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Judgment for Disobedience

“My people bend their tongues like bows
    to shoot out lies.
They refuse to stand up for the truth.
    They only go from bad to worse.
They do not know me,”
    says the Lord.

“Beware of your neighbor!
    Don’t even trust your brother!
For brother takes advantage of brother,
    and friend slanders friend.
They all fool and defraud each other;
    no one tells the truth.
With practiced tongues they tell lies;
    they wear themselves out with all their sinning.
They pile lie upon lie
    and utterly refuse to acknowledge me,”
    says the Lord.

Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says:
“See, I will melt them down in a crucible
    and test them like metal.
What else can I do with my people?[a]
    For their tongues shoot lies like poisoned arrows.
They speak friendly words to their neighbors
    while scheming in their heart to kill them.
Should I not punish them for this?” says the Lord.
    “Should I not avenge myself against such a nation?”

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Footnotes

  1. 9:7 Hebrew with the daughter of my people? Greek version reads with the evil daughter of my people?

“They make ready their tongue
    like a bow, to shoot lies;(A)
it is not by truth
    that they triumph[a] in the land.
They go from one sin to another;
    they do not acknowledge(B) me,”
declares the Lord.
“Beware of your friends;(C)
    do not trust anyone in your clan.(D)
For every one of them is a deceiver,[b](E)
    and every friend a slanderer.(F)
Friend deceives friend,(G)
    and no one speaks the truth.(H)
They have taught their tongues to lie;(I)
    they weary themselves with sinning.
You[c] live in the midst of deception;(J)
    in their deceit they refuse to acknowledge me,”
declares the Lord.

Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says:

“See, I will refine(K) and test(L) them,
    for what else can I do
    because of the sin of my people?
Their tongue(M) is a deadly arrow;
    it speaks deceitfully.
With their mouths they all speak cordially to their neighbors,(N)
    but in their hearts they set traps(O) for them.(P)
Should I not punish them for this?”
    declares the Lord.
“Should I not avenge(Q) myself
    on such a nation as this?”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 9:3 Or lies; / they are not valiant for truth
  2. Jeremiah 9:4 Or a deceiving Jacob
  3. Jeremiah 9:6 That is, Jeremiah (the Hebrew is singular)