Jeremiah 4
4
1“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.
2Then 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.”
Coming Judgment against Judah
3This 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.
4O people of Judah and Jerusalem,
surrender your pride and power.
Change your hearts before the Lord,#4:4 Hebrew Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away the foreskins of your heart.
or my anger will burn like an unquenchable fire
because of all your sins.
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!’
6Raise a signal flag as a warning for Jerusalem#4:6 Hebrew Zion.:
‘Flee now! Do not delay!’
For I am bringing terrible destruction upon you
from the north.”
7A 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.
8So 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.”
10Then 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!”
11The 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.
12It is a roaring blast sent by me!
Now I will pronounce your destruction!”
13Our 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!
14O Jerusalem, cleanse your heart
that you may be saved.
How long will you harbor
your evil thoughts?
15Your 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.
17They 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!”
Jeremiah Weeps for His People
19My 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.
20Waves of destruction roll over the land,
until it lies in complete desolation.
Suddenly my tents are destroyed;
in a moment my shelters are crushed.
21How 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!”
Jeremiah’s Vision of Coming Disaster
23I looked at the earth, and it was empty and formless.
I looked at the heavens, and there was no light.
24I looked at the mountains and hills,
and they trembled and shook.
25I looked, and all the people were gone.
All the birds of the sky had flown away.
26I looked, and the fertile fields had become a wilderness.
The towns lay in ruins,
crushed by the Lord’s fierce anger.
27This is what the Lord says:
“The whole land will be ruined,
but I will not destroy it completely.
28The 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.”
29At 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!
30What 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.
31I 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#4:31 Hebrew the daughter of Zion.
gasping for breath and crying out,
“Help! I’m being murdered!”
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Jeremiah 4: NLT
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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Jeremiah 4
4
1The Lord declares,
“If you come back, Israel,
if you come back to me,
if you take your disgusting idols out of my sight
and you don’t wander away from me,
2if you take the oath, ‘As the Lord lives …’
in an honest, fair, and right way,
then the nations will be blessed,
and they will be honored by me.”
The LORD Will Bring Destruction on Judah from the North
3This is what the Lord says to the people of Judah and to Jerusalem:
Plow your unplowed fields,
and don’t plant among thorns.
4Be circumcised by the Lord,
and get rid of the foreskins of your hearts,
people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem.
If you don’t, my fury will flare up like a fire.
It will burn, and no one will be able to put it out,
because of the evil you do.
5Report this message in Judah.
Make it heard in Jerusalem.
Say, “Blow the ram’s horn throughout the land.”
Shout loudly and say, “Gather together!
Let’s go into the fortified cities.”
6Raise the flag to signal people to go to Zion.
Take cover!
Don’t just stand there!
I’m bringing disaster and widespread destruction from the north.
7A lion has come out of its lair.
A destroyer of nations has set out.
He has left his place to destroy your land.
Your cities will be ruined, and no one will live in them.
8So put on sackcloth, mourn, and cry
because the Lord’s burning anger hasn’t turned away from us.
9“When that day comes,” declares the Lord,
“the king and the leaders will lose their courage.
The priests will be stunned.
The prophets will be amazed and astonished.”
10I said, “Almighty Lord,
you certainly have deceived these people and Jerusalem.
You said that everything would go well for them,
but a sword is held at their throats.”
11At that time it will be said to these people and to Jerusalem:
“A hot wind from the heights will blow in the desert
on the tracks of my people.
It will not be a wind that winnows #4:11 Winnowing is the process of separating husks from grain. or cleanses.
12It will be a stronger wind than that.
It will come from me.
Now, I will pass sentence on them.”
13The enemy comes up like clouds.
His chariots are like a raging wind.
His horses are faster than eagles.
How horrible it will be for us! We will be destroyed!
14Jerusalem, wash the evil from your heart
so that you may be rescued.
Don’t continue making evil plans.
15A message is heard from Dan,
and a report of disaster comes from the mountains of Ephraim.
16Warn the nations about these things.
Bring them to the attention of Jerusalem.
“Hostile troops are coming from a distant country.
They are shouting battle cries against the cities of Judah.
17They surround them like men guarding a field,
because Judah has rebelled against me,”
declares the Lord.
18“You brought this on yourself.
This is your punishment.
It is bitter.
It breaks your heart.”
19My anguish, my anguish!
I writhe in pain.
My heart is beating wildly!
My heart is pounding!
I can’t keep quiet
because I hear a ram’s horn sounding the alarm for war.
20One disaster follows another.
The whole land is ruined.
My tents are suddenly destroyed.
Their curtains are torn in an instant.
21How long must I see the battle flag and hear the sound of rams’ horns?
22“My people are fools. They don’t know me.
They are stupid people. They don’t understand.
They are experts in doing wrong,
and they don’t know how to do good.”
23I see the earth. It’s formless and empty.
I see the sky. Its lights are gone.
24I see the mountains. They are shaking,
and the hills are swaying.
25I see that there are no people,
and every bird has flown away.
26I see that the fertile land has become a desert,
and all its cities are torn down
because of the Lord and his burning anger.
27This is what the Lord says:
The whole earth will be ruined,
although I will not destroy it completely.
28The earth will mourn, and the sky will grow black.
I have spoken, and I have planned it.
I won’t change my plans, and I won’t turn back.
29All the people in the city will flee
at the sound of riders and archers.
They will go off into the thickets
and climb among the rocks.
The entire city will be abandoned, and no one will live in it.
30You are going to be destroyed!
What are you going to do?
Why do you dress in red and put on gold jewelry?
Why do you wear eye shadow?
You are making yourself beautiful for nothing.
Your lovers reject you; they want to kill you.
31I hear a woman in labor.
I hear the woman cry with anguish as she gives birth to her first child.
My people Zion are gasping for breath.
They are stretching out their hands, saying,
“How horrible it is for us!
We’re defenseless in the presence of murderers!”
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