Jeremiah 11
11
Curse of the Covenant
1The word that came to Jeremiah from Adonai, saying:
2Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
3Now say to them, Thus says Adonai, the God of Israel: “Cursed is the one who does not obey the words of this covenant,
4which I commanded your forefathers in the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt—out of the iron furnace—saying: ‘Listen to My voice, and do all that I command you. Then you will be My people, and I will be your God.
5Then I will fulfill the oath which I swore to your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is today.’” In response I said, “Amen, Adonai.”
6Then Adonai said to me: “Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: ‘Hear the words of this covenant, and do them.’
7For I earnestly forewarned your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the land of Egypt until this day, forewarning early and often, saying ‘Listen to My voice!’
8Yet they would not obey or incline their ear, but each one walked in the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore I brought on them all the words of this covenant—which I commanded them to do, but they did not.”
9Then Adonai said to me, “A conspiracy has been discovered among the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
10They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers who refused to hear My words. They have gone after other gods to serve them. “The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers.”
11Therefore thus says Adonai. “I will soon bring a disaster on them that they will not be able to escape. They will cry out to Me, yet I will not listen to them.
12Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods to whom they burn incense—but they will not save them at all in the time of their trouble.
13For as numerous as your cities are your gods, O Judah, and as numerous as the streets of Jerusalem are the altars you have set up to the shameful thing—altars to burn incense to Baal.
14As for you, you are not to pray for this people or lift up supplication or prayer for them, for I will not hear them at the time they cry out to Me because of their disaster.”
Olive Tree with Broken Branches
15“What is My beloved doing in My House as she does evil schemes with many? Can holy meat prevent your disaster? So you may rejoice?
16Adonai called your name— a leafy olive tree, beautiful with well-formed fruit. With the noise of a great tumult He has set it on fire, and its branches are broken.
17For Adonai-Tzva’ot, who planted you, has pronounced evil against you because of the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done to themselves, provoking Me by offering sacrifices to Baal.
18Moreover, Adonai gave me knowledge of it, and I knew it, then You showed me their deeds.
19But I was like a gentle lamb led to slaughter. I did not know they had devised plots against me: “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit. Let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will be no more remembered.”
20But Adonai-Tzva’ot, who judges righteously, who tests the mind and the heart, let me see your vengeance on them. For to You I have made my cause known.
21Therefore thus says Adonai concerning the men of Anathoth who seek your life, saying, “You must not prophesy in the Name of Adonai, so you would not die by our hand.”
22Therefore thus says Adonai-Tzva’ot: “I am about to punish them! The young men will die by the sword; their sons and their daughters will die by famine.
23No remnant will be left to them, for I will bring calamity on the men of Anathoth—the year of their visitation.
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Copyright © 2014 - Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society
Jeremiah 11
11
The Terms of This Covenant
1The Message that came to Jeremiah from God:
2-4a “Preach to the people of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem. Tell them this: ‘This is God’s Message, the Message of Israel’s God to you. Anyone who does not keep the terms of this covenant is cursed. The terms are clear. I made them plain to your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt, out of the iron furnace of suffering.
4b-5 “‘Obey what I tell you. Do exactly what I command you. Your obedience will close the deal. You’ll be mine and I’ll be yours. This will provide the conditions in which I will be able to do what I promised your ancestors: to give them a fertile and lush land. And, as you know, that’s what I did.’”
“Yes, God,” I replied. “That’s true.”
6-8 God continued: “Preach all this in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. Say, ‘Listen to the terms of this covenant and carry them out! I warned your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt and I’ve kept up the warnings. I haven’t quit warning them for a moment. I warned them from morning to night: “Obey me or else!” But they didn’t obey. They paid no attention to me. They did whatever they wanted to do, whenever they wanted to do it, until finally I stepped in and ordered the punishments set out in the covenant, which, despite all my warnings, they had ignored.’”
9-10Then God said, “There’s a conspiracy among the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem. They’ve plotted to reenact the sins of their ancestors—the ones who disobeyed me and decided to go after other gods and worship them. Israel and Judah are in this together, mindlessly breaking the covenant I made with their ancestors.
11-13“Well, your God has something to say about this: Watch out! I’m about to visit doom on you, and no one will get out of it. You’re going to cry for help but I won’t listen. Then all the people in Judah and Jerusalem will start praying to the gods you’ve been sacrificing to all these years, but it won’t do a bit of good. You’ve got as many gods as you have villages, Judah! And you’ve got enough altars for sacrifices to that impotent sex god Baal to put one on every street corner in Jerusalem!
14“And as for you, Jeremiah, I don’t want you praying for this people. Nothing! Not a word of petition. Indeed, I’m not going to listen to a single syllable of their crisis-prayers.”
Promises and Pious Programs
15-16“What business do the ones I love have figuring out
how to get off the hook? And right in the house of worship!
Do you think making promises and devising pious programs
will save you from doom?
Do you think you can get out of this
by becoming more religious?
A mighty oak tree, majestic and glorious—
that’s how I once described you.
But it will only take a clap of thunder and a bolt of lightning
to leave you a shattered wreck.
17“I, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, who planted you—yes, I have pronounced doom on you. Why? Because of the disastrous life you’ve lived, Israel and Judah alike, goading me to anger with your continuous worship and offerings to that sorry god Baal.”
* * *
18-19 God told me what was going on. That’s how I knew.
You, God, opened my eyes to their evil scheming.
I had no idea what was going on—naive as a lamb
being led to slaughter!
I didn’t know they had it in for me,
didn’t know of their behind-the-scenes plots:
“Let’s get rid of the preacher.
That will stop the sermons!
Let’s get rid of him for good.
He won’t be remembered for long.”
20Then I said, “God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
you’re a fair judge.
You examine and cross-examine
human actions and motives.
I want to see these people shown up and put down!
I’m an open book before you. Clear my name.”
21-23That sent a signal to God, who spoke up: “Here’s what I’ll do to the men of Anathoth who are trying to murder you, the men who say, ‘Don’t preach to us in God’s name or we’ll kill you.’ Yes, it’s God-of-the-Angel-Armies speaking. Indeed! I’ll call them to account: Their young people will die in battle, their children will die of starvation, and there will be no one left at all, none. I’m visiting the men of Anathoth with doom. Doomsday!”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.