Jeremiah 14
Holman Christian Standard Bible
The Drought
14 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:(A)
2 Judah mourns;
her gates languish.(B)
Her people are on the ground in mourning;
Jerusalem’s cry rises up.(C)
3 Their nobles send their servants[a] for water.
They go to the cisterns;
they find no water;
their containers return empty.
They are ashamed and humiliated;
they cover their heads.(D)
4 The ground is cracked
since no rain has fallen on the land.
The farmers are ashamed;(E)
they cover their heads.
5 Even the doe in the field
gives birth and abandons her fawn
since there is no grass.
6 Wild donkeys stand on the barren heights(F)
panting for air like jackals.
Their eyes fail
because there are no green plants.
7 Though our guilt testifies against us,
Yahweh, act for Your name’s sake.
Indeed, our rebellions(G) are many;
we have sinned against You.
8 Hope of Israel,(H)
its Savior in time of distress,
why are You like a foreigner in the land,
like a traveler stopping only for the night?
9 Why are You like a helpless man,
like a warrior unable to save?(I)
Yet You are among us, Yahweh,(J)
and we are called by Your name.
Don’t leave us!
10 This is what the Lord says concerning these people:
Truly they love to wander;(K)
they never rest their feet.
So the Lord does not accept them.
Now He will remember their guilt
and punish their sins.(L)
False Prophets to be Punished
11 Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of these people.(M) 12 If they fast, I will not hear their cry of despair. If they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. Rather, I will finish them off by sword, famine, and plague.”(N)
13 And I replied, “Oh no, Lord God! The prophets are telling them, ‘You won’t see sword or suffer famine. I will certainly give you true peace in this place.’”(O)
14 But the Lord said to me, “These prophets are prophesying a lie in My name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, worthless divination, the deceit(P) of their own minds.
15 “Therefore, this is what the Lord says concerning the prophets who prophesy in My name, though I did not send them, and who say, ‘There will never be sword or famine in this land.’ By sword and famine these prophets will meet their end. 16 The people they are prophesying to will be thrown into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword. There will be no one to bury them(Q)—they, their wives, their sons, and their daughters. I will pour out their own evil on them.”
Jeremiah’s Request
17 You are to speak this word to them:
Let my eyes overflow with tears;
day and night may they not stop,(R)
for the virgin daughter of my people
has been destroyed by a great disaster,(S)
an extremely severe wound.(T)
18 If I go out to the field,
look—those slain by the sword!
If I enter the city,
look—those ill(U) from famine!
For both prophet and priest
travel to a land they do not know.
19 Have You completely rejected Judah?
Do You detest(V) Zion?
Why do You strike us
with no hope of healing for us?
We hoped for peace,
but there was nothing good;
for a time of healing,
but there was only terror.(W)
20 We acknowledge our wickedness, Lord,
the guilt of our fathers;(X)
indeed, we have sinned against You.
21 Because of Your name, don’t despise us.
Don’t disdain Your glorious throne.(Y)
Remember Your covenant(Z) with us;
do not break it.
22 Can any of the worthless idols of the nations(AA) bring rain?
Or can the skies alone give showers?
Are You not the Lord our God?
We therefore put our hope in You,(AB)
for You have done all these things.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 14:3 Lit little ones
Jeremiah 14
New Living Translation
Judah’s Terrible Drought
14 This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord, explaining why he was holding back the rain:
2 “Judah wilts;
commerce at the city gates grinds to a halt.
All the people sit on the ground in mourning,
and a great cry rises from Jerusalem.
3 The nobles send servants to get water,
but all the wells are dry.
The servants return with empty pitchers,
confused and desperate,
covering their heads in grief.
4 The ground is parched
and cracked for lack of rain.
The farmers are deeply troubled;
they, too, cover their heads.
5 Even the doe abandons her newborn fawn
because there is no grass in the field.
6 The wild donkeys stand on the bare hills
panting like thirsty jackals.
They strain their eyes looking for grass,
but there is none to be found.”
7 The people say, “Our wickedness has caught up with us, Lord,
but help us for the sake of your own reputation.
We have turned away from you
and sinned against you again and again.
8 O Hope of Israel, our Savior in times of trouble,
why are you like a stranger to us?
Why are you like a traveler passing through the land,
stopping only for the night?
9 Are you also confused?
Is our champion helpless to save us?
You are right here among us, Lord.
We are known as your people.
Please don’t abandon us now!”
10 So this is what the Lord says to his people:
“You love to wander far from me
and do not restrain yourselves.
Therefore, I will no longer accept you as my people.
Now I will remember all your wickedness
and will punish you for your sins.”
The Lord Forbids Jeremiah to Intercede
11 Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for these people anymore. 12 When they fast, I will pay no attention. When they present their burnt offerings and grain offerings to me, I will not accept them. Instead, I will devour them with war, famine, and disease.”
13 Then I said, “O Sovereign Lord, their prophets are telling them, ‘All is well—no war or famine will come. The Lord will surely send you peace.’”
14 Then the Lord said, “These prophets are telling lies in my name. I did not send them or tell them to speak. I did not give them any messages. They prophesy of visions and revelations they have never seen or heard. They speak foolishness made up in their own lying hearts. 15 Therefore, this is what the Lord says: I will punish these lying prophets, for they have spoken in my name even though I never sent them. They say that no war or famine will come, but they themselves will die by war and famine! 16 As for the people to whom they prophesy—their bodies will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem, victims of famine and war. There will be no one left to bury them. Husbands, wives, sons, and daughters—all will be gone. For I will pour out their own wickedness on them. 17 Now, Jeremiah, say this to them:
“Night and day my eyes overflow with tears.
I cannot stop weeping,
for my virgin daughter—my precious people—
has been struck down
and lies mortally wounded.
18 If I go out into the fields,
I see the bodies of people slaughtered by the enemy.
If I walk the city streets,
I see people who have died of starvation.
The prophets and priests continue with their work,
but they don’t know what they’re doing.”
A Prayer for Healing
19 Lord, have you completely rejected Judah?
Do you really hate Jerusalem?[a]
Why have you wounded us past all hope of healing?
We hoped for peace, but no peace came.
We hoped for a time of healing, but found only terror.
20 Lord, we confess our wickedness
and that of our ancestors, too.
We all have sinned against you.
21 For the sake of your reputation, Lord, do not abandon us.
Do not disgrace your own glorious throne.
Please remember us,
and do not break your covenant with us.
22 Can any of the worthless foreign gods send us rain?
Does it fall from the sky by itself?
No, you are the one, O Lord our God!
Only you can do such things.
So we will wait for you to help us.
Footnotes
- 14:19 Hebrew Zion?
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
