The prophetic book of Jeremiah
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Verse by verse, account of the book of Jeremiah.

Jeremiah: chapter 1

¹The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in the city of Anathoth in the land of the tribe of Benjamin. ²To whom the Word of the LORD came in the thirteenth year of Josiah the king of Judah. ³Jeremiah continued to prophesy the Word of the LORD to Judah, through the eleventh year of Zedekiah the king of Judah, until the people of Jerusalem went into captivity in the fifth month. (NOTE: Judah was taken into captivity by Babylon in 586 BC, 2^nd Kings 25:8-11).

⁴Then the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying; ⁵Before I formed you, I knew you, before you came out of the womb, I sanctified you and ordained you to be a prophet to the nations.

⁶Jeremiah then replied, saying; LORD God, I cannot speak, for I am but a youth.

⁷But the LORD said to him; Do not say I am a mere youth, for you shall go everywhere that I shall send you and the words that I give you, you shall speak. ⁸Do not be afraid of anyone, for I am with you and shall deliver you.

⁹Then the LORD reached out His hand and touched my mouth. And He said to me; I have put My words in your mouth. ¹⁰This day I have set you over the kingdoms of the nations, to root out and destroy, but also to build and to plant.

¹¹Moreover 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. ¹²Then the LORD said to me; You have correctly seen, for I activity watch over My Word and will perform it.

¹³A second time the Word of the LORD came to me, saying; What do you now see? And I said; I see a boiling pot and it source is from the north. (NOTE: This is a fortelling of the caldron nation coming against Jerusalem and Judah) ¹⁴Then the LORD said to me; An evil shall break forth out of the north upon all the inhabitants of this land, (Jerusalem and Judah). ¹⁵For, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north and they shall come against the gates and walls of Jerusalem and Judah. ¹⁶I shall speak My judgments against them because of the wickedness of those who have forsaken Me. For they have burnt incense to other gods, worshiping the works of their own hands. ¹⁷Therefore Jeremiah, stand and speak to everyone that I command of you, do not be dismayed by men and their remarks, lest I confound you before them and allow you to be overcome. ¹⁸For this day I have made you as an impregnable city, strong and solid to stand unmovable against the whole land. Against the kings of Judah, the nobles, the priests and the people of the land. ¹⁹They shall fight against you, but they shall not prevail, for I am with you and I will deliver you.

Jeremiah: chapter 2

¹Again the Word of the LORD came to me, saying; ²Go and proclaim in the streets of Jerusalem, saying; Thus says the LORD; I remember the kindness and love of Jerusalem's youth, when you were following after Him in the wilderness. ³Israel was separated unto the LORD as the firstfruits of His harvest and all that came against Israel were guilty of the evil that came upon them.

⁴But now House of Jacob and the families of Israel, hear the Word of the LORD. ⁵What iniquity did your fathers find within the LORD, that they went far from Him, pursuing after worthless idols and therefore, became worthless themselves? ⁶No longer did they inquire of the LORD that had brought them up out of the land of Egypt and lead them through a dry and dangerous wilderness, where no man had passed through or dwelt in. ⁷I then brought them into a plentiful country, to eat the good fruit of the land. But, as they entered into the land, they defiled My land, making My heritage an abomination. ⁸Not even the priests inquire of the LORD? Their lawgivers do not know Me, their pastors have transgressed against Me and their prophets prophesy falsely, walking after idols of no profit.

⁹Therefore I will contend with you and your descendants. ¹⁰For consider the other nations. ¹¹Have any of them changed their idols, which are yet no gods at all? But, My people have changed the God of their glory for that which does not profit them. ¹²Even the heavens are astonished at the behavior of the people and they fear for them. ¹³For My people have committed two evils; They have forsaken Me the Fountain of living waters and they have built broken cisterns for themselves, that cannot hold any water.

¹⁴Why has Israel made himself a servant and turned himself over to bondage, is he not a son? ¹⁵Their adversaries come against them as young lions and they desolate their land, burning their cities and making them uninhabitable. ¹⁶Also in the past the Egyptians have taken advantage of you. ¹⁷But, have you not done this to yourself, by forsaking the LORD your God? ¹⁸What do you think you have to gain by partaking with Egypt or Assyria? ¹⁹You shall be corrected through your own wickedness, for your backsliding will reprove you. Know that is an evil thing that you have forsaken the LORD your God and now the fear of the LORD is not within you.

²⁰For in times past, (within Egypt), I have broken your bondage and you have said; I will not transgress, but you have played the harlot, with your idols, on every hill and under every green tree there is. ²¹Though I have planted Israel as a noble vine, how is it that a proper seed has turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine to Me?

²²For though you scrub yourself with much soap, your iniquity is still marked before Me. ²³How can you then say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after meaningless idols? I have seen your idolatries ways in the valley and know that you swiftly run and are mislead by every illusion. ²⁴Just as a wild donkey in the wilderness pursues her instincts, you seek your passions without restraint. ²⁵Cease from your impulsive desires and refrain from becoming exposed. But, you have said; There is no hope, for I have loved strangers and after them, I shall go.

²⁶Just as the thief is ashamed when he is found out, so is the whole house of Israel ashamed, their kings, nobles, priests and their prophets. ²⁷They say to a piece of wood, You are our father and You have brought us forth. For they have turned their backs on the LORD, but in times of trouble, they turn to Me and say; save us! ²⁸But where are your gods that you have made, let them save you, if they can.

²⁹Why do you plead with Me, have you not all transgressed against Me? ³⁰I have smitten the Israelites in vain, for they have not received correction, for their own sword has devoured their prophets. ³¹Israelites consider the Word of the LORD. Have I been an empty wilderness, a place of darkness to My people? Why then do My people say; We are lords and will no longer come to You? ³²Does a young woman forget her jewelry, or a bride her attire? Yet, My people have forgotten Me for days without number. ³³For you have greatly honed your skills for adulterous love, why even the wicked can learn from you. ³⁴For on your skirts is the blood of the poor and innocents, who were victims of your lustful desires. ³⁵Yet you keep saying, Because I am innocent, surely His anger shall turn away from me. Therefore, I will bring judgment to you, because you say; I have not sinned. ³⁶Why do you wander about so seeking to change your way? You shall also be put to shame by Egypt, as you were by Assyria. ³⁷You shall come away from Egypt with your hands on your head, for the LORD has rejected those that you put your confidences in and through their counsel you shall not prosper.

Jeremiah: chapter 3

¹It is written, that if a man put away his wife and she later become another man's wife. Shall her first husband return to her again, will this not pollute the land, is this not what you have done? You have played the harlot with many lovers, yet you return again to Me, Deuteronomy 24:1-4. ²Look around your land, is there a place where you have not committed adultery and fornications with your idols? You have seized every opportunity and you have defiled the land with your wickedness. ³Therefore the showers have been withheld and there has been no rain, for you are as immoral as a whore, refusing to be shamed. ⁴Then you have the gull to cry out to Me, saying; My Father, You have been our guide from our youth? ⁵The people speak out asking, if I will retain My anger forever? However, they have also done every evil thing they know how to do.

⁶In the days of Josiah the king of Judah, the LORD also said to me; Have you seen what backsliding Israel has done? On every mountain and under every green tree she has played the harlot. ⁷After she had done all these things, I said to her; Turn back to Me. But she refused. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. ⁸And even though Judah knew that I put Israel away because of the cause of adultery. Still her treacherous sister Judah knew no fear and she also went and played the harlot. ⁹Over time through the folly of Israel's whoredom, she defiled the land, committing adultery with idols made of stones and wood. ¹⁰Yet in spite of all this, her treacherous sister Judah did not turn to Me sincerity with her whole heart, but rather gave Me lip service and lies.

¹¹The LORD then said to me; The backsliding Israel has shown herself to be less guilty than treacherous Judah.

¹²Proclaim these words toward the north, (NOTE: towards where they are soon to be taken captive) and say, Backsliding Israel, the LORD says; Return to Him and He will not cause His anger to fall on you, for He is merciful and He does not remain angry forever. ¹³Merely acknowledge your iniquity against the LORD your God of your unfaithfulness and that you have not obeyed His voice.

¹⁴Backsliding children, turn to Me, for I am your true Husband and I will bring you individually into Zion, (the city of God). ¹⁵I will give you pastors according to My heart and they shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.

¹⁶In those days, when you are increased in the land. No one shall look towards the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD, for it shall not even be remembered, for He Himself will be present with us. ¹⁷At that time Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the LORD. All the nations shall be gathered to it, unified within the name of the LORD and no one shall any longer walk after the imaginations of their evil heart.

¹⁸In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel and they shall both come together from the land of the north back to the land that I gave their fathers as an inheritance. ¹⁹But I thought I would put you among the sons, giving you a goodly land and a godly heritage among the nations, that you would call Me your Father and not turn away from Me.

²⁰Just as a wife recklessly departs from her husband, the house of Israel has also dealt treacherously with Me. ²¹I can hear, in the distance, the weeping and supplications of the children of Israel, realizing they have perverted their way and they have forgotten the LORD their God. ²²Again I say; Return you faithless children and I will heal your faithlessness.

And they will answer, we will come to You, for You are the LORD our God. ²³For salvation does not come from the mountains and hills, for the salvation of Israel is truly in the LORD our God. ²⁴For our faithlessness and idolatrous ways have ruined our nation, it has brought shame upon all the labors that our fathers did. ²⁵We lie down in our shame and our confusion covers us. For we and our fathers have sinned against the LORD our God and we have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God.

Jeremiah: chapter 4

¹Israel if you return to Me, put your abominations away and leave them far behind you, then you shall stand firm and not be moved. ²And you shall truly swear that the just and righteous LORD lives, then the nations will be blessed in Him and in Him will they glory.

³I speak to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your unused and hardened ground, (hearts) and do not sow among thorns. ⁴Men of Judah and people of Jerusalem circumcise, (dedicate) your lives to the LORD and remove the hardness of your heart. Lest My unquenchable fury comes forth like a fire, because of your evil doings.

⁵Proclaim in Judah and publish in Jerusalem. Blow the trumpet in the land and assemble yourselves together to go into the fortified cities. ⁶Clearly mark the escape route leading towards Zion, (the city of God) and flee there for safety, for I will bring evil from the north and there will be a great ruin. ⁷The lion has come after his prey, (the army of Babylon), and the destroyer of the nations is on his way to make your land desolate. ⁸Because of this, put on sackcloth, lament and howl, for the fierce anger of the LORD is on you. ⁹And in that day the courage of the king shall fail and the nobles, priests and prophets shall be astonished and wonder.

¹⁰Then I, Jeremiah said; LORD God! Surely, You have greatly deceived the people of Jerusalem. When You said, you shall have peace, at the very time when the sword was on their soul. ¹¹At that time shall it be said to the people of Jerusalem. A dry hot wind comes towards My people, not to cleanse from chaff, but rather. ¹²That I will speak judgment against My people. ¹³For the enemy shall quickly come, their chariots shall be as a whirlwind and their horses swifter than eagles. People of Israel, cry out and say; Woe unto us, for we are spoiled! ¹⁴People of Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, so that you might be saved. How long will your evil and prideful thoughts remain with you? ¹⁵For even your own land declares evil against you. ¹⁶Declare it to the neighboring nations, tell the people of Jerusalem that her enemy is coming. ¹⁷And will surround Jerusalem, because she has been rebellious against Me. ¹⁸Your ways and your lifestyle has brought these things on yourself, for bitterness reaches to your heart and it produces wickedness.

¹⁹And the people replied; We are pained down to our very soul and our heart throbs within us. We cannot hold our peace, for our souls have heard the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. ²⁰The cry is; ruin is upon ruin, for the whole land is laid waste and our homes have been destroyed in a moments time. ²¹Jeremiah replied; LORD, How long shall I see the path of destruction and hear the sound of the trumpet? ²²It shall continue, for My people are foolish, they do not know My ways, they are stupid children. They have no understanding nor do they know how to do good, but they are wise when it comes to doing evil.

²³In my, [Jeremiah] vision, I saw the earth and it was without form and void and the heavens had no light. ²⁴I saw the mountains tremble and the hills were shaken. ²⁵And there was not a man, even the birds of the air had fled. ²⁶The fruitful land of Israel was a wilderness, for all its cities were destroyed by the fierce anger of the LORD. ²⁷For the LORD has said; The whole land shall be desolate, yet I will not completely bring it to its end.

²⁸Because of this the earth shall mourn and the heavens shall be black, for I have purposed and spoken this and I will not relent from doing so. ²⁹The people of every city shall flee because of the noise of war, they shall hide among the bushes and in caves and every city shall be desolate.

³⁰And when you are desolate, what will you do? Even though you make yourself beautiful, putting on your best clothes and jewelry of gold, it is all in vain. For your lovers (allies) will despise you and seek your life. ³¹For I have heard the cry of Israel in travail that brings forth her first child. Saying; Woe am I! For my soul faints before my enemies.

Jeremiah: chapter 5

¹Run through the streets of Jerusalem and search for a righteous man who acts justly, if you can find such a one, I will pardon Jerusalem. ²And though the people say; Surly as the LORD lives. The people are but hypocrites.

³LORD, You see man's true character. For You have stricken them and they have not grieved, You have disciplined them, but they have refused to receive correction. They have hardened their hearts, refusing to repent or return to You. ⁴Therefore I said; Surely, these people are poor and foolish, they do not know the way of the LORD or the judgment of their God. ⁵So I went to the great men, the elders and I spoke to them, for I thought they must know the way of the LORD and the judgment of their God. But, the reverse was true, they had broken every bond of fellowship.

⁶Therefore even as they flee for safety, wild beasts out of the forest shall slay them and everyone that goes out of the city shall be torn in pieces. Because their transgressions are many and their backsliding have increased. ⁷How then can I pardon you for this? Your people have forsaken Me and have worshiped idols, while I have been their provider, they have together as a nation committed adultery. ⁸Just as dumb animals, everyone's desire is after his neighbor's wife. ⁹Shall I not judge you for these things? And not avenge My soul because of such a nation as this?

¹⁰The enemy shall go up on the walls of Jerusalem, (the foundations of the city) and destroy, but not completely and they shall prune away the branches that are not the LORD's. ¹¹For the house of Israel and Judah have dealt very treacherously against Me. ¹²They have perverted the truth of the LORD, saying; He does not speak through prophets, nor will any evil come upon us, we shall not see the sword nor famine. ¹³But their prophets are useless, for the Word of God is not in them and the evil they prophecy shall come back upon them.

¹⁴Therefore Jeremiah, I will make My words as fire in your mouth and the people shall be devoured like wood. ¹⁵I will bring a mighty nation upon the house of Israel from far, a nation whose language you do not know or understand. ¹⁶all the men are mighty warriors and their spears are seeking death. ¹⁷They shall eat of your harvest, that was meant for your sons and your daughters, eating also of your flocks and herds, drinking of your wine and eating of your fig trees. They shall completely impoverish your fortified cities, that you have placed your trust in, with the sword.

¹⁸Nevertheless, in those days, I will not completely bring the house of Israel to an end. ¹⁹And when the Israelites cry out and say; Why has the LORD our God done all these things to us? Jeremiah, you shall then answer them, saying; Just as you have forsaken the LORD God and served foreign gods in your land, so you shall now serve strangers in a foreign land.

²⁰Declare this in the house of Jacob and publish it in Judah, saying; ²¹Hear this, you foolish people, without understanding. Having eyes, but they do not see, having ears, but they do not hear. ²²Do the people of Israel not fear the LORD? Do you not tremble at His presence, The One whom placed the boundaries on the sea. ²³But these people have a rebellious heart and have revolted entering into Idolatry. ²⁴They do not say in their heart, let us now fear the LORD our God, that gives us rain, in its season and brings forth the harvest.

²⁵Because of your iniquities these things have been turned away, for your sins have withheld good things from you. ²⁶For among My people are found wicked men, they lay wait and set traps for other men. ²⁷Just as a cage is full of birds, their houses are full of deceit and have become great and grow rich. ²⁸They have grown fat and have become slick, justifying the deeds of the wicked. They no longer judge the righteous cause of the fatherless or the needy. ²⁹Shall I overlook these things? Shall I not avenge My soul on such a nation as this? ³⁰For an appalling and horrible thing has been committed in the land. ³¹Their prophets prophesy falsely, the priests rule through their own means, that My people love and prefer, but what will they do when the end comes?

Jeremiah: chapter 6

¹Children of Benjamin, flee out of Jerusalem for safety! Blow the trumpet loud and long, for evil and great destruction comes from the north. ²For I will destroy the beautiful and delicate daughter of Zion. ³The armies shall set up their camps all around her, eating of the crops on all sides of her.

⁴[to the Chaldean army]; Prepare for war against her, be ready by the noon hour, for the days are quickly passing. ⁵Arise by night and destroy her palaces. ⁶Besiege Jerusalem, cut down trees and build ramps against her, for this city must be punished, there is nothing but oppression within her.

⁷As the waters of a fountain flow, so also does Jerusalem flow in her wickedness, for I am continually hearing cries of violence and oppression within her. ⁸Jerusalem, be instructed and reformed, lest My soul departs from you and I make you desolate and uninhabitable.

⁹The Babylonians shall thoroughly glean the remnant of Israel, leaving not one of them behind.

¹⁰To whom shall I speak and give this warning to that they may hear? Their ears are uncircumcised and Israel does not hear, for the Word of the LORD has become to them a reproach and they have no delight in it. ¹¹I am full of the fury of the LORD and weary from withholding it in. Therefore, I will pour it out upon the children of Israel and they shall all be taken, the young men, the husband with his wife and even the aged men shall be taken. ¹²Their houses, their fields and their wives shall be turned over to others. For I will stretch My hand upon the inhabitants of the land. ¹³From the least of them to the greatest of them, everyone of them have given themselves over to greed. Even the prophet and the priest deals falsely. ¹⁴They superficially healed the wounds of the LORD's people, saying, Peace, peace, when there is no peace. ¹⁵They were not even ashamed after they had committed abominations, neither could they blush. Therefore, they shall fall when I visit them and be cast down. ¹⁶I told the people to stand at the crossroads, look and ask for the good path where they could find rest for their souls, but they said; We will walk our own path. ¹⁷Also I set prophets over you, saying; listen to them, hear their warning. But, again the people said; We will not listen or obey.

¹⁸Therefore, let the nations hear and know, what things I plan for them. ¹⁹Let the earth know that I will bring evil upon these people and their wicked schemes, For they have not listened to My words and they have rejected My law. ²⁰For what purpose is this frankincense coming from within Judah? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, nor are your sacrifices pleasing to Me. ²¹Therefore, I will lay a stumbling block before these people and both the fathers and the sons shall fall upon them. ²²A great nation comes from the north country, arousing itself from a far away place. ²³They come dressed for war in battle array, a cruel people having no mercy. Their voices are mighty and they come swiftly on horses, set against the daughter of Zion.

²⁴[the Israelites reply], We have heard of this report, our hands have become feeble, anguish and pain has taken hold of us, as a woman in travail. ²⁵We dare not go into the fields for fear of the enemy and his sword.

²⁶[Jeremiah speaks], People put on sackcloth and wallow as you sit in ashes, bitterly mourn as if it was your only son for the destroyer shall suddenly come upon us.

²⁷Jeremiah, I have set you as a tower and a watchman among My people, that you may know and try their ways. ²⁸They are all grievous revilers, slanders and are corrupt. ²⁹Even the refining fire does not consume the evil out of them. ³⁰Men shall call them reprobate silver, because the LORD has rejected them.

Jeremiah: chapter 7

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah, saying; ²Stand in the gate of the LORD's house and proclaim this Word; People of Judah, hear the Word of the LORD, all that enter into His house to worship the LORD. ³Change your ways and your deeds and I will cause you to dwell in this place. ⁴Do not trust in the lying words of the false prophets that say; God will protect Jerusalem because the temple of the LORD is with us. Therefore, we are safe because of the temple of the LORD. ⁵But if you truly change your ways and your deeds and execute righteous justice between a man and his neighbor. ⁶Quit oppressing the stranger, the fatherless and the widow. Stop shedding innocent blood and do not walk after other gods to your own hurt. ⁷Then I shall cause you to always dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers.

⁸However you have put your trust in lying words, that cannot profit you. ⁹By doing so you actually steal, murder, commit adultery and swear falsely. You burn incense to Baal and walk after other gods whom you do not know of. ¹⁰Then you come and you stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name, and say; We have been set free and thus we can do all of these abominations. ¹¹Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of robbers in your eyes, merely a place of refuge for you until you commit your next abomination? I have seen this to be true. ¹²But go down to the place of My first temple called by My name and see what has become of it, because of the wickedness of My people of Israel. ¹³And because you have done all these works, disregarding My voice and refusing to hear Me. ¹⁴I will also do to this house that you trust in and is called by My name, as I have done to My first house, (NOTE: the LORD abandoned His house in Shiloh because of what happened in, 1^st Samuel chapter 4. ¹⁵And I will cast you out of My sight, as I also cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim.

¹⁶Therefore Jeremiah, do not pray for these people, rather cry out for them or make intercession to Me, for I will not hear you. ¹⁷Do you not see what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? ¹⁸The entire family takes part in it. The children gather wood, the fathers start the fire and the women knead their dough to make cakes to the queen of heaven and they also pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke Me to anger. ¹⁹But rather than hurting Me, are they not hurting themselves, to the confusion of their shame? ²⁰Therefore My anger and My fury shall be poured out on this place, on man and on beast and My anger shall burn and will not be quenched.

²¹Go ahead and add your burnt offerings that you give Me in with the sacrifices that you give your idols and eat of the flesh. ²²For in the day when I brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt, I did not command concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: ²³But I did give them this command; To obey My voice, then I would be their God and they would be My people. That they would walk in all the ways that I have commanded of them, that it might be well with them. ²⁴But they refused to listen and would not obey, but rather walked in the counsels and in the imaginations of their evil heart, going backward and not forward. ²⁵Ever since that day when your fathers came out of the land of Egypt, unto this day I have sent to them My servants the prophets. ²⁶Yet these people would not listen or obey Me, rather they hardened their hearts and they even did worse than their fathers.

²⁷Therefore Jeremiah you shall speak these words to them, even though they will not listen to you or answer you. ²⁸Tell them; They are a nation that does not obey the voice of the LORD their God, they do not receive correction and there is not a trace of the truth in their mouth.

²⁹Tell the people of Jerusalem to cut off their hair, lament and mourn in their high places, for the LORD has rejected and forsaken the generation of His wrath. ³⁰For the children of Judah have done evil in My sight, they have even defiled My house by bringing their abominable things into the house which is called by My name. ³¹They have built their sacrificial high place to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not give them command to do such, neither did the thought even come into My mind. ³²Therefore, the day is coming when this place will be called the valley of slaughter, for there shall be a great burial in that valley until there is no place left to bury. ³³And the carcass of these people shall be meat for the fowls of the air and for the beasts of the earth. ³⁴Then shall I cause the voices of gladness and joy to cease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem, for the entire land shall be desolate.

Jeremiah: chapter 8

¹After that they shall discover the bones of the kings of Judah and his nobles, the bones of the priests and prophets and the bones of the people of Jerusalem. ²And their bones will be spread before the false gods that the people sought, loved, served and worshiped. Their remains shall be left under the sun, moon and stars to rot, they shall be considered as dung upon the earth. ³And death rather than life shall be chosen by the rest of those who remain of this evil family, in the places where I have driven them.

⁴And Jeremiah, this is what you shall say to them; Do men fall not to get up again, or do people go the wrong way never to return? ⁵Why then are the people of Jerusalem in a perpetual backsliding, for they hold on fast to deceit and they refuse to return to the truth.

⁶So I listened, but no man repented of his wickedness, for they did not know of their wickedness and they all rushed to their own ways, as a horse rushes into battle.

⁷Even the lower animals of the earth know their appointed times, but My people know not the laws of the LORD. ⁸How do they then say; We are of the learned and the law of the LORD is with us? Hypocrites one and all and the pen of their scribes as they write down the law is in vain. ⁹Their wise men will be put to shame, for they have rejected the Word of the LORD, thus what wisdom or understanding could be in them? ¹⁰Therefore I will give their wives unto others and their fields to their enemies. For everyone of them from the least to the greatest is given over to covetousness, from the prophet to the priest they all deal falsely. ¹¹They superficially healed the wounds of the LORD's people, saying, Peace, peace, when there is no peace. ¹²Nor were they ashamed when they had committed abominations, neither could they blush. Therefore, in the time of their visitation they shall fall and be cast down.

¹³I will surely consume them, not one shall remain and all shall wither and the things that I have given them shall be taken away from them.

¹⁴[the people replied], Why do we then sit still? Let's gather together and enter into the fortified cities, we can be silent there. For the LORD our God has spoken our demise and has given us a poisonous cup to drink, because we have sinned against the LORD. ¹⁵We looked for peace, but no good came of it, we looked for health, but found trouble and terror! ¹⁶The snorting of the enemies horses was heard all through the land, the entire land trembled at the sound of the strong horses. For they came and devoured the land and all that dwell in it. ¹⁷And the LORD also sent poisonous snakes to byte us.

¹⁸[Jeremiah speaks]; Oh, that I could only comfort myself from this sorrow, for my heart is faint within me. ¹⁹Listen to the voice of the cry of my people fearing the onslaught of the enemy. Is the LORD not in Zion? But, they have provoked Him with their graven images and with their foreign idols.

²⁰[the voice of the people]; The harvest is past, the summer is over and yet we are not saved.

²¹[Jeremiah speaks]; Because of the hurt of my people, I hurt. I go around mourning in astonishment. ²²Is there no (healing) balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the healing of the daughter of my people not come?

Jeremiah: chapter 9

¹If only my head were a well of waters and my eyes were a fountain of tears. Then I could weep for the slain of my people both day and night! ²If I but had a cabin in the wilderness where I might be able to escape from my people, for they are all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men. ³Their tongues spits out lies, as a bow shoots an arrow. They become strong in the land but not according to faithfulness and righteous, they go from evil to evil for they do not know the LORD. ⁴Everyone is leery of his neighbor, for they all slander their neighbor. ⁵They do not speak the truth, for they have become to believe their lies and now cannot see the truth. ⁶They live in the midst of deceit and because of their deceit, they refuse to know the LORD, for there is no deceit within the LORD.

⁷Therefore thus says the LORD; I will melt them and prove them through the fire of affection, for how else shall I deal with My people? ⁸Their tongue spits lies, as a bow shoots an arrow, they speak lies of peace and promise to his neighbor, but in their heart, they hope to catch them in their trap. ⁹Shall I not visit them for these things? Shall not My soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

¹⁰Because of the mountains and the wilderness I will take up weeping and wailing, for they are burned up and no one can pass over them. Nor do men hear the lowing of the cattle, or the birds of the air, for all the beasts have fled and are gone. ¹¹For the LORD will make Jerusalem heaps of ruins, a den for dragons and He will make the cities of Judah desolate.

¹²Who is the wise man who may understand this and has heard the Words of the LORD? Perhaps he can tell the people why the land perishes and is burnt up as a wilderness.

¹³And the LORD has said; It is because they have forsaken My law which I set before them and they have not obeyed My voice, neither have they walked in accordance with it. ¹⁴Rather they have walked after the imagination of their own heart and after their false gods, (Baals), that their fathers taught them. ¹⁵Therefore I shall feed these people with wormwood, giving them water of gall to drink. ¹⁶I will also scatter them among the nations, a people that they nor their fathers have known and a sword shall follow them, until it consumes them.

¹⁷Call for the professional woman that mourn. ¹⁸Tell them to come quickly and take up a wailing for us, that tears may run down from our eyes. ¹⁹For a voice of wailing is heard from Jerusalem. How have we become spoiled? We are greatly confused, we have forsaken the land and have been removed from our homes. ²⁰Yet you women hear and understand the Word of the LORD, teach your daughters to wailing and lament. ²¹For death has come into our homes and completely overtaken us, taking our young men and our small children. ²²This is what the LORD is telling me to speak, the carcass of men shall fall as dung scattered in the open field and no one shall gather them up.

²³Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, nor the mighty man glory in his might or the rich man glory in his riches. ²⁴Rather let the man that glories, find his glory in the fact that he understands and knows Me, as the LORD, whom exercise loving kindness, judgment and righteousness, in the earth, for I delight in these things. ²⁵For the days are coming when I will punish the circumcised with the uncircumcised. ²⁶Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon and Moab, all these nations are uncircumcised and the house of Israel is uncircumcised in the heart.

Jeremiah: chapter 10

¹Hear the Word which the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel; ²Do not even learn the ways of the heathen nations, nor should you seek a sign from the heavens, (the sun, moon and stars), as the heathen do. ³For their customs are in vain, for their idols are mere pieces of wood made by the hands of men. ⁴They decorate them with silver and gold and fasten them in a stationary position with a hammer and nails. ⁵They are ridged as a palm tree, but cannot speak and must be carried by man, wherever they need to be. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do any good.

⁶All of this is nothing O LORD, for You are great and there is power in Your name. ⁷Who in their right mind would not fear You, Lord and Ruler of nations? For within all the kingdoms of the nations there is none like You. ⁸These idols are simply foolishness, they are but pieces of wood that allow their worshippers to believe in their own vain and foolish doctrine. ⁹The finest silver and gold is gathered and worked by craftsmen. They are dressed in royal clothes of blue and purple, the work of crafty and skilful men. ¹⁰But the LORD is the true God, He is the living God and an everlasting King. At His wrath, the earth trembles and no one will be able to bear His indignation.

¹¹Thus shall you say to the people; The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, shall also perish from the earth and from under the heavens. ¹²For God has made the earth by His power, the world was established by His wisdom, and by His skill, He stretched out the heavens. ¹³When the LORD spoke, a multitude of waters in the heavens sent forth its vapors to the earth, He makes lightening and rain and brings the wind out of His treasures. ¹⁴Every man has become irrational and stupid in his knowledge, every craftsman is confounded by the graven image that they have made, for the idol is falsehood and there is no life in them. ¹⁵They are worthless and a work of delusion, in the time of their judgment, shall they perish. ¹⁶Rather the portion of Jacob is Israel's true inheritance, He is the Creator of all things and the LORD God is His name.

¹⁷All you who are under attack, gather up your wares from out of the land. ¹⁸For the LORD will cast out the inhabitants of the land and will distress them, so they might truly see and turn to Him. ¹⁹Woe am I, [Jeremiah] for my hurt is great, for I weep alone and I must bear my grief alone. ²⁰The LORD's tabernacle is torn down and spoiled, His people have been taken captive before me. ²¹The pastors have become irrational and stupid, for they have not sought the LORD. And thus they will not prosper and all their people will be scattered. ²²Behold, the sound of an invading army coming out of the north, to make the cities of Judah desolate and a den for dragons. ²³LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself, it is not within a man to direct his own steps. ²⁴LORD, correct me with Your judgment and not with Your anger, lest You bring me to nothing. ²⁵Pour out Your wrath on the heathen that do not know You and the families that do not call upon Your name. For they are the ones who have consumed Israel making their land desolate.

Jeremiah: chapter 11

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah, saying; ²Hear the words of this covenant and speak them to the men of Judah, and the people of Jerusalem; ³And say to the people; Cursed is the man that does not obey the words of this covenant. ⁴That I commanded your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, (Exodus chapter 19), saying, Obey My voice and follow My commandments, then shall you be My people and I will be your God. ⁵That I may perform the oath which I have sworn to your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, Exodus 3:8.

⁶Then the LORD said to me; Proclaim this covenant in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem and may the people keep it. ⁷For I earnestly testified against your fathers from the day that I brought them up out of Egypt unto this day, that they need to obey My voice. ⁸Yet they did not obey, but rather everyone walked in the imagination of their own evil heart. Therefore, I will bring the words of this covenant on them that they refused to keep. ⁹A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem. ¹⁰They are walking in the iniquities of their forefathers, which refused to hear My Words. Chasing after other gods to serve them, the house of Israel and Judah have broken My covenant that I made with their fathers.

¹¹Therefore, I shall bring evil upon them, that they shall not be able to escape from and though they shall cry to Me, I will not hearken unto them. ¹²Then the cities of Judah and the people of Jerusalem shall cry unto their false gods to whom they bow down to, but it will not do them any good in the time of their trouble. ¹³For Judah has as many false gods as you have cities and the number of altars you have set up to worship these shameful things of yours are as numerous as the number of your streets. ¹⁴Therefore Jeremiah, do not pray for these people, do not intercede for them in prayer, for I will not hear them when they cry to Me in their time of trouble. ¹⁵For what right has Israel, My beloved have to be in My house, seeing that she has loved many false gods and committed adultery with many. Corrupting her holy flesh in shameful idolatry and then rejoicing afterwards.

¹⁶The LORD once called Israel, a green olive tree, fair and having good fruit. But now has He kindled a fire of great judgment under it and its branches are now worthless. ¹⁷For the LORD your Maker has spoken evil against the house of Israel and Judah. For Israel served Baal (false gods), wishing to provoke the LORD to anger and by doing so she has committed evil against herself.

¹⁸The LORD has given me knowledge of this evil plot and has shown me their evil doings. ¹⁹However I was as a simpleton lead to the slaughter, not knowing that they had devised evil against me, (Jeremiah). Planning to destroy me, the fruitful tree from the land of the living, so that my name would be forever cutoff. ²⁰But LORD, our righteous judge, You know and try the heart of every man, let me see Your vengeance on them, for to You, I have revealed my cause.

²¹Therefore thus says the LORD; Concerning the wicked men that seek your life, saying to you; Do not prophesy to us in the name of the LORD, or you shall die by our hands. ²²I will punish them, the young men shall die by the sword and their sons and daughters shall die by famine: ²³And there shall not even be a trace of them remaining, for I will bring evil upon them in the year of their visitation.

Jeremiah: chapter 12

¹LORD, You are righteous and just, yet let me ask You concerning Your judgments. Why does the way of the wicked prosper? For all who deal treacherously with You are happy. ²You are their Creator and they have grown to produce fruit, they talk much of the LORD, but their hearts and actions are far from You. ³But LORD, You understand me, You have seen my devotion towards you and have tried My heart. Gather up these people like sheep and prepare them for the day of slaughter. ⁴How long shall the land mourn and the herbs of every field wither, because of the wickedness of the people that dwell in the land? The beasts and the birds are consumed, because man mockingly thinks, God shall not see their works.

⁵But the LORD answered Jeremiah and said; If you have run with the common man and it has wearied you, how will you then be able to contend with horses? And if abiding in the land of relative peace has wearied you, how will you manage in the day of trials? ⁶For even your own brethren have dealt treacherously with you and have called a multitude after you. Even though they speak good things to you, do not believe them.

⁷Yes, I have forsaken My house of Israel, I have left My heritage and have given the dearly beloved of My soul into the hand of her enemies. ⁸My heritage has become to Me as a lion in the forest, it speaks out against Me, therefore, I have hated her. ⁹My heritage is as a speckled bird to Me, the nations all around are against her and they assemble together to destroy her. ¹⁰Many pastors have destroyed My vineyard and have trampled My portion under foot, making My pleasant portion a desolate wilderness. ¹¹They have made the land desolate and it mourns to Me, because no man really cares. ¹²The enemy will come upon all the high places throughout, for the sword of the LORD shall completely destroy the land and no flesh shall have peace. ¹³Though they have sown wheat, they shall reap thorns, none of their labors shall profit them and they shall be ashamed of their lack of revenues because of the fierce anger of the LORD.

¹⁴Thus says the LORD; Against the evil neighbors that come against the inheritance that I have given to My people of Israel, I will cast them out of their land and remove My people Judah from among them. ¹⁵And after I have plucked My people out of their land, I will return and have compassion on them. Bringing them again into their inheritance and every man to his own land. ¹⁶And it shall be that if these nations diligently learn the ways of My people, to swear by My name, as they had once taught My people to swear by their false god (Baal). Then will they be built up in the midst of My people. ¹⁷But if they do not obey, I will utterly destroy that nation, says the LORD.

Jeremiah: chapter 13

¹Thus says the LORD unto me; Jeremiah, Go and put on a linen cloth around your waist and don't remove them, not even to wash them. (NOTE: This signified the filth of the nation) ²So I got a cloth according to the Word of the LORD and put it around My waist.

³And the Word of the LORD came to me the second time, saying; ⁴Take the cloth that is around your waist and go to the bank of the Euphrates river and hide it there among the rocks. ⁵So I went and hid it by the bank of the Euphrates river, as the LORD had commanded me.

⁶After many days, the LORD said to me; Go to the Euphrates river and retrieve the linen cloth that I commanded you to hide there. ⁷So I went to the Euphrates river and dug the cloth up and it was spoiled and was good for nothing.

⁸Then the Word of the LORD came to me, saying; ⁹After this manner I will mar the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. ¹⁰For they are evil people that refuse to hear My Words, they all walk in the imagination of their own heart, worshiping and serving other gods. They are as this linen cloth, they are good for nothing. ¹¹Just as this linen cloth is wrapped around the waist of a man, I have caused the entire house of Israel and Judah to cling to Me. That they might be to Me a people, bringing to Me a name of praise and glory, but the people would not hear.

¹²Therefore you shall speak this Word of the LORD to them; Every bottle shall be filled with wine. And the people shall reply, We know very well that every bottle is to be filled with wine. ¹³You shall then say to them, The LORD will fill all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, even the kings, priests and prophets, with drunkenness. ¹⁴And I will smash them one against another, even the fathers and the sons together, says the LORD: I will not pity, nor spare, nor have mercy, but destroy them.

¹⁵Hear this word and do not be proud, for the LORD has spoken. ¹⁶Give glory to the LORD your God, while you can yet look for the light and before He causes gross darkness and you stumble in the dark. ¹⁷But if you will not hear it, I shall weep for you and my soul shall be sorry because of your pride, for the LORD's people shall be carried away into captivity. ¹⁸Tell also your king and his queen to humble themselves, to relinquish the crown of their glory and take a lowly seat. ¹⁹The southern cities of Judah have been besieged and Judah shall be entirely carried away captive.

²⁰Behold, an evil army is coming from the north. Where now is that beautiful flock that was given into my care? ²¹What can be said Jerusalem when the LORD punishes you and the people of the nations that you thought were your friends are now captains and chiefs over you. Will that not bring you sorrows as a woman in travail? ²²And if you say in your heart, Why are these things coming upon me? It is because of the greatness of your iniquity that you have been stripped of your garments and you are naked and barefoot. ²³Just as your enemies cannot change their evil ways, then how shall you do good when you are accustomed to doing evil?

²⁴Therefore I will scatter them as the chaff that blows away in the wind. ²⁵This shall be their lot, their measures from me, says the LORD; Because you have forgotten Me and trusted in falsehood. ²⁶Therefore I will lift your skirts over your faces so that your shame may be exposed. ²⁷For I have seen your adulteries, heard your whimpering, the lewdness of your whoredom and your abominations on the hills in the fields. Woe unto you Jerusalem! When shall you ever be made clean?

Jeremiah: chapter 14

¹The Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah concerning the droughts;

²Judah mourns, the city gates droop. The people are dressed in black, walling on the ground their cries have gone up. ³Their nobles have sent their children to the wells to draw water and there is none to be found. They returned with their vessels empty, confused and ashamed. ⁴For there was a great drought in the earth and all the farmers are confounded. ⁵Even the doe, after she gives birth, forsakes her fawn in the field, because there is no grass. ⁶Also the wild beasts on the hills, pant for air like jackals, because there is no grass.

⁷LORD, our iniquities testify against us, deal with us according to Your name's sake, for our backslidings are many, greatly have we sinned against You. ⁸You are the Hope and Savior of Israel, in its time of trouble. Don't be as a stranger in the land, or a passerby staying one night to lodge. ⁹You are not incapable of saving us, for You LORD are in the midst of us and we are called by Your name, do not forsake Your great name.

¹⁰Thus says the LORD to Jeremiah; The people of Judah have loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the LORD does not accept them. He will now remember their iniquity and punish them for their sins.

¹¹Then the LORD said to me; Do not pray for these people for their good. ¹²For when they fast, I will not hear their cries, nor when they offer burnt offerings and sacrifices to Me, I will not accept them. Rather I will consume them through the sword, the famine and through disease.

¹³I then replied, LORD God! The false prophets have told their people they would not see nether sword or famine, but assured them that the LORD would give them peace in their land.

¹⁴And the LORD said to me; Their prophets have prophesied falsely in My name. I did not send them, I did not command them, nor did I speak to them. They prophesy false visions speaking the deceit of their own heart.

¹⁵Therefore the LORD says concerning the prophets that prophesy in My name; I did not send them and even though they say; Sword and famine will not touch this land. Those prophets shall be consumed by the sword and by famine. ¹⁶And the people to whom they prophesy to shall be put out on the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword. And there shall be no one to bury them, for I will also pour out wickedness upon their wives, their sons and daughters.

¹⁷Therefore, Jeremiah, you shall speak this word to them; May tears unceasing flow from my eyes both day and night, for the virgin daughter of My people is broken with a great blow and has a grievous wound. ¹⁸When you go into their fields and you behold those killed with the sword and when you go into the city and you behold the sicknesses and famine. Both prophet and priest will be confounded, not knowing what to do.

¹⁹[Jeremiah replies], LORD have You utterly rejected Judah? Have You turned Your back on Zion? Why have You smitten us and have taken away all healing from us? We looked for peace and healing and have found nothing good but rather trouble! ²⁰LORD, we acknowledge our wickedness and the iniquity of our fathers. That we have all sinned against You. ²¹Do not despise us disgracing Your name's sake, remember and do not break Your covenant with us. ²²Can any of the nation's idols make it rain? Or do the heavens produce rain of their own effort? We know that it is only of our God. Therefore, we will wait on the LORD, for You do all these things.

Jeremiah: chapter 15

¹The LORD then said to me; Even though Moses and Samuel stood before Me, in intercession for the people of Judah. My mind could not be turned in favor towards these people. Therefore, cast them out of My sight and let them go forth. ²And if they ask you; Where shall we go forth? Say to them; The LORD says; Those that are destined to die, shall die either by sword or famine and they that are destined for captivity, shall go into captivity.

³For I will set over them four kinds of destroyers, the sword to kill, the dogs to tear, the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. ⁴I shall cause them to be scattered among all the kingdoms of the earth, because of what Manasseh, the king of Judah, did in Jerusalem, 2^nd Kings 21:3-7. ⁵For there shall be no one to pity the people of Jerusalem, no one shall mourn for you or walk with you and ask you how you are. ⁶For you have forsaken Me, says the LORD. You have gone backward. Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you, for your sins have wearied Me. ⁷I will winnow them with a fan and remove the chaff. Depriving them of children destroying the evil way of My people, so they will not return to them. ⁸The number of their widows shall be increased as the sands of the seas and I will cause a destroyer to come against Jerusalem suddenly sending terror on the city. ⁹She who has bore seven sons will become feeble and weak, for her one son was cut down in his prime. She will be confused and confounded as the LORD delivers the rest of her sons to their enemies and they shall die by the sword.

¹⁰Woe is me! For I have been born as a man of strife and contention. I have neither lent nor have had men loan to me, yet every man does curse me. ¹¹And the LORD said; Truly, it shall be well with the remnant of the people. I will intercede for you Jeremiah and will cause the enemy to ask for you in the time of evil and affliction. ¹²For what would be your chances against the mighty army of the north? ¹³Thus, I will give away as spoil to the enemy of the north all of Judah's substance and treasures, because of all of their sins. ¹⁴And I will have your enemies take you captive into a foreign land, for My anger is kindled and it shall burn upon you.

¹⁵[Jeremiah speaks]; LORD, You know and understand me, avenge me of my persecutors, spare me by Your longsuffering, for it is for Your sake that I have suffered rebuke. ¹⁶I found Your Words and I ate them, Your Word was my joy and caused my heart to rejoice, for I am called by Your name, O LORD God. ¹⁷I have not sat in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced. Rather I sat alone because Your hand was upon me, for you have filled me with indignation upon seeing their sin. ¹⁸But my pain is perpetual and my wound refuses to heal. Will You be to me as a deceitful brook, whose waters are uncertain?

¹⁹Thus says the LORD; If you turn back to Me and trust Me, then you shall stand before Me. And if you separate the precious from the vile, you shall then be My minister, let the people return to Me, but Jeremiah, do not return to their ways. ²⁰And I will make you in the eyes of the people as a fortified brazen wall. Even as the people fight against you, they shall not prevail, for I, the LORD shall be with you. ²¹I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked and from the hand of the terrible.

Jeremiah: chapter 16

¹The Word of the LORD also came to me, saying; ²You shall not take a wife, or have sons or daughters in this place. ³For the sons and daughters that are born in this place, the mothers that give birth to them and their fathers shall die of a grievous death. ⁴No one shall mourn for them nor shall they be buried. They shall be as dung upon the earth, killed by the sword or famine and their carcass shall be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth.

⁵For thus says the LORD; Jeremiah, do not mourn or lament for these people, for I have taken away My peace, loving kindness and mercies from them. ⁶Both the great and the small shall die in this land, they shall not be buried, nor shall anyone lament for them. ⁷You shall not mourn or give comfort to the living because of the dead. ⁸Jeremiah, you shall not go into their houses in times of their feasting, to sit, eat and drink with them. ⁹For in your days, I will cause joy and gladness to cease from this place, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride will also be absent.

¹⁰When you speak these words to the people, they will say to you; Why has the LORD pronounced this great evil against us and what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God? ¹¹And you shall reply to them; Because your fathers have forsaken the LORD, they have served and worship other gods, thus forsaking the LORD and not keeping His law. ¹²And this generation has done even worse than your fathers, for everyone walks after the imagination of his own evil heart, so they will not have to listen to the LORD. ¹³Therefore I will cast these people out of this land and into a foreign land that nether you or your fathers have known of. There, you shall serve other gods day and night, where the LORD shall show you no favor.

¹⁴In those days it shall no longer be said, that the LORD lives whom brought the Israelites out of the land of Egypt. ¹⁵But, indeed the LORD does live and He will bring them again into their land that He gave to their fathers. ¹⁶But first I will have people of the nation judge My people and afterwards My people shall also be picked out of that land and gathered together. ¹⁷For I see all their ways are not hidden from Me, nor is their iniquity hid from My eyes. ¹⁸I will first doubly recompense their sin, for they have defiled My inheritance, filling the land with the deadness of their idols.

¹⁹[Jeremiah speaks]; LORD, You are my strength, my fortress and my refuge in the day of affliction. In the last days, even the Gentile nations shall come to you and renounce their vain idols that their fathers have taught them to worship. ²⁰For it is absurd to think that a man could make gods unto himself, these idols are no gods at all.

²¹Therefore, I will cause these people to know, the might of My hand and they shall know that My name is The LORD.

Jeremiah: chapter 17

¹The sin of the people of Judah is engraved on their hearts and on their stone altars. ²Even their children remember the multitudes of their altars to honor these idols. ³Oh Jerusalem, throughout all of your land, I will give your substance and treasures as spoil to the enemy, because of your sin. ⁴And you shall be cut off from your heritage that I gave you and I will cause you to serve your enemies in a foreign land, for you have kindled My anger and it shall burn forever.

⁵Cursed is the man that trusts in the ability of men, thereby causing his heart to depart from the LORD. ⁶For it shall be as if he were exposed in the desert, not noticing when good comes. ⁷Blessed is the man that trusts in the LORD and whose hope and confidence is in the LORD. ⁸For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, that spreads out its roots by the river. There shall be no notice or fear when the heat and drought comes, for the leaf shall remain green, neither shall the tree cease from yielding fruit.

⁹For the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked: who can know it? ¹⁰I the LORD search the heart, I test every man to prove him according to his own ways and deeds. ¹¹Just as a bird that sits on eggs without hatching them or having laid them. In the same way is he who acquires riches in an unjust way, he shall leave them in the middle of his days and in the end will be known as a fool.

¹²From the very beginning, the place of our sanctuary has been a high and glorious throne. ¹³LORD, You are the hope of Israel. All that forsake You shall be ashamed, they that depart from You shall vanish as writing in the sand, because they have forsaken the LORD, the Fountain of living waters. ¹⁴Heal me LORD and I shall be healed, save me and I shall be saved, for You are my praise.

¹⁵The people have said to me; Where is the Word of the LORD, predicting this upcoming disaster? Let it come now. ¹⁶But as for me [Jeremiah], I have not ceased from being a pastor to Your people, following You. You know that I have not desired the woeful day of judgment and I have spoken Your words. ¹⁷Do not be a terror to me, for You are my hope in the day of evil. ¹⁸May they that persecute me be confounded and dismayed, but do not bring this against me. Bring the day of evil upon them and utterly destroy them.

¹⁹The LORD said to me; Go and stand in the gates of Jerusalem. ²⁰And speak the Word of the LORD, to the kings and people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ²¹However Jeremiah, do not bear this burden on the Sabbath day. ²²Do not do any customary work or business on the Sabbath day, but rather keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your fathers.

²³But, the people did not obey, but rather hardened their hearts, that they might not hear or even receive instruction. ²⁴But the LORD says; If My people diligently hearken to Me and do not carry on business in the city on the Sabbath day, but rather keep the Sabbath day holy. ²⁵The the kings and nobles of the city of David, the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem and this city shall be established forever. ²⁶Then shall the people from every part of Judah and Jerusalem come bringing burnt offerings, sacrifices, burning incense and bringing sacrifices of praise to the house of the LORD. ²⁷But if you do not hearken to Me and do not keep the Sabbath day holy, I will then kindle a fire that will not be quenched and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem.

Jeremiah: chapter 18

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah, saying; ²Go down to the potter's house and there I will cause you to hear My Words.

³So I went down to the potter's house and there the potter was, working a work, on the wheel. ⁴The vessel made of clay was ruined in the hands of the potter. So he remade it into another vessel, as seemed good to the potter.

⁵Then the Word of the LORD came to me, saying; ⁶People of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? As the clay is in the hands of this potter, so are you in My hand, (Romans 9:21). ⁷For at any time I can call up a nation, concerning yet another kingdom, to attack and to destroy it. ⁸But, If that nation, against whom I have spoken, turns from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them. ⁹Yet at another time I may speak concerning a nation and a kingdom, to build it up. ¹⁰But, if that same nation does evil in My sight and does not obey My voice, I will also repent of the good.

¹¹Therefore Jeremiah, speak to the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem and say, Thus say the LORD; I am bringing an evil plan against you. May everyone return now from their evil way and make their ways and deeds correct. ¹²But the people will say; There is no hope, for all of us walk after our own devices everyone doing the imagination of his own evil heart.

¹³Therefore Jeremiah, inquire among the heathen nations, for they have not even heard of the horrible things that the people of Israel have done. ¹⁴ Will a man leave his provision that does not dry up? ¹⁵For My people have forgotten Me and have burnt incense to false gods. This is what has caused them to stumble and turn from the correct path. ¹⁶Making their land desolate and a mockery to the other nations. ¹⁷I will scatter them before the enemy and in the day of their calamity, I will turn from them.

¹⁸Then the people said about me; Let us scheme against Jeremiah. For the law of Moses shall still be spoken of by the priests, along with the counsel of the elders and the word spoken from our prophets. Let us place a false charge against Jeremiah and ignore all of his words. ¹⁹LORD, help me and hear the voice of them that contend with me. ²⁰Shall evil be repaid for good? For they scheme against my soul. Remember that I stood before You speaking good to them, that they might turn Your wrath away from them. ²¹Therefore LORD, deliver up their children to the famine, let their men and children die by the sword and their wives become widows. ²²May a cry be heard from their houses, when You bring trouble suddenly upon them, because of their scheming against me. ²³For LORD, You know of their schemes against me. Do not forgive them of their iniquity, rather overthrow them in Your time of anger.

Jeremiah: chapter 19

¹Jeremiah, Go and get a potter's clay bottle and gather together the elders of the people and priests. ²Go to Jerusalem's gate that overlooks the rubbish pile and the place of child sacrifice and there speak to the people the words that I give you. ³Say to them; Kings of Judah and people of Jerusalem, hear the Word of the LORD of Israel; I will bring evil upon this place and whoever hears, his ears shall tingle. ⁴I am doing this, because the people have forsaken Me and profaned the land of Jerusalem. They have burned incense and worshiped other gods in the land, that they have neither known nor have their fathers have known, filling this place with the blood of innocent ones. ⁵They built high places for their gods and even offered up child sacrifices to their false gods, abominable things that did not even come to My mind. ⁶Therefore, the day shall come when this place shall be called exactly what is, The valley of slaughter. ⁷And any plans of the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem shall come to not. The men will fall by the sword before their enemies and their carcass will become meat for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. ⁸I will make the city desolate and it shall be a mockery to all that pass by it, because of all the plagues in the land. ⁹I will further cause the people to eat the flesh of their sons and daughters and during the battle, they will slay their own neighbor and friends.

¹⁰Jeremiah, you shall then break the bottle in the sight of the men that are with you. ¹¹And say to them; These are the Words of the LORD; As this bottle was broken, I will also break these people and this city. And the bottle will not be able to be made whole again, it shall be buried in this valley, until there is no further place to bury. ¹²So shall I do to this place and to its people, until all is reprobate as this valley. ¹³The houses of Jerusalem and of the kings of Judah that have burnt incense and given sacrifices to false gods shall be defiled.

¹⁴So Jeremiah came back from the valley of Tophet, where the LORD sent him to prophesy and he stood in the court of the LORD's house, saying to all the people; ¹⁵Thus says the LORD God of Israel; I will bring upon this city and all the towns all the evil that I have spoken against it. Because the people have hardened their hearts so that they might not hear My words.

Jeremiah: chapter 20

¹However, Pashur the priest, who was also the chief officer in the house of the LORD, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things. ²And he had Jeremiah the prophet whipped and put into stocks that were at the high gate of Benjamin by the house of the LORD. ³The next day, Pashur brought Jeremiah out from the stocks and Jeremiah said to him; The LORD does not call your name Pashur, but rather Magor-missabib, (NOTE: meaning: terror on every side). ⁴The LORD says; you will become a terror to yourself and to all your friends, they will be killed by the sword of their enemies right before your eyes. the Lord will give all of Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon and he shall carry the people away captive to Babylon and kill them with the sword. ⁵Everything within the city and everything of value, the Lord will give to their enemies as spoil. ⁶And Pashur, you and your entire family shall go into captivity. When you come into Babylon you and all your friends, to whom you have given false prophecies to shall die and will be buried there.

⁷[Jeremiah then speaks to the Lord]; LORD, You did persuade me, to be your spokesman, but I was deceived, for Your Word always prevails and I am daily mocked. ⁸For all I have spoken of is violence and spoil, because of the Word of the LORD. ⁹I then thought to myself, I would not speak the Word of the LORD, but His Word was instilled in my heart as a burning fire within my bones and I could not defy Him any longer. ¹⁰For I have heard many defame me behind my back, saying he is treacherous on every side. All of my friends waited for my downfall, wanting to take their revenge out on me. ¹¹But the LORD is with me as a mighty warrior and my persecutors shall stumble and they will not prevail. They will be greatly ashamed, for they will not prosper, nor shall they forget about their confusion. ¹²But LORD, You try the righteousness of all men, let me see Your vengeance on these people, for to You have I committed my cause. ¹³Therefore, sing and praise the LORD, for He has delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of evildoers.

¹⁴Cursed be the day when I was born, do not allow that day to be blessed. ¹⁵Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, saying; A son has been born to you, making him very glad. ¹⁶Let that man be as the cities which the LORD overthrows, that refuse to repent and let that man hear the cries in the morning and the wailing at noon. ¹⁷Because he did not kill me right from the womb, giving me a quick grave. ¹⁸For I have come out of the womb to see labors and sorrow and my days to be consumed with shame.

Jeremiah: chapter 21

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah, when Zedekiah, the king of Judah sent a royal official and a priest to him, saying; ²Inquire of the LORD for us; If Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon will come against us in war? And if so, will not the LORD deal with us according to all His wondrous works, forcing Nebuchadnezzar to withdraw from us.

³Then Jeremiah said to them, tell king Zedekiah this; ⁴Thus says the LORD God of Israel; It will be as if all of your weapons of war are dull and useless that you use to fight against the king of Babylon and his army. I will assemble the enemy in the midst of your city and they will freely besiege you as if your city had no walls. ⁵In My anger and great wrath I will also fight against you with an outstretched hand and a strong arm. ⁶I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast and they shall die of a great disease. ⁷And afterward, I will deliver Zedekiah the king of Judah, his servants and the people whom have survived the disease, the sword and the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon. And they shall be killed with the sword, for the enemy will not have pity nor mercy on them.

⁸To these people you shall say, Thus says the LORD; I set before you the way of life and the way of death. ⁹He that remains in Jerusalem shall die by the sword, by famine or by disease. But, he that passes over into Babylon shall live and his life shall be his own reward. ¹⁰For I have set My face against this city for evil, rather than good. Jerusalem shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon and he shall burn it with fire.

¹¹And concerning the house of the king of Judah, speak the Word of the LORD; ¹²House of David, quickly execute judgment and deliver the innocent from the hand of the oppressor, lest My fury goes forth like fire, because of your evil doings. ¹³Yes, I am against you, O Jerusalem, says the LORD. And you still say, shall anyone come against us? ¹⁴But I will punish you according to your actions and deeds, says the LORD. I will kindle a fire and it shall devour you.

Jeremiah: chapter 22

¹Thus says the LORD; Jeremiah, go to the house of the king of Judah and speak this Word. ²Saying; King of Judah who sits on the throne of David, your servants and the people, hear the Word of the LORD. ³Quickly execute judgment and deliver the innocent from the hand of the oppressor. Do no wrong or violence to the stranger, the fatherless or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. ⁴If you do this, then future kings of the line of David and his servants will continue to sit on his throne, passing through the gates. ⁵But if you will not hear these words, I swear by Myself, says the LORD, that this house shall become a desolation.

⁶For thus says the LORD to the king's house of Judah; Even though I put a great value on you, I will surely make you as a baron wilderness, with uninhabited cities. ⁷I will call in destroyers against you, everyone with his own weapons. ⁸And many nations shall pass by this city and every man shall say to his neighbor. Why has the LORD done such to this great city? ⁹And they shall answer each other and say; It is because His people have forsaken the covenant of the LORD their God, worshiping and serving other gods. ¹⁰Do not mourn or weep for the dead, rather greatly weep for him that goes into captivity for he shall not return to his native country.

¹¹For thus says the LORD, concerning Jehoahaz the son of Josiah the king of Judah. For Jehoahaz the son reigned after the untimely death of Josiah his father. ¹²Josiah shall also die in the place where they have led him captive and shall not see his native land any more. ¹³Woe unto him that builds his house through unrighteous means, exporting the labors of others. ¹⁴Planning to build only the best for himself. ¹⁵Do you merely think being a king means self-indulgence? Did not your father Josiah, eat and drink and give righteous judgment and justice, so that it would be well with him? ¹⁶Your father judged and defended the cause of the poor and needy, then it went well with him. Is not all this what it means to know the LORD. ¹⁷But your eyes and your heart are only set on yourself. To prosper at any cost through oppression, violence and the shedding of innocent blood.

¹⁸And thus says the LORD concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah the king of Judah; Do not mourn for him, speaking of his greatness. ¹⁹He shall be buried in dishonor and dragged through the gates of Jerusalem.

²⁰People of Jerusalem, climb the hills and cry out, for your entire land will be judged. ²¹When I spoke to you during your prosperity, you refused to hear and you have not obeyed My voice from your youth. ²²Adversity shall consume all of your pastors and your people shall go into captivity, then you shall be ashamed and confounded because of all of your wickedness. ²³People of Jerusalem, you who exalt yourself through your arrogant pride, how you will grown and how pitiable you will be when the misery comes upon you, as the pain of a woman in travail!

²⁴As I live, says the LORD, even if Jehoiachin the son of Jehoiakim the king of Judah were My crowning glory, I would still cast him away. ²⁵Giving him into the hand of his enemies and king Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, that he fears and that seeks his life. ²⁶And I will cast you and your mother that bore you out, into another country and there shall you die. ²⁷But to the land of Jerusalem where the people desire to return, they will not return. ²⁸For this man, king Jehoiachin is a despised broken idol, a vessel that gives out no pleasure. Therefore, the people have cast him and his family out, into an unknown land. ²⁹Let the earth hear the Word of the LORD. ³⁰Therefore, write this man off as childless, for he nor his descendants shall prosper in their days, even as he sits on the throne of David, ruling over Judah.

Jeremiah: chapter 23

¹Woe to the pastors and leaders that destroy and scatter My people! says the LORD. ²Therefore I say this against the pastors that are to feed and care for My people. You have scattered My people and driven them away. You have not attended to them, therefore I will repay your evil doings, upon your head. ³I will gather the remnant of My people from the countries where I have driven them and bring them back into their own land, where they shall be fruitful and increase. ⁴Then, I will set up shepherds over them, which will feed them and they shall not have any more fear or confusion, neither shall they lack anything.

⁵The days are coming when I will raise up from David's seed a righteous Branch, (Christ) and this King shall reign and prosper, executing judgment and justice in the earth. ⁶In His days Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell safely and He shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

⁷Therefore, the day is coming when the people shall no longer refer only to past acts of the LORD, by saying; The LORD lives, whom has brought His people of Israel out of the land of Egypt. ⁸But will say; The LORD lives, that has brought up and lead His people of Israel out of the north country, where He had driven them and they shall now dwell in their own land.

⁹Because of the false prophets, my heart is broken and all my bones shake. I am like a drunken man, that has become overtaken by wine, because of the LORD and the holiness of His words. ¹⁰For the land is full of adulterers, because of their swearing the land mourns. The pleasant places within the wilderness are dried up, for the people rush into evil and their actions are not right. ¹¹Both their prophets and priests are profane, for the LORD has seen their wickedness. ¹²Therefore their way to them will be as slippery paths in the darkness. They will be self-driven and will fall. For the LORD will bring evil upon them, in the year of their visitation.

¹³I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria, they have falsely prophesied to My people, causing them to error. ¹⁴Also the prophets of Jerusalem have done horrible things. They have committed adultery, walking in lies and they encourage and strengthen the schemes of evildoers. All of them have become to the LORD as wicked as the land of Sodom and the people of Gomorrah. ¹⁵Therefore says the LORD; I will feed these prophets with the bitterness of wormwood and make them drink the water of gall. For the ungodliness and the profaneness of the prophets of Jerusalem have gone into all the land.

¹⁶Thus says the LORD; Do not take to heart the words that the prophets speak to you, for they speak a vision out of their own heart and not the Words of the LORD. ¹⁷They speak peace to those that despise Me and they assure everyone that walks after the imagination of his own heart, that no evil shall come upon them. ¹⁸For have any of them stood in the counsel of the LORD, hearing and understanding His Word? ¹⁹See, a whirlwind has gone forth of the LORD and it shall come upon the head of the wicked. ²⁰And the anger of the LORD shall not relent, until He has executed the thoughts of His heart. In the latter days you shall understand this perfectly.

²¹I did not speak to these prophets or send them, yet they proceeded to prophesy and would not be responsible for their actions. ²²But if they had listened to My counsel and had caused My people to hear My words, then the prophets would have turned My people from their evil ways and deeds.

²³Am I not a God that is involved with his people, rather than a God who is distant? ²⁴ Can anyone hide himself in a secret place where I cannot see him, am I not always present?

²⁵I have heard the lies and dreams your prophets have spoken in My name. ²⁶How long shall the prophets continue to prophesy lies, from their hearts? They themselves have become deceived. ²⁷And they intend to cause My people to forget My name through their dreams that they made widely known, just as their fathers had forgotten My name through their worship of other gods. ²⁸Let the prophet that has a dream, speak of the dream and let him that has My Word, speak My Word faithfully. For does straw and chaff have anything in common with the solid Word of God? ²⁹Is not My Word as a fire, that will consume the chaff and as a hammer that will overcome even the most stubborn resistance?

³⁰Therefore, I am against these false prophets, that speak of cleaver phases taken from their neighbors. ³¹I am against these prophets, that speak of what others had said. ³²I am against them that prophesy false dreams, causing My people to error because of their lies and their reckless boasting. I did not call or send them and they shall not profit the people at all.

³³And when the people, their prophets or a priest, ask you; What is the burden of the LORD? You shall say to them; You are the burden and the LORD says that He will forsake you. ³⁴And if any of these people continues to falsely speak or prophecy, I will punish that man and his house. ³⁵For instead of knowing directly My Words, everyone asks his neighbor what I have spoken. ³⁶They shall not even speak anymore of My Word, since they have perverted the Words of the living God and every man's word shall be his own burden.

³⁷Jeremiah, You shall say to their prophets; Has the LORD spoken or answered You? ³⁸But since they say; He has given us the Words of the LORD, you shall rebuke them. For I have spoken through you and told them not to speak the Words of the LORD. ³⁹That is why I will utterly forget and forsake these people and the city that I gave them and will cast them out of My presence. ⁴⁰And I will bring an everlasting reproach upon them and they shall bear a perpetual shame.

Jeremiah: chapter 24

¹After Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon had taken Jehoiachin the king of Judah captive, along with the nobles of Judah and the skilled laborers. The LORD showed me a vision of two baskets of figs before the temple of the LORD. ²One basket had ripe good figs, ready to eat, but the other basket had spoiled figs, which could not be eaten.

³The LORD then said to me; Jeremiah, what do you see? And I said; Two baskets of figs. One basket being very good and the other basket being very bad, to where they cannot even be eaten. ⁴Again the Word of the LORD God of Israel came to me, saying;

⁵As these good figs are, I will acknowledge the people of Judah that I have sent away captive into Babylon, for their good. ⁶For I will set My eyes on them for good and will bring them again into this land and let them prosper in the land. ⁷I will give them a heart to know that I am the LORD. They shall be My people and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.

⁸But as these evil figs are, I will gather them up along with Zedekiah the king of Judah, all of his nobles and the remainder of the people of Jerusalem, even the people of Israel that now dwell in the land of Egypt. ⁹I will scatter them into all the kingdoms of the earth to their own hurt and they shall become a mockery and a curse, in all places where I shall scatter them. ¹⁰And I will send the sword, famine and disease to them, until all of them are consumed from the land that I gave to them.

Jeremiah: chapter 25

¹The Word that came to Jeremiah, concerning the people of Judah. In the forth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon. ²This Word Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and the people of Jerusalem, saying; ³Since the thirteenth year of Josiah of Judah, until this day twenty-three years later. The Word of the LORD has come to me and I have risen up early to speak it to you, but you have not listened and obeyed. ⁴The LORD has also sent you other prophets and they have also risen up early and spoke the Word, but neither have you listened to them. ⁵Their message was also to repent from your evil ways and deeds, so that you may dwell in the land that the LORD has given you forever. ⁶Not to run after and serve other gods, so that you would not provoke the LORD to anger by worshiping idols and then the LORD would do you no hurt. ⁷But My people have not listened and obeyed Me, says the LORD. They have provoked Me to anger with idols made by their own hands and thus to their own hurt.

⁸Therefore, thus says the LORD; Because you have not heard and obeyed My Words. ⁹I will bring forth the armies of the north and My servant Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon against this land and its people. I will utterly destroy the people and will make them a mockery and a perpetual desolation. ¹⁰Moreover I shall take from them their joy and gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, neither shall you have an opportunity to rejoice in your labors. ¹¹The entire land shall be a vast wasteland and you shall serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.

¹²When the seventy years are accomplished, I will then punish the king of Babylon and that nation. Because of their iniquity and their land will become a perpetual desolation. ¹³And I will bring upon that land all of My words that are recorded in this book that Jeremiah has prophesied against the nations. ¹⁴For many nations and great kings shall take the Babylonian people as slaves, but I will also repay them according to their deeds.

¹⁵For the LORD God of Israel has said to me, to take the wine cup of His fury from His hand and cause all the nations to whom I send you to, to drink of it. ¹⁶And they shall drink it and be moved, for they will be mad, because of the sword that the LORD will send among them.

¹⁷So I took the cup from the LORD's hand and had all the nations that He had sent me to, drink of it. ¹⁸Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, being the most guilty, to make them this day a mockery and a curse. ¹⁹Pharaoh the king of Egypt, his servants, nobles and people; ²⁰all the people and kings of the land of Uz, the kings of the Philistines cities. ²¹The people of Edom, Moab and Ammon. ²²All the kings of Tyre and of Sidon, along with all the kings of the seacoasts. ²³The nomads of Dedan, Tema and Buz. ²⁴All the kings of Arabia and every king that dwell in the desert. ²⁵The kings of Zimri, Elam and the Medes. ²⁶The kings of the north and all the kingdoms of the world of the earth and the king of Babylon shall drink after them.

²⁷Jeremiah, you shall say to these nations; Thus says the LORD God of Israel; Drink this cup until you are drunk, then shall you vomit and fall on the sword the LORD is sending among you. ²⁸And if they refuse to drink the cup, then you shall say to them; The LORD says, that you shall surly drink. ²⁹For I have started to bring evil on the city which is called by My name and should the other nations go unpunished? I will call for a sword on all the people of the earth, says the LORD.

³⁰Therefore prophesy these words against them; The LORD shall roar from on high and speak from His holy habitation, against all the people of the earth. ³¹A noise shall cover the earth. For the LORD has a dispute with the nations, He will judge all flesh, giving the wicked over to the sword, says the LORD. ³²Thus says the LORD; Disaster shall go forth from nation to nation and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the coasts of the earth.

³³That day, the slain of the LORD shall cover the earth, no one shall mourn for them or gather them up to bury them, but they shall be as dung on the ground. ³⁴Wail you shepherds and cry out for help, you honored ones of the people. For the days of your slaughter are here and you shall be cut into pieces as a chosen vessel. ³⁵For you there shall be no escape. ³⁶And the cry and howling of the shepherds, the horror of the choice people shall be heard, for their pasture land is spoiled. ³⁷For the LORD has destroyed their peaceable habitations, because of His fierce anger. ³⁸He has left His dwelling place, as a lion leave his den. And the land has become desolate, because of the fierceness of the oppressor and the fierce anger of the LORD.

Jeremiah: chapter 26

¹In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the king of Judah, this Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying; ²Jeremiah, speak in the court of the LORD's house to all the people of Judah that come to worship. Speak to them all the Words that I give you and do not hold back or change one Word. ³If they will listen and turn from their evil ways, then I will repent from doing evil, that I have purposed to do to them because of their evil ways. ⁴But also say to them; If you do not listen to Me and walk in My law, that I have set before you. ⁵Listening to the Words of My servants the prophets that I sent you, that you have not yet listened to. ⁶Then I shall abandon this house, just as I abandoned My other dwelling place in Shiloh, 1^st Samuel chapter 4 and I will make this city subject to all the curses of the nations on the earth.

⁷And the priests, the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these Words in the house of the LORD. ⁸Now it happened that when Jeremiah had finished speaking all the Words of the LORD, the priests, prophets and all the people seized him and said; you shall surely die. ⁹Why have you prophesied in the name of the LORD, saying, This house shall become abandoned as was the house of Shiloh and this city will become desolate? Then all the people gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the LORD.

¹⁰When the nobles of Judah heard of this, they came up from the king's house to the house of the LORD and sat down to preside over the case. ¹¹And the priests and prophets spoke to the nobles and to all the people, saying; This man is deserving of death, for he has prophesied against this city, as you have also heard with your own ears.

¹²Jeremiah, then spoke to the nobles and the people, saying; The LORD has sent me to prophesy and speak these Words against this house and against this city. ¹³Therefore, change your ways and deeds and obey the voice of the LORD your God. Then the LORD will repent from doing the evil that He has pronounced against you. ¹⁴As for me, I am in your hands. You can do to me as seems good and suitable to you. ¹⁵But do know that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood upon yourselves, this city and the people of it. For I tell you the truth, the LORD has sent me to you to speak these Words.

¹⁶The nobles and all the people then said to the priests and prophets; This man is not deserving of death, for he has spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God.

¹⁷Then certain of the elders spoke to the gathering of the people, saying; ¹⁸Micah the Morasthite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, saying to all the people; Thus says the LORD, Zion shall be leveled as a field, Jerusalem shall become as a ruin heap and the high places on the hills shall be overgrown, Micah 3:12. ¹⁹Did not king Hezekiah fear the LORD and pray and then the LORD repented of the evil which He had spoken against them? But, here we are thinking of doing great evil against our souls.

²⁰There was also a man that prophesied in the name of the LORD, Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and land according to the words of Jeremiah. ²¹When king Jehoiakim, his mighty men and his nobles heard his words, they sought to put him to death. But, when Urijah heard it, he fled into Egypt. ²²Jehoiakim then sent men into Egypt. ²³And they brought Urijah from Egypt and handed him over to king Jehoiakim, who killed him with the sword, then throwing his body into the graves of the common people.

²⁴Only the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, one of the chief nobles, was with Jeremiah, convincing the others that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death.

Jeremiah: chapter 27

¹In the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah the king of Judah, this Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying; ²Make for yourself a harness and a yoke with a cross bar. ³And send them to the representatives of the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of the Ammonites, the king of Tyrus and to the king of Zidon, whom will all be meeting in Jerusalem with Zedekiah the king of Judah. ⁴And command these representatives to deliver this Word of the LORD to their kings. ⁵I have made the earth, man and the beast, by My great power and have given it to whomever it seems right for Me. ⁶And now have I given all these lands into the hand of My servant Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, even the beasts of the field have I given him to serve him. ⁷All nations shall serve him and his descendants, until the appointed time of his land comes and then many nations and kings shall be served by him. ⁸And the nations that will not serve Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, that nation I will punish with the sword, with famine and with disease, says the LORD, until I have consumed them by his hand. ⁹Therefore do not listen to your prophets, enchanters or sorcerers, that speak to you, saying, you shall not serve the king of Babylon. ¹⁰For they prophesy a lie, that will cause them to be removed far from their land, so that I might drive them out and they should perish. ¹¹But the nations that yield and serve the king of Babylon, those nations I will let remain in their own land, says the LORD.

¹²So I, Jeremiah spoke these Words to Zedekiah the king of Judah, saying; Yield to and serve the king and the people of Babylon. ¹³Why should your people die by the sword, by famine or through disease, as the LORD has spoken concerning the nations that will not serve the king of Babylon? ¹⁴Do not listen to the false words of your prophets, that say to you; You will surly not serve the king of Babylon. ¹⁵For the LORD has not sent them, yet they prophesy a lie in His name. So that the LORD might drive you out and all of you might perish.

¹⁶I also spoke to the priests and the people, saying: Thus says the LORD; Do not listen to the lying words of your prophets that say to you; The vessels and treasures of the LORD's house that were taken to Babylon, will any day now be returned to us. ¹⁷Do not listen to them, but rather serve the king of Babylon, so that you might live. Why should your city be turned into a waste land? ¹⁸But if these men are realty prophets and the Word of the LORD is with them, let them make intercession to the LORD, that the vessels that remain in the house of the LORD and in the king's house in Judah and Jerusalem are not taken to Babylon.

¹⁹For thus says the LORD concerning the treasures of Solomon's temple; The brass pillars, the bronze sea, the lavers and the many vessels that remain in the city. ²⁰That Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon did not take, when he carried away captive Jehoiachin the king of Judah and his nobles from Jerusalem into Babylon. ²¹The vessels that remain in the house of the LORD and in the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem; ²²Will also be carried to Babylon and they shall stay there until the day that I visit the people of Babylon, says the LORD. Then I shall bring them up and restore them to their rightful place.

Jeremiah: chapter 28

¹And in the same year, in the forth year and the fifth month of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah. Hananiah, the false prophet, from the city of Gibeon spoke to me, [Jeremiah] in the house of the LORD, in the presence of the priests and all the people, saying; ²Thus says the LORD God of Israel, saying; I have broken the yoke of bondage that the king of Babylon has over Judah. ³Within two full years all the vessels of the LORD's house that Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon took away from this place will be returned. ⁴I will also bring to this place Jehoiachin the king of Judah, along with all the captives of Judah, that went into Babylon, says the LORD. For I will break the yoke of bondage that the king of Babylon has over Judah.

⁵Then the prophet Jeremiah said to the false prophet Hananiah, also in the presence of the priests and of all the people in the house of the LORD. ⁶And even the prophet Jeremiah said, Amen; May the LORD perform your words that you have prophesied. To bring the vessels that were carried away, back to the house of the LORD. ⁷Nevertheless may you and all the people here, hear the words that I speak. ⁸The prophets that have come before us, have prophesied against many countries, of war, of evil and disease. ⁹The prophet that prophesies of peace, shall be recognized only when his word comes to pass, then shall the prophet be known, that the LORD has truly sent him.

¹⁰Hananiah the false prophet then took the yoke and cross bar from off the prophet Jeremiah's neck and broke it. ¹¹And Hananiah said; Thus says the LORD, even as this yoke was broken, I will break the yoke of bondage that Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has over all the nations, within a span of two full years. And then the prophet Jeremiah went his way.

¹²Then the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, after Hananiah the false prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of Jeremiah, saying; ¹³Tell Hananiah that the LORD says; You have broken a yoke made of wood, but I shall make for them yokes of iron. ¹⁴For I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon. They shall serve him as shall the beasts of the field also serve him.

¹⁵So the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the false prophet; Listen, the LORD has not sent you as a prophet, but rather you have made the people to trust in lies. ¹⁶Therefore the LORD has said; I will cast you from off the face of the earth and this year you shall die, because you have taught rebellion against the LORD. ¹⁷And Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.

Jeremiah: chapter 29

¹The letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the elders, the priests, prophets and the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon. ²⁽Including king Jehoiachin, the queen, the eunuchs, the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem and all the skilled laborers. ³And the letter was carried to Babylon and delivered to king Nebuchadnezzar, by two of the king's servants and the letter read;

⁴Thus says the LORD God of Israel, to all the people that I have caused to be carried away captive, from Jerusalem into Babylon. ⁵Build houses in the land and dwell in them, plant gardens and eat the fruit from them. ⁶Take wives and have sons and daughters that you might increase in the land and not be diminished. ⁷Seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive and pray to the LORD, for within its peace you shall find peace. ⁸Do not let your prophets and diviners that are in the midst of you, deceive you. ⁹For they prophesy falsely in My name, for I have not sent them, says the LORD.

¹⁰For thus says the LORD; After seventy years are accomplished in Babylon, I will visit you and do My good Word, causing you to return to your land. ¹¹For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. ¹²Then you shall pray and call upon Me and I will hear and heed you. you. ¹³You shall then seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. ¹⁴And I will be found of you, says the LORD. I will gather you together from all the nations where I have driven you freeing you from your captivity and bringing you back into your own land, says the LORD.

¹⁵But, because you have said; The LORD has raised up for us prophets in Babylon. ¹⁶Concerning the king who sits on the throne of David and the people who dwell in the city who have not gone with you into captivity. ¹⁷I will put upon them the sword, famine and disease, making them as vile figs that are so evil they cannot be eaten. ¹⁸I will persecute them and scatter them throughout all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a mockery and a reproach, among all the nations. ¹⁹Because they did not listen to and heed My words that I sent them spoken through My servants the prophets. ²⁰Therefore, hear the Word of the LORD, all of you that I have sent from Jerusalem into captivity within Babylon.

²¹Thus says the LORD God of Israel; The two false prophets, Ahab and Zedekiah that have prophesied to you lies in My name. I will deliver them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon and he shall kill them before your eyes; ²²And because of them all those of Judah in captivity will use this as a curse, saying; May the LORD make you as Zedekiah and Ahab, that the king of Babylon roasted in the fire. ²³Because they have committed folly in Israel. Committing adultery with their neighbors' wives and speaking lies in My name, says the LORD.

²⁴Also you shall speak to the false prophet Shemaiah the Nehelamite and say; ²⁵Thus says the LORD God of Israel; Because you have sent letters to all the people at Jerusalem, to Zephaniah the priest and to all the priests, saying; ²⁶The LORD has made Zephaniah priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, to be officers in the house of the LORD. You shall be over every madman that prophesies, also able to put him into prison if need be. ²⁷And now, why have you not reproved Jeremiah, who prophesies to you? ²⁸Because he has written this letter, saying; This captivity is long. Therefore, build houses and dwell in them, plant gardens and eat the fruit of them. ²⁹And Zephaniah the priest shall read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet.

³⁰And the Word of the LORD to Jeremiah, saying; ³¹Send this message to all the people in captivity, saying; Thus says the LORD, concerning the false prophet Shemaiah. Because he has prophesied to you, of whom I did not send and he caused the people to trust in a lie, ³²I will punish him and his descendants. He will be childless without a seed to dwell among the people, nor shall he behold the good that I will do for My people, says the LORD. Because he has taught rebellion against the LORD.

Jeremiah: chapter 30

¹The Word of the LORD God of Israel that came to Jeremiah, saying; ²Write all the words that I have spoken to you in a book. ³For the days are coming when I will bring My people of Israel and Judah out of their captivity and I will cause them to return and possess the land that I gave to their fathers.

⁴And these are the Words that the LORD spoke concerning Israel and Judah. ⁵A voice of fear and trembling and not of peace, has been heard. ⁶As a woman in travail with child, I see every man with his hands on his belly and all of their faces have turned pale. ⁷For that day is great, unlike any other, unparalleled to the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it. ⁸For in that day, it shall come to pass that I will break the oppressor's yoke from off the neck of My people and My people shall no longer serve strangers. ⁹Rather they shall serve the LORD their God and the line of king David that I will raise up for them.

¹⁰Therefore do not fear or be dismayed My servant of Israel, says the LORD, for I will save you and your children from the land of their captivity. Israel shall return and be at peace and no one shall make him afraid. ¹¹For I am with you, says the LORD and will save you. Even though I have brought all the nations to their complete end that scattered you, I will not bring you to your complete end. But, I will correct you through judgment and will not hold you guiltless or leave you unpunished.

¹²For your bruise is incurable and your wound is grievous. ¹³There is no one to plead your cause or to dress your wound, for there is no healing medicines. ¹⁴For your lovers no longer seek you, they have all forgotten you. For I have wounded you, because of the multitude of your sins that were on the increase. ¹⁵But why do you cry out in your affliction? Your sorrow is incurable because of the multitude of your sins that ever increase. That is why I have done these things to you. ¹⁶But all that come to harm you, they shall be harmed and everyone of your adversaries shall go into captivity. ¹⁷And I will restore health to you and will heal your wounds, because they called you an outcast, saying, This is Zion, (the city of God) whom no man seeks after.

¹⁸I will have mercy and release Israel from her captivity and the city shall be rebuilt on her own foundation. ¹⁹And out of it shall proceed, thanksgiving and voices of gladness and joy. I shall multiply and glorify the people of Israel and they shall not be timid or few. ²⁰Their children shall be as to Me as in former times, their congregation shall be established before Me and I will punish all that oppress them. ²¹Their nobles and governor shall be of their own people and I will cause them to desire to draw near to Me. ²²And you shall be My people and I will be your God.

²³But, now a whirlwind of the LORD goes forth with fury and shall fall with pain upon the head of the wicked. ²⁴And the fierce anger of the LORD shall not return until He has accomplished the intents of His heart. In the latter days, you shall understand this.

Jeremiah: chapter 31

¹At that time, I will be the God of all the families of Israel and they shall be My people. ²My people who survived the sword have found grace in the place of exile, where the people chose to find rest. ³For the LORD has appeared to Israel, saying, I have loved you with an everlasting love and drawn you with loving kindness. ⁴I shall again build up the virgin of Israel, My people shall again go forth with singing, dancing and being merry. ⁵You shall plant your vineyards upon the mountain and you shall eat of the choice fruit as common things. ⁶For there shall come a day, when the watchmen shall alert the people to arise and go up to Zion unto the LORD our God. ⁷Therefore sing with gladness for the remnant of Israel and let the nations shout praises and say; LORD save Israel. ⁸For I will gather the people from the north country and the coasts of the earth. Along with the blind, the lame and the woman with child and a great company shall return. ⁹They shall come with weeping and with an outpouring of prayers, I will lead them. I will cause My people to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, where they shall not stumble. For I am a Father to Israel and he is My firstborn.

¹⁰May the nations hear the Word of the LORD and declare it afar off, saying; He that scattered Israel will also gather and keep him, as a shepherd keeps his flock. ¹¹For the LORD has redeemed Israel and has ransomed him from the hand of him that was too strong for him. ¹²Therefore the people of the LORD shall come and sing in Zion. Rejoicing together in the goodness of the LORD, because of the wheat, wine and oil, for the newborn of the flocks and herds. Then their soul shall be as a watered garden and they shall have no more sorrows.

¹³Then shall the young woman rejoice in the dance, along with both young men and the old, for I will comfort them and turn their mourning into joy. ¹⁴ And I will fulfill the soul of the priests with fatness and My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the LORD. ¹⁵Bitter weeping and lamentations shall be heard in the cities, the mother of Israel weeping for her children and refuses to be comforted, because her children are not. ¹⁶But the LORD says; Refrain your voice from weeping and dry your eyes. For your work shall be rewarded and your children shall return from the land of the enemy. ¹⁷For there is hope in your future and your children shall come again into their own land.

¹⁸For I have heard Israel's bemoaning, saying; LORD, You have chastised me, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke. You have turned me around and I shall be turned, for You are the LORD my God. ¹⁹After I was turned, I repented and after that I was instructed. Even still I smote my thigh and was ashamed, because I still bore the reproach of my youth. ²⁰However Israel is My dear son, he is a delightful child. For as often as I spoke against him, I earnestly remember him still. Therefore, My heart is troubled for him and I will have mercy on him, says the LORD. ²¹Set up signposts to mark the way, turn your heart and thoughts toward the way back and retrace your steps back, Oh virgin of Israel. ²²How long will you fail to return backsliding daughter? For the LORD has done a new thing in the earth, the feeble shall protect the mighty.

²³Thus says the LORD God of Israel; Once again, they shall speak these words in the land of Judah when I turn back their captivity; May the LORD bless you in your home of righteousness from His holy mountain. ²⁴And all the people in Judah shall dwell in peace together, whether they be skilled workers, farmers or shepherds. ²⁵For I have fully satisfied the weary soul and have even replenished the sorrowful soul.

²⁶After this I, Jeremiah awoke and my sleep had been sweet to me.

²⁷Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD; when I will plant the house of Israel and Judah. ²⁸And it shall be that as I have watched over them, to uproot, to break down, to destroy and afflict. I will now watch over them to plant and build, says the LORD. ²⁹In those days they shall not again say the saying; The fathers have eaten sour grapes and it has set the children's teeth on edge, Ezekiel 18:2. (NOTE: this means is that, The fathers willfully sinned and the children of Israel inherited the father sin, implying they themselves were blameless) ³⁰But everyone shall be judged for his own iniquity.

³¹For the day comes, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and Judah. ³²Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers when I brought them out of Egypt. The covenant that they broke, even though I was a husband to them. ³³I shall make this covenant with the house of Israel. And I will put My law within them and write it on their hearts, then I shall be their God and they shall be My people. ³⁴There shall no more be a need to teach every man, saying; Know the LORD. For they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest. I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more.

³⁵Thus says the LORD; that gives the sun as light by day and the set order of the moon and the stars as light by night and that has divided the sea. ³⁶If those set patterns depart from before Me, then the seed of Israel also shall forever cease from being a nation before Me. ³⁷If heaven above could possibly be measured or the core of the earth be known, only then would I cast off the people of Israel for all that they have done. ³⁸Rather, the day comes, when the city of Jerusalem shall be built to the LORD from the tower of Hananeel unto the gate of the corner. ³⁹The measuring line to build the city shall go out far and wide. ⁴⁰And the entire land, what were despicable places and the fertile fields shall be holy unto the LORD, it shall remain intact forever.

Jeremiah: chapter 32

¹The Word of the LORD, that came to Jeremiah in the tenth year of the reign of Zedekiah, the king of Judah and was also the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar, the king of Babylon. ²For at that time the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem and the prophet Jeremiah was being held as a prisoner, locked up in the king of Judah's palace. ³For Zedekiah, had locked him up, charging him that he was prophesying in the name of the LORD, saying; This city will be given over to the king of Babylon. ⁴And Zedekiah the king of Judah shall be delivered into the hands of the Babylon army and shall be forced to meet with the king of Babylon face to face. ⁵And Zedekiah shall stay in Babylon until I visit him, says the LORD. And in spite of all of his efforts, yet he shall not prosper?

⁶And Jeremiah said, The Word of the LORD came unto me, saying; ⁷Hanameel your uncle shall come to you, asking you to buy his field in Anathoth, for you have the right of redemption to buy it. ⁸Just as the LORD had said, Hanameel went to Jeremiah in the royal prison, asking Jeremiah to buy his field. And then Jeremiah knew that this was the Word of the LORD. ⁹So Jeremiah bought the field and weighed out seventeen shekels of silver. ¹⁰And the deal was witnessed and sealed. ¹¹Then I took the deed of the purchase. ¹²And entrusted it with Baruch, in the presence of all the Jews that sat in the court of the prison.

¹³And I charged Baruch before them, saying; ¹⁴Thus says the LORD God of Israel; Take this evidence of the purchase that is sealed, both the public record and private. And put them into an earthen vessel, that they may be stored for many days. ¹⁵For the LORD God of Israel has said that houses fields and vineyards shall again be possessed in this land.

¹⁶When I had delivered the evidence of the purchase to Baruch, I prayed to the LORD, saying; ¹⁷LORD God! You have made the heaven and the earth by Your great power and stretched out arm and there is nothing too hard for You ¹⁸You show loving kindness to thousands and repay the iniquity of the fathers unto their children after them. You are the Great and Mighty God, the LORD is Your name, ¹⁹You are great in counsel and mighty in work. Seeing all the ways of the sons of men, repaying each one according to his ways and deeds. ²⁰For You have done signs and wonders in the land of Egypt and even unto this day, You continue to do so in the land of Israel, having made a name for Yourself. ²¹You brought Your people of Israel out of the land of Egypt through signs and wonders, by use of a strong hand, a stretched out arm and through great terror. ²²Giving them the land that you promised to their fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey. ²³And their fathers took the land and possessed it, but they did not obey and walk in the law of the LORD. In fact, they did nothing that the LORD commanded them to do, that is why You have caused all this evil to come upon them.

²⁴Behold the army that fights against the city and it has been given into the hands of the Babylonians and the people have been killed by the sword, the famine and by disease. What You have spoken has come to pass and I have seen it with my own eyes. ²⁵Yet LORD, You have told me to buy the field as a witness, even though the city is now given into the hands of the Babylonians.

²⁶Again came the Word of the LORD to Jeremiah, saying; ²⁷I am the LORD, the God of all flesh, is there anything too hard for Me? ²⁸Therefore, I will give this city into the hands of the Babylonians and their king Nebuchadrezzar. ²⁹The Babylon army shall set fire against this city and the fuel for the fire shall be the house that offered up incense and worshiped other gods. ³⁰For the children of Israel and Judah have only done evil before Me, ever since their youth, provoking Me to anger through the idols made by their own hands. ³¹This city has provoked My anger, from the day they built it until this day, tempting Me to remove it from My sight. ³²Because of all the evil of the children of Israel and Judah, along with their kings, nobles, priests and prophets. ³³For they have turned their backs to Me. Even though I taught them, yet they would not listen, so as to receive instruction. ³⁴Rather they defiled the house that is called by My name, by placing their abominations, (idols) in it. ³⁵They built the high places for their false gods and the valley of Hinnom to sacrifice their sons and daughters. I did not command them to do such a thing, nor did such an abomination even come into My mind.

³⁶Therefore, says the LORD God of Israel, concerning the city that was delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon through the sword, famine and disease. ³⁷I will gather the people out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to this city and will cause them to dwell safely. ³⁸And they shall be My people and I will be their God. ³⁹I will give them one heart and one way, that for their own good they may fear Me forever. ⁴⁰I will make an everlasting covenant with them. And will not turn away from them, doing good by them. But, I shall put a fear of the LORD in their hearts, so that they shall not depart from Me. ⁴¹Yes, I shall rejoice over them and delight in doing good for them and I will settle them in this land.

⁴²For thus says the LORD; Just as I have brought great evil on the people, I will now bring to them the good that I have promised them. ⁴³Fertile fields shall again abound within the land, that is now a wasteland not fit for man or beast. ⁴⁴Men shall once again buy fields in the land of Jerusalem and Judah, on the mountains and the valleys, for I will cause them to return from their captivity, says the LORD.

Jeremiah: chapter 33

¹Again the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah a second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying; ²Thus says the LORD the One whom created and establish the earth. ³Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things, things that you do not know of. ⁴Concerning the houses of the people and the king of Judah, which are broken down to use in defense of the advancing enemy. ⁵The Jews have come to fight with the Babylonian army, but all their preparations will do them no good. For their streets will be filled with their dead bodies that I have slain in My anger and in My fury, because of all their wickedness, I have turned My back on this city. ⁶But, I will bring health and a cure to this city, I will cure them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth. ⁷I will cause My people of Judah and Israel to return from their captivity and will restore them as they were before. ⁸I will cleanse and pardon them from all their iniquity, that they have sinned and transgressed against Me. ⁹And Jerusalem shall be to Me a name of joy, a praise and an honor before all the nations of the earth and they shall fear and tremble when they hear of all the good that I do for My people.

¹⁰There shall be heard in the cities of Jerusalem and Judah, that now stand desolate without man or beast. ¹¹The voices of joy and gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the bride. The voice of them that shall say; Praise the LORD, for He is good, His mercy endures forever. And they that bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I shall cause the people to return from their captivity, says the LORD.

¹²This place which is desolate without man nor beast, shall be a habitation of shepherds and I shall cause their flocks to lie down. ¹³Throughout all the land of Jerusalem and Judah, flocks guided by their shepherds. ¹⁴And the days are coming when I will perform My good promised to the house of Israel and of Judah. ¹⁵In those days, I will cause the Branch, (the Messiah) of righteousness to grow up unto David's line and He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. ¹⁶In those days Judah shall be saved and Jerusalem shall dwell in safety and the city shall be called; The LORD is our righteousness and justice.

¹⁷And David shall never fail to have a descendant sit upon the throne of the house of Israel. ¹⁸Neither shall the Levitical priests fail to have a descendant before Me, to offer offerings and continual sacrifices.

¹⁹Again the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying; ²⁰If you can break My covenant of the day and night. ²¹Then shall My covenant also be broken with David My servant, that he should not have a descendant to reign upon his throne and with My ministers the Levitical priests. ²²Just as the stars of heaven cannot be numbered, neither can the sand of the sea be measured. That is how much I will multiply the seed of David My servant and the Levites that minister unto Me.

²³Again the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying; ²⁴Jeremiah, you have surely heard what the people are saying; Surly Judah and Israel that the LORD has chosen, He has cast them off. For His people have despised their God and therefore, He has cast them off that they might not be a nation. ²⁵But do know Jeremiah that only if My covenant with day and night is broken. ²⁶Only then will I cast away My people of Israel. Rather I will have mercy on the people of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, causing them to return from their captivity.

Jeremiah: chapter 34

¹The Word of the LORD God of Israel that came to Jeremiah, when Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon and his allies, fought against the cities of Jerusalem. ²Jeremiah, speak to Zedekiah the king of Judah and say to him; Thus says the LORD; I will give this city into the hands of the king of Babylon and he shall burn it with fire. ³You shall not escape, but shall be delivered into the hands of the Babylon army and shall be forced to meet with the king of Babylon face to face. ⁴And yet you shall not die by the sword. ⁵Rather you shall die in peace, having an honorable burial and the people shall lament for you.

⁶So Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah, king of Judah while he was still in Jerusalem. ⁷And at that time the king of Babylon's army came against any of the remaining cities of Jerusalem and Judah.

⁸The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with the people at Jerusalem, declaring liberty to them. ⁹That every man that owned female or male Hebrew servants would set them free, so that no Jewish man would make his Jewish brother a servant. ¹⁰At first, all the nobles and the people obeyed the covenant and let their Hebrew servants go free. ¹¹But over time they broke the covenant, forcing the servants they had let go to return and be under submission to them again as servants.

¹²Therefore, the Word of the LORD God of Israel came to Jeremiah, saying; ¹³I made a covenant with your fathers when I brought them out of their bondage in the land of Egypt. ¹⁴That every seventh year every man should let his Hebrew servant that has been sold to him go free. After he has served you for six years, you shall let him go free, Deuteronomy 15:12, but your fathers did not listen or obey Me. ¹⁵By declaring liberty to his neighbor, making a covenant before Me within My house, the people have done right. ¹⁶But later they turned and defiled My name, forcing every servant that was released to return and they put them back under submission as servants to them.

¹⁷Since the people have not listened and obeyed Me when they proclaimed liberty to all their brothers. I will therefore, proclaim a freedom to you by use of the sword, famine and through disease, causing you to be taken captive throughout all the kingdoms of the earth. ¹⁸And I will give every man that did not perform and transgressed My covenant that they made before Me. ¹⁹The nobles of Judah and Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests and all the people. ²⁰I will give them into the hands of their enemies that seek their life and their dead bodies shall be meat for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. ²¹Zedekiah the king of Judah and his nobles I will also give into the hands of the army of the king of Babylon that seek their life. ²²I shall cause the army of Babylon to come into this city, they shall fight against it and burn it with fire and all the cities of Judah shall lie in ruins.

Jeremiah: chapter 35

An example of obedience is given in this chapter and contrasted to the disobedience of the Hebrews foretold in the previous chapter 34.

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah in the earlier reign of Jehoiakim the king of Judah, saying; ²Go unto the nomadic people of the Rechabites, speak to them and bring them into the house of the LORD and give them wine to drink.

³So I went and gathered together the entire house of the Rechabites. ⁴Bringing them into a chamber of the house of the LORD. ⁵And I set before them pitchers and glasses of wine and said to them; Drink the wine.

⁶But they said; We will not drink the wine, for Jonadab our father's ancestor commanded us not to drink any wine, nor shall your sons ever drink wine. ⁷Neither shall you build houses and own land, plant fields or vineyards, rather all your days you shall dwell in tents. So that you may live many days in the land where you are but strangers. ⁸Thus we have obeyed our ancestor Jonadab, commanding us not to drink wine all of our days. ⁹Nor have we build houses for us to dwell in, planted fields or vineyards. ¹⁰Rather we have dwelt in tents, obeying what Jonadab our father's ancestor had commanded us to do. ¹¹But when Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon invaded our land, out of fear of the army we moved and now dwell in Jerusalem.

¹²Then the Word of the LORD God of Israel came to Jeremiah, saying; ¹³Jeremiah, go and say to the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem, Will you still not receive instruction to hear and obey My words? ¹⁴The words that Jonadab the son of Rechab commanded his people not to drink wine, are kept unto this day. Yet, the commandments I have spoken to you, you have not listened or obeyed. ¹⁵I have also sent to you My servants the prophets, saying; Let every man cease his evil way, do not run after and serve other gods and then you shall safely dwell in the land which I have given to you, but they have not listened to Me or obeyed Me. ¹⁶For the people of Rechab have kept the commandment of their father, but these people of Israel have not listened to or obeyed Me.

¹⁷Therefore, says the LORD God of Israel; I will bring upon Judah and the people of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them. Because I have spoken to them and they have not listened, I have called to them and they have not answered.

¹⁸Then Jeremiah said to the people of the Rechabites, Thus says the LORD the God of Israel; Because you have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father ancestor, doing according to all what he commanded you. ¹⁹Jonadab the son of Rechab shall always have a descendant to stand before Me.

Jeremiah: chapter 36

¹In the forth year of Jehoiakim the king of Judah, this Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying; ²Write within a scroll all the words that I have spoken to you that have been against Israel, Judah and every nation from the beginning of your ministry unto this day. ³It may just happen that the house of Judah will hear of the evil that I purpose to do to them, that every man might turn from his evil way and that I will forgive their iniquity and sin.

⁴Then Jeremiah called for a scribe and Baruch wrote in a scroll all the Words of the LORD that Jeremiah spoke. ⁵And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying; I have been restricted, I cannot go into the house of the LORD. ⁶Therefore you go to the LORD's house and read the Words of the LORD, written on the scroll, on the people's fasting day. ⁷It may be that they will present their prayers before the LORD, that everyone shall return from his evil way, for great is the anger and the fury that the LORD has spoken against these people. ⁸And Baruch, the scribe did all of what Jeremiah the prophet commanded him to do, he read from the scroll all the Words of the LORD in the LORD's house.

⁹Now in the fifth year and the ninth month of Jehoiakim the king of Judah, a fast was proclaimed before the LORD for all the people in Jerusalem and of those in Judah. ¹⁰That is when Baruch, the scribe read from the scroll the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, to all the people. ¹¹When Michaiah, the chief noble heard the Words of the LORD from the scroll. ¹²He went into the king's house, where all the other nobles and priests were gathered. ¹³Then Michaiah spoke to them all the words that he had heard. ¹⁴After hearing the words, the nobles send a messenger to Baruch, (Jeremiah's scribe), saying; Come to us and bring the scroll. ¹⁵So Baruch came and read from the scroll.

¹⁶When they had heard all the words, they were all afraid and said to Baruch; We shall tell the king of what was read here today. ¹⁷Then they asked Baruch, how he happened to write down all of these words? ¹⁸And Baruch answered them; Jeremiah spoke these words and I wrote them down in this scroll. ¹⁹The nobles then said to Baruch; Go and hide, both you and Jeremiah and let no man know where you are.

²⁰Then the nobles went into the king, but they did not bring in the scroll with them and they spoke to the king all the words of the scroll. ²¹But the king sent Jehudi, a scribe to get the scroll and then Jehudi read from it to the king and all the nobles that were in the room. ²²Now it was the ninth month and the king sat in his winter house, with a fire burning in the hearth before him. ²³Now when Jehudi had read and unrolled three or four columns of the scroll. The king would cut off the unrolled part with a scribe's knife and throw the paper into the fire. ²⁴And at the reading, no one was afraid, nor tore their garments. ²⁵Even before this his nobles had requested that the king would not burn the scroll, but the king would not hear them. ²⁶Then the king commanded other officials to capture Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet, but by then the LORD had hidden them.

²⁷After the king had burnt the scroll, the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying; ²⁸Write on another scroll all the words that were on the first roll, that Jehoiakim the king of Judah burnt. ²⁹And say to Jehoiakim the king of Judah, Thus says the LORD; You have burnt this scroll that said, The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land, causing both man and beast to cease from it. ³⁰Therefore thus says the LORD concerning you; You shall not have a descendant to sit upon the throne of David, for his dead body shall be thrown out in the wilderness exposed to both heat and cold. ³¹And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity. I will bring upon them, the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem, all the evil that I have spoken against them, but they would not hear Me.

³²Jeremiah then took another scroll and gave it to Baruch the scribe, whom wrote the same words of Jeremiah that Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire, also adding many similar words.

Jeremiah: chapter 37

¹Judah's last king before their captivity was Zedekiah, whom Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon placed into power. ²But neither did the king nor his servants or the people of the land, listen to and observe the Words of the LORD, that He spoke through His prophet Jeremiah.

³Zedekiah, the king sent one of his nobles and a priest to the prophet Jeremiah, asking that he pray to the LORD for them. ⁴And Jeremiah was moving freely among the people, for they had not yet put him into prison. ⁵At that time Pharaoh's army had come out of Egypt and when the Babylonian army heard this news, they stopped their attack on Jerusalem and retreated.

⁶Then the Word of the LORD God of Israel came to the prophet Jeremiah, saying; ⁷You shall say to the two messengers to tell the king of Judah, that Pharaoh's army that has come to help you, will return to Egypt to their own land. ⁸And the Babylonian army will come up again, fight against the city and burn it. ⁹Do not deceive yourselves, thinking, the Babylonian army shall depart from us, for they shall not depart. ¹⁰For even if you could defeat the entire Babylonian army and there only remained wounded men among them, yet every man would rise up and burn this city with fire.

¹¹Now while the Babylonian army had pulled back from Jerusalem, because of fear of Pharaoh's army, ¹²Jeremiah left Jerusalem and went to the land of Benjamin, so as to separate himself from the midst of the people. ¹³And when Jeremiah arrived at the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the guard accused Jeremiah the prophet of defecting to the Babylonians. ¹⁴Even though Jeremiah denied this, the guard took him and brought him to the officials. ¹⁵And the officials were harsh with Jeremiah, they beat him and put him in prison.

¹⁶Jeremiah was kept in a dungeon cell for several days. ¹⁷Until Zedekiah the king sent for him. Then the king asked him privately in his house; Do you have a Word from the LORD? And Jeremiah said; Yes, you shall be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon. ¹⁸Jeremiah also said to Zedekiah the king; How have I offended you or the people, that I have been put into prison? ¹⁹And where are all your prophets that prophesied to you, saying; The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land? ²⁰Therefore my lord the king, hear my plea and supplication and may it be acceptable before you. That you would not send me back to the prison, least I die there.

²¹Then Zedekiah the king commanded that Jeremiah be committed back to the prison and to give him a daily piece of bread out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city was gone. So Jeremiah remained in the prison indefinitely.

Jeremiah: chapter 38

¹When Shephatiah, Gedaliah, Jucal and Pashur, heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken to all the people, saying; ²Thus says the LORD; He that remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine or by disease. But, he that goes over with the Babylonians shall live, for his life shall be his own reward. ³This city shall be given to the Babylon's army.

⁴Therefore the nobles pleaded with the king, saying; Let Jeremiah be put to death. For he speaks discouraging words to the men of war that are in this city and he does not seek the welfare of these people, but rather their hurt. ⁵And Zedekiah the king of Judah said; Jeremiah is in your hands and the king will not override your judgment on this issue. ⁶So they put Jeremiah into the pit of the dungeon, letting him down with cords. And in the pit there was no water, but rather mud and Jeremiah sank in the mud.

⁷Now an eunuch named Ebed-melech, an Ethiopian that was in the king's house, when he heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon pit. ⁸He went and spoke to his lord the king, saying; ⁹These men have done evil to Jeremiah the prophet, they have thrown him into the dungeon pit and there he is likely to die because of hunger, for there is no more bread in the city. ¹⁰The king then commanded Ebed-melech, to take thirty men with him and pull Jeremiah out of the dungeon pit, before he dies. ¹¹He and the men went into the house of the king under the treasury to where the dungeon pit was and they made a cord out of old used rags. ¹²And Ebed-melech the Ethiopian instructed Jeremiah to wrap the rags around himself. ¹³So they pulled Jeremiah up from the dungeon pit, but Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison, under arrest.

¹⁴Zedekiah the king then sent for Jeremiah the prophet and brought him into a private room within the house of the LORD. And said to Jeremiah, I will ask this of you and speak to me truthfully. ¹⁵And Jeremiah replied to the king; If I speak the truth to you, will you not put me to death? Will you listen to my counsel? ¹⁶Zedekiah the king then secretly gave an oath to Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD lives, I will not put you to death, neither shall I give you over to the men that seek your life.

¹⁷Jeremiah then said to the king; Thus says the LORD God of Israel; If you will surrender to the king of Babylon, you shall then live and your city shall not be burnt. ¹⁸But if you do not surrender to the king of Babylon, this city will be given over to their armies and it shall be burnt and you shall be taken captive.

¹⁹But, the king said to Jeremiah; I fear because of the Jews that have already chosen to go to Babylon, lest I also get delivered into their hands and they abuse me. ²⁰But Jeremiah said; You shall not be delivered over to them, I pray that you obey the voice of the LORD, that I speak to you, so that all may go well with you. ²¹But if you do not surrender, this is the Word that the LORD has revealed to me. ²²all the women that are in the king of Judah's house will be taken to the nobles of the king of Babylon and those women shall say; King your allies have prevailed against you, you have been caught in your own deception. ²³All of your wives and children shall be brought to the people of Babylonian, you shall also be taken captive and you will have caused this city to be burned with fire.

²⁴Zedekiah then said to Jeremiah; Tell no one of this conversation, for if you do, you shall die. ²⁵If the nobles hear that I have talked with you and they come to you, asking what we have talked about. ²⁶Say to them; I presented my plea before the king, that he might not send me back to the dungeon, to die there.

²⁷The nobles then came and asked about the conversation and Jeremiah told them exactly as the king had instructed him to do. But the nobles quit speaking with him, because they were not getting anywhere. ²⁸And Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem was taken by the Babylonian army.

Jeremiah: chapter 39

¹In the ninth year and the tenth month of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon and all his armies came against Jerusalem. ²And in the eleventh year the forth month and the ninth day of Zedekiah, the city was taken. ³All the nobles and officers of the king of Babylon came and gathered in the center of the city.

⁴And when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw all the nobles and the chief officers, he and all his men of war fled. Leaving the city by night by way of the king's garden and they fled through the Jordan Valley. ⁵But the Babylonian army pursued and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. And brought them to Nebuchadnezzar the king, at a command base in the Syrian desert, to sentence judgment upon them. ⁶There the king of Babylon killed all the sons of Zedekiah and all the nobles of Judah, before his eyes. ⁷Nebuchadnezzar then ordered Zedekiah's eyes to be put out and bound him with chains, taking him into Babylon.

⁸The Babylonians burned the king's house and all the other houses of the city, breaking down the walls of Jerusalem. ⁹Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard ordered the remaining people of Judah to be carried away into Babylon. ¹⁰But he left the poorest of the poor in the land of Judah, giving them vineyards and fields to maintain.

¹¹Nebuchadrezzar then gave orders concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard. ¹²Saying, look after him and do not harm him, rather deal with him as he asks of you. ¹³So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, sent the nobles and the chief officers. ¹⁴And they took Jeremiah out of the court of the prison, putting him in the care of Gedaliah, (NOTE: a prominent Israelite whose father had served the prophet). And Gedaliah brought Jeremiah to his city of Mizpah and there Jeremiah dwelt among the people.

¹⁵For while Jeremiah had yet still been in prison the Word of the LORD came to him, saying; ¹⁶Speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying; Thus says the LORD God of Israel; I will bring My words against this city for evil and you shall see them come to pass. ¹⁷But, in that day I shall deliver you, you shall not be given over to the enemy, that you fear. ¹⁸I will deliver you, you shall not fall by the sword. Your life shall be your reward, for you have put your trust in Me.

Jeremiah: chapter 40

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah, while he was yet still bound in chains being led away to Babylon with the other captives. ²This happened as the captain of the guard said to Jeremiah; The LORD your God has spoken this evil upon this place. ³The LORD has brought this according to what He has said. Because the people of Judah have sinned against the LORD and have not obeyed His voice. ⁴Today I am freeing you. If it seems good to you, come with me into Babylon and I will rightly look after you, but if it is not right with you to come, all the land is before you. Do whatever seems good to you.

⁵Now while Jeremiah was yet pondering this, the captain of the guard said to him. You can also go back to Gedaliah, whom the king of Babylon has made governor over the cities of Judah and dwell with him among the people, or go wherever you wish to. And the captain of the guard gave Jeremiah food and an allowance and let him go. ⁶Jeremiah then went to Gedaliah in the city of Mizpah and dwelt there among the Israelites that were left in the land.

⁷Now when all the captains of the armies of Judah and their men that were in the fields, heard that the king of Babylon placed Gedaliah as governor of the land of Judah. Over the men, women, children and the poor of the land that had not been carried away captive to Babylon. ⁸They all came to Gedaliah at Mizpah, the chief men being, Ishmael, Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, Seraiah, Jezaniah and the sons of Ephai. ⁹And Gedaliah said to them and their men; You have nothing to fear, but to dwell in the land and serve the Babylonians, then it shall go well with you. ¹⁰I will stay at Mizpah and watch over the interest of the Babylon. You simply dwell in your cities, gather your wine, oil and harvest. ¹¹Likewise when the Jews that had fled to Moab, Edom and other countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a few people in Judah and that he had set Gedaliah as governor over them. ¹²They also returned to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah in the city of Mizpah, to work the land making wine and harvesting the land.

¹³However Johanan and the captains of the armies that came from the fields, went to Gedaliah, the Babylonian governor. ¹⁴And said; Are you not aware, that the king of the Ammonites has sent Ishmael to kill you? But, Gedaliah the governor refused to believe this. ¹⁵Johanan even secretly said to Gedaliah, that he would go and kill Ishmael, so that he does not kill you. Because this would cause all the Jews that are under you to be again scattered and the remnant of the people of Judah would perish? ¹⁶But Gedaliah said to Johanan; You shall not do such a thing, for I believe you speak falsely of Ishmael.

Jeremiah: chapter 41

¹Now in the seventh month of that same year, Ishmael whom was of royal descendants, came with ten men to Gedaliah, the Babylonian governor of Judah and there they ate bread together. ²Afterwards Ishmael and the ten men that were with him rose up and killed Gedaliah with the sword. ³Ishmael also killed all the Jews that were with Gedaliah and the Babylonians that were guarding him.

⁴Now the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, no one yet knew of it. ⁵On that day eighty men came from parts of Israel in mourning, because of the destruction of Jerusalem and they were on their way to the house of God. ⁶And Ishmael greeted them, also acting in mourning and said to them: Come in and see Gedaliah the governor of this land. ⁷When they had come into the midst of the city, Ishmael and the men that were with him, killed them and threw their bodies into a pit. ⁸However ten of the men said to Ishmael; Do not kill us, for we have treasures hidden in the fields, of wheat, barley, oil and honey. So Ishmael did not kill them. ⁹Now all the dead bodies of the men that Ishmael had slain were thrown into the same pit as was Gedaliah and his men, in an attempt to cover up the first slaughter. ¹⁰Then Ishmael took captive and carried away all the remaining people that were in the city of Mizpah, even the king's daughters, leading them away to the Ammonites.

¹¹But when Johanan and the captains of the armies that were with him, heard of the evil that Ishmael had done. ¹²They gathered all their men and went in pursuit of Ishmael and overtook him by the great water in Gibeon. ¹³When the captives that were with Ishmael saw Johanan and all the captains of the armies, they were glad. ¹⁴And all the people that Ishmael had taken captive, turned about and went with Johanan and his men. ¹⁵But Ishmael was able to escape from Johanan with eight men and he went to the Ammonites.

¹⁶After Ishmael had killed Gedaliah the governor and the other men of war. Johanan and all the captains of the armies along with the people that had been taken captive by Ishmael, departed from Gibeon. ¹⁷And they stayed at the logging place of Chimham, which is near Bethlehem, planning to continue on to Egypt. ¹⁸Because the people were afraid to go to Babylon, because Ishmael had killed Gedaliah, whom the king of Babylon had set up as governor in the land.

Jeremiah: chapter 42

¹Then all the captains of the armies, Johanan, Jezaniah and all the people from the least to the greatest. ²Came to Jeremiah the prophet and said; We pray that our prayers and supplications may be acceptable to you and that you will take them before the LORD your God. Praying for the remaining few people that are left. ³That the LORD your God would show us the way that we should walk and the thing we should do.

⁴Jeremiah the prophet said to them; I have heard you and will pray to the LORD your God according to your words. And however, the LORD shall answer, I will declare it to you, I will keep nothing back from you. ⁵And the people replied; May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us, if we fail to do according to the things the LORD speaks through you. ⁶Whether it be good or evil, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God, that as we obey the LORD our God, it may be well with us.

⁷After ten days, the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah. ⁸So Jeremiah called Johanan and all the captains of the armies together, along with all the people from the least even to the greatest, ⁹And he said; Thus says the LORD God of Israel, to whom I have presented your supplication to. ¹⁰If you will remain in this land, then I will build you up and will not pull you down, for I will relent of the evil that I have done to you. ¹¹Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you currently fear, for I am with you and will save and deliver you from his hand. ¹²And I will grant you mercies, that even the king of Babylon may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return to your own land.

¹³But if you say; We will not dwell in this land, nor obey the voice of the LORD your God. ¹⁴But remain determined to go into the land of Egypt, where you say, you will not see war or hunger. ¹⁵Thus hear the Word of the LORD God of Israel, you remaining people of Judah; If you remain determined to go to Egypt and dwell there. ¹⁶It shall be that the sword that you feared, shall overtake you and the famine, that you were afraid of, will follow close after you and in Egypt you shall die. ¹⁷This shall happen to all the men that are determined to go to Egypt to dwell. They shall perish by the sword, by famine or by disease, none of them shall escape the evil that I will bring upon them.

¹⁸For thus says the LORD God of Israel; Just as My anger and My fury has been poured out on the people of Jerusalem, My fury will be poured out upon you, if you enter into Egypt. There you would be a detestable thing, an astonishment, a cursed thing reproached by all and you would see your land no more.

¹⁹This is what the LORD has said concerning the remaining people of Judah; Do not go into the land of Egypt! May you know for certain this day that I Jeremiah have warned and testified against you. ²⁰For you have deception in your own hearts, when you asked me to pray to the LORD your God, saying that you would do according to all that the LORD our God says. ²¹This day I have declared it to you, but you have not listened to the voice of the LORD your God or any of the words that I have given you. ²²Therefore know for certain that you will die by the sword, by famine or by disease, in the place where you desire to dwell.

Jeremiah: chapter 43

¹Now when Jeremiah had finished speaking the Words of the LORD to all the people. ²In reply, Azariah, Johanan and all the other proud and arrogant men spoke, saying; You are not speaking the truth, the LORD our God has not sent you to tell us that we should not dwell in Egypt. ³But Baruch, (Jeremiah's scribe) has conspired with Jeremiah to deliver us into the hand of the Babylonians, that we might become captives in their land and die there. ⁴So Johanan along with all the captains of the armies and all the people, did not obey the Words of the LORD, saying; Do not dwell in the land of Judah. ⁵Then Johanan and all the captains of the armies, gathered up the remaining people of Judah, that had returned from the nations where they had once fled to. ⁶They gathered up men, women, children, the king's daughters, every person that was left in Judah, even Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch his scribe. ⁷And traveled to the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the Word of the LORD.

⁸Then came the Word of the LORD to Jeremiah in Egypt, saying; ⁹Jeremiah, take large stones, cover them with mortar and set them beside the entry of Pharaoh's house in that city and do this in the sight of the men of Judah. ¹⁰And say to the men of Judah; The LORD God of Israel will cause His servant Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon to set up his throne upon these stones and his rule shall spread out far. ¹¹When he comes, he shall devastate the land of Egypt, delivering everyone either to death or captivity. ¹²He will destroy the temples of the false gods of Egypt, carrying away anything of value. Egypt shall easily fall to him and he shall walk away from there unharmed. ¹³Also he shall burn all the idols in Egypt's main temple of, the house of the sun.

Jeremiah: chapter 44

¹The Word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews, which dwell in the land of Egypt. ²Thus says the LORD God of Israel; You have seen all the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, for this day they are a desolation and no man dwells in them. ³Because of their wickedness that they have committed to provoking Me to anger, by burning incense and serving other gods, that they nor their fathers did not even know. ⁴And I even earnestly sent you My servants the prophets that diligently warned you not to do this abominable thing that I hate. ⁵Yet the people would not obey and turn from their wickedness, for they still burnt incense to other gods. ⁶Therefore My fury and anger was poured out on the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem and thus as of today they are wasted and desolate.

⁷Therefore says the LORD God of Israel; Why have the people committed this great evil against themselves, that will separate every man, woman and child from the land of Judah, until none remain? ⁸Provoking Me to wrath by the works of their hands, by burning incense to other gods in the land of Egypt, where they have chosen to dwell. For they have cut themselves off, becoming a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth? ⁹Have they forgotten about all the wickedness of their fathers and of the kings of Judah? Have they overlooked their own wickedness and of their wives, that they have committed in the land of Judah? ¹⁰Yet they are not humbled even to this day, nor do they have any fear or shame of their evil deeds. They do not walk in My way according to My law, nor My statutes that I set before them and their fathers.

¹¹Therefore, says the LORD God of Israel; I will set My face against you for evil and to separate the people of Judah from their land. ¹²The few people of Judah that were determined to dwell in the land of Egypt shall become detestable in the land, they shall become an astonishment, a curse and a reproach. I will consume all of them, from the least to the greatest, by the sword or through famine and in that land shall they die. ¹³For I will punish them that dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished the people of Jerusalem, by the sword, by famine and through disease. ¹⁴And the entire remnant of Judah that has chosen to dwell in the land of Egypt, none of them shall survive to be able to return to the land of Judah that they desire, except a few fugitives.

¹⁵Then all the men that knew that their wives had worshiped and served other gods, along with all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, said to Jeremiah; ¹⁶As for the Word that you have spoken to us in the name of the LORD, we will not obey it. ¹⁷We will do as we have vowed and will worship the queen of heaven, as we have done before and was our father's tradition in the city of Judah and on the streets of Jerusalem. For in those days we had plenty of food and prospered and we saw no evil. ¹⁸But since we have stopped worshiping the queen of heaven, we have been in lack of all things and some of us have perished by the sword and by famine. ¹⁹Then the women spoke up and said; When we did worship and honor the queen of heaven, did we not do it with the approval and the knowledge of our husbands?

²⁰Then Jeremiah said to all the people, whom had answered him; ²¹Do you not think the LORD remembers the incense you and your fathers have burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, worshiping other gods? ²²The LORD could no longer endure your evil actions and because of your abominations your land is now desolate, an astonishment and a curse, without any inhabitant. ²³This evil has happened to you, because you have worshiped and served other gods. You have sinned against the LORD and have not obeyed His Word, nor walked in His law or statutes.

²⁴Moreover, Jeremiah said to all the people, hear the Word of the LORD God of Israel, all you people of Judah that are in Egypt; ²⁵Both you and your wives have spoken that you will fulfill your vows to the queen of heaven, by worshiping and serving her. ²⁶Therefore, all you people of Judah that dwell in Egypt, hear the Word of the LORD; According to My great name, I have sworn that it shall no longer be said that, the LORD God lives, by any man of Judah while he is in the land of Egypt. ²⁷I will watch over these people for evil, rather than for good and all the men shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, until there is a final end of them. ²⁸Only a small number that escaped the sword shall make it back to the land of Judah, and the people that fall in Egypt shall then know whether My Words stand or theirs. ²⁹And this shall be a sign unto you; I shall punish you in this place, that you may know that My words stand against you for evil.

³⁰Thus says the LORD; I will give Pharaoh-hophra the king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies that seek his life, just as I also gave Zedekiah the king of Judah into the hand of his enemy Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, that sought his life.

Jeremiah: chapter 45

¹This is what Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch, his scribe and the words that were written in the book, in the forth year of the reign of Jehoiakim the king of Judah; ²Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to you, Baruch; ³You have said, Woe is me! For the LORD has added grief to my sorrow, I am faint in my sighing and there is no rest. ⁴The LORD says to you, that even what I have built, I will break down, throughout the whole land. And what I have planted, I will pull up, even if it be the entire land. ⁵You seek great things for yourself, do not seek such things. For I will bring evil upon all flesh, but I will give to you your life as your reward, wherever you may go.

Jeremiah: chapter 46

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Gentiles. ²Against Egypt and the army of Pharaoh-necho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon attacked in the forth year of Jehoiakim the king of Judah.

³Put on your armor and draw near for battle. ⁴Saddle the horses and prepare your weapons. ⁵Yet I see them dismayed, their mighty men are beaten down and they retreat, not even looking back, for great fear was all around them. ⁶But the swift shall not flee, nor shall the mighty men escape. For they shall all stumble and fall by the river Euphrates.

⁷Who is this who rises up like a flood? ⁸It is Egypt desiring to cover and conquer the whole earth and bring destruction on the cities and the people. ⁹Let the battle rage, let your paid men and allies come forth who are expert with the shield and bow. ¹⁰For this is the day of the LORD God, a day of vengeance, that He may avenge Himself of His adversaries. The sword shall devour and it shall become bathe in their blood, for the LORD God has sacrificed their country.

¹¹O virgin daughter of Egypt, take your healing balm. Even though you shall use many medicines in vain, for you shall not be cured. ¹²The nations have heard of your shame and disgrace. For your cries have filled the land, your mighty men have stumbled against their own and they have both fallen together.

¹³The Word of the LORD spoken to Jeremiah the prophet, of how Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon would come and attack the land of Egypt.

¹⁴Declare in the three cities of Egypt where the Israelites are, that they are to be prepared, because the sword shall devour round about them. ¹⁵Why have the mighty men been swept away? It's because the LORD threw them down. ¹⁶He has made many to fall and they have fallen on each other. Then the Egyptians said; We shall flee from the oppressing sword and go back to our own people and our own land. ¹⁷There they cried; For Pharaoh their king has failed Egypt.

¹⁸As surly as I live, says the King, whose name is the LORD, so shall the conqueror reign. ¹⁹My people of Judah within Egypt, prepare yourself to go into captivity, for the lands you dwell in shall become a wasteland without any inhabitants. ²⁰Even though Egypt is very fair, destruction will come from Babylon, from the north. ²¹Also Egypt's hired troops are in the midst of the battle, they stand astonished and even they have fled the battle, for the day of their calamity is upon them, the time of their judgment. ²²Egypt shall flee in retreat, while mighty foes come against her. ²³They shall level her forests even though they are impermeable, for their enemy is great in size and cannot be numbered. ²⁴Also, My people who dwell in Egypt shall be confounded and they will be delivered into the hand of the people of Babylon.

²⁵The LORD God of Israel, says; I will punish the multitudes of Egypt and Pharaoh, along with their gods and everyone that trust in him. ²⁶I shall deliver them to the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and those that seek their lives. And afterwards Egypt shall be rebuilt and inhabited again.

²⁷But do not fear or be dismayed My servant Israel, for I will save you from afar off. And your offspring shall return from the land of their exile and Israel shall be at peace and rest and no one shall make him afraid. ²⁸Therefore, do not fear, My servant Israel, says the LORD, for I am with you. I will bring the nations that took you captive to a complete end. But, I will not make a complete end of you, rather I will correct you in measure, but will neither leave you wholly unpunished.

Jeremiah: chapter 47

¹The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet, that was against the Philistines, this was before Pharaoh attacked the city of Gaza, (in 587BC). ²Thus says the LORD; A force of waters shall rise up out of the north, (Babylon). Overflowing the land, the city and all the people, shall then they cry out and howl. ³When they hear the noise of the strong horses, the rumbling of the chariot wheels, not even the fathers shall look back to their children, because of their trembling hands.

⁴The day comes when the LORD will spoil the Philistines and the cities of Tyre and Sidon will be cut off from the country of Crete. ⁵The city of Gaza will be in mourning and the city of Ashkelon will be struck dumb. Oh how long will you mourn? ⁶LORD, how long will this destruction be, before Your sword is put back into its sheath? ⁷The LORD has spoken against the city of Ashkelon and the sea coast and appointed their destruction, how can the sword dare be still?

Jeremiah: chapter 48

¹The Word of the LORD against Moab thus says the LORD God of Israel; Woe to the city of Nebo! For it is destroyed, the high fortress of Misgab is put to shame, broken and crushed. ²No one shall anymore praise Moab! Their enemies have devised evil against the city, planning to cut it off from being a nation and to silence the madmen of the city with the sword. ³Even the crying from the outlying town of Horonaim shall be heard, because of the pillaging and great destruction. ⁴Moab is completely destroyed and her little ones have caused a cry to be heard. ⁵For continual weeping and laminations can be heard from border to border.

⁶Flee and save your lives! However you shall become forsaken and destitute in the wasteland. ⁷Because you have trusted in your idols and your treasures, you shall be taken. And Chemosh your pagan god shall also go into captivity along with his priests and his princes. ⁸For the destroyer shall come upon every city, the valley and the plains shall be destroyed, as the LORD has spoken. ⁹Moab is doomed, there is no escape for her. Her cities shall become desolate. ¹⁰Cursed is the man that does the work of the LORD halfheartedly and keeps his sword back from shedding blood.

¹¹Moab has had it easy from his youth and has indulged himself in wine and luxuries. Never having been proven or been emptied and has therefore, never matured. ¹²Thus the day shall come when I will send destroyers to him, that shall cause him to wander. ¹³In that day Moab shall be ashamed of their god Chemosh, just as Israel became ashamed of their golden calf.

¹⁴How can you then say, We are mighty and strong men of war? ¹⁵Moab is ruined, his cities are desolate and his men of war have been slaughter, says the King, whose name is the LORD. ¹⁶The day of the destruction and the strife of Moab is quickly coming. ¹⁷Let all the neighboring nations bemoan Moab and everyone that knows of him will wonder, how is that the strong have been broken and their beauty taken. ¹⁸Come down daughter from your false pride and glory, sit in the dirt and be in want, for the destroyer will surely come upon Moab. ¹⁹Even the bystanders of the neighboring countries will stop to ask them that escapes from Moab, what is happening? ²⁰For Moab is ruined and has become an embarrassment. Therefore howl and cry as you go to your destruction.

²¹Judgment has come to the plain country and Holon, Jahazah and Mephaath the cities of Moab. ²²On Dibon, Nebo and Beth-diblathaim. ²³On Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul and Beth-meon. ²⁴On Kerioth, Bozrah and all the cities of Moab, both far and near. ²⁵Moab's strength has been cut off and his authority has been shattered, says the LORD.

²⁶It shall be as Moab is drunken, for he magnified himself against the LORD. Thus Moab will wallow in his own vomit and shall become a mockery to all. ²⁷For Israel became an object of scorn for you and even as you speak of Israel today you wag your head in scorn. ²⁸People of Moab leave your cities and dwell among the caves and make your nest where it is safe. ²⁹For we all have heard of the pride and arrogance of Moab and the haughtiness of his heart. ³⁰Yes, I know of Moab's overbearing wrath, says the LORD, but it shall do them no good, their lying words shall do them no good.

³¹Therefore I will howl and cry for Moab and shall mourn for their men. ³²I will weep for Moab, for in his youth the vast network of Moab that stretched as far out as to the sea has collapsed. ³³Joy and gladness has been taken from the land of Moab, for the wine will fail. ³⁴From every border of Moab the mighty cries are heard, for even the rivers and the lakes have become desolate.

³⁵Moreover, says the LORD, I will cause all offerings to the false gods in the high places to cease. ³⁶Therefore My heart sounds for the people of Moab, for all of their riches they have worked for have failed. ³⁷For every head shall be shaven and every beard clipped off. Everyone shall cut themselves in despair and put on sackcloth. ³⁸Every house within Moab shall be in mourning and those on the streets, for I have broken Moab and it gives Me no pleasure, says the LORD. ³⁹Their neighbors shall ridicule and howl, wondering how Moab has shamefully broken down.

⁴⁰For thus says the LORD; I shall fly as an eagle and spread My wings over Moab. ⁴¹The principal strong holds of Moab will be surprised and the hearts of their mighty men shall be as the heart of a woman in her labor pangs. ⁴²Moab shall be destroyed from being a nation, because he has magnified himself against the LORD. ⁴³A snare, fear and the pit, is upon the people of Moab, says the LORD. ⁴⁴He that flees from the terror shall fall into the pit and he that escapes the pit shall be taken in the snare. For I will bring this upon Moab, in the year of their visitation, says the LORD.

⁴⁵The fugitives that do escape will flee under the protection of Heshbon, but a fire will come out of Heshbon, along with a flame from the midst of Sihon and shall devour the land of Moab, along with the pride of the disorderly ones. ⁴⁶Woe be to the people of Moab, for they will perish and their sons and daughters will be taken captives. ⁴⁷Yet there is a day when I will restore the captives of Moab, thus far is the judgment of Moab says the LORD.

Jeremiah: chapter 49

¹Concerning the Ammonites, says the LORD; Is Israel without sons to return after their captivity to their inherited land, if so why is the Ammonite king claiming Israel's land and settling his people there? ²Therefore, the days are coming when I will cause an alarm of war to be heard in Rabbah, the chief city of the Ammonites and it shall become a desolate heap and her surrounding towns and villages shall be burned with fire. Then Israel shall take back her rightful inheritance. (NOTE: King Nebuchadnezzar defeated Ammon around 582BC.)

³People of Moab, howl and cry, for your cities are destroyed. Lament and wrap yourselves in sackcloth and wring your hands out, for even your king, priests and nobles shall go into captivity. ⁴You backsliding daughter who finds your glory in your landscapes and valleys. You trust in your might and treasures, thinking; No one shall ever come after me. ⁵I will bring a fear upon you, says the LORD God. You shall be intimidated by all the nations around you. Every man shall be driven out and there shall be no one to lead and gather up the fugitives. ⁶But afterwards, I will reverse the captivity and restore of the children of Ammon, says the LORD.

⁷Concerning Edom, says the LORD; Is there no longer wisdom in their cities? Has counsel failed to be among the wise? Has their wisdom vanished? ⁸People of Edom, turn back and flee to the caves, for I will bring the calamity on you in the day of My visitation. ⁹Even when laborers harvest a field some is left behind or when a thief comes in by night, he takes only what he wants. ¹⁰But I will make Edom bare, I will uncover all of his secret places and there shall be nowhere to hide. His offspring shall be destroyed along with his brethren and he shall be no more. ¹¹However I will preserve the widows and orphans and they can trust in Me.

¹²For I tell you that even Israel, who was not about to drink of the cup of My wrath, shall drink of it. ¹³For I have sworn by Myself, says the LORD, that even Bozrah your capital city along with all of your cities shall become a wasteland, a reproach and a curse. ¹⁴For I am sending an envoy to all the nations, saying; Gather your forces together and come against Edom. ¹⁵And I will make Edom small among the nations and despised among men. ¹⁶For your dreadfulness together with the pride of your heart has deceived you. You who dwell on high will be brought down from your lofty height, says the LORD.

¹⁷Edom shall be a desolation and everyone that passes by it shall be astonished and shake their head. ¹⁸As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah and its neighboring cities, says the LORD, no man shall dwell there. ¹⁹Your enemy, king Nebuchadnezzar shall come up before the strong people of Edom like a lion from the way of the Jordan river and I will suddenly make Edom flee from her. Then I will look for a chosen man to appoint over her, for what man can stand before Me and oppose Me.

²⁰Therefore hear the counsel of the LORD, that He has purposed against the people of Edom. Even the least of the flock shall be taken away by Nebuchadnezzar, then shall the LORD make their land desolate. ²¹And the noise of their fall will be great, where even the earth will be moved by it. ²²The LORD shall cover their cities with his wings and in that day the heart of the mighty men of Edom shall be as the heart of a woman in her labor pangs.

²³Concerning Damascus, the capital city of Syria. Their people have heard of the evil report and are fainthearted and their anxiety cannot be quieted. ²⁴The people turn to flee, but their knees are weak and feeble, for fear has overwhelmed her, anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in labor pains. ²⁵And even their own nobles will be in shock as the city of their praise and joy is destroyed. ²⁶Her young men shall fall in her streets and all the men of war shall be slaughtered in that day, says the LORD. ²⁷And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus and it shall consume the palaces of the kings of Syria.

²⁸Concerning the tribe of Kedar and the reign of Hazor in the desert, that Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon shall smite. ²⁹Their tents and flocks shall the enemy take away, they shall pillage their land and the men shall cry out, for fear is on every side of them. ³⁰People of Hazor flee far away, says the LORD, for Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon has taken counsel against you. ³¹Attack these people that are at ease, dwelling without care, having neither gates nor bars, dwelling in seclusion. ³²Their camels and the multitude of cattle shall be your spoil. I will bring their calamity from all sides and they shall be scattered throughout all the ends of the earth. ³³And the land shall forever be a desolation and a dwelling place for dragons.

³⁴The Word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against Elam in the beginning of the reign of king Zedekiah of Judah; ³⁵Thus says the LORD; I will break the bow and the strength of Elam. ³⁶I will cause the four winds to scatter Edom to every nation on the earth, there shall not be one nation where the outcasts of Edom do not dwell. ³⁷The people of Edom shall be dismayed before their enemies that seek their life, for I shall pour My fierce anger upon them, until they are consumed. ³⁸My throne of judgment shall be set in Edom and their king and nobles destroyed. ³⁹But, in the end days, I shall bring the people out of their captivity and restore the treasures of Edom, says the LORD.

Jeremiah: chapter 50

¹The Word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, against the land of Babylon.

²Jeremiah, declare among the nations, publish and set up a standard and do not withhold or conceal a word. Say that Babylon is taken, its great idols have been put to shame and broken into pieces and its people are confounded. ³For out of the north a nation, will come up against her and shall destroy the land. No one shall anymore dwell there neither man nor beast. (NOTE: Media Persia took Babylon about 539BC.).

⁴In those days, the children of Israel and Judah shall start to weep and seek the LORD their God. ⁵The Israelites shall turn towards Zion, wanting to return and join themselves to the LORD in a perpetual covenant. ⁶For My people have been as lost sheep, their shepherds have caused them to go astray, even to idolatry. The shepherds have turned the people loose and the people have wandered about, forgetting of their resting place. ⁷Everyone that has dealt with them has taken advantage of them and their adversaries claim that they are not guilty, because the Israelites have sinned against the LORD and abandoned His righteous ways.

⁸Leave from the land of Babylon and be as leaders to the others as you return back to your own land ⁹For I will cause a nation to assemble against Babylon, all the enemies arrows shall strike their target and Babylon shall be taken. ¹⁰And Babylon shall be spoiled and all of her enemies that spoil her, shall be satisfied with the plunder, says the LORD. ¹¹Because of how they rejoiced and took pride in destroying the places of My inheritance, just like mindless animals in a lush pasture. ¹²Even Babylon's mother, that bore them would be ashamed of what her people have become. They shall be the least of all the nations and shall become a dry wilderness. ¹³Because the wrath of the LORD will not be restrained, but it will completely destroy. And everyone that passes by Babylon shall be astonished and scoff at all her misfortune.

¹⁴Arm yourselves for battle against Babylon, hold nothing back, for she has sinned against the LORD. ¹⁵Raise the battle cry against her! For her foundational walls have fallen and by the vengeance of the LORD she surrenders. Therefore, take vengeance upon her and as she has done to others, so also do unto her. ¹⁶Let the oppressing sword cut off all supplies from Babylon, then shall all the people flee to their own land.

¹⁷Israel is a scattered people, lions have driven them away. Israel was first devoured by the king of Assyria, (NOTE: Israel was taken captive in 722BC.) and lastly king Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon has broken the people of Judah, (NOTE: Judah was taken captive in 587BC.). ¹⁸Therefore says the LORD God of Israel; I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria. ¹⁹Then I shall bring Israel into their home land, they shall feed on the mountains and in the fertile plains, and their soul shall be satisfied. ²⁰In those days others will attempt to seek out the iniquity of Israel and Judah, but they shall find none, for I will pardon the remnant of Israel.

²¹Go up against the land and the people of Babylon and utterly destroy, says the LORD, doing all that I have commanded you. ²²The sound of battle having a great destruction is in the land. ²³The overlying power of the whole earth has been cut asunder and broken! Babylon has become a mockery and a desolation among the nations! ²⁴I have laid a snare and Babylon, you have been taken. You were not even aware that you were caught, because you have contended against the LORD.

²⁵For the LORD has opened His armory, bringing forth the weapons of His indignation upon Babylon. ²⁶Come against Babylon within all of her borders, plunder her treasuries, utterly destroy and ruin the land. ²⁷Slay all of their men of war, for the day of their visitation has come. ²⁸And the Jews that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, declare the vengeance of the LORD in Zion within His temple.

²⁹Let all the men of war camp against Babylon and let none of the people escape. Pay her back according to all that she has done, for she has been proud against the LORD, the Holy One of Israel. ³⁰Therefore her young men shall fall in the streets and in that day all her men of war shall be cut off. ³¹For the LORD is against you, most proud Babylon. Your day has come when He will bring judgment upon you. ³²And the most proud shall stumble and fall and no one shall help him up. The LORD will then kindle a fire that will devour his cities.

³³Thus says the LORD; For the children of Israel and Judah were both oppressed and taken captive. ³⁴But their Redeemer is strong and the LORD is His name! He shall thoroughly plead their cause, giving a rest to the land of Israel, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.

³⁵A sword is on the people of Babylon, their nobles and wise men, says the LORD. ³⁶A sword is on the babbling liars, they shall become fools. A sword is on her mighty men of war, they shall be dismayed and destroyed. ³⁷A sword is on their horses and chariots and all the foreign allies that help within the battle, they shall become weak and defenseless as a woman. A sword is on the treasures of Babylon, they shall be plundered. ³⁸A drought is on the waters of Babylon and they shall dry up. For it is the land of graven images and the people foolishly trust in their idols.

³⁹Therefore wild beasts shall dwell in the land of Babylon, along with the jackals and man shall not inhabit it again. ⁴⁰Just as God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and its neighboring cities, no son of man shall ever dwell there again. ⁴¹For a great nation shall come from the north and many kings shall be their allies. ⁴²They shall all come in one cruel force, roaring like the sea and they will not have any mercy. Everyone dressed for battle, riding on horses coming against Babylon.

⁴³Even as the king of Babylon heard of this report his hands trembled and pains took hold of him as of a woman in labor. ⁴⁴The enemy shall come up like a lion from over the Jordan river and attack the habitation of the strong and I will make the people of Babylon suddenly run away from them. Then I will appoint a chosen man over him, for there is no one like Me and who can stand before Me. ⁴⁵Therefore hear the plan of the LORD against Babylon. He shall drag away even the least of the people and shall make their habitation desolate. ⁴⁶At the cry of Babylon the earth is shaken and the cry is heard among the nations.

Jeremiah: chapter 51

¹Thus says the LORD; I will raise up against Babylon and their people that rise up against Me, a destroying wind. ²I will send to Babylon strangers that will completely empty the land, in the day of your trouble. ³They will fight with all their might, not sparing her young men and utterly destroying her entire army. ⁴And their slain shall fall wounded in their streets. ⁵For neither Israel nor Judah have been forsaken by their LORD God, even though their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.

⁶So may every Israelite flee out of Babylon, saving his own life. And may not be destroyed through the punishment that will come upon Babylon because of her iniquity, for this is the time of the LORD's vengeance. ⁷Babylon has been a chosen vessel in the LORD's hand, they have made all the nations of the earth drunk by their wine, therefore all the nations rage. ⁸Babylon has suddenly fallen and is destroyed, howl for her and take a healing balm for her, that she may be healed.

⁹We would have healed Babylon, but she is incurable. Therefore, forsake her and flee everyone to his own country, for judgment from heaven has come upon her. ¹⁰For the LORD has brought forth and made known our righteousness, therefore, let us make known in Zion the work of the LORD our God. ¹¹The LORD has raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes and Persia, let them prepare for the battle. For His plan is to destroy Babylon, it is the vengeance of the LORD. ¹²Go ahead, sound the alarm on the walls of Babylon, set up an ambush and make the watch strong, it shall all be in vain. For the LORD has both purposed what He has spoken against the people of Babylon. ¹³Babylon, you who are rich in trade, having an abundant in treasures, your end has come, the measure of your dishonest gain. ¹⁴For the LORD has sworn by Himself, to greatly fill your land with enemy soldiers and they shall have the victory over you.

¹⁵The LORD has made the earth by His power, establishing the world by His wisdom and has stretched out the heaven by His understanding. ¹⁶When He spoke, lightening and a multitude of waters in the heavens rained down upon the earth and He brings forth the wind out of His treasures.

¹⁷Every man has become brute-like because of his knowledge and every maker of idols is put to shame because of there falsehood. ¹⁸For they are but vanity, the work of errors and in the time of their visitation, they shall perish. ¹⁹However the portion of Israel is not like them, He is the Creator of all things, and Israel is the people of His inheritance and the LORD is His name.

²⁰Media Persia is My battle axe and weapons of war, for with them, I will break nations in pieces and destroy kingdoms. ²¹With them I will break the horse, the chariot and his rider. ²²Man and woman, both old and young. ²³The shepherd and his flock, the farmer along with his yoke of oxen, governors and nobles.

²⁴I will completely repay Babylon and her people for all the evil they have done in Zion, (Jerusalem) in My eyes, says the LORD. ²⁵Babylon, you that overshadow and destroy all the other nations of the earth, I am against you, says the LORD. I will stretch out My hand over you, remove your source and you shall become a withering flame. ²⁶And not one of your remaining stones shall be fit to use as a cornerstone or within the foundation and you shall remain desolate forever, says the LORD.

²⁷Declare this among all the nations and prepare against her. Call together the past enemies of Babylon, appoint a captain and come against her. ²⁸Let all the kings of the Medes prepare against her, along with all of their allies. ²⁹And the land will tremble and wither in pain, because the LORD shall perform what He has purposed against Babylon, making the land a desolate wasteland. ³⁰The mighty men of Babylon have failed to fight, their courage has left them and they have become as weak and helpless as a woman. For they have stayed in their strongholds, watching their dwelling places being destroyed. ³¹Messenger after messenger shall bring a report to the king of Babylon, that his cities have been taken. ³²That the roadways have been seized, the fields are burning and the men of war are scared.

³³For thus says the LORD God of Israel; The daughter of Babylon is as a threshing-floor and it is time to thresh her, yet in a little while the time of her harvest shall come.

³⁴[spoken by the believing Israelites]; Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon has crushed and devoured us like a dragon, he has made us as an empty vessel, using us for his benefit and then discarding us. ³⁵My the violence done to us and to our children be upon Babylon and our blood upon their people.

³⁶Therefore says the LORD; I will plead your cause and take vengeance for you. I will dry up her lakes and reservoirs and make her springs dry. ³⁷And Babylon shall become an unoccupied waste heap, a dwelling place for dragons, an astonishment to everyone that passes by. ³⁸The Babylonian lords shall roar like lions concerning their sudden capture. ³⁹In their heat I shall prepare a banquet of My wrath for them and they shall rejoice and fall into a perpetual drunken stupor and not wake up, says the LORD. ⁴⁰I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter. ⁴¹Babylon has been taken by surprised! And they have become an astonishment among the nations! ⁴²The sea has covered Babylon with a multitude of waves. ⁴³Her cities are a desolation, a dry unoccupied wilderness where no one dwells, nor do people pass by there. ⁴⁴I will place judgment on the idol of Babylon, I will reverse things and take what he has swallowed up of the people who were taken captive. And the nations shall no longer run to Babylon in amassment, Yes Babylon is surly destroyed.

⁴⁵My people flee from Babylon and save yourselves from My fierce anger. ⁴⁶Lest your heart faint, out of fear because of the rumors of violence heard in the land. ⁴⁷Thus the day is coming when I will place judgment upon the idols of Babylon, the whole land shall be confounded and her slain shall litter the streets. ⁴⁸Then the heaven and earth shall rejoice because of Babylon, when the raiders come to her from the north, says the LORD ⁴⁹For Babylon has caused many Israelites to fall, so shall Babylon also fall. ⁵⁰But the Israelites that have escaped the sword, flee from the land, do not stand still, but remember the LORD and your land in Jerusalem.

⁵¹[The people reply]; We are confounded and we bare the reproach and shame for strangers have come into the sanctuaries of the LORD's house.

⁵²Thus the day is coming, says the LORD, when I will place judgment upon her idols and throughout all the land the wounded shall groan. ⁵³Although Babylon will try to exalt herself, magnifying the power of her strength, yet I will send the spoilers to her, says the LORD.

⁵⁴[The people reply]; And a cry comes from Babylon of great destruction throughout the land. ⁵⁵Because the LORD has spoiled Babylon, drawing to an end her voice of influence among the nations. ⁵⁶Because the spoiler has come upon Babylon, her mighty men are taken, because their weapons have been rendered harmless, for the LORD God shall surely repay them.

⁵⁷For I will make drunk her nobles, wise men, leaders, rulers and mighty men and they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, says the King, whose name is the LORD. ⁵⁸The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly broken and the high gates shall be burned and all the forced labor shall have been in vain.

⁵⁹The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah, (a quartermaster), when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah into Babylon in the forth year of his reign. ⁶⁰And Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that would come against Babylon. ⁶¹Then Jeremiah said to Seraiah; When you enter into Babylon, you shall read all these words. ⁶²Saying; This is what the LORD has spoken against Babylon, He will make it forever desolate, no one shall remain in it, neither man nor beast. ⁶³When you have finished reading the book, you shall tie a stone to the book and throw it into the Euphrates river. ⁶⁴And you shall say; This is also how Babylon shall sink, for she will not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her, rather they shall be very weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

Jeremiah: chapter 52

¹Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah, (NOTE: this is not Jeremiah the prophet). ²And Zedekiah did what was evil in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that the past king Jehoiakim had done. ³All this happened in Judah and Jerusalem because of the anger of the LORD and lastly He cast the Israelites out of His presence, then king Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

⁴In the ninth year, the tenth month and the tenth day of the reign of Zedekiah. Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon and his entire army came and attacked Jerusalem and they built forts all around it. ⁵And the city was besieged until the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. ⁶Now in the forth month and the ninth day, the famine had become severe in the city and there was no longer bread for the people of the land. ⁷That is when the city fell, all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate in the king's garden, however the Babylonians were surrounding the city. ⁸And the Babylonian army pursued after the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, scattering the men with him. ⁹The Babylonian army then took the king of Judah and brought him to an outpost in Riblah where the king of Babylon was and they placed sentence on him. ¹⁰There the king of Babylon killed the king's sons and the nobles of Judah before the king's eyes. ¹¹Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah, had him bound in chains and carried him to Babylon, putting him in prison until the day of his death.

¹²Now in the nineteenth year, the fifth month and the tenth day of the reign of Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon. Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, reported of the damage that had been done within Jerusalem. ¹³The house of the LORD, the king's house and all the houses of Jerusalem, he burnt them all down to the ground. ¹⁴The Babylonian army broke down all the walls of Jerusalem. ¹⁵Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had most of the remaining Israelites and the poor carried off captive to the king of Babylon. ¹⁶But he left certain of the poor in the land to work as vinedressers and farmers.

¹⁷Also, the brass pillars that were in the house of the LORD, the brass basses and the brazen sea that Solomon made, the Babylonians broke in pieces and carried all the brass off to Babylon. ¹⁸Also all the utensils, the shovels, the snuffers, the bowls, the spoons and all the vessels of brass used to minister were taken to Babylon. ¹⁹They took the basins, the firepans, the bowls, the pots, the candlesticks, the spoons and cups, whatever was gold or silver the captain of the guard took away. ²⁰they took the two pillars and the brazen sea and the twelve brazen bulls that were under the brass sea, that king Solomon had made for the house of the LORD. And the weight of all the brass from these items was without measure. ²¹Concerning the pillars, both of them were 27 feet tall and 18 feet in circumference, having a thickness of 3 inches with a hollow core. ²²With a capital of brass on top of both pillars, each having a height of 7.5 feet, with a network and pomegranates on the capitals, all made of brass. ²³There were ninety-six pomegranates on the sides and one hundred on the network in all.

²⁴Then the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah his assistance and three guards. ²⁵And a chief eunuch, which had the charge of the men of war, seven nobles that happened to be in the city and the principal scribe of the land, along with sixty men that were in the city. ²⁶Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them to the king of Babylon, while the king was yet at the outpost in Riblah. ²⁷And the king of Babylon killed them there, thus Judah was carried away captive from their own land.

²⁸In the seventh year, Nebuchadrezzar carried three thousand twenty-three Jews away captive. ²⁹In the eighteenth year, Nebuchadrezzar carried eight hundred thirty-two Jews away captive, from Jerusalem. ³⁰In the twenty-third year, Nebuchadrezzar Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried seven hundred forty-five Jews away captive. All the Jews that were carried away captive were four thousand six hundred.

³¹After Jehoiachin had been held in prison for thirty-seven years, in the twelfth month on the twenty-fifth day. Evil-Merodach the king of Babylon in the first year of his reign, released Jehoiachin the king of Judah from prison. ³²The new king of Babylon spoke kindly to him, setting him above all the other royal prisoners that were held in Babylon, ³³He gave him regular garments instead of his prison clothes and Jehoiachin ate at the king's table. ³⁴And the king of Babylon gave him a continual allowance until the day of his death, all the days of his life.