Old/New Testament

9 If only my head were a well of water, and my eyes a well of tears, that I might cry day and night for my people who have been killed! ² If only I had a place in the desert for travelers to stay, that I might leave my people, and go away from them! For none of them are faithful. They are a gathering of men who cannot be trusted. ³ “They use their tongue like their bow. Lies, and not truth, rule the land. For they go from sin to sin, and they do not know Me,” says the Lord. ⁴ “Let every one watch his neighbor. Do not trust any brother. Because every brother sets traps, and every neighbor goes about hurting people with his talk. ⁵ Every one fools his neighbor, and does not tell the truth. They have taught their tongue to tell lies. They become tired doing so many sins. ⁶ You live in the center of false ways. In their false ways they are not willing to know Me,” says the Lord.

⁷ So the Lord of All says, “See, I will make them pure and test them. For what else can I do with My people? ⁸ Their tongue is an arrow that kills. It lies. A man speaks peace to his neighbor with his mouth, but in his heart he plans to trap him. ⁹ Should I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord. “Should I not make a nation such as this pay for its sins?

¹⁰ “I will cry with a loud voice for the mountains. I will cry out in sorrow for the fields, because they are laid waste. No one passes through them. The sound of the cattle is not heard. The birds of the sky and the wild animals have run away. They are gone. ¹¹ I will break down Jerusalem into pieces, a place where wild dogs live. And I will lay waste the cities of Judah. No people will live there.”

¹² Who is the man wise enough to understand this? To whom has the mouth of the Lord spoken, that he may make it known? Why is the land destroyed and laid waste like a desert, so that no one passes through? ¹³ And the Lord said, “They have turned away from My Law that I have given them. They have not obeyed My voice and would not be led by it. ¹⁴ But they have followed the strongwill of their own hearts, and have gone after the false gods of Baal, as their fathers taught them.” ¹⁵ So the Lord of All, the God of Israel, says, “See, I will feed these people with wormwood and put poison in their drinking water. ¹⁶ I will spread them out among the nations whom they and their fathers have not known. And I will go after them with the sword until I have put an end to them.”

Jerusalem Cries for Help

¹⁷ The Lord of All says, “Take thought and call for the women who are filled with sorrow, that they may come. Call for the women who cry for the dead, that they may come. ¹⁸ Let them hurry and cry in a loud voice for us, that tears may come from our eyes, and that our eyes will flow with water. ¹⁹ For a sound of loud crying is heard from Zion: ‘How we are destroyed! We are filled with shame, for we have left the land because they have broken down our houses.’” ²⁰ Now hear the Word of the Lord, O you women. Let your ear receive the Word of His mouth. Teach your daughters a song of sorrow. Every one teach her neighbor a song for the dead. ²¹ For death has come in through our windows. It has come into our beautiful houses of kings. It has cut off the children from the streets, and the young men from the open spaces of the city. ²² Say, “This is what the Lord says: ‘The dead bodies of men will fall like animal waste on the open field, and like grain after the gatherer. But no one will gather them.’”

²³ The Lord says, “Let not a wise man speak with pride about his wisdom. Let not the strong man speak with pride about his strength. And let not a rich man speak with pride about his riches. ²⁴ But let him who speaks with pride speak about this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who shows loving-kindness and does what is fair and right and good on earth. For I find joy in these things,” says the Lord.

²⁵ “See, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when I will punish all who have gone through the religious act of the Jews, but have not had the sin cut from their heart. ²⁶ I will punish Egypt, Judah, Edom, the sons of Ammon, Moab, and all those who live in the desert. For none of these nations have had their flesh cut. And none of the people of Israel have had the sin cut from their heart.”

True Worship and False Gods

10 Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O people of Israel. ² The Lord says, “Do not learn the way of the nations. And do not be afraid of the things seen in the heavens, even if the nations are afraid of them. ³ For the ways of the people are of no use. They cut wood from the trees. A workman cuts it with an ax. ⁴ They make it beautiful with silver and gold. They put it together with nails so that it cannot fall apart. ⁵ Their false gods are like a wooden man set up in a vegetable field to make birds be afraid and stay away. They cannot speak. They must be carried, because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot hurt you. And they cannot help you.”

⁶ There is no one like You, O Lord. You are great, and Your name is great in power. ⁷ Who would not fear You, O King of the nations? For You should be honored with fear. Among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their lands, there is no one like You. ⁸ They are all poor thinkers and foolish. What can they learn from a false god of wood? ⁹ Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz. They are the work of an able workman and of one who works with gold. Their clothing is blue and purple. They are all the work of able workmen. ¹⁰ But the Lord is the true God. He is the living God and the King Who lives forever. The earth shakes at His anger. And the nations cannot last when He is angry.

¹¹ This is what you should say to them: “The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will be destroyed from the earth and from under the heavens.”

A Song of Praise

¹² It is He Who made the earth by His power, and the world by His wisdom. By His understanding He has spread out the heavens. ¹³ When He speaks, there is a storm of waters in the heavens. He makes the clouds rise from the ends of the earth. He makes lightning for the rain, and brings out the wind from His store-houses. ¹⁴ Every man is a poor thinker and without learning. Every one who works with gold is put to shame by his false gods. For his objects of worship fool people. There is no breath in them. ¹⁵ They are without worth, and make fun of the truth. In the time of their punishment, they will be destroyed. ¹⁶ He Who is the God of Jacob is not like these, for He has made all things. And Israel is His chosen family. The Lord of All is His name.

People of Jerusalem Will Be Taken Away

¹⁷ Pick up your load from the ground, you who are shut in by armies! ¹⁸ For the Lord says, “See, I am throwing out the people of the land at this time. And I will trouble them, that they may feel it.”

¹⁹ It is bad for me because I am hurt! My sore cannot be healed. But I said, “For sure this sickness is mine, and I must suffer with it.” ²⁰ My tent is destroyed and all my ropes are broken. My sons have gone from me and are no more. There is no one to put up my tent again or to set up my curtains. ²¹ For the shepherds are poor thinkers and have not asked for the Lord’s help. So they have not done well, and all their flock is sent different places. ²² Listen, the sound of news! See, it comes! Much noise of moving is coming out of the land of the north to destroy the cities of Judah, and to make it a place where wild dogs live.

Jeremiah’s Prayer

²³ O Lord, I know that a man’s way is not known by himself. It is not in man to lead his own steps. ²⁴ Punish me when I need it, O Lord, but be fair. Do not punish me in Your anger, or You will bring me to nothing. ²⁵ Pour out Your anger on the nations that do not know You, and on the families that do not call on Your name. For they have destroyed Jacob. They have destroyed him and have laid waste his land.

The Agreement Is Broken

11 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, ² “Hear the words of this agreement, and speak to the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem. ³ Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: “Cursed is the man who does not listen to the words of this agreement ⁴ which I told to your fathers before you when I brought them out of the land of Egypt. I brought them from the land that was like an iron stove. I said to them, ‘Listen to My voice, and do all that I tell you. Then you will be My people and I will be your God.’ ⁵ And so I will keep the promise I made to your fathers before you, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day.”’” Then I answered and said, “Let it be so, O Lord.”

⁶ The Lord said to me, “Make these words known in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Hear the words of this agreement and do them. ⁷ For by My strong words I told your fathers of the danger when I brought them up from the land of Egypt. I kept telling them even to this day, saying, “Listen to My voice.” ⁸ Yet they did not obey or listen. Every one walked in his own strong-will because of his sinful heart. So I brought upon them all the words of this agreement, which I told them to do, but they did not.’”

⁹ Then the Lord said to me, “Sinful plans have been made by the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem. ¹⁰ They have returned to the sins of their fathers before them who would not listen to My words. And they have gone to serve other gods. The people of Israel and Judah have broken the agreement I made with their fathers.” ¹¹ So the Lord says, “See, I am bringing much trouble on them. They will not be able to get away from it. Even when they cry to Me, I will not listen to them. ¹² Then the cities of Judah and the people of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to whom they burn special perfume. But they cannot save them in the time of their trouble. ¹³ For your gods are as many as your cities, O Judah. And your altars you have set up to burn special perfume to the false god Baal are as many as the streets of Jerusalem.

¹⁴ “So do not pray for these people. Do not lift up a cry or prayer for them. For I will not listen when they call to Me because of their trouble. ¹⁵ What right has My loved one to be in My house when she has done many sinful acts? Can animals killed on My altar take your trouble away from you? Can you then find joy?” ¹⁶ The Lord called you, “A green olive tree, beautiful and with good fruit.” But with a noise like thunder He set fire to it, and its branches were destroyed. ¹⁷ The Lord of All, Who planted you, has said that bad will come to you because of the sin of the people of Israel and of the people of Judah. They have done wrong to make Me angry by burning special perfume to the false god Baal.

Men of Anathoth Want to Kill Jeremiah

¹⁸ The Lord made it known to me and I knew it. You showed me the sinful things they did. ¹⁹ But I was like a gentle lamb led to be killed. I did not know that they had made plans against me, saying, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit. Let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name be remembered no more.” ²⁰ But, O Lord of All, Who is right as He judges, Who tests the heart and the mind, let me see You punish them. For I have put my cause before You.

²¹ So the Lord speaks about the men of Anathoth who want to kill you. These men say, “Do not speak in the name of the Lord, or you will die by our hand.” ²² So the Lord of All says, “See, I am about to punish them! The young men will die by the sword. And their sons and daughters will die from hunger. ²³ None of them will be left. For I will bring much trouble to the men of Anathoth, in the year of their punishment.”

Teaching About Christians Who Were Servants

6 All you Christians who are servants must respect your owners and work hard for them. Do not let the name of God and our teaching be spoken against because of poor work. ² Those who have Christian owners must respect their owners because they are Christian brothers. They should work hard for them because much-loved Christian brothers are being helped by their work. Teach and preach these things.

Live Like God Wants You to Live

³ Someone may teach something else. He may not agree with the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ. He may not teach you to live God-like lives. ⁴ Such a person is full of pride and knows nothing. He wastes time on questions and argues about things that are not important. This makes those he teaches jealous and they want to fight. They talk bad and have bad ideas about others. ⁵ Men who are not able to use their minds in the right way because of sin argue all the time. They do not have the truth. They think religion is a way to get much for themselves.

⁶ A God-like life gives us much when we are happy for what we have. ⁷ We came into this world with nothing. For sure, when we die, we will take nothing with us. ⁸ If we have food and clothing, let us be happy. ⁹ But men who want lots of money are tempted. They are trapped into doing all kinds of foolish things and things which hurt them. These things drag them into sin and will destroy them. ¹⁰ The love of money is the beginning of all kinds of sin. Some people have turned from the faith because of their love for money. They have made much pain for themselves because of this.

Fight the Good Fight of Faith

¹¹ But you, man of God, turn away from all these sinful things. Work at being right with God. Live a God-like life. Have faith and love. Be willing to wait. Have a kind heart. ¹² Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the life that lasts forever. You were chosen to receive it. You have spoken well about this life in front of many people.

¹³ I tell you this before God Who gives life to all people and before Jesus Christ Who spoke well in front of Pontius Pilate. ¹⁴ You must do all our Lord Jesus Christ said so no one can speak against you. Do this until He comes again. ¹⁵ At the right time, we will be shown that God is the One Who has all power. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. ¹⁶ He can never die. He lives in a light so bright that no man can go near Him. No man has ever seen God or can see Him. Honor and power belong to Him forever. Let it be so.

Paul’s Last Words to Timothy

¹⁷ Tell those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money. Money cannot be trusted. They should put their trust in God. He gives us all we need for our happiness. ¹⁸ Tell them to do good and be rich in good works. They should give much to those in need and be ready to share. ¹⁹ Then they will be gathering together riches for themselves. These good things are what they will build on for the future. Then they will have the only true life!

²⁰ Timothy, keep safe what God has trusted you with. Turn away from foolish talk. Do not argue with those who think they know so much. They know less than they think they do. ²¹ Some people have gone after much learning. It has proved to be false and they have turned away from the faith. May you have God’s loving-favor.