Old/New Testament
15 Then the Lord said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel ·prayed for them [L stood before me], ·I [L my soul] would not ·feel sorry for the people of Judah [L turn toward this people; C Moses and Samuel interceded on behalf of their sinful generations; Ex. 32:11–14, 30–34; Num. 14:13–19; 1 Sam. 7:5–11; 12:17–23]. Send them away from me! Tell them to go! 2 When they ask you, ‘Where will we go?’ tell them: ‘This is what the Lord says:
Those who are ·meant to die [L for death]
·will die [L to death].
Those who are meant ·to die in war [L for the sword]
·will die in war [L to the sword].
Those who are meant ·to die from hunger [L for famine]
·will die from hunger [L to famine].
Those who are meant ·to be taken captive [L for exile]
·will be taken captive [L to exile].’
3 “I will ·send [appoint] four kinds of destroyers against them,” says the Lord. “I will send ·war [L the sword] to kill, dogs to drag the bodies away, and the birds of the ·air [sky; heavens] and ·wild animals [L beasts of the land] to eat and destroy the bodies. 4 I will make them [C the people of Judah] ·hated by [a horror to] everyone on earth because of what Manasseh did in Jerusalem. (Manasseh son of Hezekiah was king of the nation of Judah [C from 698–642 bc; he was a particularly wicked king; 2 Kin. 21:1–18; 23:26–27].)
5 “Who will ·feel sorry for [have pity on] you, Jerusalem?
Who will ·be sad and cry [grieve] for you?
Who will go out of his way to ask how you are [Nah. 3:7]?
6 You [C Jerusalem] have ·left me [cast me off],” says the Lord.
“You keep going ·farther and farther away [backward],
so I have ·taken hold of you [L stretched out my hand] and destroyed you.
I was tired of ·holding back my anger [relenting].
7 I have ·separated [winnowed] them [C the people of Judah] with my ·pitchfork [winnowing fork] in the gates of the land.
My people haven’t changed their ways.
So I have destroyed ·them [L my people]
and ·taken away their children [bereaved them].
8 There are more widows than grains of sand in the sea [C an ironic reference to Gen. 22:17; 32:12; 41:49].
I brought a destroyer at noontime
against the mothers of the young men of Judah.
I suddenly ·brought pain and fear
on the people of Judah [L made anguish and fear fall on them].
9 A woman with seven sons ·felt faint [languishes; C because they would all die].
She ·became weak and unable to breathe [L swoons].
Her ·bright day became dark from sadness [L sun went down while it was still day].
She felt ·shame [humiliation] and disgrace.
And ·everyone else left alive in Judah [L the rest of them]
I will hand over to the sword of their enemies, too!” says the Lord.
Jeremiah’s Second Complaint
10 Mother, ·I am sorry [woe to me] that you gave birth to me
·since I must accuse and criticize [L a man of strife and contention to] the whole land.
I have not loaned or borrowed anything,
but everyone curses me.
11 The Lord said,
“·I have [L Have I not…?] ·saved [or intervened for] you for a good reason.
·I have made your enemies beg you [or Will I not bring the enemy against you…?]
in times of ·disaster [harm; evil] and ·trouble [distress].
12 ·No one can smash a piece of iron or bronze
that comes from the north [L Can iron break the iron of the north and the bronze?; C the iron is Babylon (1:13–15; 4:6) and the bronze is Jeremiah (15:20)].
13 Your wealth and treasures
I will give ·to others free of charge [L as plunder without price/charge],
because of all your [C the people of Judah] sins
throughout the country.
14 I will make you ·slaves to [serve] your enemies
in a land you have never known.
My anger ·is [L kindles] like a hot fire,
and it will burn against you.”
15 Lord, you ·understand [L know].
Remember me and take care of me.
·Punish for me [Avenge me on] those who are ·hurting [persecuting; pursuing] me.
Don’t ·destroy [snatch] me while you remain patient with them.
Think about the ·shame [reproaches] I ·suffer [endure] for you.
16 Your words ·came to me [L were found], and I ·listened carefully to [L ate] them.
Your words made me very happy
and were the delight of my heart,
because I am called by your name,
Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts].
17 I never sat with the ·crowd
as they laughed [L crowd of merrymakers/revelers] and ·had fun [L I did not rejoice].
I sat by ·myself [alone], ·because you were there [L from before your hand/power],
and you filled me with anger [C at the evil people around him].
18 ·I don’t understand why my pain has [L Why does my pain have…?] no end.
·I don’t understand why my injury is not cured or healed [L My wound is uncurable and refuses to be healed].
Will you be like a ·brook that goes dry [L deceitful brook]?
Will you be like a ·spring that stops flowing [L unreliable spring]?
19 So this is what the Lord says:
“If you ·change your heart and return to me [L return/repent], I will ·take you back [L return to you].
Then you may ·serve me [L stand before me].
And if you [C Jeremiah] speak things that ·have worth [are precious],
not useless words,
then you may ·speak for me [L be like my mouth].
Let them [C the people of Judah] turn to you,
but you must not ·change and be like them [L turn to them].
20 I will make you as strong as a wall to this people,
·as strong [fortified] as a wall of bronze [v. 12].
They will fight against you,
but they will not ·defeat [prevail over] you,
because I am with you.
I will ·save [have victory for] you and ·rescue [protect] you,” says the Lord.
21 “I will ·rescue [protect] you from ·these wicked people [L the hand/control of evil people]
and redeem you from ·these cruel people [L the hand of the violent].”
The Day of Disaster
16 Then the Lord spoke his word to me: 2 “You must not ·get married [L take a wife for yourself] or have sons or daughters in this place.”
3 The Lord says this about the sons and daughters born in this ·land [L place] and their mothers who bear them and fathers who ·father [L beget] them in this land: 4 “They will die of ·terrible diseases [plagues; pestilence], and no one will ·cry for them [mourn] or bury them. Their bodies will lie on the ground like dung. They will ·die [perish] ·in war [L by sword], or ·they will starve to death [L by famine]. ·Their bodies [L They] will be food for the birds of the ·sky [air; heavens] and for the ·wild animals [L beasts of the land].”
5 So this is what the Lord says [C addressed to Jeremiah]: “Do not go into a house where there is a funeral ·meal [feast; C a pagan mourning festival; Amos 6:7]. Do not go there to ·cry for the dead [lament] or to ·show your sorrow for [bemoan] them, because I have taken back my ·blessing [peace; welfare], my ·love [loyalty], and my ·pity [compassion] from these people,” says the Lord. 6 “·Important people and common people [L Great and small] will die in this land [C of Judah]. No one will bury them or ·cry [lament] for them or ·cut [gash] himself or shave his head for them [C pagan rituals of mourning; Lev. 19:27–28; 21:5; Deut. 14:1]. 7 No one will ·bring food [break bread; L break] to comfort those who are crying for the dead. No one will offer a ·drink [L cup] to comfort someone whose mother or father has died.
8 “Do not go into a ·house where the people are having a feast [banquet house; L drinking house] to sit down to eat and drink, 9 because this is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: I will soon stop the sounds of joy and gladness and the happy sounds of brides and bridegrooms in this place. This will happen ·during your lifetime [L in your days and before your eyes].
10 “When you tell this people [C of Judah] these things, they will ask you, ‘Why has the Lord said these ·terrible [evil; harmful] things to us? What ·have we done wrong [L is our iniquity]? What sin have we done against the Lord our God?’
11 “Then say to them: ‘This is because your ·ancestors [fathers] ·quit following [abandoned; left; forsook] me,’ says the Lord. ‘And they ·followed [went after] other gods and served and ·worshiped [bowed down to] them. Your ·ancestors [fathers] ·left [abandoned; forsook] me and ·quit obeying [L did not keep/guard] my ·teaching [law; instruction]. 12 But you have done even more ·evil [harm] than your ·ancestors [fathers]. You are ·very stubborn and do only what you want to do [L going after your stubborn heart]; you have not ·obeyed [listened to] me. 13 So I will ·throw [hurl] you out of this ·country [land] and send you into a land that you and your ·ancestors [fathers] never knew. There you can ·serve [worship] other gods day and night, because I will not show you any favors.’
14 “Therefore the ·time [L days] is coming,” says the Lord, when it will no longer be said, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the ·people [L sons] of Israel out of Egypt.’ 15 They will say instead, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the ·Israelites [L sons of Israel] from the northern land [C Babylon] and from all the countries where he had ·sent [driven] them…’ And I will ·bring them back [restore them] to the land I gave to their ·ancestors [fathers; C a second Exodus; Is. 40:1–11; 52:10; Hos. 2:14–15].
16 “I will soon send for many fishermen,” says the Lord. “And they will catch them [C the people of Judah]. After that, I will send for many hunters. And they will hunt them on every mountain and hill and in the ·cracks [clefts] of the rocks. 17 ·I see everything they do [L My eyes are on all their ways]. They ·cannot hide from me the things they do [L are not hidden from me]; their ·sin [iniquity] is not ·hidden [concealed] from my eyes. 18 I will first pay them back twice for ·every one of their sins [L their iniquities and their sins], because they have made my land unclean [C in a ritual sense] with their lifeless idols. They have filled my ·country [inheritance] with their ·hateful idols [L abominations].”
19 Lord, you are my strength and my ·protection [stronghold],
my ·safe place [refuge] in times of ·trouble [distress].
The nations will come to you from ·all over [L the ends of] the world
and say, “Our ·ancestors [fathers] ·had [L have inherited] only ·false gods [L lies],
·useless [meaningless] idols that didn’t ·help [profit] them.
20 Can people make gods for themselves?
They will not really be gods!”
21 The Lord says, “So I will teach those who make idols.
This time I will teach them
about my ·power [L hand] and my strength.
Then they will know
that my name is the Lord.
Judah’s Guilty Heart
17 “The sin of Judah is written with an iron ·tool [L pen].
Their sins were cut with a ·hard [L diamond] point into the ·stone that is [L tablet of] their hearts.
Their sins were cut into the ·corners [L horns] of their altars [Ex. 27:2].
2 Even their children remember
their altars [C to idols] and their ·Asherah idols [sacred poles; L Asherim]
beside the green trees
and on the high hills [2:20].
3 My mountain in the open country
and your wealth and treasures
I will give ·away to other people [L as plunder].
I will give away the places of worship in your country,
because you sinned by worshiping there.
4 You will ·lose [drop] the ·land [L inheritance] I gave you,
and it is your own fault.
I will ·let your enemies take you as their slaves [L make you serve your enemies]
to a land you have never known.
This is because you ·have made my anger burn like a hot fire [L kindled a fire in my anger],
and it will burn forever [15:11–14].”
Trusting in Humans or God
5 This is what the Lord says:
“·A curse is placed on [L Cursed are] those who ·trust [have confidence in] other people,
who ·depend on humans for [L make flesh their] strength,
who have ·stopped trusting [L turned their heart from] the Lord.
6 They are like a ·bush [shrub; or juniper] in a ·desert [steppe]
that ·grows in a land where no one lives [L lives in a salt land where no one lives],
a ·hot and dry land with bad soil [L parched land in the wilderness].
They don’t ·know about the good things God can give [L see when good comes].
7 “But the person who ·trusts [has confidence] in the Lord will be blessed.
·The Lord will show him that he can be trusted [L …whose trust/confidence is in him].
8 He will be like a tree planted near water [C vital and strong]
that sends its roots by a stream [Ps. 1:3].
It is not afraid when the ·days are hot [L heat comes];
its leaves are always green.
It ·does not worry [is not anxious] in a year ·when no rain comes [of drought];
it always produces fruit.
9 “·More than anything else [T Above all things], ·a person’s mind is evil [T the heart is deceitful; L the heart is devious/crooked]
and ·cannot be healed [T desperately wicked; L it is perverse/sick].
Who can ·understand [know] it?
10 But I, the Lord, ·look into a person’s [investigate/test the] heart
and test the ·mind [L kidneys].
·So I can decide what each one deserves [L …to give to each according to his way/path];
I can give each one the right payment for what he does.”
11 Like a ·bird [L partridge] hatching an egg it did not lay,
so are the people who get rich ·by cheating [unjustly].
When their ·lives [L days] are half finished, ·they will lose their riches [L it will leave/abandon them].
At the end of their lives, it will be clear they were fools.
12 From the beginning, our ·Temple [L sanctuary] has been ·honored [L exalted]
as a glorious throne [C for God; Is. 6:1–3; Ezek. 1:26–28; 43:2–5].
13 Lord, hope of Israel,
those who ·leave [abandon; forsake] you will be ·shamed [humiliated].
People who ·quit following the Lord [L turn away from you] will be ·written [recorded] in the ·dust [or underworld],
because they have ·left [abandoned; forsaken] the Lord, the spring of living water [2:13].
Jeremiah’s Third Complaint
14 Lord, heal me, and I will truly be healed.
·Save [Rescue] me, and I will truly be ·saved [rescued].
You are ·the one I praise [L my praise].
15 The people of Judah keep asking me,
“Where is the word from the Lord?
·Let’s see that message come true [L Let it come]!”
16 Lord, I didn’t ·run away from [or insist on] being the shepherd ·you wanted [L after you].
I didn’t want the ·terrible day [or day of despair] to come.
You know ·everything I have said [L what comes out of my lips];
·you see all that is happening [L it was before your face].
17 Don’t be a terror to me.
·I run to you for safety [L You are my refuge] in ·times [L days] of ·trouble [disaster; evil].
18 Make those who are ·hurting [persecuting; pursuing] me be ·ashamed [humiliated],
but don’t bring ·shame to [humiliation on] me.
Let them be terrified,
but keep me from terror.
Bring the day of ·disaster [evil; trouble] on them [C my enemies].
Destroy them, ·and destroy them again [L with double destruction].
Keeping the Sabbath Holy
19 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and stand at the People’s Gate [C of Jerusalem], where the kings of Judah go in and out. And then go to all the other gates of Jerusalem. 20 Say to them there: ‘Hear the word of the Lord, kings of Judah, all you people of Judah, and all who live in Jerusalem, who come through these gates into the city. 21 This is what the Lord says: Be careful not to ·carry [lift] a ·load [burden] on the Sabbath day or bring it through the gates of Jerusalem. 22 Don’t take a ·load [burden] out of your houses on the Sabbath or do any work on that day. But keep the Sabbath as a holy day, as I commanded your ·ancestors [fathers; Ex. 20:8–11; 31:12–18; Deut. 5:12–15]. 23 But your ·ancestors [fathers] did not listen or ·pay attention [L incline their ear] to me. They ·were very stubborn [L stiffened their necks] and did not listen. ·I punished them, but it didn’t do any good [L They did not take instruction/discipline]. 24 But you must ·be careful to obey [listen to] me, says the Lord. You must not bring a ·load [burden] through the gates of this city [C Jerusalem] on the Sabbath, but you must keep the Sabbath as a holy day and not do any work on that day.
25 “‘If you obey this command, kings who sit on David’s throne [2 Sam. 7:11–16] will come through the gates of ·Jerusalem [L this city] with their officers. They will come riding in chariots and on horses, along with the people of Judah and Jerusalem. And ·the city of Jerusalem [L this city] will have people living in it forever. 26 People will come [C to Jerusalem] from the villages around it, from the towns of Judah, from the land of Benjamin, from the ·western hills [L Shephelah], from the mountains, and from ·southern Judah [L the Negev]. They will all bring to the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17], sacrifices, ·grain [L gift; tribute] offerings [Lev. 2:1], incense, and ·offerings to show thanks to God [thank offerings]. 27 But you must obey me and keep the Sabbath day as a holy day. You must not carry any loads into Jerusalem on the Sabbath. If you don’t ·obey [listen to] me, to keep the Sabbath day as a holy day, I will ·start [kindle] a fire at its gates [C of Jerusalem], and it will ·burn until it burns even [L consume; devour] the ·strong towers [palaces]. And it will not be put out.’”
A Loyal Soldier of Christ Jesus
2 You then, Timothy, my child, be strong in the grace we have in Christ Jesus. 2 You should ·teach [entrust to; or pass on to] people ·whom you can trust [who are faithful/reliable] the things you have heard me say ·in the presence of [or confirmed by] many witnesses. Then they will be able to teach others. 3 ·Share in the troubles we have [or Join me in suffering] like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 A soldier wants to please the ·enlisting [or commanding] officer, so no one serving in the army ·wastes time with [gets involved/entangled with] ·everyday matters [civilian affairs]. 5 Also an athlete who takes part in a contest must ·obey all [play by] the rules in order to ·win [L be crowned; C with the victor’s wreath]. 6 The farmer who works hard should be the first person to get some of the food that was grown. 7 Think about what I am saying, because the Lord will give you the ability to understand everything.
8 Remember Jesus Christ, who was raised from the dead, who is from the ·family [L seed] of David [2 Sam. 7:12–16]. ·This is the Good News I preach [L …according to my Gospel], 9 and I am suffering because of it to the point of being bound with chains like a criminal. But God’s ·teaching [message; word] is not in chains. 10 So I ·patiently accept [endure] all these troubles so that those whom God has chosen can ·have [receive; obtain] the salvation that is in Christ Jesus. With that salvation comes ·glory that never ends [eternal glory].
11 This ·teaching is true [saying/word is trustworthy; 1 Tim. 1:15; 3:1; 4:9; Titus 3:8; C what follows may be an early Christian hymn]:
If we died with him, we will also live with him.
12 If we ·accept suffering [endure; persevere], we will also ·rule [reign] with him.
If we ·say we don’t know [deny; disown; renounce] him, he will ·say he doesn’t know [deny; disown; renounce] us.
13 If we are not faithful, he will still be faithful,
because he ·must be true to who he is [L cannot deny/disown himself].
A Worker Pleasing to God
14 ·Continue teaching [L Remind them of] these things, ·warning people [L solemnly testifying/declaring] in God’s presence not to ·argue [quarrel] about words. It ·does not help anyone [is good for nothing], and it ruins those who listen. 15 ·Make every effort [Do your best; Be diligent] to ·give [present] yourself to God as the kind of person he will approve. Be a worker who ·is not ashamed [or will not be shamed] and who ·uses the true teaching in the right way [correctly handles the true message/word of truth; or holds carefully to the true message/word of truth]. 16 Stay away from ·foolish, useless talk [godless/irreverent chatter; 1 Tim. 1:3–4; 4:7; 6:20], because that will lead people ·further away from God [into even more ungodliness]. 17 Their evil teaching will spread like ·a sickness inside the body [L gangrene]. Hymenaeus [1 Tim. 1:20] and Philetus are like that [C probably false teachers and opponents of Paul from Ephesus]. 18 They have ·left [strayed away from] the ·true teaching [truth], saying that the ·rising from the dead [resurrection] has already taken place, and so they are ·destroying [undermining; overturning] the faith of some people. 19 But God’s strong foundation continues to stand, ·sealed [inscribed; engraved] with these words: “The Lord knows those who belong to him [Num. 16:5],” and “Everyone who ·wants to belong to [L names the name of] the Lord must ·stop doing wrong [L turn away from wickedess/injustice].”
20 In a ·large house [wealthy household] there are not only ·things [vessels; dishes] made of gold and silver, but also ·things [vessels; dishes] made of wood and clay. Some things are used for ·special [honorable; noble] purposes, and others are made for ·ordinary [dishonorable; ignoble] jobs [C such as garbage or excrement]. 21 All who make themselves clean from ·evil [L these things; C the false teaching described in vv. 16–18] will be used for ·special [honorable; noble] purposes. They will be made holy, useful to the Master, ready to do any good work.
22 But ·run away from [flee] the ·evil desires [passions; desires] of youth. ·Try hard to live right and to have [L Pursue righteousness,] faith, love, and peace, together with those who ·trust in [L call upon] the Lord from pure hearts. 23 ·Stay away from [Avoid; Having nothing to do with] foolish and ·stupid [ignorant] ·arguments [controversies; speculation], because you know they ·grow into [breed; beget] quarrels. 24 And a ·servant [slave; bondservant] of the Lord must not quarrel but must be kind to everyone, a ·good [qualified; able] teacher, and patient. 25 ·The Lord’s servant must gently teach [L …gently instructing/correcting] those who ·disagree [are opponents]. Then ·maybe [perhaps] God will ·let them change their minds [L grant them repentance] ·so they can accept [L leading to knowledge of] the truth. 26 And they may ·wake up [come to their senses] and escape from the ·trap [snare] of the devil, who catches them to do ·what he wants [his will].
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.