Chronological
The Potter and the Clay
18 This is the word the Lord spoke to Jeremiah: 2 “Get up and go down to the potter’s house, and I will ·give you my message there [L make you hear my words].” 3 So I went down to the potter’s house and saw him working at the potter’s wheel. 4 He was using his hands to make a pot from clay, but something went wrong with it. So he used that clay to make another pot the way he wanted it to be.
5 Then the Lord spoke his word to me: 6 “·Family [L House] of Israel, can’t I do the same thing with you?” says the Lord. “You are in my hands like the clay in the potter’s hands. 7 There may come a time when I will ·speak about [declare concerning] a nation or a kingdom that I will ·pull [pluck] up by its roots or that I will ·pull [tear] down to destroy it [1:10]. 8 But if the people of that nation ·stop doing the evil they have done [turn back/repent from its evil concerning which I have spoken], I will ·change my mind [repent] and not carry out my plans to bring ·disaster to [evil on] them. 9 There may come another time when I will ·speak about a [declare concerning that] nation that I will build up and plant. 10 But if ·I see it doing evil [L it does evil in my eyes] by not ·obeying [listening to] me, I will ·change my mind [repent] and not carry out my plans to do good for them.
11 “·So [Now], say this to the people of Judah and those who live in Jerusalem: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am ·preparing [shaping] ·disaster [evil] for you and making plans against you. ·So stop doing evil [L Turn away from your evil way/path]. ·Change [Improve/Amend] your ·ways [paths] and ·do what is right [L your actions].’ 12 But they [C the people of Judah] will answer, ‘It won’t do any good to try! We will ·continue to do what we want [L go after our plans]. Each of us will do what his stubborn, evil heart wants!’”
13 So this is what the Lord says:
“Ask ·the people in other nations this question [L among the nations]:
‘·Have you ever [L Who has] heard anything like this?’
The ·people [L virgin daughter] of Israel have done a horrible thing.
14 ·The [L Does the…?] snow of Lebanon
·never melts from [ever leave the] the rocks of ·the fields [L or Sirion; C another name for Mount Hermon].
Its cool, ·flowing [L foreign; strange] streams
do not ·dry up [L get plucked up].
15 But my people have forgotten me.
They burn incense to ·worthless [useless; meaningless] idols
and ·have stumbled [L they make them stumble] in ·what they do [L their ways/paths]
and in the ·old ways of their ancestors [L ancient ways].
They walk along back roads
·and on poor [L ways/paths that are not] highways.
16 So ·Judah’s country [L their land] will become an ·empty desert [wasteland; desolation].
People will not stop ·making fun of [L hissing at] it.
They will shake their heads as they pass by;
they will be shocked at how the country was destroyed.
17 Like a strong east wind,
I will scatter them [C the people of Judah] before their enemies.
·At that awful time [L In the day of their calamity] ·they will not see me coming to help them;
they will see me leaving [L I will show them my back and not my face].”
Jeremiah’s Fourth Complaint
18 Then the people said, “Come, let’s make plans against Jeremiah. Surely the ·teaching of the law [instruction] by the priest will not ·be lost [perish]. We will still have the ·advice [counsel] from the wise teachers and the words of the prophets. So let’s ·ruin him by telling lies about him [bring charges against him; L strike him with the tongue]. We won’t pay attention to ·anything he says [L his words].”
19 Lord, ·listen [pay attention] to me.
Listen to what my ·accusers [adversaries] are saying!
20 ·Good should not [L Should good…?] be paid back with evil,
but they have dug a pit ·in order to kill me [L for my life].
Remember that I stood before you
and asked you to do good things for these people
and to turn your anger away from them.
21 So now, ·let their children starve [L give their children to starvation],
and ·let their enemies kill them with swords [L give them over to the power of the sword].
Let their wives ·lose their children and husbands [L be childless and widows].
Let the men [C from Judah] be ·put to death [slain by pestilence]
and the young men be killed with swords in battle.
22 Let them cry out in their houses
when you bring ·an enemy [plunderers; marauders] against them suddenly.
Let all this happen, because my enemies have dug
a pit to capture me and have hidden traps for my feet.
23 Lord, you know
about all their plans to kill me.
Don’t forgive their ·crimes [iniquity]
or ·erase [wipe away; blot out] their sins from ·your mind [L before you].
Make them ·fall [stumble] ·from their places [L before you];
·punish [L deal with] them while you are angry.
Judah Is like a Broken Jar
19 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a clay ·jar [jug] from a potter. 2 Take some of the elders of the people and the ·priests [L elders of the priests], and go out to the Valley of Ben Hinnom, near the front of the Potsherd Gate. There speak [proclaim] the words I tell you. 3 Say, ‘Kings of Judah and ·people [L inhabitants] of Jerusalem, listen to this ·message [L word] from the Lord. This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: I will soon bring ·a disaster [evil; trouble] on this place [C Judah and Jerusalem] that will ·amaze and frighten [L tingle the ears of] everyone who hears about it. 4 They [C the people of Judah] have ·quit following [abandoned; forsaken] me. They have made this a place for foreign gods. They have burned sacrifices to other gods that neither they, nor their ·ancestors [fathers], nor the kings of Judah had ever known before. They filled this place with the blood of innocent people. 5 They have built ·places on hilltops to worship [L high places to; C sites associated with pagan worship or inappropriate worship of God] Baal [C God of the Canaanites], where they burn their children in the fire to Baal. That is something I did not command or speak about; it never even ·entered my mind [L came up in my heart; Lev. 18:21; Deut. 12:31; 18:10]. 6 Now people call this place the Valley of Ben Hinnom [2 Kin. 23:10–11] or Topheth [C “Spit”], but the days are coming, says the Lord, when people will call it the Valley of Killing [Slaughter; 7:30–34].
7 “‘At this place I will ·ruin [make void] the plans of the people of Judah and Jerusalem. The enemy will chase them, and I will ·have them killed with swords [L make them fall by the sword before their enemies and by the hand of those who seek their life]. I will make their ·dead bodies [corpses] food for the birds of the ·sky [heavens] and ·wild animals [L beasts of the land/country]. 8 I will ·completely destroy this city [make this city a desolation]. People will ·make fun of [hiss at] it and shake their heads when they pass by. They will ·be shocked [hiss] when they see how the city was destroyed. 9 An enemy army will ·surround [besiege] the city and will not let anyone go out to get food. I will make the people so hungry that they will eat the ·bodies [flesh] of their own sons and daughters, and then they will begin to eat ·each other [their neighbors].’
10 “While the people with you are watching, break that ·jar [jug]. 11 Then say this: ‘The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says: I will break this ·nation [people] and this city just as someone breaks a clay ·jar [jug] that cannot be ·put back together [mended; repaired] again. The dead people will be buried here in Topheth [C “Spit”; v. 6; 7:32], because there is no other place for them. 12 This is what I will do to these ·people [inhabitants] and to this place, says the Lord. I will make this city like Topheth. 13 The houses in Jerusalem and the king’s palaces will become as unclean [C in a ritual sense] as this place, Topheth, because the people worshiped gods on the roofs of their houses [C flat roofs were living space]. They ·worshiped the stars and burned incense to honor them [L burned incense to the whole host of heaven] and gave drink offerings to gods.’”
14 When Jeremiah left Topheth [v. 11] where the Lord had sent him to prophesy, he went to the Lord’s ·Temple [L house], stood in the courtyard, and said to all the people: 15 “This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: ‘I will soon bring ·disaster [evil; trouble] to ·Jerusalem [L this city] and the villages around it, as I said I would. This will happen because ·the people are very stubborn [L they stiffened their necks] and do not listen at all to ·what I say [L my words].’”
Pashhur Will Be Captured
20 Pashhur son of Immer was a priest and the ·highest [chief] officer in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. When he heard Jeremiah prophesying these things, 2 he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten. And he ·locked [put] Jeremiah in stocks [C wooden restraints] at the Upper Gate of Benjamin of the Lord’s Temple. 3 The next day when Pashhur ·took [released] Jeremiah ·out of the blocks of wood [from the stocks], Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord’s name for you is not Pashhur. Now his name for you is Magor-Missabib [C “Terror on Every Side”]. 4 This is what the Lord says: ‘I will soon make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends. You will watch enemies ·killing [L make fall] your friends with swords. And I will give all the people of Judah to the king of Babylon, who will ·take them away as captives [exile them] to Babylon and then will ·kill [L strike] them with swords. 5 I will give all the wealth of this city to its enemies—its goods, its valuables, and the treasures of the kings of Judah. ·The enemies will carry all those valuables off to Babylon [L …into the hands of their enemies who will plunder them, take them and bring them to Babylon]. 6 And Pashhur, you and everyone in your house will ·be taken captive [go into exile]. You will be forced to go to Babylon, where you will die and be buried, you and your friends to whom you have prophesied lies.’”
Jeremiah’s Fifth Complaint
7 Lord, you ·tricked [enticed; seduced] me, and I was ·fooled [tricked; enticed; seduced].
You ·are stronger than I am [overpowered me], so you won.
I have become a ·joke [laughing-stock];
everyone ·makes fun of [ridicules] me all day long.
8 Every time I speak, I shout.
·I am always shouting about violence and destruction [L I call out “Violence” and “Destruction”].
·I tell the people about the message I received from the Lord [L …for the word of the Lord is with me],
·but this only brings me insults
and mockery [L for reproach and derision are with me] all day long.
9 Sometimes I say to myself,
“I will ·forget about the Lord [L not remember him],
I will not speak anymore in his name.”
But then his message becomes like a burning fire ·inside me [L in my heart],
·deep within [L shut in] my bones.
I get tired of trying to hold it inside of me,
and finally, I cannot hold it in.
10 I hear many people whispering about me:
“Terror on every side!
Tell on him! Let’s tell [C the rulers] about him.”
My friends are all just waiting for me to make ·some mistake [a false step].
They are saying,
“Maybe we can ·trick [entice; seduce] him
so we can defeat him
and ·pay him back [take revenge against him].”
11 But the Lord is with me like a ·strong [or fearful] warrior,
so those who are ·chasing [persecuting] me will trip and ·fall [stumble];
they will not defeat me.
They will be ·ashamed [humiliated] because they have failed,
and their shame will never be forgotten.
12 Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], you test ·good [righteous] people;
you look deeply into the ·heart [L kidneys] and ·mind [L heart] of a person.
I have ·told [committed/revealed to] you my ·arguments [case] against these people,
so let me see ·you give them the punishment they deserve [your vengeance against them].
13 Sing to the Lord!
Praise the Lord!
He ·saves [protects; rescues] the life of the ·poor [needy]
from the ·power [hand] of the wicked.
Jeremiah’s Sixth Complaint
14 ·Let there be a curse on [Cursed be] the day I was born;
let there be no blessing on the day when my mother gave birth to me.
15 ·Let there be a curse on [Cursed be] the man
who brought my father the news:
“You have a son!”
This made my father very glad.
16 Let that man be like the towns
the Lord ·destroyed [overturned] without ·pity [mercy; Gen. 18].
Let him hear loud crying in the morning
and battle cries at noon,
17 because he did not kill me ·before I was born [L in the womb; 1:5].
Then my mother would have been my grave;
she would have stayed pregnant forever.
18 Why did I have to come out of ·my mother’s body [the womb]?
All I have known is trouble and sorrow,
and my ·life [days] will end in ·shame [humiliation; Job 3].
God Rejects King Zedekiah’s Request
21 This is the word that the Lord spoke to Jeremiah. It came when Zedekiah king of Judah [C ruled 597–586 bc] sent Pashhur son of Malkijah [C not the same man as in 20:1; 38:1; 1 Chr. 9:12] and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah [29:25, 29; 37:3; 52:24; 2 Kin. 25:18] to Jeremiah. 2 They said, “·Ask [Inquire of; L Seek] the Lord for us what will happen, because Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is ·attacking [fighting against] us. Maybe the Lord will do ·miracles [wonderful works] for us as he did in the past so ·Nebuchadnezzar will stop attacking us and leave [he will go up from us].”
3 But Jeremiah answered them, “Tell King Zedekiah this: 4 ‘Here is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: You have weapons of war in your hands to defend yourselves against the king of Babylon and the ·Babylonians [L Chaldeans], who are all around the city wall. But I will ·make those weapons useless [turn them against you]. Soon I will ·bring [assemble] them [C the weapons] into the center of this city. 5 In my anger, my ·very great anger [fury and great wrath], I myself will fight against you with my ·great power [outstretched hand] and ·strength [strong arm]. 6 I will ·kill [strike] ·everything living in Jerusalem [L the inhabitants of this city]—both people and animals. They will die from ·terrible diseases [plagues; pestilence]. 7 Then, says the Lord, I’ll hand over Zedekiah king of Judah, his officers, and the people in Jerusalem who do not die from the ·terrible diseases [plagues; pestilence] or ·battle [L sword] or ·hunger [famine], ·to [L into the hands of] Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon [L and into the hands of their enemies]. ·I will let those win who want to kill the people of Judah [L …and into the hands of those who seek their lives], so ·the people of Judah and Jerusalem will be killed in war [L he will strike them with the edge of the sword]. Nebuchadnezzar will not show any mercy or pity or ·feel sorry [compassion] for them!’
8 “Also tell this to this people [C of Jerusalem]: ‘This is what the Lord says: I ·will let you choose to live or die [L place before you the way of life and the way of death; Deut. 30:11–20]. 9 Anyone who ·stays [resides] in Jerusalem will die ·in war [L by sword] or from ·hunger [famine] or from a ·terrible disease [plague; pestilence]. But anyone who goes out [C of Jerusalem] and ·surrenders to [L falls before] the ·Babylonians [L Chaldeans] who are ·attacking [L besieging] you will live. Anyone who leaves the city will save his life as if it were ·a prize won [L plunder] in war. 10 I have ·decided to make trouble for [L set my face against] this city and not ·to help it [L for good], says the Lord. I will give it to the king of Babylon, and he will burn it with fire.’
11 “Say to ·Judah’s royal family [L the house of the king of Judah]: ‘Hear the word of the Lord. 12 ·Family [L House] of David, this is what the Lord says:
You must judge people ·fairly [with justice] every morning.
·Save [Protect; Rescue] the person who has been robbed
from the ·power [L hand] of his ·attacker [oppressor].
If you don’t, ·I will become very angry [L my wrath will come out like fire].
·My anger will be like a fire that no one can put out [L It will burn and no one can extinguish; 2 Kin. 25:9],
because you have done evil things.
13 “‘I am against you [C Jerusalem],
you who live ·on top of the mountain
over this valley [L in the valley, the rock of the plain], says the Lord.
You say, “·No one can attack [L Who can come down against…?] us
or come into our ·strong city [refuge].”
14 But I will give you the punishment you deserve, says the Lord.
I will ·start [kindle] a fire in your forests
that will ·burn up [L devour] everything around you!’”
Judgment Against Evil Kings
22 This is what the Lord says: “Go down to the ·palace [L house] of the king of Judah and ·prophesy this message [L say this word] there: 2 ‘Hear the word of the Lord, king of Judah, who ·rules from [L sits on] David’s throne. You and your officers, and your people who come through these gates, listen! 3 This is what the Lord says: Do ·what is fair and right [L justice and righteousness]. ·Save [Protect; Rescue] the one who has been robbed from the ·power [L hand] of his ·attacker [L oppressor]. Don’t mistreat or ·hurt [do violence to] the ·foreigners [resident aliens; Ex. 23:21; Lev. 19:33], orphans, or widows [Ex. 22:22; Deut. 10:18; 27:19]. Don’t ·kill innocent people [L spill innocent blood; Deut. 19:10; 27:25] here. 4 If you carefully ·obey these commands [perform this word], kings who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this ·palace [L house] with their officers and people, riding in chariots and on horses. 5 But if you don’t ·obey these commands [L listen to these words], says the Lord, I swear by my ·own name [L myself] that this ·king’s palace [L house] will become a ruin.’”
6 This is what the Lord says about the ·palace where the king of Judah lives [L house of the king of Judah]:
“You are like Gilead to me,
like the ·mountaintops [summit] of ·Lebanon [C lush; the palace was built with the cedars of Lebanon; 1 Kin. 7:2].
But I will truly make you into a ·desert [wilderness],
into towns where no one lives.
7 I will ·send [L consecrate; set apart] ·men to destroy the palace [destroyers],
each with his weapons.
They will cut up your ·strong, beautiful cedar beams [L choice cedars]
and throw them into the fire.
8 “People from many nations will pass by this city and ask each other, ‘Why has the Lord done such a terrible thing to Jerusalem, this great city?’ 9 And the answer will be: ‘Because they [C the people of Judah] ·quit following [abandoned; forsook] the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with the Lord their God. They ·worshiped [bowed down to] and served other gods.’”
Judgment Against Jehoahaz
10 Don’t cry for the dead one [C the king] or ·be sad about [bemoan] him.
But cry ·painfully for the king who is being taken [L for the one who goes] away [C into exile],
because he will never return
or see ·his homeland [L the land of his birth] again.
11 This is what the Lord says about Jehoahaz [L Shallum; C ruled 597 bc; 2 Kin. 23:31–33] son of Josiah who became king of Judah after his father left this place [C died]: “He will never return. 12 He will die where he has been taken ·captive [into exile], and he will not see this land again.”
Judgment Against Jehoiakim
13 “·How terrible it will be for one [Woe to the one; C King Jehoiakim (605–597 bc), placed on the throne by the Egyptian pharaoh to replace his brother Jehoahaz; 2 Kin. 23:34] who builds his ·palace [L house] by ·doing evil [L unrighteousness],
·who cheats people so he can build its upper rooms [his upper rooms without justice].
He makes his ·own people [L neighbors] work for nothing
and does not pay them.
14 He says, ‘I will build a ·great palace [L spacious house] for myself
with large upper rooms.’
So he ·builds it with [cuts out] large windows
and uses cedar wood for the ·walls [panels],
which he paints ·red [vermilion].
15 “Does having a lot of cedar [C in your house]
make you a great king?
·Your father was satisfied to [L Did not your father…?; C Josiah, a godly king] have food and drink.
He did what was right and fair,
so everything went well for him.
16 He ·helped [L judged the cause of] those who were poor and needy,
so everything went well for him.
·That is what it [L Is this not what it…?] means to know ·God [L me],”
says the Lord.
17 “But ·you only look for and think about [L your eyes and your heart are on]
what you can get dishonestly.
You are even willing to ·kill innocent people [L pour out innocent blood] to get it.
You feel free to ·hurt [oppress] people and to steal from them.”
18 So this is what the Lord says to Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
“They [C the people of Judah] will not cry [mourn] ·when Jehoiakim dies [L for him],
saying: ‘·Oh [Woe], my brother,’ or ‘·Oh [Woe], my sister.’
They will not ·cry [mourn] for him, saying:
‘·Oh [Woe], master,’ or ‘·Oh [Woe], my king.’
19 They will bury him like a donkey,
dragging and throwing his body away
outside the gates of Jerusalem.
20 “Judah, go up to Lebanon and cry out.
Let your voice be heard in Bashan.
Cry out from Abarim,
because all your friends are destroyed!
21 When you [C Judah] were ·successful [prosperous], I warned you,
but you said, ‘I won’t listen.’
·You have acted like this [L This is your way/path] since you were young;
you have not ·obeyed me [L listened to my voice].
22 ·Like a storm, my punishment will blow all your shepherds away [L The wind will shepherd all your shepherds away]
and send your ·friends [or lovers] into ·captivity [exile; 2 Kin. 23:36—24:7].
Then you will really be ashamed and ·disgraced [humiliated]
because of all the ·wicked things [evil] you did.
23 You [C King Jehoiakim] live in Lebanon [C the palace was made of cedar from Lebanon],
·cozy [nestled] in your rooms of cedar.
But when your ·punishment [L pangs] comes, how you will groan
like a woman ·giving birth to a baby [in labor]!
Judgment upon Jehoiachin
24 “As surely as I live,” says the Lord, “·Jehoiachin [L Coniah; C ruled 597 bc; 2 Kin. 24:8–17; 2 Chr. 36:9–10] son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, even if you were a signet ring on my right hand, I would still ·pull [tear] you off. 25 I will ·hand you over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to the ·Babylonians [L Chaldeans]—those people you fear because they ·want to kill you [L seek your life]. 26 I will ·throw [hurl] you and your mother who bore you into another country [C Babylon]. Neither of you was born there, but both of you will die there. 27 They will want to come back, but they will never be able to return.”
28 ·Jehoiachin is like a broken pot someone threw away [L Is this man Jehoiachin a despised broken pot…?];
·he is like something [L a vessel…?] no one wants.
Why will Jehoiachin and his children be ·thrown out [hurled away]
and ·sent [thrown] into a ·foreign land [country they do not know; C exiled to Babylon]?
29 Land, land, land [C of Judah],
hear the word of the Lord!
30 This is what the Lord says:
“Write this down ·in the record about [L about this man; C Jehoiachin]:
He is a man without children,
a man who will not be successful in his ·lifetime [L days].
And none of his descendants will be successful;
none will sit on the throne of David
or rule in Judah.”
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