Jeremiah 17
17
The Persistent Sin of Judah
1The sin of Judah is written
with an iron stylus. # Jb 19:24
With a diamond point
it is engraved on the tablet of their hearts # Pr 3:3; 7:3; Jr 31:33-34
and on the horns of their # Some Hb mss, Syr, Vg; other Hb mss read your altars,
2while their children remember their altars
and their Asherah poles, by the green trees
on the high hills # Dt 16:21; 1Kg 14:23; 2Kg 17:10—
3My mountains in the countryside.
I will give up your wealth
and all your treasures as plunder # Ps 44:10; Is 10:6; 42:22-24; Jr 20:5; 49:31-32; Ezk 7:21; 26:12; 29:19; 36:4; Am 3:11; Zph 1:13
because of the sin of your high places # Lit plunder, your high places because of sin
in all your borders. # Jr 15:13
4You will, on your own, relinquish your inheritance
that I gave you.
I will make you serve your enemies
in a land you do not know, # Jr 16:13; 22:28; Ezk 32:9
for you have set My anger on fire; # Dt 32:22; Jr 15:14
it will burn forever.
Curse and Blessing
5This is what the Lord says:
The man who trusts in mankind, # Ps 146:3
who makes human flesh his strength # 2Ch 32:8
and turns his heart from the Lord is cursed.
6He will be like a juniper in the Arabah; # Jr 48:6
he cannot see when good comes
but dwells in the parched places in the wilderness,
in a salt land where no one lives. # Gn 19:24-26; Ps 107:34
7The man who trusts in the Lord,
whose confidence indeed is the Lord, is blessed. # Ps 40:4
8He will be like a tree planted by water: # Ps 1:3; Ezk 17:5-8
it sends its roots out toward a stream,
it doesn’t fear when heat comes,
and its foliage remains green.
It will not worry in a year of drought
or cease producing fruit.
The Deceitful Heart
9The heart is more deceitful than anything else, # Gn 6:5
and incurable — who can understand it? # Jr 15:18; Mc 1:9
10I, Yahweh, examine the mind,
I test the heart # Lit kidneys # Dt 8:2; Ps 17:3; 26:2
to give to each according to his way,
according to what his actions deserve. # Jr 4:18; 7:3,5; 18:11; 23:22; 25:5; 26:3,13; 32:19; Rm 2:6
11He who makes a fortune unjustly
is like a partridge that hatches eggs it didn’t lay.
In the middle of his days
his riches will abandon him,
so in the end he will be a fool. # Lk 12:20
12A throne of glory # Is 6:1-3; Jr 14:21; Ezk 1:26-28
on high # Ps 102:19; Jr 25:30 from the beginning
is the place of our sanctuary. # Ps 68:33-35; Is 60:13
13Lord, the hope of Israel, # Jr 14:8; 50:7
all who abandon You
will be put to shame.
All who turn away from Me
will be written in the dirt,
for they have abandoned
the Lord, the fountain of living water. # Jr 2:13
Jeremiah’s Plea
14Heal me, Lord, and I will be healed;
save me, and I will be saved,
for You are my praise. # Ps 22:25; 71:6; 109:1
15Hear how they keep challenging me, # Is 5:19; 2Pt 3:4
“Where is the word of the Lord?
Let it come! ”
16But I have not run away from being Your shepherd,
and I have not longed for the fatal day. # Am 5:18
You know my words were spoken in Your presence.
17Don’t become a terror to me.
You are my refuge # Ps 46:1; 61:3; 62:7-8 in the day of disaster.
18Let my persecutors be put to shame, # Ps 35:4
but don’t let me be put to shame.
Let them be terrified, but don’t let me be terrified.
Bring on them the day of disaster; # Ps 35:8
shatter them with total # Lit double destruction.
Observing the Sabbath
19This is what the Lord said to me, “Go and stand at the People’s Gate, through which the kings of Judah enter and leave, as well as at all the gates of Jerusalem. 20Announce to them: Hear the word of the Lord, kings of Judah, all Judah, and all the residents of Jerusalem who enter through these gates. 21This is what the Lord says: Watch yourselves; do not pick up a load and bring it in through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. # Neh 13:15-21; Jn 5:9-12 22You must not carry a load out of your houses on the Sabbath day or do any work, # Ex 20:8-10; Dt 5:12-14; Is 56:2-6 but you must consecrate the Sabbath day, just as I commanded your ancestors. # Ezk 20:12 23They wouldn’t listen or pay attention but became obstinate, # Jr 7:26 not listening or accepting discipline.
24“However, if you listen to Me, says the Lord, and do not bring loads through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day and consecrate the Sabbath day and do no work on it, 25kings and princes will enter through the gates of this city. They will sit on the throne of David, # Jr 22:2,30; 29:16; 36:30 riding in chariots and on horses # Jr 22:4 with their officials, the men of Judah, and the residents of Jerusalem. This city will be inhabited forever. 26Then people will come from the cities of Judah and from the area around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin and from the Judean foothills, from the hill country and from the Negev # Jr 32:44; 33:13 bringing burnt offerings and sacrifice, grain offerings and frankincense, and thank offerings to the house of the Lord. 27If you do not listen to Me to consecrate the Sabbath day by not carrying a load while entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, I will set fire to its gates, # Lm 4:11 and it will consume the citadels # Jr 49:27; Am 1:14 of Jerusalem # 2Kg 25:9 and not be extinguished.” # Jr 7:20
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Jeremiah 17: HCSB
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© 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah 17
17
Judah’s Guilty Heart
1“The sin of the people of Judah is written with an iron tool.
Their sins were cut into stone with a hard point.
That stone is their hearts.
Their sins were cut into the corners of their altars.
2Even their children remember
their altars to idols and their Asherah idols.
They remember the altars under the green trees
and on the high hills.
3They remember the altars on my mountain and in the open country.
I will give your wealth and treasures
to other people.
And they will destroy the places of worship in your country.
You sinned by worshiping at those places.
4You will lose the land I gave you.
And it is your own fault.
I will let your enemies take you as their slaves.
You will be slaves in a land you have never known.
This is because you have made my anger burn like a hot fire.
And it will burn forever.”
Trusting in Man or God
5This is what the Lord says:
“A curse will be placed on those who trust other people.
It will happen to those who depend on people for strength.
Those are the ones who have stopped trusting the Lord.
6They are like a bush in a desert.
It grows in a land where no one lives.
It is in a hot and dry land with bad soil.
They don’t know about the good things that God can give.
7“But the person who trusts in the Lord will be blessed.
The Lord will show him that he can be trusted.
8He will be strong, like a tree planted near water.
That tree has large roots that find the water.
It is not afraid when the days are hot.
Its leaves are always green.
It does not worry in a year when no rain comes.
That tree always produces fruit.”
9“More than anything else, a person’s mind is evil.
It cannot be healed.
Who can understand it?
10But I am the Lord, and I can look into a person’s heart.
I can test a person’s mind.
So I can decide what each one deserves.
I can give each one the right payment for what he does.”
11Sometimes a bird will hatch an egg that it did not lay.
That bird is like the man who gets rich by cheating.
When that man’s life is half finished, he will lose his riches.
At the end of his life, it will be clear he was a fool.
12From the beginning, our Temple has been honored
as a glorious throne for God.
13Lord, you are the hope of Israel.
Those who leave you will be shamed.
A person who quits following the Lord will be like a name written in the dust.
That is because he has left the Lord.
The Lord is the spring of living water.
Jeremiah’s Third Complaint
14Lord, heal me, and I will truly be healed.
Save me, and I will truly be saved.
Lord, you are the one I praise.
15The people of Judah keep asking me,
“Where is the word from the Lord?
Let’s see that message come true!”
16Lord, I didn’t run away from being the shepherd you wanted.
I didn’t want the terrible day to come.
You know everything I have said.
You see all that is happening.
17Lord, don’t bring terror to me.
I run to you for safety in times of trouble.
18Make those who are hurting me be ashamed.
But don’t bring shame to me.
Let them be terrified,
but keep me from terror.
Bring the day of disaster on my enemies.
Destroy them, and destroy them again.
Keeping the Sabbath Holy
19This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and stand at the People’s Gate of Jerusalem. This is where the kings of Judah go in and out. And then go to all the other gates of Jerusalem. 20Say to them there: ‘Hear the word of the Lord. Listen, kings of Judah. Listen, all you people of Judah and all who come through these gates into Jerusalem! 21This is what the Lord says: Be careful not to carry a load on the Sabbath day. And don’t bring it through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath. 22Don’t take a load out of your houses on the Sabbath. Don’t do any work on that day. Keep the Sabbath as a holy day. I gave this same command to your ancestors. 23But your ancestors did not listen. They did not pay attention to me. They were very stubborn. I punished them, but it didn’t do any good. They did not listen to me. 24But you must be careful to obey me, says the Lord. You must not bring a load through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath. You must keep the Sabbath as a holy day. You must not do any work on that day.
25“‘If you obey this command, this is what will happen: Kings who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of Jerusalem with their officers. They will come riding in chariots and on horses. The people of Judah and Jerusalem will be with them. And the city of Jerusalem will have people living in it forever! 26People will come to Jerusalem from the villages around it and from the towns of Judah. They will come from the land of Benjamin. They will come from the western mountain slopes and from the mountains. And they will come from southern Judah. They will all bring burnt offerings, sacrifices, grain offerings, incense and offerings to show thanks to God. They will bring these to the Temple of the Lord. 27But you must obey me and keep the Sabbath day as a holy day. You must not carry any loads into Jerusalem on the Sabbath. If you do, I will start a fire that cannot be put out. It will start at the gates of Jerusalem. And it will burn until it burns even the strong towers!’”
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