Drought and a Prayer for Mercy

14 That which came as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah regarding the (A)drought:

“Judah mourns
And (B)her gates languish;
Her people sit on the ground (C)in mourning garments,
And the (D)cry of Jerusalem has ascended.
Their nobles have (E)sent their [a]servants for water;
They have come to the (F)cisterns and found no water.
They have returned with their containers empty;
They have been (G)put to shame and humiliated,
And they (H)cover their heads,
Because the (I)ground is [b]cracked,
For there has been (J)no rain on the land.
The (K)farmers have been put to shame,
They have covered their heads.
For even the doe in the field has given birth only to abandon her young,
Because there is (L)no grass.
The (M)wild donkeys stand on the bare heights;
They pant for air like jackals,
Their eyes fail
Because there is (N)no vegetation.

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 14:3 Lit little ones
  2. Jeremiah 14:4 Lit shattered

Judah’s Terrible Drought

14 This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord, explaining why he was holding back the rain:

“Judah wilts;
    commerce at the city gates grinds to a halt.
All the people sit on the ground in mourning,
    and a great cry rises from Jerusalem.
The nobles send servants to get water,
    but all the wells are dry.
The servants return with empty pitchers,
    confused and desperate,
    covering their heads in grief.
The ground is parched
    and cracked for lack of rain.
The farmers are deeply troubled;
    they, too, cover their heads.
Even the doe abandons her newborn fawn
    because there is no grass in the field.
The wild donkeys stand on the bare hills
    panting like thirsty jackals.
They strain their eyes looking for grass,
    but there is none to be found.”

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