The Lord Answers Jeremiah

“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 (A)the [a]floodplain of the Jordan?
For even (B)your brothers, the house of your father,
Even they have dealt treacherously with you;
Yes, they have called [b]a multitude after you.
(C)Do not believe them,
Even though they speak [c]smooth words to you.

“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.
My heritage is to Me like a lion in the forest;
It cries out against Me;
Therefore I have (D)hated it.
My [d]heritage is to Me like a speckled vulture;
The vultures all around are against her.
Come, assemble all the beasts of the field,
(E)Bring them to devour!

10 “Many (F)rulers[e] have destroyed (G)My vineyard,
They have (H)trodden My portion underfoot;
They have made My [f]pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.
11 They have made it (I)desolate;
Desolate, it mourns to Me;
The whole land is made desolate,
Because (J)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 (K)They have sown wheat but reaped thorns;
They have [g]put themselves to pain but do not profit.
But be ashamed of your harvest
Because of the fierce anger of the Lord.”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 12:5 Or thicket
  2. Jeremiah 12:6 Or abundantly
  3. Jeremiah 12:6 Lit. good
  4. Jeremiah 12:9 inheritance
  5. Jeremiah 12:10 Lit. shepherds or pastors
  6. Jeremiah 12:10 desired portion of land
  7. Jeremiah 12:13 Or strained

The Lord’s Reply

“If you run with foot soldiers and they have made you weary,
    then how will you compete with horses?
If you have fallen in a peaceful land,[a]
    then how will you do in the thickets of the Jordan?
For even your relatives, and the house of your father,
    even they have dealt treacherously with you,
even they call loudly[b] after you.
    You must not trust in them, though they speak kindly to you.
I have forsaken my house, I have abandoned my inheritance.
    I have given the beloved one of my heart[c] into the hand of her enemies.
My inheritance has become to me like a lion in the forest.
    She has lifted up against me her voice; therefore[d] I hate her.
The lair of the hyena is my inheritance to me,
    the birds of prey[e] are all around her.
Go, gather all of the animals[f] of the field,
    bring them to come and devour.[g]
10 Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard,
    they have trampled down my plot of land.
They have made my pleasant field[h]
    like the desert[i] of desolation.
11 They have made it a desolation.
    Desolate, it mourns to me.
All the land is made desolate,
    but there is no person taking it to heart.
12 Upon all the barren heights in the desert[j] destroyers have come,
    for the sword of Yahweh devours,
from one end of the land to the other end of the land,
    there is no peace for all flesh.
13 They have sown wheat and they have reaped thorns.
    They are exhausted, they do not profit.
And they will be ashamed of your produce,
    because of the burning anger[k] of Yahweh.”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 12:5 Literally “a land of peace”
  2. Jeremiah 12:6 Literally “full”
  3. Jeremiah 12:7 Literally “soul”
  4. Jeremiah 12:8 Literally “unto thus”
  5. Jeremiah 12:9 Hebrew “bird of prey”
  6. Jeremiah 12:9 Hebrew “animal”
  7. Jeremiah 12:9 Literally “to food”
  8. Jeremiah 12:10 Literally “the plot of land of my desire”
  9. Jeremiah 12:10 Or “wilderness”
  10. Jeremiah 12:12 Or “wilderness”
  11. Jeremiah 12:13 Literally “the blaze of the nose”