Jeremiah 5
5
1 “Roam about through the streets of Jerusalem,
and look please, and take note,
and search at its public squares,
if you can find a person who does justice,
who seeks honesty,
so that I may forgive it.
2And though they say, ‘As Yahweh lives,’#Literally “Life of Yahweh”
therefore#Literally “to thus” they swear falsely.”
3O Yahweh, do not your eyes look for honesty?
You have struck them, but they felt no pain,
you have destroyed them, they refused to take discipline.
They have hardened their faces more than rock,
they have refused to turn back.
4Then I said, “They are just simple people,
they are foolish,
for they know not the way of Yahweh,
the law#Or “ordinance” of their God.
5Let me go to the great,
and let me speak with them,
for they know the way of Yahweh,
the law#Or “ordinance” of their God.”
However, they together have broken the yoke,
they have torn to pieces the bonds.
6Therefore a lion from the forest will kill them,
A wolf from the desert plains#Or “Arabah” will devastate them.
A leopard is watching their cities,
everyone who goes out from there will be torn,
because their transgressions are many,
their apostasies are numerous.
7“How#Literally “Why to this” can I forgive you?
Your children have forsaken me,
and they have sworn by those who are not gods.
But I fed them to the full,
and they committed adultery,
and flocked to the house of a prostitute.
8They were well-fed lusty horses,
they neighed each to the wife of his neighbor.
9Because of these things shall I not punish?” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh,
“and on a nation who is like this, shall I not take revenge?
10Go up through her vineyards and destroy,
but you must not make complete destruction.
Remove her branches,
for they are not to Yahweh.
11For the house of Israel and the house of Judah
have dealt utterly treacherously with me,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
12“They have denied Yahweh, and have said,
‘Not he, for#Literally “and” evil will not come on us,
we will see neither sword nor famine.
13And the prophets are like wind,
and the word is not in them.’
Thus it will be done to them.”
14Therefore#Literally “To thus” thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts,
“Because you have spoken this word,
look, I am making my words in your mouth like a fire,
and this people wood, and it will devour them.
15Look, I am about to bring on you a nation from afar,
O house of Israel,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
“It is an enduring nation, it is an ancient nation.#Literally “a nation from a long time ago”
A nation whose language you do not know,
and you cannot understand what they speak.
16Their quiver is like an open tomb,
all of them are warriors.
17And they will eat your harvest and your food,
they will eat your sons and your daughters,
they will eat your flock and your herd,
they will eat your vine and your fig tree,
they will smash with the sword your fortified cities,#Literally “the cities of your fortification”
in which you trust.
18“But even in those days,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh, “I will not make you a complete destruction. 19And then,#Literally “And it will happen” when you people say, ‘Why has Yahweh our God done all of these things to us?’ Then you will say to them, ‘As you have forsaken me and have served gods of a foreign land in your land, so will you serve strangers in a land that does not belong to you.’#Literally “a land not to you”
20“Declare this in the house of Jacob,
and proclaim it in Judah, saying,
21‘Hear this please, O foolish and senseless#Literally “without heart” people,
who have eyes#Literally “eyes for them” but do not see,
who have ears#Literally “ears for them” but do not hear.’
22Do you not revere me?” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh,
“Do you not tremble before me?#Literally “from the face of me”
For I have placed the sand as a boundary for the sea,
as an everlasting limit,#Literally “a limit of eternity” and it cannot pass over it,
and they rise and fall loudly, but they cannot prevail,
and its waves roar, but they cannot pass over it.
23But for this people is a stubborn and rebellious heart,
they have turned aside and have gone away.
24And they do not say in their hearts,
‘Let us fear please Yahweh our God,
the one who gives the autumn rain#Hebrew “early rain” and the spring rain#Hebrew “late rain” in its season,
the set times of the harvest#Literally “weeks due harvest” he keeps for us.’
25Your iniquities have disturbed these,
and your sins have kept away the good from you.
26For wicked people are found among my people,
they lie in wait like the hiding of fowlers,
they set up a trap,
they catch humans.
27Like a cage full of birds,#Hebrew “bird”
so their houses are full of fraud.
Therefore#Literally “Unto thus” they have become great,
and they have become rich.
28They have grown fat,
they have grown sleek,
also, their evil deeds have no limit.#Literally “they cross over evil deeds”
They do not judge with justice,
the legal cause of the orphan,
or allow it to succeed,
and the legal case of the poor,
they do not defend.
29Because of these things shall I not punish?” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh,
“and on a nation who is like this, shall I not take revenge?
30A horrific event and something horrible has happened in the land.
31The prophets prophesy falsely,#Literally “in the lie”
and the priests rule by their own authority,#Literally “by their hands”
and my people love it#Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation so much.
But what will you do when the end comes?#Literally “to end her”
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Jeremiah 5: LEB
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Jeremiah 5
5
No One Is Right
1The Lord says, “Walk up and down the streets of Jerusalem.
Look around and discover these things.
Search the public squares of the city.
If you can find one person who does honest things,
who searches for the truth,
I will forgive this city.
2Although the people say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives!’
they don’t really mean it.”
3Lord, don’t you look for truth in people?
You struck the people of Judah,
but they didn’t feel any pain.
You crushed them,
but they refused to learn what is right.
They became more stubborn than a rock;
they refused to turn back to God.
4But I thought,
“These are only the poor, foolish people.
They have not learned the way of the Lord
and what their God wants them to do.
5So I will go to the leaders of Judah
and talk to them.
Surely they understand the way of the Lord
and know what God wants them to do.”
But even the leaders had all joined together to break away from the Lord;
they had broken their ties with him.
6So a lion from the forest will attack them.
A wolf from the desert will kill them.
A leopard is waiting for them near their towns.
It will tear to pieces anyone who comes out of the city,
because the people of Judah have sinned greatly.
They have wandered away from the Lord many times.
7The Lord said, “Tell me why I should forgive you.
Your children have left me
and have made promises to idols that are not gods at all.
I gave your children everything they needed,
but they still were like an unfaithful wife to me.
They spent much time in houses of prostitutes.
8They are like well-fed horses filled with sexual desire;
each one wants another man’s wife.
9Shouldn’t I punish the people of Judah for doing these things?” says the Lord.
“Shouldn’t I give a nation such as this the punishment it deserves?
10“Go along and cut down Judah’s vineyards,
but do not completely destroy them.
Cut off all her people as if they were branches,
because they do not belong to the Lord.
11The families of Israel and Judah
have been completely unfaithful to me,” says the Lord.
12Those people have lied about the Lord
and said, “He will not do anything to us!
Nothing bad will happen to us!
We will never see war or hunger!
13The prophets are like an empty wind;
the word of God is not in them.
Let the bad things they say happen to them.”
14So this is what the Lord God All-Powerful says:
“The people said I would not punish them.
So, the words I give you will be like fire,
and these people will be like wood that it burns up.
15Listen, family of Israel,” says the Lord,
“I will soon bring a nation from far away to attack you.
It is an old nation that has lasted a long time.
The people there speak a language you do not know;
you cannot understand what they say.
16Their arrows bring death.
All their people are strong warriors.
17They will eat your crops and your food.
They will eat your sons and daughters.
They will eat your flocks and herds.
They will eat your grapes and figs.
They will destroy with their swords
the strong, walled cities you trust.
18“Yet even then,” says the Lord, “I will not destroy you completely. 19When the people of Judah ask, ‘Why has the Lord our God done all these terrible things to us?’ then give them this answer: ‘You have left the Lord and served foreign idols in your own land. So now you will serve foreigners in a land that does not belong to you.’
20“Announce this message to the family of Jacob,
and tell it to the nation of Judah:
21Hear this message, you foolish people who have no sense.
They have eyes, but they don’t really see.
They have ears, but they don’t really listen.
22Surely you are afraid of me,” says the Lord.
“You should shake with fear in my presence.
I am the one who made the beaches to be a border for the sea,
a border the water can never go past.
The waves may pound the beach, but they can’t win over it.
They may roar, but they cannot go beyond it.
23But the people of Judah are stubborn and have turned against me.
They have turned aside and gone away from me.
24They do not say to themselves,
‘We should fear the Lord our God,
who gives us autumn and spring rains in their seasons,
who makes sure we have the harvest at the right time.’
25But your evil has kept away both rain and harvest.
Your sins have kept you from enjoying good things.
26There are wicked men among my people.
Like those who make nets for catching birds,
they set their traps to catch people.
27Like cages full of birds,
their houses are full of lies.
They have become rich and powerful.
28They have grown big and fat.
There is no end to the evil things they do.
They won’t plead the case of the orphan
or help the poor be judged fairly.
29Shouldn’t I punish the people of Judah for doing these things?” says the Lord.
“Shouldn’t I give a nation such as this the punishment it deserves?
30“A terrible and shocking thing
has happened in the land of Judah:
31The prophets speak lies,
and the priests take power into their own hands,
and my people love it this way.
But what will you do when the end comes?
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