Jeremiah 10
Lexham English Bible
10 Hear the word that Yahweh speaks to you, O house of Israel. 2 Thus says Yahweh:
“You must not learn the way of the nations,
and you must not be dismayed by the signs of the heavens,
for the nations are dismayed by them.
3 For the statutes of the peoples are vanity,
for it is a tree cut down from the forest,
the work of the hands of a craftsman with the tool.
4 He decorates it with silver and gold,
they strengthen it with nails and hammers,
so that it does not stagger.
5 They are like scarecrows[a] in a cucumber field,
they cannot speak.
Indeed, they must be carried,
for they cannot march.
You must not be afraid of them,
for they cannot do evil;
furthermore, to do good is not in them.”
6 There is none like you, O Yahweh,
you are great and your name is great in might.
7 Who would not revere you, O king of the nations?
For you it is fitting.
For among all the wise men of the nations,
and in all their kingdoms,[b]
there is none like you.
8 At the same time[c] they are stupid and foolish,
in the instruction of idols, it is wood.
9 Silver beaten from Tarshish is brought,
and gold from Uphaz,
the work of the craftsman and the hands of the goldsmith.
Blue and purple are their clothing,
all of them are the work of skillful people.
10 But Yahweh is the true God,
he is the living God,
and an everlasting king.[d]
Because of his wrath the earth quakes,
and the nations cannot endure his anger.
11 “Thus[e] you shall say to them,
‘Gods who did not make the heavens and the earth
will perish from the earth and from under these heavens.
12 He is the maker of the earth by his power,
who created the world by his wisdom,
and by his understanding he stretched out heaven.
13 When he utters his voice[f] there is a noise of water in the heavens,
and he causes the mist to rise from the ends[g] of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
and he causes the wind to go out from his storehouses.
14 Everyone[h] is stupid, without knowledge,[i]
every goldsmith is ashamed by his divine image,
for his cast image is an illusion,
and there is no breath in them.
15 They are vanity, a work of mockery,
at the time of their punishment, they will perish.
16 The portion of Jacob is not like these,
for he is the creator of everything,
and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance,
Yahweh of hosts is his name.
17 Gather your bundle from the ground,
you who live under the siege.’”
18 For thus says Yahweh,
“Look, I am about to sling out the inhabitants of the land at this time,
and I will bring distress to them, so that they may feel it.”
The Nation Accepts Its Judgment
19 Woe to me, because of my wound.
My wound is incurable.
But I said, “Surely this is my sickness,
and I must bear it.”
20 My tent is devastated,
and all my tent cords are torn.
My children have gone out from me,
and they are not.
There is no one who pitches my tent again,
or one who puts up my tent curtains.
21 For the shepherds have become stupid,
they do not seek Yahweh.
Therefore[j] they do not have insight,
and all of their flock are scattered.
22 Listen, news:[k]
Look, it is coming,
a great roar from the land of the north,
to make the cities of Judah a desolation,
a lair of jackals.
23 I know, O Yahweh, that to the human is not his own way,
nor to a person is the walking and the directing of his own step.
24 Chastise[l] me, O Yahweh, but in moderation,
not in your anger, lest you eradicate me.
25 Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not know you,
and on the peoples that do not call on your name,
for they have devoured Jacob,
they have devoured and consumed him,
and they have caused his settlement to be desolate.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 10:5 Hebrew “scarecrow”
- Jeremiah 10:7 Hebrew “kingdom”
- Jeremiah 10:8 Literally “And in one”
- Jeremiah 10:10 Literally “a king of eternity”
- Jeremiah 10:11 Literally “Like this”
- Jeremiah 10:13 Literally “At the voice of his giving”
- Jeremiah 10:13 Hebrew “end”
- Jeremiah 10:14 Literally “All humankind”
- Jeremiah 10:14 Literally “from knowledge”
- Jeremiah 10:21 Literally “Unto thus”
- Jeremiah 10:22 Or “a report”
- Jeremiah 10:24 Or “Discipline”
Jeremiah 10
Christian Standard Bible
False Gods Contrasted with the Creator
10 Hear the word that the Lord has spoken to[a] you, house of Israel. 2 This is what the Lord says:
Do not learn the way of the nations(A)
or be terrified by signs in the heavens,
although the nations are terrified by them,
3 for the customs of the peoples are worthless.
Someone cuts down a tree from the forest;
it is worked by the hands of a craftsman with a chisel.
4 He decorates it with silver and gold.(B)
It is fastened with hammer and nails,(C)
so it won’t totter.
5 Like scarecrows in a cucumber patch,
their idols cannot speak.(D)
They must be carried(E) because they cannot walk.
Do not fear them for they can do no harm(F)—
and they cannot do any good.(G)
6 Lord, there is no one like you.(H)
You are great;
your name is great in power.(I)
7 Who should not fear you,
King of the nations?(J)
It is what you deserve.
For among all the wise people of the nations
and among all their kingdoms,
there is no one like you.
8 They are both stupid and foolish,
instructed by worthless idols
made of wood!
9 Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish(K)
and gold from Uphaz.[b](L)
The work of a craftsman
and of a goldsmith’s hands
is clothed in blue and purple,
all the work of skilled artisans.
10 But the Lord is the true God;(M)
he is the living God(N) and eternal King.(O)
The earth quakes at his wrath,(P)
and the nations cannot endure his fury.
11 You are to say this to them: “The gods that did not make the heavens(Q) and the earth will perish from the earth(R) and from under these heavens.”[c]
12 He made the earth by his power,
established the world(S) by his wisdom,(T)
and spread out the heavens by his understanding.(U)
13 When he thunders,[d]
the waters in the heavens are in turmoil,(V)
and he causes the clouds to rise
from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain
and brings the wind from his storehouses.(W)
14 Everyone is stupid and ignorant.
Every goldsmith is put to shame
by his carved image,(X)
for his cast images are a lie;(Y)
there is no breath in them.(Z)
15 They are worthless, a work to be mocked.
At the time of their punishment
they will be destroyed.(AA)
16 Jacob’s Portion[e] is not like these
because he is the one who formed all things.(AB)
Israel is the tribe of his inheritance;(AC)
the Lord of Armies is his name.(AD)
Exile after the Siege
18 For this is what the Lord says:
Look, I am flinging away(AF)
the land’s residents at this time
and bringing them such distress
that they will feel it.
Jeremiah Grieves
19 Woe to me because of my brokenness—
I am severely wounded!(AG)
I exclaimed, “This is my intense suffering,
but I must bear it.”
20 My tent is destroyed;(AH)
all my tent cords are snapped.
My sons have departed from me and are no more.
I have no one to pitch my tent again
or to hang up my curtains.
21 For the shepherds are stupid:
They don’t seek the Lord.(AI)
Therefore they have not prospered,
and their whole flock is scattered.
22 Listen! A noise—it is coming—
a great commotion(AJ) from the land to the north.
The cities of Judah will be made desolate,
a jackals’ den.(AK)
23 I know, Lord,
that a person’s way of life is not his own;
no one who walks determines his own steps.(AL)
24 Discipline me, Lord, but with justice—
not in your anger,(AM)
or you will reduce me to nothing.
25 Pour out your wrath on the nations
that don’t recognize you
and on the families
that don’t call on your name,
for they have consumed Jacob;
they have consumed him and finished him off
and made his homeland desolate.(AN)
2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.