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Jeremiah 4
EasyEnglish Bible
Jeremiah 4
EasyEnglish Bible
4 The Lord says this:
‘People of Israel, you should return to me.
If you want to do that,
you must throw away your idols.
Remove those disgusting things
and do not turn away from me again.
2 You must be honest and do what is right.
You must do what you promise to do.
You can show that your promise is true
when you add, “As surely as the Lord is alive.”
Then other nations will see that I have blessed you.
They will pray that I will bless them too.
and they will praise me.’
3 The Lord says this to the people of Jerusalem and all Judah:
‘Prepare yourselves, like a farmer who ploughs his fields.
Do not plant your seeds where weeds are growing.
4 Give yourselves to me, the Lord,
and agree to serve me faithfully.
Remove from your lives everything that is not right,
so that you obey my covenant.
If you do not do that,
I will be very angry with you.
I will punish you like a hot fire that destroys things.
Nobody will be able to stop my anger.
People of Judah and Jerusalem,
if you continue to do wicked things,
I will certainly punish you.’
An enemy will attack from the north
5 The Lord said:
‘Shout this message to the people in Jerusalem and in all Judah:
“Make a loud noise with trumpets in all the land!”
Shout loudly, “Come together!
We must all run to the cities with strong walls!”
6 Lift up a flag that shows the way to Zion!
Run quickly to a safe place! Do not wait!
I will soon bring great trouble from the north.
An enemy will destroy your country.
7 Yes, a strong army is coming,
like a lion that has left its cave.[a]
It has come out to destroy many nations.
It will attack your whole land.
Your cities will become heaps of stones,
and nobody will live in them.
8 So wear rough sackcloth!
Weep and cry aloud.
Say, “The Lord is still very angry with us.” ’
9 The Lord says:
‘When this happens, the king and his officers will be afraid.
The priests will shake with fear.
The prophets will be unable to speak.’
10 Then I said, ‘Lord God, that is terrible! You have deceived the people of Judah and Jerusalem. You told them, “You will live in peace.” But now an enemy is ready to attack us!’
11 The Lord will tell the people at that time, ‘A hot wind will blow from the hills in the desert. It will not be a little wind that blows chaff from wheat. It will be a strong storm that blows away the people that I love. 12 I will send a strong wind of punishment on my people.’
13 Look! The enemy army is coming like dark clouds!
Their chariots make the noise of a storm.
Their horses move faster than eagles in the sky.
Terrible trouble has come. We will all die!
14 People of Jerusalem, remove the evil things from your lives.
Then the Lord may save you.
Do not continue to have wicked ideas.
15 People are bringing a message from Dan
and from the hill country of Ephraim.
The message says that great trouble is coming.[b]
16 They say, ‘Warn all the nations that the enemy is coming!’
Shout this message in Jerusalem:
‘An army is coming from a country that is far away.
They will attack the towns in Judah.
17 Their soldiers are all around Jerusalem's walls,
like guards around a farmer's field.’
The Lord says, ‘This will happen because the people of Judah have turned against me. 18 I will punish you very much, because that is what you deserve. You have lived in a wicked way and you have done evil things. My punishment will give you pain that goes all through you.’
Jeremiah is very upset
19 I am so upset!
My body is shaking with pain.
My heart beats hard inside me.
I cannot keep still.
I cannot keep quiet.
I have heard the noise of the enemy's trumpets
and the shouts of their soldiers.
20 They are winning one battle after another!
They are destroying the whole land.
Our homes are becoming heaps of stones.
They quickly knock down our tents.
21 How long will our enemy continue to attack us?
How long will I see their flags and hear their trumpets?
22 The Lord says,
‘My people are fools.
They do not know me.
They are like children who do not know anything.
They understand nothing.
They are very clever at doing evil things.
But they do not know how to do what is good.’
Jeremiah's vision
23 I looked at the earth.
It had no shape and it was empty.
I looked at the sky.
Its light had disappeared.
24 I looked at the mountains.
They were shaking.
All the hills were moving around.
25 When I looked, I saw no people.
All the birds had flown away.
26 The land where crops had grown was now a desert.
All the cities had become heaps of stones.
The Lord had caused this to happen
because he was very angry.
27 The Lord had said,
‘The whole land will become like a desert,
but I will not completely destroy it.
28 So the earth will be sad and weep.
The sky will become dark.[c]
I have said what I will do.
And I will not change my thoughts.
I will do as I have decided.’
29 When the enemy attacks a town,
the people will run away to escape.
The enemy soldiers will ride on horses,
and they will shoot arrows.
When the people hear them,
some of them will hide among trees.
Some of them will climb up among the rocks.
All the towns will become empty.
Nobody will live in them.
30 Yes, Jerusalem, an enemy has destroyed you!
You tried to make friends,
like a woman who wears a beautiful dress.
You wore your gold and your jewels.
You painted around your eyes.
But all that has not helped you.
The nations that you wanted to be your lovers have turned against you.
Now they want to kill you.
31 I can hear people who are calling out.
It sounds like a woman who is giving birth to her first baby.
She is calling out with great pain.
It is Jerusalem who is crying!
She is calling out for help.
She says, ‘Help me! I am very weak.
These murderers have come to kill me!’
Jeremiah 4
The Voice
Jeremiah 4
The Voice
4 Eternal One: O Israel if you turn, turn home to Me.
Just turn away from the vile worship of those things,
those idols that repulse Me.
Put them out of My sight for good.
Come home to Me and never stray.
2 If you make a promise in My name, saying, “As the Eternal lives,”
and do so in truth, justice, and righteousness,
Then the nations will discover true blessing in Me
and give Me the praise I deserve.
3 This is what the Eternal now says to the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem.
Eternal One: Break up the hard, untilled soil!
It is a waste to plant seeds among thorns.
4 Circumcise yourselves to Me;
cut away the foreskin of your hearts,
men of Judah and people of Jerusalem.
Remove all that stands between us,
and devote yourselves fully to Me,
Or the heat of My anger will burn as an unquenchable fire
against your wicked ways.
The warnings now climax with a vision of invasion and destruction that is almost more than the young prophet can bear. Still God instructs Jeremiah to speak these words of terror, and this prophet who loves the people he has been called to chastise struggles with his mission. In the midst of this painful vision, Jeremiah begins to wonder aloud to the very God for whom he speaks. As he proclaims, he prays. As he waits for answers, the words of devastation continue.
5 Eternal One (to Jeremiah): Cry out to those in Jerusalem. Proclaim to all of Judah.
Let the trumpets blare throughout the land!
Say to the people, “Gather everyone from the outlying villages,
and run toward the fortified cities.”
6 Raise a banner toward Zion, Jerusalem;
point everyone toward her refuge.
Don’t wait, for I am releasing an evil from the north that will devastate the land.
7 For a lion has stepped out of the thicket;
A destroyer of nations is on the move.
He has left his den to devour your land;
your cities will be left in ruin, empty and lifeless.”
8 The time of mourning is here.
Put on your sackcloth, and get ready to cry and scream.
Since we have not turned from our sin,
the blazing anger of the Eternal has not turned away from us.
Eternal One: 9 On that fearsome day, even the hearts of kings and leaders will fail. Priests will recoil in horror. Prophets will be shocked into silence.
Jeremiah: 10 But Eternal Lord, You have misled this people and all of Jerusalem when you said, “You will live in peace.” Even now the cold blade of the sword is pressed against our throats.
11 The day is coming soon when Jerusalem and the people beyond will be told, “A blistering wind will blow in from the desert mountains toward My daughter, My people: a wind too strong to winnow the grain and clean the crops, 12 a wind too powerful to withstand for it comes from Me. It is My judgment that will bear down on you.”
13 Look, you can see Him coming in the distance, like a cloud on the horizon.
Like a whirlwind, His chariots of destruction will descend on you.
Swifter than eagles are His horses. At the sight of this, you will cry out, “Alas, we are doomed!”
14 Hear me, O Jerusalem, for even now there is time.
Wash these wicked ways from your hearts
So that you can be saved.
How long will you cling to those wicked thoughts?
15 From the tribe of Dan in the north comes the first cry;
news of disaster arrives from the hill country of Ephraim.
16 Eternal One (to Jeremiah): Tell the nations to beware.
Announce to Jerusalem:
“Invaders are coming from a distant land.
Their war cries will soon be heard in Judah’s villages.”
17 They will spread out and surround Jerusalem on every side like guards in a field,
all because she has acted against Me.
18 (to the people) You chose this path that led to disaster.
Your plans and actions brought it on.
It is your wickedness that tastes so bitter,
your evil that pierces your heart.
19 I’ve got this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. I’m in agony.
Every beat of my heart pounds with an awful dread.
I can’t stay silent, for I know what is coming—
oh my soul, there it is: the blast of the trumpet;
The battle cries of the invading hoards.
20 Crushing defeat after crushing defeat. That’s the news.
The land is in ruins, all of it.
In an instant, my world changed;
in a moment, my tents destroyed, my curtains torn, my refuge gone.
21 How long must I see the flags of the enemy?
How long must I be forced to hear the trumpets sound?
Eternal One (to Jeremiah): 22 My people are foolish.
They do not know Me at all.
They are reckless, senseless children.
They are clever and cunning when it comes to evil,
But inept and incapable of doing good.
23 I looked at the earth and saw that it was again formless and empty;
I looked at the heavens and saw no light.
24 I looked at the mountains and saw them quaking;
all the hills, they shuddered.
25 I looked around and saw no hint of life.
The people were gone. The birds had fled the sky.
26 I looked at what was once a garden and saw a desert—
the rubble of its cities torn down right in front of the Eternal and His fierce anger.
27 Eternal One: The whole land will lie in ruin,
but I will not completely destroy it.
28 Because of this devastation,
the earth will mourn and the skies will darken—for I have spoken.
Once I have decided, I will not change My mind.
I will not turn back from this.
29 As the horseman thunders closer and the archer draws near,
the people panic and the cities empty.
They scatter to the bushes; they scramble to the hills.
The villages are abandoned, for no one dares remain.
30 So what are you doing, my ravaged one?
Why are you dressing up in scarlet, putting on your gold jewelry,
And painting your eyes to make them larger, more beautiful?
You’re wasting your time.
Your lovers want nothing to do with you.
In fact, they despise you, and are looking to kill you.
31 I hear a cry like a woman in labor, the distress of a first-time mother.
It is the anguish of my people; it is the voice of the daughter of Zion,
Gasping for breath, reaching for help, as she cries out,
“I am faint, and my life is in the hands of murderers!”
Jeremiah 4
New International Version
Jeremiah 4
New International Version
4 “If you, Israel, will return,(A)
then return to me,”
declares the Lord.
“If you put your detestable idols(B) out of my sight
and no longer go astray,
2 and if in a truthful, just and righteous way
you swear,(C) ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’(D)
then the nations will invoke blessings(E) by him
and in him they will boast.(F)”
3 This is what the Lord says to the people of Judah and to Jerusalem:
“Break up your unplowed ground(G)
and do not sow among thorns.(H)
4 Circumcise yourselves to the Lord,
circumcise your hearts,(I)
you people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem,
or my wrath(J) will flare up and burn like fire(K)
because of the evil(L) you have done—
burn with no one to quench(M) it.
Disaster From the North
5 “Announce in Judah and proclaim(N) in Jerusalem and say:
‘Sound the trumpet(O) throughout the land!’
Cry aloud and say:
‘Gather together!
Let us flee to the fortified cities!’(P)
6 Raise the signal(Q) to go to Zion!
Flee for safety without delay!
For I am bringing disaster(R) from the north,(S)
even terrible destruction.”
7 A lion(T) has come out of his lair;(U)
a destroyer(V) of nations has set out.
He has left his place
to lay waste(W) your land.
Your towns will lie in ruins(X)
without inhabitant.
8 So put on sackcloth,(Y)
lament(Z) and wail,
for the fierce anger(AA) of the Lord
has not turned away from us.
9 “In that day,” declares the Lord,
“the king and the officials will lose heart,(AB)
the priests will be horrified,
and the prophets will be appalled.”(AC)
10 Then I said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! How completely you have deceived(AD) this people and Jerusalem by saying, ‘You will have peace,’(AE) when the sword is at our throats!”
11 At that time this people and Jerusalem will be told, “A scorching wind(AF) from the barren heights in the desert blows toward my people, but not to winnow or cleanse; 12 a wind(AG) too strong for that comes from me. Now I pronounce my judgments(AH) against them.”
13 Look! He advances like the clouds,(AI)
his chariots(AJ) come like a whirlwind,(AK)
his horses(AL) are swifter than eagles.(AM)
Woe to us! We are ruined!(AN)
14 Jerusalem, wash(AO) the evil from your heart and be saved.(AP)
How long(AQ) will you harbor wicked thoughts?
15 A voice is announcing from Dan,(AR)
proclaiming disaster from the hills of Ephraim.(AS)
16 “Tell this to the nations,
proclaim concerning Jerusalem:
‘A besieging army is coming from a distant land,(AT)
raising a war cry(AU) against the cities of Judah.(AV)
17 They surround(AW) her like men guarding a field,
because she has rebelled(AX) against me,’”
declares the Lord.
18 “Your own conduct and actions(AY)
have brought this on you.(AZ)
This is your punishment.
How bitter(BA) it is!
How it pierces to the heart!”
19 Oh, my anguish, my anguish!(BB)
I writhe in pain.(BC)
Oh, the agony of my heart!
My heart pounds(BD) within me,
I cannot keep silent.(BE)
For I have heard the sound of the trumpet;(BF)
I have heard the battle cry.(BG)
20 Disaster follows disaster;(BH)
the whole land lies in ruins.(BI)
In an instant my tents(BJ) are destroyed,
my shelter in a moment.
21 How long must I see the battle standard(BK)
and hear the sound of the trumpet?(BL)
22 “My people are fools;(BM)
they do not know me.(BN)
They are senseless children;
they have no understanding.(BO)
They are skilled in doing evil;(BP)
they know not how to do good.”(BQ)
23 I looked at the earth,
and it was formless and empty;(BR)
and at the heavens,
and their light(BS) was gone.
24 I looked at the mountains,
and they were quaking;(BT)
all the hills were swaying.
25 I looked, and there were no people;
every bird in the sky had flown away.(BU)
26 I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert;(BV)
all its towns lay in ruins(BW)
before the Lord, before his fierce anger.(BX)
27 This is what the Lord says:
“The whole land will be ruined,(BY)
though I will not destroy(BZ) it completely.
28 Therefore the earth will mourn(CA)
and the heavens above grow dark,(CB)
because I have spoken and will not relent,(CC)
I have decided and will not turn back.(CD)”
29 At the sound of horsemen and archers(CE)
every town takes to flight.(CF)
Some go into the thickets;
some climb up among the rocks.(CG)
All the towns are deserted;(CH)
no one lives in them.
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The Voice (VOICE)
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.