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I wish my head were a spring of water!
    I wish my eyes were a fountain of tears!
I would weep day and night
    for my people who have been killed.
I wish I had somewhere to go in the desert
    where a traveler could stay!
Then I could leave my people.
    I could get away from them.
All of them commit adultery by worshiping other gods.
    They aren’t faithful to the Lord.

“They get ready to use
    their tongues like bows,”
    announces the Lord.
“Their mouths shoot out lies like arrows.
    They tell lies to gain power in the land.
They go from one sin to another.
    They do not pay any attention to me.
Be on guard against your friends.
    Do not trust the members of your own family.
Every one of them cheats.
    Every friend tells lies.
One friend cheats another.
    No one tells the truth.
They have taught their tongues how to lie.
    They wear themselves out sinning.
Jeremiah, you live among people who tell lies.
    When they lie, they refuse to pay any attention to me,”
    announces the Lord.

So the Lord who rules over all says,

“I will put them through the fire to test them.
    What else can I do?
    My people are so sinful!
Their tongues are like deadly arrows.
    They tell lies.
With their mouths all of them speak kindly to their neighbors.
    But in their hearts they set traps for them.
Shouldn’t I punish them for this?”
    announces the Lord.
“Shouldn’t I pay back the nation
    that does these things?”

10 I will cry and mourn over the mountains.
    I will sing a song of sadness about the desert grasslands.
They are dry and empty. No one travels through them.
    The mooing of cattle isn’t heard there.
The birds have flown away.
    All the animals are gone.

11 The Lord says, “I will knock down all of Jerusalem’s buildings.
    I will make it a home for wild dogs.
The towns of Judah will be completely destroyed.
    No one will be able to live in them.”

12 Who is wise enough to understand these things? Who has been taught by the Lord? Who can explain them? Why has the land been destroyed so completely? Why has it become like a desert that no one can go across?

13 The Lord answered me, “Because my people have turned away from my law. I gave it to them. But they have not kept it. They have not obeyed me. 14 Instead, they have done what their stubborn hearts wanted them to do. They have worshiped the gods that are named Baal. They have done what their people have taught them to do through the years.” 15 So now the Lord who rules over all speaks. He is the God of Israel. He says, “I will make these people eat bitter food. I will make them drink poisoned water. 16 I will scatter them among the nations. They and their people before them didn’t know about these nations. With swords I will chase these people. I will hunt them down until I have destroyed them.”

17 The Lord rules over all. He says,

“Here is something I want you to think about.
    Send for the women who mourn for the dead.
    Send for the most skilled among them.”

18 Let them come quickly
    and weep for us.
Let them cry until tears flow from our eyes.
    Let them weep until water pours out of our eyes.
19 People are heard weeping in Zion.
    They are saying, “We are destroyed!
    We are filled with shame!
We must leave our land.
    Our houses have been torn down.”

20 You women, hear the Lord’s message.
    Listen to what he’s saying.
Teach your daughters how to mourn for the dead.
    Teach one another a song of sadness.
21 Death has climbed in through our windows.
    It has entered our forts.
Death has removed the children from the streets.
    It has taken the young men out of the market.

22 Say, “The Lord announces,

“ ‘Dead bodies will be like human waste
    lying in the open fields.
They will lie there like grain
    that is cut down at harvest time.
    No one will gather them up.’ ”

23 The Lord says,

“Do not let wise people brag about how wise they are.
    Do not let strong people boast about how strong they are.
    Do not let rich people brag about how rich they are.
24 But here is what the one who brags should boast about.
    They should brag that they have the understanding to know me.
I want them to know that I am the Lord.
    No matter what I do on earth, I am always kind, fair and right.
    And I take delight in this,”
    announces the Lord.

25 “The days are coming when I will judge people,” announces the Lord. “I will punish all those who are circumcised only in their bodies. 26 That includes the people of Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon and Moab. It also includes all those who live in the desert in places far away. None of the people in these nations is really circumcised. And not even the people of Israel are circumcised in their hearts.”

The Lord Is the Only True God

10 People of Israel, listen to what the Lord is telling you. He says,

“Do not follow the practices of other nations.
    Do not be terrified by warnings in the sky.
    Do not be afraid, even though the nations are terrified by them.
The practices of these nations are worthless.
    People cut a tree out of the forest.
    A skilled worker shapes the wood with a sharp tool.
Others decorate it with silver and gold.
    They use a hammer to nail it to the floor.
    They want to keep it from falling down.
The statues of their gods can’t speak.
    They are like scarecrows in a field of cucumbers.
Their statues have to be carried around
    because they can’t walk.
So do not be afraid of their gods.
    They can’t do you any harm.
    And they can’t do you any good either.”

Lord, no one is like you.
    You are great.
    You are mighty and powerful.
King of the nations,
    everyone should have respect for you.
    That’s what people should give you.
Among all the wise leaders of the nations
    there is no one like you.
    No one can compare with you in all their kingdoms.
All of them are foolish. They don’t have any sense.
    They think they are taught by worthless wooden gods.
Hammered silver is brought from Tarshish.
    Gold is brought from Uphaz.
People skilled in working with wood and gold make a statue.
    Then they put blue and purple clothes on it.
    The whole thing is made by skilled workers.
10 But you are the only true God.
    You are the only living God.
    You are the King who rules forever.
When you are angry, the earth trembles with fear.
    The nations can’t stand up under your anger.

11 The Lord speaks to the Jews living in Babylon. He says, “Here is what you must tell the people of the nations. Tell them, ‘Your gods did not make the heavens and the earth. In fact, these gods will disappear from the earth. They will vanish from under the heavens.’ ”

12 But God used his power to make the earth.
    His wisdom set the world in place.
    His understanding spread out the heavens.
13 When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar.
    He makes clouds rise from one end of the earth to the other.
He sends lightning along with the rain.
    He brings the wind out from his storerooms.

14 No one has any sense or knows anything at all.
    Everyone who works with gold is put to shame by his gods.
The metal gods he has made are fakes.
    They can’t even breathe.
15 They are worthless things that people make fun of.
    When the Lord judges them, they will be destroyed.
16 The God of Jacob is not like them.
    He gives his people everything they need.
He made everything that exists.
    And that includes Israel.
They are the people who belong to him.
    His name is the Lord Who Rules Over All.

The Land Will Be Destroyed

17 People of Jerusalem, your enemies have surrounded you.
    They are attacking you.
So gather up what belongs to you.
    Then leave the land.
18 The Lord says,
    “I am about to throw out of this land
    everyone who lives in it.
I will bring trouble on them.
    They will be captured.”

19 How terrible it will be for me!
    I’ve been wounded!
    And my wound can’t be healed!
In spite of that, I said to myself,
    “I’m sick. But I’ll have to put up with it.”
20 Jerusalem is like a tent that has been destroyed.
    All its ropes have snapped.
My people have gone away from me.
    Now no one is left to set up my tent.
    I have no one to set up my shelter.
21 The leaders of my people are like shepherds
    who don’t have any sense.
    They don’t ask the Lord for advice.
That’s why they don’t succeed.
    And that’s why their whole flock
    is scattered like sheep.
22 Listen! A message is coming!
    I hear the sound of a great army
    marching down from the north!
It will turn Judah’s towns into a desert.
    They will become a home for wild dogs.

Jeremiah Prays to the Lord

23 Lord, I know that a person doesn’t control their own life.
    They don’t direct their own steps.
24 Correct me, Lord, but please be fair.
    Don’t correct me when you are angry.
    If you do, nothing will be left of me.
25 Pour out your great anger on the nations.
    They don’t pay any attention to you.
    They refuse to worship you.
They have destroyed the people of Jacob.
    They’ve wiped them out completely.
    They’ve also destroyed the land they lived in.

The Lord’s People Have Broken His Covenant

11 A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. The Lord said, “Listen to the terms of the covenant I made with my people of long ago. Tell Judah the terms still apply to them. Tell those who live in Jerusalem that they must obey them too. I am the Lord, the God of Israel. So let the people know what I want them to do. Here is what I want you to tell them. ‘May the person who does not obey the terms of the covenant be under my curse. I gave those terms to your people of long ago. That was when I brought them out of Egypt. I saved them out of that furnace that melts down iron and makes it pure.’ I said, ‘Obey me. Do everything I command you to do. Then you will be my people. And I will be your God. I raised my hand and made a promise to your people of long ago. I promised them I would give them a land that had plenty of milk and honey.’ It is the land you own today. I kept my promise.”

I replied, “Amen, Lord.”

The Lord said to me, “Here is what I want you to announce in the towns of Judah. Say it also in the streets of Jerusalem. Tell the people, ‘Listen to the terms of my covenant. Obey them. Long ago I brought your people up from Egypt. From that time until today, I warned them again and again. I said, “Obey me.” But they did not listen. They did not pay any attention to me. Instead, they did what their stubborn and evil hearts wanted them to do. So I brought down on them all the curses of the covenant. I commanded them to obey it. But they refused.’ ”

The Lord continued, “The people of Judah have made some evil plans. So have those who live in Jerusalem. 10 All of them have returned to the sins their people of long ago committed. Those people refused to listen to what I told them. And now the people of Israel and Judah alike have worshiped other gods and served them. They have broken the covenant I made with their people who lived before them. 11 So I say, ‘I will bring trouble on them. They will not be able to escape it. They will cry out to me. But I will not listen to them. 12 The people of Jerusalem and of the towns of Judah will cry out. They will cry out to the gods they burn incense to. But those gods will not help them at all when trouble strikes them. 13 Judah, you have as many gods as you have towns. And in Jerusalem you have set up as many altars as there are streets. You are burning incense to that shameful god named Baal.’

14 “Jeremiah, do not pray for these people. Do not make any appeal or request for them. They will call out to me when they are in trouble. But I will not listen to them.

15 “I love the people of Judah.
    But they are working out their evil plans along with many others.
    So what are they doing in my temple?
Can meat that is offered to me keep me from punishing you?
    When you do evil things, you get a lot of pleasure from them.”

16 People of Judah, the Lord once called you a healthy olive tree.
    He thought its fruit was beautiful.
But now he will come with the roar of a mighty storm.
    He will set the tree on fire.
    And its branches will be broken.

17 The Lord who rules over all planted you. But now he has ordered your enemies to destroy you. The people of Israel and Judah have both done what is evil. They have made the Lord very angry by burning incense to Baal.

Jeremiah’s Enemies Make Evil Plans Against Him

18 The Lord told me about the evil plans of my enemies. That’s how I knew about them. He showed me what they were doing. 19 I had been like a gentle lamb led off to be killed. I didn’t realize they had made plans against me. They had said,

“Let’s destroy the tree and its fruit.
    Let’s take away his life.
    Then his name won’t be remembered anymore.”
20 But Lord, you rule over all.
    You always judge fairly.
    You test people’s hearts and minds.
So pay them back for what they’ve done.
    I’ve committed my cause to you.

21 The Lord says, “Jeremiah, here is what I am telling you about the people of Anathoth. They say they’re going to kill you. They are saying, ‘Don’t prophesy in the Lord’s name. If you do, we will kill you with our own hands.’ ” 22 So the Lord who rules over all says, “I will punish them. Their young men will be killed by swords. Their sons and daughters will die of hunger. 23 Only a few people will be left alive. I will judge the people of Anathoth. I will destroy them when the time comes to punish them.”

Jeremiah Complains to the Lord

12 Lord, when I bring a matter to you,
    you always do what is right.
But now I would like to speak with you
    about whether you are being fair.
Why are sinful people successful?
    Why do those who can’t be trusted have an easy life?
You have planted them.
    Their roots are deep in the ground.
    They grow and produce fruit.
They honor you by what they say.
    But their hearts are far away from you.
Lord, you know me and see me.
    You test my thoughts about you.
Drag those people off like sheep to be killed!
    Set them apart for the day of their death!
How long will the land be thirsty for water?
    How long will the grass in every field be dry?
The people who live in the land are evil.
    So the animals and birds have died.
And that’s not all. The people are saying,
    “The Lord won’t see what happens to us.”

The Lord Answers Jeremiah

The Lord says, “Suppose you have raced against people.
    And suppose they have worn you out.
    Then how would you be able to race against horses?
Suppose you feel safe only in open country.
    Then how would you get along in the bushes near the Jordan River?
Even your relatives have turned against you.
    They are members of your own family.
    They have shouted loudly at you.
They might say nice things about you.
    But do not trust them.

“I will turn my back on my people.
    I will desert my land.
I love the people of Judah.
    In spite of that, I will hand them over to their enemies.
My land has become to me
    like a lion in the forest.
It roars at me.
    So I hate it.
My own land has become like a spotted hawk.
    And other hawks surround it and attack it.
Come, all you wild animals!
    Gather together!
    Come together to eat up my land.
10 Many shepherds will destroy my vineyard.
    They will walk all over it.
They will turn my pleasant vineyard
    into a dry and empty land.
11 My vineyard will become a desert.
    It will be dry and empty in my sight.
The whole land will be completely destroyed.
    And no one even cares.
12 Many will come to destroy it.
    They will gather on the bare hilltops in the desert.
I will use them as my sword to destroy my people.
    They will kill them from one end of the land to the other.
    No one will be safe.
13 People will plant wheat. But all they will gather is thorns.
    They will wear themselves out. But they will not have anything to show for it.
I am very angry with them.
    So they will be ashamed of the crop they gather.”

14 Here is what the Lord says. “All my evil neighbors have taken over the land I gave my people Israel. So I will pull them up by their roots from the lands they live in. And I will pull up the roots of the people of Judah from among them. 15 But after I pull up those nations, I will give my tender love to them again. I will bring all of them back to their own lands. I will take all of them back to their own countries. 16 Suppose those nations learn to follow the practices of my people. And they make their promises in my name. When they promise, they say, ‘You can be sure that the Lord is alive.’ They do this just as they once taught my people to make promises in Baal’s name. Then I will give them a place among my people. 17 But what if one of those nations does not listen? Then you can be sure of this. I will pull it up by the roots and destroy it,” announces the Lord.

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