstanding, ^(AH)the children rebelled against Me; they did not walk in My statutes, and were not careful to observe My judgments, ^(AI)‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them’; but they profaned My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the wilderness. ²² Nevertheless I ^[c]withdrew My hand and acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the Gentiles, in whose sight I had brought them out. ²³ Also I raised My hand in an oath to those in the wilderness, that ^(AJ)I would scatter them among the Gentiles and disperse them throughout the countries, ^24 (AK)because they had not executed My judgments, but had despised My statutes, profaned My Sabbaths, and ^(AL)their eyes were fixed on their fathers’ idols.

²⁵ “Therefore ^(AM)I also gave them up to statutes that were not good, and judgments by which they could not live; ²⁶ and I pronounced them unclean because of their ritual gifts, in that they caused all ^[d]their firstborn to pass ^(AN)through the fire, that I might make them desolate and that they ^(AO)might know that I am the Lord.” ’

²⁷ “Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “In this too your fathers have ^(AP)blasphemed Me, by being unfaithful to Me. ²⁸ When I brought them into the land concerning which I had raised My hand in an oath to give them, and ^(AQ)they saw all the high hills and all the thick trees, there they offered their sacrifices and provoked Me with their offerings. There they also sent up their ^(AR)sweet aroma and poured out their drink offerings. ²⁹ Then I said to them, ‘What is this ^[e]high place to which you go?’ So its name is called ^[f]Bamah to this day.” ’ ³⁰ Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Are you defiling yourselves in the manner of your ^(AS)fathers, and committing harlotry according to their ^(AT)abominations? ³¹ For when you offer ^(AU)your gifts and make your sons pass through the fire, you defile yourselves with all your idols, even to this day. So shall I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live,” says the Lord God, “I will ^(AV)not be inquired of by you. ^32 (AW)What you have in your mind shall never be, when you say, ‘We will be like the Gentiles, like the families in other countries, serving wood and stone.’

God Will Restore Israel

³³ “As I live,” says the Lord God, “surely with a mighty hand, ^(AX)with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out, I will rule over you. ³⁴ I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you are scattered, with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out. ³⁵ And I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there ^(AY)I will plead My case with you face to face. ^36 (AZ)Just as I pleaded My case with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will plead My case with you,” says the Lord God.

³⁷ “I will make you ^(BA)pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the ^(BB)covenant; ^38 (BC)I will purge the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the country where they dwell, but ^(BD)they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

³⁹ “As for you, O house of Israel,” thus says the Lord God: ^(BE)“Go, serve every one of you his idols—and hereafter—if you will not obey Me; ^(BF)but profane My holy name no more with your gifts and your idols. ⁴⁰ For ^(BG)on My holy mountain, on the mountain height of Israel,” says the Lord God, “there ^(BH)all the house of Israel, all of them in the land, shall serve Me; there ^(BI)I will accept them, and there I will require your offerings and the firstfruits of your ^[g]sacrifices, together with all your holy things. ⁴¹ I will accept you as a ^(BJ)sweet aroma when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you have been scattered; and I will be hallowed in you before the Gentiles. ^42 (BK)Then you shall know that I am the Lord, ^(BL)when I bring you into the land of Israel, into the country for which I raised My hand in an oath to give to your fathers. ⁴³ And ^(BM)there you shall remember your ways and all your doings with which you were defiled; and ^(BN)you shall ^[h]loathe yourselves in your own sight because of all the evils that you have committed. ^44 (BO)Then you shall know that I am the Lord, when I have dealt with you ^(BP)for My name’s sake, not according to your wicked ways nor according to your corrupt doings, O house of Israel,” says the Lord God.’ ”

Fire in the Forest

⁴⁵ Furthermore the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ^46 (BQ)“Son of man, set your face toward the south; ^[i]preach against the south and prophesy against the forest land, the ^[j]South, ⁴⁷ and say to the forest of the South, ‘Hear the word of the Lord! Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, ^(BR)I will kindle a fire in you, and it shall devour ^(BS)every green tree and every dry tree in you; the blazing flame shall not be quenched, and all faces ^(BT)from the south to the north shall be scorched by it. ⁴⁸ All flesh shall see that I, the Lord, have kindled it; it shall not be quenched.” ’ ”

⁴⁹ Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! They say of me, ‘Does he not speak ^(BU)parables?’ ”

The Triumphal Entry^(A)

21 Now ^(B)when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to ^[a]Bethphage, at ^(C)the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, ² saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. ³ And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”

^4 [b]All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:

^6 (E)So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. ⁷ They brought the donkey and the colt, ^(F)laid their clothes on them, ^[c]and set Him on them. ⁸ And a very great multitude spread their clothes on the road; ^(G)others cut down branches from the trees and spread them on the road. ⁹ Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying:

^10 (I)And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?”

¹¹ So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, ^(J)the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee.”

Jesus Cleanses the Temple^(K)

^12 (L)Then Jesus went into the temple ^[d]of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the ^(M)money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. ¹³ And He said to them, “It is written, ^(N)‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ^(O)‘den of thieves.’ ”

¹⁴ Then the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them. ¹⁵ But when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that He did, and the children crying out in the temple and saying, “Hosanna to the ^(P)Son of David!” they were ^[e]indignant ¹⁶ and said to Him, “Do You hear what these are saying?”

And Jesus said to them, “Yes. Have you never read,

¹⁷ Then He left them and ^(R)went out of the city to Bethany, and He lodged there.

The Fig Tree Withered^(S)

^18 (T)Now in the morning, as He returned to the city, He was hungry. ^19 (U)And seeing a fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it but leaves, and said to it, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Immediately the fig tree withered away.

The Lesson of the Withered Fig Tree^(V)

^20 (W)And when the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither away so soon?”

²¹ So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, ^(X)if you have faith and ^(Y)do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, ^(Z)but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. ²² And ^(AA)whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

Jesus’ Authority Questioned^(AB)

^23 (AC)Now when He came into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people confronted Him as He was teaching, and ^(AD)said, “By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority?”

²⁴ But Jesus answered and said to them, “I also will ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things: ²⁵ The ^(AE)baptism of ^(AF)John—where was it from? From heaven or from men?”

And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ He will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ ²⁶ But if we say, ‘From men,’ we ^(AG)fear the multitude, ^(AH)for all count John as a prophet.” ²⁷ So they answered Jesus and said, “We do not know.”

And He said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

The Parable of the Two Sons

²⁸ “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go, work today in my ^(AI)vineyard.’ ²⁹ He answered and said, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he regretted it and went. ³⁰ Then he came to the second and said likewise. And he answered and said, ‘I go, sir,’ but he did not go. ³¹ Which of the two did the will of his father?”

They said to Him, “The first.”

Jesus said to them, ^(AJ)“Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and harlots enter the kingdom of God before you. ³² For ^(AK)John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him; ^(AL)but tax collectors and harlots believed him; and when you saw it, you did not afterward ^[f]relent and believe him.

The Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers^(AM)

³³ “Hear another parable: There was a certain landowner ^(AN)who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and ^(AO)went into a far country. ³⁴ Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. ^35 (AP)And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. ³⁶ Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them. ³⁷ Then last of all he sent his ^(AQ)son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ³⁸ But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, ^(AR)‘This is the heir. ^(AS)Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ ^39 (AT)So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.

⁴⁰ “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?”

^41 (AU)They said to Him, ^(AV)“He will destroy those wicked men miserably, ^(AW)and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will ^[g]render to him the fruits in their seasons.”

⁴² Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures:

⁴³ “Therefore I say to you, ^(AY)the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. ⁴⁴ And ^(AZ)whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, ^(BA)it will grind him to powder.”

⁴⁵ Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they ^[h]perceived that He was speaking of them. ⁴⁶ But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they ^(BB)feared the multitudes, because ^(BC)they took Him for a prophet.

Repent or Perish

13 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had ^[a]mingled with their sacrifices. ² And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? ³ I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. ⁴ Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? ⁵ I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”

The Parable of the Barren Fig Tree

⁶ He also spoke this parable: ^(A)“A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. ⁷ Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it ^[b]use up the ground?’ ⁸ But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. ^9 [c]And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can ^(B)cut it down.’ ”

A Spirit of Infirmity

¹⁰ Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. ¹¹ And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way ^[d]raise herself up. ¹² But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your ^(C)infirmity.” ^13 (D)And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

¹⁴ But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had ^(E)healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, ^(F)“There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and ^(G)not on the Sabbath day.”

¹⁵ The Lord then answered him and said, ^[e]“Hypocrite! ^(H)Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? ¹⁶ So ought not this woman, ^(I)being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound—think of it—for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?” ¹⁷ And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were ^(J)done by Him.

The Parable of the Mustard Seed^(K)

^18 (L)Then He said, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? ¹⁹ It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a ^[f]large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”

The Parable of the Leaven^(M)

²⁰ And again He said, “To what shall I liken the kingdom of God? ²¹ It is like ^[g]leaven, which a woman took and hid in three ^(N)measures^[h] of meal till it was all leavened.”

The Narrow Way^(O)

^22 (P)And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. ²³ Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there ^(Q)few who are saved?”

And He said to them, ^24 (R)“Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for ^(S)many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. ^25 (T)When once the Master of the house has risen up and ^(U)shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ^(V)‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ^(W)‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ ²⁶ then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ ^27 (X)But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. ^(Y)Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ ^28 (Z)There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, ^(AA)when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. ²⁹ They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. ^30 (AB)And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.”

^31 [i]On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, “Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You.”

³² And He said to them, “Go, tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day ^(AC)I shall be ^[j]perfected.’ ³³ Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem.

Jesus Laments over Jerusalem^(AD)

^34 (AE)“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing! ³⁵ See! ^(AF)Your house is left to you desolate; and ^[k]assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, ^(AG)‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”