Jeremiah 16
New Living Translation
Jeremiah Forbidden to Marry
16 The Lord gave me another message. He said, 2 “Do not get married or have children in this place. 3 For this is what the Lord says about the children born here in this city and about their mothers and fathers: 4 They will die from terrible diseases. No one will mourn for them or bury them, and they will lie scattered on the ground like manure. They will die from war and famine, and their bodies will be food for the vultures and wild animals.”
Judah’s Coming Punishment
5 This is what the Lord says: “Do not go to funerals to mourn and show sympathy for these people, for I have removed my protection and peace from them. I have taken away my unfailing love and my mercy. 6 Both the great and the lowly will die in this land. No one will bury them or mourn for them. Their friends will not cut themselves in sorrow or shave their heads in sadness. 7 No one will offer a meal to comfort those who mourn for the dead—not even at the death of a mother or father. No one will send a cup of wine to console them.
8 “And do not go to their feasts and parties. Do not eat and drink with them at all. 9 For this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: In your own lifetime, before your very eyes, I will put an end to the happy singing and laughter in this land. The joyful voices of bridegrooms and brides will no longer be heard.
10 “When you tell the people all these things, they will ask, ‘Why has the Lord decreed such terrible things against us? What have we done to deserve such treatment? What is our sin against the Lord our God?’
11 “Then you will give them the Lord’s reply: ‘It is because your ancestors were unfaithful to me. They worshiped other gods and served them. They abandoned me and did not obey my word. 12 And you are even worse than your ancestors! You stubbornly follow your own evil desires and refuse to listen to me. 13 So I will throw you out of this land and send you into a foreign land where you and your ancestors have never been. There you can worship idols day and night—and I will grant you no favors!’
Hope despite the Disaster
14 “But the time is coming,” says the Lord, “when people who are taking an oath will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who rescued the people of Israel from the land of Egypt.’ 15 Instead, they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the people of Israel back to their own land from the land of the north and from all the countries to which he had exiled them.’ For I will bring them back to this land that I gave their ancestors.
16 “But now I am sending for many fishermen who will catch them,” says the Lord. “I am sending for hunters who will hunt them down in the mountains, hills, and caves. 17 I am watching them closely, and I see every sin. They cannot hope to hide from me. 18 I will double their punishment for all their sins, because they have defiled my land with lifeless images of their detestable gods and have filled my territory with their evil deeds.”
Jeremiah’s Prayer of Confidence
19 Lord, you are my strength and fortress,
my refuge in the day of trouble!
Nations from around the world
will come to you and say,
“Our ancestors left us a foolish heritage,
for they worshiped worthless idols.
20 Can people make their own gods?
These are not real gods at all!”
21 The Lord says,
“Now I will show them my power;
now I will show them my might.
At last they will know and understand
that I am the Lord.
Jeremiah 16
International Standard Version
The Lord’s Instruction to His Prophet
16 This message from the Lord came to me: 2 “You are not to take a wife, nor are you to have sons or daughters in this place.”
3 For this is what the Lord says about the sons and daughters who are born in this place, about their mothers who give birth to them, and about their fathers who father them in this land: 4 “They’ll die of deadly diseases. People won’t mourn for them, nor will they be buried. They’ll be dung on the surface of the ground, and they’ll come to an end with the sword and with famine. Their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the sky and the animals of the land.”
5 For this is what the Lord says: “Don’t go to a house where there is mourning, don’t go to lament, nor to express sorrow to them. For I’ve taken my peace away from this people,” declares the Lord, “as well as gracious love and compassion. 6 Both the most and the least important people[a] will die in this land, and they won’t be buried. People won’t mourn for them. They won’t cut themselves,[b] nor will they shave their heads for them.[c] 7 They won’t break bread[d] for the mourner to be consoled for the dead. They won’t give anyone the cup of consolation to drink for his father or[e] mother. 8 Don’t go to a banquet to sit with people[f] to eat and drink.” 9 For this is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says: “In this place I’m about to bring an end to the sounds of happiness and rejoicing, the sounds of the bridegroom and the bride. I’ll do it in front of your eyes and in your time.
10 “When you speak all these words to this people, they’ll say to you, ‘Why has the Lord pronounced all this disaster against us? What is our iniquity, and what is the sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?’ 11 Then say to them, ‘It is because your ancestors abandoned me,’ declares the Lord. ‘They followed other gods, served them, worshipped them, abandoned me, and didn’t keep my Law. 12 You have done even more evil than your ancestors, and each one of you is stubbornly following his own evil desires,[g] refusing to listen to me. 13 I’ll throw you out of this land into a land neither you nor your ancestors have known. There you will serve other gods day and night, and I’ll show you no favor.’
14 “Therefore, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when it will no longer be said, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought up the Israelis from the land of Egypt.’ 15 Rather it will be said, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelis up from the land of the north and from all the lands to which the Lord[h] had banished them.’ I’ll bring them back to their land, which I gave to their ancestors.
16 “I’m about to send many fishermen,” declares the Lord, “and they’ll catch them. Afterwards, I’ll send for many hunters and they’ll hunt for them on every mountain and hill and in the crevices of the rocks. 17 For I am watching all their ways; they are not hidden from my sight.[i] Their iniquity is not concealed from my eyes. 18 First I’ll repay them double for their iniquity and their sin, because they have polluted my land with the dead bodies of their detestable images, and they have filled my inheritance with their abominations.”[j]
19 Lord, my strength and my stronghold,
my refuge in a time of difficulty,
to you the nations will come,
and from the ends of the earth they’ll say,
“Surely our ancestors inherited deception,[k]
things that are worthless,
and in which there is no profit.”
20 Can a person make a god for himself?
They are not gods!
21 Therefore, I’m about to make them understand;
this time I’ll make them understand
my power and strength,
so they’ll understand that my name is the Lord.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 16:6 Lit. great and small; i.e. adults and children
- Jeremiah 16:6 A Canaanite mourning practice forbidden by Deut. 14:1
- Jeremiah 16:6 A common mourning practice in the ancient world
- Jeremiah 16:7 The Heb. lacks bread
- Jeremiah 16:7 The Heb. lacks father or
- Jeremiah 16:8 Lit. with them
- Jeremiah 16:12 Lit. following the stubbornness of their evil heart
- Jeremiah 16:15 Lit. he
- Jeremiah 16:17 Lit. from before me
- Jeremiah 16:18 Or their abominable idols
- Jeremiah 16:19 I.e. false gods or idols
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.
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