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Jeremiah 16
1 The word of Jehovah came also unto me, saying,
2 Thou shalt not take thee a wife, neither shalt thou have sons
or daughters, in this place.
3 For thus saith Jehovah concerning the sons and concerning the
daughters that are born in this place, and concerning their mothers
that bare them, and concerning their fathers that begat them in
this land:
4 They shall die grievous deaths: they shall not be lamented, neither
shall they be buried; they shall be as dung upon the face of the
ground; and they shall be consumed by the sword, and by famine;
and their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the heavens,
and for the beasts of the earth.
5 For thus saith Jehovah, Enter not into the house of mourning,
neither go to lament, neither bemoan them; for I have taken away
my peace from this people, saith Jehovah, even lovingkindness and
tender mercies.
6 Both great and small shall die in this land; they shall not be
buried, neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor
make themselves bald for them;
7 neither shall men break bread for them in mourning, to comfort
them for the dead; neither shall men give them the cup of consolation
to drink for their father or for their mother.
8 And thou shalt not go into the house of feasting to sit with them,
to eat and to drink.
9 For thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I
will cause to cease out of this place, before your eyes and in your
days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of
the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.
10 And it shall come to pass, when thou shalt show this people all
these words, and they shall say unto thee, Wherefore hath Jehovah
pronounced all this great evil against us? or what is our iniquity?
or what is our sin that we have committed against Jehovah our God?
11 Then shalt thou say unto them, Because your fathers have forsaken
me, saith Jehovah, and have walked after other gods, and have served
them, and have worshipped them, and have forsaken me, and have not
kept my law;
12 and ye have done evil more than your fathers; for, behold, ye
walk every one after the stubbornness of his evil heart, so that
ye hearken not unto me:
13 therefore will I cast you forth out of this land into the land
that ye have not known, neither ye nor your fathers; and there shall
ye serve other gods day and night; for I will show you no favor.
14 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that it shall
no more be said, As Jehovah liveth, that brought up the children
of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
15 but, As Jehovah liveth, that brought up the children of Israel
from the land of the north, and from all the countries whither he
had driven them. And I will bring them again into their land that
I gave unto their fathers.
16 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith Jehovah, and they
shall fish them up; and afterward I will send for many hunters,
and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill,
and out of the clefts of the rocks.
17 For mine eyes are upon all their ways; they are not hid from
my face, neither is their iniquity concealed from mine eyes.
18 And first I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double,
because they have polluted my land with the carcasses of their detestable
things, and have filled mine inheritance with their abominations.
19 O Jehovah, my strength, and my stronghold, and my refuge in the
day of affliction, unto thee shall the nations come from the ends
of the earth, and shall say, Our fathers have inherited nought but
lies, even vanity and things wherein there is no profit.
20 Shall a man make unto himself gods, which yet are no gods?
21 Therefore, behold, I will cause them to know, this once will
I cause them to know my hand and my might; and they shall know that
my name is Jehovah.
Jeremiah 17
1 The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point
of a diamond: it is graven upon the tablet of their heart, and upon
the horns of your altars;
2 whilst their children remember their altars and their Asherim
by the green trees upon the high hills.
3 O my mountain in the field, I will give thy substance and all
thy treasures for a spoil, and thy high places, because of sin,
throughout all thy borders.
4 And thou, even of thyself, shalt discontinue from thy heritage
that I gave thee; and I will cause thee to serve thine enemies in
the land which thou knowest not: for ye have kindled a fire in mine
anger which shall burn for ever.
5 Thus saith Jehovah: Cursed is the man that trusteth in man, and
maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from Jehovah.
6 For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see
when good cometh, but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
a salt land and not inhabited.
7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in Jehovah, and whose trust Jehovah
is.
8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, that spreadeth
out its roots by the river, and shall not fear when heat cometh,
but its leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year
of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly
corrupt: who can know it?
10 I, Jehovah, search the mind, I try the heart, even to give every
man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.
11 As the partridge that sitteth on eggs which she hath not laid,
so is he that getteth riches, and not by right; in the midst of
his days they shall leave him, and at his end he shall be a fool.
12 A glorious throne, set on high from the beginning, is the place
of our sanctuary.
13 O Jehovah, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be
put to shame. They that depart from me shall be written in the earth,
because they have forsaken Jehovah, the fountain of living waters.
14 Heal me, O Jehovah, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall
be saved: for thou art my praise.
15 Behold, they say unto me, Where is the word of Jehovah? let it
come now.
16 As for me, I have not hastened from being a shepherd after thee;
neither have I desired the woeful day; thou knowest: that which
came out of my lips was before thy face.
17 Be not a terror unto me: thou art my refuge in the day of evil.
18 Let them be put to shame that persecute me, but let not me be
put to shame; let them be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed;
bring upon them the day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction.
19 Thus said Jehovah unto me: Go, and stand in the gate of the children
of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by which
they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem;
20 and say unto them, Hear ye the word of Jehovah, ye kings of Judah,
and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter
in by these gates:
21 Thus saith Jehovah, Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden
on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem;
22 neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the sabbath
day, neither do ye any work: but hallow ye the sabbath day, as I
commanded your fathers.
23 But they hearkened not, neither inclined their ear, but made
their neck stiff, that they might not hear, and might not receive
instruction.
24 And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently hearken unto me,
saith Jehovah, to bring in no burden through the gates of this city
on the sabbath day, but to hallow the sabbath day, to do no work
therein;
25 then shall there enter in by the gates of this city kings and
princes sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and
on horses, they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants
of Jerusalem; and this city shall remain for ever.
26 And they shall come from the cities of Judah, and from the places
round about Jerusalem, and from the land of Benjamin, and from the
lowland, and from the hill-country, and from the South, bringing
burnt-offerings, and sacrifices, and meal-offerings, and frankincense,
and bringing sacrifices of thanksgiving, unto the house of Jehovah.
27 But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath day,
and not to bear a burden and enter in at the gates of Jerusalem
on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof,
and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be
quenched.
Jeremiah 18
1 The word which came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying,
2 Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause
thee to hear my words.
3 Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he was making
a work on the wheels.
4 And when the vessel that he made of the clay was marred in the
hand of the potter, he made it again another vessel, as seemed good
to the potter to make it.
5 Then the word of Jehovah came to me, saying,
6 O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith
Jehovah. Behold, as the clay in the potter's hand, so are ye in
my hand, O house of Israel.
7 At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning
a kingdom, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy it;
8 if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turn from their
evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.
9 And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning
a kingdom, to build and to plant it;
10 if they do that which is evil in my sight, that they obey not
my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would
benefit them.
11 Now therefore, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants
of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith Jehovah: Behold, I frame evil against
you, and devise a device against you: return ye now every one from
his evil way, and amend your ways and your doings.
12 But they say, It is in vain; for we will walk after our own devices,
and we will do every one after the stubbornness of his evil heart.
13 Therefore thus saith Jehovah: Ask ye now among the nations, who
hath heard such things; the virgin of Israel hath done a very horrible
thing.
14 Shall the snow of Lebanon fail from the rock of the field? or
shall the cold waters that flow down from afar be dried up?
15 For my people have forgotten me, they have burned incense to
false gods; and they have been made to stumble in their ways, in
the ancient paths, to walk in bypaths, in a way not cast up;
16 to make their land an astonishment, and a perpetual hissing;
every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished, and shake his
head.
17 I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I
will show them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity.
18 Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah;
for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the
wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him
with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.
19 Give heed to me, O Jehovah, and hearken to the voice of them
that contend with me.
20 Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they have digged a pit
for my soul. Remember how I stood before thee to speak good for
them, to turn away thy wrath from them.
21 Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, and give them
over to the power of the sword; and let their wives become childless,
and widows; and let their men be slain of death, and their young
men smitten of the sword in battle.
22 Let a cry be heard from their houses, when thou shalt bring a
troop suddenly upon them; for they have digged a pit to take me,
and hid snares for my feet.
23 Yet, Jehovah, thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay
me; forgive not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from
thy sight; but let them be overthrown before thee; deal thou with
them in the time of thine anger.
Jeremiah 19
1 Thus said Jehovah, Go, and buy a potter's earthen bottle, and
take of the elders of the people, and of the elders of the priests;
2 and go forth unto the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is by
the entry of the gate Harsith, and proclaim there the words that
I shall tell thee;
3 and say, Hear ye the word of Jehovah, O kings of Judah, and inhabitants
of Jerusalem: thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold,
I will bring evil upon this place, which whosoever heareth, his
ears shall tingle.
4 Because they have forsaken me, and have estranged this place,
and have burned incense in it unto other gods, that they knew not,
they and their fathers and the kings of Judah; and have filled this
place with the blood of innocents,
5 and have built the high places of Baal, to burn their sons in
the fire for burnt-offerings unto Baal; which I commanded not, nor
spake it, neither came it into my mind:
6 therefore, behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that this place
shall no more be called Topheth, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom,
but The valley of Slaughter.
7 And I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this
place; and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies,
and by the hand of them that seek their life: and their dead bodies
will I give to be food for the birds of the heavens, and for the
beasts of the earth.
8 And I will make this city an astonishment, and a hissing; every
one that passeth thereby shall be astonished and hiss because of
all the plagues thereof.
9 And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh
of their daughters; and they shall eat every one the flesh of his
friend, in the siege and in the distress, wherewith their enemies,
and they that seek their life, shall distress them.
10 Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the men that
go with thee,
11 and shalt say unto them, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Even so
will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter's
vessel, that cannot be made whole again; and they shall bury in
Topheth, till there be no place to bury.
12 Thus will I do unto this place, saith Jehovah, and to the inhabitants
thereof, even making this city as Topheth:
13 and the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses of the kings of Judah,
which are defiled, shall be as the place of Topheth, even all the
houses upon whose roofs they have burned incense unto all the host
of heaven, and have poured out drink-offerings unto other gods.
14 Then came Jeremiah from Topheth, whither Jehovah had sent him
to prophesy; and he stood in the court of Jehovah's house, and said
to all the people:
15 Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I will
bring upon this city and upon all its towns all the evil that I
have pronounced against it; because they have made their neck stiff,
that they may not hear my words.
Jeremiah 20
1 Now Pashhur, the son of Immer the priest, who was chief officer
in the house of Jehovah, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things.
2 Then Pashhur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks
that were in the upper gate of Benjamin, which was in the house
of Jehovah.
3 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Pashhur brought forth
Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said Jeremiah unto him, Jehovah
hath not called thy name Pashhur, but Magor-missabib.
4 For thus saith Jehovah, Behold, I will make thee a terror to thyself,
and to all thy friends; and they shall fall by the sword of their
enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it; and I will give all Judah
into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive
to Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword.
5 Moreover I will give all the riches of this city, and all the
gains thereof, and all the precious things thereof, yea, all the
treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into the hand of their
enemies; and they shall make them a prey, and take them, and carry
them to Babylon.
6 And thou, Pashhur, and all that dwell in thy house shall go into
captivity; and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt
die, and there shalt thou be buried, thou, and all thy friends,
to whom thou hast prophesied falsely.
7 O Jehovah, thou hast persuaded me, and I was persuaded; thou art
stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am become a laughing-stock
all the day, every one mocketh me.
8 For as often as I speak, I cry out; I cry, Violence and destruction!
because the word of Jehovah is made a reproach unto me, and a derision,
all the day.
9 And if I say, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more
in his name, then there is in my heart as it were a burning fire
shut up in my bones, and I am weary with forbearing, and I cannot
contain.
10 For I have heard the defaming of many, terror on every side.
Denounce, and we will denounce him, say all my familiar friends,
they that watch for my fall; peradventure he will be persuaded,
and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge
on him.
11 But Jehovah is with me as a mighty one and a terrible: therefore
my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail; they shall
be utterly put to shame, because they have not dealt wisely, even
with an everlasting dishonor which shall never be forgotten.
12 But, O Jehovah of hosts, that triest the righteous, that seest
the heart and the mind, let me see thy vengeance on them; for unto
thee have I revealed my cause.
13 Sing unto Jehovah, praise ye Jehovah; for he hath delivered the
soul of the needy from the hand of evil-doers.
14 Cursed be the day wherein I was born: let not the day wherein
my mother bare me be blessed.
15 Cursed be the man who brought tidings to my father, saying, A
man-child is born unto thee; making him very glad.
16 And let that man be as the cities which Jehovah overthrew, and
repented not: and let him hear a cry in the morning, and shouting
at noontime;
17 because he slew me not from the womb; and so my mother would
have been my grave, and her womb always great.
18 Wherefore came I forth out of the womb to see labor and sorrow,
that my days should be consumed with shame?
(ASV)
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