“You shall say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“Do people (A)fall and not get up?
Does one turn away and not [a]repent?
Why has this people, Jerusalem,
(B)Turned away in continual apostasy?
They (C)hold on to deceit,
They (D)refuse to return.
I (E)have listened and heard,
They have spoken what is not right;
(F)No one repented of his wickedness,
Saying, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone turned to his own course,
Like a (G)horse charging into the battle.
Even the stork in the sky
(H)Knows her seasons;
And the (I)turtledove, the swallow, and the crane
Keep to the time of their [b]migration;
But (J)My people do not know
The judgment of the Lord.

(K)How can you say, ‘We are wise,
And the Law of the Lord is with us’?
But behold, the lying pen of the scribes
Has made it into a lie.
The wise men are (L)put to shame,
They are dismayed and caught;
Behold, they have (M)rejected the word of the Lord,
So what kind of wisdom do they have?
10 Therefore I will (N)give their wives to others,
Their fields to new owners;
Because from the least even to the greatest
Everyone is (O)greedy for gain;
From the prophet even to the priest,
Everyone practices deceit.
11 They have (P)healed the brokenness of the daughter of My people superficially,
Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
But there is no peace.
12 Were they (Q)ashamed because of the abomination they had done?
They were not ashamed at all,
And they did not know how to be ashamed;
Therefore they will (R)fall among those who fall;
At the (S)time of their punishment they will collapse,”
Says the Lord.

13 “I will (T)certainly snatch them away,” declares the Lord.
“There will be (U)no grapes on the vine
And (V)no figs on the fig tree,
And the leaf will wither;
And what I have given them will pass away.”’”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 8:4 Lit turn back
  2. Jeremiah 8:7 Lit coming

Sin and Punishment

“Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘When people fall down, do they not get up?(A)
    When someone turns away,(B) do they not return?
Why then have these people turned away?
    Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;(C)
    they refuse to return.(D)
I have listened(E) attentively,
    but they do not say what is right.
None of them repent(F) of their wickedness,
    saying, “What have I done?”
Each pursues their own course(G)
    like a horse charging into battle.
Even the stork in the sky
    knows her appointed seasons,
and the dove, the swift and the thrush
    observe the time of their migration.
But my people do not know(H)
    the requirements of the Lord.

“‘How can you say, “We are wise,
    for we have the law(I) of the Lord,”
when actually the lying pen of the scribes
    has handled it falsely?
The wise(J) will be put to shame;
    they will be dismayed(K) and trapped.(L)
Since they have rejected the word(M) of the Lord,
    what kind of wisdom(N) do they have?
10 Therefore I will give their wives to other men
    and their fields to new owners.(O)
From the least to the greatest,
    all are greedy for gain;(P)
prophets(Q) and priests alike,
    all practice deceit.(R)
11 They dress the wound of my people
    as though it were not serious.
“Peace, peace,” they say,
    when there is no peace.(S)
12 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?
    No, they have no shame(T) at all;
    they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
    they will be brought down when they are punished,(U)
says the Lord.(V)

13 “‘I will take away their harvest,
declares the Lord.
    There will be no grapes on the vine.(W)
There will be no figs(X) on the tree,
    and their leaves will wither.(Y)
What I have given them
    will be taken(Z) from them.[a]’”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain.