Jeremiah 3:6-6:30

Other Translations of Jeremiah 3:6-6:30

New International Version

Israel and Judah Entreated to Repent

⁶ During the reign of King Josiah, the Lord said to me, "Have you seen what faithless Israel has done? She has gone up on every high hill and under every spreading tree and has committed adultery there. ⁷ I thought that after she had done all this she would return to me but she did not, and her unfaithful sister Judah saw it. ⁸ I gave faithless Israel her certificate of divorce and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery. ⁹ Because Israel's immorality mattered so little to her, she defiled the land and committed adultery with stone and wood. ¹⁰ In spite of all this, her unfaithful sister Judah did not return to me with all her heart, but only in pretense," declares the Lord. ¹¹ The Lord said to me, "Faithless Israel is more righteous than unfaithful Judah.

¹² Go, proclaim this message toward the north: " 'Return, faithless Israel,' declares the Lord, 'I will frown on you no longer, for I am faithful,' declares the Lord, 'I will not be angry forever. ¹³ Only acknowledge your guilt- you have rebelled against the Lord your God, you have scattered your favors to foreign gods under every spreading tree, and have not obeyed me,' " declares the Lord. ¹⁴ "Return, faithless people," declares the Lord, "for I am your husband. I will choose you-one from a town and two from a clan-and bring you to Zion. ¹⁵ Then I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding. ¹⁶ In those days, when your numbers have increased greatly in the land," declares the Lord, "people will no longer say, 'The ark of the covenant of the Lord.' It will never enter their minds or be remembered; it will not be missed, nor will another one be made. ¹⁷ At that time they will call Jerusalem The Throne of the Lord, and all nations will gather in Jerusalem to honor the name of the Lord. No longer will they follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts. ¹⁸ In those days the people of Judah will join the people of Israel, and together they will come from a northern land to the land I gave your ancestors as an inheritance. ¹⁹ "I myself said, " 'How gladly would I treat you like my children and give you a pleasant land, the most beautiful inheritance of any nation.' I thought you would call me 'Father' and not turn away from following me.

²⁰ But like a woman unfaithful to her husband, so you, Israel, have been unfaithful to me," declares the Lord. ²¹ A cry is heard on the barren heights, the weeping and pleading of the people of Israel, because they have perverted their ways and have forgotten the Lord their God. ²² "Return, faithless people; I will cure you of backsliding." "Yes, we will come to you, for you are the Lord our God. ²³ Surely the idolatrous commotion on the hills and mountains is a deception; surely in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel. ²⁴ From our youth shameful gods have consumed the fruits of our ancestors' labor- their flocks and herds, their sons and daughters. ²⁵ Let us lie down in our shame, and let our disgrace cover us. We have sinned against the Lord our God, both we and our ancestors; from our youth till this day we have not obeyed the Lord our God."

4¹ "If you, Israel, will return, then return to me," declares the Lord. "If you put your detestable idols out of my sight and no longer go astray, ² and if in a truthful, just and righteous way you swear, 'As surely as the Lord lives,' then the nations will invoke blessings by him and in him they will boast."

³ This is what the Lord says to the people of Judah and to Jerusalem: "Break up your unplowed ground and do not sow among thorns. ⁴ Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, circumcise your hearts, you people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or my wrath will flare up and burn like fire because of the evil you have done- burn with no one to quench it.

Judah Threatened with Invasion

⁵ "Announce in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem and say: 'Sound the trumpet throughout the land!' Cry aloud and say: 'Gather together! Let us flee to the fortified cities!' ⁶ Raise the signal to go to Zion! Flee for safety without delay! For I am bringing disaster from the north, even terrible destruction." ⁷ A lion has come out of his lair; a destroyer of nations has set out. He has left his place to lay waste your land. Your towns will lie in ruins without inhabitant. ⁸ So put on sackcloth, lament and wail, for the fierce anger of the Lordhas not turned away from us. ⁹ "In that day," declares the Lord, "the king and the officials will lose heart, the priests will be horrified, and the prophets will be appalled." ¹⁰ Then I said, "Alas, Sovereign Lord! How completely you have deceived this people and Jerusalem by saying, 'You will have peace,' when the sword is at our throats!" ¹¹ At that time this people and Jerusalem will be told, "A scorching wind from the barren heights in the desert blows toward my people, but not to winnow or cleanse; ¹² a wind too strong for that comes from me. Now I pronounce my judgments against them." ¹³ Look! He advances like the clouds, his chariots come like a whirlwind, his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us! We are ruined! ¹⁴ Jerusalem, wash the evil from your heart and be saved. How long will you harbor wicked thoughts? ¹⁵ A voice is announcing from Dan, proclaiming disaster from the hills of Ephraim. ¹⁶ "Tell this to the nations, proclaim concerning Jerusalem: 'A besieging army is coming from a distant land, raising a war cry against the cities of Judah. ¹⁷ They surround her like men guarding a field, because she has rebelled against me,' " declares the Lord. ¹⁸ "Your own conduct and actions have brought this on you. This is your punishment. How bitter it is! How it pierces to the heart!"

¹⁹ Oh, my anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain. Oh, the agony of my heart! My heart pounds within me, I cannot keep silent. For I have heard the sound of the trumpet; I have heard the battle cry. ²⁰ Disaster follows disaster; the whole land lies in ruins. In an instant my tents are destroyed, my shelter in a moment. ²¹ How long must I see the battle standard and hear the sound of the trumpet? ²² "My people are fools; they do not know me. They are senseless children; they have no understanding. They are skilled in doing evil; they know not how to do good." ²³ I looked at the earth, and it was formless and empty; and at the heavens, and their light was gone. ²⁴ I looked at the mountains, and they were quaking; all the hills were swaying. ²⁵ I looked, and there were no people; every bird in the sky had flown away. ²⁶ I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert; all its towns lay in ruins before the Lord, before his fierce anger. ²⁷ This is what the Lord says: "The whole land will be ruined, though I will not destroy it completely. ²⁸ Therefore the earth will mourn and the heavens above grow dark, because I have spoken and will not relent, I have decided and will not turn back." ²⁹ At the sound of horsemen and archers every town takes to flight. Some go into the thickets; some climb up among the rocks. All the towns are deserted; no one lives in them. ³⁰ What are you doing, you devastated one? Why dress yourself in scarlet and put on jewels of gold? Why highlight your eyes with makeup? You adorn yourself in vain. Your lovers despise you; they want to kill you. ³¹ I hear a cry as of a woman in labor, a groan as of one bearing her first child- the cry of Daughter Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands and saying, "Alas! I am fainting; my life is given over to murderers."

The Sins of Jerusalem and Judah

5¹ "Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares. If you can find but one person who deals honestly and seeks the truth, I will forgive this city. ² Although they say, 'As surely as the Lord lives,' still they are swearing falsely." ³ Lord, do not your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain; you crushed them, but they refused correction. They made their faces harder than stone and refused to repent. ⁴ I thought, "These are only the poor; they are foolish, for they do not know the way of the Lord, the requirements of their God. ⁵ So I will go to the leaders and speak to them; surely they know the way of the Lord, the requirements of their God." But with one accord they too had broken off the yoke and torn off the bonds. ⁶ Therefore a lion from the forest will attack them, a wolf from the desert will ravage them, a leopard will lie in wait near their towns to tear to pieces any who venture out, for their rebellion is great and their backslidings many. ⁷ "Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I supplied all their needs, yet they committed adultery and thronged to the houses of prostitutes. ⁸ They are well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for another man's wife. ⁹ Should I not punish them for this?" declares the Lord. "Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this?

¹⁰ "Go through her vineyards and ravage them, but do not destroy them completely. Strip off her branches, for these people do not belong to the Lord. ¹¹ The people of Israel and the people of Judah have been utterly unfaithful to me," declares the Lord. ¹² They have lied about the Lord; they said, "He will do nothing! No harm will come to us; we will never see sword or famine. ¹³ The prophets are but wind and the word is not in them; so let what they say be done to them." ¹⁴ Therefore this is what the Lord God Almighty says: "Because the people have spoken these words, I will make my words in your mouth a fire and these people the wood it consumes. ¹⁵ People of Israel," declares the Lord, "I am bringing a distant nation against you- an ancient and enduring nation, a people whose language you do not know, whose speech you do not understand. ¹⁶ Their quivers are like an open grave; all of them are mighty warriors. ¹⁷ They will devour your harvests and food, devour your sons and daughters; they will devour your flocks and herds, devour your vines and fig trees. With the sword they will destroy the fortified cities in which you trust. ¹⁸ "Yet even in those days," declares the Lord, "I will not destroy you completely. ¹⁹ And when the people ask, 'Why has the Lord our God done all this to us?' you will tell them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your own land, so now you will serve foreigners in a land not your own.'

²⁰ "Announce this to the descendants of Jacob and proclaim it in Judah: ²¹ Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear: ²² Should you not fear me?" declares the Lord. "Should you not tremble in my presence? I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it. ²³ But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts; they have turned aside and gone away. ²⁴ They do not say to themselves, 'Let us fear the Lord our God, who gives autumn and spring rains in season, who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.'

²⁵ Your wrongdoings have kept these away; your sins have deprived you of good. ²⁶ "Among my people are the wicked who lie in wait like men who snare birds and like those who set traps to catch people. ²⁷ Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; they have become rich and powerful ²⁸ and have grown fat and sleek. Their evil deeds have no limit; they do not seek justice. They do not promote the case of the fatherless; they do not defend the just cause of the poor. ²⁹ Should I not punish them for this?" declares the Lord. "Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this? ³⁰ "A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land: ³¹ The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way. But what will you do in the end?

The Doom of Jerusalem and Judah

6¹ "Flee for safety, people of Benjamin! Flee from Jerusalem! Sound the trumpet in Tekoa! Raise the signal over Beth Hakkerem! For disaster looms out of the north, even terrible destruction. ² I will destroy Daughter Zion, so beautiful and delicate. ³ Shepherds with their flocks will come against her; they will pitch their tents around her, each tending his own portion." ⁴ "Prepare for battle against her! Arise, let us attack at noon! But, alas, the daylight is fading, and the shadows of evening grow long. ⁵ So arise, let us attack at night and destroy her fortresses!" ⁶ This is what the Lord Almighty says: "Cut down the trees and build siege ramps against Jerusalem. This city must be punished; it is filled with oppression. ⁷ As a well pours out its water, so she pours out her wickedness. Violence and destruction resound in her; her sickness and wounds are ever before me. ⁸ Take warning, Jerusalem, or I will turn away from you and make your land desolate so no one can live in it."

⁹ This is what the Lord Almighty says: "Let them glean the remnant of Israel as thoroughly as a vine; pass your hand over the branches again, like one gathering grapes." ¹⁰ To whom can I speak and give warning? Who will listen to me? Their ears are closedHebrew "uncircumcised"so they cannot hear. The word of the Lord is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it. ¹¹ But I am full of the wrath of the Lord, and I cannot hold it in. "Pour it out on the children in the street and on the young men gathered together; both husband and wife will be caught in it, and the old, those weighed down with years. ¹² Their houses will be turned over to others, together with their fields and their wives, when I stretch out my hand against those who live in the land," declares the Lord. ¹³ "From the least to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; prophets and priests alike, all practice deceit. ¹⁴ They dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious. 'Peace, peace,' they say, when there is no peace. ¹⁵ Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct? No, they have no shame at all; they do not even know how to blush. So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when I punish them," says the Lord. ¹⁶ This is what the Lord says: "Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, 'We will not walk in it.' ¹⁷ I appointed watchmen over you and said, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet!' But you said, 'We will not listen.'

¹⁸ Therefore hear, you nations; you who are witnesses, observe what will happen to them. ¹⁹ Hear, you earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words and have rejected my law. ²⁰ What do I care about incense from Sheba or sweet calamus from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable; your sacrifices do not please me." ²¹ Therefore this is what the Lord says: "I will put obstacles before this people. Parents and children alike will stumble over them; neighbors and friends will perish." ²² This is what the Lord says: "Look, an army is coming from the land of the north; a great nation is being stirred up from the ends of the earth. ²³ They are armed with bow and spear; they are cruel and show no mercy. They sound like the roaring sea as they ride on their horses; they come like men in battle formation to attack you, Daughter Zion." ²⁴ We have heard reports about them, and our hands hang limp. Anguish has gripped us, pain like that of a woman in labor. ²⁵ Do not go out to the fields or walk on the roads, for the enemy has a sword, and there is terror on every side. ²⁶ Put on sackcloth, my people, and roll in ashes; mourn with bitter wailing as for an only son, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us. ²⁷ "I have made you a tester of metals and my people the ore, that you may observe and test their ways. ²⁸ They are all hardened rebels, going about to slander. They are bronze and iron; they all act corruptly. ²⁹ The bellows blow fiercely to burn away the lead with fire, but the refining goes on in vain; the wicked are not purged out. ³⁰ They are called rejected silver, because the Lord has rejected them."

English Standard Version

Israel and Judah Entreated to Repent

⁶ The Lord said to me in the days of King Josiah: "Have you seen what she did, that faithless one, Israel, how she went up on every high hill and under every green tree, and there played the whore? ⁷ And I thought, 'After she has done all this she will return to me,' but she did not return, and her treacherous sister Judah saw it. ⁸ She saw that for all the adulteries of that faithless one, Israel, I had sent her away with a decree of divorce. Yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but she too went and played the whore. ⁹ Because she took her whoredom lightly, she polluted the land, committing adultery with stone and tree. ¹⁰ Yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to me with her whole heart, but in pretense, declares the Lord." ¹¹ And the Lord said to me, "Faithless Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah.

¹² Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, "'Return, faithless Israel, declares the Lord. I will not look on you in anger, for I am merciful, declares the Lord; I will not be angry forever. ¹³ Only acknowledge your guilt, that you rebelled against the Lord your God and scattered your favors among foreigners under every green tree, and that you have not obeyed my voice, declares the Lord. ¹⁴ Return, O faithless children, declares the Lord; for I am your master; I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion. ¹⁵ "'And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. ¹⁶ And when you have multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, declares the Lord, they shall no more say, "The ark of the covenant of the Lord." It shall not come to mind or be remembered or missed; it shall not be made again. ¹⁷ At that time Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the Lord, and all nations shall gather to it, to the presence of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they shall no more stubbornly follow their own evil heart. ¹⁸ In those days the house of Judah shall join the house of Israel, and together they shall come from the land of the north to the land that I gave your fathers for a heritage. ¹⁹ "'I said, How I would set you among my sons, and give you a pleasant land, a heritage most beautiful of all nations. And I thought you would call me, My Father, and would not turn from following me.

²⁰ Surely, as a treacherous wife leaves her husband, so have you been treacherous to me, O house of Israel, declares the Lord.'" ²¹ A voice on the bare heights is heard, the weeping and pleading of Israel's sons because they have perverted their way; they have forgotten the Lord their God. ²² "Return, O faithless sons; I will heal your faithlessness." "Behold, we come to you, for you are the Lord our God. ²³ Truly the hills are a delusion, the orgiesHebrew commotion on the mountains. Truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel. ²⁴ "But from our youth the shameful thing has devoured all for which our fathers labored, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters. ²⁵ Let us lie down in our shame, and let our dishonor cover us. For we have sinned against the Lord our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even to this day, and we have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God."

4¹ "If you return, O Israel, declares the Lord, to me you should return. If you remove your detestable things from my presence, and do not waver, ² and if you swear, 'As the Lord lives,' in truth, in justice, and in righteousness, then nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory."

³ For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: "Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. ⁴ Circumcise yourselves to the Lord; remove the foreskin of your hearts, O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go forth like fire, and burn with none to quench it, because of the evil of your deeds."

Judah Threatened with Invasion

⁵ Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say, "Blow the trumpet through the land; cry aloud and say, 'Assemble, and let us go into the fortified cities!' ⁶ Raise a standard toward Zion, flee for safety, stay not, for I bring disaster from the north, and great destruction. ⁷ A lion has gone up from his thicket, a destroyer of nations has set out; he has gone out from his place to make your land a waste; your cities will be ruins without inhabitant. ⁸ For this put on sackcloth, lament and wail, for the fierce anger of the Lord has not turned back from us." ⁹ "In that day, declares the Lord, courage shall fail both king and officials. The priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded." ¹⁰ Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD, surely you have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, 'It shall be well with you,' whereas the sword has reached their very life." ¹¹ At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, "A hot wind from the bare heights in the desert toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow or cleanse, ¹² a wind too full for this comes for me. Now it is I who speak in judgment upon them." ¹³ Behold, he comes up like clouds; his chariots like the whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles-- woe to us, for we are ruined! ¹⁴ O Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil, that you may be saved. How long shall your wicked thoughts lodge within you? ¹⁵ For a voice declares from Dan and proclaims trouble from Mount Ephraim. ¹⁶ Warn the nations that he is coming; announce to Jerusalem, "Besiegers come from a distant land; they shout against the cities of Judah. ¹⁷ Like keepers of a field are they against her all around, because she has rebelled against me, declares the Lord. ¹⁸ Your ways and your deeds have brought this upon you. This is your doom, and it is bitter; it has reached your very heart."

¹⁹ My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain! Oh the walls of my heart! My heart is beating wildly; I cannot keep silent, for I hear the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. ²⁰ Crash follows hard on crash; the whole land is laid waste. Suddenly my tents are laid waste, my curtains in a moment. ²¹ How long must I see the standard and hear the sound of the trumpet? ²² "For my people are foolish; they know me not; they are stupid children; they have no understanding. They are 'wise'--in doing evil! But how to do good they know not." ²³ I looked on the earth, and behold, it was without form and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light. ²⁴ I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were quaking, and all the hills moved to and fro. ²⁵ I looked, and behold, there was no man, and all the birds of the air had fled. ²⁶ I looked, and behold, the fruitful land was a desert, and all its cities were laid in ruins before the Lord, before his fierce anger. ²⁷ For thus says the Lord, "The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end. ²⁸ "For this the earth shall mourn, and the heavens above be dark; for I have spoken; I have purposed; I have not relented, nor will I turn back." ²⁹ At the noise of horseman and archer every city takes to flight; they enter thickets; they climb among rocks; all the cities are forsaken, and no man dwells in them. ³⁰ And you, O desolate one, what do you mean that you dress in scarlet, that you adorn yourself with ornaments of gold, that you enlarge your eyes with paint? In vain you beautify yourself. Your lovers despise you; they seek your life. ³¹ For I heard a cry as of a woman in labor, anguish as of one giving birth to her first child, the cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands, "Woe is me! I am fainting before murderers."

The Sins of Jerusalem and Judah

5¹ Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, look and take note! Search her squares to see if you can find a man, one who does justice and seeks truth, that I may pardon her. ² Though they say, "As the Lord lives," yet they swear falsely. ³ O Lord, do not your eyes look for truth? You have struck them down, but they felt no anguish; you have consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to repent. ⁴ Then I said, "These are only the poor; they have no sense; for they do not know the way of the Lord, the justice of their God. ⁵ I will go to the great and will speak to them, for they know the way of the Lord, the justice of their God." But they all alike had broken the yoke; they had burst the bonds. ⁶ Therefore a lion from the forest shall strike them down; a wolf from the desert shall devastate them. A leopard is watching their cities; everyone who goes out of them shall be torn in pieces, because their transgressions are many, their apostasies are great. ⁷ "How can I pardon you? Your children have forsaken me and have sworn by those who are no gods. When I fed them to the full, they committed adultery and trooped to the houses of whores. ⁸ They were well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for his neighbor's wife. ⁹ Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord; and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?

¹⁰ "Go up through her vine rows and destroy, but make not a full end; strip away her branches, for they are not the Lord's. ¹¹ For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have been utterly treacherous to me, declares the Lord. ¹² They have spoken falsely of the Lord and have said, 'He will do nothing; no disaster will come upon us, nor shall we see sword or famine. ¹³ The prophets will become wind; the word is not in them. Thus shall it be done to them!'" ¹⁴ Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of hosts: "Because you have spoken this word, behold, I am making my words in your mouth a fire, and this people wood, and the fire shall consume them. ¹⁵ Behold, I am bringing against you a nation from afar, O house of Israel, declares the Lord. It is an enduring nation; it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language you do not know, nor can you understand what they say. ¹⁶ Their quiver is like an open tomb; they are all mighty warriors. ¹⁷ They shall eat up your harvest and your food; they shall eat up your sons and your daughters; they shall eat up your flocks and your herds; they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees; your fortified cities in which you trust they shall beat down with the sword." ¹⁸ "But even in those days, declares the Lord, I will not make a full end of you. ¹⁹ And when your people say, 'Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?' you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve foreigners in a land that is not yours.'"

²⁰ Declare this in the house of Jacob; proclaim it in Judah: ²¹ "Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes, but see not, who have ears, but hear not. ²² Do you not fear me? declares the Lord. Do you not tremble before me? I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass; though the waves toss, they cannot prevail; though they roar, they cannot pass over it. ²³ But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; they have turned aside and gone away. ²⁴ They do not say in their hearts, 'Let us fear the Lord our God, who gives the rain in its season, the autumn rain and the spring rain, and keeps for us the weeks appointed for the harvest.'

²⁵ Your iniquities have turned these away, and your sins have kept good from you. ²⁶ For wicked men are found among my people; they lurk like fowlers lying in wait.The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain They set a trap; they catch men. ²⁷ Like a cage full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; therefore they have become great and rich; ²⁸ they have grown fat and sleek. They know no bounds in deeds of evil; they judge not with justice the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper, and they do not defend the rights of the needy. ²⁹ Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?" ³⁰ An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: ³¹ the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes?

The Doom of Jerusalem and Judah

6¹ Flee for safety, O people of Benjamin, from the midst of Jerusalem! Blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and raise a signal on Beth-haccherem, for disaster looms out of the north, and great destruction. ² The lovely and delicately bred I will destroy, the daughter of Zion.Or I have likened the daughter of Zion to the loveliest pasture ³ Shepherds with their flocks shall come against her; they shall pitch their tents around her; they shall pasture, each in his place. ⁴ "Prepare war against her; arise, and let us attack at noon! Woe to us, for the day declines, for the shadows of evening lengthen! ⁵ Arise, and let us attack by night and destroy her palaces!" ⁶ For thus says the Lord of hosts: "Cut down her trees; cast up a siege mound against Jerusalem. This is the city that must be punished; there is nothing but oppression within her. ⁷ As a well keeps its water fresh, so she keeps fresh her evil; violence and destruction are heard within her; sickness and wounds are ever before me. ⁸ Be warned, O Jerusalem, lest I turn from you in disgust, lest I make you a desolation, an uninhabited land."

⁹ Thus says the Lord of hosts: "They shall glean thoroughly as a vine the remnant of Israel; like a grape-gatherer pass your hand again over its branches." ¹⁰ To whom shall I speak and give warning, that they may hear? Behold, their ears are uncircumcised, they cannot listen; behold, the word of the Lord is to them an object of scorn; they take no pleasure in it. ¹¹ Therefore I am full of the wrath of the Lord; I am weary of holding it in. "Pour it out upon the children in the street, and upon the gatherings of young men, also; both husband and wife shall be taken, the elderly and the very aged. ¹² Their houses shall be turned over to others, their fields and wives together, for I will stretch out my hand against the inhabitants of the land," declares the Lord. ¹³ "For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for unjust gain; and from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely. ¹⁴ They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, 'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace. ¹⁵ Were they ashamed when they committed abomination? No, they were not at all ashamed; they did not know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; at the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown," says the Lord. ¹⁶ Thus says the Lord: "Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk in it.' ¹⁷ I set watchmen over you, saying, 'Pay attention to the sound of the trumpet!' But they said, 'We will not pay attention.'

¹⁸ Therefore hear, O nations, and know, O congregation, what will happen to them. ¹⁹ Hear, O earth; behold, I am bringing disaster upon this people, the fruit of their devices, because they have not paid attention to my words; and as for my law, they have rejected it. ²⁰ What use to me is frankincense that comes from Sheba, or sweet cane from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor your sacrifices pleasing to me. ²¹ Therefore thus says the Lord: 'Behold, I will lay before this people stumbling blocks against which they shall stumble; fathers and sons together, neighbor and friend shall perish.'" ²² Thus says the Lord: "Behold, a people is coming from the north country, a great nation is stirring from the farthest parts of the earth. ²³ They lay hold on bow and javelin; they are cruel and have no mercy; the sound of them is like the roaring sea; they ride on horses, set in array as a man for battle, against you, O daughter of Zion!" ²⁴ We have heard the report of it; our hands fall helpless; anguish has taken hold of us, pain as of a woman in labor. ²⁵ Go not out into the field, nor walk on the road, for the enemy has a sword; terror is on every side. ²⁶ O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth, and roll in ashes; make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation, for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us. ²⁷ "I have made you a tester of metals among my people, that you may know and test their ways. ²⁸ They are all stubbornly rebellious, going about with slanders; they are bronze and iron; all of them act corruptly. ²⁹ The bellows blow fiercely; the lead is consumed by the fire; in vain the refining goes on, for the wicked are not removed. ³⁰ Rejected silver they are called, for the Lord has rejected them."

The Message

Israel and Judah Entreated to Repent

⁶ God spoke to me during the reign of King Josiah: "You have noticed, haven't you, how fickle Israel has visited every hill and grove of trees as a whore at large? ⁷ I assumed that after she had gotten it out of her system, she'd come back, but she didn't. Her flighty sister, Judah, saw what she did. ⁸ She also saw that because of fickle Israel's loose morals I threw her out, gave her her walking papers. But that didn't faze flighty sister Judah. She went out, big as you please, and took up a whore's life also. ⁹ She took up cheap sex-and-religion as a sideline diversion, an indulgent recreation, and used anything and anyone, flouting sanity and sanctity alike, stinking up the country. ¹⁰ And not once in all this did flighty sister Judah even give me a nod, although she made a show of it from time to time." God's Decree. ¹¹ Then God told me, "Fickle Israel was a good sight better than flighty Judah.

¹² Go and preach this message. Face north toward Israel and say: "'Turn back, fickle Israel. I'm not just hanging back to punish you. I'm committed in love to you. My anger doesn't seethe nonstop. ¹³ Just admit your guilt. Admit your God-defiance. Admit to your promiscuous life with casual partners, pulling strangers into the sex-and-religion groves While turning a deaf ear to me.'" God's Decree. ¹⁴ "Come back, wandering children!" God's Decree. "I, yes I, am your true husband. I'll pick you out one by one - This one from the city, these two from the country - and bring you to Zion. ¹⁵ I'll give you good shepherd-rulers who rule my way, who rule you with intelligence and wisdom. ¹⁶ "And this is what will happen: You will increase and prosper in the land. The time will come" - God's Decree! - "when no one will say any longer, 'Oh, for the good old days! Remember the Ark of the Covenant?' It won't even occur to anyone to say it - 'the good old days.' The so-called good old days of the Ark are gone for good. ¹⁷ "Jerusalem will be the new Ark - 'God's Throne.' All the godless nations, no longer stuck in the ruts of their evil ways, will gather there to honor God. ¹⁸ "At that time, the House of Judah will join up with the House of Israel. Holding hands, they'll leave the north country and come to the land I willed to your ancestors. ¹⁹ "I planned what I'd say if you returned to me: 'Good! I'll bring you back into the family. I'll give you choice land, land that the godless nations would die for.' And I imagined that you would say, 'Dear father!' and would never again go off and leave me.

²⁰ But no luck. Like a false-hearted woman walking out on her husband, you, the whole family of Israel, have proven false to me." God's Decree. ²¹ The sound of voices comes drifting out of the hills, the unhappy sound of Israel's crying, Israel lamenting the wasted years, never once giving her God a thought. ²² "Come back, wandering children! I can heal your wanderlust!" "We're here! We've come back to you. You're our own true God! ²³ All that popular religion was a cheap lie, duped crowds buying up the latest in gods. We're back! Back to our true God, the salvation of Israel. ²⁴ The Fraud picked us clean, swindled us of what our ancestors bequeathed us, Gypped us out of our inheritance - God-blessed flocks and God-given children. ²⁵ We made our bed and now lie in it, all tangled up in the dirty sheets of dishonor. All because we sinned against our God, we and our fathers and mothers. From the time we took our first steps, said our first words, we've been rebels, disobeying the voice of our God."

4¹ "If you want to come back, O Israel, you must really come back to me. You must get rid of your stinking sin paraphernalia and not wander away from me anymore. ² Then you can say words like, 'As God lives . . . ' and have them mean something true and just and right. And the godless nations will get caught up in the blessing and find something in Israel to write home about."

³ Here's another Message from God to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: "Plow your unplowed fields, but then don't plant weeds in the soil! ⁴ Yes, circumcise your lives for God's sake. Plow your unplowed hearts, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem. Prevent fire - the fire of my anger - for once it starts it can't be put out. Your wicked ways are fuel for the fire. God's Sledgehammer Anger

Judah Threatened with Invasion

⁵ "Sound the alarm in Judah, broadcast the news in Jerusalem. Say, 'Blow the ram's horn trumpet through the land!' Shout out - a bullhorn bellow! - 'Close ranks! Run for your lives to the shelters!' ⁶ Send up a flare warning Zion: 'Not a minute to lose! Don't sit on your hands!' Disaster's descending from the north. I set it off! When it lands, it will shake the foundations. ⁷ Invaders have pounced like a lion from its cover, ready to rip nations to shreds, Leaving your land in wrack and ruin, your cities in rubble, abandoned. ⁸ Dress in funereal black. Weep and wail, For God's sledgehammer anger has slammed into us head-on. ⁹ "When this happens" - God's Decree - "King and princes will lose heart; priests will be baffled and prophets stand dumbfounded." ¹⁰ Then I said, "Alas, Master God! You've fed lies to this people, this Jerusalem. You assured them, 'All is well, don't worry,' at the very moment when the sword was at their throats." ¹¹ At that time, this people, yes, this very Jerusalem, will be told in plain words: "The northern hordes are sweeping in from the desert steppes - ¹² a gale-force wind. I ordered this wind. I'm pronouncing my hurricane judgment on my people." Your Evil Life Is Piercing Your Heart ¹³ Look at them! Like banks of storm clouds, racing, tumbling, their chariots a tornado, Their horses faster than eagles! Woe to us! We're done for! ¹⁴ Jerusalem! Scrub the evil from your lives so you'll be fit for salvation. How much longer will you harbor devious and malignant designs within you? ¹⁵ What's this? A messenger from Dan? Bad news from Ephraim's hills! ¹⁶ Make the report public. Broadcast the news to Jerusalem: "Invaders from far off are raising war cries against Judah's towns. ¹⁷ They're all over her, like a dog on a bone. And why? Because she rebelled against me." God's Decree. ¹⁸ "It's the way you've lived that's brought all this on you. The bitter taste is from your evil life. That's what's piercing your heart."

¹⁹ I'm doubled up with cramps in my belly - a poker burns in my gut. My insides are tearing me up, never a moment's peace. The ram's horn trumpet blast rings in my ears, the signal for all-out war. ²⁰ Disaster hard on the heels of disaster, the whole country in ruins! In one stroke my home is destroyed, the walls flattened in the blink of an eye. ²¹ How long do I have to look at the warning flares, listen to the siren of danger? Experts at Evil ²² "What fools my people are! They have no idea who I am. A company of half-wits, dopes and donkeys all! Experts at evil but klutzes at good." ²³ I looked at the earth - it was back to pre-Genesis chaos and emptiness. I looked at the skies, and not a star to be seen. ²⁴ I looked at the mountains - they were trembling like aspen leaves, And all the hills rocking back and forth in the wind. ²⁵ I looked - what's this! Not a man or woman in sight, and not a bird to be seen in the skies. ²⁶ I looked - this can't be! Every garden and orchard shriveled up. All the towns were ghost towns. And all this because of God, because of the blazing anger of God. ²⁷ Yes, this is God's Word on the matter: "The whole country will be laid waste - still it won't be the end of the world. ²⁸ The earth will mourn and the skies lament Because I've given my word and won't take it back. I've decided and won't change my mind." You're Not Going to Seduce Anyone ²⁹ Someone shouts, "Horsemen and archers!" and everybody runs for cover. They hide in ditches, they climb into caves. The cities are emptied, not a person left anywhere. ³⁰ And you, what do you think you're up to? Dressing up in party clothes, Decking yourselves out in jewelry, putting on lipstick and rouge and mascara! Your primping goes for nothing. You're not going to seduce anyone. They're out to kill you! ³¹ And what's that I hear? The cry of a woman in labor, the screams of a mother giving birth to her firstborn. It's the cry of Daughter Zion, gasping for breath, reaching out for help: "Help, oh help me! I'm dying! The killers are on me!"

The Sins of Jerusalem and Judah

5¹ "Patrol Jerusalem's streets. Look around. Take note. Search the market squares. See if you can find one man, one woman, A single soul who does what is right and tries to live a true life. I want to forgive that person." God's Decree. ² "But if all they do is say, 'As sure as God lives . . . ' they're nothing but a bunch of liars." ³ But you, God, you have an eye for truth, don't you? You hit them hard, but it didn't faze them. You disciplined them, but they refused correction. Hardheaded, harder than rock, they wouldn't change. ⁴ Then I said to myself, "Well, these are just poor people. They don't know any better. They were never taught anything about God. They never went to prayer meetings. I'll find some people from the best families. ⁵ I'll talk to them. They'll know what's going on, the way God works. They'll know the score." But they were no better! Rebels all! Off doing their own thing. ⁶ The invaders are ready to pounce and kill, like a mountain lion, a wilderness wolf, Panthers on the prowl. The streets aren't safe anymore. And why? Because the people's sins are piled sky-high; their betrayals are past counting. ⁷ "Why should I even bother with you any longer? Your children wander off, leaving me, Taking up with gods that aren't even gods. I satisfied their deepest needs, and then they went off with the 'sacred' whores, left me for orgies in sex shrines! ⁸ A bunch of well-groomed, lusty stallions, each one pawing and snorting for his neighbor's wife. ⁹ Do you think I'm going to stand around and do nothing?" God's Decree. "Don't you think I'll take serious measures against a people like this? Eyes That Don't Really Look, Ears That Don't Really Listen

¹⁰ "Go down the rows of vineyards and rip out the vines, but not all of them. Leave a few. Prune back those vines! That growth didn't come from God! ¹¹ They've betrayed me over and over again, Judah and Israel both." God's Decree. ¹² "They've spread lies about God. They've said, 'There's nothing to him. Nothing bad will happen to us, neither famine nor war will come our way. ¹³ The prophets are all windbags. They speak nothing but nonsense.'" ¹⁴ Therefore, this is what God said to me, God-of-the-Angel-Armies: "Because they have talked this way, they are going to eat those words. Watch now! I'm putting my words as fire in your mouth. And the people are a pile of kindling ready to go up in flames. ¹⁵ "Attention! I'm bringing a far-off nation against you, O house of Israel." God's Decree. "A solid nation, an ancient nation, A nation that speaks another language. You won't understand a word they say. ¹⁶ When they aim their arrows, you're as good as dead. They're a nation of real fighters! ¹⁷ They'll clean you out of house and home, rob you of crops and children alike. They'll feast on your sheep and cattle, strip your vines and fig trees. And the fortresses that made you feel so safe - leveled with a stroke of the sword! ¹⁸ "Even then, as bad as it will be" - God's Decree! - "it will not be the end of the world for you. ¹⁹ And when people ask, 'Why did our God do all this to us?' you must say to them, 'It's tit for tat. Just as you left me and served foreign gods in your own country, so now you must serve foreigners in their own country.'

²⁰ "Tell the house of Jacob this, put out this bulletin in Judah: ²¹ Listen to this, you scatterbrains, airheads, With eyes that see but don't really look, and ears that hear but don't really listen. ²² Why don't you honor me? Why aren't you in awe before me? Yes, me, who made the shorelines to contain the ocean waters. I drew a line in the sand that cannot be crossed. Waves roll in but cannot get through; breakers crash but that's the end of them. ²³ But this people - what a people! Uncontrollable, untameable runaways. ²⁴ It never occurs to them to say, 'How can we honor our God with our lives, The God who gives rain in both spring and autumn and maintains the rhythm of the seasons, Who sets aside time each year for harvest and keeps everything running smoothly for us?'

²⁵ Of course you don't! Your bad behavior blinds you to all this. Your sins keep my blessings at a distance. To Stand for Nothing and Stand Up for No One ²⁶ "My people are infiltrated by wicked men, unscrupulous men on the hunt. They set traps for the unsuspecting. Their victims are innocent men and women. ²⁷ Their houses are stuffed with ill-gotten gain, like a hunter's bag full of birds. Pretentious and powerful and rich, ²⁸ hugely obese, oily with rolls of fat. Worse, they have no conscience. Right and wrong mean nothing to them. They stand for nothing, stand up for no one, throw orphans to the wolves, exploit the poor. ²⁹ Do you think I'll stand by and do nothing about this?" God's Decree. "Don't you think I'll take serious measures against a people like this? ³⁰ "Unspeakable! Sickening! What's happened in this country? ³¹ Prophets preach lies and priests hire on as their assistants. And my people love it. They eat it up! But what will you do when it's time to pick up the pieces?

The Doom of Jerusalem and Judah

6¹ "Run for your lives, children of Benjamin! Get out of Jerusalem, and now! Give a blast on the ram's horn in Blastville. Send up smoke signals from Smoketown. Doom pours out of the north - massive terror! ² I have likened my dear daughter Zion to a lovely meadow. ³ Well, now 'shepherds' from the north have discovered her and brought in their flocks of soldiers. They've pitched camp all around her, and plan where they'll 'graze.' ⁴ And then, 'Prepare to attack! The fight is on! To arms! We'll strike at noon! Oh, it's too late? Day is dying? Evening shadows are upon us? ⁵ Well, up anyway! We'll attack by night and tear apart her defenses stone by stone.'" ⁶ God-of-the-Angel-Armies gave the orders: "Chop down her trees. Build a siege ramp against Jerusalem, A city full of brutality, bursting with violence. ⁷ Just as a well holds a good supply of water, she supplies wickedness nonstop. The streets echo the cries: 'Violence! Rape!' Victims, bleeding and moaning, lie all over the place. ⁸ You're in deep trouble, Jerusalem. You've pushed me to the limit. You're on the brink of being wiped out, being turned into a ghost town."

⁹ More orders from God-of-the-Angel-Armies: "Time's up! Harvest the grapes for judgment. Salvage what's left of Israel. Go back over the vines. Pick them clean, every last grape. Is Anybody Listening? ¹⁰ "I've got something to say. Is anybody listening? I've a warning to post. Will anyone notice? It's hopeless! Their ears are stuffed with wax - deaf as a post, blind as a bat. It's hopeless! They've tuned out God. They don't want to hear from me. ¹¹ But I'm bursting with the wrath of God. I can't hold it in much longer. "So dump it on the children in the streets. Let it loose on the gangs of youth. For no one's exempt: Husbands and wives will be taken, the old and those ready to die; ¹² Their homes will be given away - all they own, even their loved ones - When I give the signal against all who live in this country." God's Decree. ¹³ "Everyone's after the dishonest dollar, little people and big people alike. Prophets and priests and everyone in between twist words and doctor truth. ¹⁴ My people are broken - shattered! - and they put on band-aids, Saying, 'It's not so bad. You'll be just fine.' But things are not 'just fine'! ¹⁵ Do you suppose they are embarrassed over this outrage? No, they have no shame. They don't even know how to blush. There's no hope for them. They've hit bottom and there's no getting up. As far as I'm concerned, they're finished." God has spoken. Death Is on the Prowl ¹⁶ God's Message yet again: "Go stand at the crossroads and look around. Ask for directions to the old road, The tried and true road. Then take it. Discover the right route for your souls. But they said, 'Nothing doing. We aren't going that way.' ¹⁷ I even provided watchmen for them to warn them, to set off the alarm. But the people said, 'It's a false alarm. It doesn't concern us.'

¹⁸ And so I'm calling in the nations as witnesses: 'Watch, witnesses, what happens to them!' ¹⁹ And, 'Pay attention, earth! Don't miss these bulletins.' I'm visiting catastrophe on this people, the end result of the games they've been playing with me. They've ignored everything I've said, had nothing but contempt for my teaching. ²⁰ What would I want with incense brought in from Sheba, rare spices from exotic places? Your burnt sacrifices in worship give me no pleasure. Your religious rituals mean nothing to me." ²¹ So listen to this. Here's God's verdict on your way of life: "Watch out! I'm putting roadblocks and barriers on the road you're taking. They'll send you sprawling, parents and children, neighbors and friends - and that will be the end of the lot of you." ²² And listen to this verdict from God: "Look out! An invasion from the north, a mighty power on the move from a faraway place: ²³ Armed to the teeth, vicious and pitiless, Booming like sea storm and thunder - tramp, tramp, tramp - riding hard on war horses, In battle formation against you, dear Daughter Zion!" ²⁴ We've heard the news, and we're as limp as wet dishrags. We're paralyzed with fear. Terror has a death grip on our throats. ²⁵ Don't dare go outdoors! Don't leave the house! Death is on the prowl. Danger everywhere! ²⁶ "Dear Daughter Zion: Dress in black. Blacken your face with ashes. Weep most bitterly, as for an only child. The countdown has begun . . . six, five, four, three . . . The Terror is on us!" ²⁷ God gave me this task: "I have made you the examiner of my people, to examine and weigh their lives. ²⁸ They're a thickheaded, hard-nosed bunch, rotten to the core, the lot of them. ²⁹ Refining fires are cranked up to white heat, but the ore stays a lump, unchanged. It's useless to keep trying any longer. Nothing can refine evil out of them. ³⁰ Men will give up and call them 'slag,' thrown on the slag heap by me, their God."

New King James Version

Israel and Judah Entreated to Repent

⁶ The Lord said also to me in the days of Josiah the king: "Have you seen what backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and there played the harlot. ⁷ And I said, after she had done all these things, 'Return to Me.' But she did not return. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. ⁸ Then I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also. ⁹ So it came to pass, through her casual harlotry, that she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and trees. ¹⁰ And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but in pretense," says the Lord. ¹¹ Then the Lord said to me, "Backsliding Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah.

¹² Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say: 'Return, backsliding Israel,' says the Lord; 'I will not cause My anger to fall on you. For I am merciful,' says the Lord; ' I will not remain angry forever. ¹³ Only acknowledge your iniquity, That you have transgressed against the Lord your God, And have scattered your charms To alien deities under every green tree, And you have not obeyed My voice,' says the Lord. ¹⁴ "Return, O backsliding children," says the Lord; "for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion. ¹⁵ And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. ¹⁶ Then it shall come to pass, when you are multiplied and increased in the land in those days," says the Lord, "that they will say no more, 'The ark of the covenant of the Lord.' It shall not come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they visit it, nor shall it be made anymore. ¹⁷ At that time Jerusalem shall be called The Throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered to it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem. No more shall they follow the dictates of their evil hearts. ¹⁸ In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given as an inheritance to your fathers. ¹⁹ "But I said: 'How can I put you among the children And give you a pleasant land, A beautiful heritage of the hosts of nations?' "And I said: 'You shall call Me, "My Father," And not turn away from Me.'

²⁰ Surely, as a wife treacherously departs from her husband, So have you dealt treacherously with Me, O house of Israel," says the Lord. ²¹ A voice was heard on the desolate heights, Weeping and supplications of the children of Israel. For they have perverted their way; They have forgotten the Lord their God. ²² "Return, you backsliding children, And I will heal your backslidings." "Indeed we do come to You, For You are the Lord our God. ²³ Truly, in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills, And from the multitude of mountains; Truly, in the Lord our God Is the salvation of Israel. ²⁴ For shame has devoured The labor of our fathers from our youth-- Their flocks and their herds, Their sons and their daughters. ²⁵ We lie down in our shame, And our reproach covers us. For we have sinned against the Lord our God, We and our fathers, From our youth even to this day, And have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God."

4¹ "If you will return, O Israel," says the Lord, "Return to Me; And if you will put away your abominations out of My sight, Then you shall not be moved. ² And you shall swear, 'The Lord lives,' In truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; The nations shall bless themselves in Him, And in Him they shall glory."

³ For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: "Break up your fallow ground, And do not sow among thorns. ⁴ Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, And take away the foreskins of your hearts, You men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Lest My fury come forth like fire, And burn so that no one can quench it, Because of the evil of your doings."

Judah Threatened with Invasion

⁵ Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say: "Blow the trumpet in the land; Cry, 'Gather together,' And say, 'Assemble yourselves, And let us go into the fortified cities.' ⁶ Set up the standard toward Zion. Take refuge! Do not delay! For I will bring disaster from the north, And great destruction." ⁷ The lion has come up from his thicket, And the destroyer of nations is on his way. He has gone forth from his place To make your land desolate. Your cities will be laid waste, Without inhabitant. ⁸ For this, clothe yourself with sackcloth, Lament and wail. For the fierce anger of the Lord Has not turned back from us. ⁹ "And it shall come to pass in that day," says the Lord, "That the heart of the king shall perish, And the heart of the princes; The priests shall be astonished, And the prophets shall wonder." ¹⁰ Then I said, "Ah, Lord God! Surely You have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, Saying, 'You shall have peace,' Whereas the sword reaches to the heart." ¹¹ At that time it will be said To this people and to Jerusalem, "A dry wind of the desolate heights blows in the wilderness Toward the daughter of My people-- Not to fan or to cleanse-- ¹² A wind too strong for these will come for Me; Now I will also speak judgment against them." ¹³ "Behold, he shall come up like clouds, And his chariots like a whirlwind. His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us, for we are plundered!" ¹⁴ O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, That you may be saved. How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you? ¹⁵ For a voice declares from Dan And proclaims affliction from Mount Ephraim: ¹⁶ "Make mention to the nations, Yes, proclaim against Jerusalem, That watchers come from a far country And raise their voice against the cities of Judah. ¹⁷ Like keepers of a field they are against her all around, Because she has been rebellious against Me," says the Lord. ¹⁸ "Your ways and your doings Have procured these things for you. This is your wickedness, Because it is bitter, Because it reaches to your heart."

¹⁹ O my soul, my soul! I am pained in my very heart! My heart makes a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, Because you have heard, O my soul, The sound of the trumpet, The alarm of war. ²⁰ Destruction upon destruction is cried, For the whole land is plundered. Suddenly my tents are plundered, And my curtains in a moment. ²¹ How long will I see the standard, And hear the sound of the trumpet? ²² "For My people are foolish, They have not known Me. They are silly children, And they have no understanding. They are wise to do evil, But to do good they have no knowledge." ²³ I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void; And the heavens, they had no light. ²⁴ I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled, And all the hills moved back and forth. ²⁵ I beheld, and indeed there was no man, And all the birds of the heavens had fled. ²⁶ I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness, And all its cities were broken down At the presence of the Lord, By His fierce anger. ²⁷ For thus says the Lord: "The whole land shall be desolate; Yet I will not make a full end. ²⁸ For this shall the earth mourn, And the heavens above be black, Because I have spoken. I have purposed and will not relent, Nor will I turn back from it. ²⁹ The whole city shall flee from the noise of the horsemen and bowmen. They shall go into thickets and climb up on the rocks. Every city shall be forsaken, And not a man shall dwell in it. ³⁰ "And when you are plundered, What will you do? Though you clothe yourself with crimson, Though you adorn yourself with ornaments of gold, Though you enlarge your eyes with paint, In vain you will make yourself fair; Your lovers will despise you; They will seek your life. ³¹ "For I have heard a voice as of a woman in labor, The anguish as of her who brings forth her first child, The voice of the daughter of Zion bewailing herself; She spreads her hands, saying, 'Woe is me now, for my soul is weary Because of murderers!'

The Sins of Jerusalem and Judah

5¹ "Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem; See now and know; And seek in her open places If you can find a man, If there is anyone who executes judgment, Who seeks the truth, And I will pardon her. ² Though they say, 'As the Lord lives,' Surely they swear falsely." ³ O Lord, are not Your eyes on the truth? You have stricken them, But they have not grieved; You have consumed them, But they have refused to receive correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; They have refused to return. ⁴ Therefore I said, "Surely these are poor. They are foolish; For they do not know the way of the Lord, The judgment of their God. ⁵ I will go to the great men and speak to them, For they have known the way of the Lord, The judgment of their God." But these have altogether broken the yoke And burst the bonds. ⁶ Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them, A wolf of the deserts shall destroy them; A leopard will watch over their cities. Everyone who goes out from there shall be torn in pieces, Because their transgressions are many; Their backslidings have increased. ⁷ "How shall I pardon you for this? Your children have forsaken Me And sworn by those that are not gods. When I had fed them to the full, Then they committed adultery And assembled themselves by troops in the harlots' houses. ⁸ They were like well-fed lusty stallions; Every one neighed after his neighbor's wife. ⁹ Shall I not punish them for these things?" says the Lord. "And shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?

¹⁰ "Go up on her walls and destroy, But do not make a complete end. Take away her branches, For they are not the Lord's. ¹¹ For the house of Israel and the house of Judah Have dealt very treacherously with Me," says the Lord. ¹² They have lied about the Lord, And said, "It is not He. Neither will evil come upon us, Nor shall we see sword or famine. ¹³ And the prophets become wind, For the word is not in them. Thus shall it be done to them." ¹⁴ Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts: "Because you speak this word, Behold, I will make My words in your mouth fire, And this people wood, And it shall devour them. ¹⁵ Behold, I will bring a nation against you from afar, O house of Israel," says the Lord. "It is a mighty nation, It is an ancient nation, A nation whose language you do not know, Nor can you understand what they say. ¹⁶ Their quiver is like an open tomb; They are all mighty men. ¹⁷ And they shall eat up your harvest and your bread, Which your sons and daughters should eat. They shall eat up your flocks and your herds; They shall eat up your vines and your fig trees; They shall destroy your fortified cities, In which you trust, with the sword. ¹⁸ "Nevertheless in those days," says the Lord, "I will not make a complete end of you. ¹⁹ And it will be when you say, 'Why does the Lord our God do all these things to us?' then you shall answer them, 'Just as you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve aliens in a land that is not yours.'

²⁰ "Declare this in the house of Jacob And proclaim it in Judah, saying, ²¹ 'Hear this now, O foolish people, Without understanding, Who have eyes and see not, And who have ears and hear not: ²² Do you not fear Me?' says the Lord. 'Will you not tremble at My presence, Who have placed the sand as the bound of the sea, By a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass beyond it? And though its waves toss to and fro, Yet they cannot prevail; Though they roar, yet they cannot pass over it. ²³ But this people has a defiant and rebellious heart; They have revolted and departed. ²⁴ They do not say in their heart, "Let us now fear the Lord our God, Who gives rain, both the former and the latter, in its season. He reserves for us the appointed weeks of the harvest."

²⁵ Your iniquities have turned these things away, And your sins have withheld good from you. ²⁶ 'For among My people are found wicked men; They lie in wait as one who sets snares; They set a trap; They catch men. ²⁷ As a cage is full of birds, So their houses are full of deceit. Therefore they have become great and grown rich. ²⁸ They have grown fat, they are sleek; Yes, they surpass the deeds of the wicked; They do not plead the cause, The cause of the fatherless; Yet they prosper, And the right of the needy they do not defend. ²⁹ Shall I not punish them for these things?' says the Lord. 'Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?' ³⁰ "An astonishing and horrible thing Has been committed in the land: ³¹ The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?

The Doom of Jerusalem and Judah

6¹ "O you children of Benjamin, Gather yourselves to flee from the midst of Jerusalem! Blow the trumpet in Tekoa, And set up a signal-fire in Beth Haccerem; For disaster appears out of the north, And great destruction. ² I have likened the daughter of Zion To a lovely and delicate woman. ³ The shepherds with their flocks shall come to her. They shall pitch their tents against her all around. Each one shall pasture in his own place." ⁴ "Prepare war against her; Arise, and let us go up at noon. Woe to us, for the day goes away, For the shadows of the evening are lengthening. ⁵ Arise, and let us go by night, And let us destroy her palaces." ⁶ For thus has the Lord of hosts said: "Cut down trees, And build a mound against Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished. She is full of oppression in her midst. ⁷ As a fountain wells up with water, So she wells up with her wickedness. Violence and plundering are heard in her. Before Me continually are grief and wounds. ⁸ Be instructed, O Jerusalem, Lest My soul depart from you; Lest I make you desolate, A land not inhabited."

⁹ Thus says the Lord of hosts: "They shall thoroughly glean as a vine the remnant of Israel; As a grape-gatherer, put your hand back into the branches." ¹⁰ To whom shall I speak and give warning, That they may hear? Indeed their ear is uncircumcised, And they cannot give heed. Behold, the word of the Lord is a reproach to them; They have no delight in it. ¹¹ Therefore I am full of the fury of the Lord. I am weary of holding it in. "I will pour it out on the children outside, And on the assembly of young men together; For even the husband shall be taken with the wife, The aged with him who is full of days. ¹² And their houses shall be turned over to others, Fields and wives together; For I will stretch out My hand Against the inhabitants of the land," says the Lord. ¹³ "Because from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is given to covetousness; And from the prophet even to the priest, Everyone deals falsely. ¹⁴ They have also healed the hurt of My people slightly, Saying, 'Peace, peace!' When there is no peace. ¹⁵ Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed; Nor did they know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; At the time I punish them, They shall be cast down," says the Lord. ¹⁶ Thus says the Lord: "Stand in the ways and see, And ask for the old paths, where the good way is, And walk in it; Then you will find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk in it.' ¹⁷ Also, I set watchmen over you, saying, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet!' But they said, 'We will not listen.'

¹⁸ Therefore hear, you nations, And know, O congregation, what is among them. ¹⁹ Hear, O earth! Behold, I will certainly bring calamity on this people-- The fruit of their thoughts, Because they have not heeded My words, Nor My law, but rejected it. ²⁰ For what purpose to Me Comes frankincense from Sheba, And sweet cane from a far country? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, Nor your sacrifices sweet to Me." ²¹ Therefore thus says the Lord: "Behold, I will lay stumbling blocks before this people, And the fathers and the sons together shall fall on them. The neighbor and his friend shall perish." ²² Thus says the Lord: "Behold, a people comes from the north country, And a great nation will be raised from the farthest parts of the earth. ²³ They will lay hold on bow and spear; They are cruel and have no mercy; Their voice roars like the sea; And they ride on horses, As men of war set in array against you, O daughter of Zion." ²⁴ We have heard the report of it; Our hands grow feeble. Anguish has taken hold of us, Pain as of a woman in labor. ²⁵ Do not go out into the field, Nor walk by the way. Because of the sword of the enemy, Fear is on every side. ²⁶ O daughter of my people, Dress in sackcloth And roll about in ashes! Make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation; For the plunderer will suddenly come upon us. ²⁷ "I have set you as an assayer and a fortress among My people, That you may know and test their way. ²⁸ They are all stubborn rebels, walking as slanderers. They are bronze and iron, They are all corrupters; ²⁹ The bellows blow fiercely, The lead is consumed by the fire; The smelter refines in vain, For the wicked are not drawn off. ³⁰ People will call them rejected silver, Because the Lord has rejected them."

New Living Translation

Israel and Judah Entreated to Repent

⁶ During the reign of King Josiah, the Lord said to me, "Have you seen what fickle Israel has done? Like a wife who commits adultery, Israel has worshiped other gods on every hill and under every green tree. ⁷ I thought, 'After she has done all this, she will return to me.' But she did not return, and her faithless sister Judah saw this. ⁸ She saw that I divorced faithless Israel because of her adultery. But that treacherous sister Judah had no fear, and now she, too, has left me and given herself to prostitution. ⁹ Israel treated it all so lightly-she thought nothing of committing adultery by worshiping idols made of wood and stone. So now the land has been polluted. ¹⁰ But despite all this, her faithless sister Judah has never sincerely returned to me. She has only pretended to be sorry. I, the Lord, have spoken!" ¹¹ Then the Lord said to me, "Even faithless Israel is less guilty than treacherous Judah!

¹² Therefore, go and give this message to Israel. This is what the Lord says: "O Israel, my faithless people, come home to me again, for I am merciful. I will not be angry with you forever. ¹³ Only acknowledge your guilt. Admit that you rebelled against the Lord your God and committed adultery against him by worshiping idols under every green tree. Confess that you refused to listen to my voice. I, the Lord, have spoken! ¹⁴ "Return home, you wayward children," says the Lord, "for I am your master. I will bring you back to the land of Israel - one from this town and two from that family- from wherever you are scattered. ¹⁵ And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will guide you with knowledge and understanding. ¹⁶ "And when your land is once more filled with people," says the Lord, "you will no longer wish for 'the good old days' when you possessed the Ark of the Lord 's Covenant. You will not miss those days or even remember them, and there will be no need to rebuild the Ark. ¹⁷ In that day Jerusalem will be known as 'The Throne of the Lord .' All nations will come there to honor the Lord . They will no longer stubbornly follow their own evil desires. ¹⁸ In those days the people of Judah and Israel will return together from exile in the north. They will return to the land I gave your ancestors as an inheritance forever. ¹⁹ "I thought to myself, 'I would love to treat you as my own children!' I wanted nothing more than to give you this beautiful land- the finest possession in the world. I looked forward to your calling me 'Father,' and I wanted you never to turn from me.

²⁰ But you have been unfaithful to me, you people of Israel! You have been like a faithless wife who leaves her husband. I, the Lord, have spoken." ²¹ Voices are heard high on the windswept mountains, the weeping and pleading of Israel's people. For they have chosen crooked paths and have forgotten the Lord their God. ²² "My wayward children," says the Lord, "come back to me, and I will heal your wayward hearts." "Yes, we're coming," the people reply, "for you are the Lord our God. ²³ Our worship of idols on the hills and our religious orgies on the mountains are a delusion. Only in the Lord our God will Israel ever find salvation. ²⁴ From childhood we have watched as everything our ancestors worked for- their flocks and herds, their sons and daughters- was squandered on a delusion. ²⁵ Let us now lie down in shame and cover ourselves with dishonor, for we and our ancestors have sinned against the Lord our God. From our childhood to this day we have never obeyed him."

4¹ "O Israel," says the Lord, "if you wanted to return to me, you could. You could throw away your detestable idols and stray away no more. ² Then when you swear by my name, saying, 'As surely as the Lord lives,' you could do so with truth, justice, and righteousness. Then you would be a blessing to the nations of the world, and all people would come and praise my name."

³ This is what the Lord says to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: "Plow up the hard ground of your hearts! Do not waste your good seed among thorns. ⁴ O people of Judah and Jerusalem, surrender your pride and power. Change your hearts before the Lord, or my anger will burn like an unquenchable fire because of all your sins.

Judah Threatened with Invasion

⁵ "Shout to Judah, and broadcast to Jerusalem! Tell them to sound the alarm throughout the land: 'Run for your lives! Flee to the fortified cities!' ⁶ Raise a signal flag as a warning for Jerusalem : 'Flee now! Do not delay!' For I am bringing terrible destruction upon you from the north." ⁷ A lion stalks from its den, a destroyer of nations. It has left its lair and is headed your way. It's going to devastate your land! Your towns will lie in ruins, with no one living in them anymore. ⁸ So put on clothes of mourning and weep with broken hearts, for the fierce anger of the Lord is still upon us. ⁹ "In that day," says the Lord, "the king and the officials will tremble in fear. The priests will be struck with horror, and the prophets will be appalled." ¹⁰ Then I said, "O Sovereign Lord, the people have been deceived by what you said, for you promised peace for Jerusalem. But the sword is held at their throats!" ¹¹ The time is coming when the Lord will say to the people of Jerusalem, "My dear people, a burning wind is blowing in from the desert, and it's not a gentle breeze useful for winnowing grain. ¹² It is a roaring blast sent by me! Now I will pronounce your destruction!" ¹³ Our enemy rushes down on us like storm clouds! His chariots are like whirlwinds. His horses are swifter than eagles. How terrible it will be, for we are doomed! ¹⁴ O Jerusalem, cleanse your heart that you may be saved. How long will you harbor your evil thoughts? ¹⁵ Your destruction has been announced from Dan and the hill country of Ephraim. ¹⁶ "Warn the surrounding nations and announce this to Jerusalem: The enemy is coming from a distant land, raising a battle cry against the towns of Judah. ¹⁷ They surround Jerusalem like watchmen around a field, for my people have rebelled against me," says the Lord . ¹⁸ "Your own actions have brought this upon you. This punishment is bitter, piercing you to the heart!"

¹⁹ My heart, my heart-I writhe in pain! My heart pounds within me! I cannot be still. For I have heard the blast of enemy trumpets and the roar of their battle cries. ²⁰ Waves of destruction roll over the land, until it lies in complete desolation. Suddenly my tents are destroyed; in a moment my shelters are crushed. ²¹ How long must I see the battle flags and hear the trumpets of war? ²² "My people are foolish and do not know me," says the Lord . "They are stupid children who have no understanding. They are clever enough at doing wrong, but they have no idea how to do right!" ²³ I looked at the earth, and it was empty and formless. I looked at the heavens, and there was no light. ²⁴ I looked at the mountains and hills, and they trembled and shook. ²⁵ I looked, and all the people were gone. All the birds of the sky had flown away. ²⁶ I looked, and the fertile fields had become a wilderness. The towns lay in ruins, crushed by the Lord 's fierce anger. ²⁷ This is what the Lord says: "The whole land will be ruined, but I will not destroy it completely. ²⁸ The earth will mourn and the heavens will be draped in black because of my decree against my people. I have made up my mind and will not change it." ²⁹ At the noise of charioteers and archers, the people flee in terror. They hide in the bushes and run for the mountains. All the towns have been abandoned- not a person remains! ³⁰ What are you doing, you who have been plundered? Why do you dress up in beautiful clothing and put on gold jewelry? Why do you brighten your eyes with mascara? Your primping will do you no good! The allies who were your lovers despise you and seek to kill you. ³¹ I hear a cry, like that of a woman in labor, the groans of a woman giving birth to her first child. It is beautiful Jerusalem gasping for breath and crying out, "Help! I'm being murdered!"

The Sins of Jerusalem and Judah

5¹ "Run up and down every street in Jerusalem," says the Lord . "Look high and low; search throughout the city! If you can find even one just and honest person, I will not destroy the city. ² But even when they are under oath, saying, 'As surely as the Lord lives,' they are still telling lies!" ³ Lord, you are searching for honesty. You struck your people, but they paid no attention. You crushed them, but they refused to be corrected. They are determined, with faces set like stone; they have refused to repent. ⁴ Then I said, "But what can we expect from the poor? They are ignorant. They don't know the ways of the Lord . They don't understand God's laws. ⁵ So I will go and speak to their leaders. Surely they know the ways of the Lord and understand God's laws." But the leaders, too, as one man, had thrown off God's yoke and broken his chains. ⁶ So now a lion from the forest will attack them; a wolf from the desert will pounce on them. A leopard will lurk near their towns, tearing apart any who dare to venture out. For their rebellion is great, and their sins are many. ⁷ "How can I pardon you? For even your children have turned from me. They have sworn by gods that are not gods at all! I fed my people until they were full. But they thanked me by committing adultery and lining up at the brothels. ⁸ They are well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for his neighbor's wife. ⁹ Should I not punish them for this?" says the Lord . "Should I not avenge myself against such a nation?

¹⁰ "Go down the rows of the vineyards and destroy the grapevines, leaving a scattered few alive. Strip the branches from the vines, for these people do not belong to the Lord . ¹¹ The people of Israel and Judah are full of treachery against me," says the Lord . ¹² "They have lied about the Lord and said, 'He won't bother us! No disasters will come upon us. There will be no war or famine. ¹³ God's prophets are all windbags who don't really speak for him. Let their predictions of disaster fall on themselves!'" ¹⁴ Therefore, this is what the Lord God of Heaven's Armies says: "Because the people are talking like this, my messages will flame out of your mouth and burn the people like kindling wood. ¹⁵ O Israel, I will bring a distant nation against you," says the Lord . "It is a mighty nation, an ancient nation, a people whose language you do not know, whose speech you cannot understand. ¹⁶ Their weapons are deadly; their warriors are mighty. ¹⁷ They will devour the food of your harvest; they will devour your sons and daughters. They will devour your flocks and herds; they will devour your grapes and figs. And they will destroy your fortified towns, which you think are so safe. ¹⁸ "Yet even in those days I will not blot you out completely," says the Lord . ¹⁹ "And when your people ask, 'Why did the Lord our God do all this to us?' you must reply, 'You rejected him and gave yourselves to foreign gods in your own land. Now you will serve foreigners in a land that is not your own.'

²⁰ "Make this announcement to Israel, and say this to Judah: ²¹ Listen, you foolish and senseless people, with eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear. ²² Have you no respect for me? Why don't you tremble in my presence? I, the Lord, define the ocean's sandy shoreline as an everlasting boundary that the waters cannot cross. The waves may toss and roar, but they can never pass the boundaries I set. ²³ But my people have stubborn and rebellious hearts. They have turned away and abandoned me. ²⁴ They do not say from the heart, 'Let us live in awe of the Lord our God, for he gives us rain each spring and fall, assuring us of a harvest when the time is right.'

²⁵ Your wickedness has deprived you of these wonderful blessings. Your sin has robbed you of all these good things. ²⁶ "Among my people are wicked men who lie in wait for victims like a hunter hiding in a blind. They continually set traps to catch people. ²⁷ Like a cage filled with birds, their homes are filled with evil plots. And now they are great and rich. ²⁸ They are fat and sleek, and there is no limit to their wicked deeds. They refuse to provide justice to orphans and deny the rights of the poor. ²⁹ Should I not punish them for this?" says the Lord . "Should I not avenge myself against such a nation? ³⁰ A horrible and shocking thing has happened in this land- ³¹ the prophets give false prophecies, and the priests rule with an iron hand. Worse yet, my people like it that way! But what will you do when the end comes?

The Doom of Jerusalem and Judah

6¹ "Run for your lives, you people of Benjamin! Get out of Jerusalem! Sound the alarm in Tekoa! Send up a signal at Beth-hakkerem! A powerful army is coming from the north, coming with disaster and destruction. ² O Jerusalem, you are my beautiful and delicate daughter- but I will destroy you! ³ Enemies will surround you, like shepherds camped around the city. Each chooses a place for his troops to devour. ⁴ They shout, 'Prepare for battle! Attack at noon!' 'No, it's too late; the day is fading, and the evening shadows are falling.' ⁵ 'Well then, let's attack at night and destroy her palaces!'" ⁶ This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says: "Cut down the trees for battering rams. Build siege ramps against the walls of Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished, for she is wicked through and through. ⁷ She spouts evil like a fountain. Her streets echo with the sounds of violence and destruction. I always see her sickness and sores. ⁸ Listen to this warning, Jerusalem, or I will turn from you in disgust. Listen, or I will turn you into a heap of ruins, a land where no one lives."

⁹ This is what the Lord of Heaven's Armies says: "Even the few who remain in Israel will be picked over again, as when a harvester checks each vine a second time to pick the grapes that were missed." ¹⁰ To whom can I give warning? Who will listen when I speak? Their ears are closed, and they cannot hear. They scorn the word of the Lord . They don't want to listen at all. ¹¹ So now I am filled with the Lord 's fury. Yes, I am tired of holding it in! "I will pour out my fury on children playing in the streets and on gatherings of young men, on husbands and wives and on those who are old and gray. ¹² Their homes will be turned over to their enemies, as will their fields and their wives. For I will raise my powerful fist against the people of this land," says the Lord . ¹³ "From the least to the greatest, their lives are ruled by greed. From prophets to priests, they are all frauds. ¹⁴ They offer superficial treatments for my people's mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace. ¹⁵ Are they ashamed of their disgusting actions? Not at all-they don't even know how to blush! Therefore, they will lie among the slaughtered. They will be brought down when I punish them," says the Lord . ¹⁶ This is what the Lord says: "Stop at the crossroads and look around. Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, 'No, that's not the road we want!' ¹⁷ I posted watchmen over you who said, 'Listen for the sound of the alarm.' But you replied, 'No! We won't pay attention!'

¹⁸ "Therefore, listen to this, all you nations. Take note of my people's situation. ¹⁹ Listen, all the earth! I will bring disaster on my people. It is the fruit of their own schemes, because they refuse to listen to me. They have rejected my word. ²⁰ There's no use offering me sweet frankincense from Sheba. Keep your fragrant calamus imported from distant lands! I will not accept your burnt offerings. Your sacrifices have no pleasing aroma for me." ²¹ Therefore, this is what the Lord says: "I will put obstacles in my people's path. Fathers and sons will both fall over them. Neighbors and friends will die together." ²² This is what the Lord says: "Look! A great army coming from the north! A great nation is rising against you from far-off lands. ²³ They are armed with bows and spears. They are cruel and show no mercy. They sound like a roaring sea as they ride forward on horses. They are coming in battle formation, planning to destroy you, beautiful Jerusalem. " ²⁴ We have heard reports about the enemy, and we wring our hands in fright. Pangs of anguish have gripped us, like those of a woman in labor. ²⁵ Don't go out to the fields! Don't travel on the roads! The enemy's sword is everywhere and terrorizes us at every turn! ²⁶ Oh, my people, dress yourselves in burlap and sit among the ashes. Mourn and weep bitterly, as for the loss of an only son. For suddenly the destroying armies will be upon you! ²⁷ "Jeremiah, I have made you a tester of metals, that you may determine the quality of my people. ²⁸ They are the worst kind of rebel, full of slander. They are as hard as bronze and iron, and they lead others into corruption. ²⁹ The bellows fiercely fan the flames to burn out the corruption. But it does not purify them, for the wickedness remains. ³⁰ I will label them 'Rejected Silver,' for I, the Lord, am discarding them."