Jeremiah 17
17
The Sin of Judah
1“The sin of Judah is written with an iron stylus,
with a point of diamond it is engraved
on the tablet of their heart,
and on the horns of their altars.
2As the remembering of their children,
so is the remembering of their altars
and their poles of Asherah worship
beside the leafy trees#Hebrew “tree” on the high hills.
3O my mountain in the open country,
I will give your wealth, all your treasures, for spoil,
your high places, because of your sin,
throughout all your territories.
4And you will let go your hand from your inheritance#Literally “you shall loose and in you from your inheritance”
that I gave to you,
and I will make you serve your enemies
in the land that you do not know,
for you kindled a fire in my anger,
until eternity it will be kindled.”
The One Who Trusts in Humankind Contrasted With the One Who Trusts in Yahweh
5Thus says Yahweh,
“Cursed is the person who trusts in humankind
and makes flesh his strength,#Literally “arm”
and turns aside his heart from Yahweh.
6And he will be like a juniper in the wilderness,#Or “Arabah”
and he will not see when good comes,
and he will dwell in the parched places in the desert,#Or “wilderness”
in a land of salt flats,#Hebrew “salt flat” where no one lives.
7Blessed be the person who trusts in Yahweh,
and Yahweh is his trust.
8For he will be like a tree planted by water,
and to the stream it sends its roots,
and it will not fear when heat comes,
and its leaves#Hebrew “leaf” will be luxuriant,
and in the year of drought it will not be anxious,
and it will not cease from the bearing of fruit.
9The heart is deceitful more than anything else,
and it is disastrous. Who can understand it?
10I, Yahweh, examine the mind,#Literally “heart”
I test the heart,#Literally “kidneys”
and give to each one according to his way,
according to the fruit of his deeds.
11Like a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay
is one who amasses wealth without justice.
In the middle of his days it will leave him,
and at his end he will prove to be a fool.”
The Fountain of Living Water
12A lofty throne of glory from the beginning
is the place of our sanctuary.
13O Yahweh, the hope of Israel,
all those who forsake you will be put to shame,
and those who turn aside from you in the earth will be recorded,
for they have forsaken the fountain of living water, Yahweh.
14Heal me, O Yahweh, and I will be healed,
save me, and I will be saved,
for you are my praise.
15Look, they are saying to me,
“Where is the word of Yahweh?
Please let it come.”
16But I, I have not run away from being a shepherd who follows you,#Literally “after you”
and I have not desired the disastrous day.
You, you know the pronouncement of my lips,
it was before your face.
17You must not become to me a terror,
you are my refuge in the day of disaster.
18Let my persecutors be put to shame,
but as for me,#Literally “I” do not let me be put to shame.
Let them be dismayed,
but as for me,#Literally “I” do not let me be dismayed.
Bring on them the day of disaster,
and with double destruction, destroy them.
The Sabbath Day
19Thus said Yahweh to me, “Go, and you must stand in the People’s Gate#Literally “gate of the sons/children of the people” through which the kings of Judah enter, and through which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem. 20And you must say to them, ‘Hear the word of Yahweh, kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem who enter through these gates. 21Thus says Yahweh, “Be on your guard for the sake of yourselves, that you must not carry a burden on the day of the Sabbath, and you must not bring it#Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation through the gates of Jerusalem. 22And you must not carry a burden from your houses on the day of the Sabbath, and you must not do any work. But you must declare holy the day of Sabbath, just as I commanded your ancestors.#Or “fathers” 23Yet they did not listen, and they did not incline their ear, and they hardened their neck so as to not hear, nor to receive discipline.
24“And it will happen, if you carefully listen to me,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh, “to bring no burden through the gates of this city on the day of the Sabbath, but to declare holy the day of Sabbath, not to do on it any work, 25then kings and officials who sit on the throne of David will enter through the gates of this city riding in chariots#Hebrew “chariot” and on horses, they, and their officials, the people of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and this city will be inhabited forever.#Literally “to eternity” 26And they will come from the towns of Judah, and from all around Jerusalem, and from the land of Benjamin, and from the Shephelah, and from the hill country, and from the Negev, bringing burnt offerings,#Hebrew “burnt offering” and sacrifices,#Hebrew “sacrifice” and grain offerings,#Hebrew “grain offering” and frankincense, and bringing thank offerings#Hebrew “thank offering” to the house of Yahweh. 27But if you do not listen to me, to declare holy the day of the Sabbath, and to not carry a burden and enter through the gates of Jerusalem on the day of the Sabbath, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it will devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it will not be quenched.” ’ ”
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Jeremiah 17: LEB
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Jeremiah 17
17
Guilt Written on the Heart
1“The sins of Judah are written where they cannot be erased—
cut into stone with an iron pen,
cut deep with a hard tip into the stone that is the hearts of the people.
Their sins are carved into the horns of their altars.#17:1 horns of their altars The corners of altars were shaped like horns, and the blood of sacrifices was smeared on them. So Jeremiah may mean that the people’s sins have made their altars unfit for sacrifices.
2Their children remember the altars
that were dedicated to false gods.
They remember the wooden poles
that were dedicated to Asherah.
They remember those things
under the green trees and on the hills.
3They remember those things
on the mountains in the open country.
The people of Judah have many treasures.
I will give those things to other people.
People will destroy all the high places in your country.
You worshiped there, and that was a sin.
4You will lose the land I gave you.
I will let your enemies take you to be their slaves.
That is because I am very angry.
My anger is like a hot fire, and you will be burned forever.”
Trusting in People and Trusting in God
5This is what the Lord says:
“Bad things will happen to those who put their trust in people.
Bad things will happen to those who depend on human strength.
That is because they have stopped trusting the Lord.
6They are like a bush in a desert where no one lives.
It is in a hot and dry land.
It is in bad soil.
That bush does not know about the good things that God can give.
7“But those who trust in the Lord will be blessed.
They know that the Lord will do what he says.
8They will be strong like trees planted near a stream
that send out roots to the water.
They have nothing to fear when the days get hot.
Their leaves are always green.
They never worry, even in a year that has no rain.
They always produce fruit.
9“Nothing can hide its evil as well as the human mind.
It can be very sick,
and no one really understands it.
10But I am the Lord,
and I can look into a person’s heart.
I can test a person’s mind and decide what each one should have.
I can give each person the right payment for what they do.
11Sometimes a bird will hatch an egg that it did not lay.
Those who cheat to get money are like that bird.
But when their lives are half finished, they will lose the money.
At the end of their lives, it will be clear that they were fools.”
12From the very beginning, our Temple
has been a glorious throne for God.
It is a very important place.
13Lord, you are the hope of Israel.
You are like a spring of living water.
Those who stop following the Lord
will have a very short life.#17:13 will have a very short life Literally, “he will be written in the dirt.” This might mean that a person’s name was written on a list of people who would soon die, or that a person’s life will soon be gone—like a name written in the sand.
Jeremiah’s Third Complaint
14Lord, if you heal me, I surely will be healed.
Save me, and I surely will be saved.
Lord, I praise you!
15The people of Judah continue to ask me questions.
They say, “Jeremiah, what about the message from the Lord?
Let’s see that message come true.”
16Lord, I did not run away from you.
I followed you.
I became the shepherd#17:16 shepherd God’s people are sometimes called his “sheep,” and the person who takes care of them is called the “shepherd.” you wanted.
I did not want the terrible day to come.
You know what I said.
You see all that is happening.
17Please don’t make me afraid of you.
I depend on you in times of trouble.
18People are hurting me.
Make them ashamed,
but don’t disappoint me.
Let them be filled with fear,
but don’t give me any reason to fear.
Bring the terrible day of disaster to my enemies.
Break them, and break them again.
Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy
19This is what the Lord said to me: “Jeremiah, go and stand at the People’s Gate,#17:19 People’s Gate This might be one of the gates into Jerusalem or perhaps one of the southern gates into the Temple area used by those who were not priests. where the kings of Judah go in and out. Tell the people my message, and then go to all the other gates of Jerusalem and do the same.”
20Say to the people, “Listen to this message from the Lord. Listen, kings of Judah. Listen, all you people of Judah. All you who come through these gates into Jerusalem, listen to me! 21This is what the Lord says: ‘Be careful that you don’t carry a load on the Sabbath day. And don’t bring a load through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. 22Don’t bring a load out of your houses on the Sabbath day. Don’t do any work on that day. You must make the Sabbath day a holy day. I gave this same command to your ancestors, 23but they did not obey me. They did not pay attention to me. Your ancestors were very stubborn. I punished them, but it did not 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 make the Sabbath day a holy day. You will do this by not doing any work on that day.
25“‘If you obey this command, the kings and leaders will be from David’s family. It will be the kings who sit on David’s throne and the leaders from Judah and Jerusalem who come through the gates of Jerusalem riding on chariots and on horses. And Jerusalem will have people living in it forever. 26People will come to Jerusalem from the towns and villages of Judah, from the land where the tribe of Benjamin lives,#17:26 the land where … Benjamin lives The land of Benjamin was just north of the land of Judah. from the western foothills, from the hill country, and from the Negev. All these people will bring burnt offerings, sacrifices, grain offerings, incense, and thank offerings to the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem.
27“‘But if you don’t listen to me and obey me, bad things will happen. If you carry loads into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, you are not keeping it as a holy day. So I will start a fire that cannot be put out. That fire will start at the gates of Jerusalem, and it will burn until it burns even the palaces.’”
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