Jeremiah 14
14
The Land Dries Up
1When there had been no rain for a long time, the Lord told me to say to the people:
2Judah and Jerusalem weep
as the land dries up.
3Rulers send their servants
to the storage pits for water.#14.3 storage pits for water: Since water was scarce, pits were dug into solid rock for collecting and storing rainwater. These pits were called “cisterns.”
But there's none to be found;
they return in despair
with their jars still empty.
4There has been no rain,
and farmers feel sick
as they watch cracks appear
in the dry ground.#14.4 cracks … ground: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
5A deer gives birth in a field,
then abandons her newborn fawn
and leaves in search of grass.
6Wild donkeys go blind
from starvation.
So they stand on barren hilltops
and sniff the air,#14.6 sniff the air: The Hebrew text has “sniff the air, like jackals” (see the note at 9.11).
hoping to smell green grass.
The Lord's People Pray
7We rejected you and did evil,
so we deserve to be punished.
But if you rescue us, Lord,
everyone will see
how great you are.
8You're our only hope;
you alone can save us now.
You help us one day,
but you're gone the next.
9Did this disaster
take you by surprise?
Are you a warrior
with your hands tied?
You have chosen us,
and your temple is here.
Don't abandon us!
The Lord's Answer
10My people,
you love to wander away;
you don't even try
to stay close to me.
So now I will reject you
and punish you for your sins.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
Lying Prophets
11The Lord said, “Jeremiah, don't ask me to help these people. 12They may even go without eating#14.12 go without eating: The people of Israel sometimes went without eating to show sorrow for their sins. and offer sacrifices to please me#14.12 sacrifices to please me: These sacrifices have traditionally been called “whole burnt offerings” because the whole animal was burned on the altar. A main purpose of such sacrifices was to please the Lord with the smell of the sacrifice, and so in the CEV they are sometimes called “sacrifices to please the Lord.” and to give thanks.#14.12 sacrifices … to give thanks: These sacrifices have traditionally been called “grain offerings.” A main purpose of such sacrifices was to thank the Lord with a gift of grain, and so in the CEV they are sometimes called “sacrifices to give thanks to the Lord.” But when they cry out for my help, I won't listen, and I won't accept their sacrifices. Instead, I'll send war, starvation, and disease to wipe them out.”
13I replied, “The other prophets keep telling everyone that you won't send starvation or war, and that you're going to give us peace.”
14The Lord answered:
They claim to speak for me, but they're lying! I didn't even speak to them, much less choose them to be my prophets. Their messages come from worthless dreams, useless fortunetelling, and their own imaginations.
15Those lying prophets say there will be peace and plenty of food. But I say that those same prophets will die from war and hunger. 16And everyone who listens to them will be killed, just as they deserve. Their dead bodies will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem, because their families will also be dead, and no one will be left to bury them.#14.16 dead bodies … bury them: A proper burial was considered very important.
17Jeremiah, go and tell the people how you feel about all this.
So I told them:
“Tears will flood my eyes
both day and night,
because my nation suffers
from a deadly wound.
18In the fields I see the bodies
of those killed in battle.
And in the towns I see crowds
dying of hunger.
But the prophets and priests
go about their business,
without understanding
what has happened.”#14.18 go about … has happened: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Jeremiah Prays to the Lord
19Have you rejected Judah, Lord?
Do you hate Jerusalem?
Why did you strike down Judah
with a fatal wound?
We had hoped for peace
and a time of healing,
but all we got was terror.
20We and our ancestors are guilty
of rebelling against you.
21If you save us, it will show
how great you are.
Don't let our enemies
disgrace your temple,
your beautiful throne.
Don't forget that you promised
to rescue us.
22Idols can't send rain,
and showers don't fall
by themselves.
Only you control the rain,
so we put our trust in you,
the Lord our God.
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Jeremiah 14: CEVDCI
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah 14
14
The Drought
1The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought: # Jr 17:8
2Judah mourns;
her gates languish. # Is 3:26
Her people are on the ground in mourning;
Jerusalem’s cry rises up. # 1Sm 5:12
3Their nobles send their servants # Lit little ones for water.
They go to the cisterns;
they find no water;
their containers return empty.
They are ashamed and humiliated;
they cover their heads. # Est 6:12; 7:8
4The ground is cracked
since no rain has fallen on the land.
The farmers are ashamed; # Jl 1:11
they cover their heads.
5Even the doe in the field
gives birth and abandons her fawn
since there is no grass.
6Wild donkeys stand on the barren heights # Jr 2:24
panting for air like jackals.
Their eyes fail
because there are no green plants.
7Though our guilt testifies against us,
Yahweh, act for Your name’s sake.
Indeed, our rebellions # Jr 2:19; 3:6,22; 5:6 are many;
we have sinned against You. # Is 64:5; Jr 3:25; 8:14; 14:20; Lm 3:42; 5:16; Dn 9:5`112
8Hope of Israel, # Jr 17:13; 50:7
its Savior in time of distress,
why are You like a foreigner in the land,
like a traveler stopping only for the night?
9Why are You like a helpless man,
like a warrior unable to save? # Is 59:1
Yet You are among us, Yahweh, # Ex 29:45
and we are called by Your name.
Don’t leave us!
10This is what the Lord says concerning these people:
Truly they love to wander; # Jr 5:31; Am 8:12
they never rest their feet.
So the Lord does not accept them.
Now He will remember their guilt
and punish their sins. # Hs 8:13
False Prophets to be Punished
11Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of these people. # Jr 7:16; 11:14; 15:1 12If they fast, I will not hear their cry of despair. If they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. Rather, I will finish them off by sword, famine, and plague.” # Jr 5:12
13And I replied, “Oh no, Lord God! The prophets are telling them, ‘You won’t see sword or suffer famine. I will certainly give you true peace in this place.’ ” # Jr 4:10; 6:13-14; 8:10-12
14But the Lord said to me, “These prophets are prophesying a lie in My name. I did not send them, nor did I command them or speak to them. They are prophesying to you a false vision, worthless divination, the deceit # Ps 119:118; Jr 8:5; 23:26 of their own minds. # Jr 5:31; 20:6; 23:25-26,32; 27:10,14-16; 29:9,21,31
15“Therefore, this is what the Lord says concerning the prophets who prophesy in My name, though I did not send them, and who say, ‘There will never be sword or famine in this land.’ By sword and famine these prophets will meet their end. 16The people they are prophesying to will be thrown into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword. There will be no one to bury them # Jr 7:33; 9:22 — they, their wives, their sons, and their daughters. I will pour out their own evil on them.”
Jeremiah’s Request
17You are to speak this word to them:
Let my eyes overflow with tears;
day and night may they not stop, # Jr 9:1,10; 13:17
for the virgin daughter of my people
has been destroyed by a great disaster, # Jr 4:6; 6:1
an extremely severe wound. # Jr 10:19; 30:12
18If I go out to the field,
look — those slain by the sword!
If I enter the city,
look — those ill # Dt 29:22 from famine!
For both prophet and priest
travel to a land they do not know.
19Have You completely rejected Judah?
Do You detest # Lv 26:11,30,43-44 Zion?
Why do You strike us
with no hope of healing for us?
We hoped for peace,
but there was nothing good;
for a time of healing,
but there was only terror. # Jr 8:15; 33:9
20We acknowledge our wickedness, Lord,
the guilt of our fathers; # Jr 3:25; 11:10; 16:12-13
indeed, we have sinned against You.
21Because of Your name, don’t despise us.
Don’t disdain Your glorious throne. # Dt 32:19; Jr 15:6; 17:12
Remember Your covenant # Lv 26:44; Jdg 2:1; Is 33:8 with us;
do not break it.
22Can any of the worthless idols of the nations # Jr 8:19; 10:8,15; 16:19 bring rain?
Or can the skies alone give showers?
Are You not the Lord our God?
We therefore put our hope in You, # Is 8:17; 25:9
for You have done all these things.
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