Jeremiah 23-24

New International Version

The Righteous Branch

23 “Woe to the shepherds^(A) who are destroying and scattering^(B) the sheep of my pasture!”^(C) declares the Lord. ²Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds^(D) who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock^(E) and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil^(F) you have done,” declares the Lord. ³“I myself will gather the remnant^(G) of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture,^(H) where they will be fruitful and increase in number. ⁴I will place shepherds^(I) over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid^(J) or terrified, nor will any be missing,^(K)” declares the Lord.

⁵“The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
    “when I will raise up for David^[a] a righteous Branch,^(L)
a King^(M) who will reign^(N) wisely
    and do what is just and right^(O) in the land.
⁶In his days Judah will be saved
    and Israel will live in safety.^(P)
This is the name^(Q) by which he will be called:
    The Lord Our Righteous Savior.^(R)

⁷“So then, the days are coming,”^(S) declares the Lord, “when people will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,’^(T) ⁸but they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of Israel up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where he had banished them.’ Then they will live in their own land.”^(U)

Lying Prophets

⁹Concerning the prophets:

My heart^(V) is broken within me;
    all my bones tremble.^(W)
I am like a drunken man,
    like a strong man overcome by wine,
because of the Lord
    and his holy words.^(X)
¹⁰The land is full of adulterers;^(Y)
    because of the curse^[b]^(Z) the land lies parched
    and the pastures^(AA) in the wilderness are withered.^(AB)
The prophets follow an evil course
    and use their power unjustly.

¹¹“Both prophet and priest are godless;^(AC)
    even in my temple^(AD) I find their wickedness,”
declares the Lord.
¹²“Therefore their path will become slippery;^(AE)
    they will be banished to darkness
    and there they will fall.
I will bring disaster on them
    in the year they are punished,^(AF)”
declares the Lord.

¹³“Among the prophets of Samaria
    I saw this repulsive thing:
They prophesied by Baal^(AG)
    and led my people Israel astray.^(AH)
¹⁴And among the prophets of Jerusalem
    I have seen something horrible:^(AI)
    They commit adultery and live a lie.^(AJ)
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,^(AK)
    so that not one of them turns from their wickedness.^(AL)
They are all like Sodom^(AM) to me;
    the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”^(AN)

¹⁵Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets:

“I will make them eat bitter food
and drink poisoned water,^(AO)
because from the prophets of Jerusalem
ungodliness^(AP) has spread throughout the land.”

¹⁶This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Do not listen^(AQ) to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
    they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions^(AR) from their own minds,
    not from the mouth^(AS) of the Lord.
¹⁷They keep saying^(AT) to those who despise me,
    ‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’^(AU)
And to all who follow the stubbornness^(AV) of their hearts
    they say, ‘No harm^(AW) will come to you.’
¹⁸But which of them has stood in the council^(AX) of the Lord
    to see or to hear his word?
    Who has listened and heard his word?
¹⁹See, the storm^(AY) of the Lord
    will burst out in wrath,
a whirlwind^(AZ) swirling down
    on the heads of the wicked.
²⁰The anger^(BA) of the Lord will not turn back^(BB)
    until he fully accomplishes
    the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
    you will understand it clearly.
²¹I did not send^(BC) these prophets,
    yet they have run with their message;
I did not speak to them,
    yet they have prophesied.
²²But if they had stood in my council,^(BD)
    they would have proclaimed^(BE) my words to my people
and would have turned^(BF) them from their evil ways
    and from their evil deeds.^(BG)

²³“Am I only a God nearby,^(BH)”
declares the Lord,
    “and not a God far away?
²⁴Who can hide^(BI) in secret places
    so that I cannot see them?”
declares the Lord.
    “Do not I fill heaven and earth?”^(BJ)
declares the Lord.

²⁵“I have heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies^(BK) in my name. They say, ‘I had a dream!^(BL) I had a dream!’ ²⁶How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions^(BM) of their own minds?^(BN) ²⁷They think the dreams they tell one another will make my people forget^(BO) my name, just as their ancestors forgot^(BP) my name through Baal worship.^(BQ) ²⁸Let the prophet who has a dream^(BR) recount the dream, but let the one who has my word^(BS) speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain?” declares the Lord. ²⁹“Is not my word like fire,”^(BT) declares the Lord, “and like a hammer^(BU) that breaks a rock in pieces?

³⁰“Therefore,” declares the Lord, “I am against^(BV) the prophets^(BW) who steal from one another words supposedly from me. ³¹Yes,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, ‘The Lord declares.’^(BX) ³²Indeed, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,^(BY)” declares the Lord. “They tell them and lead my people astray^(BZ) with their reckless lies,^(CA) yet I did not send^(CB) or appoint them. They do not benefit^(CC) these people in the least,” declares the Lord.

False Prophecy

³³“When these people, or a prophet or a priest, ask you, ‘What is the message^(CD) from the Lord?’ say to them, ‘What message? I will forsake^(CE) you, declares the Lord.’ ³⁴If a prophet or a priest or anyone else claims, ‘This is a message^(CF) from the Lord,’ I will punish^(CG) them and their household. ³⁵This is what each of you keeps saying to your friends and other Israelites: ‘What is the Lord’s answer?’^(CH) or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ ³⁶But you must not mention ‘a message from the Lord’ again, because each one’s word becomes their own message. So you distort^(CI) the words of the living God,^(CJ) the Lord Almighty, our God. ³⁷This is what you keep saying to a prophet: ‘What is the Lord’s answer to you?’ or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ ³⁸Although you claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ this is what the Lord says: You used the words, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ even though I told you that you must not claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord.’ ³⁹Therefore, I will surely forget you and cast^(CK) you out of my presence along with the city I gave to you and your ancestors. ⁴⁰I will bring on you everlasting disgrace^(CL)—everlasting shame that will not be forgotten.”

Two Baskets of Figs

24 After Jehoiachin^[c]^(CM) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and the officials, the skilled workers and the artisans of Judah were carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs^(CN) placed in front of the temple of the Lord. ²One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early;^(CO) the other basket had very bad^(CP) figs, so bad they could not be eaten.

³Then the Lord asked me, “What do you see,^(CQ) Jeremiah?”

“Figs,” I answered. “The good ones are very good, but the bad ones are so bad they cannot be eaten.”

⁴Then the word of the Lord came to me: ⁵“This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent^(CR) away from this place to the land of the Babylonians.^[d] ⁶My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back^(CS) to this land. I will build^(CT) them up and not tear them down; I will plant^(CU) them and not uproot them. ⁷I will give them a heart to know^(CV) me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people,^(CW) and I will be their God, for they will return^(CX) to me with all their heart.^(CY)

⁸“‘But like the bad^(CZ) figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the Lord, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah^(DA) king of Judah, his officials^(DB) and the survivors^(DC) from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt.^(DD) ⁹I will make them abhorrent^(DE) and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword,^(DF) a curse^[e]^(DG) and an object of ridicule, wherever I banish^(DH) them. ¹⁰I will send the sword,^(DI) famine^(DJ) and plague^(DK) against them until they are destroyed from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.^(DL)’”

Footnotes

Jeremiah 23:5 Or up from David’s line
Jeremiah 23:10 Or because of these things
Jeremiah 24:1 Hebrew Jeconiah, a variant of Jehoiachin
Jeremiah 24:5 Or Chaldeans
Jeremiah 24:9 That is, their names will be used in cursing (see 29:22); or, others will see that they are cursed.

Psalm 18

New International Version

Psalm 18^[a]^(A)

For the director of music. Of David the servant of the Lord. He sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said:

¹I love you, Lord, my strength.^(B)

²The Lord is my rock,^(C) my fortress^(D) and my deliverer;^(E)
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,^(F)
my shield^[b]^(G) and the horn^[c] of my salvation,^(H) my stronghold.

³I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,^(I)
    and I have been saved from my enemies.^(J)
⁴The cords of death^(K) entangled me;
    the torrents^(L) of destruction overwhelmed me.
⁵The cords of the grave coiled around me;
    the snares of death^(M) confronted me.

⁶In my distress^(N) I called to the Lord;^(O)
    I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice;^(P)
    my cry came^(Q) before him, into his ears.
⁷The earth trembled^(R) and quaked,^(S)
    and the foundations of the mountains shook;^(T)
    they trembled because he was angry.^(U)
⁸Smoke rose from his nostrils;^(V)
    consuming fire^(W) came from his mouth,
    burning coals^(X) blazed out of it.
⁹He parted the heavens and came down;^(Y)
    dark clouds^(Z) were under his feet.
¹⁰He mounted the cherubim^(AA) and flew;
    he soared^(AB) on the wings of the wind.^(AC)
¹¹He made darkness his covering,^(AD) his canopy^(AE) around him—
    the dark rain clouds of the sky.
¹²Out of the brightness of his presence^(AF) clouds advanced,
    with hailstones^(AG) and bolts of lightning.^(AH)
¹³The Lord thundered^(AI) from heaven;
    the voice of the Most High resounded.^[d]
¹⁴He shot his arrows^(AJ) and scattered the enemy,
    with great bolts of lightning^(AK) he routed them.^(AL)
¹⁵The valleys of the sea were exposed
    and the foundations^(AM) of the earth laid bare
at your rebuke,^(AN) Lord,
    at the blast of breath from your nostrils.^(AO)

¹⁶He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
    he drew me out of deep waters.^(AP)
¹⁷He rescued me from my powerful enemy,^(AQ)
    from my foes, who were too strong for me.^(AR)
¹⁸They confronted me in the day of my disaster,^(AS)
    but the Lord was my support.^(AT)
¹⁹He brought me out into a spacious place;^(AU)
    he rescued me because he delighted in me.^(AV)

²⁰The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness;^(AW)
    according to the cleanness of my hands^(AX) he has rewarded me.^(AY)
²¹For I have kept the ways of the Lord;^(AZ)
    I am not guilty of turning^(BA) from my God.
²²All his laws are before me;^(BB)
    I have not turned away from his decrees.
²³I have been blameless^(BC) before him
    and have kept myself from sin.
²⁴The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,^(BD)
    according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

²⁵To the faithful^(BE) you show yourself faithful,^(BF)
    to the blameless you show yourself blameless,
²⁶to the pure^(BG) you show yourself pure,
    but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.^(BH)
²⁷You save the humble^(BI)
    but bring low those whose eyes are haughty.^(BJ)
²⁸You, Lord, keep my lamp^(BK) burning;
    my God turns my darkness into light.^(BL)
²⁹With your help^(BM) I can advance against a troop^[e];
    with my God I can scale a wall.

³⁰As for God, his way is perfect:^(BN)
    The Lord’s word is flawless;^(BO)
    he shields^(BP) all who take refuge^(BQ) in him.
³¹For who is God besides the Lord?^(BR)
    And who is the Rock^(BS) except our God?
³²It is God who arms me with strength^(BT)
    and keeps my way secure.^(BU)
³³He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;^(BV)
    he causes me to stand on the heights.^(BW)
³⁴He trains my hands for battle;^(BX)
    my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
³⁵You make your saving help my shield,
    and your right hand sustains^(BY) me;
    your help has made me great.
³⁶You provide a broad path^(BZ) for my feet,
    so that my ankles do not give way.^(CA)

³⁷I pursued my enemies^(CB) and overtook them;
    I did not turn back till they were destroyed.
³⁸I crushed them^(CC) so that they could not rise;^(CD)
    they fell beneath my feet.^(CE)
³⁹You armed me with strength^(CF) for battle;
    you humbled my adversaries^(CG) before me.
⁴⁰You made my enemies turn their backs^(CH) in flight,
    and I destroyed^(CI) my foes.
⁴¹They cried for help, but there was no one to save them^(CJ)—
    to the Lord, but he did not answer.^(CK)
⁴²I beat them as fine as windblown dust;^(CL)
    I trampled them^[f] like mud in the streets.
⁴³You have delivered me from the attacks of the people;
    you have made me the head of nations.^(CM)
People I did not know^(CN) now serve me,
⁴⁴    foreigners^(CO) cower before me;
    as soon as they hear of me, they obey me.
⁴⁵They all lose heart;^(CP)
    they come trembling^(CQ) from their strongholds.^(CR)

⁴⁶The Lord lives!^(CS) Praise be to my Rock!^(CT)
    Exalted be God^(CU) my Savior!^(CV)
⁴⁷He is the God who avenges^(CW) me,
    who subdues nations^(CX) under me,
⁴⁸    who saves^(CY) me from my enemies.^(CZ)
You exalted me above my foes;
    from a violent man^(DA) you rescued me.
⁴⁹Therefore I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;^(DB)
    I will sing^(DC) the praises of your name.^(DD)

⁵⁰He gives his king great victories;
he shows unfailing love to his anointed,^(DE)
to David^(DF) and to his descendants forever.^(DG)

Footnotes

Psalm 18:1 In Hebrew texts 18:1-50 is numbered 18:2-51.
Psalm 18:2 Or sovereign
Psalm 18:2 Horn here symbolizes strength.
Psalm 18:13 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint (see also 2 Samuel 22:14); most Hebrew manuscripts resounded, / amid hailstones and bolts of lightning
Psalm 18:29 Or can run through a barricade
Psalm 18:42 Many Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Syriac and Targum (see also 2 Samuel 22:43); Masoretic Text I poured them out