Jeremiah 6
6
Impending Destruction from the North
1“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 #Neh. 3:14Beth Haccerem;
#Jer. 4:6For disaster appears out of the north,
And great destruction.
2I have likened the daughter of Zion
To a lovely and delicate woman.
3The #2 Kin. 25:1–4; Jer. 4:17; 12:10shepherds 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#Jer. 51:27; Joel 3:9 war against her;
Arise, and let us go up #Jer. 15:8; Zeph. 2:4at noon.
Woe to us, for the day goes away,
For the shadows of the evening are lengthening.
5Arise, and let us go by night,
And let us destroy her palaces.”
6For 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#Is. 57:20As a fountain wells up with water,
So she wells up with her wickedness.
#Ps. 55:9Violence and plundering are heard in her.
Before Me continually are grief and wounds.
8Be instructed, O Jerusalem,
Lest #Ezek. 23:18; Hos. 9:12My soul depart from you;
Lest I make you desolate,
A land not inhabited.”
9Thus 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.”
10To whom shall I speak and give warning,
That they may hear?
Indeed their #Ex. 6:12; Jer. 5:21; 7:26; (Acts 7:51)ear is uncircumcised,
And they cannot give heed.
Behold, #Jer. 8:9; 20:8the word of the Lord is a reproach to them;
They have no delight in it.
11Therefore I am full of the fury of the Lord.
#Jer. 20:9I am weary of holding it in.
“I will pour it out #Jer. 9:21on 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.
12And #Deut. 28:30; Jer. 8:10; 38:22their 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 #Is. 56:11; Jer. 8:10; 22:17covetousness;
And from the prophet even to the #Jer. 5:31; 23:11; Mic. 3:5, 11priest,
Everyone deals falsely.
14They have also #Jer. 8:11–15; Ezek. 13:10healed the hurt of My people slightly,
#Jer. 4:10; 23:17Saying, ‘Peace, peace!’
When there is no peace.
15Were they #Jer. 3:3; 8:12ashamed 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.
16Thus says the Lord:
“Stand in the ways and see,
And ask for the #Is. 8:20; Jer. 18:15; Mal. 4:4; Luke 16:29old paths, where the good way is,
And walk in it;
Then you will find #Matt. 11:29rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
17Also, I set #Is. 21:11; 58:1; Jer. 25:4; Ezek. 3:17; Hab. 2:1watchmen over you, saying,
#Deut. 4:1‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’
But they said, ‘We will not listen.’
18Therefore hear, you nations,
And know, O congregation, what is among them.
19#Is. 1:2Hear, O earth!
Behold, I will certainly bring #Jer. 19:3, 15calamity on this people—
#Prov. 1:31The fruit of their thoughts,
Because they have not heeded My words
Nor My law, but rejected it.
20#Ps. 40:6; 50:7–9; Is. 1:11; 66:3; Amos 5:21; Mic. 6:6, 7For what purpose to Me
Comes frankincense #Is. 60:6from Sheba,
And #Is. 43:24sweet cane from a far country?
#Jer. 7:21–23Your burnt offerings are not acceptable,
Nor your sacrifices sweet to Me.”
21Therefore 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.”
22Thus says the Lord:
“Behold, a people comes from the #Jer. 1:15; 10:22; 50:41–43north country,
And a great nation will be raised from the farthest parts of the earth.
23They will lay hold on bow and spear;
They are cruel and have no mercy;
Their voice #Is. 5:30roars like the sea;
And they ride on horses,
As men of war set in array against you, O daughter of Zion.”
24We have heard the report of it;
Our hands grow feeble.
#Jer. 4:31; 13:21; 49:24Anguish has taken hold of us,
Pain as of a woman in labor.
25Do not go out into the field,
Nor walk by the way.
Because of the sword of the enemy,
Fear is on every side.
26O daughter of my people,
#Jer. 4:8Dress in sackcloth
#Jer. 25:34; Mic. 1:10And roll about in ashes!
#Amos 8:10; (Zech. 12:10)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 #Jer. 1:18a fortress among My people,
That you may know and test their way.
28#Jer. 5:23They are all stubborn rebels, #Jer. 9:4walking as slanderers.
They are #Ezek. 22:18bronze and iron,
They are all corrupters;
29The bellows blow fiercely,
The lead is consumed by the fire;
The smelter refines in vain,
For the wicked are not drawn off.
30People will call them #Is. 1:22; Jer. 7:29rejected silver,
Because the Lord has rejected them.”
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Jeremiah 6: NKJV
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah 6
6
The Enemy Surrounds Jerusalem
1“Run for your lives, people of Benjamin!
Run away from the city of Jerusalem!
Blow the war trumpet in the city of Tekoa!
Put up the warning flag in the city of Beth Hakkerem!
Do these things because disaster is coming from the north.#6:1 north The Babylonian army came from this direction to attack Judah. Armies from countries north and east of Israel often came this way to attack Judah and Israel.
Terrible destruction is coming to you.
2Jerusalem,#6:2 Jerusalem Literally, “daughter Zion.” See “Zion” in the Word List. you are like a beautiful meadow.#6:2 you are like a beautiful meadow The Hebrew text here is hard to understand.
But I will destroy you!
3Enemy shepherds will surround you
with all their flocks.
They will set up their tents all around you,
and each one will let his sheep eat the grass.
4“Get ready to fight against Jerusalem.
Get up! We will attack the city at noon.
But it is already getting late.
The evening shadows are growing long.
5So get up! We will attack the city at night!
Let’s destroy the strong walls that are around Jerusalem.”
6This is what the Lord All-Powerful says:
“Cut down the trees around Jerusalem,
and build a siege mound#6:6 siege mound A large pile of dirt and rock that an army put against the wall of a city they were attacking. This made it easier for the enemy soldiers to climb over the wall into the city. against it.
This city should be punished
because inside there is no justice—only slavery.
7As a well keeps its water fresh,
so Jerusalem keeps its wickedness fresh.
I hear about the robbing and violence in this city all the time.
I see nothing but pain and sickness there all the time.
8Listen to this warning, Jerusalem,
or I will turn my back on you.
I will make your land an empty desert.
No one will be able to live there.”
9This is what the Lord All-Powerful says:
“Gather#6:9 Gather Or “glean.” There was a law that a farmer must leave some grain in his field during harvest, so that poor people and travelers could find something to eat. See Lev. 19:9; 23:22. the people of Israel who were left on their land.
Gather them the way you would gather the last grapes on a grapevine.
Check each vine,
like the workers check each vine when they pick the grapes.”
10Who can I speak to?
Who can I warn?
Who will listen to me?
The people of Israel have closed their ears,
so they cannot hear my warnings.
They don’t like the Lord’s teachings.
They don’t want to hear his message.
11But I am full of the Lord’s anger,
and I am tired of holding it in!
“Pour out my anger on the children playing in the streets
and on the young soldiers gathered there as well.
A man and his wife will both be captured
as well as all the old people.
12Their houses will be given to others.
Their fields and their wives will be given to other people.
I will raise my hand and punish the people of Judah.”
This message is from the Lord.
13“All the people of Israel want more and more money.
All of them, from the least important to the most important, are like that.
Even the prophets and priests tell lies.
14They should bandage the wounds my people have suffered,
but they treat their wounds like small scratches.
They say, ‘It’s all right, everything is all right.’
But it is not all right!
15They should be ashamed of the evil things they do,
but they are not ashamed at all.
They don’t know enough to be embarrassed by their sins.
So they will be punished with everyone else.
They will be thrown to the ground when I punish the people.”
This is what the Lord said.
16This is what the Lord says:
“Stand at the crossroads and look.
Ask where the old road is.
Ask where the good road is,
and walk on that road.
If you do, you will find rest for yourselves.
But you people have said, ‘We will not walk on the good road.’
17I chose watchmen to watch over you.
I told them, ‘Listen for the sound of the war trumpet.’
But they said, ‘We will not listen!’
18So listen, all you nations,
and pay attention, you people in those countries.#6:18 pay … countries The Hebrew text here is hard to understand.
19Hear this, people of the earth:
I am going to bring disaster to the people of Judah
because of all the evil they planned,
and because they ignored my messages.
They refused to obey my law.
20“Why do you bring me incense from the country of Sheba#6:20 Sheba A land south of Israel, located where part of Saudi Arabia is today. Sheba controlled the spice trade in the time of Jeremiah.?
Why do you bring me sweet-smelling cane from a faraway country?
Your burnt offerings don’t make me happy.
Your sacrifices don’t please me.”
21So this is what the Lord says:
“I will give the people of Judah problems.
They will be like stones that make people fall.
Fathers and sons will stumble over them.
Friends and neighbors will die.”
22This is what the Lord says:
“An army is coming from the north.#6:22 north The Babylonian army came from this direction to attack Judah. Armies from countries north and east of Israel often came this way to attack Judah and Israel.
A great nation is coming from faraway places on earth.
23The soldiers carry bows and spears.
They are cruel; they have no mercy.
They are so powerful.
They sound like the roaring ocean as they ride their horses.
That army is coming, ready for battle.
It is coming to attack you, Jerusalem.#6:23 Jerusalem Literally, “daughter Zion.” See “Zion” in the Word List.”
24We have heard the news about that army,
and we are paralyzed with fear.
We feel trapped by our troubles,
in pain like a woman giving birth.
25Don’t go out into the fields.
Don’t go on the roads
because the enemy has swords,
and there is danger everywhere.
26My people, put on sackcloth
and roll in the ashes.#6:26 roll in the ashes This is one way people showed that they were sad or crying for a dead person.
Cry loudly for the dead.
Cry as if you lost an only son.
Do this because the destroyer
will come against us very quickly.
27“Jeremiah, I want you to be
like a worker who tests metals.
You will test my people
and watch how they live.
28My people have turned against me,
and they are very stubborn.
They say bad things about people.
They are like bronze and iron
that are covered with rust and tarnish.
29 They are like a worker who tried to make silver pure.
The bellows#6:29 bellows A tool for blowing air on a fire to make the fire hotter. blew strongly, and the fire became hotter,
but only lead came from the fire.#6:29 lead came from the fire Workers melted metals like silver to make the metals pure. Lead was the first metal to melt, so the workers poured the lead out, leaving the other metal pure. Here, Jeremiah is saying the people are all bad—they are all lead and no silver!
The worker wasted his time
trying to make that silver pure.
In the same way the evil was not removed from my people.
30My people will be called ‘Rejected Silver.’
They will be given that name because the Lord did not accept them.”
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