Jeremiah 8

1 At that time, says the Lord, they will take the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his rulers, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem out of their resting-places:

At that time, saith the Lord, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Juda, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves;

2 And they will put them out before the sun and the moon and all the stars of heaven, whose lovers and servants they have been, after whom they have gone, to whom they have made prayers, and to whom they have given worship: they will not be put together or placed in the earth; they will be waste on the face of the earth.

and they shall spread them out to the sun, and the moon, and to all the stars, and to all the host of heaven, which they have loved, and which they have served, and after which they have walked, and to which they have held, and which they have worshipped; they shall not be mourned for, neither shall they be buried; but they shall be for an example on the face of the earth,

3 And death will be desired more than life by the rest of this evil family who are still living in all the places where I have sent them away, says the Lord of armies.

because they chose death rather than life, even to all the remnant that are left of that family, in every place whither I shall drive them out.

4 Further, you are to say to them, This is what the Lord has said: Will those who are falling not be lifted up again? will he who has gone away not come back?

For thus saith the Lord, Shall not he that falls arise? or he that turns away, shall he not turn back again?

5 Why do these people of Jerusalem go back, for ever turning away? they will not give up their deceit, they will not come back.

Wherefore has this my people turned away with a shameless revolting, and strengthened themselves in their willfulness, and refused to return?

6 I took note and gave ear, but no one said what is right: no man had regret for his evil-doing, saying, What have I done? everyone goes off on his way like a horse rushing to the fight.

Hearken, I pray you, and hear: will they not speak thus, There is no man that repents of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? the runner has failed from his course, as a tired horse in his neighing.

7 Truly, the stork in the heavens is conscious of her fixed times; the dove and the swallow and the crane keep to the times of their coming; but my people have no knowledge of the law of the Lord.

Yea, the stork in the heaven knows her time, [also] the turtle-dove and wild swallow; the sparrows observe the times of their coming in; but this my people knows not the judgments of the Lord.

8 How is it that you say, We are wise and the law of the Lord is with us? But see, the false pen of the scribes has made it false.

How will ye say, We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us? In vain have the scribes used a false pen.

9 The wise men are shamed, they are overcome with fear and taken: see, they have given up the word of the Lord; and what use is their wisdom to them?

The wise men are ashamed, and alarmed, and taken; because they have rejected the word of the Lord; what wisdom is there in them?

10 So I will give their wives to others, and their fields to those who will take them for themselves: for everyone, from the least to the greatest, is given up to getting money; from the priest even to the prophet, everyone is false.

Therefore will I give their wives to others, and their fields to [new] inheritors; and they shall gather their fruits, saith the Lord.

11 And they have made little of the wounds of the daughter of Zion, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.

12 Let them be put to shame because they have done disgusting things. They had no shame, they were not able to become red with shame: so they will come down with those who are falling: in the time of their punishment they will be made low, says the Lord.

13 I will put an end to them completely, says the Lord: there are no grapes on the vine and no figs on the fig-tree, and the leaf is dry.

There are no grapes on the vines, and there are no figs on the fig-trees, and the leaves have fallen off.

14 Why are we seated doing nothing? come together, and let us go to the walled towns, and let destruction overtake us there, for the Lord our God has sent destruction on us, and given us bitter water for our drink, because we have done evil against the Lord.

Why do we sit still? assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the strong cities, and let us be cast out there: for God has cast us out, and made us drink water of gall, because we have sinned before him.

15 We were looking for peace, but no good came; and for a time of well-being, but there is only a great fear.

We assembled for peace, but there was no prosperity; for a time of healing, but behold anxiety.

16 The loud breathing of the horses comes to our ears from Dan: at the sound of the outcry of his war-horses, all the land is shaking with fear; for they have come, and have made a meal of the land and everything in it; the town and the people living in it.

We shall hear the neighing of his swift horses out of Dan: the whole land quaked at the sound of the neighing of his horses; and he shall come, and devour the land and the fullness of it; the city, and them that dwell in it.

17 See, I will send snakes and poison-snakes among you, against which the wonder-worker has no power; and they will give you wounds which may not be made well, says the Lord.

For, behold, I send forth against you deadly serpents, which cannot be charmed, and they shall bite you

18 Sorrow has come on me! my heart in me is feeble.

mortally with the pain of your distressed heart.

19 The voice of the cry of the daughter of my people comes from a far land: Is the Lord not in Zion? is not her King in her? Why have they made me angry with their images and their strange gods which are no gods?

Behold, [there is] a sound of the cry of the daughter of my people from a land afar off: Is not the Lord in Sion? is there not a king there? because they have provoked me with their graven [images], and with strange vanities.

20 The grain-cutting is past, the summer is ended, and no salvation has come to us.

The summer is gone, the harvest is past, and we are not saved.

21 For the destruction of the daughter of my people I am broken: I am dressed in the clothing of grief; fear has taken me in its grip.

For the breach of the daughter of my people I have been saddened: in my perplexity pangs have seized upon me as of a woman in travail.

22 Is there no life-giving oil in Gilead? is there no expert in medical arts? why then have my people not been made well?

And is there no balm in Galaad, or is there no physician there? why has not the healing of the daughter of my people taken place?