Jeremiah 8
Amplified Bible
The Sin and Treachery of Judah
8 “At that time,” says the Lord, “they [the Babylonian army] will bring out from their graves the [a]bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of its princes, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 2 They will [carelessly scatter and] spread them out before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which the dead have loved and which they have served, and which they have walked after and which they have sought, and which they have worshiped. They will not be gathered or be buried; they will be like [b]dung on the face of the earth. 3 And death will be chosen rather than life by all the remnant of those who remain of this evil family (nation), who remain in all the places to which I have driven them,” says the Lord of hosts. 4 “Moreover [Jeremiah], you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord,
“Do men fall and not rise up again?
Does one turn away [from God] and not repent and return [to Him]?
5
“Why then has this people of Jerusalem
Turned away with a perpetual turning away [from Me]?
They hold tightly to [c]deceit (idolatry);
They refuse to repent and return [to God].
6
“I have listened and heard,
But they have spoken what is not right;
No man repented of his wickedness,
Saying, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone turns to his [individual] course,
As the horse rushes like a torrent into battle.
7
“Even the stork in the sky
Knows her seasons [of migration],
And the turtledove, the swallow and the crane
Observe the time of their return.
But My people do not know
The law of the Lord.
8
“How can you say, ‘We are wise,
And the law of the Lord is with us [and we are learned in its language and teachings]’?
Behold, [the truth is that] the lying pen of the scribes
Has made the law into a lie [a mere code of ceremonial observances].(A)
9
“The wise men are shamed,
They are dismayed and caught.
Behold, they have [manipulated and] rejected the [truth in the] word of the Lord,
And what kind of wisdom and insight do they have?
10
“Therefore I will give their wives to others
And their fields to new owners;
Because from the least even to the greatest
Everyone is greedy for [unjust] gain;
From the prophet even to the priest
Everyone practices deceit and deals in corruption.
11
“For they have treated the brokenness of the daughter of My people superficially,
Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
When there is no peace.
12
“Were they ashamed because of the extremely disgusting and shamefully vile things they had done?
They were not at all ashamed,
And they did not know how to blush.
Therefore, they shall fall among those who fall;
At the time of their punishment they shall be overthrown,”
Says the Lord.(B)
13
“I will gather and snatch them away [utterly consuming them],” says the Lord.
“There will be no grapes on the vine,
Nor figs on the fig tree,
And even the leaf will wither;
And the things that I have given them will pass away [by the hand of those whom I have appointed].”’”(C)
14
Why are we sitting still [the people wonder]?
Assemble yourselves, and let us enter the fortified cities
And let us die there,
For the Lord our God has decreed our ruin
And given us bitter and poisonous water to drink,
Because we have sinned against the Lord.
15
We waited for peace and salvation, but no good came,
And for a time of healing, but behold, terror!
16
The snorting of [Nebuchadnezzar’s] horses is heard from Dan [on Palestine’s northern border].
At the sound of the neighing of his strong stallions
The whole land quakes;
For they come and devour the land and all that is in it,
The city and those who live in it.
17
“For behold, I am sending serpents among you,
Vipers which cannot be charmed,
And they will bite you,” says the Lord.
18
Oh, that I (Jeremiah) could find comfort from my sorrow [for my grief is beyond healing],
My heart is sick and faint within me!
19
Behold, [hear the sound of] the cry of the daughter of my people from the distant land [of Babylon]:
“Is not the Lord in Zion? Is not her King within her?”
[But the Lord answers] “Why have they provoked Me to anger with their carved images and with foreign idols?”
20
“The harvest is past, the summer has ended and the gathering of fruit is over,
But we are not saved,” [comes the voice of the people again].
21
For the brokenness of the daughter of my people I (Jeremiah) am broken;
I mourn, anxiety has gripped me.
22
Is there no balm in [d]Gilead?
Is there no physician there?
Why then has not the [spiritual] health of the daughter of my people been restored?
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 8:1 The graves were opened to get any treasure they might contain, but the bones were scattered in order to humiliate and intimidate the Jews.
- Jeremiah 8:2 The man-made gods of the stars and the moon and the sun were of no help to their worshipers.
- Jeremiah 8:5 Idolatry is deceitful because in their idolatry men and women worship that which is false and worthless. It deludes the worshipers and causes them to believe a lie.
- Jeremiah 8:22 A scenic, fertile mountain region east of the Jordan River famous for its medicinal herbs and spices.
Jeremiah 8
King James Version
8 At that time, saith the Lord, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves:
2 And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth.
3 And death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue of them that remain of this evil family, which remain in all the places whither I have driven them, saith the Lord of hosts.
4 Moreover thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he turn away, and not return?
5 Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return.
6 I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.
7 Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment of the Lord.
8 How do ye say, We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made he it; the pen of the scribes is in vain.
9 The wise men are ashamed, they are dismayed and taken: lo, they have rejected the word of the Lord; and what wisdom is in them?
10 Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall inherit them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
11 For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
12 Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith the Lord.
13 I will surely consume them, saith the Lord: there shall be no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree, and the leaf shall fade; and the things that I have given them shall pass away from them.
14 Why do we sit still? assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the defenced cities, and let us be silent there: for the Lord our God hath put us to silence, and given us water of gall to drink, because we have sinned against the Lord.
15 We looked for peace, but no good came; and for a time of health, and behold trouble!
16 The snorting of his horses was heard from Dan: the whole land trembled at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones; for they are come, and have devoured the land, and all that is in it; the city, and those that dwell therein.
17 For, behold, I will send serpents, cockatrices, among you, which will not be charmed, and they shall bite you, saith the Lord.
18 When I would comfort myself against sorrow, my heart is faint in me.
19 Behold the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people because of them that dwell in a far country: Is not the Lord in Zion? is not her king in her? Why have they provoked me to anger with their graven images, and with strange vanities?
20 The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
21 For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken hold on me.
22 Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?
Jeremías 8
Nueva Biblia de las Américas
8 «En aquel tiempo», declara el Señor, «sacarán de sus tumbas los huesos de los reyes de Judá, los huesos de sus príncipes, los huesos de los sacerdotes, los huesos de los profetas y los huesos de los habitantes de Jerusalén(A); 2 los esparcirán al sol, a la luna y a todo el ejército del cielo(B), a quienes amaron y sirvieron, y a quienes siguieron, a quienes buscaron y adoraron. No serán recogidos ni enterrados(C); serán como estiércol sobre la superficie de la tierra(D). 3 La muerte será escogida en lugar de la vida(E) por todo el remanente que quede de este linaje malvado, los que queden en todos los lugares adonde los he arrojado(F)», declara el Señor de los ejércitos. 4 «Y les dirás: “Así dice el Señor:
‘Los que caen ¿no se levantan(G)?
El que se desvía ¿no se arrepiente[a]?
5 -’¿Por qué entonces este pueblo, Jerusalén,
Se ha desviado en continua apostasía(H)?
Se aferran al engaño(I),
Rehúsan volver(J).
6 -’He escuchado y oído,
Han hablado(K) lo que no es recto;
Ninguno se arrepiente de su maldad(L),
Diciendo: “¿Qué he hecho?”.
Cada cual vuelve a su carrera,
Como caballo que se lanza en la batalla(M).
7 -’Aun la cigüeña en el cielo
Conoce sus estaciones(N),
Y la tórtola(O), la golondrina y la grulla
Guardan la época de sus migraciones[b];
Pero Mi pueblo no conoce
La ordenanza del Señor(P).
8 ¶’¿Cómo pueden decir: “Somos sabios(Q),
Y la ley del Señor está con nosotros”,
Cuando la ha cambiado en mentira
La pluma mentirosa de los escribas?
9 -’Los sabios son avergonzados(R),
Están abatidos y atrapados;
Ellos han desechado la palabra del Señor(S),
¿Y qué clase de sabiduría tienen?
10 -’(T)Por tanto, daré sus mujeres a otros,
Y sus campos a nuevos dueños[c](U);
Porque desde el menor hasta el mayor
Todos ellos codician ganancias;
Desde el profeta hasta el sacerdote
Todos practican el engaño(V).
11 -’Curan a la ligera el quebranto de la hija de Mi pueblo,
Diciendo: “Paz, paz”,
Pero no hay paz(W).
12 -’¿Se han avergonzado de la abominación que han cometido?
Ciertamente no se han avergonzado,
Tampoco han sabido ruborizarse(X).
Por tanto caerán(Y) entre los que caigan,
En la hora de su castigo serán derribados(Z)’, dice el Señor.
13 ¶‘Ciertamente los destruiré[d](AA)’, declara el Señor;
‘No habrá uvas en la vid(AB),
Ni higos en la higuera(AC),
Y la hoja se marchitará;
Lo que les he dado, les será quitado’”».
14 ¿Por qué estamos aún sentados?
Congréguense(AD), y entremos en las ciudades fortificadas(AE),
Y perezcamos[e] allí,
Pues el Señor nuestro Dios nos hace perecer[f]
Y nos ha dado a beber agua envenenada(AF),
Porque hemos pecado contra el Señor(AG).
15 Esperábamos[g] paz, pero no vino ningún bien(AH);
Tiempo de curación, pero sobrevino terror.
16 Desde Dan(AI) se oye el resoplido de sus caballos;
Al sonido de los relinchos de sus corceles[h](AJ),
Tiembla toda la tierra;
Vienen y devoran la tierra y cuanto hay en ella,
La ciudad y los que en ella habitan(AK).
17 «Porque Yo envío contra ustedes(AL) serpientes,
Áspides contra los cuales no hay encantamiento(AM),
Y los morderán», declara el Señor.
Lamento sobre Sión
18 ¶Mi tristeza no tiene remedio[i](AN),
Mi corazón desfallece en mí(AO).
19 La voz del clamor de la hija de mi pueblo desde una tierra lejana(AP) es esta:
«¿No está el Señor en Sión? ¿No está su rey en ella?».
«¿Por qué me han provocado con sus imágenes talladas(AQ), con ídolos(AR) extranjeros[j]?».
20 «Pasó la siega, terminó el verano,
Y nosotros no hemos sido salvados».
21 Por el quebrantamiento de la hija de mi pueblo estoy quebrantado(AS);
Ando enlutado(AT), el espanto se ha apoderado de mí.
22 ¿No hay bálsamo en Galaad(AU)?
¿No hay médico allí?
¿Por qué, pues, no se ha restablecido[k] la salud[l] de la hija de mi pueblo(AV)?
Footnotes
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