Jeremiah 7
International Standard Version
Jeremiah’s Temple Sermon: Judah’s Idolatry
7 The message that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Stand at the gate of the Lord’s Temple and proclaim this message there. Say, ‘Listen to this message from the Lord, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the Lord.’”
3 This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says:
“Change[a] your ways and your deeds, and I’ll let you live in this place. 4 Don’t trust deceptive words like these, and say, ‘The Temple of the Lord, the Temple of the Lord, the Temple of the Lord,’ 5 but rather, truly change[b] your ways and your deeds. If you truly practice justice between each person and his neighbor, 6 and if you don’t oppress the alien, the orphan, and the widow, and don’t shed an innocent person’s blood in this place, and if you don’t follow other gods to your own harm,[c] 7 then I’ll let you dwell in this land, the land that I gave to your ancestors forever and ever.
8 “Look, you’re trusting in deceptive words that cannot benefit.[d] 9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear by false gods, burn incense to Baal, follow other gods that you don’t know, 10 and then come to stand before me in this house that is called by my name and say, ‘We’re delivered’ so we can continue to do all these things that are repugnant to God?[e] 11 Has this house that is called by my name become a hideout[f] for bandits in your eyes? Look, I’m watching,” declares the Lord.
12 “Go to my place that was in Shiloh, where I first caused my name to dwell. See what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel. 13 Now, because you have done all these things,” declares the Lord, “I spoke to you over and over again,[g] but you didn’t listen. I called to you, but you didn’t answer. 14 Just as I did to Shiloh, I’ll do to the house in which you trust and which is called by my name, the place that I gave to you and your ancestors. 15 I’ll cast you out of my sight, just as I cast out all your brothers, all the descendants of Ephraim.
16 “As for you, don’t pray on behalf of this people, don’t cry or offer a petition for them, and don’t plead with me, for I won’t listen to you. 17 Don’t you see what they’re doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough to make cakes for the Queen of Heaven,[h] and they pour out liquid offerings to other gods in order to provoke me. 19 Are they provoking me?” asks the Lord. “Is it not themselves, and to their own shame?” 20 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: “I’m about to pour out my anger and my wrath on this place, on people and animals, on the trees of the field, and on the fruit of the ground. It will burn, and it won’t be put out.”
21 This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says:
“Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat the meat. 22 Indeed, when I brought your ancestors out of the land of Egypt, I didn’t speak or command them about burnt offering and sacrifice, 23 but I did give them this command:[i] ‘Obey me and I’ll be your God, and you will be my people. Walk in all the ways that I command you so it will go well for you.’ 24 But they didn’t listen,[j] nor did they pay attention.[k] They pursued their own plans,[l] stubbornly following their own evil desires.[m] They went backward and not forward. 25 From the day your ancestors left the land of Egypt to this present time, I’ve sent all my servants, the prophets, to you, again and again.[n] 26 But they didn’t listen to me, and they didn’t pay attention.[o] They stiffened their necks, and they did more evil than their ancestors.
27 “You will tell them all these things, but they won’t listen to you. You will call out to them, but they won’t answer you. 28 You will say to them, ‘This is the nation that wouldn’t listen to the voice[p] of the Lord its God and wouldn’t accept correction. Truth has perished; it has been eliminated from their discussions.’
29 “Cut off your hair and throw it away;
let your lamentations rise on the barren heights,
because the Lord has rejected and abandoned
the generation that is subject to his wrath.[q]
30 “For the people of Judah have done evil in my eyes,” declares the Lord. “They have put their detestable idols[r] in the house that is called by my name in order to defile it. 31 They have built high places at Topheth in the Valley of Ben-hinnom to burn their sons and daughters in the fire. I didn’t command this, and it never entered my mind!
32 “Therefore, the time is near,” declares the Lord, “when it will no longer be called Topheth or the Valley of Ben-hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter. They’ll bury in Topheth because there is no other[s] place to do it.[t] 33 The dead bodies of these people will be food for the birds of the sky and for the animals of the land, and no one will disturb them. 34 In the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem I’ll bring an end to the sound of gladness and rejoicing, to the sounds of the bridegroom and bride, for the land will become a wasteland.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 7:3 Lit. Make good
- Jeremiah 7:5 Lit. make good
- Jeremiah 7:6 Or disaster
- Jeremiah 7:8 Or profit
- Jeremiah 7:10 Lit. all these abominations
- Jeremiah 7:11 Lit. cave
- Jeremiah 7:13 Lit. getting up early and speaking
- Jeremiah 7:18 I.e. the Near Eastern fertility goddess Ishtar
- Jeremiah 7:23 Lit. I commanded them this word
- Jeremiah 7:24 Or obey
- Jeremiah 7:24 Lit. incline their ears
- Jeremiah 7:24 Lit. They walked in plans
- Jeremiah 7:24 Lit. following the stubbornness of their evil hearts
- Jeremiah 7:25 Lit. daily getting up early and sending them
- Jeremiah 7:26 Lit. incline their ears
- Jeremiah 7:28 I.e. wouldn’t obey
- Jeremiah 7:29 Lit. generation of his wrath
- Jeremiah 7:30 Lit. their detestable things
- Jeremiah 7:32 The Heb. lacks other
- Jeremiah 7:32 The Heb. lacks to do it
Jeremiah 7
English Standard Version
Evil in the Land
7 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 (A)“Stand in the gate of the Lord's house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the Lord, all you men of Judah who enter these gates to worship the Lord. 3 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: (B)Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4 (C)Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.’
5 “For if you truly (D)amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly (E)execute justice one with another, 6 if you (F)do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow, (G)or shed innocent blood in this place, (H)and if you do not go after other gods to your own harm, 7 (I)then I will let you dwell in this place, (J)in the land that I gave of old to your fathers forever.
8 “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. 9 (K)Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, (L)swear falsely, (M)make offerings to Baal, (N)and go after other gods that you have not known, 10 and then come and stand before me in this house, (O)which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations? 11 (P)Has this house, (Q)which is called by my name, (R)become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the Lord. 12 Go now to (S)my place that was in Shiloh, (T)where I made my name dwell at first, and (U)see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel. 13 And now, because you have done all these things, declares the Lord, and (V)when I spoke to you persistently you did not listen, and (W)when I called you, you did not answer, 14 therefore I will do to (X)the house (Y)that is called by my name, and in which you trust, and to the place that I gave to you and to your fathers, (Z)as I did to Shiloh. 15 (AA)And I will cast you out of my sight, (AB)as I cast out all your kinsmen, all the offspring of (AC)Ephraim.
16 “As for you, (AD)do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with me, for I will not hear you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers kindle fire, (AE)and the women knead dough, to (AF)make cakes for (AG)the queen of heaven. And (AH)they pour out drink offerings to other gods, (AI)to provoke me to anger. 19 (AJ)Is it I whom they provoke? declares the Lord. Is it not themselves, (AK)to their own shame? 20 Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, (AL)my anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place, upon man and beast, upon the trees of the field and the fruit of the ground; (AM)it will burn and not be quenched.”
21 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: (AN)“Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices, and eat the flesh. 22 For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to your fathers or command them (AO)concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23 But this command I gave them: (AP)‘Obey my voice, and (AQ)I will be your God, and you shall be my people. (AR)And walk in all the way that I command you, (AS)that it may be well with you.’ 24 (AT)But they did not obey or incline their ear, (AU)but walked in their own counsels and (AV)the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and (AW)went backward and not forward. 25 From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day, (AX)I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them, day after day. 26 (AY)Yet they did not listen to me or incline their ear, (AZ)but stiffened their neck. (BA)They did worse than their fathers.
27 (BB)“So you shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you. (BC)You shall call to them, but they will not answer you. 28 And you shall say to them, ‘This is the nation that did not obey the voice of the Lord their God, and did not accept discipline; (BD)truth has perished; it is cut off from their lips.
29 (BE)“‘Cut off your hair and cast it away;
raise a lamentation on (BF)the bare heights,
for the Lord has rejected and forsaken
the generation of his wrath.’
The Valley of Slaughter
30 “For the sons of Judah have done evil in my sight, declares the Lord. They have set (BG)their detestable things in the house (BH)that is called by my name, to (BI)defile it. 31 And they have built the high places of (BJ)Topheth, which is in (BK)the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, (BL)to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, (BM)which I did not command, nor did it come into my mind. 32 (BN)Therefore, behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when it will no more be called (BO)Topheth, or (BP)the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter; (BQ)for they will bury in Topheth, because there is no room elsewhere. 33 (BR)And the dead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the air, and for the beasts of the earth, (BS)and none will frighten them away. 34 (BT)And I will silence in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, (BU)for the land shall become a waste.
Jeremías 7
Spanish Blue Red and Gold Letter Edition
7 PALABRA que fué de Jehová á Jeremías, diciendo:
2 Ponte á la puerta de la casa de Jehová, y predica allí esta palabra, y di: Oid palabra de Jehová, todo Judá, los que entráis por estas puertas para adorar á Jehová.
3 Así ha dicho Jehová de los ejércitos, Dios de Israel: Mejorad vuestros caminos y vuestras obras, y os haré morar en este lugar.
4 No fiéis en palabras de mentira, diciendo: Templo de Jehová, templo de Jehová, templo de Jehová es éste.
5 Mas si mejorareis cumplidamente vuestros caminos y vuestras obras; si con exactitud hiciereis derecho entre el hombre y su prójimo,
6 Ni oprimiereis al peregrino, al huérfano, y á la viuda, ni en este lugar derramareis la sangre inocente, ni anduviereis en pos de dioses ajenos para mal vuestro;
7 Os haré morar en este lugar, en la tierra que dí á vuestros padres para siempre.
8 He aquí vosotros os confiáis en palabras de mentira, que no aprovechan.
9 ¿Hurtando, matando, y adulterando, y jurando falso, e incensando á Baal, y andando tras dioses extraños que no conocisteis,
10 Vendréis y os pondréis delante de mí en esta casa sobre la cual es invocado mi nombre, y diréis: Librados somos: para hacer todas estas abominaciones?
11 ¿Es cueva de ladrones delante de vuestros ojos esta casa, sobre la cual es invocado mi nombre? He aquí que también yo veo, dice Jehová.
12 Andad empero ahora á mi lugar que fué en Silo, donde hice que morase mi nombre al principio, y ved lo que le hice por la maldad de mi pueblo Israel.
13 Ahora pues, por cuanto habéis vosotros hecho todas estas obras, dice Jehová, y bien que os hablé, madrugando para hablar, no oísteis, y os llamé, y no respondisteis;
14 Haré también á esta casa sobre la cual es invocado mi nombre, en la que vosotros confiáis, y á este lugar que dí á vosotros y á vuestros padres, como hice á Silo:
15 Que os echaré de mi presencia como eché á todos vuestros hermanos, á toda la generación de Ephraim.
16 Tú pues, no ores por este pueblo, ni levantes por ellos clamor ni oración, ni me ruegues; porque no te oiré.
17 ¿No ves lo que estos hacen en las ciudades de Judá y en las calles de Jerusalem?
18 Los hijos cogen la leña, y los padres encienden el fuego, y las mujeres amasan la masa, para hacer tortas á la reina del cielo y para hacer ofrendas á dioses ajenos, por provocarme á ira.
19 ¿Provocaránme ellos á ira, dice Jehová, y no más bien obran ellos mismos para confusión de sus rostros?
20 Por tanto, así ha dicho el Señor Jehová: He aquí que mi furor y mi ira se derrama sobre este lugar, sobre los hombres, sobre los animales, sobre los árboles del campo, y sobre los frutos de la tierra; y encenderáse, y no se apagará.
21 Así ha dicho Jehová de los ejércitos, Dios de Israel: Añadid vuestros holocaustos sobre vuestros sacrificios, y comed carne.
22 Porque no hablé yo con vuestros padres, ni les mandé el día que los saqué de la tierra de Egipto, acerca de holocaustos y de víctimas:
23 Mas esto les mandé, diciendo: Escuchad mi voz, y seré á vosotros por Dios, y vosotros me seréis por pueblo; y andad en todo camino que os mandare, para que os vaya bien.
24 Y no oyeron ni inclinaron su oído; antes caminaron en sus consejos, en la dureza de su corazón malvado, y fueron hacia atrás y no hacia adelante,
25 Desde el día que vuestros padres salieron de la tierra de Egipto hasta hoy. Y os envié á todos los profetas mis siervos, cada día madrugando y enviándolos:
26 Mas no me oyeron ni inclinaron su oído; antes endurecieron su cerviz, e hicieron peor que sus padres.
27 Tú pues les dirás todas estas palabras, mas no te oirán; aun los llamarás, y no te responderán.
28 Les dirás por tanto: Esta es la gente que no escuchó la voz de Jehová su Dios, ni tomó corrección; perdióse la fe, y de la boca de ellos fué cortada.
29 Trasquila tu cabello, y arrójalo, y levanta llanto sobre las alturas; porque Jehová ha aborrecido y dejado la nación de su ira.
30 Porque los hijos de Judá han hecho lo malo ante mis ojos, dice Jehová; pusieron sus abominaciones en la casa sobre la cual mi nombre fué invocado, amancillándola.
31 Y han edificado los altos de Topheth, que es en el valle del hijo de Hinnom, para quemar al fuego sus hijos y sus hijas, cosa que yo no les mandé, ni subió en mi corazón.
32 Por tanto, he aquí vendrán días, ha dicho Jehová, que no se diga más, Topheth, ni valle del hijo de Hinnom, sino Valle de la Matanza; y serán enterrados en Topheth, por no haber lugar.
33 Y serán los cuerpos muertos de este pueblo para comida de las aves del cielo y de las bestias de la tierra; y no habrá quien las espante.
34 Y haré cesar de las ciudades de Judá, y de la calles de Jerusalem, voz de gozo y voz de alegría, voz de esposo y voz de esposa; porque la tierra será en desolación.
Jeremiah 7
New International Version
False Religion Worthless
7 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Stand(A) 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(B) and your actions, and I will let you live(C) in this place. 4 Do not trust(D) in deceptive(E) 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(F) your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly,(G) 6 if you do not oppress(H) the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood(I) in this place, and if you do not follow other gods(J) to your own harm, 7 then I will let you live in this place, in the land(K) I gave your ancestors(L) for ever and ever. 8 But look, you are trusting(M) in deceptive(N) words that are worthless.
9 “‘Will you steal(O) and murder,(P) commit adultery(Q) and perjury,[a](R) burn incense to Baal(S) and follow other gods(T) you have not known, 10 and then come and stand(U) before me in this house,(V) which bears my Name, and say, “We are safe”—safe to do all these detestable things?(W) 11 Has this house,(X) which bears my Name, become a den of robbers(Y) to you? But I have been watching!(Z) declares the Lord.
12 “‘Go now to the place in Shiloh(AA) where I first made a dwelling(AB) for my Name,(AC) and see what I did(AD) to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel. 13 While you were doing all these things, declares the Lord, I spoke(AE) to you again and again,(AF) but you did not listen;(AG) I called(AH) you, but you did not answer.(AI) 14 Therefore, what I did to Shiloh(AJ) I will now do to the house that bears my Name,(AK) the temple(AL) you trust in, the place I gave to you and your ancestors. 15 I will thrust you from my presence,(AM) just as I did all your fellow Israelites, the people of Ephraim.’(AN)
16 “So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea(AO) or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen(AP) 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.(AQ) They pour out drink offerings(AR) to other gods to arouse(AS) my anger. 19 But am I the one they are provoking?(AT) declares the Lord. Are they not rather harming themselves, to their own shame?(AU)
20 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign(AV) Lord says: My anger(AW) and my wrath will be poured(AX) 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.(AY)
21 “‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go ahead, add your burnt offerings to your other sacrifices(AZ) and eat(BA) the meat yourselves! 22 For when I brought your ancestors out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just give them commands(BB) about burnt offerings and sacrifices,(BC) 23 but I gave them this command:(BD) Obey(BE) me, and I will be your God and you will be my people.(BF) Walk in obedience to all(BG) I command you, that it may go well(BH) with you. 24 But they did not listen(BI) or pay attention;(BJ) instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts.(BK) They went backward(BL) and not forward. 25 From the time your ancestors left Egypt until now, day after day, again and again(BM) I sent you my servants(BN) the prophets.(BO) 26 But they did not listen to me or pay attention.(BP) They were stiff-necked(BQ) and did more evil than their ancestors.’(BR)
27 “When you tell(BS) them all this, they will not listen(BT) to you; when you call to them, they will not answer.(BU) 28 Therefore say to them, ‘This is the nation that has not obeyed the Lord its God or responded to correction.(BV) Truth(BW) has perished; it has vanished from their lips.
29 “‘Cut off(BX) your hair and throw it away; take up a lament(BY) on the barren heights, for the Lord has rejected and abandoned(BZ) this generation that is under his wrath.
The Valley of Slaughter
30 “‘The people of Judah have done evil(CA) in my eyes, declares the Lord. They have set up their detestable idols(CB) in the house that bears my Name and have defiled(CC) it. 31 They have built the high places of Topheth(CD) in the Valley of Ben Hinnom(CE) to burn their sons and daughters(CF) in the fire—something I did not command, nor did it enter my mind.(CG) 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,(CH) for they will bury(CI) the dead in Topheth until there is no more room. 33 Then the carcasses(CJ) of this people will become food(CK) for the birds and the wild animals, and there will be no one to frighten them away.(CL) 34 I will bring an end to the sounds(CM) of joy and gladness and to the voices of bride and bridegroom(CN) in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem,(CO) for the land will become desolate.(CP)
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 7:9 Or and swear by false gods
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