1 The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, ² to whom the word of the Lord came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. ³ It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

The Prophet Is Called

⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

⁵ “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;Before you were born I sanctified you;I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

⁶ Then said I:

“Ah, Lord God!Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.”

⁷ But the Lord said to me:

“Do not say, ‘I am a youth,’For you shall go to all to whom I send you,And whatever I command you, you shall speak.⁸ Do not be afraid of their faces,For I am with you to deliver you,” says the Lord.

⁹ Then the Lord put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the Lord said to me:

“Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.¹⁰ See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms,To root out and to pull down,To destroy and to throw down,To build and to plant.”

¹¹ Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?”

And I said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.”

¹² Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am ready to perform My word.”

¹³ And the word of the Lord came to me the second time, saying, “What do you see?”

And I said, “I see a boiling pot, and it is facing away from the north.”

¹⁴ Then the Lord said to me:

“Out of the north calamity shall break forthOn all the inhabitants of the land.¹⁵ For behold, I am callingAll the families of the kingdoms of the north,” says the Lord;“They shall come and each one set his throneAt the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem,Against all its walls all around,And against all the cities of Judah.¹⁶ I will utter My judgmentsAgainst them concerning all their wickedness,Because they have forsaken Me,Burned incense to other gods,And worshiped the works of their own hands.

¹⁷ “Therefore prepare yourself and arise,And speak to them all that I command you.Do not be dismayed before their faces,Lest I dismay you before them.¹⁸ For behold, I have made you this dayA fortified city and an iron pillar,And bronze walls against the whole land—Against the kings of Judah,Against its princes,Against its priests,And against the people of the land.¹⁹ They will fight against you,But they shall not prevail against you.For I am with you,” says the Lord, “to deliver you.”

God’s Case Against Israel

2 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

² “Go and cry in the hearing of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord:“I remember you,The kindness of your youth,The love of your betrothal,When you went after Me in the wilderness,In a land not sown.³ Israel was holiness to the Lord,The firstfruits of His increase.All that devour him will offend;Disaster will come upon them,” says the Lord.’”

⁴ Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob and all the families of the house of Israel. ⁵ Thus says the Lord:

“What injustice have your fathers found in Me,That they have gone far from Me,Have followed idols,And have become idolaters?⁶ Neither did they say, ‘Where is the Lord,Who brought us up out of the land of Egypt,Who led us through the wilderness,Through a land of deserts and pits,Through a land of drought and the shadow of death,Through a land that no one crossedAnd where no one dwelt?’⁷ I brought you into a bountiful country,To eat its fruit and its goodness.But when you entered, you defiled My landAnd made My heritage an abomination.⁸ The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’And those who handle the law did not know Me;The rulers also transgressed against Me;The prophets prophesied by Baal,And walked after things that do not profit.

⁹ “Therefore I will yet bring charges against you,” says the Lord,“And against your children’s children I will bring charges.¹⁰ For pass beyond the coasts of Cyprus^[a] and see,Send to Kedar^[b] and consider diligently,And see if there has been such a thing.¹¹ Has a nation changed its gods,Which are not gods?But My people have changed their GloryFor what does not profit.¹² Be astonished, O heavens, at this,And be horribly afraid;Be very desolate,” says the Lord.¹³ “For My people have committed two evils:They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters,And hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water.

¹⁴ “Is Israel a servant?Is he a homeborn slave?Why is he plundered?¹⁵ The young lions roared at him, and growled;They made his land waste;His cities are burned, without inhabitant.¹⁶ Also the people of Noph^[c] and TahpanhesHave broken the crown of your head.¹⁷ Have you not brought this on yourself,In that you have forsaken the Lord your GodWhen He led you in the way?¹⁸ And now why take the road to Egypt,To drink the waters of Sihor?Or why take the road to Assyria,To drink the waters of the River?^[d]19 Your own wickedness will correct you,And your backslidings will rebuke you.Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thingThat you have forsaken the Lord your God,And the fear of Me is not in you,”Says the Lord God of hosts.

²⁰ “For of old I have broken your yoke and burst your bonds;And you said, ‘I will not transgress,’When on every high hill and under every green treeYou lay down, playing the harlot.²¹ Yet I had planted you a noble vine, a seed of highest quality.How then have you turned before MeInto the degenerate plant of an alien vine?²² For though you wash yourself with lye, and use much soap,Yet your iniquity is marked before Me,” says the Lord God.

²³ “How can you say, ‘I am not polluted,I have not gone after the Baals’?See your way in the valley;Know what you have done:You are a swift dromedary breaking loose in her ways,²⁴ A wild donkey used to the wilderness,That sniffs at the wind in her desire;In her time of mating, who can turn her away?All those who seek her will not weary themselves;In her month they will find her.²⁵ Withhold your foot from being unshod, and your throat from thirst.But you said, ‘There is no hope.No! For I have loved aliens, and after them I will go.’

²⁶ “As the thief is ashamed when he is found out,So is the house of Israel ashamed;They and their kings and their princes, and their priests and their prophets,²⁷ Saying to a tree, ‘You are my father,’And to a stone, ‘You gave birth to me.’For they have turned their back to Me, and not their face.But in the time of their troubleThey will say, ‘Arise and save us.’²⁸ But where are your gods that you have made for yourselves?Let them arise,If they can save you in the time of your trouble;For according to the number of your citiesAre your gods, O Judah.

²⁹ “Why will you plead with Me?You all have transgressed against Me,” says the Lord.³⁰ “In vain I have chastened your children;They received no correction.Your sword has devoured your prophetsLike a destroying lion.

³¹ “O generation, see the word of the Lord!Have I been a wilderness to Israel,Or a land of darkness?Why do My people say, ‘We are lords;We will come no more to You’?³² Can a virgin forget her ornaments,Or a bride her attire?Yet My people have forgotten Me days without number.

³³ “Why do you beautify your way to seek love?Therefore you have also taughtThe wicked women your ways.³⁴ Also on your skirts is foundThe blood of the lives of the poor innocents.I have not found it by secret search,But plainly on all these things.³⁵ Yet you say, ‘Because I am innocent,Surely His anger shall turn from me.’Behold, I will plead My case against you,Because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’³⁶ Why do you gad about so much to change your way?Also you shall be ashamed of Egypt as you were ashamed of Assyria.³⁷ Indeed you will go forth from himWith your hands on your head;For the Lord has rejected your trusted allies,And you will not prosper by them.

Israel Is Shameless

3 “They say, ‘If a man divorces his wife,And she goes from himAnd becomes another man’s,May he return to her again?’Would not that land be greatly polluted?But you have played the harlot with many lovers;Yet return to Me,” says the Lord.

² “Lift up your eyes to the desolate heights and see:Where have you not lain with men?By the road you have sat for themLike an Arabian in the wilderness;And you have polluted the landWith your harlotries and your wickedness.³ Therefore the showers have been withheld,And there has been no latter rain.You have had a harlot’s forehead;You refuse to be ashamed.⁴ Will you not from this time cry to Me,‘My Father, You are the guide of my youth?⁵ Will He remain angry forever?Will He keep it to the end?’Behold, you have spoken and done evil things,As you were able.”

A Call to Repentance

⁶ The Lord said also to me in the days of Josiah the king: “Have you seen what backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and there played the harlot. ⁷ And I said, after she had done all these things, ‘Return to Me.’ But she did not return. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. ⁸ Then I saw that for all the causes for which backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but went and played the harlot also. ⁹ So it came to pass, through her casual harlotry, that she defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and trees. ¹⁰ And yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but in pretense,” says the Lord.

¹¹ Then the Lord said to me, “Backsliding Israel has shown herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. ¹² Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say:

‘Return, backsliding Israel,’ says the Lord;‘I will not cause My anger to fall on you.For I am merciful,’ says the Lord;‘I will not remain angry forever.¹³ Only acknowledge your iniquity,That you have transgressed against the Lord your God,And have scattered your charmsTo alien deities under every green tree,And you have not obeyed My voice,’ says the Lord.

¹⁴ “Return, O backsliding children,” says the Lord; “for I am married to you. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion. ¹⁵ And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.

¹⁶ “Then it shall come to pass, when you are multiplied and increased in the land in those days,” says the Lord, “that they will say no more, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord.’ It shall not come to mind, nor shall they remember it, nor shall they visit it, nor shall it be made anymore.

¹⁷ “At that time Jerusalem shall be called The Throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered to it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem. No more shall they follow the dictates of their evil hearts.

¹⁸ “In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given as an inheritance to your fathers.

¹⁹ “But I said:

‘How can I put you among the childrenAnd give you a pleasant land,A beautiful heritage of the hosts of nations?’

“And I said:

‘You shall call Me, “My Father,”And not turn away from Me.’²⁰ Surely, as a wife treacherously departs from her husband,So have you dealt treacherously with Me,O house of Israel,” says the Lord.

²¹ A voice was heard on the desolate heights,Weeping and supplications of the children of Israel.For they have perverted their way;They have forgotten the Lord their God.

²² “Return, you backsliding children,And I will heal your backslidings.”

“Indeed we do come to You,For You are the Lord our God.²³ Truly, in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills,And from the multitude of mountains;Truly, in the Lord our GodIs the salvation of Israel.²⁴ For shame has devouredThe labor of our fathers from our youth—Their flocks and their herds,Their sons and their daughters.²⁵ We lie down in our shame,And our reproach covers us.For we have sinned against the Lord our God,We and our fathers,From our youth even to this day,And have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.”

4 “If you will return, O Israel,” says the Lord,“Return to Me;And if you will put away your abominations out of My sight,Then you shall not be moved.² And you shall swear, ‘The Lord lives,’In truth, in judgment, and in righteousness;The nations shall bless themselves in Him,And in Him they shall glory.”

³ For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:

“Break up your fallow ground,And do not sow among thorns.⁴ Circumcise yourselves to the Lord,And take away the foreskins of your hearts,You men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem,Lest My fury come forth like fire,And burn so that no one can quench it,Because of the evil of your doings.”

An Imminent Invasion

⁵ Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say:

“Blow the trumpet in the land;Cry, ‘Gather together,’And say, ‘Assemble yourselves,And let us go into the fortified cities.’⁶ Set up the standard toward Zion.Take refuge! Do not delay!For I will bring disaster from the north,And great destruction.”⁷ The lion has come up from his thicket,And the destroyer of nations is on his way.He has gone forth from his placeTo make your land desolate.Your cities will be laid waste,Without inhabitant.⁸ For this, clothe yourself with sackcloth,Lament and wail.For the fierce anger of the LordHas not turned back from us.

⁹ “And it shall come to pass in that day,” says the Lord,“That the heart of the king shall perish,And the heart of the princes;The priests shall be astonished,And the prophets shall wonder.”

¹⁰ Then I said, “Ah, Lord God!Surely You have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem,Saying, ‘You shall have peace,’Whereas the sword reaches to the heart.”

¹¹ At that time it will be saidTo this people and to Jerusalem,“A dry wind of the desolate heights blows in the wildernessToward the daughter of My people—Not to fan or to cleanse—¹² A wind too strong for these will come for Me;Now I will also speak judgment against them.”

¹³ “Behold, he shall come up like clouds,And his chariots like a whirlwind.His horses are swifter than eagles.Woe to us, for we are plundered!”

¹⁴ O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness,That you may be saved.How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you?¹⁵ For a voice declares from DanAnd proclaims affliction from Mount Ephraim:¹⁶ “Make mention to the nations,Yes, proclaim against Jerusalem,That watchers come from a far countryAnd raise their voice against the cities of Judah.¹⁷ Like keepers of a field they are against her all around,Because she has been rebellious against Me,” says the Lord.¹⁸ “Your ways and your doingsHave procured these things for you.This is your wickedness,Because it is bitter,Because it reaches to your heart.”

Sorrow for the Doomed Nation

¹⁹ O my soul, my soul!I am pained in my very heart!My heart makes a noise in me;I cannot hold my peace,Because you have heard, O my soul,The sound of the trumpet,The alarm of war.²⁰ Destruction upon destruction is cried,For the whole land is plundered.Suddenly my tents are plundered,And my curtains in a moment.²¹ How long will I see the standard,And hear the sound of the trumpet?

²² “For My people are foolish,They have not known Me.They are silly children,And they have no understanding.They are wise to do evil,But to do good they have no knowledge.”

²³ I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void;And the heavens, they had no light.²⁴ I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled,And all the hills moved back and forth.²⁵ I beheld, and indeed there was no man,And all the birds of the heavens had fled.²⁶ I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness,And all its cities were broken downAt the presence of the Lord,By His fierce anger.

²⁷ For thus says the Lord:

“The whole land shall be desolate;Yet I will not make a full end.²⁸ For this shall the earth mourn,And the heavens above be black,Because I have spoken.I have purposed and will not relent,Nor will I turn back from it.²⁹ The whole city shall flee from the noise of the horsemen and bowmen.They shall go into thickets and climb up on the rocks.Every city shall be forsaken,And not a man shall dwell in it.

³⁰ “And when you are plundered,What will you do?Though you clothe yourself with crimson,Though you adorn yourself with ornaments of gold,Though you enlarge your eyes with paint,In vain you will make yourself fair;Your lovers will despise you;They will seek your life.

³¹ “For I have heard a voice as of a woman in labor,The anguish as of her who brings forth her first child,The voice of the daughter of Zion bewailing herself;She spreads her hands, saying,‘Woe is me now, for my soul is wearyBecause of murderers!’

The Justice of God’s Judgment

5 “Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem;See now and know;And seek in her open placesIf you can find a man,If there is anyone who executes judgment,Who seeks the truth,And I will pardon her.² Though they say, ‘As the Lord lives,’Surely they swear falsely.”

³ O Lord, are not Your eyes on the truth?You have stricken them,But they have not grieved;You have consumed them,But they have refused to receive correction.They have made their faces harder than rock;They have refused to return.

⁴ Therefore I said, “Surely these are poor.They are foolish;For they do not know the way of the Lord,The judgment of their God.⁵ I will go to the great men and speak to them,For they have known the way of the Lord,The judgment of their God.”

But these have altogether broken the yokeAnd burst the bonds.⁶ Therefore a lion from the forest shall slay them,A wolf of the deserts shall destroy them;A leopard will watch over their cities.Everyone who goes out from there shall be torn in pieces,Because their transgressions are many;Their backslidings have increased.

⁷ “How shall I pardon you for this?Your children have forsaken MeAnd sworn by those that are not gods.When I had fed them to the full,Then they committed adulteryAnd assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses.⁸ They were like well-fed lusty stallions;Every one neighed after his neighbor’s wife.⁹ Shall I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord.“And shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?

¹⁰ “Go up on her walls and destroy,But do not make a complete end.Take away her branches,For they are not the Lord’s.¹¹ For the house of Israel and the house of JudahHave dealt very treacherously with Me,” says the Lord.

¹² They have lied about the Lord,And said, “It is not He.Neither will evil come upon us,Nor shall we see sword or famine.¹³ And the prophets become wind,For the word is not in them.Thus shall it be done to them.”

¹⁴ Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts:

“Because you speak this word,Behold, I will make My words in your mouth fire,And this people wood,And it shall devour them.¹⁵ Behold, I will bring a nation against you from afar,O house of Israel,” says the Lord.“It is a mighty nation,It is an ancient nation,A nation whose language you do not know,Nor can you understand what they say.¹⁶ Their quiver is like an open tomb;They are all mighty men.¹⁷ And they shall eat up your harvest and your bread,Which your sons and daughters should eat.They shall eat up your flocks and your herds;They shall eat up your vines and your fig trees;They shall destroy your fortified cities,In which you trust, with the sword.

¹⁸ “Nevertheless in those days,” says the Lord, “I will not make a complete end of you. ¹⁹ And it will be when you say, ‘Why does the Lord our God do all these things to us?’ then you shall answer them, ‘Just as you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall serve aliens in a land that is not yours.’

²⁰ “Declare this in the house of JacobAnd proclaim it in Judah, saying,²¹ ‘Hear this now, O foolish people,Without understanding,Who have eyes and see not,And who have ears and hear not:²² Do you not fear Me?’ says the Lord.‘Will you not tremble at My presence,Who have placed the sand as the bound of the sea,By a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass beyond it?And though its waves toss to and fro,Yet they cannot prevail;Though they roar, yet they cannot pass over it.²³ But this people has a defiant and rebellious heart;They have revolted and departed.²⁴ They do not say in their heart,“Let us now fear the Lord our God,Who gives rain, both the former and the latter, in its season.He reserves for us the appointed weeks of the harvest.”²⁵ Your iniquities have turned these things away,And your sins have withheld good from you.

²⁶ ‘For among My people are found wicked men;They lie in wait as one who sets snares;They set a trap;They catch men.²⁷ As a cage is full of birds,So their houses are full of deceit.Therefore they have become great and grown rich.²⁸ They have grown fat, they are sleek;Yes, they surpass the deeds of the wicked;They do not plead the cause,The cause of the fatherless;Yet they prosper,And the right of the needy they do not defend.²⁹ Shall I not punish them for these things?’ says the Lord.‘Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?’

³⁰ “An astonishing and horrible thingHas been committed in the land:³¹ The prophets prophesy falsely,And the priests rule by their own power;And My people love to have it so.But what will you do in the end?