Jeremiah 8
8
1At that time—oracle of the Lord—the bones of the kings and princes of Judah, the bones of the priests and the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem will be brought out of their graves#Bar 2:24. 2and spread out before the sun, the moon, and the whole host of heaven,#Host of heaven: the stars, worshiped by other nations and even by the inhabitants of Jerusalem, particularly during the reigns of Manasseh and Amon. which they loved and served, which they followed, consulted, and worshiped. They will not be gathered up for burial, but will lie like dung upon the ground.#Dt 4:19. 3Death will be preferred to life by all the survivors of this wicked people who remain in any of the places to which I banish them—oracle of the Lord of hosts.
Israel’s Conduct Incomprehensible
4Tell them: Thus says the Lord:
When someone falls, do they not rise again?
if they turn away, do they not turn back?
5Why then do these people resist
with persistent rebellion?
Why do they cling to deception,
refuse to turn back?#Jer 5:3; 7:24, 26.
6I have listened closely:
they speak what is not true;
No one regrets wickedness,
saying, “What have I done?”
Everyone keeps on running their course,
like a horse dashing into battle.#Jb 34:31–32.
7Even the stork in the sky
knows its seasons;
Turtledove, swift, and thrush
observe the time of their return,
But my people do not know
the order of the Lord.#Is 1:3.
8How can you say, “We are wise,#Mal 2:8; Rom 2:17–23.
we have the law of the Lord”?
See, that has been changed into falsehood
by the lying pen of the scribes!#Lying pen of the scribes: because the teachings and interpretations of the scribes ran counter to the word of the Lord.
9The wise are put to shame,
terrified, and trapped;
Since they have rejected the word of the Lord,
what sort of wisdom do they have?#1 Cor 3:20.
Shameless in Their Crimes
10Therefore, I will give their wives to other men,
their fields to new owners.
Small and great alike, all are greedy for gain,
prophet and priest, all practice fraud.#Jer 6:13; Dt 28:30.
11They have treated lightly
the injury to the daughter of my people:#Daughter of my people: see note on 4:11.
“Peace, peace!” they say,
though there is no peace.#Jer 6:14.
12They have acted shamefully; they have done abominable things,
yet they are not at all ashamed,
they do not know how to blush.
Hence they shall be among those who fall;
in their time of punishment they shall stumble,
says the Lord.#Jer 6:15.
Threats of Punishment
13I will gather them all in—oracle of the Lord:
no grapes on the vine,
No figs on the fig trees,
foliage withered!
Whatever I have given them is gone.
14Why do we remain here?
Let us assemble and flee to the fortified cities,
where we will meet our doom;
For the Lord our God has doomed us,
he has given us poisoned water to drink,
because we have sinned against the Lord.#Jer 9:14; 23:15.
15We wait for peace to no avail;
for a time of healing, but terror comes instead.#Jer 14:19.
16From Dan is heard
the snorting of horses;
The neighing of stallions
shakes the whole land.
They come to devour the land and everything in it,
the city and its inhabitants.
17Yes, I will send against you
poisonous snakes.
Against them no charm will work
when they bite you—oracle of the Lord.#Dt 32:24.
The Prophet’s Grief over the People’s Suffering
18My joy is gone,
grief is upon me,
my heart is sick.
19Listen! the cry of the daughter of my people,
far and wide in the land!
“Is the Lord no longer in Zion,
is her King no longer in her midst?”
Why do they provoke me with their idols,
with their foreign nonentities?#Dt 32:21; Mi 4:9.
20“The harvest is over, the summer ended,
but we have not yet been saved!”
21I am broken by the injury of the daughter of my people.
I am in mourning; horror has seized me.#Jer 14:17.
22Is there no balm in Gilead,#Gilead: a region southeast of the Sea of Galilee noted for its healing balm.
no healer there?
Why does new flesh not grow
over the wound of the daughter of my people?#Jer 46:11.
23Oh, that my head were a spring of water,
my eyes a fountain of tears,
That I might weep day and night
over the slain from the daughter of my people!
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Jeremiah 8
8
1At that time, declares the LORD, the bones of the kings of Judah and its officers, the bones of the priests and the prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be taken from their graves 2and exposed to the sun, the moon, and the whole heavenly forces, which they have loved and served and which they have followed, consulted, and worshipped. Their bones won’t be gathered for reburial but will become like refuse lying on the ground. 3The survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life, wherever I have scattered them, declares the LORD of heavenly forces.
Depth of Judah’s wrongdoing
4Say to them, The LORD proclaims:
When people fall down, don’t they get up?
When they turn aside, don’t they turn back?
5Why then does this people, rebellious Jerusalem,
persistently turn away from me?
They cling to deceit
and refuse to return.
6I have listened carefully
but haven’t heard a word of truth from them.
No one regrets their wrongdoing;
no one says, “What have I done?”
Everyone turns to their own course,
like a stallion dashing into the thick of battle.
7Even the stork in the sky knows the seasons,
and the dove, swallow,#8.7 Heb uncertain and crane#8.7 Heb uncertain
return in due time.
But my people don’t know the LORD’s ways.
8How can you say, “We are wise;
we possess the LORD’s Instruction,”
when the lying pen of the scribes has surely distorted it?
9The wise will be shamed and shocked
when they are caught.
Look, they have rejected the LORD’s word;
what kind of wisdom is that?
10Therefore, I will give their wives to others
and their fields to their captors.
From the least to the greatest,
all are eager to profit.
From prophet to priest,
all trade in falsehood.
11They treat the wound of my people
as if it were nothing:
“All is well, all is well,” they insist,
when in fact nothing is well.
12They should be ashamed
of their detestable practices,
but they have no shame;
they don’t even blush!
Therefore, they will fall among the fallen
and stumble when disaster arrives,
declares the LORD.
13I will put an end to them,#8.13 Heb uncertain
declares the LORD;
there are no grapes on the vine,
no figs on the tree,
only withered leaves.
They have squandered what I have given them!#8.13 Heb uncertain
A lament for God’s people
14Why are we sitting here?
Come, let’s go to the fortified towns
and meet our doom there.
The LORD our God has doomed us
by giving us poisoned water to drink,
because we have sinned against the LORD!
15We longed for relief,
but received none;
for a time of healing,
but found only terror.
16The snorting of their horses can be heard as far as Dan;
the neighing of their stallions makes the whole land tremble.
They come to devour the land and everything in it,
towns and people alike.
17See, I’m sending serpents against you,
vipers that you can’t charm,
and they will bite you,
declares the LORD.
18No healing,
only grief;
my heart is broken.#8.18 Heb uncertain
19Listen to the weeping of my people
all across the land:
“Isn’t the LORD in Zion?
Is her king no longer there?”
Why then did they anger me with their images,
with pointless foreign gods?
20“The harvest is past,
the summer has ended,
yet we aren’t saved.”
21Because my people are crushed,
I am crushed;
darkness and despair overwhelm me.
What to do with God’s people
22Is there no balm in Gilead?
Is there no physician there?
Why then have my people
not been restored to health?
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