Jeremiah 1:1-2:30

English Standard Version

^5 (I)“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born ^(J)I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet ^(K)to the nations.”

“Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’;
for to all to whom I send you, you shall go,
and ^(N)whatever I command you, you shall speak.
^8 (O)Do not be afraid of them,
^(P)for I am with you to deliver you,
declares the Lord.”

“Behold, I have put ^(S)my words in your mouth.
¹⁰ See, I have set you this day ^(T)over nations and over kingdoms,
^(U)to pluck up and to break down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.”

“I remember the devotion of ^(AN)your youth,
    your love ^(AO)as a bride,
^(AP)how you followed me in the wilderness,
    ^(AQ)in a land not sown.
^3 (AR)Israel was holy to the Lord,
    ^(AS)the firstfruits of his harvest.
^(AT)All who ate of it incurred guilt;
    disaster came upon them,
declares the Lord.”

^(AU)“What wrong did your fathers find in me
    that they went far from me,
^(AV)and went after ^(AW)worthlessness, and became worthless?
⁶ They did not say, ^(AX)‘Where is the Lord
    who brought us up from the land of Egypt,
who led us ^(AY)in the wilderness,
    in a land of deserts and pits,
in a land of drought and deep darkness,
    in a land that none passes through,
    where no man dwells?’
^7 (AZ)And I brought you into a plentiful land
    to enjoy its fruits and its good things.
But when you came in, ^(BA)you defiled my land
    and made my heritage an abomination.
⁸ The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’
    ^(BB)Those who handle the law did not know me;
^(BC)the shepherds^[d] transgressed against me;
    ^(BD)the prophets prophesied by Baal
    and went after ^(BE)things that do not profit.

⁹ “Therefore ^(BF)I still contend with you,
declares the Lord,
    and ^(BG)with your children's children I will contend.
¹⁰ For cross to the coasts of ^(BH)Cyprus and see,
    or send to ^(BI)Kedar and examine with care;
    see if there has been such a thing.
^11 (BJ)Has a nation changed its gods,
    ^(BK)even though they are no gods?
But my people ^(BL)have changed their glory
    for ^(BM)that which does not profit.
¹² Be appalled, ^(BN)O heavens, at this;
    be shocked, be utterly desolate,
declares the Lord,
¹³ for my people have committed two evils:
^(BO)they have forsaken ^(BP)me,
    the fountain of ^(BQ)living waters,
and hewed out cisterns for themselves,
    broken cisterns that can hold no water.

^14 (BR)“Is Israel a slave? Is he a homeborn servant?
    Why then has he become a prey?
^15 (BS)The lions have roared against him;
    they have roared loudly.
They have made his land a waste;
    his cities are in ruins, ^(BT)without inhabitant.
¹⁶ Moreover, the men of ^(BU)Memphis and ^(BV)Tahpanhes
    ^(BW)have shaved^[e] the crown of your head.
^17 (BX)Have you not brought this upon yourself
    by forsaking the Lord your God,
    when ^(BY)he led you in the way?
^18 (BZ)And now what do you gain by going to Egypt
    to drink the waters of ^(CA)the Nile?
^(CB)Or what do you gain by going to Assyria
    to drink the waters of ^(CC)the Euphrates?^[f]
19 (CD)Your evil will chastise you,
    and ^(CE)your apostasy will reprove you.
Know and see that it is evil and ^(CF)bitter
    for ^(CG)you to forsake the Lord your God;
    the fear of me is not in you,
declares the Lord God of hosts.

²⁰ “For long ago I ^(CH)broke your yoke
    and burst your bonds;
    but you said, ^(CI)‘I will not serve.’
Yes, ^(CJ)on every high hill
    and under every green tree
    you bowed down ^(CK)like a whore.
^21 (CL)Yet I planted you a choice vine,
    wholly of pure seed.
^(CM)How then have you turned degenerate
    and become a wild vine?
²² Though you wash yourself with lye
    and use much soap,
    ^(CN)the stain of your guilt is still before me,
declares the Lord God.
^23 (CO)How can you say, ‘I am not unclean,
    I have not gone after the Baals’?
Look at your way ^(CP)in the valley;
    know what you have done—
a restless young camel running here and there,
^{24     (CQ)}a wild donkey used to the wilderness,
in her heat sniffing the wind!
    Who can restrain her lust?
None who seek her need weary themselves;
    in her month they will find her.
²⁵ Keep ^(CR)your feet from going unshod
    and ^(CS)your throat from thirst.
But you said, ‘It is hopeless,
    ^(CT)for I have loved foreigners,
    and after them I will go.’

²⁶ “As a thief is shamed when caught,
    so the house of Israel shall be shamed:
^(CU)they, their kings, their officials,
    their priests, and their prophets,
²⁷ who say to a tree, ‘You are my father,’
    and to a stone, ‘You gave me birth.’
For they have turned their back to me,
    and not their face.
But ^(CV)in the time of their trouble they say,
    ‘Arise and save us!’
²⁸ But ^(CW)where are your gods
    that you made for yourself?
Let them arise, ^(CX)if they can save you,
    in your time of trouble;
for ^(CY)as many as your cities
    are your gods, O Judah.

²⁹ “Why do you contend with me?
    You have all transgressed against me,
declares the Lord.
³⁰ In vain have I ^(CZ)struck your children;
    they took no correction;
^(DA)your own sword devoured your prophets
    like a ravening lion.