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Jeremiah 3-5
English Standard Version
Jeremiah 3-5
English Standard Version
3 (A)“If[a] a man divorces his wife
and she goes from him
and becomes another man's wife,
will he return to her?
(B)Would not that land be greatly polluted?
(C)You have played the whore with many lovers;
and would you return to me?
declares the Lord.
2 Lift up your eyes to (D)the bare heights, and see!
Where have you not been ravished?
(E)By the waysides you have sat awaiting lovers
like an Arab in the wilderness.
(F)You have polluted the land
with your vile whoredom.
3 (G)Therefore the showers have been withheld,
and the spring rain has not come;
yet you have (H)the forehead of a whore;
you refuse to be ashamed.
4 Have you not just now (I)called to me,
‘My father, you are the friend of my youth—
5 (J)will he be angry forever,
will he be indignant to the end?’
Behold, you have spoken,
but you have done all the evil that you could.”
Faithless Israel Called to Repentance
6 The Lord said to me in the days of (K)King Josiah: “Have you seen what she did, that faithless one, Israel, (L)how she went up on every high hill and under every green tree, and there (M)played the whore? 7 And I thought, ‘After she has done all this she will return to me,’ but she did not return, and her treacherous (N)sister Judah saw it. 8 She saw that for all the adulteries of that faithless one, Israel, (O)I had sent her away with (P)a decree of divorce. (Q)Yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but she too went (R)and played the whore. 9 Because she took her whoredom lightly, she polluted the land, committing adultery with (S)stone and tree. 10 Yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to me (T)with her whole heart, but in pretense, declares the Lord.”
11 And the Lord said to me, (U)“Faithless Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. 12 Go, and proclaim these words toward (V)the north, and say,
(W)“‘Return, faithless Israel,
declares the Lord.
I will not look on you in anger,
for (X)I am merciful,
declares the Lord;
(Y)I will not be angry forever.
13 (Z)Only acknowledge your guilt,
that you rebelled against the Lord your God
and scattered your favors among foreigners under (AA)every green tree,
and that you have not obeyed my voice,
declares the Lord.
14 (AB)Return, O faithless children,
declares the Lord;
(AC)for I am your master;
I will take you, one from a city and two from a family,
and I will bring you to Zion.
15 “‘And (AD)I will give you shepherds after my own heart, (AE)who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. 16 And when you have multiplied and been fruitful in the land, in those days, declares the Lord, they shall no more say, “The ark of the covenant of the Lord.” It shall not come to mind or be remembered or missed; it shall not be made again. 17 At that time Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the Lord, (AF)and all nations shall gather to it, (AG)to the presence of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they shall no more stubbornly follow their own evil heart. 18 (AH)In those days the house of Judah shall join the house of Israel, and together they shall come from the land (AI)of the north to (AJ)the land that I gave your fathers for a heritage.
19 “‘I said,
How I would set you among my sons,
and give you a pleasant land,
a heritage most beautiful of all nations.
And I thought you would (AK)call me, My Father,
and would not turn from following me.
20 (AL)Surely, as a treacherous wife leaves her husband,
so have you been treacherous to me, O house of Israel,
declares the Lord.’”
21 A voice on the (AM)bare heights is heard,
(AN)the weeping and pleading of Israel's sons
because they have perverted their way;
they have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 (AO)“Return, O faithless sons;
(AP)I will heal your faithlessness.”
“Behold, we come to you,
for you are the Lord our God.
23 Truly (AQ)the hills are a delusion,
the orgies[b] on the mountains.
(AR)Truly in the Lord our God
is the salvation of Israel.
24 “But from our youth the shameful thing has devoured all for which our fathers labored, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters. 25 (AS)Let us lie down in our shame, and let our dishonor cover us. For (AT)we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day, and we have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.”
4 “If you return, O Israel,
declares the Lord,
(AU)to me you should return.
If you remove your detestable things from my presence,
(AV)and do not waver,
2 (AW)and if you swear, ‘As the Lord lives,’
in truth, in justice, and in righteousness,
then (AX)nations shall bless themselves in him,
(AY)and in him shall they glory.”
3 For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:
(AZ)“Break up your fallow ground,
and (BA)sow not among thorns.
4 (BB)Circumcise yourselves to the Lord;
remove the foreskin of your hearts,
O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem;
(BC)lest my wrath go forth like fire,
and burn with none to quench it,
(BD)because of the evil of your deeds.”
Disaster from the North
5 Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say,
(BE)“Blow the trumpet through the land;
cry aloud and say,
(BF)‘Assemble, and let us go
into the fortified cities!’
6 (BG)Raise a standard toward Zion,
flee for safety, stay not,
for I bring disaster from (BH)the north,
(BI)and great destruction.
7 (BJ)A lion has gone up from his thicket,
a destroyer of nations has set out;
he has gone out from his place
to make your land a waste;
your cities will be ruins
(BK)without inhabitant.
8 For this (BL)put on sackcloth,
lament and wail,
for (BM)the fierce anger of the Lord
has not turned back from us.”
9 “In that day, declares the Lord, (BN)courage shall fail both king and officials. The priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded.” 10 Then I said, “Ah, Lord God, (BO)surely you have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘It shall be well with you,’ whereas the sword has reached their very life.”
11 At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A hot wind from (BP)the bare heights in the desert toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow or cleanse, 12 a wind too full for this comes for me. Now it is I who (BQ)speak in judgment upon them.”
13 Behold, he comes up like clouds;
(BR)his chariots like the whirlwind;
his horses are (BS)swifter than eagles—
woe to us, (BT)for we are ruined!
14 O Jerusalem, (BU)wash your heart from evil,
that you may be saved.
How long shall your wicked thoughts
lodge within you?
15 For a voice (BV)declares from Dan
and proclaims trouble from (BW)Mount Ephraim.
16 Warn the nations that he is coming;
announce to Jerusalem,
“Besiegers come (BX)from a distant land;
they shout against the cities of Judah.
17 Like keepers of a field (BY)are they against her all around,
because she has rebelled against me,
declares the Lord.
18 Your ways and your deeds
have brought this upon you.
This is your doom, and (BZ)it is bitter;
it has reached your very heart.”
Anguish over Judah's Desolation
19 (CA)My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!
Oh the walls of my heart!
My heart is beating wildly;
I cannot keep silent,
for I hear the sound of the trumpet,
the alarm of war.
20 (CB)Crash follows hard on crash;
the whole land is laid waste.
(CC)Suddenly my tents are laid waste,
my curtains in a moment.
21 How long must I see the standard
and hear the sound of the trumpet?
22 “For (CD)my people are foolish;
they know me not;
they are stupid children;
they have no understanding.
(CE)They are ‘wise’—in doing evil!
But how to do good they know not.”
23 I looked on the earth, and behold, it was (CF)without form and void;
(CG)and to the heavens, and they had no light.
24 I looked on (CH)the mountains, and behold, they were quaking,
and all the hills moved to and fro.
25 (CI)I looked, and behold, there was no man,
and all the birds of the air had fled.
26 I looked, and behold, the (CJ)fruitful land was a desert,
and all its cities were laid in ruins
before the Lord, before (CK)his fierce anger.
27 For thus says the Lord, “The whole land shall be a desolation; (CL)yet I will not make a full end.
28 (CM)“For this the earth shall mourn,
(CN)and the heavens above be dark;
for I have spoken; I have purposed;
(CO)I have not relented, nor will I turn back.”
29 At the noise of horseman and archer
every city takes to flight;
they enter thickets; they climb among rocks;
all the cities are forsaken,
and (CP)no man dwells in them.
30 And you, O desolate one,
what do you mean that you dress in scarlet,
(CQ)that you adorn yourself with ornaments of gold,
(CR)that you enlarge your eyes with paint?
In vain you beautify yourself.
(CS)Your lovers despise you;
they seek your life.
31 For I heard (CT)a cry as of a woman in labor,
anguish as of one giving birth to her first child,
the cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath,
(CU)stretching out her hands,
“Woe is me! I am fainting before murderers.”
Jerusalem Refused to Repent
5 (CV)Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem,
look and take note!
Search her squares to see
(CW)if you can find a man,
one who does justice
and seeks truth,
(CX)that I may pardon her.
2 (CY)Though they say, “As the Lord lives,”
(CZ)yet they swear falsely.
3 O Lord, do not your eyes look for truth?
(DA)You have struck them down,
but they felt no anguish;
you have consumed them,
but they refused to take correction.
(DB)They have made their faces harder than rock;
they have refused to repent.
4 Then I said, “These are only the poor;
they have no sense;
(DC)for they do not know the way of the Lord,
the justice of their God.
5 I will go to the great
and will speak to them,
for they know the way of the Lord,
the justice of their God.”
(DD)But they all alike had broken the yoke;
they had burst the bonds.
6 Therefore (DE)a lion from the forest shall strike them down;
a (DF)wolf from the desert shall devastate them.
(DG)A leopard is watching their cities;
everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces,
because their transgressions are many,
their (DH)apostasies are great.
7 (DI)“How can I pardon you?
Your children have forsaken me
(DJ)and have sworn by those who are no gods.
(DK)When I fed them to the full,
(DL)they committed adultery
(DM)and trooped to the houses of whores.
8 They were well-fed, lusty stallions,
(DN)each neighing (DO)for his neighbor's wife.
9 (DP)Shall I not punish them for these things?
declares the Lord;
and shall I not avenge myself
on a nation such as this?
10 (DQ)“Go up through her vine rows and destroy,
(DR)but make not a full end;
strip away her branches,
for they are not the Lord's.
11 (DS)For the house of Israel and the house of Judah
have been utterly treacherous to me,
declares the Lord.
12 They have spoken falsely of the Lord
and have said, ‘He will do nothing;
(DT)no disaster will come upon us,
(DU)nor shall we see sword or famine.
13 The prophets will become wind;
the word is not in them.
Thus shall it be done to them!’”
The Lord Proclaims Judgment
14 Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of hosts:
“Because you have spoken this word,
behold, (DV)I am making my words in your mouth (DW)a fire,
and this people wood, and the fire shall consume them.
15 (DX)Behold, I am bringing against you
a nation from afar, O house of Israel,
declares the Lord.
It is an enduring nation;
it is an ancient nation,
a nation whose language you do not know,
(DY)nor can you understand what they say.
16 (DZ)Their quiver is like (EA)an open tomb;
they are all mighty warriors.
17 (EB)They shall eat up your harvest and your food;
they shall eat up your sons and your daughters;
they shall eat up your flocks and your herds;
they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees;
your (EC)fortified cities in which you trust
they shall beat down with the sword.”
18 “But even in those days, declares the Lord, (ED)I will not make a full end of you. 19 And when your people say, (EE)‘Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?’ you shall say to them, ‘As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, (EF)so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.’”
20 Declare this in the house of Jacob;
proclaim it in Judah:
21 “Hear this, (EG)O foolish and senseless people,
(EH)who have eyes, but see not,
who have ears, but hear not.
22 (EI)Do you not fear me? declares the Lord.
Do you not tremble before me?
I placed the sand (EJ)as the boundary for the sea,
a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass;
though the waves toss, they cannot prevail;
though (EK)they roar, they cannot pass over it.
23 (EL)But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart;
they have turned aside and gone away.
24 They do not say in their hearts,
‘Let us fear the Lord our God,
(EM)who gives the rain in its season,
the autumn rain and the spring rain,
and keeps for us
(EN)the weeks appointed for the harvest.’
25 (EO)Your iniquities have turned these away,
and your sins have kept good from you.
26 For wicked men are found among my people;
(EP)they lurk like fowlers lying in wait.[c]
(EQ)They set a trap;
they catch men.
27 Like a cage full of birds,
their houses are full of deceit;
therefore they have become great and rich;
28 (ER)they have grown fat and sleek.
They know no bounds in deeds of evil;
(ES)they judge not with justice
the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper,
and they do not defend the rights of the needy.
29 (ET)Shall I not punish them for these things?
declares the Lord,
and shall I not avenge myself
on a nation such as this?”
30 An appalling and (EU)horrible thing
has happened in the land:
31 (EV)the prophets prophesy falsely,
and the priests rule at their direction;
(EW)my people love to have it so,
but what will you do when the end comes?
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 3:1 Septuagint, Syriac; Hebrew Saying, “If
- Jeremiah 3:23 Hebrew commotion
- Jeremiah 5:26 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
Jeremiah 3-5
New International Version
Jeremiah 3-5
New International Version
3 “If a man divorces(A) his wife
and she leaves him and marries another man,
should he return to her again?
Would not the land be completely defiled?(B)
But you have lived as a prostitute with many lovers(C)—
would you now return to me?”(D)
declares the Lord.
2 “Look up to the barren heights(E) and see.
Is there any place where you have not been ravished?
By the roadside(F) you sat waiting for lovers,
sat like a nomad in the desert.
You have defiled the land(G)
with your prostitution(H) and wickedness.
3 Therefore the showers have been withheld,(I)
and no spring rains(J) have fallen.
Yet you have the brazen(K) look of a prostitute;
you refuse to blush with shame.(L)
4 Have you not just called to me:
‘My Father,(M) my friend from my youth,(N)
5 will you always be angry?(O)
Will your wrath continue forever?’
This is how you talk,
but you do all the evil you can.”
Unfaithful Israel
6 During the reign of King Josiah,(P) the Lord said to me, “Have you seen what faithless(Q) Israel has done? She has gone up on every high hill and under every spreading tree(R) and has committed adultery(S) there. 7 I thought that after she had done all this she would return to me but she did not, and her unfaithful sister(T) Judah saw it.(U) 8 I gave faithless Israel(V) her certificate of divorce(W) and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear;(X) she also went out and committed adultery. 9 Because Israel’s immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land(Y) and committed adultery(Z) with stone(AA) and wood.(AB) 10 In spite of all this, her unfaithful sister Judah did not return(AC) to me with all her heart, but only in pretense,(AD)” declares the Lord.(AE)
11 The Lord said to me, “Faithless Israel is more righteous(AF) than unfaithful(AG) Judah.(AH) 12 Go, proclaim this message toward the north:(AI)
“‘Return,(AJ) faithless(AK) Israel,’ declares the Lord,
‘I will frown on you no longer,
for I am faithful,’(AL) declares the Lord,
‘I will not be angry(AM) forever.
13 Only acknowledge(AN) your guilt—
you have rebelled against the Lord your God,
you have scattered your favors to foreign gods(AO)
under every spreading tree,(AP)
and have not obeyed(AQ) me,’”
declares the Lord.
14 “Return,(AR) faithless people,” declares the Lord, “for I am your husband.(AS) I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion. 15 Then I will give you shepherds(AT) after my own heart,(AU) who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. 16 In those days, when your numbers have increased greatly in the land,” declares the Lord, “people will no longer say, ‘The ark(AV) of the covenant of the Lord.’ It will never enter their minds or be remembered;(AW) it will not be missed, nor will another one be made. 17 At that time they will call Jerusalem The Throne(AX) of the Lord, and all nations(AY) will gather in Jerusalem to honor(AZ) the name of the Lord. No longer will they follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts.(BA) 18 In those days the people of Judah will join the people of Israel,(BB) and together(BC) they will come from a northern(BD) land to the land(BE) I gave your ancestors as an inheritance.
19 “I myself said,
“‘How gladly would I treat you like my children
and give you a pleasant land,(BF)
the most beautiful inheritance(BG) of any nation.’
I thought you would call me ‘Father’(BH)
and not turn away from following me.
20 But like a woman unfaithful to her husband,
so you, Israel, have been unfaithful(BI) to me,”
declares the Lord.
21 A cry is heard on the barren heights,(BJ)
the weeping(BK) and pleading of the people of Israel,
because they have perverted their ways
and have forgotten(BL) the Lord their God.
“Yes, we will come to you,
for you are the Lord our God.
23 Surely the idolatrous commotion on the hills(BP)
and mountains is a deception;
surely in the Lord our God
is the salvation(BQ) of Israel.
24 From our youth shameful(BR) gods have consumed
the fruits of our ancestors’ labor—
their flocks and herds,
their sons and daughters.
25 Let us lie down in our shame,(BS)
and let our disgrace cover us.
We have sinned(BT) against the Lord our God,
both we and our ancestors;(BU)
from our youth(BV) till this day
we have not obeyed(BW) the Lord our God.”
4 “If you, Israel, will return,(BX)
then return to me,”
declares the Lord.
“If you put your detestable idols(BY) out of my sight
and no longer go astray,
2 and if in a truthful, just and righteous way
you swear,(BZ) ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’(CA)
then the nations will invoke blessings(CB) by him
and in him they will boast.(CC)”
3 This is what the Lord says to the people of Judah and to Jerusalem:
“Break up your unplowed ground(CD)
and do not sow among thorns.(CE)
4 Circumcise yourselves to the Lord,
circumcise your hearts,(CF)
you people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem,
or my wrath(CG) will flare up and burn like fire(CH)
because of the evil(CI) you have done—
burn with no one to quench(CJ) it.
Disaster From the North
5 “Announce in Judah and proclaim(CK) in Jerusalem and say:
‘Sound the trumpet(CL) throughout the land!’
Cry aloud and say:
‘Gather together!
Let us flee to the fortified cities!’(CM)
6 Raise the signal(CN) to go to Zion!
Flee for safety without delay!
For I am bringing disaster(CO) from the north,(CP)
even terrible destruction.”
7 A lion(CQ) has come out of his lair;(CR)
a destroyer(CS) of nations has set out.
He has left his place
to lay waste(CT) your land.
Your towns will lie in ruins(CU)
without inhabitant.
8 So put on sackcloth,(CV)
lament(CW) and wail,
for the fierce anger(CX) of the Lord
has not turned away from us.
9 “In that day,” declares the Lord,
“the king and the officials will lose heart,(CY)
the priests will be horrified,
and the prophets will be appalled.”(CZ)
10 Then I said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! How completely you have deceived(DA) this people and Jerusalem by saying, ‘You will have peace,’(DB) when the sword is at our throats!”
11 At that time this people and Jerusalem will be told, “A scorching wind(DC) from the barren heights in the desert blows toward my people, but not to winnow or cleanse; 12 a wind(DD) too strong for that comes from me. Now I pronounce my judgments(DE) against them.”
13 Look! He advances like the clouds,(DF)
his chariots(DG) come like a whirlwind,(DH)
his horses(DI) are swifter than eagles.(DJ)
Woe to us! We are ruined!(DK)
14 Jerusalem, wash(DL) the evil from your heart and be saved.(DM)
How long(DN) will you harbor wicked thoughts?
15 A voice is announcing from Dan,(DO)
proclaiming disaster from the hills of Ephraim.(DP)
16 “Tell this to the nations,
proclaim concerning Jerusalem:
‘A besieging army is coming from a distant land,(DQ)
raising a war cry(DR) against the cities of Judah.(DS)
17 They surround(DT) her like men guarding a field,
because she has rebelled(DU) against me,’”
declares the Lord.
18 “Your own conduct and actions(DV)
have brought this on you.(DW)
This is your punishment.
How bitter(DX) it is!
How it pierces to the heart!”
19 Oh, my anguish, my anguish!(DY)
I writhe in pain.(DZ)
Oh, the agony of my heart!
My heart pounds(EA) within me,
I cannot keep silent.(EB)
For I have heard the sound of the trumpet;(EC)
I have heard the battle cry.(ED)
20 Disaster follows disaster;(EE)
the whole land lies in ruins.(EF)
In an instant my tents(EG) are destroyed,
my shelter in a moment.
21 How long must I see the battle standard(EH)
and hear the sound of the trumpet?(EI)
22 “My people are fools;(EJ)
they do not know me.(EK)
They are senseless children;
they have no understanding.(EL)
They are skilled in doing evil;(EM)
they know not how to do good.”(EN)
23 I looked at the earth,
and it was formless and empty;(EO)
and at the heavens,
and their light(EP) was gone.
24 I looked at the mountains,
and they were quaking;(EQ)
all the hills were swaying.
25 I looked, and there were no people;
every bird in the sky had flown away.(ER)
26 I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert;(ES)
all its towns lay in ruins(ET)
before the Lord, before his fierce anger.(EU)
27 This is what the Lord says:
“The whole land will be ruined,(EV)
though I will not destroy(EW) it completely.
28 Therefore the earth will mourn(EX)
and the heavens above grow dark,(EY)
because I have spoken and will not relent,(EZ)
I have decided and will not turn back.(FA)”
29 At the sound of horsemen and archers(FB)
every town takes to flight.(FC)
Some go into the thickets;
some climb up among the rocks.(FD)
All the towns are deserted;(FE)
no one lives in them.
30 What are you doing,(FF) you devastated one?
Why dress yourself in scarlet
and put on jewels(FG) of gold?
Why highlight your eyes with makeup?(FH)
You adorn yourself in vain.
Your lovers(FI) despise you;
they want to kill you.(FJ)
31 I hear a cry as of a woman in labor,(FK)
a groan as of one bearing her first child—
the cry of Daughter Zion(FL) gasping for breath,(FM)
stretching out her hands(FN) and saying,
“Alas! I am fainting;
my life is given over to murderers.”(FO)
Not One Is Upright
5 “Go up and down(FP) the streets of Jerusalem,
look around and consider,(FQ)
search through her squares.
If you can find but one person(FR)
who deals honestly(FS) and seeks the truth,
I will forgive(FT) this city.
2 Although they say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’(FU)
still they are swearing falsely.(FV)”
3 Lord, do not your eyes(FW) look for truth?
You struck(FX) them, but they felt no pain;
you crushed them, but they refused correction.(FY)
They made their faces harder than stone(FZ)
and refused to repent.(GA)
4 I thought, “These are only the poor;
they are foolish,(GB)
for they do not know(GC) the way of the Lord,
the requirements of their God.
5 So I will go to the leaders(GD)
and speak to them;
surely they know the way of the Lord,
the requirements of their God.”
But with one accord they too had broken off the yoke
and torn off the bonds.(GE)
6 Therefore a lion from the forest(GF) will attack them,
a wolf from the desert will ravage(GG) them,
a leopard(GH) will lie in wait near their towns
to tear to pieces any who venture out,
for their rebellion is great
and their backslidings many.(GI)
7 “Why should I forgive you?
Your children have forsaken me
and sworn(GJ) by gods that are not gods.(GK)
I supplied all their needs,
yet they committed adultery(GL)
and thronged to the houses of prostitutes.(GM)
8 They are well-fed, lusty stallions,
each neighing for another man’s wife.(GN)
9 Should I not punish them for this?”(GO)
declares the Lord.
“Should I not avenge(GP) myself
on such a nation as this?
10 “Go through her vineyards and ravage them,
but do not destroy them completely.(GQ)
Strip off her branches,
for these people do not belong to the Lord.
11 The people of Israel and the people of Judah
have been utterly unfaithful(GR) to me,”
declares the Lord.
12 They have lied(GS) about the Lord;
they said, “He will do nothing!
No harm will come to us;(GT)
we will never see sword or famine.(GU)
13 The prophets(GV) are but wind(GW)
and the word is not in them;
so let what they say be done to them.”
14 Therefore this is what the Lord God Almighty says:
“Because the people have spoken these words,
I will make my words in your mouth(GX) a fire(GY)
and these people the wood it consumes.(GZ)
15 People of Israel,” declares the Lord,
“I am bringing a distant nation(HA) against you—
an ancient and enduring nation,
a people whose language(HB) you do not know,
whose speech you do not understand.
16 Their quivers(HC) are like an open grave;
all of them are mighty warriors.
17 They will devour(HD) your harvests and food,
devour(HE) your sons and daughters;
they will devour(HF) your flocks and herds,
devour your vines and fig trees.(HG)
With the sword(HH) they will destroy
the fortified cities(HI) in which you trust.(HJ)
18 “Yet even in those days,” declares the Lord, “I will not destroy(HK) you completely. 19 And when the people ask,(HL) ‘Why has the Lord our God done all this to us?’ you will tell them, ‘As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods(HM) in your own land, so now you will serve foreigners(HN) in a land not your own.’
20 “Announce this to the descendants of Jacob
and proclaim(HO) it in Judah:
21 Hear this, you foolish and senseless people,(HP)
who have eyes(HQ) but do not see,
who have ears but do not hear:(HR)
22 Should you not fear(HS) me?” declares the Lord.
“Should you not tremble(HT) in my presence?
I made the sand a boundary for the sea,(HU)
an everlasting barrier it cannot cross.
The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail;
they may roar,(HV) but they cannot cross it.
23 But these people have stubborn and rebellious(HW) hearts;
they have turned aside(HX) and gone away.
24 They do not say to themselves,
‘Let us fear(HY) the Lord our God,
who gives autumn and spring rains(HZ) in season,
who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.’(IA)
25 Your wrongdoings have kept these away;
your sins have deprived you of good.(IB)
26 “Among my people are the wicked(IC)
who lie in wait(ID) like men who snare birds
and like those who set traps(IE) to catch people.
27 Like cages full of birds,
their houses are full of deceit;(IF)
they have become rich(IG) and powerful
28 and have grown fat(IH) and sleek.
Their evil deeds have no limit;
they do not seek justice.
They do not promote the case of the fatherless;(II)
they do not defend the just cause of the poor.(IJ)
29 Should I not punish them for this?”
declares the Lord.
“Should I not avenge(IK) myself
on such a nation as this?
John 7
English Standard Version
John 7
English Standard Version
Jesus at the Feast of Booths
7 After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because (A)the Jews[a] were seeking to kill him. 2 Now (B)the Jews' Feast of (C)Booths was at hand. 3 (D)So his brothers[b] said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. 4 For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, (E)show yourself to the world.” 5 (F)For not even (G)his brothers believed in him. 6 Jesus said to them, (H)“My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. 7 The world cannot hate you, but (I)it hates me because I testify about it that (J)its works are evil. 8 You go up to the feast. I am not[c] going up to this feast, for (K)my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After saying this, he remained in Galilee.
10 But after (L)his brothers had gone up to the feast, then he also went up, not publicly but in private. 11 (M)The Jews (N)were looking for him at the feast, and saying, “Where is he?” 12 And there was much (O)muttering about him among the people. (P)While some said, “He is a good man,” others said, “No, (Q)he is leading the people astray.” 13 Yet (R)for fear of the Jews no one spoke openly of him.
14 About the middle of the feast Jesus went up (S)into the temple and began teaching. 15 The Jews therefore (T)marveled, saying, “How is it that this man has learning,[d] when he has never studied?” 16 So Jesus answered them, (U)“My teaching is not mine, but his (V)who sent me. 17 (W)If anyone's will is to do God's[e] will, (X)he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I (Y)am speaking on my own authority. 18 The one who speaks on his own authority (Z)seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood. 19 (AA)Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. (AB)Why do you seek to kill me?” 20 The crowd answered, (AC)“You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you?” 21 Jesus answered them, “I did (AD)one work, and you all marvel at it. 22 (AE)Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but (AF)from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. 23 If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, (AG)are you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man's whole body well? 24 (AH)Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.”
Can This Be the Christ?
25 Some of the people of Jerusalem therefore said, “Is not this the man whom (AI)they seek to kill? 26 And here he is, (AJ)speaking openly, and they say nothing to him! Can it be that (AK)the authorities really know that this is the Christ? 27 But (AL)we know (AM)where this man comes from, and when the Christ appears, (AN)no one will know where he comes from.” 28 So Jesus proclaimed, (AO)as he taught in the temple, (AP)“You know me, and you know where I come from. But (AQ)I have not come of my own accord. (AR)He who sent me is true, (AS)and him you do not know. 29 (AT)I know him, for I come (AU)from him, and (AV)he sent me.” 30 (AW)So they were seeking to arrest him, but (AX)no one laid a hand on him, (AY)because his hour had not yet come. 31 Yet (AZ)many of the people believed in him. They said, (BA)“When the Christ appears, will he do more signs than this man has done?”
Officers Sent to Arrest Jesus
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd (BB)muttering these things about him, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent (BC)officers to arrest him. 33 Jesus then said, (BD)“I will be with you a little longer, and then (BE)I am going to him who sent me. 34 (BF)You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come.” 35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? (BG)Does he intend to go to (BH)the Dispersion among (BI)the Greeks and teach the Greeks? 36 What does he mean by saying, (BJ)‘You will seek me and you will not find me,’ and, ‘Where I am you cannot come’?”
Rivers of Living Water
37 (BK)On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, (BL)“If anyone thirsts, let him (BM)come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, (BN)as[f] the Scripture has said, (BO)‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of (BP)living water.’” 39 Now (BQ)this he said about the Spirit, (BR)whom those who believed in him were to receive, (BS)for as yet the Spirit had not been (BT)given, (BU)because Jesus was not yet glorified.
Division Among the People
40 When they heard these words, (BV)some of the people said, “This really is (BW)the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is (BX)the Christ.” But some said, (BY)“Is the Christ to come from Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes (BZ)from the offspring of David, and comes (CA)from Bethlehem, the village (CB)where David was?” 43 So there was (CC)a division among the people over him. 44 (CD)Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
45 (CE)The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why did you not bring him?” 46 The officers answered, (CF)“No one ever spoke like this man!” 47 The Pharisees answered them, (CG)“Have you also been deceived? 48 (CH)Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.” 50 (CI)Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, 51 (CJ)“Does our law judge a man without first (CK)giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” 52 They replied, (CL)“Are you from Galilee too? Search and see that (CM)no prophet arises from Galilee.”
[The earliest manuscripts do not include 7:53–8:11.][g]
The Woman Caught in Adultery
53 [[They went each to his own house,
Footnotes
- John 7:1 Or Judeans; Greek Ioudaioi probably refers here to Jewish religious leaders, and others under their influence, in that time
- John 7:3 Or brothers and sisters; also verses 5, 10
- John 7:8 Some manuscripts add yet
- John 7:15 Or this man knows his letters
- John 7:17 Greek his
- John 7:38 Or let him come to me, and let him who believes in me drink. As
- John 7:53 Some manuscripts do not include 7:53–8:11; others add the passage here or after 7:36 or after 21:25 or after Luke 21:38, with variations in the text
John 7
New International Version
John 7
New International Version
Jesus Goes to the Festival of Tabernacles
7 After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He did not want[a] to go about in Judea because the Jewish leaders(A) there were looking for a way to kill him.(B) 2 But when the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles(C) was near, 3 Jesus’ brothers(D) said to him, “Leave Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works you do. 4 No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 For even his own brothers did not believe in him.(E)
6 Therefore Jesus told them, “My time(F) is not yet here; for you any time will do. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me(G) because I testify that its works are evil.(H) 8 You go to the festival. I am not[b] going up to this festival, because my time(I) has not yet fully come.” 9 After he had said this, he stayed in Galilee.
10 However, after his brothers had left for the festival, he went also, not publicly, but in secret. 11 Now at the festival the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus(J) and asking, “Where is he?”
12 Among the crowds there was widespread whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.”
Others replied, “No, he deceives the people.”(K) 13 But no one would say anything publicly about him for fear of the leaders.(L)
Jesus Teaches at the Festival
14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach.(M) 15 The Jews(N) there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning(O) without having been taught?”(P)
16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me.(Q) 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out(R) whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory,(S) but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 19 Has not Moses given you the law?(T) Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?”(U)
20 “You are demon-possessed,”(V) the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?”
21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle,(W) and you are all amazed. 22 Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision(X) (though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs),(Y) you circumcise a boy on the Sabbath. 23 Now if a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath? 24 Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.”(Z)
Division Over Who Jesus Is
25 At that point some of the people of Jerusalem began to ask, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill?(AA) 26 Here he is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying a word to him. Have the authorities(AB) really concluded that he is the Messiah?(AC) 27 But we know where this man is from;(AD) when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.”
28 Then Jesus, still teaching in the temple courts,(AE) cried out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from.(AF) I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true.(AG) You do not know him, 29 but I know him(AH) because I am from him and he sent me.”(AI)
30 At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him,(AJ) because his hour had not yet come.(AK) 31 Still, many in the crowd believed in him.(AL) They said, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more signs(AM) than this man?”
32 The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering such things about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.
33 Jesus said, “I am with you for only a short time,(AN) and then I am going to the one who sent me.(AO) 34 You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.”(AP)
35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered(AQ) among the Greeks,(AR) and teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you will not find me,’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?”(AS)
37 On the last and greatest day of the festival,(AT) Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.(AU) 38 Whoever believes(AV) in me, as Scripture has said,(AW) rivers of living water(AX) will flow from within them.”[c](AY) 39 By this he meant the Spirit,(AZ) whom those who believed in him were later to receive.(BA) Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.(BB)
40 On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.”(BC)
41 Others said, “He is the Messiah.”
Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee?(BD) 42 Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants(BE) and from Bethlehem,(BF) the town where David lived?” 43 Thus the people were divided(BG) because of Jesus. 44 Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him.(BH)
Unbelief of the Jewish Leaders
45 Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and the Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him in?”
46 “No one ever spoke the way this man does,”(BI) the guards replied.
47 “You mean he has deceived you also?”(BJ) the Pharisees retorted. 48 “Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him?(BK) 49 No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law—there is a curse on them.”
50 Nicodemus,(BL) who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, 51 “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?”
52 They replied, “Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.”(BM)
[The earliest manuscripts and many other ancient witnesses do not have John 7:53—8:11. A few manuscripts include these verses, wholly or in part, after John 7:36, John 21:25, Luke 21:38 or Luke 24:53.]
53 Then they all went home,
English Standard Version (ESV) 
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New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.