Jeremiah 15
15
1The Lord said to me, “Jeremiah, even if Moses and Samuel were here to pray for the people of Judah, I would not feel sorry for them. Send the people of Judah away from me! Tell them to go! 2They might ask you, ‘Where will we go?’ Tell them this is what the Lord says:
“‘I have chosen some people to die.
They will die.
I have chosen some to be killed with swords.
They will be killed with swords.
I have chosen some to die from hunger.
They will die from hunger.
I have chosen some to be taken away to a foreign country.
They will be prisoners there.
3I will send four kinds of destroyers against them.’
This message is from the Lord.
‘I will send the enemy with a sword to kill.
I will send the dogs to drag their bodies away.
I will send birds of the air and wild animals
to eat and destroy their bodies.
4I will make the people of Judah
an example of something terrible for all the people on earth.
I will do this to the people of Judah
because of what Manasseh#15:4 Manasseh Manasseh was the most evil king of Judah according to 2 Kings 21:1-16. He worshiped many gods. did in Jerusalem.
Manasseh was the son of King Hezekiah.
Manasseh was a king of Judah.’
5“No one will feel sorry for you, city of Jerusalem.
No one will be sad and cry for you.
No one will go out of their way to even ask how you are.
6Jerusalem, you left me.”
This message is from the Lord.
“Again and again you left me!
So I will punish and destroy you.
I am tired of holding back your punishment.
7I will separate the people of Judah with my pitchfork.#15:7 pitchfork A tool with sharp points for throwing hay from one place to another.
I will scatter them at the city gates of the land.
My people have not changed,
so I will destroy them.
I will take away their children.
8Many women will lose their husbands.
There will be more widows than there is sand in the sea.
I will bring a destroyer at noontime.
The destroyer will attack the mothers of the young men of Judah.
I will bring pain and fear on the people of Judah.
I will make this happen very quickly.
9The enemy will attack with swords and kill the people.
They will kill the survivors from Judah.
A woman with seven children will lose them.
She will cry until she becomes weak and struggles to breathe.
She will be upset and confused,
because her bright day has become dark.”
This message is from the Lord.
Jeremiah Complains to God Again
10Mother, I am sorry
that you gave birth to me.
I am the one who must accuse
and criticize the whole land.
I have not loaned or borrowed anything,
but everyone curses me.
11Surely, Lord, I have served you well.
In times of disaster and trouble,
I prayed to you about my enemies.
God Answers Jeremiah
12“Jeremiah, you know that no one
can shatter a piece of iron.
I mean the kind of iron that is from the north.#15:12 north The Babylonian army came from this direction to attack Judah. Armies from countries north and east of Israel often came this way to attack Judah and Israel.
And no one can shatter a piece of bronze either.
13The people of Judah have many treasures.
I will give these riches to other people.
They will not have to buy them,
because Judah has many sins.
The people sinned in every part of Judah.
14People of Judah, I will make you slaves of your enemies.
You will be slaves in a land that you never knew.
I am very angry.
My anger is like a hot fire,
and you will be burned.”
15Lord, you understand me.
Remember me and take care of me.
People are hurting me.
Give them the punishment they deserve.
You are being patient with them.
But don’t destroy me while you remain patient with them.
Think about me.
Think about the pain I suffer for you.
16Your words came to me, and I ate them up.
They made me very happy.
I was glad to be called by your name,
Lord God All-Powerful.
17I never sat with the crowd
as they laughed and had fun.
I sat by myself because of your influence on me.
You filled me with anger at the evil around me.
18I don’t understand why I still hurt.
I don’t understand why my wound is not cured and cannot be healed.
I think you have changed.
You are like a spring of water that became dry.
You are like a spring whose water has stopped flowing.
19Then the Lord said, “Jeremiah, if you change and come back to me,
I will not punish you.
If you change and come back to me,
then you may serve me.
If you speak important things, not worthless words,
then you may speak for me.
The people of Judah should change and come back to you.
But don’t you change and be like them.
20I will make you strong.
The people will think you are strong,
like a wall made of bronze.
The people of Judah will fight against you,
but they will not defeat you.
They will not defeat you,
because I am with you.
I will help you, and I will save you.”
This message is from the Lord.
21“I will save you from these evil people.
They frighten you, but I will save you from them.”
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Jeremiah 15
15
Doom for the People of Judah
1 #
Ex 32.11–14; Num 14.13–19; 1 Sam 7.5–9 Then the LORD said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel were standing here pleading with me, I would not show these people any mercy. Make them go away; make them get out of my sight. 2#Rev 13.10When they ask you where they should go, tell them that I have said:
Some are doomed to die by disease —
that's where they will go!
Others are doomed to die in war —
that's where they will go!
Some are doomed to die of starvation —
that's where they will go!
Others are doomed to be taken away as prisoners —
that's where they will go!
3I, the LORD, have decided that four terrible things will happen to them: they will be killed in war; their bodies will be dragged off by dogs; birds will eat them, and wild animals will devour what is left over. 4#2 Kgs 21.1–16; 2 Chr 33.1–9I will make all the people of the world horrified at them because of what Hezekiah's son Manasseh did in Jerusalem when he was king of Judah.”
5The LORD says,
“Who will pity you, people of Jerusalem,
and who will grieve over you?
Who will stop long enough
to ask how you are?
6You people have rejected me;
you have turned your backs on me.
So I stretched out my hand and crushed you
because I was tired of controlling my anger.#15.6 you because… anger; or you; I was tired of feeling sorry for you.
7In every town in the land
I threw you to the wind like straw.
I destroyed you, my people,
I killed your children
because you did not stop your evil ways.
8There are more widows in your land
than grains of sand by the sea.
I killed your young men in their prime
and made their mothers suffer.
I suddenly struck them
with anguish and terror.
9The mother who lost her seven children has fainted,
gasping for breath.
Her daylight has turned to darkness;
she is disgraced and sick at heart.
I will let your enemies kill
those of you who are still alive.
I, the LORD, have spoken.”
Jeremiah Complains to the LORD
10What an unhappy man I am! Why did my mother bring me into the world? I have to quarrel and argue with everyone in the land. I have not lent any money or borrowed any; yet everyone curses me. 11LORD, may all their curses come true if I have not served#15.11 Probable text LORD, …served; Hebrew unclear. you well, if I have not pleaded with you on behalf of my enemies when they were in trouble and distress. 12(No one can break iron, especially the iron from the north that is mixed with bronze.)
13The LORD said to me, “I will send enemies to carry away the wealth and treasures of my people, in order to punish them for the sins they have committed throughout the land. 14I will make them serve their enemies in a land they know nothing about, because my anger is like fire, and it will burn for ever.”
15Then I said, “LORD, you understand. Remember me and help me. Let me have revenge on those who persecute me. Do not be so patient with them that they succeed in killing me. Remember that it is for your sake that I am insulted. 16You spoke to me, and I listened to every word. I belong to you, LORD God Almighty, and so your words filled my heart with joy and happiness. 17I did not spend my time with other people, laughing and having a good time. In obedience to your orders I stayed by myself and was filled with anger. 18Why do I keep on suffering? Why are my wounds incurable? Why won't they heal? Do you intend to disappoint me like a stream that goes dry in the summer?”
19To this the LORD replied, “If you return, I will take you back, and you will be my servant again. If instead of talking nonsense you proclaim a worthwhile message, you will be my prophet again. The people will come back to you, and you will not need to go to them. 20I will make you like a solid bronze wall as far as they are concerned. They will fight against you, but they will not defeat you. I will be with you to protect you and keep you safe. 21I will rescue you from the power of wicked and violent people. I, the LORD, have spoken.”
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Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.