Jeremiah 13
13
A Linen Sash
1#Jer 13:11Thus says the Lord to me, “Go and buy yourself a linen waistband and put it upon your loins, and do not put it in water.” 2#Isa 20:2; Eze 2:8So I bought a waistband according to the word of the Lord and put it on my loins.
3The word of the Lord came to me the second time, saying, 4“Take the waistband that you have, which is upon your loins, and arise, go to the Euphrates and hide it there in a hole of the rock.” 5#Ex 40:16; 39:42–43So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord had commanded me.
6After many days the Lord said to me, “Arise, go to the Euphrates and take the waistband from there, which I commanded you to hide there.” 7Then I went to the Euphrates, and dug, and took the waistband from the place where I had hidden it. But the waistband was destroyed. It was profitable for nothing.
8Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9#Lev 26:19; Isa 2:10–17Thus says the Lord: After this manner I will destroy the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. 10#Jer 16:12; 9:14This evil people, who refuse to hear My words, who walk in the imagination of their hearts, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall be even as this waistband which is good for nothing. 11#Jer 33:9; Ex 19:5–6For as the waistband cleaves to the loins of a man, so I have caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cleave to Me, says the Lord, so that they might be to Me a people for renown, and for a praise, and for a glory; but they would not listen.
The Metaphor of Wine Bottles
12Therefore you shall speak to them this word: Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Every bottle shall be filled with wine. And when they say to you, “Do we not certainly know that every bottle should be filled with wine?” 13#Ps 60:3; 75:8then you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord: I will fill all the inhabitants of this land—even the kings that sit on the throne of David, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem—with drunkenness. 14#Dt 29:20; Ps 2:9I will dash them against one another, even the fathers and the sons together, says the Lord. I will not show pity nor spare nor have mercy, but will destroy them.
Exile Threatened
15#Isa 28:14–22 Hear and give heed;
do not be proud,
for the Lord has spoken.
16#Isa 59:9; Jos 7:19; Isa 5:30 Give glory to the Lord your God,
before He causes darkness
and before your feet stumble
on the dark mountains,
and while you look for light,
He turns it into the shadow of death
and makes it gross darkness.
17#Jer 9:1; Ps 80:1 But if you will not listen to it,
my soul will weep in secret places
for your pride;
and my eyes will weep sorely
and run down with tears,
because the flock of the Lord is carried away captive.
18#2Ki 24:12; Jer 22:26 Say to the king and to the queen mother:
“Humble yourselves, sit down,
for your beautiful crown
shall come down from your head.”
19#Jer 52:27 The cities of the Negev will be shut up,
and no one will open them;
all Judah will be carried away into captivity;
it will be wholly carried away captive.
20#Jer 6:22; 23:2 Lift up your eyes and see
those who come from the north.
Where is the flock that was given to you,
your beautiful flock?
21#Isa 13:8; Jer 4:31 What will you say when He appoints over you
those you yourself had taught to be companions to you?
Shall not sorrows take hold of you,
as a woman in labor?
22#Na 3:5; Jer 5:19 And if you say in your heart,
“Why have these things come upon me?”
for the greatness of your iniquity
your skirts have been removed
and your heels made bare.
23#Pr 27:22; Isa 1:5 Can the Ethiopian change his skin
or the leopard his spots?
Then you also can do good,
who are accustomed to doing evil.
24#Lev 26:33; Ps 1:4 Therefore I will scatter them as the stubble
that passes away by the wind of the wilderness.
25#Job 20:29; Ps 11:6 This is your lot,
the portion of your measures from Me,
says the Lord,
because you have forgotten Me
and trusted in falsehood.
26#La 1:8; Hos 2:10 Therefore I Myself have uncovered your skirts over your face
so that your shame may appear.
27#Eze 6:13; Hos 8:5 I have seen your adulteries and your lustful neighings,
the lewdness of your harlotry,
and your abominations
on the hills in the fields.
Woe to you, O Jerusalem!
How long will you remain unclean?
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Jeremiah 13: MEV
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Military Bible Association
Jeremiah 13
13
Jeremiah’s Linen Belt
1This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen belt. Then put it around your waist. Don’t let the belt get wet.”
2So I bought a linen belt, just as the Lord told me. And I put it around my waist. 3Then the Lord spoke his word to me a second time: 4“Take the belt you bought and are wearing. Go to Perath. Hide the belt there in a crack in the rocks.” 5So I went to Perath and hid the belt there, just as the Lord told me.
6Many days later the Lord said to me, “Now go to Perath. Get the belt that I told you to hide there.” 7So I went to Perath and dug up the belt. I took it from where I had hidden it. But now it was ruined. It was good for nothing.
8Then the Lord spoke his word to me. 9This is what the Lord said: “In the same way I will ruin the pride of the people of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. 10These evil people refuse to listen to my warnings. They stubbornly do only what they want to do. They follow other gods to serve and worship them. So they will become like this linen belt. They will be good for nothing. 11A belt is wrapped tightly around a man’s waist. In the same way I wrapped the families of Israel and Judah around me,” says the Lord. “I did that so they would be my people. Then they would bring fame, praise and honor to me. But my people would not listen to me.
Warnings About Leather Wine Bags
12“Say to them: ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: All leather bags for holding wine should be filled with wine.’ People will say to you: ‘Of course, we know all wine bags should be filled with wine.’ 13Then you will say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: I will make everyone in this land like a drunken man. I am talking about the kings who sit on David’s throne. I am also talking about the priests and the prophets. I am talking about all the people who live in Jerusalem. 14I will make the people of Judah stumble and fall into one another. Fathers and sons will fall into one another, says the Lord. I will not feel sorry or have pity for them. My mercy will not stop me from destroying them!’”
Threat of Slavery
15Listen and pay attention.
Don’t be too proud.
The Lord has spoken to you.
16Honor the Lord your God.
Give him glory before he brings darkness.
Praise him before you fall
on the dark hills.
You hope for light.
But the Lord will turn it into thick darkness.
He will change it into deep gloom.
17If you don’t listen to the Lord,
I will cry secretly.
Your pride will cause me to cry.
I will cry painfully.
My eyes will overflow with tears.
This is because the Lord’s people will be captured.
18Tell this to the king and queen mother:
“Come down from your thrones.
Your beautiful crowns
have fallen from your heads.”
19The cities in the desert of southern Judah are shut up.
No one can open them.
All Judah will be taken as captives to a foreign land.
They will be carried away completely.
20Jerusalem, look up and see.
Someone comes from the north.
Where is the flock God gave to you to care for?
It is the flock you bragged about.
21What will you say when they appoint as your heads
those you had thought were your friends?
Won’t you have much pain and trouble?
Your pain will be like that of a woman having a baby.
22You might ask yourself,
“Why has this happened to me?”
It happened because of your many sins.
Because of your sins, your skirt was torn off
and your body has been treated badly.
23A black man from Cush cannot change the color of his skin.
A leopard cannot change his spots.
In the same way, Jerusalem, you cannot change and do good.
You always do evil.
24“I will scatter you like chaff that is blown away by the desert wind.
25This is what will happen to you.
This is your part in my plans,” says the Lord.
“This will happen because you forgot me.
You have trusted in false gods.
26Jerusalem, I will pull your skirts up over your face.
Everyone will see you, and you will be ashamed.
27I have seen the terrible things you have done.
I know your acts of adultery and your snorting.
I have seen you acting like a prostitute.
I have seen your hated acts
on the hills and in the fields.
How terrible it will be for you, Jerusalem.
How long will you continue being unclean?”
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