Judah's Sin and Punishment
1At that time, saith the LORD, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves: 2And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth. 3And death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue of them that remain of this evil family, which remain in all the places whither I have driven them, saith the LORD of hosts.
4Moreover thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he turn away, and not return?
5Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return.
6I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.
7Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment of the LORD.
8How do ye say, We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made he it; the pen of the scribes is in vain.
9The wise men are ashamed, they are dismayed and taken: lo, they have rejected the word of the LORD; and what wisdom is in them?
10Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall inherit them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
11For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
12Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith the LORD.
13I will surely consume them, saith the LORD: there shall be no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree, and the leaf shall fade; and the things that I have given them shall pass away from them.
14Why do we sit still? assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the defenced cities, and let us be silent there: for the LORD our God hath put us to silence, and given us water of gall to drink, because we have sinned against the LORD.
15We looked for peace, but no good came; and for a time of health, and behold trouble!
16The snorting of his horses was heard from Dan: the whole land trembled at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones; for they are come, and have devoured the land, and all that is in it; the city, and those that dwell therein.
17For, behold, I will send serpents, cockatrices, among you, which will not be charmed, and they shall bite you, saith the LORD.
Jeremiah Weeps for his People
18When I would comfort myself against sorrow, my heart is faint in me.
19Behold the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people because of them that dwell in a far country: Is not the LORD in Zion? is not her king in her? Why have they provoked me to anger with their graven images, and with strange vanities?
20The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
21For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken hold on me.
22Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?
King James Bible
Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.
Judah’s Sin and Punishment
1 At that time, says Yahweh, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves; 2 and they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the army of the sky, which they have loved, and which they have served, and after which they have walked, and which they have sought, and which they have worshiped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried, they shall be for dung on the surface of the earth. 3 Death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue that remain of this evil family, that remain in all the places where I have driven them, says Yahweh of Armies.
4 Moreover you shall tell them, Thus says Yahweh: Shall men fall, and not rise up again? Shall one turn away, and not return?
5 Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return.
6 I listened and heard, but they didn’t speak aright: no man repents him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? everyone turns to his course, as a horse that rushes headlong in the battle.
7 Yes, the stork in the sky knows her appointed times; and the turtledove and the swallow and the crane observe the time of their coming; but my people don’t know Yahweh’s law.
8 How do you say, We are wise, and the law of Yahweh is with us? But, behold, the false pen of the scribes has worked falsely.
9 The wise men are disappointed, they are dismayed and taken: behold, they have rejected the word of Yahweh; and what kind of wisdom is in them?
10 Therefore will I give their wives to others, and their fields to those who shall possess them: for everyone from the least even to the greatest is given to covetousness; from the prophet even to the priest every one deals falsely.
11 They have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
12 Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among those who fall; in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, says Yahweh.
13 I will utterly consume them, says Yahweh: no grapes shall be on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree, and the leaf shall fade; and the things that I have given them shall pass away from them.
The People Respond
14 Why do we sit still? Assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the fortified cities, and let us be silent there; for Yahweh our God has put us to silence, and given us water of gall to drink, because we have sinned against Yahweh.
15 We looked for peace, but no good came; and for a time of healing, and behold, dismay!
16 The snorting of his horses is heard from Dan: at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones the whole land trembles; for they have come, and have devoured the land and all that is in it; the city and those who dwell therein.
17 For, behold, I will send serpents, adders, among you, which will not be charmed; and they shall bite you, says Yahweh.
Jeremiah Weeps for His People
18 Oh that I could comfort myself against sorrow! My heart is faint within me.
19 Behold, the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people from a land that is very far off: isn’t Yahweh in Zion? Isn’t her King in her? Why have they provoked me to anger with their engraved images, and with foreign vanities?
20 The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
21 For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I hurt: I mourn; dismay has taken hold on me.
22 Is there no balm in Gilead? is there no physician there? why then isn’t the health of the daughter of my people recovered?
Judah’s Sin and Punishment
1 “At that time,” declares the LORD, “the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of the officials, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be removed from their graves. 2 They will be exposed to the sun and moon, and to all the host of heaven which they have loved, served, followed, consulted, and worshiped. Their bones will not be gathered up or buried, but will become like dung lying on the ground. 3 And wherever I have banished them, the remnant of this evil family will choose death over life,” declares the LORD of Hosts.
4 So you are to tell them this is what the LORD says:
“Do men fall and not get up again?
Does one turn away and not return?
5 Why then have these people turned away?
Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;
they refuse to return.
6 I have listened and heard;
they do not speak what is right.
No one repents of his wickedness,
asking, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone has pursued his own course
like a horse charging into battle.
7 Even the stork in the sky
knows her appointed seasons.
The turtledove, the swift, and the thrush a
keep their time of migration,
but My people do not know
the requirements of the LORD.
8 How can you say, ‘We are wise,
and the Law of the LORD is with us,’
when in fact the lying pen of the scribes
has produced a deception?
9 The wise will be put to shame;
they will be dismayed and trapped.
Since they have rejected the word of the LORD,
what wisdom do they really have?
10 Therefore I will give their wives to other men
and their fields to new owners.
For from the least of them to the greatest,
all are greedy for gain;
from prophet to priest,
all practice deceit.
11 They dress the wound of the daughter of My people
with very little care,
saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
when there is no peace at all.
12 Are they ashamed of the abomination they have committed?
No, they have no shame at all;
they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
when I punish them, they will collapse,
says the LORD.
13 I will take away their harvest,
declares the LORD.
There will be no grapes on the vine,
nor figs on the tree,
and even the leaf will wither.
Whatever I have given them will be lost to them.”
The People Respond
14 Why are we just sitting here?
Gather together,
let us flee to the fortified cities and perish there,
for the LORD our God has doomed us.
He has given us poisoned water to drink,
because we have sinned against the LORD.
15 We hoped for peace,
but no good has come,
for a time of healing,
but there was only terror.
16 The snorting of enemy horses
is heard from Dan.
At the sound of the neighing of mighty steeds,
the whole land quakes.
They come to devour the land and everything in it,
the city and all who dwell in it.
17 “For behold, I will send snakes among you,
vipers that cannot be charmed,
and they will bite you,”
declares the LORD.
Jeremiah Weeps for His People
18 My sorrow is beyond healing; b
my heart is faint within me.
19 Listen to the cry of the daughter of my people
from a land far away:
“Is the LORD no longer in Zion?
Is her King no longer there?”
“Why have they provoked Me to anger
with their carved images,
with their worthless foreign idols?”
20 “The harvest has passed, the summer has ended,
but we have not been saved.”
21 For the brokenness of the daughter of my people I am crushed.
I mourn; horror has gripped me.
22 Is there no balm in Gilead?
Is no physician there?
Why then has the health of the daughter of my people
not been restored?
Footnotes:
7 a The precise identification of some of these birds is uncertain.
18 b Or O my Comforter in sorrow,
Judah's Sin and Punishment
1At that time, an affirmation of Jehovah, They bring the bones of the kings of Judah, And the bones of its princes, And the bones of the priests, And the bones of the prophets, And the bones of inhabitants of Jerusalem, Out of their graves, 2And have spread them to sun, and to moon, And to all the host of the heavens, that they have loved, And that they have served, And that they have walked after, And that they have sought, And to which they have bowed themselves, They are not gathered, nor buried, They are for dung on the face of the ground. 3And chosen is death rather than life By all the remnant who are left of this evil family, In all the remaining places, whither I have driven them, An affirmation of Jehovah of Hosts.
4And thou hast said unto them: Thus said Jehovah, Do they fall, and not rise? Doth he turn back, and not return?
5Wherefore hath this people of Jerusalem Turned back -- a perpetual backsliding? They have kept hold on deceit, They have refused to turn back.
6I have given attention, yea, I hearken, They do not speak right, No man hath repented of his wickedness, Saying, What have I done? Every one hath turned to his courses, As a horse is rushing into battle.
7Even a stork in the heavens hath known her seasons, And turtle, and swallow, and crane, Have watched the time of their coming, And -- My people have not known the judgment of Jehovah.
8How do ye say, We are wise, And the law of Jehovah is with us? Surely, lo, falsely it hath wrought, The false pen of scribes.
9Ashamed have been the wise, They have been affrighted, and are captured, Lo, against a word of Jehovah they kicked, And the wisdom of what -- have they?
10Therefore, I give their wives to others, Their fields to dispossessors, For from the least even unto the greatest, Every one is gaining dishonest gain, From prophet even unto priest, every one is dealing falsely.
11And they heal the breach of the daughter of my people slightly, Saying, Peace, peace! and there is no peace.
12They were ashamed when they did abomination! Yea, they are not at all ashamed, And blushing they have not known, Therefore, they do fall among falling ones, In the time of their inspection they stumble, said Jehovah.
13I utterly consume them, an affirmation of Jehovah, There are no grapes in the vine, Yea, there are no figs in the fig-tree, And the leaf hath faded, And the strength they have passeth from them.
14Wherefore are we sitting still? Be gathered, and we go in to the fenced cities, And we are silent there, For Jehovah our God hath made us silent, Yea, He causeth us to drink water of gall, For we have sinned against Jehovah.
15Looking for peace -- and there is no good, For a time of healing, and lo, terror.
16From Dan hath been heard the snorting of his horses, From the voice of the neighings of his mighty ones, Trembled hath all the land, And they come in and consume the land and its fulness, The city and the inhabitants in it.
17For, lo, I am sending among you serpents, Vipers that have no charmer, And they have bitten you, an affirmation of Jehovah.
Jeremiah Weeps for his People
18My refreshing for me is sorrow, For me my heart is sick.
19Lo, the voice of a cry of the daughter of my people from a land afar off, Is Jehovah not in Zion? is her king not in her? Wherefore have they provoked Me with their graven images, With the vanities of a foreigner?
20Harvest hath passed, summer hath ended, And we -- we have not been saved.
21For a breach of the daughter of my people have I been broken, I have been black, astonishment hath seized me.
22Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? For wherefore hath not the health of the daughter of my people gone up?
