Jeremiah 9
1 Oh, that my head were a spring of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears! I would weep day and night over the slain daughter of my people.
Oh that my head were waters, And mine eyes a fountain of tears, —That I might weep day and night, For the slain of the daughter of my people!
2 If only I had a traveler’s lodge in the wilderness, I would abandon my people and depart from them, for they are all adulterers, a crowd of faithless people.
Oh that I had in the wilderness, a wayfarers’ lodge, That I might leave my people, and go from them, —For they all, are Adulterers, An assemblage of traitors;
3 “They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,”
Who have prepared their tongue as their bow of falsehood, And, not by faithfulness, have they become mighty in the land, —For from wickedness unto wickedness, have they gone forth, But me, have they not known, Declareth Yahweh.
4 “Let everyone guard against his neighbor; do not trust any brother, for every brother deals craftily, and every friend spreads slander.
Every one, of his neighbour, beware ye, And in no brother, may ye trust, —For, every brother, supplanteth! And every neighbour, as a tale-bearer, goeth about;
5 Each one betrays his friend; no one tells the truth. They have taught their tongues to lie; they wear themselves out committing iniquity.
Yea, every one, of his neighbour, maketh a dupe, And, truth, they do not speak, —They have taught their tongue to speak falsehood, In acting perversely, they have wearied themselves.
6 You dwell in the midst of deception; in their deceit they refuse to know Me,”
Thy dwelling, is in the midst of deceit, —Through deceit, have they rejected the knowledge of, me, Declareth Yahweh.
7 Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, for what else can I do because of the daughter of My people?
Therefore, thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Behold me! melting them, so will I try them, —For how else should I do because of the wickedness of the daughter of my people?
8 Their tongues are deadly arrows; they speak deception. With his mouth a man speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him.
A pointed arrow, is their tongue Deceit, hath it spoken, —With his mouth peace unto his neighbour, doth one speak, But within himself, he layeth his ambush.
9 Should I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD. Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?”
For these things, shall I not bring punishment on them? Demandeth Yahweh, —On a nation such as this, must not my soul avenge herself!
10 I will take up a weeping and wailing for the mountains, a dirge over the wilderness pasture, for they have been scorched so no one passes through, and the lowing of cattle is not heard. Both the birds of the air and the beasts have fled; they have gone away.
Over the mountains, will I take up a weeping and wailing, And over the oases of the desert, a dirge, For they have been burned, so that no man passeth through, Neither have men heard the lowing of cattle, —Both the bird of the heavens and the beast have fled, have gone their way:
11 “And I will make Jerusalem a heap of rubble, a haunt for jackals; and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.”
Thus will I give up Jerusalem To heaps, A habitation for jackals, —And the cities of Judah, will I give up to desolation, without inhabitant.
12 Who is the man wise enough to understand this? To whom has the mouth of the LORD spoken, that he may explain it? Why is the land destroyed and scorched like a desert, so no one can pass through it?
Who, is the man that is wise That he may discern this? And, unto whom, hath the mouth of Yahweh spoken, That he may declare it? For what cause Hath the land perished, Hath it been burned as a wilderness that no man passeth through?
13 And the LORD answered, “It is because they have forsaken My law, which I set before them; they have not walked in it or obeyed My voice.
Then said Yahweh, —Because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them, —And have not hearkened to hay voice neither walked therein;
14 Instead, they have followed the stubbornness of their hearts and gone after the Baals, as their fathers taught them.”
But have gone their way, After the stubbornness of their own heart, —And after the Baals which their fathers taught them,
15 Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Behold, I will feed this people wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink.
Therefore, Thus saith Yahweh of hosts, The God of Israel, Behold me! Feeding them, even this people, with wormwood, —And I will cause them to drink, poisoned water;
16 I will scatter them among the nations that neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send a sword after them until I have finished them off.”
And will scatter them among the nations, which neither they nor their fathers, have known, —And will send after them the sword, until I have consumed them.
17 This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Take note, and summon the wailing women; send for the most skillful among them.
Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Consider ye diligently and call for the wailing women that they may come, —And unto the wise women, send ye, that they may come;
18 Let them come quickly and take up a lament over us, that our eyes may overflow with tears, and our eyelids may gush with water.
Yea let them make haste, and lift up over us a wailing, —That our eyes, may run down, with tears, And, our eyelashes, stream down with water; —
19 For the sound of wailing is heard from Zion: ‘How devastated we are! How great is our shame! For we have abandoned the land because our dwellings have been torn down.’”
Yea, a voice of wailing, hath been heard out of Zion How are we ruined! We have turned very pale For we have left the land, For they have cast down our habitations.
20 Now, O women, hear the word of the LORD. Open your ears to the word of His mouth. Teach your daughters to wail, and one another to lament.
For hear O ye women the word of Yahweh, And let your ear take in the word of his mouth, —And teach your daughters a wail, Yea each woman—her neighbour, a dirge: —
21 For death has climbed in through our windows; it has entered our fortresses to cut off the children from the streets, the young men from the town squares.
That death Hath come up through our windows, Hath entered our palaces, —Cutting off The boy from the street, The young men from the broadways.
22 Declare that this is what the LORD says: “The corpses of men will fall like dung upon the open field, like newly cut grain behind the reaper, with no one to gather it.”
Speak thou, Thus, declareth Yahweh, So shall fall the dead bodies of men, Like dung heaps on the face of the field, —And like swaths after the harvestman, With none to gather.
23 This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.
Thus, saith Yahweh Let not, the wise man, glory in his wisdom, Neither let, the mighty man, glory, in his might, —Let not, the rich man, glory in his riches;
24 But let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, who exercises loving devotion, justice and righteousness on the earth— for I delight in these things,”
But, in this, let the glorying one glory—In having intelligence and in knowing me, That, I, am Yahweh, Executing lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness in the earth, —That in these things, I delight Declareth Yahweh.
25 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will punish all who are circumcised yet uncircumcised:
Lo! days are coming, Declareth Yahweh, —When I will bring punishment upon every one circumcised, With him that is uncircumcised:
26 Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab, and all the inhabitants of the desert who clip the hair of their temples. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.”
Upon Egypt and upon Judah, And upon Edom, and upon the sons of Ammon, And upon Moab, And upon all the clipped beards, The dwellers in the desert, —For, all the nations, are uncircumcised, And, all the house of Israel, are uncircumcised in heart.
