Old/New Testament
Jeremiah’s Complaint
12 You will be in the right, O Yahweh, when I complain to you.
Even so, let me speak my claims with you.
Why does the way of the wicked succeed?
All those who deal treacherously with treachery are at ease.
2 Not only do you plant them, they take root.
They grow, but also they produce fruit.
You are near in their mouths,
but far from their inmost beings.[a]
3 But you, O Yahweh, you know me,
you see me, and you test that my heart is with you.
Tear them apart like sheep for the slaughtering,
and set them apart for the day of slaughter.
4 How long[b] will the land mourn, and the vegetation of every field dry up,
because of the wickedness of those who live in it?
The animals and the birds[c] are swept away,
because they have said, “He does not see our future.”
The Lord’s Reply
5 “If you run with foot soldiers and they have made you weary,
then how will you compete with horses?
If you have fallen in a peaceful land,[d]
then how will you do in the thickets of the Jordan?
6 For even your relatives, and the house of your father,
even they have dealt treacherously with you,
even they call loudly[e] after you.
You must not trust in them, though they speak kindly to you.
7 I have forsaken my house, I have abandoned my inheritance.
I have given the beloved one of my heart[f] into the hand of her enemies.
8 My inheritance has become to me like a lion in the forest.
She has lifted up against me her voice; therefore[g] I hate her.
9 The lair of the hyena is my inheritance to me,
the birds of prey[h] are all around her.
Go, gather all of the animals[i] of the field,
bring them to come and devour.[j]
10 Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard,
they have trampled down my plot of land.
They have made my pleasant field[k]
like the desert[l] of desolation.
11 They have made it a desolation.
Desolate, it mourns to me.
All the land is made desolate,
but there is no person taking it to heart.
12 Upon all the barren heights in the desert[m] destroyers have come,
for the sword of Yahweh devours,
from one end of the land to the other end of the land,
there is no peace for all flesh.
13 They have sown wheat and they have reaped thorns.
They are exhausted, they do not profit.
And they will be ashamed of your produce,
because of the burning anger[n] of Yahweh.”
14 Thus says Yahweh concerning all of the evil neighbors who touch the inheritance that I gave as an inheritance to my people Israel: “Look, I am about to drive them out from their land, and the house of Judah I will drive out from among them. 15 And then[o] after my driving them out, I will once again have compassion on them, and I will bring them back, each one to his inheritance, and each one to his land. 16 And then,[p] if they diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, ‘as Yahweh lives,’[q] even as they taught my people to swear by Baal, then they will live in the midst of my people. 17 But if they do not listen, then I will completely uproot and destroy that nation.”[r] declares[s] Yahweh.
The Linen Loincloth
13 Thus Yahweh said to me: “Go and buy for yourself a loincloth of linen and put it on your loins, but you must not place[t] it in water.” 2 So I bought the loincloth according to the word of Yahweh and I put it[u] on my loins.
3 Now the word of Yahweh came to me a second time, saying,[v] 4 “Take the loincloth that you bought, that is on your loins, and stand up, go to the Euphrates and hide it there in the cleft of the rock.” 5 So I went and hid it by the Euphrates just as Yahweh had commanded me.
6 And then,[w] after a long time,[x] then Yahweh said to me, “Stand up, go to the Euphrates and take from there the loincloth that I commanded you to hide there.” 7 Then I went to the Euphrates and I dug, and I took the loincloth from the place where I had hidden it, and look, the loincloth was ruined; it was not good for anything.
8 And then[y] the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,[z] 9 “Thus says Yahweh: ‘So I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. 10 This evil people, who refuse to listen to my words, who go[aa] in the stubbornness of their hearts,[ab] and have gone after other gods, to serve them, and to bow in worship to them, let them be like this loincloth which is not good for anything. 11 For as the loincloth clings to the loins of a person, so I caused to cling to me all the house of Israel and all the house of Judah,’ declares[ac] Yahweh, ‘to be for me a people, and a name, and a praise, and a glory, but they would not listen.’
12 “Therefore, you shall say to them this word, ‘Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel: “Every jar must be filled with wine.”’ And they will say to you, ‘Do we not certainly know that every jar should be filled with wine?’ 13 Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says Yahweh: “Look, I am about to fill all the inhabitants of this land, and the kings who sit on David’s throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with drunkenness. 14 And I will smash them, each one against his brother, and the fathers and the sons together,” declares[ad] Yahweh. “I will not have compassion, and I will not take pity, and I will not show compassion from destroying them.”’”
15 Listen, and pay attention,
you must not be haughty, for Yahweh has spoken.
16 Give glory to Yahweh your God before[ae] he brings darkness,
and before[af] your feet stumble on the mountains at twilight.
And you will hope for light, but he makes it as gloom,
he makes it[ag] as thick darkness.
17 But if you will not listen to it,
my inner self[ah] will weep in secret places,
because of the presence of[ai] your pride.
And my eyes[aj] will weep bitterly,
and they will melt in tears,
because the flock of Yahweh has been taken captive.
A Message for the King and the Queen Mother
18 “Say to the king and to the queen mother, ‘Take a lower seat,[ak]
for your beautiful crown[al] has come down from your head.’[am]
19 The towns of the Negev are shut up,
and there is no one who opens them.[an]
All of Judah is deported;
it is deported in completeness.
20 Lift up your eyes
and see those coming from the north.
Where is the flock that was given to you,
your magnificent flock?[ao]
21 What will you say when he sets over you—
and you have taught them—allies as head over you?
Will not labor pains take hold of you,
like a woman giving birth?
22 And if you say in your heart,
‘Why have these things happened to me?’
Because of the greatness of your iniquity your skirts are uncovered;
your heels have endured violence.
23 Can a Cushite change his skin,
or a leopard his spots?
Then you also will be able to do good,
who are accustomed to doing evil.
24 And I will scatter them
like stubble scattered by the wind of the desert.[ap]
25 This is your lot,
the portion of your measure from me,” declares[aq] Yahweh,
“because you have forgotten me,
and you have trusted in the lie.
26 So in turn I will bare your skirts over your face,
and your shame will become visible.
27 Your adulteries, and your neighings,
the shameful behavior of your fornications
on the hills in the countryside,
I have seen your abominations.
Woe to you, O Jerusalem!
How long will you continue to be unclean?[ar]”
The Severe Drought
14 That which came as the word of Yahweh to Jeremiah concerning the matter[as] of the severe drought.
2 “Judah mourns, and her gates languish,
they are in mourning on the ground,
and the cry of lament of Jerusalem goes up.
3 And their nobles send their servants for water.
They come to the pits, they find no water.
They return with their vessels empty.[at]
They are ashamed, and they are confounded,
and they cover their heads.[au]
4 Because of the ground, which is cracked
because there was no rain on the ground.
The farmers are ashamed,
they cover their heads.[av]
5 For even the doe in the field gives birth and forsakes her young,[aw]
because there is no green growth.
6 And wild asses stand on the barren heights,
they gasp for breath like the jackals.
Their eyes fail
because there is no vegetation.”
7 Although our iniquities testify against us, O Yahweh,
act for the sake of your name.
Yes, our apostasies are many;
we have sinned against you.
8 You are the hope of Israel,
its savior in time of distress.
Why should you be like an alien in the land,
or like a traveler who spreads out his tent [ax] to spend the night?
9 Why should you be like a confused man,
like a warrior who is not able to help?
Yet you are in our midst, O Yahweh,
and your name is called upon us.
You must not leave us!
10 Thus says Yahweh concerning this people:
“They have loved so much to wander,
they have not spared their feet.
Therefore Yahweh is not favorable to them,
now he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins.”
Lying Prophets
11 So Yahweh said to me, “You must not pray for this people, for their happiness.[ay] 12 Although they fast, I am not listening to their cry of entreaty. And although they present burnt offering and grain offering, I am not favorable to them. But by the sword, and by the famine, and by the plague, I am about to destroy them.” 13 Then I said, “Ah, Lord Yahweh, look, the prophets are saying to them, ‘You will not see the sword, and famine will not be yours, but reliable peace I will give to you in this place.’” 14 And Yahweh said to me, “The prophets are prophesying lies[az] in my name. I have not sent them, and I have not commanded them, and I have not spoken to them. They are prophesying to you a lying vision, and a divination, worthless, and the deceitfulness of their minds.”[ba] 15 Therefore[bb] thus says Yahweh concerning the prophets who prophecy in my name though I have not sent them, yet they are saying, “Sword and famine will not be in this land.” “By the sword and by the famine those prophets will perish. 16 And the people to whom they are prophesying will be cast out into the streets of Jerusalem because of[bc] the famine and the sword. And there will be no one who buries them, their wives, or their sons, or their daughters. And I will pour out on them their wickedness.
The Nation Hopes in Yahweh
17 “And you shall say to them this word,
‘Let my eyes melt with tears night and day,
and let them not cease,
for with a great wound the virgin daughter of my people is broken,
with a very incurable wound.
18 If I go out into the field,
then look, those slain by the sword.
And if I enter the city,
then look, the sickness of the famine.
For both prophet and priest wander around through the land,
they do not know what is going on.’”[bd]
19 Have you completely rejected Judah?
Or has your soul[be] loathed Zion?
Why have you struck us
so that there is no healing for us?
We hope for peace, but there is no good,
and for a time of healing, but look, there is terror.
20 We know, O Yahweh, our wickedness,
the iniquity of our ancestors,[bf]
for we have sinned against you.
21 You must not spurn us[bg] for the sake of your name,
you must not dishonor your glorious throne.[bh]
Remember us![bi]
You must not break your covenant with us.
22 Are there any among the idols of the nation who cause rain to pour?
Or can the heavens give showers?
Is it not you, O Yahweh our God?
Therefore, we hope in you, for you do all these things.
Greeting
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus, 2 to Timothy, my dear child. Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Timothy’s Spiritual Heritage
3 I am thankful[a] to God, whom I have served with a clear conscience as my ancestors did[b], when I remember you constantly[c] in my prayers night and day, 4 longing to see you as I[d] remember your tears, so that I may be filled with joy, 5 remembering the[e] sincere faith in you, which lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am convinced that is in you also, 6 for which reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of cowardice, but of power and love and self-discipline.
Exhortation to Share Paul’s Suffering
8 Therefore, do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor me his prisoner, but suffer along with me for the gospel, according to the power of God, 9 who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace that was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began[f], 10 but has now been disclosed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ,[g] who has abolished death and brought to light life and immortality through the gospel, 11 for which I was appointed a proclaimer and an apostle and a teacher, 12 for which reason also I suffer these things. But I am not ashamed, because I know in whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted until that day. 13 Hold fast to the pattern of sound words which you heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 14 Guard the good deposit through the Holy Spirit who lives in us.
15 You know this, that all those in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. 16 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he refreshed me many times, and was not ashamed of my imprisonment, 17 but when he[h] was in Rome, he diligently sought me and found me. 18 May the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord in that day! And how much he served me in Ephesus you know very well.
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