Jeremiah 13

Wycliffe Bible

13 The Lord saith these things to me, Go, and take in possession to thee a linen breech-girdle; and thou shalt put it on thy loins, and thou shalt not bear it into water.

² And I took in possession a breech-girdle, by the word of the Lord; and I putted about my loins (and I put it about my loins).

³ And the word of the Lord was made to me in the second time, and said,

⁴ Take the breech-girdle, which thou haddest in possession, which is about thy loins; and rise thou, and go to Euphrates (and rise thou, and go to the Euphrates River), and hide thou it there, in the hole of a stone.

⁵ And I went, and hid it in Euphrates (and hid it by the Euphrates River), as the Lord commanded to me.

⁶ And it was done after full many days, the Lord said to me, Rise thou, and go to Euphrates (Rise thou, and go to the Euphrates River), and take from thence the breech-girdle, which I commanded to thee, that thou shouldest hide it there.

⁷ And I went to Euphrates, and digged out, and I took the breech-girdle from the place, where I had hid it; and lo! the breech-girdle was rotten, so that it was not able to any use. (And I went to the Euphrates River, and dug it out, and I took the breech-girdle from the place, where I had hidden it; and lo! the breech-girdle was rotten, so that now it was good for nothing.)

⁸ And the word of the Lord was made to me, and said,

⁹ The Lord saith these things, So I shall make rotten the pride of Judah, and the much pride of Jerusalem,

¹⁰ and this worst people, that will not hear my words, and go in the shrewdness of their heart; and they went after alien gods, to serve them, and to worship them; and they shall be as this breech-girdle, which is not able to any use. (and this worst people, who will not listen to, or obey, my words, and who go in the depravity of their hearts; and they went after strange, or foreign, gods, to serve them, and to worship them; and they shall be like this breech-girdle, which now is good for nothing.)

¹¹ For as a breech-girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so I joined fast to me all the house of Israel, and all the house of Judah, saith the Lord, that they should be to me into a people, and into name, and into praising, and into glory; and they heard not. (For like a breech-girdle cleaveth to a man’s loins, so I securely joined to me all the house of Israel, and all the house of Judah, saith the Lord, so that they would be my people, and they would bring praises, and glory, to my name; but they would not listen to, or obey, me.)

¹² Therefore thou shalt say to them this word, The Lord God of Israel saith these things, Each pottle shall be filled of wine. And they shall say to thee, Whether we know not, that each pottle shall be filled of wine? (And so thou shalt say this word to them, The Lord God of Israel saith these things, Each bottle, or each wine jar, shall be filled with wine. And they shall say to thee, Do we not know, that each bottle, or each wine jar, shall be filled with wine?)

¹³ And thou shalt say to them, The Lord saith these things, Lo! I shall fill with drunkenness all the dwellers of this land, and the kings of the generation of David, that sit on his throne, and the priests, and prophets, and all the dwellers of Jerusalem. (And thou shalt say to them, The Lord saith these things, Lo! I shall fill with drunkenness all the inhabitants of this land, and the kings who be descended from David, who sit on his throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.)

¹⁴ And I shall scatter them, a man from his brother, and the fathers and sons together, saith the Lord; I shall not spare, and I shall not grant, neither I shall do mercy, that I lose not them. (And then I shall destroy them, a man and his brother, and the fathers and the sons together, saith the Lord; I shall not spare anyone, and I shall not grant anyone a reprieve, nor shall I have any mercy, so that I do not destroy them.)

¹⁵ Hear ye, and perceive with ears (Hear ye, and listen); do not ye be raised [up], for the Lord spake.

¹⁶ Give ye glory to your Lord God, before that it wax dark, and before that your feet hurt at [the] dark hills; ye shall abide light, and he shall set it into the shadow of death, and into darkness. (Give ye glory to the Lord your God, before that it grow dark, and before that your feet stumble on the dark hills; ye shall wait for the light, but he shall turn it into the shadow of death, and into darkness.)

¹⁷ That if ye hear not this, my soul shall weep in hid place for the face of pride; it weeping shall weep, and mine eye shall cast out a tear, for the flock of the Lord is taken. (And if ye do not listen to this, my soul shall weep in a hidden place because of thy pride; it weeping shall weep, and my eyes shall cast out tears, for the flock of the Lord is carried away captive.)

¹⁸ Say thou to the king, and to the lady, Be ye meeked, sit ye, for the crown of your glory shall go down from your head. (Say thou to the king, and to the queen, Be ye humbled, sit ye, for your glorious crowns shall go down from off your heads.)

¹⁹ The cities of the south be closed, and none is that openeth; all Judah is translated by perfect passing over, either going out of their land. (The cities of the south be besieged, and there is no one who can help them; all the people of Judah have been carried away captive.)

²⁰ Raise ye (up) your eyes, and see ye, what men come from the north; where is the flock which is given to thee, thy noble sheep?

²¹ What shalt thou say, when he shall visit thee? for thou hast taught them against thee, and thou hast taught against thine head. Whether sorrows have not taken thee, as a woman travailing of child? (What shalt thou say, when he shall punish thee? for thou hast taught them to be thy leaders, but now they be against thee. Shall sorrows not take hold of thee, like a woman in labour?)

²² That if thou sayest in thine heart, Why came these things to me? for the multitude of thy wickedness thy shamefuller things be showed, thy feet be defouled. (And if thou sayest in thy heart, Why did these things come to me? I shall answer, Because of the multitude of thy wickedness, thy shameful things be shown, and thy feet be defiled.)

²³ If a man of Ethiopia may change his skin (colour), either a leopard may change his diversities, and ye may do well, when ye have learned evil. (Only if a man of Ethiopia can change his skin colour, or if a leopard can change his spots, then can ye still do good, after all the evil that ye have learned.)

²⁴ And I shall sow them abroad, as stubble which is ravished, or taken away, of the wind in desert. (And so I shall sow them abroad, like stubble which is robbed, or is taken away, by the wind in the desert.)

²⁵ This is thy lot, and the part of thy measure of me, saith the Lord; for thou forgettedest me, and trustedest in a leasing. (This is thy lot, and the portion of thy measure from me, saith the Lord; for thou hast forgotten me, and hast trusted in lies.)

²⁶ Wherefore and I made naked thine hips against thy face, and thy shame appeared, (And so I made thy hips naked before thy face, and thy shameful things appeared,)

²⁷ thine adulteries, and thine neighing, and the felony of thy fornication on (the) little hills in the field; (yea,) I saw thine abominations. Jerusalem, woe to thee, thou shalt not be cleansed after me till yet (Jerusalem, woe to thee, if thou shalt not be cleansed by now, then when shall it be?).