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19 Yes, I will cut you apart, whether you are officials of Judah or Jerusalem, court officials, priests, or common people—for you have broken your oath.

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19 The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials,(A) the priests and all the people of the land who walked between the pieces of the calf,

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Its leaders are like roaring lions
    hunting for their victims.
Its judges are like ravenous wolves at evening time,
    who by dawn have left no trace of their prey.
Its prophets are arrogant liars seeking their own gain.
    Its priests defile the Temple by disobeying God’s instructions.

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Her officials within her
    are roaring lions;(A)
her rulers are evening wolves,(B)
    who leave nothing for the morning.(C)
Her prophets are unprincipled;
    they are treacherous people.(D)
Her priests profane the sanctuary
    and do violence to the law.(E)

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10 The officials and all the people had obeyed the king’s command,

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10 So all the officials and people who entered into this covenant agreed that they would free their male and female slaves and no longer hold them in bondage. They agreed, and set them free.

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Misery Turned to Hope

How miserable I am!
I feel like the fruit picker after the harvest
    who can find nothing to eat.
Not a cluster of grapes or a single early fig
    can be found to satisfy my hunger.
The godly people have all disappeared;
    not one honest person is left on the earth.
They are all murderers,
    setting traps even for their own brothers.
Both their hands are equally skilled at doing evil!
    Officials and judges alike demand bribes.
The people with influence get what they want,
    and together they scheme to twist justice.
Even the best of them is like a brier;
    the most honest is as dangerous as a hedge of thorns.
But your judgment day is coming swiftly now.
    Your time of punishment is here, a time of confusion.
Don’t trust anyone—
    not your best friend or even your wife!

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Israel’s Misery

What misery is mine!
I am like one who gathers summer fruit
    at the gleaning of the vineyard;
there is no cluster of grapes to eat,
    none of the early figs(A) that I crave.
The faithful have been swept from the land;(B)
    not one(C) upright person remains.
Everyone lies in wait(D) to shed blood;(E)
    they hunt each other(F) with nets.(G)
Both hands are skilled in doing evil;(H)
    the ruler demands gifts,
the judge accepts bribes,(I)
    the powerful dictate what they desire—
    they all conspire together.
The best of them is like a brier,(J)
    the most upright worse than a thorn(K) hedge.
The day God visits you has come,
    the day your watchmen sound the alarm.
    Now is the time of your confusion.(L)
Do not trust a neighbor;
    put no confidence in a friend.(M)
Even with the woman who lies in your embrace
    guard the words of your lips.

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12 You have kept your word and done to us and our rulers exactly as you warned. Never has there been such a disaster as happened in Jerusalem.

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12 You have fulfilled(A) the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster.(B) Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like(C) what has been done to Jerusalem.(D)

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We have refused to listen to your servants the prophets, who spoke on your authority to our kings and princes and ancestors and to all the people of the land.

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We have not listened(A) to your servants the prophets,(B) who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors,(C) and to all the people of the land.

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27 Your leaders are like wolves who tear apart their victims. They actually destroy people’s lives for money! 28 And your prophets cover up for them by announcing false visions and making lying predictions. They say, ‘My message is from the Sovereign Lord,’ when the Lord hasn’t spoken a single word to them. 29 Even common people oppress the poor, rob the needy, and deprive foreigners of justice.

30 “I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one. 31 So now I will pour out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my anger. I will heap on their heads the full penalty for all their sins. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”

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27 Her officials(A) within her are like wolves(B) tearing their prey; they shed blood and kill people(C) to make unjust gain.(D) 28 Her prophets whitewash(E) these deeds for them by false visions and lying divinations.(F) They say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says’—when the Lord has not spoken.(G) 29 The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery;(H) they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner,(I) denying them justice.(J)

30 “I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall(K) and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one.(L) 31 So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger,(M) bringing down(N) on their own heads all they have done, declares the Sovereign Lord.(O)

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But Ebed-melech the Ethiopian,[a] an important court official, heard that Jeremiah was in the cistern. At that time the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate,

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Footnotes

  1. 38:7 Hebrew the Cushite.

But Ebed-Melek,(A) a Cushite,[a] an official[b](B) in the royal palace, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern. While the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate,(C)

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 38:7 Probably from the upper Nile region
  2. Jeremiah 38:7 Or a eunuch

This was after King Jehoiachin,[a] the queen mother, the court officials, the other officials of Judah, and all the craftsmen and artisans had been deported from Jerusalem.

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Footnotes

  1. 29:2 Hebrew Jeconiah, a variant spelling of Jehoiachin.

(This was after King Jehoiachin[a](A) and the queen mother,(B) the court officials and the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the skilled workers and the artisans had gone into exile from Jerusalem.)

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 29:2 Hebrew Jeconiah, a variant of Jehoiachin

15 Nebuchadnezzar led King Jehoiachin away as a captive to Babylon, along with the queen mother, his wives and officials, and all Jerusalem’s elite.

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15 Nebuchadnezzar took Jehoiachin(A) captive to Babylon. He also took from Jerusalem to Babylon the king’s mother,(B) his wives, his officials and the prominent people(C) of the land.

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12 Then King Jehoiachin, along with the queen mother, his advisers, his commanders, and his officials, surrendered to the Babylonians.

In the eighth year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, he took Jehoiachin prisoner.

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12 Jehoiachin king of Judah, his mother, his attendants, his nobles and his officials all surrendered(A) to him.

In the eighth year of the reign of the king of Babylon, he took Jehoiachin prisoner.

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O Lord, we and our kings, princes, and ancestors are covered with shame because we have sinned against you.

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We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you.(A)

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