Jeremiah 15
15
Judah’s Inevitable Doom
1Then the Lord said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for these people, I wouldn’t help them. Away with them! Get them out of my sight! 2And if they say to you, ‘But where can we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘Those who are destined for death, to death;
those who are destined for war, to war;
those who are destined for famine, to famine;
those who are destined for captivity, to captivity.’
3“I will send four kinds of destroyers against them,” says the Lord. “I will send the sword to kill, the dogs to drag away, the vultures to devour, and the wild animals to finish up what is left. 4Because of the wicked things Manasseh son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem, I will make my people an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
5“Who will feel sorry for you, Jerusalem?
Who will weep for you?
Who will even bother to ask how you are?
6You have abandoned me
and turned your back on me,”
says the Lord.
“Therefore, I will raise my fist to destroy you.
I am tired of always giving you another chance.
7I will winnow you like grain at the gates of your cities
and take away the children you hold dear.
I will destroy my own people,
because they refuse to change their evil ways.
8There will be more widows
than the grains of sand on the seashore.
At noontime I will bring a destroyer
against the mothers of young men.
I will cause anguish and terror
to come upon them suddenly.
9The mother of seven grows faint and gasps for breath;
her sun has gone down while it is still day.
She sits childless now,
disgraced and humiliated.
And I will hand over those who are left
to be killed by the enemy.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”
Jeremiah’s Complaint
10Then I said,
“What sorrow is mine, my mother.
Oh, that I had died at birth!
I am hated everywhere I go.
I am neither a lender who threatens to foreclose
nor a borrower who refuses to pay—
yet they all curse me.”
11The Lord replied,
“I will take care of you, Jeremiah.
Your enemies will ask you to plead on their behalf
in times of trouble and distress.
12Can a man break a bar of iron from the north,
or a bar of bronze?
13At no cost to them,
I will hand over your wealth and treasures
as plunder to your enemies,
for sin runs rampant in your land.
14I will tell your enemies to take you
as captives to a foreign land.
For my anger blazes like a fire
that will burn forever.#15:14 As in some Hebrew manuscripts (see also 17:4); most Hebrew manuscripts read will burn against you.”
15Then I said,
“Lord, you know what’s happening to me.
Please step in and help me. Punish my persecutors!
Please give me time; don’t let me die young.
It’s for your sake that I am suffering.
16When I discovered your words, I devoured them.
They are my joy and my heart’s delight,
for I bear your name,
O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies.
17I never joined the people in their merry feasts.
I sat alone because your hand was on me.
I was filled with indignation at their sins.
18Why then does my suffering continue?
Why is my wound so incurable?
Your help seems as uncertain as a seasonal brook,
like a spring that has gone dry.”
19This is how the Lord responds:
“If you return to me, I will restore you
so you can continue to serve me.
If you speak good words rather than worthless ones,
you will be my spokesman.
You must influence them;
do not let them influence you!
20They will fight against you like an attacking army,
but I will make you as secure as a fortified wall of bronze.
They will not conquer you,
for I am with you to protect and rescue you.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
21Yes, I will certainly keep you safe from these wicked men.
I will rescue you from their cruel hands.”
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Jeremiah 15: NLT
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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Jeremiah 15
15
1The Lord said to me: Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me, my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them away from me and let them go.#Ps 99:6; Ez 14:14, 16. 2If they ask you, “Where should we go?” tell them, Thus says the Lord: Whoever is marked for death, to death; whoever is marked for the sword, to the sword; whoever is marked for famine, to famine; whoever is marked for captivity, to captivity.#Jer 14:12; Ez 5:12. 3Four kinds of scourge I have decreed against them—oracle of the Lord—the sword to kill them; dogs to drag them off; the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy them.#Ez 14:21. 4And I will make them an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh, son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem.#Jer 24:9; 2 Kgs 21:11–16; 23:26; 24:3–4.
Scene of Tragedy
5Who will pity you, Jerusalem,
who will grieve for you?
Who will stop to ask
about your welfare?#Is 51:19.
6It is you who have disowned me—oracle of the Lord—
turned your back upon me;
I stretched out my hand to destroy you,
because I was weary of relenting.#Am 7:8.
7I winnowed them with a winnowing fork
at the gates of the land;
I have bereaved, destroyed my people;
they have not turned from their evil ways.#Is 41:16.
8Their widows were more numerous before me
than the sands of the sea.
I brought against the mother of youths
the destroyer at midday;
Suddenly I struck her
with anguish and terror.
9The mother of seven faints away,
breathing out her life;
Her sun sets in full day,
she is ashamed, abashed.
Their survivors I will give to the sword
in the presence of their enemies—oracle of the Lord.#1 Sm 2:5.
Jeremiah’s Complaint
10Woe to me, my mother, that you gave me birth!
a man of strife and contention to all the land!
I neither borrow nor lend,
yet everyone curses me.#Jer 20:14.
11Tell me, Lord, have I not served you for their good?
Have I not interceded with you
in time of misfortune and anguish?#Jer 39:11–14.
12Can one break iron,
iron from the north, and bronze?
13#Though the wording of these verses is close to that in 17:3–4, the present passage is evidently God’s word to Jeremiah, whereas 17:3–4 is evidently a word of judgment on Judah. It is noteworthy that the references to “you” in the present passage are singular, until a shift to plural in “against you” in the last line; this “you” is then doubtless a reference to both the prophet and his enemies. Your wealth and your treasures
I give as plunder, demanding no payment,
because of all your sins, throughout all your territory.
14And I shall enslave you to your enemies
in a land you do not know,
For fire has broken out from my anger,
it is kindled against you.
15You know, Lord:
Remember me and take care of me,
avenge me on my persecutors.
Because you are slow to anger, do not banish me;
know that for you I have borne insult.#Jer 11:20; 12:3; Ps 69:8.
16When I found your words, I devoured them;
your words were my joy, the happiness of my heart,
Because I bear your name,
Lord, God of hosts.
17I did not sit celebrating
in the circle of merrymakers;
Under the weight of your hand I sat alone
because you filled me with rage.#Ps 25:4.
18Why is my pain continuous,
my wound incurable, refusing to be healed?
To me you are like a deceptive brook,
waters that cannot be relied on!#Jer 14:19; 30:15.
19Thus the Lord answered me:
If you come back and I take you back,
in my presence you shall stand;
If you utter what is precious and not what is worthless,
you shall be my mouth.
Then they will be the ones who turn to you,
not you who turn to them.
20And I will make you toward this people
a fortified wall of bronze.
Though they fight against you,
they shall not prevail,
For I am with you,
to save and rescue you—oracle of the Lord.#Jer 1:18; 6:27.
21I will rescue you from the hand of the wicked,
and ransom you from the power of the violent.
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