Jeremiah 15
15
Four Types of Calamity
1Then Yahweh said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me,#Literally “to the face of me” my heart would not be to this people. Send them away from my sight,#Literally “face” and let them go out. 2And then#Literally “And it will happen” if they say to you, ‘Where shall we go?’ Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says Yahweh,
“Those who are destined for the plague, to the plague,
and those who are destined for the sword, to the sword,
and those who are destined for the famine, to the famine,
and those who are destined for the captivity, to the captivity.” ’
3“And I will summon#Or “appoint” over them four types of calamity,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh, “the sword to kill, and the dogs to drag away, and the birds#Hebrew “bird” of the air and the wild animals#Hebrew “wild animal” of the earth to devour and to destroy. 4And I will make them a terror to all of the kingdoms of the earth because of Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, because of what he did in Jerusalem.
5“For who will have compassion on you, O Jerusalem,
or who will show sympathy to you,
or who will turn aside to ask about your welfare?#Literally “to ask to the welfare of you”
6You have forsaken me,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
“You go backward, so I have stretched my hand against you,
and I have destroyed you.
I am tired of becoming remorseful.
7And I have winnowed them with a winnowing fork in the gates of the land.
I am bereaved.
I have destroyed my people.
They did not turn back from their ways.
8Their widows#Hebrew “widow” will be more numerous before me than the sand of the seas.
I have brought to them, against the mothers#Hebrew “mother” of young men,#Hebrew “man”
a destroyer at noon.
I will suddenly drop on her anguish and horror.#Hebrew “horrors”
9She who gave birth to seven has withered away.
She gasps her breath.
Her sun set#Literally “came” while still day.
She has been put to shame and disgraced.
And the remainder of them I will give to the sword
before#Literally “to the face of” their enemies,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
Jeremiah’s Lament and Yahweh’s Response
10Woe to me, O my mother, that you gave birth to me,
a man of contention and quarreling to the whole land.#Literally “to all of the land”
I have not lent out and I have not borrowed.#Literally “not they have lent out for me”
All of them are cursing me.
11Yahweh said,
“Surely#Literally “If not” I will set you free to be good#Literally “for good” for you,
surely#Literally “if not” I will cause the enemy to intercede with you
in a time of trouble,
and in a time of distress.
12Can anyone break iron,
iron from the north, or bronze?
13I will give your wealth and your treasures
as plunder without price,
even because of all your sins,
and throughout all your territories.
14And I will make you serve your enemies
in a land that you do not know,
for a fire will kindle in my anger.
Upon you it will be kindled.”
15You who know, O Yahweh, remember me, and attend to me,
and take revenge for me against my persecutors in your forbearance.#Literally “in the length of your nose”
You must take me away.
Know that I am carrying disgrace because of you.
16Your words were found and I ate them,
and your words became to me as jubilation,
even as the joy of my heart,
for your name is called on me, O Yahweh God of hosts.
17I sat not in the assembly of jokers,
nor did I exult.
Because of the presence#Literally “face” of your hand I sat alone,
for you filled me with indignation.
18Why is my pain endless, and my wound incurable?
It refuses to become healed.
Truly you are to me like a deceitful brook,
waters that are not trustworthy.
19Therefore thus says Yahweh,
“If you turn back, then I will take you back.
You will stand before me.#Literally “to the face of me”
And if you utter what is precious and not what is worthless,
you will be as my mouth.
They will turn back to you,
and you will not turn back to them.
20And I will make you to this people
a wall of fortified bronze,
and they will fight against you,
but they will not prevail over you,
for I am with you, to save you,
and to deliver you,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
21“And I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked,
and I will redeem you from the hand of the tyrant.”
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Jeremiah 15
15
1-2Then God said to me: “Jeremiah, even if Moses and Samuel stood here and made their case, I wouldn’t feel a thing for this people. Get them out of here. Tell them to get lost! And if they ask you, ‘So where do we go?’ tell them God says,
“‘If you’re assigned to die, go and die;
if assigned to war, go and get killed;
If assigned to starve, go starve;
if assigned to exile, off to exile you go!’
3-4“I’ve arranged for four kinds of punishment: death in battle, the corpses dropped off by killer dogs, the rest picked clean by vultures, the bones gnawed by hyenas. They’ll be a sight to see, a sight to shock the whole world—and all because of Manasseh son of Hezekiah and all he did in Jerusalem.
5“Who do you think will feel sorry for you, Jerusalem?
Who do you think will waste tears on you?
Who will bother to take the time to ask,
‘So, how are things going?’
6-9“You left me, remember?” God’s Decree.
“You turned your back and walked out.
So I will grab you and hit you hard.
I’m tired of letting you off the hook.
I threw you to the four winds
and let the winds scatter you like leaves.
I made sure you’ll lose everything,
since nothing makes you change.
I created more widows among you
than grains of sand on the ocean beaches.
At noon mothers will get the news
of their sons killed in action.
Sudden anguish for the mothers—
all those terrible deaths.
A mother of seven falls to the ground,
gasping for breath,
Robbed of her children in their prime.
Her sun sets at high noon!
Then I’ll round up any of you that are left alive
and see that you’re killed by your enemies.”
God’s Decree.
Giving Everything Away for Nothing
10-11Unlucky mother—that you had me as a son,
given the unhappy job of indicting the whole country!
I’ve never hurt or harmed a soul,
and yet everyone is out to get me.
But, God knows, I’ve done everything I could to help them,
prayed for them and against their enemies.
I’ve always been on their side, trying to stave off disaster.
God knows how I’ve tried!
* * *
12-14“O Israel, O Judah, what are your chances
against the iron juggernaut from the north?
In punishment for your sins, I’m giving away
everything you’ve got, giving it away for nothing.
I’ll make you slaves to your enemies
in a strange and far-off land.
My anger is blazing and fierce,
burning in hot judgment against you.”
* * *
15-18You know where I am, God! Remember what I’m doing here!
Take my side against my detractors.
Don’t stand back while they ruin me.
Just look at the abuse I’m taking!
When your words showed up, I ate them—
swallowed them whole. What a feast!
What delight I took in being yours,
O God, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
I never joined the party crowd
in their laughter and their fun.
Led by you, I went off by myself.
You’d filled me with indignation. Their sin had me seething.
But why, why this chronic pain,
this ever worsening wound and no healing in sight?
You’re nothing, God, but a mirage,
a lovely oasis in the distance—and then nothing!
* * *
19-21This is how God answered me:
“Take back those words, and I’ll take you back.
Then you’ll stand tall before me.
Use words truly and well. Don’t stoop to cheap whining.
Then, but only then, you’ll speak for me.
Let your words change them.
Don’t change your words to suit them.
I’ll turn you into a steel wall,
a thick steel wall, impregnable.
They’ll attack you but won’t put a dent in you
because I’m at your side, defending and delivering.”
God’s Decree.
“I’ll deliver you from the grip of the wicked.
I’ll get you out of the clutch of the ruthless.”
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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.