Jeremiah 10
Modern English Version
The True God and Idols(A)
10 Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. 2 Thus says the Lord:
Do not learn the way of the nations;
do not be terrified at the signs of heaven,
although the nations are terrified at them.
3 For the customs of the people are vain;
for with the axe one cuts a tree out of the forest,
the work of the hands of the workman.
4 They deck it with silver and with gold;
they fasten it with nails and with hammers
so that it may not move.
5 They are as a scarecrow in a cucumber field,
but do not speak;
they must be carried,
because they cannot walk.
Do not be afraid of them,
for they cannot do evil,
nor can they do good.
6 There is no one like You, O Lord.
You are great,
and Your name is great in might.
7 Who would not fear You,
O King of the nations?
Indeed, it is Your due.
For among all the wise men of the nations,
and in all their kingdoms,
there is no one like You.
8 But they are altogether unthinking and foolish;
the tree is a doctrine of vanities.
9 Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish,
and gold from Uphaz,
the work of the workman and of the hands of the founder;
blue and purple are their clothing;
they all are the work of skilled men.
10 But the Lord is the true God;
He is the living God and an everlasting King.
At His wrath the earth trembles,
and the nations cannot endure His indignation.
11 Thus you shall say to them: The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth and from under these heavens.
12 He has made the earth by His power.
He has established the world by His wisdom
and has stretched out the heavens by His discretion.
13 When He utters His voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens,
and He causes the vapors to ascend from the remote parts of the earth;
He makes lightning with rain,
and brings out the wind from His storehouses.
14 Every man is stupid, without knowledge;
every goldsmith is put to shame by an idol;
for his molded image is false,
and there is no breath in them.
15 They are vain and a work of mockery;
in the time of their punishment they shall perish.
16 The portion of Jacob is not like them,
for He is the Maker of all things,
and Israel is the rod of His inheritance.
The Lord of Hosts is His name.
The Exile Prophesied
17 Gather up your wares out of the land,
O inhabitant of the fortress.
18 For thus says the Lord:
I will sling out
the inhabitants of the land at this time,
and will distress them
that they may be found.
19 Woe is me because of my brokenness!
My wound is grievous.
But I said,
“Truly this is an illness, and I must bear it.”
20 My tabernacle is devastated,
and all my cords are broken.
My sons have gone from me and are no more.
There is no one to spread my tent anymore,
and to set up my curtains.
21 For the shepherds have become unthinking
and have not sought the Lord.
Therefore they have not prospered,
and all their flocks are scattered.
22 Listen! The sound of the report has come,
and a great commotion out of the north country,
to make the cities of Judah desolate
and a den of jackals.
The Prayer of Jeremiah
23 O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself;
it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.
24 O Lord, correct me, but with justice,
not in Your anger,
lest You bring me to nothing.
25 Pour out Your fury upon the nations
that do not know You
and upon the families that do not call on Your name;
for they have eaten up Jacob
and devoured him, and consumed him,
and have made his habitation desolate.
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”
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.
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