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Jeremiah 6:25-25:23
New King James Version

25 Do not go out into the field,
Nor walk by the way.
Because of the sword of the enemy,
Fear is on every side.
26 O daughter of my people,
(A)Dress in sackcloth
(B)And roll about in ashes!
(C)Make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation;
For the plunderer will suddenly come upon us.

27 “I have set you as an assayer and (D)a fortress among My people,
That you may know and test their way.
28 (E)They are all stubborn rebels, (F)walking as slanderers.
They are (G)bronze and iron,
They are all corrupters;
29 The bellows blow fiercely,
The lead is consumed by the fire;
The smelter refines in vain,
For the wicked are not drawn off.
30 People will call them (H)rejected silver,
Because the Lord has rejected them.”

Trusting in Lying Words(I)

7 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, 2 (J)“Stand in the gate of the Lord’s house, and proclaim there this word, and say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, all you of Judah who enter in at these gates to worship the Lord!’ ” 3 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: (K)“Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. 4 (L)Do not trust in these lying words, saying, ‘The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord are these.’

5 “For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, if you thoroughly (M)execute [a]judgment between a man and his neighbor, 6 if you do not oppress the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, (N)or walk after other gods to your hurt, 7 (O)then I will cause you to dwell in this place, in (P)the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever.

8 “Behold, you trust in (Q)lying words that cannot profit. 9 (R)Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and (S)walk after other gods whom you do not know, 10 (T)and then come and stand before Me in this house (U)which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered to do all these abominations’? 11 Has (V)this house, which is called by My name, become a (W)den of thieves in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” says the Lord.

12 “But go now to (X)My place which was in Shiloh, (Y)where I set My name at the first, and see (Z)what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel. 13 And now, because you have done all these works,” says the Lord, “and I spoke to you, (AA)rising up early and speaking, but you did not hear, and I (AB)called you, but you did not answer, 14 therefore I will do to the house which is called by My name, in which you trust, and to this place which I gave to you and your fathers, as I have done to (AC)Shiloh. 15 And I will cast you out of My sight, (AD)as I have cast out all your brethren—(AE)the whole posterity of Ephraim.

16 “Therefore (AF)do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; (AG)for I will not hear you. 17 Do you not see what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 (AH)The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and they (AI)pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke Me to anger. 19 (AJ)Do they provoke Me to anger?” says the Lord. “Do they not provoke themselves, to the shame of their own faces?”

20 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Behold, My anger and My fury will be poured out on this place—on man and on beast, on the trees of the field and on the fruit of the ground. And it will burn and not be quenched.”

21 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: (AK)“Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat meat. 22 (AL)For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices. 23 But this is what I commanded them, saying, (AM)‘Obey My voice, and (AN)I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’ 24 (AO)Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but (AP)followed[b] the counsels and the [c]dictates of their evil hearts, and (AQ)went[d] backward and not forward. 25 Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have even (AR)sent to you all My servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them. 26 (AS)Yet they did not obey Me or incline their ear, but (AT)stiffened their neck. (AU)They did worse than their fathers.

27 “Therefore (AV)you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not obey you. You shall also call to them, but they will not answer you.

Judgment on Obscene Religion

28 “So you shall say to them, ‘This is a nation that does not obey the voice of the Lord their God (AW)nor receive correction. (AX)Truth has perished and has been cut off from their mouth. 29 (AY)Cut off your hair and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on the desolate heights; for the Lord has rejected and forsaken the generation of His wrath.’ 30 For the children of Judah have done evil in My sight,” says the Lord. (AZ)“They have set their abominations in the house which is called by My name, to [e]pollute it. 31 And they have built the (BA)high places of Tophet, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to (BB)burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, (BC)which I did not command, nor did it come into My heart.

32 “Therefore behold, (BD)the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when it will no more be called Tophet, or the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter; (BE)for they will bury in Tophet until there is no room. 33 The (BF)corpses of this people will be food for the birds of the heaven and for the beasts of the earth. And no one will frighten them away. 34 Then I will cause to (BG)cease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride. For (BH)the land shall be desolate.

Jeremiah Mourns for His People

8 “At that time,” says the Lord, “they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of its princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves. 2 They shall spread them before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and which they have served and after which they have walked, which they have sought and (BI)which they have worshiped. They shall not be gathered (BJ)nor buried; they shall be like refuse on the face of the earth. 3 Then (BK)death shall be chosen rather than life by all the [f]residue of those who remain of this evil family, who remain in all the places where I have driven them,” says the Lord of hosts.

The Peril of False Teaching

4 “Moreover you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord:

“Will they fall and not rise?
Will one turn away and not return?
5 Why has this people (BL)slidden back,
Jerusalem, in a perpetual backsliding?
(BM)They hold fast to deceit,
(BN)They refuse to return.
6 (BO)I listened and heard,
But they do not speak aright.
(BP)No man repented of his wickedness,
Saying, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone turned to his own course,
As the horse rushes into the battle.

7 “Even (BQ)the stork in the heavens
Knows her appointed times;
And the turtledove, the swift, and the swallow
Observe the time of their coming.
But (BR)My people do not know the judgment of the Lord.

8 “How can you say, ‘We are wise,
(BS)And the law of the Lord is with us’?
Look, the false pen of the scribe certainly works falsehood.
9 (BT)The wise men are ashamed,
They are dismayed and taken.
Behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord;
So (BU)what wisdom do they have?
10 Therefore (BV)I will give their wives to others,
And their fields to those who will inherit them;
Because from the least even to the greatest
Everyone is given to (BW)covetousness;
From the prophet even to the priest
Everyone deals falsely.
11 For they have (BX)healed the hurt of the daughter of My people [g]slightly,
Saying, (BY)‘Peace, peace!’
When there is no peace.
12 Were they (BZ)ashamed when they had committed abomination?
No! They were not at all ashamed,
Nor did they know how to blush.
Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;
In the time of their punishment
They shall be cast down,” says the Lord.

13 “I will surely [h]consume them,” says the Lord.
“No grapes shall be (CA)on the vine,
Nor figs on the (CB)fig tree,
And the leaf shall fade;
And the things I have given them shall (CC)pass away from them.” ’ ”

14 “Why do we sit still?
(CD)Assemble yourselves,
And let us enter the fortified cities,
And let us be silent there.
For the Lord our God has put us to silence
And given us (CE)water[i] of gall to drink,
Because we have sinned against the Lord.

15 “We (CF)looked for peace, but no good came;
And for a time of health, and there was trouble!
16 The snorting of His horses was heard from (CG)Dan.
The whole land trembled at the sound of the neighing of His (CH)strong ones;
For they have come and devoured the land and all that is in it,
The city and those who dwell in it.”

17 “For behold, I will send serpents among you,
Vipers which cannot be (CI)charmed,
And they shall bite you,” says the Lord.

The Prophet Mourns for the People

18 I would comfort myself in sorrow;
My heart is faint in me.
19 Listen! The voice,
The cry of the daughter of my people
From (CJ)a far country:
“Is not the Lord in Zion?
Is not her King in her?”

“Why have they provoked Me to anger
With their carved images—
With foreign idols?”

20 “The harvest is past,
The summer is ended,
And we are not saved!”

21 (CK)For the hurt of the daughter of my people I am hurt.
I am (CL)mourning;
Astonishment has taken hold of me.
22 Is there no (CM)balm in Gilead,
Is there no physician there?
Why then is there no recovery
For the health of the daughter of my people?

Disobedience Brings God’s Judgment

9 Oh, (CN)that my head were waters,
And my eyes a fountain of tears,
That I might weep day and night
For the slain of the daughter of my people!
2 Oh, that I had in the wilderness
A lodging place for travelers;
That I might leave my people,
And go from them!
For (CO)they are all adulterers,
An assembly of treacherous men.

3 “And like their bow (CP)they have bent their tongues for lies.
They are not valiant for the truth on the earth.
For they proceed from (CQ)evil to evil,
And they (CR)do not know Me,” says the Lord.
4 “Everyone(CS) take heed to his [j]neighbor,
And do not trust any brother;
For every brother will utterly supplant,
And every neighbor will (CT)walk with slanderers.
5 Everyone will (CU)deceive his neighbor,
And will not speak the truth;
They have taught their tongue to speak lies;
They weary themselves to commit iniquity.
6 Your dwelling place is in the midst of deceit;
Through deceit they refuse to know Me,” says the Lord.

7 Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts:

“Behold, (CV)I will refine them and [k]try them;
(CW)For how shall I deal with the daughter of My people?
8 Their tongue is an arrow shot out;
It speaks (CX)deceit;
One speaks (CY)peaceably to his neighbor with his mouth,
But [l]in his heart he [m]lies in wait.
9 (CZ)Shall I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord.
“Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?”

10 I will take up a weeping and wailing for the mountains,
And (DA)for the [n]dwelling places of the wilderness a lamentation,
Because they are burned up,
So that no one can pass through;
Nor can men hear the voice of the cattle.
(DB)Both the birds of the heavens and the beasts have fled;
They are gone.

11 “I will make Jerusalem (DC)a heap of ruins, (DD)a den of jackals.
I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant.”

12 (DE)Who is the wise man who may understand this? And who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord has spoken, that he may declare it? Why does the land perish and burn up like a wilderness, so that no one can pass through?

13 And the Lord said, “Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have (DF)not obeyed My voice, nor walked according to it, 14 but they have (DG)walked according to the [o]dictates of their own hearts and after the Baals, (DH)which their fathers taught them,” 15 therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will (DI)feed them, this people, (DJ)with wormwood, and give them [p]water of gall to drink. 16 I will (DK)scatter them also among the Gentiles, whom neither they nor their fathers have known. (DL)And I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them.”

The People Mourn in Judgment

17 Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“Consider and call for (DM)the mourning women,
That they may come;
And send for skillful wailing women,
That they may come.
18 Let them make haste
And take up a wailing for us,
That (DN)our eyes may run with tears,
And our eyelids gush with water.
19 For a voice of wailing is heard from Zion:
‘How we are plundered!
We are greatly ashamed,
Because we have forsaken the land,
Because we have been cast out of (DO)our dwellings.’ ”

20 Yet hear the word of the Lord, O women,
And let your ear receive the word of His mouth;
Teach your daughters wailing,
And everyone her neighbor a lamentation.
21 For death has come through our windows,
Has entered our palaces,
To kill off (DP)the children—[q]no longer to be outside!
And the young men—[r]no longer on the streets!

22 Speak, “Thus says the Lord:

‘Even the carcasses of men shall fall (DQ)as refuse on the open field,
Like cuttings after the harvester,
And no one shall gather them.’ ”

23 Thus says the Lord:

(DR)“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his (DS)might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
24 But (DT)let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, [s]judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
(DU)For in these I delight,” says the Lord.

25 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “that (DV)I will punish all who are circumcised with the uncircumcised— 26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, the people of Ammon, Moab, and all who are in the (DW)farthest corners, who dwell in the wilderness. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are (DX)uncircumcised in the heart.”

Idols and the True God

10 Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel.

2 Thus says the Lord:

(DY)“Do not learn the way of the Gentiles;
Do not be dismayed at the signs of heaven,
For the Gentiles are dismayed at them.
3 For the customs of the peoples are [t]futile;
For (DZ)one cuts a tree from the forest,
The work of the hands of the workman, with the ax.
4 They decorate it with silver and gold;
They (EA)fasten it with nails and hammers
So that it will not topple.
5 They are upright, like a palm tree,
And (EB)they cannot speak;
They must be (EC)carried,
Because they cannot go by themselves.
Do not be afraid of them,
For (ED)they cannot do evil,
Nor can they do any good.”

6 Inasmuch as there is none (EE)like You, O Lord
(You are great, and Your name is great in might),
7 (EF)Who would not fear You, O King of the nations?
For this is Your rightful due.
For (EG)among all the wise men of the nations,
And in all their kingdoms,
There is none like You.
8 But they are altogether (EH)dull-hearted and foolish;
A wooden idol is a [u]worthless doctrine.
9 Silver is beaten into plates;
It is brought from Tarshish,
And (EI)gold from Uphaz,
The work of the craftsman
And of the hands of the metalsmith;
Blue and purple are their clothing;
They are all (EJ)the work of skillful men.
10 But the Lord is the true God;
He is (EK)the living God and the (EL)everlasting King.
At His wrath the earth will tremble,
And the nations will not be able to endure His indignation.

11 Thus you shall say to them: (EM)“The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth (EN)shall perish from the earth and from under these heavens.”

12 He (EO)has made the earth by His power,
He has (EP)established the world by His wisdom,
And (EQ)has stretched out the heavens at His discretion.
13 (ER)When He utters His voice,
There is a [v]multitude of waters in the heavens:
(ES)“And He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth.
He makes lightning for the rain,
He brings the wind out of His treasuries.”

14 (ET)Everyone is (EU)dull-hearted, without knowledge;
(EV)Every metalsmith is put to shame by an image;
(EW)For his molded image is falsehood,
And there is no breath in them.
15 They are futile, a work of errors;
In the time of their punishment they shall perish.
16 (EX)The Portion of Jacob is not like them,
For He is the Maker of all things,
And (EY)Israel is the tribe of His inheritance;
(EZ)The Lord of hosts is His name.

The Coming Captivity of Judah

17 (FA)Gather up your wares from the land,
O [w]inhabitant of the fortress!

18 For thus says the Lord:

“Behold, I will (FB)throw out at this time
The inhabitants of the land,
And will distress them,
(FC)That they may find it so.”

19 (FD)Woe is me for my hurt!
My wound is severe.
But I say, (FE)“Truly this is an infirmity,
And (FF)I must bear it.”
20 (FG)My tent is plundered,
And all my cords are broken;
My children have gone from me,
And they are (FH)no more.
There is no one to pitch my tent anymore,
Or set up my curtains.

21 For the shepherds have become dull-hearted,
And have not sought the Lord;
Therefore they shall not prosper,
And all their flocks shall be (FI)scattered.
22 Behold, the noise of the report has come,
And a great commotion out of the (FJ)north country,
To make the cities of Judah desolate, a (FK)den of jackals.

23 O Lord, I know the (FL)way of man is not in himself;
It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.
24 O Lord, (FM)correct me, but with justice;
Not in Your anger, lest You bring me to nothing.
25 (FN)Pour out Your fury on the Gentiles, (FO)who do not know You,
And on the families who do not call on Your name;
For they have eaten up Jacob,
(FP)Devoured him and consumed him,
And made his dwelling place desolate.

The Broken Covenant

11 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, 2 “Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem; 3 and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: (FQ)“Cursed is the man who does not obey the words of this covenant 4 which I commanded your fathers in the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt, (FR)from the iron furnace, saying, (FS)‘Obey My voice, and do according to all that I command you; so shall you be My people, and I will be your God,’ 5 that I may establish the (FT)oath which I have sworn to your fathers, to give them (FU)‘a land flowing with milk and honey,’ as it is this day.” ’ ”

And I answered and said, [x]“So be it, Lord.”

6 Then the Lord said to me, “Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: ‘Hear the words of this covenant (FV)and do them. 7 For I earnestly exhorted your fathers in the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, until this day, (FW)rising early and exhorting, saying, “Obey My voice.” 8 (FX)Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but (FY)everyone [y]followed the dictates of his evil heart; therefore I will bring upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but which they have not done.’ ”

9 And the Lord said to me, (FZ)“A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10 They have turned back to (GA)the iniquities of their forefathers who refused to hear My words, and they have gone after other gods to serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers.”

11 Therefore thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will surely bring calamity on them which they will not be able to [z]escape; and (GB)though they cry out to Me, I will not listen to them. 12 Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and (GC)cry out to the gods to whom they offer incense, but they will not save them at all in the time of their trouble. 13 For according to the number of your (GD)cities were your gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem you have set up altars to that shameful thing, altars to burn incense to Baal.

14 “So (GE)do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble.

15 “What(GF) has My beloved to do in My house,
Having (GG)done lewd deeds with many?
And (GH)the holy flesh has passed from you.
When you do evil, then you (GI)rejoice.
16 The Lord called your name,
(GJ)Green Olive Tree, Lovely and of Good Fruit.
With the noise of a great tumult
He has kindled fire on it,
And its branches are broken.

17 “For the Lord of hosts, (GK)who planted you, has pronounced doom against you for the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done against themselves to provoke Me to anger in offering incense to Baal.”

Jeremiah’s Life Threatened

18 Now the Lord gave me knowledge of it, and I know it; for You showed me their doings. 19 But I was like a docile lamb brought to the slaughter; and I did not know that they had devised schemes against me, saying, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, (GL)and let us cut him off from (GM)the land of the living, that his name may be remembered no more.”

20 But, O Lord of hosts,
You who judge righteously,
(GN)Testing the [aa]mind and the heart,
Let me see Your (GO)vengeance on them,
For to You I have revealed my cause.

21 “Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the men of (GP)Anathoth who seek your life, saying, (GQ)‘Do not prophesy in the name of the Lord, lest you die by our hand’— 22 therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Behold, I will punish them. The young men shall die by the sword, their sons and their daughters shall (GR)die by famine; 23 and there shall be no remnant of them, for I will bring catastrophe on the men of Anathoth, even (GS)the year of their punishment.’ ”

Jeremiah’s Question

12 Righteous (GT)are You, O Lord, when I plead with You;
Yet let me talk with You about Your judgments.
(GU)Why does the way of the wicked prosper?
Why are those happy who deal so treacherously?
2 You have planted them, yes, they have taken root;
They grow, yes, they bear fruit.
(GV)You are near in their mouth
But far from their [ab]mind.

3 But You, O Lord, (GW)know me;
You have seen me,
And You have (GX)tested my heart toward You.
Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter,
And prepare them for (GY)the day of slaughter.
4 How long will (GZ)the land mourn,
And the herbs of every field wither?
(HA)The beasts and birds are consumed,
(HB)For the wickedness of those who dwell there,
Because they said, “He will not see our final end.”

The Lord Answers Jeremiah

5 “If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you,
Then how can you contend with horses?
And if in the land of peace,
In which you trusted, they wearied you,
Then how will you do in (HC)the [ac]floodplain of the Jordan?
6 For even (HD)your brothers, the house of your father,
Even they have dealt treacherously with you;
Yes, they have called [ad]a multitude after you.
(HE)Do not believe them,
Even though they speak [ae]smooth words to you.

7 “I have forsaken My house, I have left My heritage;
I have given the dearly beloved of My soul into the hand of her enemies.
8 My heritage is to Me like a lion in the forest;
It cries out against Me;
Therefore I have (HF)hated it.
9 My [af]heritage is to Me like a speckled vulture;
The vultures all around are against her.
Come, assemble all the beasts of the field,
(HG)Bring them to devour!

10 “Many (HH)rulers[ag] have destroyed (HI)My vineyard,
They have (HJ)trodden My portion underfoot;
They have made My [ah]pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.
11 They have made it (HK)desolate;
Desolate, it mourns to Me;
The whole land is made desolate,
Because (HL)no one takes it to heart.
12 The plunderers have come
On all the desolate heights in the wilderness,
For the sword of the Lord shall devour
From one end of the land to the other end of the land;
No flesh shall have peace.
13 (HM)They have sown wheat but reaped thorns;
They have [ai]put themselves to pain but do not profit.
But be ashamed of your harvest
Because of the fierce anger of the Lord.”

14 Thus says the Lord: “Against all My evil neighbors who (HN)touch the inheritance which I have caused My people Israel to inherit—behold, I will (HO)pluck them out of their land and pluck out the house of Judah from among them. 15 (HP)Then it shall be, after I have plucked them out, that I will return and have compassion on them (HQ)and bring them back, everyone to his heritage and everyone to his land. 16 And it shall be, if they will learn carefully the ways of My people, (HR)to swear by My name, ‘As the Lord lives,’ as they taught My people to swear by Baal, then they shall be (HS)established in the midst of My people. 17 But if they do not (HT)obey, I will utterly pluck up and destroy that nation,” says the Lord.

Symbol of the Linen Sash

13 Thus the Lord said to me: “Go and get yourself a linen sash, and put it [aj]around your waist, but do not put it in water.” 2 So I got a [ak]sash according to the word of the Lord, and put it around my waist.

3 And the word of the Lord came to me the second time, saying, 4 “Take the [al]sash that you acquired, which is [am]around your waist, and arise, go to the [an]Euphrates, and hide it there in a hole in the rock.” 5 So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord commanded me.

6 Now it came to pass after many days that the Lord said to me, “Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take from there the sash which I commanded you to hide there.” 7 Then I went to the Euphrates and dug, and I took the [ao]sash from the place where I had hidden it; and there was the sash, ruined. It was profitable for nothing.

8 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 9 “Thus says the Lord: ‘In this manner (HU)I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great (HV)pride of Jerusalem. 10 This evil people, who (HW)refuse to hear My words, who (HX)follow[ap] the dictates of their hearts, and walk after other gods to serve them and worship them, shall be just like this sash which is profitable for nothing. 11 For as the sash clings to the waist of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me,’ says the Lord, ‘that (HY)they may become My people, (HZ)for renown, for praise, and for (IA)glory; but they would (IB)not hear.’

Symbol of the Wine Bottles

12 “Therefore you shall speak to them this word: ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: “Every bottle shall be filled with wine.” ’

“And they will say to you, ‘Do we not certainly know that every bottle will be filled with wine?’

13 “Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land—even the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem—(IC)with drunkenness! 14 And (ID)I will dash them [aq]one against another, even the fathers and the sons together,” says the Lord. “I will not pity nor spare nor have mercy, but will destroy them.” ’ ”

Pride Precedes Captivity

15 Hear and give ear:
Do not be proud,
For the Lord has spoken.
16 (IE)Give glory to the Lord your God
Before He causes (IF)darkness,
And before your feet stumble
On the dark mountains,
And while you are (IG)looking for light,
He turns it into (IH)the shadow of death
And makes it dense darkness.
17 But if you will not hear it,
My soul will (II)weep in secret for your pride;
My eyes will weep bitterly
And run down with tears,
Because the Lord’s flock has been taken captive.

18 Say to (IJ)the king and to the queen mother,
“Humble yourselves;
Sit down,
For your rule shall collapse, the crown of your glory.”
19 The cities of the South shall be shut up,
And no one shall open them;
Judah shall be carried away captive, all of it;
It shall be wholly carried away captive.

20 Lift up your eyes and see
Those who come from the (IK)north.
Where is the flock that was given to you,
Your beautiful sheep?
21 What will you say when He punishes you?
For you have taught them
To be chieftains, to be head over you.
Will not (IL)pangs seize you,
Like a woman in [ar]labor?
22 And if you say in your heart,
(IM)“Why have these things come upon me?”
For the greatness of your iniquity
(IN)Your skirts have been uncovered,
Your heels [as]made bare.
23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots?
Then may you also do good who are accustomed to do evil.

24 “Therefore I will (IO)scatter them (IP)like stubble
That passes away by the wind of the wilderness.
25 (IQ)This is your lot,
The portion of your measures from Me,” says the Lord,
“Because you have forgotten Me
And trusted in (IR)falsehood.
26 Therefore (IS)I will uncover your skirts over your face,
That your shame may appear.
27 I have seen your adulteries
And your lustful (IT)neighings,
The lewdness of your harlotry,
Your abominations (IU)on the hills in the fields.
Woe to you, O Jerusalem!
Will you still not be made clean?”

Sword, Famine, and Pestilence

14 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the droughts.

2 “Judah mourns,
And (IV)her gates languish;
They (IW)mourn for the land,
And (IX)the cry of Jerusalem has gone up.
3 Their nobles have sent their lads for water;
They went to the cisterns and found no water.
They returned with their vessels empty;
They were (IY)ashamed and confounded
(IZ)And covered their heads.
4 Because the ground is parched,
For there was (JA)no rain in the land,
The plowmen were ashamed;
They covered their heads.
5 Yes, the deer also gave birth in the field,
But [at]left because there was no grass.
6 And (JB)the wild donkeys stood in the desolate heights;
They sniffed at the wind like jackals;
Their eyes failed because there was no grass.”

7 O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us,
Do it (JC)for Your name’s sake;
For our backslidings are many,
We have sinned against You.
8 (JD)O the Hope of Israel, his Savior in time of trouble,
Why should You be like a stranger in the land,
And like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night?
9 Why should You be like a man astonished,
Like a mighty one (JE)who cannot save?
Yet You, O Lord, (JF)are in our midst,
And we are called by Your name;
Do not leave us!

10 Thus says the Lord to this people:

(JG)“Thus they have loved to wander;
They have not restrained their feet.
Therefore the Lord does not accept them;
(JH)He will remember their iniquity now,
And punish their sins.”

11 Then the Lord said to me, (JI)“Do not pray for this people, for their good. 12 (JJ)When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and (JK)when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But (JL)I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.”

13 (JM)Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you [au]assured (JN)peace in this place.’ ”

14 And the Lord said to me, (JO)“The prophets prophesy lies in My name. (JP)I have not sent them, commanded them, nor spoken to them; they prophesy to you a false vision, [av]divination, a worthless thing, and the (JQ)deceit of their heart. 15 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who prophesy in My name, whom I did not send, (JR)and who say, ‘Sword and famine shall not be in this land’—‘By sword and famine those prophets shall be consumed! 16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; (JS)they will have no one to bury them—them nor their wives, their sons nor their daughters—for I will pour their wickedness on them.’

17 “Therefore you shall say this word to them:

(JT)‘Let my eyes flow with tears night and day,
And let them not cease;
(JU)For the virgin daughter of my people
Has been broken with a mighty stroke, with a very severe blow.
18 If I go out to (JV)the field,
Then behold, those slain with the sword!
And if I enter the city,
Then behold, those sick from famine!
Yes, both prophet and (JW)priest go about in a land they do not know.’ ”

The People Plead for Mercy

19 (JX)Have You utterly rejected Judah?
Has Your soul loathed Zion?
Why have You stricken us so that (JY)there is no healing for us?
(JZ)We looked for peace, but there was no good;
And for the time of healing, and there was trouble.
20 We acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness
And the iniquity of our (KA)fathers,
For (KB)we have sinned against You.
21 Do not abhor us, for Your name’s sake;
Do not disgrace the throne of Your glory.
(KC)Remember, do not break Your covenant with us.
22 (KD)Are there any among (KE)the idols of the nations that can cause (KF)rain?
Or can the heavens give showers?
(KG)Are You not He, O Lord our God?
Therefore we will wait for You,
Since You have made all these.

The Lord Will Not Relent

15 Then the Lord said to me, (KH)“Even if (KI)Moses and (KJ)Samuel stood before Me, My [aw]mind would not be favorable toward this people. Cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth. 2 And it shall be, if they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then you shall tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord:

(KK)“Such as are for death, to death;
And such as are for the sword, to the sword;
And such as are for the famine, to the famine;
And such as are for the (KL)captivity, to the captivity.” ’

3 “And I will (KM)appoint over them four forms of destruction,” says the Lord: “the sword to slay, the dogs to drag, (KN)the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. 4 I will hand them over to (KO)trouble, to all kingdoms of the earth, because of (KP)Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.

5 “For who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem?
Or who will bemoan you?
Or who will turn aside to ask how you are doing?
6 (KQ)You have forsaken Me,” says the Lord,
“You have (KR)gone backward.
Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you;
(KS)I am [ax]weary of relenting!
7 And I will winnow them with a winnowing fan in the gates of the land;
I will (KT)bereave them of children;
I will destroy My people,
Since they (KU)do not return from their ways.
8 Their widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the seas;
I will bring against them,
Against the mother of the young men,
A plunderer at noonday;
I will cause anguish and terror to fall on them (KV)suddenly.

9 “She(KW) languishes who has borne seven;
She has breathed her last;
(KX)Her sun has gone down
While it was yet day;
She has been ashamed and confounded.
And the remnant of them I will deliver to the sword
Before their enemies,” says the Lord.

Jeremiah’s Dejection

10 (KY)Woe is me, my mother,
That you have borne me,
A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole [ay]earth!
I have neither lent for interest,
Nor have men lent to me for interest.
Every one of them curses me.

11 The Lord said:

“Surely it will be well with your remnant;
Surely I will cause (KZ)the enemy to intercede with you
In the time of adversity and in the time of affliction.
12 Can anyone break iron,
The northern iron and the bronze?
13 Your wealth and your treasures
I will give as (LA)plunder without price,
Because of all your sins,
Throughout your territories.
14 And I will [az]make you cross over with your enemies
(LB)Into a land which you do not know;
For a (LC)fire is kindled in My anger,
Which shall burn upon you.”

15 O Lord, (LD)You know;
Remember me and [ba]visit me,
And (LE)take vengeance for me on my persecutors.
In Your enduring patience, do not take me away.
Know that (LF)for Your sake I have suffered rebuke.
16 Your words were found, and I (LG)ate them,
And (LH)Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart;
For I am called by Your name,
O Lord God of hosts.
17 (LI)I did not sit in the assembly of the mockers,
Nor did I rejoice;
I sat alone because of Your hand,
For You have filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my (LJ)pain perpetual
And my wound incurable,
Which refuses to be healed?
Will You surely be to me (LK)like an unreliable stream,
As waters that [bb]fail?

The Lord Reassures Jeremiah

19 Therefore thus says the Lord:

(LL)“If you return,
Then I will bring you back;
You shall (LM)stand before Me;
If you (LN)take out the precious from the vile,
You shall be as My mouth.
Let them return to you,
But you must not return to them.
20 And I will make you to this people a fortified bronze (LO)wall;
And they will fight against you,
But (LP)they shall not prevail against you;
For I am with you to save you
And deliver you,” says the Lord.
21 “I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked,
And I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible.”

Jeremiah’s Lifestyle and Message

16 The word of the Lord also came to me, saying, 2 “You shall not take a wife, nor shall you have sons or daughters in this place.” 3 For thus says the Lord concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and concerning their mothers who bore them and their fathers who begot them in this land: 4 “They shall die (LQ)gruesome deaths; they shall not be (LR)lamented nor shall they be (LS)buried, but they shall be (LT)like refuse on the face of the earth. They shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, and their (LU)corpses shall be meat for the birds of heaven and for the beasts of the earth.”

5 For thus says the Lord: (LV)“Do not enter the house of mourning, nor go to lament or bemoan them; for I have taken away My peace from this people,” says the Lord, “lovingkindness and mercies. 6 Both the great and the small shall die in this land. They shall not be buried; (LW)neither shall men lament for them, (LX)cut themselves, nor (LY)make themselves bald for them. 7 Nor shall men break bread in mourning for them, to comfort them for the dead; nor shall men give them the cup of consolation to (LZ)drink for their father or their mother. 8 Also you shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink.”

9 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, (MA)I will cause to cease from this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of [bc]mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.

10 “And it shall be, when you show this people all these words, and they say to you, (MB)‘Why has the Lord pronounced all this great disaster against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?’ 11 then you shall say to them, (MC)‘Because your fathers have forsaken Me,’ says the Lord; ‘they have walked after other gods and have served them and worshiped them, and have forsaken Me and not kept My law. 12 And you have done (MD)worse than your fathers, for behold, (ME)each one [bd]follows the dictates of his own evil heart, so that no one listens to Me. 13 (MF)Therefore I will cast you out of this land (MG)into a land that you do not know, neither you nor your fathers; and there you shall serve other gods day and night, where I will not show you favor.’

God Will Restore Israel(MH)

14 “Therefore behold, the (MI)days are coming,” says the Lord, “that it shall no more be said, ‘The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ 15 but, ‘The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the (MJ)north and from all the lands where He had driven them.’ For (MK)I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.

16 “Behold, I will send for many (ML)fishermen,” says the Lord, “and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks. 17 For My (MM)eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity hidden from My eyes. 18 And first I will repay (MN)double for their iniquity and their sin, because (MO)they have defiled My land; they have filled My inheritance with the carcasses of their detestable and abominable idols.”

19 O Lord, (MP)my strength and my fortress,
(MQ)My refuge in the day of affliction,
The Gentiles shall come to You
From the ends of the earth and say,
“Surely our fathers have inherited lies,
Worthlessness and (MR)unprofitable things.”
20 Will a man make gods for himself,
(MS)Which are not gods?

21 “Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know,
I will cause them to know
My hand and My might;
And they shall know that (MT)My name is the Lord.

Judah’s Sin and Punishment

17 “The sin of Judah is (MU)written with a (MV)pen of iron;
With the point of a diamond it is (MW)engraved
On the tablet of their heart,
And on the horns of your altars,
2 While their children remember
Their altars and their (MX)wooden[be] images
By the green trees on the high hills.
3 O My mountain in the field,
I will give as plunder your wealth, all your treasures,
And your high places of sin within all your borders.
4 And you, even yourself,
Shall let go of your heritage which I gave you;
And I will cause you to serve your enemies
In (MY)the land which you do not know;
For (MZ)you have kindled a fire in My anger which shall burn forever.”

5 Thus says the Lord:

(NA)“Cursed is the man who trusts in man
And makes (NB)flesh his [bf]strength,
Whose heart departs from the Lord.
6 For he shall be (NC)like a shrub in the desert,
And (ND)shall not see when good comes,
But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
(NE)In a salt land which is not inhabited.

7 “Blessed(NF) is the man who trusts in the Lord,
And whose hope is the Lord.
8 For he shall be (NG)like a tree planted by the waters,
Which spreads out its roots by the river,
And will not [bg]fear when heat comes;
But its leaf will be green,
And will not be anxious in the year of drought,
Nor will cease from yielding fruit.

9 “The (NH)heart is deceitful above all things,
And [bh]desperately wicked;
Who can know it?
10 I, the Lord, (NI)search the heart,
I test the [bi]mind,
(NJ)Even to give every man according to his ways,
According to the fruit of his doings.

11 “As a partridge that [bj]broods but does not hatch,
So is he who gets riches, but not by right;
It (NK)will leave him in the midst of his days,
And at his end he will be (NL)a fool.”

12 A glorious high throne from the beginning
Is the place of our sanctuary.
13 O Lord, (NM)the hope of Israel,
(NN)All who forsake You shall be ashamed.

“Those who depart from Me
Shall be (NO)written in the earth,
Because they have forsaken the Lord,
The (NP)fountain of living waters.”

Jeremiah Prays for Deliverance

14 Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed;
Save me, and I shall be saved,
For (NQ)You are my praise.
15 Indeed they say to me,
(NR)“Where is the word of the Lord?
Let it come now!”
16 As for me, (NS)I have not hurried away from being a shepherd who follows You,
Nor have I desired the woeful day;
You know what came out of my lips;
It was right there before You.
17 Do not be a terror to me;
(NT)You are my hope in the day of doom.
18 (NU)Let them be ashamed who persecute me,
But (NV)do not let me be put to shame;
Let them be dismayed,
But do not let me be dismayed.
Bring on them the day of doom,
And (NW)destroy[bk] them with double destruction!

Hallow the Sabbath Day

19 Thus the Lord said to me: “Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, by which the kings of Judah come in and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem; 20 and say to them, (NX)‘Hear the word of the Lord, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who enter by these gates. 21 Thus says the Lord: (NY)“Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem; 22 nor carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day, nor do any work, but hallow the Sabbath day, as I (NZ)commanded your fathers. 23 (OA)But they did not obey nor incline their ear, but [bl]made their neck stiff, that they might not hear nor receive instruction.

24 “And it shall be, (OB)if you heed Me carefully,” says the Lord, “to bring no burden through the gates of this city on the (OC)Sabbath day, but hallow the Sabbath day, to do no work in it, 25 (OD)then shall enter the gates of this city kings and princes sitting on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their princes, accompanied by the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city shall remain forever. 26 And they shall come from the cities of Judah and from (OE)the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin and from (OF)the [bm]lowland, from the mountains and from (OG)the [bn]South, bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and incense, bringing (OH)sacrifices of praise to the house of the Lord.

27 “But if you will not heed Me to hallow the Sabbath day, such as not carrying a burden when entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then (OI)I will kindle a fire in its gates, (OJ)and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be (OK)quenched.” ’ ”

The Potter and the Clay

18 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying: 2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” 3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the [bo]wheel. 4 And the vessel that he [bp]made of clay was [bq]marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.

5 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: 6 “O house of Israel, (OL)can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord. “Look, (OM)as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! 7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to (ON)pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, 8 (OO)if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, (OP)I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. 9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, 10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.

11 “Now therefore, speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I am fashioning a disaster and devising a plan against you. (OQ)Return now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings (OR)good.” ’ ”

God’s Warning Rejected

12 And they said, (OS)“That is hopeless! So we will walk according to our own plans, and we will every one [br]obey the (OT)dictates[bs] of his evil heart.”

13 Therefore thus says the Lord:

(OU)“Ask now among the Gentiles,
Who has heard such things?
The virgin of Israel has done (OV)a very horrible thing.
14 Will a man [bt]leave the snow water of Lebanon,
Which comes from the rock of the field?
Will the cold flowing waters be forsaken for strange waters?

15 “Because My people have forgotten (OW)Me,
They have burned incense to worthless idols.
And they have caused themselves to stumble in their ways,
From the (OX)ancient paths,
To walk in pathways and not on a highway,
16 To make their land (OY)desolate and a perpetual (OZ)hissing;
Everyone who passes by it will be astonished
And shake his head.
17 (PA)I will scatter them (PB)as with an east wind before the enemy;
(PC)I will [bu]show them the back and not the face
In the day of their calamity.”

Jeremiah Persecuted

18 Then they said, (PD)“Come and let us devise plans against Jeremiah; (PE)for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come and let us attack him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.”

19 Give heed to me, O Lord,
And listen to the voice of those who contend with me!
20 (PF)Shall evil be repaid for good?
For they have (PG)dug a pit for my life.
Remember that I (PH)stood before You
To speak good [bv]for them,
To turn away Your wrath from them.
21 Therefore (PI)deliver up their children to the famine,
And pour out their blood
By the force of the sword;
Let their wives become widows
And (PJ)bereaved of their children.
Let their men be put to death,
Their young men be slain
By the sword in battle.
22 Let a cry be heard from their houses,
When You bring a troop suddenly upon them;
For they have dug a pit to take me,
And hidden snares for my feet.
23 Yet, Lord, You know all their counsel
Which is against me, to slay me.
(PK)Provide no atonement for their iniquity,
Nor blot out their sin from Your sight;
But let them be overthrown before You.
Deal thus with them
In the time of Your (PL)anger.

The Sign of the Broken Flask

19 Thus says the Lord: “Go and get a potter’s earthen flask, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the elders of the priests. 2 And go out to (PM)the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, which is by the entry of the Potsherd Gate; and proclaim there the words that I will tell you, 3 (PN)and say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O kings of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will bring such a catastrophe on this place, that whoever hears of it, his ears will (PO)tingle.

4 “Because they (PP)have forsaken Me and made this an alien place, because they have burned incense in it to other gods whom neither they, their fathers, nor the kings of Judah have known, and have filled this place with (PQ)the blood of the innocents 5 (PR)(they have also built the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings to Baal, (PS)which I did not command or speak, nor did it come into My mind), 6 therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “that this place shall no more be called Tophet or (PT)the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter. 7 And I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place, (PU)and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies and by the hands of those who seek their lives; their (PV)corpses I will give as meat for the birds of the heaven and for the beasts of the earth. 8 I will make this city (PW)desolate and a hissing; everyone who passes by it will be astonished and hiss because of all its plagues. 9 And I will cause them to eat the (PX)flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and everyone shall eat the flesh of his friend in the siege and in the desperation with which their enemies and those who seek their lives shall drive them to despair.” ’

10 (PY)“Then you shall break the flask in the sight of the men who go with you, 11 and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts: (PZ)“Even so I will break this people and this city, as one breaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot be [bw]made whole again; and they shall (QA)bury them in Tophet till there is no place to bury. 12 Thus I will do to this place,” says the Lord, “and to its inhabitants, and make this city like Tophet. 13 And the houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah shall be defiled (QB)like the place of Tophet, because of all the houses on whose (QC)roofs they have burned incense to all the host of heaven, and (QD)poured out drink offerings to other gods.” ’ ”

14 Then Jeremiah came from Tophet, where the Lord had sent him to prophesy; and he stood in (QE)the court of the Lord’s house and said to all the people, 15 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will bring on this city and on all her towns all the doom that I have pronounced against it, because (QF)they have stiffened their necks that they might not hear My words.’ ”

The Word of God to Pashhur

20 Now (QG)Pashhur the son of (QH)Immer, the priest who was also chief governor in the house of the Lord, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things. 2 Then Pashhur struck Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high (QI)gate of Benjamin, which was by the house of the Lord.

3 And it happened on the next day that Pashhur brought Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord has not called your name Pashhur, but [bx]Magor-Missabib. 4 For thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and your eyes shall see it. I will (QJ)give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive to Babylon and slay them with the sword. 5 Moreover I (QK)will deliver all the wealth of this city, all its produce, and all its precious things; all the treasures of the kings of Judah I will give into the hand of their enemies, who will plunder them, seize them, and (QL)carry them to Babylon. 6 And you, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house, shall go into captivity. You shall go to Babylon, and there you shall die, and be buried there, you and all your friends, to whom you have (QM)prophesied lies.’ ”

Jeremiah’s Unpopular Ministry

7 O Lord, You [by]induced me, and I was persuaded;
(QN)You are stronger than I, and have prevailed.
(QO)I am [bz]in derision daily;
Everyone mocks me.
8 For when I spoke, I cried out;
(QP)I shouted, “Violence and plunder!”
Because the word of the Lord was made to me
A reproach and a derision daily.
9 Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him,
Nor speak anymore in His name.”
But His word was in my heart like a (QQ)burning fire
Shut up in my bones;
I was weary of holding it back,
And (QR)I could not.
10 (QS)For I heard many [ca]mocking:
“Fear on every side!”
“Report,” they say, “and we will report it!”
(QT)All my acquaintances watched for my stumbling, saying,
“Perhaps he can be induced;
Then we will prevail against him,
And we will take our revenge on him.”

11 But the Lord is (QU)with me as a mighty, awesome One.
Therefore my persecutors will stumble, and will not (QV)prevail.
They will be greatly ashamed, for they will not prosper.
Their (QW)everlasting confusion will never be forgotten.
12 But, O Lord of hosts,
You who (QX)test the righteous,
And see the [cb]mind and heart,
(QY)Let me see Your vengeance on them;
For I have pleaded my cause before You.

13 Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord!
For (QZ)He has delivered the life of the poor
From the hand of evildoers.

14 (RA)Cursed be the day in which I was born!
Let the day not be blessed in which my mother bore me!
15 Let the man be cursed
Who brought news to my father, saying,
“A male child has been born to you!”
Making him very glad.
16 And let that man be like the cities
Which the Lord (RB)overthrew, and did not relent;
Let him (RC)hear the cry in the morning
And the shouting at noon,
17 (RD)Because he did not kill me from the womb,
That my mother might have been my grave,
And her womb always enlarged with me.
18 (RE)Why did I come forth from the womb to (RF)see [cc]labor and sorrow,
That my days should be consumed with shame?

Jerusalem’s Doom Is Sealed

21 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord when (RG)King Zedekiah sent to him (RH)Pashhur the son of Melchiah, and (RI)Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, saying, 2 (RJ)“Please inquire of the Lord for us, for [cd]Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon makes war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all His wonderful works, that the king may go away from us.”

3 Then Jeremiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to Zedekiah, 4 ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: “Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the [ce]Chaldeans who besiege you outside the walls; and (RK)I will assemble them in the midst of this city. 5 I (RL)Myself will fight against you with an (RM)outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger and fury and great wrath. 6 I will strike the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence. 7 And afterward,” says the Lord, (RN)“I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his servants and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence and the sword and the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life; and he shall strike them with the edge of the sword. (RO)He shall not spare them, or have pity or mercy.” ’

8 “Now you shall say to this people, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, (RP)I set before you the way of life and the way of death. 9 He who (RQ)remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes out and [cf]defects to the Chaldeans who besiege you, he shall (RR)live, and his life shall be as a prize to him. 10 For I have (RS)set My face against this city for adversity and not for good,” says the Lord. (RT)“It shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall (RU)burn it with fire.” ’

Message to the House of David

11 “And concerning the house of the king of Judah, say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, 12 O house of David! Thus says the Lord:

(RV)“Execute[cg] judgment (RW)in the morning;
And deliver him who is plundered
Out of the hand of the oppressor,
Lest My fury go forth like fire
And burn so that no one can quench it,
Because of the evil of your doings.

13 “Behold, (RX)I am against you, O [ch]inhabitant of the valley,
And rock of the plain,” says the Lord,
“Who say, (RY)‘Who shall come down against us?
Or who shall enter our dwellings?’
14 But I will punish you according to the (RZ)fruit of your [ci]doings,” says the Lord;
“I will kindle a fire in its forest,
And (SA)it shall devour all things around it.” ’ ”

Prophecies Against the Kings of Judah

22 Thus says the Lord: “Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and there speak this word, 2 and say, (SB)‘Hear the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, you who sit on the throne of David, you and your servants and your people who enter these gates! 3 Thus says the Lord: (SC)“Execute[cj] judgment and righteousness, and deliver the plundered out of the hand of the oppressor. Do no wrong and do no violence to the stranger, the (SD)fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. 4 For if you indeed do this thing, (SE)then shall enter the gates of this house, riding on horses and in chariots, accompanied by servants and people, kings who sit on the throne of David. 5 But if you will not [ck]hear these words, (SF)I swear by Myself,” says the Lord, “that this house shall become a desolation.” ’ ”

6 For thus says the Lord to the house of the king of Judah:

“You are (SG)Gilead to Me,
The head of Lebanon;
Yet I surely will make you a wilderness,
Cities which are not inhabited.
7 I will prepare destroyers against you,
Everyone with his weapons;
They shall cut down (SH)your choice cedars
(SI)And cast them into the fire.

8 And many nations will pass by this city; and everyone will say to his neighbor, (SJ)‘Why has the Lord done so to this great city?’ 9 Then they will answer, (SK)‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God, and worshiped other gods and served them.’ ”

10 Weep not for (SL)the dead, nor bemoan him;
Weep bitterly for him (SM)who goes away,
For he shall return no more,
Nor see his native country.

Message to the Sons of Josiah

11 For thus says the Lord concerning (SN)Shallum[cl] the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, (SO)who went from this place: “He shall not return here anymore, 12 but he shall die in the place where they have led him captive, and shall see this land no more.

13 “Woe(SP) to him who builds his house by unrighteousness
And his [cm]chambers by injustice,
(SQ)Who uses his neighbor’s service without wages
And gives him nothing for his work,
14 Who says, ‘I will build myself a wide house with spacious [cn]chambers,
And cut out windows for it,
Paneling it with cedar
And painting it with vermilion.’

15 “Shall you reign because you enclose yourself in cedar?
Did not your father eat and drink,
And do justice and righteousness?
Then (SR)it was well with him.
16 He [co]judged the cause of the poor and needy;
Then it was well.
Was not this knowing Me?” says the Lord.
17 “Yet(SS) your eyes and your heart are for nothing but your covetousness,
For shedding innocent blood,
And practicing oppression and violence.”

18 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

(ST)“They shall not lament for him,
Saying, (SU)‘Alas, my brother!’ or ‘Alas, my sister!’
They shall not lament for him,
Saying, ‘Alas, master!’ or ‘Alas, his glory!’
19 (SV)He shall be buried with the burial of a donkey,
Dragged and cast out beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

20 “Go up to Lebanon, and cry out,
And lift up your voice in Bashan;
Cry from Abarim,
For all your lovers are destroyed.
21 I spoke to you in your prosperity,
But you said, ‘I will not hear.’
(SW)This has been your manner from your youth,
That you did not obey My voice.
22 The wind shall eat up all (SX)your [cp]rulers,
And your lovers shall go into captivity;
Surely then you will be ashamed and humiliated
For all your wickedness.
23 O inhabitant of Lebanon,
Making your nest in the cedars,
How gracious will you be when pangs come upon you,
Like (SY)the pain of a woman in [cq]labor?

Message to Coniah

24 “As I live,” says the Lord, (SZ)“though [cr]Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, (TA)were the [cs]signet on My right hand, yet I would pluck you off; 25 (TB)and I will give you into the hand of those who seek your life, and into the hand of those whose face you fear—the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the hand of the [ct]Chaldeans. 26 (TC)So I will cast you out, and your mother who bore you, into another country where you were not born; and there you shall die. 27 But to the land to which they desire to return, there they shall not return.

28 “Is this man [cu]Coniah a despised, broken idol—
(TD)A vessel in which is no pleasure?
Why are they cast out, he and his descendants,
And cast into a land which they do not know?
29 (TE)O earth, earth, earth,
Hear the word of the Lord!
30 Thus says the Lord:
‘Write this man down as (TF)childless,
A man who shall not prosper in his days;
For (TG)none of his descendants shall prosper,
Sitting on the throne of David,
And ruling anymore in Judah.’ ”

The Branch of Righteousness

23 “Woe (TH)to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” says the Lord. 2 Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: “You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. (TI)Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings,” says the Lord. 3 “But (TJ)I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. 4 I will set up (TK)shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,” says the Lord.

5 “Behold, (TL)the days are coming,” says the Lord,
“That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness;
A King shall reign and [cv]prosper,
(TM)And execute [cw]judgment and righteousness in the [cx]earth.
6 (TN)In His days Judah will be saved,
And Israel (TO)will dwell safely;
Now (TP)this is His name by which He will be called:

[cy]THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

7 “Therefore, behold, (TQ)the days are coming,” says the Lord, “that they shall no longer say, ‘As the Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ 8 but, ‘As the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country (TR)and from all the countries where I had driven them.’ And they shall dwell in their own (TS)land.”

False Prophets and Empty Oracles

9 My heart within me is broken
Because of the prophets;
(TT)All my bones shake.
I am like a drunken man,
And like a man whom wine has overcome,
Because of the Lord,
And because of His holy words.
10 For (TU)the land is full of adulterers;
For (TV)because of a curse the land mourns.
(TW)The pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up.
Their course of life is evil,
And their might is not right.

11 “For (TX)both prophet and priest are profane;
Yes, (TY)in My house I have found their wickedness,” says the Lord.
12 “Therefore(TZ) their way shall be to them
Like slippery ways;
In the darkness they shall be driven on
And fall in them;
For I (UA)will bring disaster on them,
The year of their punishment,” says the Lord.
13 “And I have seen [cz]folly in the prophets of Samaria:
(UB)They prophesied by Baal
And (UC)caused My people Israel to err.
14 Also I have seen a horrible thing in the prophets of Jerusalem:
(UD)They commit adultery and walk in lies;
They also (UE)strengthen the hands of evildoers,
So that no one turns back from his wickedness.
All of them are like (UF)Sodom to Me,
And her inhabitants like Gomorrah.

15 “Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets:

‘Behold, I will feed them with (UG)wormwood,
And make them drink the water of gall;
For from the prophets of Jerusalem
[da]Profaneness has gone out into all the land.’ ”

16 Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you.
They make you worthless;
(UH)They speak a vision of their own heart,
Not from the mouth of the Lord.
17 They continually say to those who despise Me,
‘The Lord has said, (UI)“You shall have peace” ’;
And to everyone who (UJ)walks according to the [db]dictates of his own heart, they say,
(UK)‘No evil shall come upon you.’ ”

18 For (UL)who has stood in the counsel of the Lord,
And has perceived and heard His word?
Who has marked His word and heard it?
19 Behold, a (UM)whirlwind of the Lord has gone forth in fury—
A violent whirlwind!
It will fall violently on the head of the wicked.
20 The (UN)anger of the Lord will not turn back
Until He has executed and performed the thoughts of His heart.
(UO)In the latter days you will understand it perfectly.

21 “I(UP) have not sent these prophets, yet they ran.
I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in My counsel,
And had caused My people to hear My words,
Then they would have (UQ)turned them from their evil way
And from the evil of their doings.

23 “Am I a God near at hand,” says the Lord,
“And not a God afar off?
24 Can anyone (UR)hide himself in secret places,
So I shall not see him?” says the Lord;
(US)“Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says the Lord.

25 “I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in My name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’ 26 How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart, 27 who try to make My people forget My name by their dreams which everyone tells his neighbor, (UT)as their fathers forgot My name for Baal.

28 “The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream;
And he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully.
What is the chaff to the wheat?” says the Lord.
29 “Is not My word like a (UU)fire?” says the Lord,
“And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?

30 “Therefore behold, (UV)I am against the prophets,” says the Lord, “who steal My words every one from his neighbor. 31 Behold, I am (UW)against the prophets,” says the Lord, “who use their tongues and say, ‘He says.’ 32 Behold, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,” says the Lord, “and tell them, and cause My people to err by their (UX)lies and by (UY)their recklessness. Yet I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall not (UZ)profit this people at all,” says the Lord.

33 “So when these people or the prophet or the priest ask you, saying, ‘What is (VA)the [dc]oracle of the Lord?’ you shall then say to them, [dd]‘What oracle?’ I will even forsake you,” says the Lord. 34 “And as for the prophet and the priest and the people who say, ‘The [de]oracle of the Lord!’ I will even punish that man and his house. 35 Thus every one of you shall say to his neighbor, and every one to his brother, ‘What has the Lord answered?’ and, ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 36 And the [df]oracle of the Lord you shall mention no more. For every man’s word will be his oracle, for you have (VB)perverted the words of the living God, the Lord of hosts, our God. 37 Thus you shall say to the prophet, ‘What has the Lord answered you?’ and, ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 38 But since you say, ‘The [dg]oracle of the Lord!’ therefore thus says the Lord: ‘Because you say this word, “The oracle of the Lord!” and I have sent to you, saying, “Do not say, ‘The oracle of the Lord!’ ” 39 therefore behold, I, even I, (VC)will utterly forget you and forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and will cast you out of My presence. 40 And I will bring (VD)an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual (VE)shame, which shall not be forgotten.’ ”

The Sign of Two Baskets of Figs

24 The (VF)Lord showed me, and there were two baskets of figs set before the temple of the Lord, after Nebuchadnezzar (VG)king of Babylon had carried away captive (VH)Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah with the craftsmen and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. 2 One basket had very good figs, like the figs that are first ripe; and the other basket had very bad figs which could not be eaten, they were so (VI)bad. 3 Then the Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

And I said, “Figs, the good figs, very good; and the bad, very bad, which cannot be eaten, they are so bad.”

4 Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 5 “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Like these good figs, so will I [dh]acknowledge those who are carried away captive from Judah, whom I have sent out of this place for their own good, into the land of the Chaldeans. 6 For I will set My eyes on them for good, and (VJ)I will bring them back to this land; (VK)I will build them and not pull them down, and I will plant them and not pluck them up. 7 Then I will give them (VL)a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be (VM)My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me (VN)with their whole heart.

8 ‘And as the bad (VO)figs which cannot be eaten, they are so bad’—surely thus says the Lord—‘so will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, the (VP)residue of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and (VQ)those who dwell in the land of Egypt. 9 I will deliver them to (VR)trouble into all the kingdoms of the earth, for their harm, (VS)to be a reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse, in all places where I shall drive them. 10 And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them, till they are [di]consumed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.’ ”

Seventy Years of Desolation

25 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, (VT)in the fourth year of (VU)Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), 2 which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying: 3 (VV)“From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, this is the twenty-third year in which the word of the Lord has come to me; and I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking, (VW)but you have not listened. 4 And the Lord has sent to you all His servants the prophets, (VX)rising early and sending them, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear. 5 They said, (VY)‘Repent now everyone of his evil way and his evil doings, and dwell in the land that the Lord has given to you and your fathers forever and ever. 6 Do not go after other gods to serve them and worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands; and I will not harm you.’ 7 Yet you have not listened to Me,” says the Lord, “that you might (VZ)provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt.

8 “Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Because you have not heard My words, 9 behold, I will send and take (WA)all the families of the north,’ says the Lord, ‘and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, (WB)My servant, and will bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against these nations all around, and will utterly destroy them, and (WC)make them an astonishment, a hissing, and perpetual desolations. 10 Moreover I will [dj]take from them the (WD)voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, (WE)the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 And this whole land shall be a desolation and an astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy (WF)years.

12 ‘Then it will come to pass, (WG)when [dk]seventy years are completed, that I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity,’ says the Lord; (WH)‘and I will make it a perpetual desolation. 13 So I will bring on that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah has prophesied concerning all the nations. 14 (WI)(For many nations (WJ)and great kings shall (WK)be served by them also; (WL)and I will repay them according to their deeds and according to the works of their own hands.)’ ”

Judgment on the Nations

15 For thus says the Lord God of Israel to me: “Take this (WM)wine cup of [dl]fury from My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send you, to drink it. 16 And (WN)they will drink and stagger and go mad because of the sword that I will send among them.”

17 Then I took the cup from the Lord’s hand, and made all the nations drink, to whom the Lord had sent me: 18 Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, its kings and its princes, to make them (WO)a desolation, an astonishment, a hissing, and (WP)a curse, as it is this day; 19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his princes, and all his people; 20 all the mixed multitude, all the kings of (WQ)the land of Uz, all the kings of the land of the (WR)Philistines (namely, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and (WS)the remnant of Ashdod); 21 (WT)Edom, Moab, and the people of Ammon; 22 all the kings of (WU)Tyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the coastlands which are across the (WV)sea; 23 (WW)Dedan, Tema, Buz, and all who are in the farthest corners;

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 7:5 justice
  2. Jeremiah 7:24 walked in
  3. Jeremiah 7:24 stubbornness or imagination
  4. Jeremiah 7:24 Lit. they were
  5. Jeremiah 7:30 defile
  6. Jeremiah 8:3 remnant
  7. Jeremiah 8:11 Superficially
  8. Jeremiah 8:13 Or take them away
  9. Jeremiah 8:14 Bitter or poisonous water
  10. Jeremiah 9:4 friend
  11. Jeremiah 9:7 test
  12. Jeremiah 9:8 Inwardly he
  13. Jeremiah 9:8 sets his ambush
  14. Jeremiah 9:10 Or pastures
  15. Jeremiah 9:14 stubbornness or imagination
  16. Jeremiah 9:15 Bitter or poisonous water
  17. Jeremiah 9:21 Lit. from outside
  18. Jeremiah 9:21 Lit. from the square
  19. Jeremiah 9:24 justice
  20. Jeremiah 10:3 Lit. vanity
  21. Jeremiah 10:8 vain teaching
  22. Jeremiah 10:13 Or noise
  23. Jeremiah 10:17 Or you who dwell under siege
  24. Jeremiah 11:5 Heb. Amen
  25. Jeremiah 11:8 walked in the stubbornness or imagination
  26. Jeremiah 11:11 Lit. go out
  27. Jeremiah 11:20 Most secret parts, lit. kidneys
  28. Jeremiah 12:2 Most secret parts, lit. kidneys
  29. Jeremiah 12:5 Or thicket
  30. Jeremiah 12:6 Or abundantly
  31. Jeremiah 12:6 Lit. good
  32. Jeremiah 12:9 inheritance
  33. Jeremiah 12:10 Lit. shepherds or pastors
  34. Jeremiah 12:10 desired portion of land
  35. Jeremiah 12:13 Or strained
  36. Jeremiah 13:1 Lit. upon your loins
  37. Jeremiah 13:2 waistband
  38. Jeremiah 13:4 waistband
  39. Jeremiah 13:4 Lit. upon your loins
  40. Jeremiah 13:4 Heb. Perath
  41. Jeremiah 13:7 waistband
  42. Jeremiah 13:10 walk in the stubbornness or imagination
  43. Jeremiah 13:14 Lit. a man against his brother
  44. Jeremiah 13:21 childbirth
  45. Jeremiah 13:22 Lit. suffer violence
  46. Jeremiah 14:5 abandoned her young
  47. Jeremiah 14:13 true
  48. Jeremiah 14:14 Telling the future by signs and omens
  49. Jeremiah 15:1 Lit. soul was not toward
  50. Jeremiah 15:6 tired
  51. Jeremiah 15:10 Or land
  52. Jeremiah 15:14 So with MT, Vg.; LXX, Syr., Tg. cause you to serve (cf. 17:4)
  53. Jeremiah 15:15 attend to
  54. Jeremiah 15:18 Or cannot be trusted
  55. Jeremiah 16:9 rejoicing
  56. Jeremiah 16:12 walks after the stubbornness or imagination
  57. Jeremiah 17:2 Heb. Asherim, Canaanite deities
  58. Jeremiah 17:5 Lit. arm
  59. Jeremiah 17:8 Qr., Tg. see
  60. Jeremiah 17:9 Or incurably sick
  61. Jeremiah 17:10 Most secret parts, lit. kidneys
  62. Jeremiah 17:11 Sits on eggs
  63. Jeremiah 17:18 Lit. crush
  64. Jeremiah 17:23 Were stubborn
  65. Jeremiah 17:26 Heb. shephelah
  66. Jeremiah 17:26 Heb. Negev
  67. Jeremiah 18:3 Potter’s wheel
  68. Jeremiah 18:4 was making
  69. Jeremiah 18:4 ruined
  70. Jeremiah 18:12 Lit. do
  71. Jeremiah 18:12 stubbornness or imagination
  72. Jeremiah 18:14 forsake
  73. Jeremiah 18:17 So with LXX, Syr., Tg., Vg.; MT look them in
  74. Jeremiah 18:20 concerning
  75. Jeremiah 19:11 restored
  76. Jeremiah 20:3 Lit. Fear on Every Side
  77. Jeremiah 20:7 enticed or persuaded
  78. Jeremiah 20:7 Lit. a laughingstock all the day
  79. Jeremiah 20:10 slandering
  80. Jeremiah 20:12 Most secret parts, lit. kidneys
  81. Jeremiah 20:18 toil
  82. Jeremiah 21:2 Heb. Nebuchadrezzar, and so elsewhere in the book
  83. Jeremiah 21:4 Or Babylonians, and so elsewhere in the book
  84. Jeremiah 21:9 Lit. falls away to
  85. Jeremiah 21:12 Dispense justice
  86. Jeremiah 21:13 dweller
  87. Jeremiah 21:14 deeds
  88. Jeremiah 22:3 Dispense justice
  89. Jeremiah 22:5 Obey
  90. Jeremiah 22:11 Or Jehoahaz
  91. Jeremiah 22:13 Lit. roof chambers, upper chambers
  92. Jeremiah 22:14 Lit. roof chambers, upper chambers
  93. Jeremiah 22:16 Defended
  94. Jeremiah 22:22 Lit. shepherds
  95. Jeremiah 22:23 childbirth
  96. Jeremiah 22:24 Or Jeconiah or Jehoiachin
  97. Jeremiah 22:24 signet ring
  98. Jeremiah 22:25 Or Babylonians
  99. Jeremiah 22:28 See note at v. 24
  100. Jeremiah 23:5 act wisely
  101. Jeremiah 23:5 justice
  102. Jeremiah 23:5 land
  103. Jeremiah 23:6 Heb. YHWH Tsidkenu
  104. Jeremiah 23:13 Lit. distastefulness
  105. Jeremiah 23:15 Or Pollution
  106. Jeremiah 23:17 stubbornness or imagination
  107. Jeremiah 23:33 burden, prophecy
  108. Jeremiah 23:33 LXX, Tg., Vg. ‘You are the burden.’
  109. Jeremiah 23:34 burden, prophecy
  110. Jeremiah 23:36 burden, prophecy
  111. Jeremiah 23:38 burden, prophecy
  112. Jeremiah 24:5 regard
  113. Jeremiah 24:10 destroyed
  114. Jeremiah 25:10 Lit. cause to perish from them
  115. Jeremiah 25:12 Beginning circa 605 b.c. (2 Kin. 24:1) and ending circa 536 b.c. (Ezra 1:1)
  116. Jeremiah 25:15 wrath
Listen to Jeremiah 6:25-17:6
Close NIV

Jeremiah 6:25-17:6
New International Version

25 Do not go out to the fields
    or walk on the roads,
for the enemy has a sword,
    and there is terror on every side.(A)
26 Put on sackcloth,(B) my people,
    and roll in ashes;(C)
mourn with bitter wailing(D)
    as for an only son,(E)
for suddenly the destroyer(F)
    will come upon us.

27 “I have made you a tester(G) of metals
    and my people the ore,
that you may observe
    and test their ways.
28 They are all hardened rebels,(H)
    going about to slander.(I)
They are bronze and iron;(J)
    they all act corruptly.
29 The bellows blow fiercely
    to burn away the lead with fire,
but the refining(K) goes on in vain;
    the wicked are not purged out.
30 They are called rejected silver,(L)
    because the Lord has rejected them.”(M)

False Religion Worthless

7 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Stand(N) at the gate of the Lord’s house and there proclaim this message:

“‘Hear the word of the Lord, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the Lord. 3 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways(O) and your actions, and I will let you live(P) in this place. 4 Do not trust(Q) in deceptive(R) words and say, “This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord!” 5 If you really change(S) your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly,(T) 6 if you do not oppress(U) the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood(V) in this place, and if you do not follow other gods(W) to your own harm, 7 then I will let you live in this place, in the land(X) I gave your ancestors(Y) for ever and ever. 8 But look, you are trusting(Z) in deceptive(AA) words that are worthless.

9 “‘Will you steal(AB) and murder,(AC) commit adultery(AD) and perjury,[a](AE) burn incense to Baal(AF) and follow other gods(AG) you have not known, 10 and then come and stand(AH) before me in this house,(AI) which bears my Name, and say, “We are safe”—safe to do all these detestable things?(AJ) 11 Has this house,(AK) which bears my Name, become a den of robbers(AL) to you? But I have been watching!(AM) declares the Lord.

12 “‘Go now to the place in Shiloh(AN) where I first made a dwelling(AO) for my Name,(AP) and see what I did(AQ) to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel. 13 While you were doing all these things, declares the Lord, I spoke(AR) to you again and again,(AS) but you did not listen;(AT) I called(AU) you, but you did not answer.(AV) 14 Therefore, what I did to Shiloh(AW) I will now do to the house that bears my Name,(AX) the temple(AY) you trust in, the place I gave to you and your ancestors. 15 I will thrust you from my presence,(AZ) just as I did all your fellow Israelites, the people of Ephraim.’(BA)

16 “So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea(BB) or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen(BC) to you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven.(BD) They pour out drink offerings(BE) to other gods to arouse(BF) my anger. 19 But am I the one they are provoking?(BG) declares the Lord. Are they not rather harming themselves, to their own shame?(BH)

20 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign(BI) Lord says: My anger(BJ) and my wrath will be poured(BK) out on this place—on man and beast, on the trees of the field and on the crops of your land—and it will burn and not be quenched.(BL)

21 “‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go ahead, add your burnt offerings to your other sacrifices(BM) and eat(BN) the meat yourselves! 22 For when I brought your ancestors out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just give them commands(BO) about burnt offerings and sacrifices,(BP) 23 but I gave them this command:(BQ) Obey(BR) me, and I will be your God and you will be my people.(BS) Walk in obedience to all(BT) I command you, that it may go well(BU) with you. 24 But they did not listen(BV) or pay attention;(BW) instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts.(BX) They went backward(BY) and not forward. 25 From the time your ancestors left Egypt until now, day after day, again and again(BZ) I sent you my servants(CA) the prophets.(CB) 26 But they did not listen to me or pay attention.(CC) They were stiff-necked(CD) and did more evil than their ancestors.’(CE)

27 “When you tell(CF) them all this, they will not listen(CG) to you; when you call to them, they will not answer.(CH) 28 Therefore say to them, ‘This is the nation that has not obeyed the Lord its God or responded to correction.(CI) Truth(CJ) has perished; it has vanished from their lips.

29 “‘Cut off(CK) your hair and throw it away; take up a lament(CL) on the barren heights, for the Lord has rejected and abandoned(CM) this generation that is under his wrath.

The Valley of Slaughter

30 “‘The people of Judah have done evil(CN) in my eyes, declares the Lord. They have set up their detestable idols(CO) in the house that bears my Name and have defiled(CP) it. 31 They have built the high places of Topheth(CQ) in the Valley of Ben Hinnom(CR) to burn their sons and daughters(CS) in the fire—something I did not command, nor did it enter my mind.(CT) 32 So beware, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when people will no longer call it Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter,(CU) for they will bury(CV) the dead in Topheth until there is no more room. 33 Then the carcasses(CW) of this people will become food(CX) for the birds and the wild animals, and there will be no one to frighten them away.(CY) 34 I will bring an end to the sounds(CZ) of joy and gladness and to the voices of bride and bridegroom(DA) in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem,(DB) for the land will become desolate.(DC)

8 “‘At that time, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bones(DD) of the people of Jerusalem will be removed(DE) from their graves. 2 They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served(DF) and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped.(DG) They will not be gathered up or buried,(DH) but will be like dung lying on the ground.(DI) 3 Wherever I banish them,(DJ) all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life,(DK) declares the Lord Almighty.’

Sin and Punishment

4 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘When people fall down, do they not get up?(DL)
    When someone turns away,(DM) do they not return?
5 Why then have these people turned away?
    Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;(DN)
    they refuse to return.(DO)
6 I have listened(DP) attentively,
    but they do not say what is right.
None of them repent(DQ) of their wickedness,
    saying, “What have I done?”
Each pursues their own course(DR)
    like a horse charging into battle.
7 Even the stork in the sky
    knows her appointed seasons,
and the dove, the swift and the thrush
    observe the time of their migration.
But my people do not know(DS)
    the requirements of the Lord.

8 “‘How can you say, “We are wise,
    for we have the law(DT) of the Lord,”
when actually the lying pen of the scribes
    has handled it falsely?
9 The wise(DU) will be put to shame;
    they will be dismayed(DV) and trapped.(DW)
Since they have rejected the word(DX) of the Lord,
    what kind of wisdom(DY) do they have?
10 Therefore I will give their wives to other men
    and their fields to new owners.(DZ)
From the least to the greatest,
    all are greedy for gain;(EA)
prophets(EB) and priests alike,
    all practice deceit.(EC)
11 They dress the wound of my people
    as though it were not serious.
“Peace, peace,” they say,
    when there is no peace.(ED)
12 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?
    No, they have no shame(EE) at all;
    they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
    they will be brought down when they are punished,(EF)
says the Lord.(EG)

13 “‘I will take away their harvest,
declares the Lord.
    There will be no grapes on the vine.(EH)
There will be no figs(EI) on the tree,
    and their leaves will wither.(EJ)
What I have given them
    will be taken(EK) from them.[b]’”

14 Why are we sitting here?
    Gather together!
Let us flee to the fortified cities(EL)
    and perish there!
For the Lord our God has doomed us to perish
    and given us poisoned water(EM) to drink,
    because we have sinned(EN) against him.
15 We hoped for peace(EO)
    but no good has come,
for a time of healing
    but there is only terror.(EP)
16 The snorting of the enemy’s horses(EQ)
    is heard from Dan;(ER)
at the neighing of their stallions
    the whole land trembles.(ES)
They have come to devour(ET)
    the land and everything in it,
    the city and all who live there.

17 “See, I will send venomous snakes(EU) among you,
    vipers that cannot be charmed,(EV)
    and they will bite you,”
declares the Lord.

18 You who are my Comforter[c] in sorrow,
    my heart is faint(EW) within me.
19 Listen to the cry of my people
    from a land far away:(EX)
“Is the Lord not in Zion?
    Is her King(EY) no longer there?”

“Why have they aroused(EZ) my anger with their images,
    with their worthless(FA) foreign idols?”(FB)

20 “The harvest is past,
    the summer has ended,
    and we are not saved.”

21 Since my people are crushed,(FC) I am crushed;
    I mourn,(FD) and horror grips me.
22 Is there no balm in Gilead?(FE)
    Is there no physician(FF) there?
Why then is there no healing(FG)
    for the wound of my people?

9 [d]1 Oh, that my head were a spring of water
    and my eyes a fountain of tears!(FH)
I would weep(FI) day and night
    for the slain of my people.(FJ)
2 Oh, that I had in the desert(FK)
    a lodging place for travelers,
so that I might leave my people
    and go away from them;
for they are all adulterers,(FL)
    a crowd of unfaithful(FM) people.

3 “They make ready their tongue
    like a bow, to shoot lies;(FN)
it is not by truth
    that they triumph[e] in the land.
They go from one sin to another;
    they do not acknowledge(FO) me,”
declares the Lord.
4 “Beware of your friends;(FP)
    do not trust anyone in your clan.(FQ)
For every one of them is a deceiver,[f](FR)
    and every friend a slanderer.(FS)
5 Friend deceives friend,(FT)
    and no one speaks the truth.(FU)
They have taught their tongues to lie;(FV)
    they weary themselves with sinning.
6 You[g] live in the midst of deception;(FW)
    in their deceit they refuse to acknowledge me,”
declares the Lord.

7 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says:

“See, I will refine(FX) and test(FY) them,
    for what else can I do
    because of the sin of my people?
8 Their tongue(FZ) is a deadly arrow;
    it speaks deceitfully.
With their mouths they all speak cordially to their neighbors,(GA)
    but in their hearts they set traps(GB) for them.(GC)
9 Should I not punish them for this?”
    declares the Lord.
“Should I not avenge(GD) myself
    on such a nation as this?”

10 I will weep and wail for the mountains
    and take up a lament concerning the wilderness grasslands.(GE)
They are desolate and untraveled,
    and the lowing of cattle is not heard.
The birds(GF) have all fled
    and the animals are gone.

11 “I will make Jerusalem a heap(GG) of ruins,
    a haunt of jackals;(GH)
and I will lay waste the towns of Judah(GI)
    so no one can live there.”(GJ)

12 Who is wise(GK) enough to understand this? Who has been instructed by the Lord and can explain it? Why has the land been ruined and laid waste like a desert that no one can cross?

13 The Lord said, “It is because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them; they have not obeyed me or followed my law.(GL) 14 Instead, they have followed(GM) the stubbornness of their hearts;(GN) they have followed the Baals, as their ancestors taught them.” 15 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “See, I will make this people eat bitter food(GO) and drink poisoned water.(GP) 16 I will scatter them among nations(GQ) that neither they nor their ancestors have known,(GR) and I will pursue them with the sword(GS) until I have made an end of them.”(GT)

17 This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Consider now! Call for the wailing women(GU) to come;
    send for the most skillful of them.
18 Let them come quickly
    and wail over us
till our eyes overflow with tears
    and water streams from our eyelids.(GV)
19 The sound of wailing is heard from Zion:
    ‘How ruined(GW) we are!
    How great is our shame!
We must leave our land
    because our houses are in ruins.’”

20 Now, you women, hear the word of the Lord;
    open your ears to the words of his mouth.(GX)
Teach your daughters how to wail;
    teach one another a lament.(GY)
21 Death has climbed in through our windows(GZ)
    and has entered our fortresses;
it has removed the children from the streets
    and the young men(HA) from the public squares.

22 Say, “This is what the Lord declares:

“‘Dead bodies will lie
    like dung(HB) on the open field,
like cut grain behind the reaper,
    with no one to gather them.’”

23 This is what the Lord says:

“Let not the wise boast of their wisdom(HC)
    or the strong boast of their strength(HD)
    or the rich boast of their riches,(HE)
24 but let the one who boasts boast(HF) about this:
    that they have the understanding to know(HG) me,
that I am the Lord,(HH) who exercises kindness,(HI)
    justice and righteousness(HJ) on earth,
    for in these I delight,”
declares the Lord.

25 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh(HK)— 26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab and all who live in the wilderness in distant places.[h](HL) For all these nations are really uncircumcised,(HM) and even the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.(HN)”

God and Idols(HO)

10 Hear what the Lord says to you, people of Israel. 2 This is what the Lord says:

“Do not learn the ways of the nations(HP)
    or be terrified by signs(HQ) in the heavens,
    though the nations are terrified by them.
3 For the practices of the peoples are worthless;
    they cut a tree out of the forest,
    and a craftsman(HR) shapes it with his chisel.(HS)
4 They adorn it with silver(HT) and gold;
    they fasten it with hammer and nails
    so it will not totter.(HU)
5 Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field,
    their idols cannot speak;(HV)
they must be carried
    because they cannot walk.(HW)
Do not fear them;
    they can do no harm(HX)
    nor can they do any good.”(HY)

6 No one is like you,(HZ) Lord;
    you are great,(IA)
    and your name is mighty in power.
7 Who should not fear(IB) you,
    King of the nations?(IC)
    This is your due.
Among all the wise leaders of the nations
    and in all their kingdoms,
    there is no one like you.

8 They are all senseless(ID) and foolish;(IE)
    they are taught by worthless wooden idols.(IF)
9 Hammered silver is brought from Tarshish(IG)
    and gold from Uphaz.
What the craftsman and goldsmith have made(IH)
    is then dressed in blue and purple—
    all made by skilled workers.
10 But the Lord is the true God;
    he is the living God,(II) the eternal King.(IJ)
When he is angry,(IK) the earth trembles;(IL)
    the nations cannot endure his wrath.(IM)

11 “Tell them this: ‘These gods, who did not make the heavens and the earth, will perish(IN) from the earth and from under the heavens.’”[i]

12 But God made(IO) the earth(IP) by his power;
    he founded the world by his wisdom(IQ)
    and stretched out the heavens(IR) by his understanding.
13 When he thunders,(IS) the waters in the heavens roar;
    he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth.
He sends lightning(IT) with the rain(IU)
    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.(IV)

14 Everyone is senseless and without knowledge;
    every goldsmith is shamed(IW) by his idols.
The images he makes are a fraud;(IX)
    they have no breath in them.
15 They are worthless,(IY) the objects of mockery;
    when their judgment comes, they will perish.
16 He who is the Portion(IZ) of Jacob is not like these,
    for he is the Maker of all things,(JA)
including Israel, the people of his inheritance(JB)—
    the Lord Almighty is his name.(JC)

Coming Destruction

17 Gather up your belongings(JD) to leave the land,
    you who live under siege.
18 For this is what the Lord says:
    “At this time I will hurl(JE) out
    those who live in this land;
I will bring distress(JF) on them
    so that they may be captured.”

19 Woe to me because of my injury!
    My wound(JG) is incurable!
Yet I said to myself,
    “This is my sickness, and I must endure(JH) it.”
20 My tent(JI) is destroyed;
    all its ropes are snapped.
My children are gone from me and are no more;(JJ)
    no one is left now to pitch my tent
    or to set up my shelter.
21 The shepherds(JK) are senseless(JL)
    and do not inquire of the Lord;(JM)
so they do not prosper(JN)
    and all their flock is scattered.(JO)
22 Listen! The report is coming—
    a great commotion from the land of the north!(JP)
It will make the towns of Judah desolate,(JQ)
    a haunt of jackals.(JR)

Jeremiah’s Prayer

23 Lord, I know that people’s lives are not their own;
    it is not for them to direct their steps.(JS)
24 Discipline me, Lord, but only in due measure—
    not in your anger,(JT)
    or you will reduce me to nothing.(JU)
25 Pour out your wrath on the nations(JV)
    that do not acknowledge you,
    on the peoples who do not call on your name.(JW)
For they have devoured(JX) Jacob;
    they have devoured him completely
    and destroyed his homeland.(JY)

The Covenant Is Broken

11 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Listen to the terms of this covenant(JZ) and tell them to the people of Judah and to those who live in Jerusalem. 3 Tell them that this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Cursed(KA) is the one who does not obey the terms of this covenant— 4 the terms I commanded your ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt,(KB) out of the iron-smelting furnace.(KC)’ I said, ‘Obey(KD) me and do everything I command you, and you will be my people,(KE) and I will be your God. 5 Then I will fulfill the oath I swore(KF) to your ancestors, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey’(KG)—the land you possess today.”

I answered, “Amen,(KH) Lord.”

6 The Lord said to me, “Proclaim(KI) all these words in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: ‘Listen to the terms of this covenant and follow(KJ) them. 7 From the time I brought your ancestors up from Egypt until today, I warned them again and again,(KK) saying, “Obey me.” 8 But they did not listen or pay attention;(KL) instead, they followed the stubbornness of their evil hearts.(KM) So I brought on them all the curses(KN) of the covenant I had commanded them to follow but that they did not keep.(KO)’”

9 Then the Lord said to me, “There is a conspiracy(KP) among the people of Judah and those who live in Jerusalem. 10 They have returned to the sins of their ancestors,(KQ) who refused to listen to my words.(KR) They have followed other gods(KS) to serve them.(KT) Both Israel and Judah have broken the covenant(KU) I made with their ancestors. 11 Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘I will bring on them a disaster(KV) they cannot escape.(KW) Although they cry(KX) out to me, I will not listen(KY) to them. 12 The towns of Judah and the people of Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods to whom they burn incense,(KZ) but they will not help them at all when disaster(LA) strikes. 13 You, Judah, have as many gods(LB) as you have towns;(LC) and the altars you have set up to burn incense(LD) to that shameful(LE) god Baal are as many as the streets of Jerusalem.’

14 “Do not pray(LF) for this people or offer any plea or petition for them, because I will not listen(LG) when they call to me in the time of their distress.

15 “What is my beloved doing in my temple
    as she, with many others, works out her evil schemes?
    Can consecrated meat(LH) avert your punishment?(LI)
When you engage in your wickedness,
    then you rejoice.[j]”

16 The Lord called you a thriving olive tree(LJ)
    with fruit beautiful in form.
But with the roar of a mighty storm
    he will set it on fire,(LK)
    and its branches will be broken.(LL)

17 The Lord Almighty, who planted(LM) you, has decreed disaster(LN) for you, because the people of both Israel and Judah have done evil and aroused(LO) my anger by burning incense to Baal.(LP)

Plot Against Jeremiah

18 Because the Lord revealed their plot to me, I knew it, for at that time he showed me what they were doing. 19 I had been like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter;(LQ) I did not realize that they had plotted(LR) against me, saying,

“Let us destroy the tree and its fruit;
    let us cut him off from the land of the living,(LS)
    that his name be remembered(LT) no more.”
20 But you, Lord Almighty, who judge righteously(LU)
    and test the heart(LV) and mind,(LW)
let me see your vengeance(LX) on them,
    for to you I have committed my cause.

21 Therefore this is what the Lord says about the people of Anathoth(LY) who are threatening to kill you,(LZ) saying, “Do not prophesy(MA) in the name of the Lord or you will die(MB) by our hands”— 22 therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says: “I will punish them. Their young men(MC) will die by the sword, their sons and daughters by famine. 23 Not even a remnant(MD) will be left to them, because I will bring disaster on the people of Anathoth in the year of their punishment.(ME)”

Jeremiah’s Complaint

12 You are always righteous,(MF) Lord,
    when I bring a case(MG) before you.
Yet I would speak with you about your justice:(MH)
    Why does the way of the wicked prosper?(MI)
    Why do all the faithless live at ease?
2 You have planted(MJ) them, and they have taken root;
    they grow and bear fruit.(MK)
You are always on their lips
    but far from their hearts.(ML)
3 Yet you know me, Lord;
    you see me and test(MM) my thoughts about you.
Drag them off like sheep(MN) to be butchered!
    Set them apart for the day of slaughter!(MO)
4 How long will the land lie parched(MP)
    and the grass in every field be withered?(MQ)
Because those who live in it are wicked,
    the animals and birds have perished.(MR)
Moreover, the people are saying,
    “He will not see what happens to us.”

God’s Answer

5 “If you have raced with men on foot
    and they have worn you out,
    how can you compete with horses?
If you stumble[k] in safe country,
    how will you manage in the thickets(MS) by[l] the Jordan?
6 Your relatives, members of your own family—
    even they have betrayed you;
    they have raised a loud cry against you.(MT)
Do not trust them,
    though they speak well of you.(MU)

7 “I will forsake(MV) my house,
    abandon(MW) my inheritance;
I will give the one I love(MX)
    into the hands of her enemies.(MY)
8 My inheritance has become to me
    like a lion(MZ) in the forest.
She roars at me;
    therefore I hate her.(NA)
9 Has not my inheritance become to me
    like a speckled bird of prey
    that other birds of prey surround and attack?
Go and gather all the wild beasts;
    bring them to devour.(NB)
10 Many shepherds(NC) will ruin my vineyard
    and trample down my field;
they will turn my pleasant field
    into a desolate wasteland.(ND)
11 It will be made a wasteland,(NE)
    parched and desolate before me;(NF)
the whole land will be laid waste
    because there is no one who cares.
12 Over all the barren heights in the desert
    destroyers will swarm,
for the sword(NG) of the Lord(NH) will devour(NI)
    from one end of the land to the other;(NJ)
    no one will be safe.(NK)
13 They will sow wheat but reap thorns;
    they will wear themselves out but gain nothing.(NL)
They will bear the shame of their harvest
    because of the Lord’s fierce anger.”(NM)

14 This is what the Lord says: “As for all my wicked neighbors who seize the inheritance(NN) I gave my people Israel, I will uproot(NO) them from their lands and I will uproot(NP) the people of Judah from among them. 15 But after I uproot them, I will again have compassion(NQ) and will bring(NR) each of them back to their own inheritance and their own country. 16 And if they learn(NS) well the ways of my people and swear by my name, saying, ‘As surely as the Lord lives’(NT)—even as they once taught my people to swear by Baal(NU)—then they will be established among my people.(NV) 17 But if any nation does not listen, I will completely uproot and destroy(NW) it,” declares the Lord.

A Linen Belt

13 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen belt and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.” 2 So I bought a belt, as the Lord directed, and put it around my waist.

3 Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time:(NX) 4 “Take the belt you bought and are wearing around your waist, and go now to Perath[m](NY) and hide it there in a crevice in the rocks.” 5 So I went and hid it at Perath, as the Lord told me.(NZ)

6 Many days later the Lord said to me, “Go now to Perath and get the belt I told you to hide there.” 7 So I went to Perath and dug up the belt and took it from the place where I had hidden it, but now it was ruined and completely useless.

8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride(OA) of Jerusalem. 10 These wicked people, who refuse to listen(OB) to my words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts(OC) and go after other gods(OD) to serve and worship them,(OE) will be like this belt—completely useless!(OF) 11 For as a belt is bound around the waist, so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to me,’ declares the Lord, ‘to be my people for my renown(OG) and praise and honor.(OH) But they have not listened.’(OI)

Wineskins

12 “Say to them: ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Every wineskin should be filled with wine.’ And if they say to you, ‘Don’t we know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’ 13 then tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am going to fill with drunkenness(OJ) all who live in this land, including the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets and all those living in Jerusalem. 14 I will smash them one against the other, parents and children alike, declares the Lord. I will allow no pity(OK) or mercy or compassion(OL) to keep me from destroying(OM) them.’”

Threat of Captivity

15 Hear and pay attention,
    do not be arrogant,
    for the Lord has spoken.(ON)
16 Give glory(OO) to the Lord your God
    before he brings the darkness,
before your feet stumble(OP)
    on the darkening hills.
You hope for light,
    but he will turn it to utter darkness
    and change it to deep gloom.(OQ)
17 If you do not listen,(OR)
    I will weep in secret
    because of your pride;
my eyes will weep bitterly,
    overflowing with tears,(OS)
    because the Lord’s flock(OT) will be taken captive.(OU)

18 Say to the king(OV) and to the queen mother,(OW)
    “Come down from your thrones,
for your glorious crowns(OX)
    will fall from your heads.”
19 The cities in the Negev will be shut up,
    and there will be no one to open them.
All Judah(OY) will be carried into exile,
    carried completely away.

20 Look up and see
    those who are coming from the north.(OZ)
Where is the flock(PA) that was entrusted to you,
    the sheep of which you boasted?
21 What will you say when the Lord sets over you
    those you cultivated as your special allies?(PB)
Will not pain grip you
    like that of a woman in labor?(PC)
22 And if you ask yourself,
    “Why has this happened to me?”(PD)—
it is because of your many sins(PE)
    that your skirts have been torn off(PF)
    and your body mistreated.(PG)
23 Can an Ethiopian[n] change his skin
    or a leopard its spots?
Neither can you do good
    who are accustomed to doing evil.(PH)

24 “I will scatter you like chaff(PI)
    driven by the desert wind.(PJ)
25 This is your lot,
    the portion(PK) I have decreed for you,”
declares the Lord,
“because you have forgotten(PL) me
    and trusted in false gods.(PM)
26 I will pull up your skirts over your face
    that your shame may be seen(PN)—
27 your adulteries and lustful neighings,
    your shameless prostitution!(PO)
I have seen your detestable acts
    on the hills and in the fields.(PP)
Woe to you, Jerusalem!
    How long will you be unclean?”(PQ)

Drought, Famine, Sword

14 This is the word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:(PR)

2 “Judah mourns,(PS)
    her cities languish;
they wail for the land,
    and a cry goes up from Jerusalem.
3 The nobles send their servants for water;
    they go to the cisterns
    but find no water.(PT)
They return with their jars unfilled;
    dismayed and despairing,
    they cover their heads.(PU)
4 The ground is cracked
    because there is no rain in the land;(PV)
the farmers are dismayed
    and cover their heads.
5 Even the doe in the field
    deserts her newborn fawn
    because there is no grass.(PW)
6 Wild donkeys stand on the barren heights(PX)
    and pant like jackals;
their eyes fail
    for lack of food.”(PY)

7 Although our sins testify(PZ) against us,
    do something, Lord, for the sake of your name.(QA)
For we have often rebelled;(QB)
    we have sinned(QC) against you.
8 You who are the hope(QD) of Israel,
    its Savior(QE) in times of distress,(QF)
why are you like a stranger in the land,
    like a traveler who stays only a night?
9 Why are you like a man taken by surprise,
    like a warrior powerless to save?(QG)
You are among(QH) us, Lord,
    and we bear your name;(QI)
    do not forsake(QJ) us!

10 This is what the Lord says about this people:

“They greatly love to wander;
    they do not restrain their feet.(QK)
So the Lord does not accept(QL) them;
    he will now remember(QM) their wickedness
    and punish them for their sins.”(QN)

11 Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray(QO) for the well-being of this people. 12 Although they fast, I will not listen to their cry;(QP) though they offer burnt offerings(QQ) and grain offerings,(QR) I will not accept(QS) them. Instead, I will destroy them with the sword,(QT) famine(QU) and plague.”(QV)

13 But I said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! The prophets(QW) keep telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine.(QX) Indeed, I will give you lasting peace(QY) in this place.’”

14 Then the Lord said to me, “The prophets are prophesying lies(QZ) in my name. I have not sent(RA) them or appointed them or spoken to them. They are prophesying to you false visions,(RB) divinations,(RC) idolatries[o] and the delusions of their own minds. 15 Therefore this is what the Lord says about the prophets who are prophesying in my name: I did not send them, yet they are saying, ‘No sword or famine will touch this land.’ Those same prophets will perish(RD) by sword and famine.(RE) 16 And the people they are prophesying to will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and sword. There will be no one to bury(RF) them, their wives, their sons and their daughters.(RG) I will pour out on them the calamity they deserve.(RH)

17 “Speak this word to them:

“‘Let my eyes overflow with tears(RI)
    night and day without ceasing;
for the Virgin(RJ) Daughter, my people,
    has suffered a grievous wound,
    a crushing blow.(RK)
18 If I go into the country,
    I see those slain by the sword;
if I go into the city,
    I see the ravages of famine.(RL)
Both prophet and priest
    have gone to a land they know not.(RM)’”

19 Have you rejected Judah completely?(RN)
    Do you despise Zion?
Why have you afflicted us
    so that we cannot be healed?(RO)
We hoped for peace
    but no good has come,
for a time of healing
    but there is only terror.(RP)
20 We acknowledge(RQ) our wickedness, Lord,
    and the guilt of our ancestors;(RR)
    we have indeed sinned(RS) against you.
21 For the sake of your name(RT) do not despise us;
    do not dishonor your glorious throne.(RU)
Remember your covenant(RV) with us
    and do not break it.
22 Do any of the worthless idols(RW) of the nations bring rain?(RX)
    Do the skies themselves send down showers?
No, it is you, Lord our God.
    Therefore our hope is in you,
    for you are the one who does all this.(RY)

15 Then the Lord said to me: “Even if Moses(RZ) and Samuel(SA) were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people.(SB) Send them away from my presence!(SC) Let them go! 2 And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘Those destined for death, to death;
those for the sword, to the sword;(SD)
those for starvation, to starvation;(SE)
those for captivity, to captivity.’(SF)

3 “I will send four kinds of destroyers(SG) against them,” declares the Lord, “the sword(SH) to kill and the dogs(SI) to drag away and the birds(SJ) and the wild animals to devour and destroy.(SK) 4 I will make them abhorrent(SL) to all the kingdoms of the earth(SM) because of what Manasseh(SN) son of Hezekiah king of Judah did in Jerusalem.

5 “Who will have pity(SO) on you, Jerusalem?
    Who will mourn for you?
    Who will stop to ask how you are?
6 You have rejected(SP) me,” declares the Lord.
    “You keep on backsliding.
So I will reach out(SQ) and destroy you;
    I am tired of holding back.(SR)
7 I will winnow(SS) them with a winnowing fork
    at the city gates of the land.
I will bring bereavement(ST) and destruction on my people,(SU)
    for they have not changed their ways.(SV)
8 I will make their widows(SW) more numerous
    than the sand of the sea.
At midday I will bring a destroyer(SX)
    against the mothers of their young men;
suddenly I will bring down on them
    anguish and terror.(SY)
9 The mother of seven will grow faint(SZ)
    and breathe her last.(TA)
Her sun will set while it is still day;
    she will be disgraced(TB) and humiliated.
I will put the survivors to the sword(TC)
    before their enemies,”(TD)
declares the Lord.

10 Alas, my mother, that you gave me birth,(TE)
    a man with whom the whole land strives and contends!(TF)
I have neither lent(TG) nor borrowed,
    yet everyone curses(TH) me.

11 The Lord said,

“Surely I will deliver you(TI) for a good purpose;
    surely I will make your enemies plead(TJ) with you
    in times of disaster and times of distress.

12 “Can a man break iron—
    iron from the north(TK)—or bronze?

13 “Your wealth(TL) and your treasures
    I will give as plunder,(TM) without charge,(TN)
because of all your sins
    throughout your country.(TO)
14 I will enslave you to your enemies
    in[p] a land you do not know,(TP)
for my anger will kindle a fire(TQ)
    that will burn against you.”

15 Lord, you understand;
    remember me and care for me.
    Avenge me on my persecutors.(TR)
You are long-suffering(TS)—do not take me away;
    think of how I suffer reproach for your sake.(TT)
16 When your words came, I ate(TU) them;
    they were my joy and my heart’s delight,(TV)
for I bear your name,(TW)
    Lord God Almighty.
17 I never sat(TX) in the company of revelers,
    never made merry with them;
I sat alone because your hand(TY) was on me
    and you had filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my pain unending
    and my wound grievous and incurable?(TZ)
You are to me like a deceptive brook,
    like a spring that fails.(UA)

19 Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“If you repent, I will restore you
    that you may serve(UB) me;
if you utter worthy, not worthless, words,
    you will be my spokesman.(UC)
Let this people turn to you,
    but you must not turn to them.
20 I will make you a wall(UD) to this people,
    a fortified wall of bronze;
they will fight against you
    but will not overcome(UE) you,
for I am with you
    to rescue and save you,”(UF)
declares the Lord.
21 “I will save(UG) you from the hands of the wicked(UH)
    and deliver(UI) you from the grasp of the cruel.”(UJ)

Day of Disaster

16 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “You must not marry(UK) and have sons or daughters in this place.” 3 For this is what the Lord says about the sons and daughters born in this land and about the women who are their mothers and the men who are their fathers:(UL) 4 “They will die of deadly diseases. They will not be mourned or buried(UM) but will be like dung lying on the ground.(UN) They will perish by sword and famine,(UO) and their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals.”(UP)

5 For this is what the Lord says: “Do not enter a house where there is a funeral meal; do not go to mourn or show sympathy, because I have withdrawn my blessing, my love and my pity(UQ) from this people,” declares the Lord. 6 “Both high and low will die in this land.(UR) They will not be buried or mourned,(US) and no one will cut(UT) themselves or shave(UU) their head for the dead. 7 No one will offer food(UV) to comfort those who mourn(UW) for the dead—not even for a father or a mother—nor will anyone give them a drink to console(UX) them.

8 “And do not enter a house where there is feasting and sit down to eat and drink.(UY) 9 For this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Before your eyes and in your days I will bring an end to the sounds(UZ) of joy and gladness and to the voices of bride(VA) and bridegroom in this place.(VB)

10 “When you tell these people all this and they ask you, ‘Why has the Lord decreed such a great disaster against us? What wrong have we done? What sin have we committed against the Lord our God?’(VC) 11 then say to them, ‘It is because your ancestors forsook me,’ declares the Lord, ‘and followed other gods and served and worshiped(VD) them. They forsook me and did not keep my law.(VE) 12 But you have behaved more wickedly than your ancestors.(VF) See how all of you are following the stubbornness of your evil hearts(VG) instead of obeying me. 13 So I will throw you out of this land(VH) into a land neither you nor your ancestors have known,(VI) and there you will serve other gods(VJ) day and night, for I will show you no favor.’(VK)

14 “However, the days are coming,”(VL) declares the Lord, “when it will no longer be said, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,’(VM) 15 but it will be said, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of the land of the north(VN) and out of all the countries where he had banished them.’(VO) For I will restore(VP) them to the land I gave their ancestors.(VQ)

16 “But now I will send for many fishermen,” declares the Lord, “and they will catch them.(VR) After that I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt(VS) them down on every mountain and hill and from the crevices of the rocks.(VT) 17 My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden(VU) from me, nor is their sin concealed from my eyes.(VV) 18 I will repay(VW) them double(VX) for their wickedness and their sin, because they have defiled my land(VY) with the lifeless forms of their vile images(VZ) and have filled my inheritance with their detestable idols.(WA)”(WB)

19 Lord, my strength and my fortress,
    my refuge(WC) in time of distress,
to you the nations will come(WD)
    from the ends of the earth and say,
“Our ancestors possessed nothing but false gods,(WE)
    worthless idols(WF) that did them no good.(WG)
20 Do people make their own gods?
    Yes, but they are not gods!”(WH)

21 “Therefore I will teach them—
    this time I will teach them
    my power and might.
Then they will know
    that my name(WI) is the Lord.

17 “Judah’s sin is engraved with an iron tool,(WJ)
    inscribed with a flint point,
on the tablets of their hearts(WK)
    and on the horns(WL) of their altars.
2 Even their children remember
    their altars and Asherah poles[q](WM)
beside the spreading trees
    and on the high hills.(WN)
3 My mountain in the land
    and your[r] wealth and all your treasures
I will give away as plunder,(WO)
    together with your high places,(WP)
    because of sin throughout your country.(WQ)
4 Through your own fault you will lose
    the inheritance(WR) I gave you.
I will enslave you to your enemies(WS)
    in a land(WT) you do not know,
for you have kindled my anger,
    and it will burn(WU) forever.”

5 This is what the Lord says:

“Cursed is the one who trusts in man,(WV)
    who draws strength from mere flesh
    and whose heart turns away from the Lord.(WW)
6 That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;
    they will not see prosperity when it comes.
They will dwell in the parched places(WX) of the desert,
    in a salt(WY) land where no one lives.

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 7:9 Or and swear by false gods
  2. Jeremiah 8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain.
  3. Jeremiah 8:18 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  4. Jeremiah 9:1 In Hebrew texts 9:1 is numbered 8:23, and 9:2-26 is numbered 9:1-25.
  5. Jeremiah 9:3 Or lies; / they are not valiant for truth
  6. Jeremiah 9:4 Or a deceiving Jacob
  7. Jeremiah 9:6 That is, Jeremiah (the Hebrew is singular)
  8. Jeremiah 9:26 Or wilderness and who clip the hair by their foreheads
  9. Jeremiah 10:11 The text of this verse is in Aramaic.
  10. Jeremiah 11:15 Or Could consecrated meat avert your punishment? / Then you would rejoice
  11. Jeremiah 12:5 Or you feel secure only
  12. Jeremiah 12:5 Or the flooding of
  13. Jeremiah 13:4 Or possibly to the Euphrates; similarly in verses 5-7
  14. Jeremiah 13:23 Hebrew Cushite (probably a person from the upper Nile region)
  15. Jeremiah 14:14 Or visions, worthless divinations
  16. Jeremiah 15:14 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Syriac (see also 17:4); most Hebrew manuscripts I will cause your enemies to bring you / into
  17. Jeremiah 17:2 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah
  18. Jeremiah 17:3 Or hills / 3 and the mountains of the land. / Your
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