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“‘The Lord says: At that time the bones will be removed from the tombs. The bones of Judah’s kings and officers, priests and prophets and the people of Jerusalem will be removed. The bones will be spread on the ground under the sun, moon and stars the people loved and served. They went after these gods, searched them out and worshiped them. No one will gather up the bones and bury them. So they will be like dung thrown on the ground. I will force the people of Judah to leave their homes and their land. Those of this evil family who are not dead will wish they were dead, says the Lord.’

Sin and Punishment

“Say to the people of Judah: ‘This is what the Lord says:

When a man falls down, doesn’t he get up again?
    And when a man goes the wrong way, doesn’t he come back again?
Why, then, have the people of Judah gone the wrong way?
    And why do the people of Jerusalem not turn back?
They believe their own lies.
    They refuse to turn around and come back.
I have listened to them very carefully.
    But they do not say what is right.
They do not feel sorry about their wicked ways.
    The people don’t think about the bad things they have done.
Each person goes his own way.
    He is like a horse charging into a battle.
Even the birds in the sky
    know the right times to do things.
The storks, doves, swifts and thrushes
    know when it is time to migrate.
But my people don’t know
    what the Lord wants them to do!

“‘You keep saying, “We are wise.
    This is because we have the teachings of the Lord.”
But actually, those who copy the Scriptures
    have written lies with their pens.
These wise men refused to listen to the word of the Lord.
    So they are not really wise at all.
They will be ashamed.
    They will be shocked and trapped.
10 So I will give their wives to other men.
    I will give their fields to new owners.
Everyone, from the least important to the greatest,
    is greedy for money.
Even the prophets and priests
    all tell lies.
11 They try to heal my people’s serious injuries
    as if they were small wounds.
They say, “It’s all right, it’s all right!”
    But really, it is not all right.
12 They should be ashamed of the terrible way they act.
    But they are not ashamed at all.
    They don’t even know how to blush about their sins.
So they will fall, along with everyone else.
    They will be thrown to the ground when I punish them, says the Lord.

13 “‘I will take away their crops, says the Lord.
    There will be no grapes on the vine.
There will be no figs on the fig tree.
    Even the leaves will dry up and die.
I will take away what I gave them!’”

14 “Why are we just sitting here?
    Let’s get together!
We have sinned against the Lord.
    So he has given us poisoned water to drink.
Come, let’s run to the strong, walled cities.
    The Lord our God has decided that we must die.
    So let’s die there.
15 We hoped to have peace.
    But nothing good has come.
We hoped for a time when he would heal us.
    But only disaster has come!
16 From the land of the tribe of Dan,
    the snorting of the enemy’s horses is heard.
    The ground shakes from the neighing of their large horses.
They have come to destroy
    the land and everything in it.
They have come to destroy
    the city and all the people who live there.”

17 “Look! I am sending poisonous snakes to attack you.
    These snakes cannot be charmed.
    They will bite you,” says the Lord.

Jeremiah’s Sadness

18 God, you are my comfort when I am very sad.
    You are my comfort when I’m afraid.
19 Listen to my people!
    They are crying for help from a faraway land.
    They say, “Is the Lord still in Jerusalem?
    Is Jerusalem’s king still there?”

But God says, “Why did the people make me angry by worshiping idols?
    They worshiped their useless foreign idols.”

20 And the people say, “Harvest time is over.
    Summer has ended.
    And we have not been saved.”

21 My people are crushed. So I am crushed.
    I cry loudly, and I am afraid for them.
22 Surely there is a balm in the land of Gilead.
    Surely there is a doctor there.
So why aren’t the hurts of my people healed?

“‘At that time, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bones(A) of the people of Jerusalem will be removed(B) from their graves. They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served(C) and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped.(D) They will not be gathered up or buried,(E) but will be like dung lying on the ground.(F) Wherever I banish them,(G) all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life,(H) declares the Lord Almighty.’

Sin and Punishment

“Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘When people fall down, do they not get up?(I)
    When someone turns away,(J) do they not return?
Why then have these people turned away?
    Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;(K)
    they refuse to return.(L)
I have listened(M) attentively,
    but they do not say what is right.
None of them repent(N) of their wickedness,
    saying, “What have I done?”
Each pursues their own course(O)
    like a horse charging into battle.
Even the stork in the sky
    knows her appointed seasons,
and the dove, the swift and the thrush
    observe the time of their migration.
But my people do not know(P)
    the requirements of the Lord.

“‘How can you say, “We are wise,
    for we have the law(Q) of the Lord,”
when actually the lying pen of the scribes
    has handled it falsely?
The wise(R) will be put to shame;
    they will be dismayed(S) and trapped.(T)
Since they have rejected the word(U) of the Lord,
    what kind of wisdom(V) do they have?
10 Therefore I will give their wives to other men
    and their fields to new owners.(W)
From the least to the greatest,
    all are greedy for gain;(X)
prophets(Y) and priests alike,
    all practice deceit.(Z)
11 They dress the wound of my people
    as though it were not serious.
“Peace, peace,” they say,
    when there is no peace.(AA)
12 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?
    No, they have no shame(AB) at all;
    they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
    they will be brought down when they are punished,(AC)
says the Lord.(AD)

13 “‘I will take away their harvest,
declares the Lord.
    There will be no grapes on the vine.(AE)
There will be no figs(AF) on the tree,
    and their leaves will wither.(AG)
What I have given them
    will be taken(AH) from them.[a]’”

14 Why are we sitting here?
    Gather together!
Let us flee to the fortified cities(AI)
    and perish there!
For the Lord our God has doomed us to perish
    and given us poisoned water(AJ) to drink,
    because we have sinned(AK) against him.
15 We hoped for peace(AL)
    but no good has come,
for a time of healing
    but there is only terror.(AM)
16 The snorting of the enemy’s horses(AN)
    is heard from Dan;(AO)
at the neighing of their stallions
    the whole land trembles.(AP)
They have come to devour(AQ)
    the land and everything in it,
    the city and all who live there.

17 “See, I will send venomous snakes(AR) among you,
    vipers that cannot be charmed,(AS)
    and they will bite you,”
declares the Lord.

18 You who are my Comforter[b] in sorrow,
    my heart is faint(AT) within me.
19 Listen to the cry of my people
    from a land far away:(AU)
“Is the Lord not in Zion?
    Is her King(AV) no longer there?”

“Why have they aroused(AW) my anger with their images,
    with their worthless(AX) foreign idols?”(AY)

20 “The harvest is past,
    the summer has ended,
    and we are not saved.”

21 Since my people are crushed,(AZ) I am crushed;
    I mourn,(BA) and horror grips me.
22 Is there no balm in Gilead?(BB)
    Is there no physician(BC) there?
Why then is there no healing(BD)
    for the wound of my people?

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain.
  2. Jeremiah 8:18 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.

犹大全国昏庸必遭灾祸

“到那一天(这是耶和华的宣告),敌人要把犹大列王、首领、祭司、先知和耶路撒冷居民的骸骨,都从他们的坟墓里取出来, 拋散在太阳、月亮和天上的万象之下,就是他们从前所爱慕、服事、跟随、求问、敬拜的。这些骸骨必不再被收殓埋葬,必在地面上成为粪肥。 这邪恶的家族剩下的余民,在我驱逐他们到的各地,宁可选择死,也不要存活。”这是万军之耶和华的宣告。

“你要对他们说:‘耶和华这样说:

人跌倒了,不再起来吗?

人偏离了,不再回转吗?

这人民为甚么背道,

耶路撒冷为甚么长久偏离?

他们定意行诡诈,

不肯回转。

我留心听,

但他们都不说真实的话。

没有人为自己的恶行后悔,

说:“我究竟作了甚么?”

他们各人继续走自己偏差的路,

像战马直冲入战场。

连空中的鹳鸟也知道自己来去的季候;

斑鸠、燕子和白鹤也谨守迁移的时令;

我的子民却不晓得耶和华的法则。

你们怎可以说:“我们是智慧人,

我们有耶和华的律法”呢?

事实上,经学家虚假的笔

已把律法变成谎言了。

智慧人必蒙羞,

惊惶失措。

看哪!他们弃绝了耶和华的话,

他们还有甚么智慧呢?

10 因此,我必把他们的妻子给别人,

把他们的田地给别的主人,

因为他们从最小的到最大的,

个个都贪图不义之财;

从先知到祭司,

全都行事诡诈。

11 他们草率地医治我子民(“我子民”原文作“我子民的女子”)的损伤,

说:“平安了!平安了!”

其实没有平安。’

12 耶和华说:

‘他们行了可憎的事,本应觉得羞愧,

可是他们一点羞愧都没有,

恬不知耻。

因此他们必仆倒在倒下的人中间;

我惩罚他们的时候,他们必倒下来。

13 我要彻底除掉他们的庄稼;

葡萄树上必没有葡萄,

无花果树上必没有无花果,

叶子也必枯干。

我赐给他们的,都离开他们过去了。’”

这是耶和华的宣告。

14 我们为甚么坐着不动呢?

你们要集合起来,我们要进入坚固的城里去,

在那里灭亡吧!

因为耶和华我们的 神要我们灭亡,

又把毒水给我们喝,

因我们得罪了耶和华。

15 我们期待平安,却得不到好处;

期待得医治的时候,不料,只有惊慌。

16 从但那里听见敌人战马的喷气声,

全地因听见壮马的嘶鸣声震动。

他们来是要吞灭土地和地上所有的,

要吞灭城和城中的居民。

17 “看哪!我要打发毒蛇到你们中间,

是没有法术能制伏的,

牠们必咬你们。”

这是耶和华的宣告。

18 我的愁苦无法医治(按照《马索拉文本》,本句意思难确定;现参照《七十士译本》翻译),

我的心在我里面悲痛欲绝。

19 听啊!我同胞(“同胞”原文作“人民的女子”)的呼救声,

从遥远之地传来:

“耶和华不在锡安吗?

锡安的王不在其中吗?”

“他们为甚么以自己雕刻的偶像,

和列国虚无的偶像,来惹我发怒呢?”

20 “收割期已过,夏天也结束;

但我们仍未获救。”

21 因着我的同胞(“同胞”原文作“人民的女子”)被压碎,我的心破碎了;

我悲伤痛哭,惊慌抓住了我。

22 难道基列没有乳香吗?

难道那里没有医生吗?

我的同胞(“同胞”原文作“人民的女子”)为甚么总不痊愈呢?