Jeremiah 9
9
1 #Jeremiah 9:1–26 in the English Bible is 8:23–9:25 in the Hebrew Bible Oh that my head were waters,#Literally “Who he gives my head waters”
and my eyes a fountain of tears,
so that I might weep day and night,
for the slain of the daughter of my people.
2Oh that I had#Literally “Who he gives me” in the desert a place of overnight lodging for travelers,
that I may leave my people and go from them,
for all of them are adulterers,
a band of traitors.
3And they bend their tongue like their bow,
for falsehood and not truth is superior in the land,
for they go forth#Or “proceed” from evil to evil,
and they do not know me,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
A Nation Characterized by Deceit
4“Let everyone be on your guard against his neighbor,
and you must not trust in any brother,
for everyone surely betrays,
and every neighbor goes about with slander.
5And everyone deceives his neighbor,
and they do not speak the truth,
they have taught their tongues#Hebrew “tongue” to speak lies,#Hebrew “lie”
they are tired from going astray.
6Your dwelling is in the midst of deceit,
upon#Or “through” deceit they refuse to know me,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
7Therefore, thus says Yahweh of hosts:
“Look, I am about to refine them,
and I will test them,
for what else can I do,
because of the presence#Literally “faces” of the daughter of my people?
8Their tongue is a murderous arrow,
it speaks deceit.
With his mouth he speaks peace with his neighbor,
but in his inner parts he sets up his ambush.
9Because of these things shall I not punish them?” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh,
“On a nation that is like this shall I not take revenge?
10For the mountains I lift up weeping and wailing,
and for the pastures of the desert a lament,
because they are laid waste so that no man passes through.
And the sounds#Hebrew “sound” of cattle are not heard,
from the birds#Hebrew “bird” of heaven to the animals#Hebrew “animal”
they have fled, they are gone.
11And I will make Jerusalem as heaps of ruins, a lair of jackals,
and the towns of Judah I will make a desolation, without inhabitants.#Literally “from no inhabitant”
12Who is the wise man that can understand this?
And to whom has the mouth of Yahweh spoken, so that he may declare it?
Why is the land destroyed?
It is laid waste like the desert#Or “wilderness” so that no one passes through.”
The Nation is Judged by Yahweh
13And Yahweh said, “Because of their forsaking my law that I set before#Literally “to the face of” them, and they have not obeyed my voice, and have not walked in it, 14but they went after the stubbornness of their heart, and after the Baals, which their ancestors#Or “fathers” taught them.” 15Therefore thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, “Look, I am feeding this people wormwood, and providing drink for them, water of poison, 16and I will scatter them among the nations that they have not known, they and their ancestors,#Or “fathers” and I will send the sword after them until I bring them to an end.”
17Thus says Yahweh of hosts:
“Consider closely, and call for the wailing women, so that they come,
and for the skillful women, so that they come.
18And let them hasten,
and let them lift up wailing over us,
so that our eyes may melt with tears,
and our eyelids may flow with water.
19For a sound of wailing is heard from Zion,
‘How we are devastated!
We are very ashamed because we have left the land,
because they have overthrown our dwelling places.’
20For hear, O women, the word of Yahweh,
and let your ear receive the word of his mouth,
and teach your daughters a lamentation,
and each woman her neighbor a lament.
21For death has come into our windows,
it has entered into our fortresses,
to cut off the children#Hebrew “child” from the streets,#Hebrew “street”
the young men from the public squares.
22Speak, ‘thus declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh:
“The dead body of the human will fall
like dung upon the surface of the field,
and like cut grain behind the reaper,
and there is no one who gathers.” ’ ”
The Things in Which Yahweh Delights
23Thus says Yahweh,
“The wise man must not boast in his wisdom,
and the warrior must not boast in his might,
the wealthy man must not boast in his wealth.
24But only#Literally “But it” in this must the one who boasts boast,
that he has insight,
and that he knows me,
that I am Yahweh,
showing loyal love, justice, and righteousness on the earth,
for in these things I delight,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh.
The Way of the Nations
25“Look, days are coming,” declares#Literally “a declaration of” Yahweh, “and I will call into account all those who are circumcised in the foreskin: 26Egypt, Judah, and Edom, and the Ammonites,#Literally “sons/children of Ammon” and Moab, and all those who are trimmed to the side, those who live in the desert,#Or “wilderness” for all the nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised of heart.”
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Jeremiah 9
9
1If my head were a flowing spring,
my eyes a fountain of tears,
I would weep day and night#Ps 42:3; Jr 13:17; Lm 2:11; Lk 19:41
over the slain of my dear#9:1 Lit slain among the daughter of my people.
2If only I had a traveler’s lodging place
in the wilderness,#1Kg 19:9–10
I would abandon my people
and depart from them,
for they are all adulterers,#Jr 23:10; Hs 7:4; Mal 3:5
a solemn assembly of treacherous people.#Is 24:16; 33:1; Jr 12:1
3They bent their tongues like their bows;
lies and not faithfulness prevail in the land,
for they proceed from one evil to another,
and they do not take me into account.#Jr 4:22
This is the Lord’s declaration.
Imminent Ruin and Exile
4Everyone has to be on guard against his friend.
Don’t trust any brother,
for every brother will certainly deceive,#Gn 27:36
and every friend spread slander.#Jr 6:28
5Each one betrays his friend;#Gn 31:7
no one tells the truth.
They have taught their tongues to speak lies;
they wear themselves out doing wrong.
6You live in a world of deception.#9:6 LXX reads Oppression on oppression, deceit on deceit#Gn 27:35–36; 34:13
In their deception they refuse to know me.#Rm 1:17
This is the Lord’s declaration.
7Therefore, this is what the Lord of Armies says:
I am about to refine them and test them,#Is 1:25; Jr 6:27
for what else can I do
because of my dear#9:7 Lit of the daughter of my people?#9:7 LXX, Tg read because of their evils
8Their tongues are deadly arrows —
they speak deception.#Ps 28:3
With his mouth
one speaks peaceably with his friend,
but inwardly he sets up an ambush.
9Should I not punish them for these things?
This is the Lord’s declaration.
Should I not avenge myself#Jr 5:9,29
on such a nation as this?
10I will raise weeping and a lament
over the mountains,
a dirge over the wilderness grazing land,
for they have been so scorched
that no one passes through.
The sound of cattle is no longer heard.
From the birds of the sky to the animals,#Jr 4:25; 12:4
everything has fled — they have gone away.
11I will make Jerusalem a heap of rubble,#2Kg 19:25; Is 25:2
a jackals’ den.#Jr 10:22; 49:33; 51:37
I will make the cities of Judah a desolation,
an uninhabited place.
12Who is the person wise enough to understand this?#Ps 107:43; Ec 8:1; Hs 14:9 Who has the Lord spoken to, that he may explain it? Why is the land destroyed and scorched like a wilderness, so no one can pass through?
13The Lord said, “It is because they abandoned my instruction,#2Ch 12:1 which I set before them, and did not obey my voice or walk according to it. 14Instead, they followed the stubbornness of their hearts#Dt 29:19; Ps 81:12 and followed the Baals as their ancestors taught them.”#Jr 2:8,23 15Therefore, this is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: “I am about to feed this people wormwood#Dt 29:18; Jr 23:15; Lm 3:19 and give them poisonous water to drink.#Jr 8:14; 23:15 16I will scatter them among the nations#Lv 26:33; Dt 4:27; 28:64 that they and their ancestors have not known. I will send a sword after them until I have finished them off.”
Mourning over Judah
17This is what the Lord of Armies says:
Consider, and summon the women who mourn;#Ec 12:5; Am 5:16
send for the skillful women.
18Let them come quickly to raise a lament over us
so that our eyes may overflow with tears,
our eyelids be soaked with weeping.
19For a sound of lamentation is heard from Zion:
How devastated we are.
We are greatly ashamed,#Jr 2:26; 6:15; 8:12
for we have abandoned the land;
our dwellings have been torn down.
20Now hear the word of the Lord, you women.
Pay attention to#9:20 Lit Your ears must receive the words from his mouth.
Teach your daughters a lament
and one another a dirge,
21for Death#Jb 18:13; 28:22; Ps 49:14 has climbed through our windows;
it has entered our fortresses,
cutting off children from the streets,
young men from the squares.
22“Speak as follows: ‘This is what the Lord declares: Human corpses will fall like manure on the surface of the field,#2Kg 9:30,32,37 like newly cut grain#Am 2:13; Mc 4:12; Zch 12:6 after the reaper with no one to gather it.
Boast in the Lord
23“‘This is what the Lord says:
The wise person should not boast in his wisdom;
the strong should not boast in his strength;
the wealthy should not boast in his wealth.
24But the one who boasts should boast in this:
that he understands and knows me#Ps 34:2; 64:10; 105:3; 1Co 1:31; 2Co 10:17 —
that I am the Lord, showing faithful love,
justice, and righteousness on the earth,
for I delight in these things.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
25“‘Look, the days are coming — this is the Lord’s declaration — when I will punish all the circumcised yet uncircumcised:#Jr 4:4; Rm 2:28–29 26Egypt, Judah, Edom, the Ammonites, Moab, and all the inhabitants of the desert who clip the hair on their temples.#9:26 Or who live in distant places All these nations are uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.’”#Lv 19:27; Jr 25:23; 49:32; Ezk 44:7,9
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