Jeremiah 4
4
1“If you will return, O Israel,” says the Lord,
#Jer. 3:1, 22; 15:19; Joel 2:12“Return to Me;
And if you will put away your abominations out of My sight,
Then you shall not be moved.
2#Deut. 10:20; Is. 45:23; 65:16; Jer. 12:16And you shall swear, ‘The Lord lives,’
#Is. 48:1; Zech. 8:8In truth, in judgment, and in righteousness;
#(Gen. 22:18); Ps. 72:18; Is. 65:16; Jer. 3:17; (Gal. 3:8)The nations shall bless themselves in Him,
And in Him they shall #Is. 45:25; Jer. 9:24; 1 Cor. 1:31; 2 Cor. 10:17glory.”
3For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:
#Hos. 10:12“Break up your fallow ground,
And #Matt. 13:7do not sow among thorns.
4#Deut. 10:16; 30:6; Jer. 9:25, 26; (Rom. 2:28, 29; Col. 2:11)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.”
An Imminent Invasion
5Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say:
#Jer. 6:1; Hos. 8:1“Blow the trumpet in the land;
Cry, ‘Gather together,’
And say, #Josh. 10:20; Jer. 8:14‘Assemble yourselves,
And let us go into the fortified cities.’
6Set up the standard toward Zion.
Take refuge! Do not delay!
For I will bring disaster from the #Jer. 1:13–15; 6:1, 22; 50:17north,
And great destruction.”
7#2 Kin. 24:1; Dan. 7:4The lion has come up from his thicket,
And #Jer. 25:9; Ezek. 26:7–10the destroyer of nations is on his way.
He has gone forth from his place
#Is. 1:7; 6:11; Jer. 2:15To make your land desolate.
Your cities will be laid waste,
Without inhabitant.
8For this, #Is. 22:12; Jer. 6:26clothe 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.”
10Then I said, “Ah, Lord God!
#2 Kin. 25:10–12; Ezek. 14:9; 2 Thess. 2:11Surely You have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem,
#Jer. 5:12; 14:13Saying, ‘You shall have peace,’
Whereas the sword reaches to the heart.”
11At that time it will be said
To this people and to Jerusalem,
#Jer. 51:1; Ezek. 17:10; Hos. 13:15“A dry wind of the desolate heights blows in the wilderness
Toward the daughter of My people—
Not to fan or to cleanse—
12A wind too strong for these will come for Me;
Now #Jer. 1:16I will also speak judgment against them.”
13“Behold, he shall come up like clouds,
And #Is. 5:28his chariots like a whirlwind.
#Deut. 28:49; Lam. 4:19; Hos. 8:1; Hab. 1:8His horses are swifter than eagles.
Woe to us, for we are plundered!”
14O Jerusalem, #Prov. 1:22; Is. 1:16; Jer. 13:27; James 4:8wash your heart from wickedness,
That you may be saved.
How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you?
15For a voice declares #Jer. 8:16; 50:17from Dan
And proclaims affliction from Mount Ephraim:
16“Make mention to the nations,
Yes, proclaim against Jerusalem,
That watchers come from a #Is. 39:3; Jer. 5:15far country
And raise their voice against the cities of Judah.
17#2 Kin. 25:1, 4Like keepers of a field they are against her all around,
Because she has been rebellious against Me,” says the Lord.
18“Your#Ps. 107:17; Is. 50:1; Jer. 2:17, 19 ways and your doings
Have procured these things for you.
This is your wickedness,
Because it is bitter,
Because it reaches to your heart.”
Sorrow for the Doomed Nation
19O my #2 Kin. 25:11; 2 Chr. 36:20; Is. 15:5; 16:11; 21:3; 22:4; Jer. 9:1, 10; 20:9soul, 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#Ps. 42:7; Ezek. 7:26Destruction upon destruction is cried,
For the whole land is plundered.
Suddenly #Jer. 10:20my tents are plundered,
And my curtains in a moment.
21How 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.
#Jer. 9:3; 13:23; Rom. 16:19; 1 Cor. 14:20They are wise to do evil,
But to do good they have no knowledge.”
23#Is. 24:19I beheld the earth, and indeed it was #Gen. 1:2without form, and void;
And the heavens, they had no light.
24#Is. 5:25; Jer. 10:10; Ezek. 38:20I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled,
And all the hills moved back and forth.
25I beheld, and indeed there was no man,
And #Jer. 9:10; 12:4; Zeph. 1:3all the birds of the heavens had fled.
26I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a #Jer. 9:10wilderness,
And all its cities were broken down
At the presence of the Lord,
By His fierce anger.
27For thus says the Lord:
“The whole land shall be desolate;
#Jer. 5:10, 18; 30:11; 46:28Yet I will not make a full end.
28For this #Jer. 12:4, 11; 14:2; Hos. 4:3shall the earth mourn,
And #Is. 5:30; 50:3; Joel 2:30, 31the heavens above be black,
Because I have spoken.
I have #Is. 46:10, 11; (Dan. 4:35)purposed and #(Num. 23:19); Jer. 7:16; 23:30; 30:24will not relent,
Nor will I turn back from it.
29The 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,
#2 Kin. 9:30; Ezek. 23:40Though you enlarge your eyes with paint,
In vain you will make yourself fair;
#Jer. 22:20, 22; Lam. 1:2, 19; Ezek. 23:9, 10, 22Your 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 #Is. 1:15; Lam. 1:17spreads her hands, saying,
‘Woe is me now, for my soul is weary
Because of murderers!’
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Jeremiah 4: NKJV
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah 4
4
Judah Threatened with Invasion
1If you will return, O Israel, # Jer 3:22; Joel 2:12
says the Lord,
return to Me.
And if you will put away your abominations out of My sight,
then you shall not be moved.
2You shall swear, “As the Lord lives,”
in truth, in justice, and in righteousness;
then the nations shall bless themselves in Him, # Ge 22:18; Isa 65:16
and in Him they shall glory. # Jer 9:24
3For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:
Break up your fallow ground, # Hos 10:12
and do not sow among thorns. # Mt 13:7
4Circumcise yourselves to the Lord,
and take away the foreskins of your heart, # Dt 10:16; Jer 9:26
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 deeds.
5Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say:
Blow the trumpet in the land.
Cry aloud and say,
“Assemble yourselves,
and let us go into the fortified cities.” # Jos 10:20; Jer 8:14
6Set up the standard toward Zion. # Jer 50:2
Seek refuge, do not delay.
For I will bring disaster from the north,
and a great destruction. # Jer 1:13–15
7The lion has come up from his thicket,
and the destroyer of the nations is on his way.
He has gone forth from his place
to make your land desolate.
And your cities shall be laid waste
without an inhabitant. # Isa 1:7; Jer 2:15
8For this gird yourself with sackcloth,
lament and howl. # Isa 22:12; Jer 6:26
For the fierce anger of the Lord
is not turned back from us.
9It shall come to pass in that day, says the Lord,
that the heart of the king will fail and the heart of the officials;
and the priests will be astonished
and the prophets will wonder. # Isa 29:9–10
10Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Surely You have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘You shall have peace,’ whereas the sword reaches the throat.” # Jer 5:12
11At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem: A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness # Eze 17:10; Hos 13:15 toward the daughter of My people, not to fan or to cleanse, 12even a full wind from those places, will come to Me. Now also I will pronounce judgments against them. # Jer 1:16
13Behold, he shall come up as clouds, # Isa 19:1
and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind. # Isa 5:28
His horses are swifter than eagles.
Woe to us, for we are ruined!
14O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, # Jas 4:8 that you may be saved.
How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you? # Pr 1:22
15For a voice declares from Dan, # Jer 8:16
and proclaims wickedness from Mount Ephraim:
16“Report it to the nations, now!”
Indeed, proclaim against Jerusalem:
“Besiegers come from a far country, # Jer 5:15
and lift their voices against the cities of Judah. # Eze 21:22
17As watchmen of a field, they are against her all around, # 2Ki 25:1–4
because she has been rebellious against Me, # Jer 5:23
says the Lord.
18Your way and your deeds
have procured these things to you. # Ps 107:17; Isa 50:1
This is your wickedness.
How bitter it is! # Jer 2:19
How it touches your heart!”
Sorrow for a Doomed Nation
19My soul, my soul!
I am pained at my very heart. # Isa 22:4
My heart makes a noise in me. # Isa 16:11
I cannot hold my peace,
because you have heard, O my soul,
the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
20Destruction upon destruction is proclaimed, # Ps 42:7
for the whole land is devastated.
Suddenly are my tents devastated,
and my curtains in a moment.
21How long shall I see the standard
and hear the sound of the trumpet?
22“For My people are foolish,
they have not known Me.
They are foolish children, # 1Co 14:20
and they have no understanding.
They are wise to do evil,
but to do good they have no knowledge.” # Ro 16:19
23I looked on the earth,
And behold, it was without form and void. # Ge 1:2
And to the heavens,
and they had no light. # Isa 5:30
24I looked on the mountains,
and behold, they trembled, # Isa 5:25; Eze 38:20
and all the hills moved to and fro.
25I looked, and behold, there was no man,
and all the birds of the heavens had fled.
26I looked, and behold, the fruitful place was a wilderness, # Ps 107:34
and all the cities were broken down
at the presence of the Lord, and by His fierce anger.
27For thus says the Lord:
The whole land shall be desolate.
Yet I will not make a full end. # Jer 5:10, 18
28For this the earth shall mourn,
and the heavens above be black, # Isa 50:3
because I have spoken it, I have purposed it,
and will not relent, nor will I turn back from it. # Nu 23:19
29The whole city shall flee
for the noise of the horsemen and bowmen.
They shall go into thickets
and climb up upon the rocks. # Isa 2:19–21
Every city shall be forsaken,
and not a man dwell in it. # Jer 4:7
30When you are devastated, what will you do?
Though you clothe yourself with crimson,
though you deck yourself with ornaments of gold,
though you enlarge your eyes with paint, # 2Ki 9:30
in vain you will make yourself fair.
Your lovers will despise you;
they will seek your life. # La 1:2
31For I have heard a voice as of a woman in labor,
and the anguish as of her who brings forth her first child,
the voice of the daughter of Zion,
that bewails herself, that spreads her hands, # Isa 1:15; La 1:17 saying,
“Ah, woe is me,
for my soul is wearied because of murderers.”
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The Holy Bible, Modern English Version
Copyright © 2024, 2017, 2014 by United Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House. All rights reserved.