Jeremias (Jeremiah) 6
6
1Strengthen yourselves, ye sons of Benjamin, in the midst of Jerusalem, and sound the trumpet in Thecua, and set up the standard over Bethacarem: for evil is seen out of the north, and a great destruction.
2I have likened the daughter of Sion to a beautiful and delicate woman.
3The shepherds shall come to her with their flocks: they have pitched their tents against her round about: every one shall feed them that are under his hand.
4Prepare ye war against her: arise, and let us go up at midday. Woe unto us, for the day is declined, for the shadows of the evening are grown longer.
5Arise, and let us go up in the night, and destroy her houses.
6For thus saith the Lord of hosts: Hew down her trees, cast up a trench about Jerusalem. This is the city to be visited all oppression is in the midst of her.
7As a cistern maketh its water cold, so hath she made her wickedness cold. Violence and spoil shall be heard in her: infirmity and stripes are continually before me.
8Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul depart from thee, lest I make thee desolate, a land uninhabited.
9Thus saith the Lord of hosts: They shall gather the remains of Israel, as in a vine, even to one cluster: turn back thy hand, as a grape-gatherer into the basket.
10To whom shall I speak? And to whom shall I testify, that he may hear? Behold, their ears are uncircumcised and they cannot hear, Behold, the word of the Lord is become unto them a reproach: and they will not receive it.
11Therefore am I full of the fury of the Lord, I am weary with holding in. Pour it out upon the child abroad and upon the council of the young men together: for man and woman shall be taken, the ancient and he that is full of days.
12And their houses shall be turned over to others, with their lands and their wives together: for I will stretch for my hand upon the inhabitants of the land, saith the Lord.
13For, from the least of them even to the greatest, all are given to covetousness: and from the prophet even to the priest, all are guilty of deceit.
14And they healed the breach of the daughter of my people disgracefully, saying: Peace, peace. And there was no peace.
15They were confounded, because they committed abomination: yea rather, they were not confounded with confusion and they knew not how to blush. Wherefore they shall fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall fall down, saith the Lord.
16Thus saith the Lord: Stand ye on the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, which is the good way, and walk ye in it: and you shall find refreshment for your souls. And they said: We will not walk.
17And I appointed watchmen over you, saying: Hearken ye to the sound of the trumpet. And they said: We will not hearken.
18Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O congregation, what great things I will do to them.
19Hear, O earth: Behold, I will bring evils upon this people, the fruits of their own thoughts: because they have not heard my words and they have cast away my law.
20To what purpose do you bring me frankincense from Saba, and the sweet smelling cane from a far country? Your holocausts are not acceptable, nor are your sacrifices pleasing to me.
21Therefore thus saith the Lord: Behold, I will bring destruction upon this people, by which fathers and sons together shall fall, neighbor and kinsman shall perish.
22Thus saith the Lord: Behold, a people cometh from the land of the north, and a great nation shall rise up from the ends of the earth.
23They shall lay hold on arrow and shield: they are cruel and will have no mercy. Their voice shall roar like the sea: and they shall mount upon horses, prepared as men for war, against thee, O daughter of Sion.
24We have heard the fame thereof, our hands grow feeble: anguish hath taken hold of us, as a woman in labor.
25Go not out into the fields, nor walk in the highway: for the sword of the enemy and fear is on every side.
26Gird thee with sackcloth, O daughter of my people, and sprinkle thee with ashes: make thee mourning as for an only son, a bitter lamentation, because the destroyer shall suddenly come upon us.
27I have set thee for a strong trier among my people: and thou shalt know, and prove their way.
28All of these princes go out of the way, they walk deceitfully, they are brass and iron, they are all corrupted.
29The bellows have failed, the lead is consumed in the fire, the founder hath melted in vain: for their wicked deeds are not consumed.
30Call them reprobate silver, for the Lord hath rejected them.
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Jeremias (Jeremiah) 6: DRC1752
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An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
Jeremiah 6
6
Jerusalem is Surrounded by Enemies
1People of Benjamin, run for safety! Escape from Jerusalem! Sound the trumpet in Tekoa and build a signal fire in Beth Haccherem. Disaster and destruction are about to come from the north. 2The city of Zion is beautiful, but it will be destroyed; 3kings will camp there with their armies. They will pitch their tents round the city, and they will each camp wherever they want. 4They will say, “Prepare to attack Jerusalem! Get ready! We'll attack at noon!” But then they will say, “It's too late, the day is almost over, and the evening shadows are growing long. 5We'll attack by night; we'll destroy the city's fortresses.”
6The LORD Almighty has ordered these kings to cut down trees and build mounds in order to besiege Jerusalem. He has said, “I will punish this city because it is full of oppression. 7As a well keeps its water fresh, so Jerusalem keeps its evil fresh. I hear violence and destruction in the city; sickness and wounds are all I see. 8People of Jerusalem, let these troubles be a warning to you, or else I will abandon you; I will turn your city into a desert, a place where no one lives.”
Rebellious Israel
9The LORD Almighty said to me, “Israel will be stripped clean like a vineyard from which every grape has been picked. So you must rescue everyone you can while there is still time.”
10I answered, “Who would listen to me if I spoke to them and warned them? They are stubborn and refuse to listen to your message; they laugh at what you tell me to say. 11Your anger against them burns in me too, LORD, and I can't hold it in any longer.”
Then the LORD said to me, “Pour out my anger on the children in the streets and on the gatherings of the young people. Husbands and wives will be taken away, and even the very old will not be spared. 12#Jer 8.10–12Their houses will be given to others, and so will their fields and their wives. I am going to punish the people of this land. 13Everyone, great and small, tries to make money dishonestly; even prophets and priests cheat the people. 14#Ezek 13.10They act as if my people's wounds were only scratches. ‘All is well,’ they say, when all is not well. 15Were they ashamed because they did these disgusting things? No, they were not at all ashamed; they don't even know how to blush. And so they will fall as others have fallen; when I punish them, that will be the end of them. I, the LORD, have spoken.”
Israel Rejects God's Way
16The LORD said to his people, “Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths and where the best road is. Walk on it, and you will live in peace.”
But they said, “No, we will not!” 17Then the LORD appointed watchmen to listen for the trumpet's warning. But they said, “We will not listen.”
18So the LORD said, “Listen, you nations, and learn what is going to happen to my people. 19Listen, earth! As punishment for all their schemes I am bringing ruin on these people, because they have rejected my teaching and have not obeyed my words. 20What do I care about the incense they bring me from Sheba, or the spices from a distant land? I will not accept their offerings or be pleased with their sacrifices. 21And so I will make these people stumble and fall. Parents and children will die, and so will friends and neighbours.”
Invasion from the North
22The LORD says, “People are coming from a country in the north; a mighty nation far away is preparing for war. 23They have taken up their bows and swords; they are cruel and merciless. They sound like the roaring sea, as they ride their horses. They are ready for battle against Jerusalem.”
24“We have heard the news,” say the people of Jerusalem, “and our hands hang limp; we are seized by anguish and pain like a woman in labour. 25We dare not go to the countryside or walk on the roads, because our enemies are armed and terror is all round us.”
26The LORD says to his people, “Put on sackcloth and roll in ashes. Mourn with bitter tears as you would for an only son, because the one who comes to destroy you will suddenly attack. 27Jeremiah, test my people, as you would test metal, and find out what they are like. 28They are all stubborn rebels, hard as bronze and iron. They are all corrupt, going round and spreading gossip. 29The furnace burns fiercely, but the waste metals do not melt and run off. It is useless to go on refining my people, because those who are evil are not taken away. 30They will be called worthless dross, because I, the LORD, have rejected them.”
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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.