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Jeremiah 8
The Message
Jeremiah 8
The Message
8 1-2 “And when the time comes”—God’s Decree!—“I’ll see to it that they dig up the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of the princes and priests and prophets, and yes, even the bones of the common people. They’ll dig them up and spread them out like a congregation at worship before sun, moon, and stars, all those sky gods they’ve been so infatuated with all these years, following their ‘lucky stars’ in doglike devotion. The bones will be left scattered and exposed, to reenter the soil as fertilizer, like manure.
3 “Everyone left—all from this evil generation unlucky enough to still be alive in whatever godforsaken place I will have driven them to—will wish they were dead.” Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
To Know Everything but God’s Word
4-7 “Tell them this, God’s Message:
“‘Do people fall down and not get up?
Or take the wrong road and then just keep going?
So why does this people go backward,
and just keep on going—backward!
They stubbornly hold on to their illusions,
refuse to change direction.
I listened carefully
but heard not so much as a whisper.
No one expressed one word of regret.
Not a single “I’m sorry” did I hear.
They just kept at it, blindly and stupidly
banging their heads against a brick wall.
Cranes know when it’s time
to move south for winter.
And robins, warblers, and bluebirds
know when it’s time to come back again.
But my people? My people know nothing,
not the first thing of God and his rule.
8-9 “‘How can you say, “We know the score.
We’re the proud owners of God’s revelation”?
Look where it’s gotten you—stuck in illusion.
Your religion experts have taken you for a ride!
Your know-it-alls will be unmasked,
caught and shown up for what they are.
Look at them! They know everything but God’s Word.
Do you call that “knowing”?
10-12 “‘So here’s what will happen to the know-it-alls:
I’ll make them wifeless and homeless.
Everyone’s after the dishonest dollar,
little people and big people alike.
Prophets and priests and everyone in between
twist words and doctor truth.
My dear Daughter—my people—broken, shattered,
and yet they put on Band-Aids,
Saying, “It’s not so bad. You’ll be just fine.”
But things are not “just fine”!
Do you suppose they are embarrassed
over this outrage?
Not really. They have no shame.
They don’t even know how to blush.
There’s no hope for them. They’ve hit bottom
and there’s no getting up.
As far as I’m concerned,
they’re finished.’” God has spoken.
* * *
13 “‘I went out to see if I could salvage anything’”
—God’s Decree—
“‘but found nothing:
Not a grape, not a fig,
just a few withered leaves.
I’m taking back
everything I gave them.’”
14-16 So why are we sitting here, doing nothing?
Let’s get organized.
Let’s go to the big city
and at least die fighting.
We’ve gotten God’s ultimatum:
We’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t—
damned because of our sin against him.
We hoped things would turn out for the best,
but it didn’t happen that way.
We were waiting around for healing—
and terror showed up!
From Dan at the northern borders
we hear the hooves of horses,
Horses galloping, horses neighing.
The ground shudders and quakes.
They’re going to swallow up the whole country.
Towns and people alike—fodder for war.
17 “‘What’s more, I’m dispatching
poisonous snakes among you,
Snakes that can’t be charmed,
snakes that will bite you and kill you.’”
God’s Decree!
Advancing from One Evil to the Next
18-22 I drown in grief.
I’m heartsick.
Oh, listen! Please listen! It’s the cry of my dear people
reverberating through the country.
Is God no longer in Zion?
Has the King gone away?
Can you tell me why they flaunt their plaything-gods,
their silly, imported no-gods before me?
The crops are in, the summer is over,
but for us nothing’s changed.
We’re still waiting to be rescued.
For my dear broken people, I’m heartbroken.
I weep, seized by grief.
Are there no healing ointments in Gilead?
Isn’t there a doctor in the house?
So why can’t something be done
to heal and save my dear, dear people?
* * *
Jeremiah 8
English Standard Version
Jeremiah 8
English Standard Version
8 “At that time, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of its officials, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be brought out of their tombs. 2 And they shall be spread (A)before the sun and the moon and all the host of heaven, which they have loved and served, which they have gone after, and which they have sought and worshiped. (B)And they shall not be gathered or buried. (C)They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground. 3 (D)Death shall be preferred to life by all the remnant that remains of this evil family (E)in all the places where I have driven them, declares the Lord of hosts.
Sin and Treachery
4 “You shall say to them, Thus says the Lord:
(F)When men fall, do they not rise again?
If one turns away, does he not return?
5 Why then has this people (G)turned away
in perpetual (H)backsliding?
(I)They hold fast to deceit;
they refuse to return.
6 (J)I have paid attention and listened,
but they have not spoken rightly;
no man relents of his evil,
saying, ‘What have I done?’
Everyone turns to his own course,
(K)like a horse plunging headlong into battle.
7 Even the stork in the heavens
knows her times,
and (L)the turtledove, (M)swallow, and crane[a]
keep the time of their coming,
(N)but my people know not
the rules[b] of the Lord.
8 (O)“How can you say, ‘We are wise,
and the law of the Lord is with us’?
But behold, the lying pen of the scribes
has made it into a lie.
9 (P)The wise men shall be put to shame;
they shall be dismayed (Q)and taken;
behold, they have rejected the word of the Lord,
so what wisdom is in them?
10 (R)Therefore I will give their wives to others
and their fields to conquerors,
because from the least to the greatest
everyone (S)is greedy for unjust gain;
from prophet to priest,
everyone deals falsely.
11 They have healed (T)the wound of my people lightly,
saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
when there is no peace.
12 Were they ashamed when they committed abomination?
No, (U)they were not at all ashamed;
they did not know how to blush.
(V)Therefore they shall fall among the fallen;
when I punish them, they shall be overthrown,
says the Lord.
13 When I would gather them, declares the Lord,
there are (W)no grapes on the vine,
(X)nor figs on the fig tree;
(Y)even the leaves are withered,
and what I gave them has passed away from them.”[c]
14 Why do we sit still?
(Z)Gather together; (AA)let us go into the fortified cities
and perish there,
for the Lord our God has doomed us to perish
and has (AB)given us (AC)poisoned water to drink,
because we have sinned against the Lord.
15 (AD)We looked for peace, but no good came;
for a time of healing, but behold, terror.
16 (AE)“The snorting of their horses is heard (AF)from Dan;
at the sound of the neighing (AG)of their stallions
(AH)the whole land quakes.
They come (AI)and devour the land and all that fills it,
the city and those who dwell in it.
17 For behold, I am sending among you (AJ)serpents,
adders (AK)that cannot be charmed,
(AL)and they shall bite you,”
declares the Lord.
Jeremiah Grieves for His People
18 My joy is gone; grief is upon me;[d]
(AM)my heart is sick within me.
19 Behold, the cry of the daughter of my people
from (AN)the length and breadth of the land:
“Is the Lord not in Zion?
(AO)Is her King not in her?”
(AP)“Why have they provoked me to anger with their carved images
and with their foreign idols?”
20 “The harvest is past, the summer is ended,
and we are not saved.”
21 For the wound of (AQ)the daughter of my people is my heart wounded;
(AR)I mourn, and dismay has taken hold on me.
22 Is there no (AS)balm in Gilead?
Is there no physician there?
Why then has the health of the daughter of my people
not been restored?
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 8:7 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
- Jeremiah 8:7 Or just decrees
- Jeremiah 8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
- Jeremiah 8:18 Compare Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain
Jeremiah 8
New International Version
Jeremiah 8
New International Version
8 “‘At that time, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bones(A) of the people of Jerusalem will be removed(B) from their graves. 2 They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served(C) and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped.(D) They will not be gathered up or buried,(E) but will be like dung lying on the ground.(F) 3 Wherever I banish them,(G) all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life,(H) declares the Lord Almighty.’
Sin and Punishment
4 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘When people fall down, do they not get up?(I)
When someone turns away,(J) do they not return?
5 Why then have these people turned away?
Why does Jerusalem always turn away?
They cling to deceit;(K)
they refuse to return.(L)
6 I have listened(M) attentively,
but they do not say what is right.
None of them repent(N) of their wickedness,
saying, “What have I done?”
Each pursues their own course(O)
like a horse charging into battle.
7 Even the stork in the sky
knows her appointed seasons,
and the dove, the swift and the thrush
observe the time of their migration.
But my people do not know(P)
the requirements of the Lord.
8 “‘How can you say, “We are wise,
for we have the law(Q) of the Lord,”
when actually the lying pen of the scribes
has handled it falsely?
9 The wise(R) will be put to shame;
they will be dismayed(S) and trapped.(T)
Since they have rejected the word(U) of the Lord,
what kind of wisdom(V) do they have?
10 Therefore I will give their wives to other men
and their fields to new owners.(W)
From the least to the greatest,
all are greedy for gain;(X)
prophets(Y) and priests alike,
all practice deceit.(Z)
11 They dress the wound of my people
as though it were not serious.
“Peace, peace,” they say,
when there is no peace.(AA)
12 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?
No, they have no shame(AB) at all;
they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
they will be brought down when they are punished,(AC)
says the Lord.(AD)
13 “‘I will take away their harvest,
declares the Lord.
There will be no grapes on the vine.(AE)
There will be no figs(AF) on the tree,
and their leaves will wither.(AG)
What I have given them
will be taken(AH) from them.[a]’”
14 Why are we sitting here?
Gather together!
Let us flee to the fortified cities(AI)
and perish there!
For the Lord our God has doomed us to perish
and given us poisoned water(AJ) to drink,
because we have sinned(AK) against him.
15 We hoped for peace(AL)
but no good has come,
for a time of healing
but there is only terror.(AM)
16 The snorting of the enemy’s horses(AN)
is heard from Dan;(AO)
at the neighing of their stallions
the whole land trembles.(AP)
They have come to devour(AQ)
the land and everything in it,
the city and all who live there.
17 “See, I will send venomous snakes(AR) among you,
vipers that cannot be charmed,(AS)
and they will bite you,”
declares the Lord.
18 You who are my Comforter[b] in sorrow,
my heart is faint(AT) within me.
19 Listen to the cry of my people
from a land far away:(AU)
“Is the Lord not in Zion?
Is her King(AV) no longer there?”
20 “The harvest is past,
the summer has ended,
and we are not saved.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain.
- Jeremiah 8:18 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.