Jeremiah 5
5
The Sins of Judah
1“Run up and down every street in Jerusalem,” says the Lord.
“Look high and low; search throughout the city!
If you can find even one just and honest person,
I will not destroy the city.
2But even when they are under oath,
saying, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’
they are still telling lies!”
3 Lord, you are searching for honesty.
You struck your people,
but they paid no attention.
You crushed them,
but they refused to be corrected.
They are determined, with faces set like stone;
they have refused to repent.
4Then I said, “But what can we expect from the poor?
They are ignorant.
They don’t know the ways of the Lord.
They don’t understand God’s laws.
5So I will go and speak to their leaders.
Surely they know the ways of the Lord
and understand God’s laws.”
But the leaders, too, as one man,
had thrown off God’s yoke
and broken his chains.
6So now a lion from the forest will attack them;
a wolf from the desert will pounce on them.
A leopard will lurk near their towns,
tearing apart any who dare to venture out.
For their rebellion is great,
and their sins are many.
7“How can I pardon you?
For even your children have turned from me.
They have sworn by gods that are not gods at all!
I fed my people until they were full.
But they thanked me by committing adultery
and lining up at the brothels.
8They are well-fed, lusty stallions,
each neighing for his neighbor’s wife.
9Should I not punish them for this?” says the Lord.
“Should I not avenge myself against such a nation?
10“Go down the rows of the vineyards and destroy the grapevines,
leaving a scattered few alive.
Strip the branches from the vines,
for these people do not belong to the Lord.
11The people of Israel and Judah
are full of treachery against me,”
says the Lord.
12“They have lied about the Lord
and said, ‘He won’t bother us!
No disasters will come upon us.
There will be no war or famine.
13God’s prophets are all windbags
who don’t really speak for him.
Let their predictions of disaster fall on themselves!’”
14Therefore, this is what the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies says:
“Because the people are talking like this,
my messages will flame out of your mouth
and burn the people like kindling wood.
15O Israel, I will bring a distant nation against you,”
says the Lord.
“It is a mighty nation,
an ancient nation,
a people whose language you do not know,
whose speech you cannot understand.
16Their weapons are deadly;
their warriors are mighty.
17They will devour the food of your harvest;
they will devour your sons and daughters.
They will devour your flocks and herds;
they will devour your grapes and figs.
And they will destroy your fortified towns,
which you think are so safe.
18“Yet even in those days I will not blot you out completely,” says the Lord. 19“And when your people ask, ‘Why did the Lord our God do all this to us?’ you must reply, ‘You rejected him and gave yourselves to foreign gods in your own land. Now you will serve foreigners in a land that is not your own.’
A Warning for God’s People
20“Make this announcement to Israel,#5:20 Hebrew to the house of Jacob. The names “Jacob” and “Israel” are often interchanged throughout the Old Testament, referring sometimes to the individual patriarch and sometimes to the nation.
and say this to Judah:
21Listen, you foolish and senseless people,
with eyes that do not see
and ears that do not hear.
22Have you no respect for me?
Why don’t you tremble in my presence?
I, the Lord, define the ocean’s sandy shoreline
as an everlasting boundary that the waters cannot cross.
The waves may toss and roar,
but they can never pass the boundaries I set.
23But my people have stubborn and rebellious hearts.
They have turned away and abandoned me.
24They do not say from the heart,
‘Let us live in awe of the Lord our God,
for he gives us rain each spring and fall,
assuring us of a harvest when the time is right.’
25Your wickedness has deprived you of these wonderful blessings.
Your sin has robbed you of all these good things.
26“Among my people are wicked men
who lie in wait for victims like a hunter hiding in a blind.
They continually set traps
to catch people.
27Like a cage filled with birds,
their homes are filled with evil plots.
And now they are great and rich.
28They are fat and sleek,
and there is no limit to their wicked deeds.
They refuse to provide justice to orphans
and deny the rights of the poor.
29Should I not punish them for this?” says the Lord.
“Should I not avenge myself against such a nation?
30A horrible and shocking thing
has happened in this land—
31the prophets give false prophecies,
and the priests rule with an iron hand.
Worse yet, my people like it that way!
But what will you do when the end comes?
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Jeremiah 5: NLT
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Jeremiah 5
5
God’s Just Judgment
1Roam the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares! If you can find a person, if there is one who does justice, who seeks truth, then I will pardon the city.
2Though they say, “As Adonai lives!” surely they swear falsely.
3Adonai, do Your eyes not look for faithfulness? You struck them, but they did not grieve. You disciplined them, but they refused correction. They made their faces harder than stone. They refused to return.
4Then I said: These are only the poor. They are foolish. For they do not know the way of Adonai, the ordinance of their God.
5I will go to the distinguished and speak to them. Surely they know the way of Adonai, the ordinance of their God. But they too had broken the yoke and torn off the bonds.
6Therefore a lion from the forest will kill them. A desert wolf will ravage them. A leopard watches over their cities. Everyone who ventures out will be torn to pieces, For their rebellion is great, their backslidings frequent.
7“Why therefore should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by those who are not gods. Even though I fed them well, they committed adultery and thronged to the prostitute houses.
8They are well-fed, lustful stallions, each neighing for his neighbor’s wife.
9For such, should I not punish them?” It is a declaration of Adonai. “On such a nation as this should I not avenge Myself?
10Go up into her vines and ravage them, but do not completely destroy them. Strip away her branches for they are not Adonai’s.
11For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have been utterly unfaithful to Me.” It is a declaration of Adonai.
12They have lied about Adonai saying: “Not He! No harm will come to us. Nor will we see sword or famine.
13The prophets are but wind and the word is not in them. Let what they say be done to them!”
14Therefore thus says Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot: “Because you speak this word, behold, I will make My words in your mouth fire and this people wood— and it will devour them.
15See, I am bringing a nation against you from afar, O house of Israel.” It is a declaration of Adonai. “It is an enduring nation, an ancient nation, a nation whose language you neither know nor understand what they say.
16Their quiver is an open grave. They are all mighty warriors.
17They will devour your harvest and your food. They will devour your sons and your daughters. They will devour your flocks and your herds. They will devour your vines and your fig trees. They will demolish your fortified cities —the ones in which you trust— with the sword.
18“Yet even in those days,” declares Adonai, “I will not completely destroy you.
19So it will come to pass that when you ask, ‘Why has Adonai Eloheinu done all these things to us?’ you will tell them, ‘As you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so will you serve strangers in a land that is not yours.’
20“Declare this in the house of Jacob and proclaim it in Judah, saying:
21‘Hear this you foolish people who have no understanding, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.
22Do you not fear Me?’ says Adonai. ‘Do you not tremble in My presence?’ For I made the sand a boundary of the sea, an everlasting decree that cannot be broken. Though the waves roll, they cannot prevail. Though they roar, they cannot cross it.
23But this people have a stubborn and rebellious heart. They have turned aside and gone away.
24They do not say in their heart, ‘Let us now fear Adonai Eloheinu, who gives rain in its season —fall rain and spring rain— who reserves for us the appointed weeks of harvest.’
25Your iniquities have turned these away, your sins have deprived you of bounty.
26For among My people are wicked men, watching like bait-layers lying in wait. They set a trap—they catch men.
27As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit. That is why they grew great and rich.
28They grew fat and sleek. They also overlooked evil deeds. They do not uphold a cause— the cause of an orphan to prosper— nor do they defend the right of the poor.
29Should I not punish them?” says Adonai. “On such a nation should I not avenge Myself?
30An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land.
31The prophets prophesy falsely, the kohanim rule by their own authority, and My people love it this way! But what will you do in the end?”
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