Jeremiah 3
Good News Translation
Unfaithful Israel
3 The Lord says, “If a man divorces his wife, and she leaves him and becomes another man's wife, he cannot take her back again. This would completely defile the land. But, Israel, you have had many lovers, and now you want to return to me! 2 Look up at the hilltops. Is there any place where you have not acted like a prostitute? You waited for lovers along the roadside, as an Arab waits for victims in the desert. You have defiled the land with your prostitution. 3 That is why the rains were held back, and the spring showers did not come. You even look like a prostitute; you have no shame.
4 “And now you say to me, ‘You are my father, and you have loved me ever since I was a child. 5 You won't always be angry; you won't be mad at me forever.’ Israel, that is what you said, but you did all the evil you could.”
Israel and Judah Must Repent
6 (A)When Josiah was king, the Lord said to me, “Have you seen what Israel, that unfaithful woman, has done? She has turned away from me, and on every high hill and under every green tree she has acted like a prostitute. 7 I thought that after she had done all this, she would surely return to me. But she did not return, and her unfaithful sister Judah saw it all. 8 Judah also saw that I divorced Israel and sent her away because she had turned from me and had become a prostitute. But Judah, Israel's unfaithful sister, was not afraid. She too became a prostitute 9 and was not at all ashamed. She defiled the land, and she committed adultery by worshiping stones and trees. 10 And after all this, Judah, Israel's unfaithful sister, only pretended to return to me; she was not sincere. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
11 Then the Lord told me that, even though Israel had turned away from him, she had proved to be better than unfaithful Judah. 12 He told me to go and say to Israel, “Unfaithful Israel, come back to me. I am merciful and will not be angry; I will not be angry with you forever. 13 Only admit that you are guilty and that you have rebelled against the Lord, your God. Confess that under every green tree you have given your love to foreign gods and that you have not obeyed my commands. I, the Lord, have spoken.
14 “Unfaithful people, come back; you belong to me. I will take one of you from each town and two from each clan, and I will bring you back to Mount Zion. 15 I will give you rulers who obey me, and they will rule you with wisdom and understanding. 16 Then when you have become numerous in that land, people will no longer talk about my Covenant Box. They will no longer think about it or remember it; they will not even need it, nor will they make another one. 17 When that time comes, Jerusalem will be called ‘The Throne of the Lord,’ and all nations will gather there to worship me. They will no longer do what their stubborn and evil hearts tell them. 18 Israel will join with Judah, and together they will come from exile in the country in the north and will return to the land that I gave your ancestors as a permanent possession.”
The Idolatry of God's People
19 The Lord says,
“Israel, I wanted to accept you as my child
and give you a delightful land,
the most beautiful land in all the world.
I wanted you to call me father
and never again turn away from me.
20 But like an unfaithful wife,
you have not been faithful to me.
I, the Lord, have spoken.”
21 A noise is heard on the hilltops:
it is the people of Israel crying and pleading
because they have lived sinful lives
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 Return, all of you who have turned away from the Lord;
he will heal you and make you faithful.
You say, “Yes, we are coming to the Lord because he is our God. 23 We were not helped at all by our pagan worship on the hilltops. Help for Israel comes only from the Lord our God. 24 But the worship of Baal, the god of shame, has made us lose flocks and herds, sons and daughters—everything that our ancestors have worked for since ancient times. 25 We should lie down in shame and let our disgrace cover us. We and our ancestors have always sinned against the Lord our God; we have never obeyed his commands.”
Jeremiah 3
King James Version
3 They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the Lord.
2 Lift up thine eyes unto the high places, and see where thou hast not been lien with. In the ways hast thou sat for them, as the Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.
3 Therefore the showers have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a whore's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.
4 Wilt thou not from this time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?
5 Will he reserve his anger for ever? will he keep it to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and done evil things as thou couldest.
6 The Lord said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the harlot.
7 And I said after she had done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it.
8 And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also.
9 And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks.
10 And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not turned unto me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the Lord.
11 And the Lord said unto me, The backsliding Israel hath justified herself more than treacherous Judah.
12 Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep anger for ever.
13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord.
14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the Lord; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:
15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
16 And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the Lord, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the Lord: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more.
17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.
18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.
19 But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.
20 Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, so have ye dealt treacherously with me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord.
21 A voice was heard upon the high places, weeping and supplications of the children of Israel: for they have perverted their way, and they have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 Return, ye backsliding children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee; for thou art the Lord our God.
23 Truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.
24 For shame hath devoured the labour of our fathers from our youth; their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters.
25 We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covereth us: for we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.
Geremia 3
Nuova Riveduta 1994
3 (A)Il Signore dice: «Se un uomo ripudia sua moglie
e questa se ne va via e si sposa con un altro,
quell'uomo torna forse ancora da lei?
Il paese stesso non ne sarebbe forse tutto profanato?
E tu, che ti sei prostituita con molti amanti,
ritorneresti da me?» dice il Signore.
2 «Alza gli occhi verso le alture, e guarda.
Dov'è che non ti sei prostituita?
Tu sedevi per le vie ad aspettare i passanti, come fa l'Arabo nel deserto,
e hai contaminato il paese con le tue prostituzioni e con le tue malvagità.
3 Perciò le grandi piogge sono state trattenute
e non c'è stata pioggia di primavera;
ma tu hai avuto una fronte da prostituta
e non hai voluto vergognarti.
4 Mi hai appena gridato: “Padre mio,
tu sei stato l'amico della mia giovinezza!
5 Egli sarà forse adirato per sempre?
Serberà forse la sua ira sino alla fine?”
Ecco, tu parli cosí, ma intanto commetti tutto il male che puoi!»
Esortazione al ravvedimento
6 (B)Il Signore mi disse al tempo del re *Giosia: «Hai visto ciò che l'infedele *Israele ha fatto? È andata sopra ogni alto monte e sotto ogni albero verdeggiante, e là s'è prostituita. 7 Io dicevo: Dopo che avrà fatto tutte queste cose, tornerà a me; ma non è ritornata; e sua sorella, la perfida *Giuda, l'ha visto. 8 Benché io avessi ripudiato l'infedele Israele a causa di tutti i suoi adulteri e le avessi dato la sua lettera di divorzio, ho visto che sua sorella, la perfida Giuda, non ha avuto alcun timore, ed è andata a prostituirsi anche lei. 9 Con il rumore delle sue prostituzioni Israele ha contaminato il paese; ha commesso adulterio con la pietra e con il legno; 10 nonostante tutto questo, la sua perfida sorella non è tornata da me con tutto il suo cuore, ma con finzione», dice il Signore.
11 (C)Il Signore mi disse: «L'infedele Israele si è mostrata piú giusta
della perfida Giuda.
12 Va', proclama queste parole verso il settentrione, e di':
“Torna, o infedele Israele”, dice il Signore;
“io non vi mostrerò un viso
accigliato,
poiché io sono misericordioso”, dice il Signore,
“e non serbo l'ira per sempre.
13 Soltanto riconosci la tua *iniquità:
tu sei stata infedele al Signore, al tuo Dio,
sei andata di qua e di là con gli stranieri,
sotto ogni albero verdeggiante,
e non hai dato ascolto alla mia voce”», dice il Signore.
14 «Tornate, o figli traviati», dice il Signore,
«poiché io sono il vostro Signore;
vi prenderò, uno da una città, due da una famiglia,
e vi ricondurrò a *Sion;
15 vi darò dei pastori secondo il mio cuore,
che vi pasceranno con conoscenza e intelligenza.
16 Quando sarete moltiplicati e avrete fruttato nel paese,
allora», dice il Signore,
«non si dirà piú: “L'*arca del patto del Signore!”
Non vi si penserà piú,
non la si menzionerà piú, non la si rimpiangerà piú,
non se ne farà un'altra.
17 Allora *Gerusalemme sarà chiamata il trono del Signore;
tutte le nazioni si raduneranno a Gerusalemme nel nome del Signore,
e non cammineranno piú secondo la caparbietà del loro cuore malvagio.
18 In quei giorni,
la casa di Giuda camminerà con la casa d'Israele;
verranno assieme dal paese del settentrione
al paese che io diedi in eredità ai vostri padri.
19 Io avevo detto: “Quale posto ti darò tra i miei figli?
Che paese delizioso ti darò?
La piú bella eredità delle nazioni!”
Avevo detto: “Tu mi chiamerai: `Padre mio!´
E non smetterai di seguirmi”.
20 Ma proprio come una donna è infedele al suo amante,
cosí voi mi siete stati infedeli, o casa d'Israele!»
dice il Signore.
21 Una voce si è fatta udire sulle alture;
sono i pianti, le suppliche dei figli d'Israele,
perché hanno pervertito la loro via,
hanno dimenticato il Signore, il loro Dio.
22 «Tornate, figli traviati,
io vi guarirò dei vostri traviamenti!»
«Eccoci, noi veniamo da te,
perché tu sei il Signore, il nostro Dio.
23 Certo, è vano il soccorso che si aspetta dalle alture,
dalle feste strepitose sui monti;
Certo, nel Signore, nel nostro Dio, sta la salvezza d'Israele.
24 La vergogna ha divorato il prodotto della fatica dei nostri padri,
sin dalla nostra giovinezza:
le loro pecore e i loro buoi, i loro figli e le loro figlie.
25 Noi abbiamo la nostra vergogna come giaciglio
e la nostra infamia come coperta,
poiché abbiamo peccato contro il Signore, il nostro Dio:
noi e i nostri padri, dalla nostra infanzia sino a questo giorno;
non abbiamo dato ascolto alla voce del Signore, il nostro Dio.
Jeremiah 3
New King James Version
Israel Is Shameless
3 “They say, ‘If a man divorces his wife,
And she goes from him
And becomes another man’s,
(A)May he return to her again?’
Would not that (B)land be greatly polluted?
But you have (C)played the harlot with many lovers;
(D)Yet return to Me,” says the Lord.
2 “Lift up your eyes to (E)the desolate heights and see:
Where have you not [a]lain with men?
(F)By the road you have sat for them
Like an Arabian in the wilderness;
(G)And you have polluted the land
With your harlotries and your wickedness.
3 Therefore the (H)showers have been withheld,
And there has been no latter rain.
You have had a (I)harlot’s forehead;
You refuse to be ashamed.
4 Will you not from this time cry to Me,
‘My Father, You are (J)the guide of (K)my youth?
5 (L)Will He remain angry forever?
Will He keep it to the end?’
Behold, you have spoken and done evil things,
As you were able.”
A Call to Repentance
6 The Lord said also to me in the days of Josiah the king: “Have you seen what (M)backsliding Israel has done? She has (N)gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and there played the harlot. 7 (O)And I said, after she had done all these things, ‘Return to Me.’ But she did not return. And her treacherous (P)sister Judah saw it. 8 Then I saw that (Q)for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had (R)put her away and given her a certificate of divorce; (S)yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also. 9 So it came to pass, through her casual harlotry, that she (T)defiled the land and committed adultery with (U)stones and trees. 10 And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to Me (V)with her whole heart, but in pretense,” says the Lord.
11 Then the Lord said to me, (W)“Backsliding Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. 12 Go and proclaim these words toward (X)the north, and say:
‘Return, backsliding Israel,’ says the Lord;
‘I will not cause My anger to fall on you.
For I am (Y)merciful,’ says the Lord;
‘I will not remain angry forever.
13 (Z)Only acknowledge your iniquity,
That you have transgressed against the Lord your God,
And have (AA)scattered your [b]charms
To (AB)alien deities (AC)under every green tree,
And you have not obeyed My voice,’ says the Lord.
14 “Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; (AD)“for I am married to you. I will take you, (AE)one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to (AF)Zion. 15 And I will give you (AG)shepherds according to My heart, who will (AH)feed you with knowledge and understanding.
16 “Then it shall come to pass, when you are multiplied and (AI)increased in the land in those days,” says the Lord, “that they will say no more, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord.’ (AJ)It shall not come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they visit it, nor shall it be made anymore.
17 “At that time Jerusalem shall be called The Throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered to it, (AK)to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem. No more shall they (AL)follow[c] the dictates of their evil hearts.
18 “In those days (AM)the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of (AN)the north to (AO)the land that I have given as an inheritance to your fathers.
19 “But I said:
‘How can I put you among the children
And give you (AP)a pleasant land,
A beautiful heritage of the hosts of nations?’
“And I said:
‘You shall call Me, (AQ)“My Father,”
And not turn away from Me.’
20 Surely, as a wife treacherously departs from her [d]husband,
So (AR)have you dealt treacherously with Me,
O house of Israel,” says the Lord.
21 A voice was heard on (AS)the desolate heights,
Weeping and supplications of the children of Israel.
For they have perverted their way;
They have forgotten the Lord their God.
22 “Return, you backsliding children,
And I will (AT)heal your backslidings.”
“Indeed we do come to You,
For You are the Lord our God.
23 (AU)Truly, in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills,
And from the multitude of mountains;
(AV)Truly, in the Lord our God
Is the salvation of Israel.
24 (AW)For shame has devoured
The labor of our fathers from our youth—
Their flocks and their herds,
Their sons and their daughters.
25 We lie down in our shame,
And our [e]reproach covers us.
(AX)For we have sinned against the Lord our God,
We and our fathers,
From our youth even to this day,
And (AY)have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 3:2 Kt. been violated
- Jeremiah 3:13 Lit. ways
- Jeremiah 3:17 walk after the stubbornness or imagination
- Jeremiah 3:20 Lit. companion
- Jeremiah 3:25 disgrace
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
Copyright © 1994 by Geneva Bible Society
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
