Jeremiah

JEREMIAH 8:13
They will be thrown to the ground
when I punish the people.”
This is what the Lord said.
13 “‘I will take away their fruit and crops
so that there will be no harvest, says the
Lord.
There will be no grapes on the vine and
no figs on the fig tree.
Even the leaves will become dry and
die.
I will take away the things I gave
them.’” a
14 “ They will say, ‘Why are we just sitting
here?
Come, let’s run to the strong cities.
If the Lord our God is going to make us
die, then let’s die there.
We have sinned against the Lord,
so God gave us poisoned water to drink.
15 We hoped to have peace,
but nothing good has come.
We hoped that he would forgive us,
but only disaster has come.
16 From the land of the tribe of Dan,
we hear the snorting b of the enemy’s
horses.
The ground shakes from the pounding
of their hooves.
They have come to destroy the land
and everything in it.
They have come to destroy the city
and all the people who live there.’”
17 “ People of Judah, I am sending poisonous
snakes c to attack you.
These snakes cannot be controlled.
They will bite you.”
This message is from the Lord.
18 God, I am very sad and afraid.
19 Listen to my people.
Everywhere in this country, people are
crying for help.
They say, “Is the Lord still at Zion*?
Is Zion’s King still there?”
But God says, “The people of Judah
worshiped their worthless foreign
idols.*
That made me very angry!
Why did they do that?”
20 And the people say,
“ Harvest time is over.
Summer is gone, and still we have not
been saved.”
a 8:13 I will take away … gave them The Hebrew
text here is hard to understand.
b 8:16 snorting The sound caused by forcing breath
very hard through the nose.
c 8:17 poisonous snakes This probably means one of
Judah’s enemies.
606
21 My people are hurt, so I am hurt.
I am too sad to speak.
22 Surely there is some medicine in Gilead.
Surely there is a doctor in Gilead.
So why are the wounds of my people not
healed?
9 1If my head were filled with water,
and if my eyes were a fountain of
tears,
I would cry day and night for my people
who have been destroyed.
2 If only I had a place in the desert—
a house where travelers spend the
night—
so I could leave my people.
I could go away from them,
because they are all unfaithful to God.
They have all turned against him.
3 “ They use their tongues like a bow;
lies fly from their mouths like arrows.
Lies, not truth, have grown strong in this
land.
They go from one sin to another.
They don’t know me.”
This is what the Lord said.
4 “ Watch your neighbors!
Don’t trust your own brothers,
because every brother is a cheat.
Every neighbor talks behind your back.
5 Everyone lies to their neighbor.
No one speaks the truth.
The people of Judah* have taught
their tongues to lie.
They sinned until they were too tired
to come back.
6 One bad thing followed another,
and lies followed lies.
The people refused to know me.”
This is what the Lord said.
7 So the Lord All-Powerful says,
“ A worker heats metal in a fire to test it
and see if it is pure.
I will test the people of Judah like that.
I have no other choice.
My people have sinned.
8 The people of Judah have tongues as
sharp as arrows.
Their mouths speak lies.
They all speak kindly to their neighbors,
but they are secretly planning ways to
attack them.
9 Should I punish the people of Judah for
doing these things?”
This message is from the Lord.
“ You know I should punish a nation such
as this.
I should give it the punishment it
deserves.”
10 I, Jeremiah, will cry for the mountains.
I will sing a funeral song for the empty