Jeremiah 4
4
1“If you return, O Israel,
says the Lord,
to me you should return.
If you remove your abominations from my presence,
and do not waver,
2and if you swear, ‘As the Lord lives,’
in truth, in justice, and in uprightness,
then nations shall bless themselves in him,
and in him shall they glory.”
3For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem:
“Break up your fallow ground,
and sow not among thorns.
4Circumcise yourselves to the Lord,
remove the foreskin of your hearts,
O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem;
lest my wrath go forth like fire,
and burn with none to quench it,
because of the evil of your doings.”
5Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say,
“Blow the trumpet through the land;
cry aloud and say,
‘Assemble, and let us go
into the fortified cities!’
6Raise a standard toward Zion,
flee for safety, stay not,
for I bring evil from the north,
and great destruction.
7A lion has gone up from his thicket,
a destroyer of nations has set out;
he has gone forth from his place
to make your land a waste;
your cities will be ruins
without inhabitant.
8For this gird you with sackcloth,
lament and wail;
for the fierce anger of the Lord
has not turned back from us.”
9“In that day, says the Lord, courage shall fail both king and princes; the priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded.” 10Then I said, “Ah, Lord God, surely thou hast utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘It shall be well with you’; whereas the sword has reached their very life.”
11At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A hot wind from the bare heights in the desert toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow or cleanse, 12a wind too full for this comes for me. Now it is I who speak in judgment upon them.”
13Behold, he comes up like clouds,
his chariots like the whirlwind;
his horses are swifter than eagles—
woe to us, for we are ruined!
14O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness,
that you may be saved.
How long shall your evil thoughts
lodge within you?
15For a voice declares from Dan
and proclaims evil from Mount Ephraim.
16Warn the nations that he is coming;
announce to Jerusalem,
“Besiegers come from a distant land;
they shout against the cities of Judah.
17Like keepers of a field are they against her round about,
because she has rebelled against me,
says the Lord.
18Your ways and your doings
have brought this upon you.
This is your doom, and it is bitter;
it has reached your very heart.”
19My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!
Oh, the walls of my heart!
My heart is beating wildly;
I cannot keep silent;
for I hear the sound of the trumpet,
the alarm of war.
20Disaster follows hard on disaster,
the whole land is laid waste.
Suddenly my tents are destroyed,
my curtains in a moment.
21How long must I see the standard,
and hear the sound of the trumpet?
22“For my people are foolish,
they know me not;
they are stupid children,
they have no understanding.
They are skilled in doing evil,
but how to do good they know not.”
23I looked on the earth, and lo, it was waste and void;
and to the heavens, and they had no light.
24I looked on the mountains, and lo, they were quaking,
and all the hills moved to and fro.
25I looked, and lo, there was no man,
and all the birds of the air had fled.
26I looked, and lo, the fruitful land was a desert,
and all its cities were laid in ruins
before the Lord, before his fierce anger.
27For thus says the Lord, “The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end.
28For this the earth shall mourn,
and the heavens above be black;
for I have spoken, I have purposed;
I have not relented nor will I turn back.”
29At the noise of horseman and archer
every city takes to flight;
they enter thickets; they climb among rocks;
all the cities are forsaken,
and no man dwells in them.
30And you, O desolate one,
what do you mean that you dress in scarlet,
that you deck yourself with ornaments of gold,
that you enlarge your eyes with paint?
In vain you beautify yourself.
Your lovers despise you;
they seek your life.
31For I heard a cry as of a woman in travail,
anguish as of one bringing forth her first child,
the cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath,
stretching out her hands,
“Woe is me! I am fainting before murderers.”
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Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America
Jeremiah 4
4
1“If you will return, Israel,” says the LORD, “if you will return to me, and if you will put away your abominations out of my sight; then you will not be removed; 2and you will swear, ‘As the LORD lives,’ in truth, in justice, and in righteousness. The nations will bless themselves in him, and they will glory in him.”
3 For the LORD says to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem, “Break up your fallow ground, and don’t sow amongst thorns. 4Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, you men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my wrath go out like fire, and burn so that no one can quench it, because of the evil of your doings. 5Declare in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, ‘Blow the shofar in the land!’ Cry aloud and say, ‘Assemble yourselves! Let’s go into the fortified cities!’ 6Set up a standard towards Zion. Flee for safety! Don’t wait; for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction.”
7 A lion has gone up from his thicket, and a destroyer of nations. He is on his way. He has gone out from his place, to make your land desolate, that your cities be laid waste, without inhabitant. 8For this, clothe yourself with sackcloth, lament and wail; for the fierce anger of the LORD hasn’t turned back from us. 9“It will happen at that day,” says the LORD, “that the heart of the king will perish, along with the heart of the princes. The priests will be astonished, and the prophets will wonder.”
10 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Surely you have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘You will have peace;’ whereas the sword reaches to the heart.”
11 At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A hot wind blows from the bare heights in the wilderness towards the daughter of my people, not to winnow, nor to cleanse. 12A full wind from these will come for me. Now I will also utter judgements against them.”
13 Behold, he will come up as clouds, and his chariots will be as the whirlwind. His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us! For we are ruined. 14Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, that you may be saved. How long will your evil thoughts lodge within you? 15For a voice declares from Dan, and publishes evil from the hills of Ephraim: 16“Tell the nations, behold, publish against Jerusalem, ‘Watchers come from a far country, and raise their voice against the cities of Judah. 17As keepers of a field, they are against her all around, because she has been rebellious against me,’” says the LORD. 18“Your way and your doings have brought these things to you. This is your wickedness, for it is bitter, for it reaches to your heart.”
19 My anguish, my anguish! I am pained at my very heart! My heart trembles within me. I can’t hold my peace, because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the shofar, the alarm of war. 20Destruction on destruction is decreed, for the whole land is laid waste. Suddenly my tents are destroyed, and my curtains gone in a moment. 21How long will I see the standard and hear the sound of the shofar?
22“For my people are foolish. They don’t know me. They are foolish children, and they have no understanding. They are skilful in doing evil, but they don’t know how to do good.” 23I saw the earth and, behold, it was waste and void, and the heavens, and they had no light. 24I saw the mountains, and behold, they trembled, and all the hills moved back and forth. 25I saw, and behold, there was no man, and all the birds of the sky had fled. 26I saw, and behold, the fruitful field was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down at the presence of the LORD, before his fierce anger. 27For the LORD says, “The whole land will be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end. 28For this the earth will mourn, and the heavens above be black, because I have spoken it. I have planned it, and I have not repented, neither will I turn back from it.”
29 Every city flees for the noise of the horsemen and archers. They go into the thickets and climb up on the rocks. Every city is forsaken, and not a man dwells therein. 30You, when you are made desolate, what will you do? Though you clothe yourself with scarlet, though you deck yourself with ornaments of gold, though you enlarge your eyes with makeup, you make yourself beautiful in vain. Your lovers despise you. They seek your life. 31For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, the anguish as of her who gives birth to her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, who gasps for breath, who spreads her hands, saying, “Woe is me now! For my soul faints before the murderers.”
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