Jeremiah 18
18
Jeremiah 18
1¶ The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,
2Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.
3Then I went down to the potter’s house; and, behold, he wrought a work upon a wheel.
4And the vessel that he made of clay was broken in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
5Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
6O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in my hand, O house of Israel.
7In an instant I shall speak against Gentiles and against kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down and to destroy.
8But if these Gentiles shall turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.
9And in an instant I shall speak concerning the nation and concerning the kingdom, to build and to plant it;
10but if it should do evil in my sight, not hearing my voice, then I will repent of the good that I had determined to do unto them.
11¶ Now therefore, speak to every man of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus hath the Lord said: Behold, I ordain evil against you and devise plans against you; return ye now each one from his evil way, and better your ways and your doings.
12And they said, This is useless, for we must walk after our own devices, and we must each one do the imagination of his evil heart.
13Therefore thus hath the Lord said; Ask now among the Gentiles, who has heard such things: the virgin of Israel has done a very horrible thing.
14Will anyone leave the snow of the rock of the field that flows from Lebanon? or shall they forsake the singular, cold, flowing waters?
15Because my people have forgotten me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have caused themselves to stumble in their ways, in the ancient paths, to walk in paths, in a way not trodden;
16to make their land desolate, and a perpetual hissing; every one that passes thereby shall be astonished and wag his head.
17I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their perdition.
18¶ Then they said, Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, and let us not consider any of his words.
19Consider me, O Lord, and hear the voice of those that contend with me.
20Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they have dug a pit for my soul. Remember that I stood before thee to speak good for them and to turn away thy wrath from them.
21Therefore deliver up their sons to the famine, and pour out their blood by the force of the sword; and let their wives be bereaved of their children, and be widows; and let their men be put to death; let their young men be slain by the sword in battle.
22Let a cry be heard from their houses, when thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them; for they have dug a pit to take me and hid snares for my feet.
23Yet, Lord, thou dost know all their counsel against me to slay me; do not forgive their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from thy sight, but let them be overthrown before thee; deal thus with them in the time of thine anger.
Currently Selected:
Jeremiah 18: JUB
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
The Jubilee Bible 2000 (JUB) by Ransom Press International
Jeremiah 18
18
Jeremiah at the Potter's House
1The LORD said to me, 2“Go down to the potter's house, where I will give you my message.” 3So I went there and saw the potter working at his wheel. 4Whenever a piece of pottery turned out imperfect, he would take the clay and make it into something else.
5Then the LORD said to me, 6“Haven't I the right to do with you people of Israel what the potter did with the clay? You are in my hands just like clay in the potter's hands. 7If at any time I say that I am going to uproot, break down, or destroy any nation or kingdom, 8but then that nation turns from its evil, I will not do what I said I would. 9On the other hand, if I say that I am going to plant or build up any nation or kingdom, 10but then that nation disobeys me and does evil, I will not do what I said I would. 11Now then, tell the people of Judah and of Jerusalem that I am making plans against them and getting ready to punish them. Tell them to stop living sinful lives — to change their ways and the things they are doing. 12They will answer, ‘No, why should we? We will all be just as stubborn and evil as we want to be.’ ”
The People Reject the LORD
13The LORD says,
“Ask every nation if such a thing
has ever happened before.
The people of Israel have done a terrible thing!
14Are Lebanon's rocky heights ever without snow?
Do its cool mountain streams ever run dry?
15Yet my people have forgotten me;
they burn incense to idols.
They have stumbled in the way they should go,
they no longer follow the old ways;
they walk on unmarked paths.
16They have made this land a thing of horror,
to be despised for ever.
All who pass by will be shocked at what they see;
they will shake their heads in amazement.
17I will scatter my people before their enemies,
like dust blown by the east wind.
I will turn my back on them;
I will not help them when the disaster comes.”
A Plot against Jeremiah
18Then the people said, “Let's do something about Jeremiah! There will always be priests to instruct us, the wise to give us counsel, and prophets to proclaim God's message. Let's bring charges against him, and stop listening to what he says.”
19So I prayed, “LORD, hear what I am saying and listen to what my enemies are saying about me. 20Is evil the payment for good? Yet they have dug a pit for me to fall in. Remember how I came to you and spoke on their behalf, so that you would not deal with them in anger. 21But now, LORD, let their children starve to death; let them be killed in war. Let the women lose their husbands and children; let the men die of disease and the young men be killed in battle. 22Send a mob to plunder their homes without warning; make them cry out in terror. They have dug a pit for me to fall in and have set traps to catch me. 23But, LORD, you know all their plots to kill me. Do not forgive their evil or pardon their sin. Throw them down in defeat and deal with them while you are angry.”
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.