Jeremiah 13

1 Thus saith the Lord to me: Go, and get thee a linen girdle, and thou shalt put it about thy loins, and shalt not put it into water.

This is what the LORD said to me: “Go and buy yourself a linen loincloth and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.”

2 And I got a girdle accoding to the word of the Lord, and put it about my loins.

So I bought a loincloth as the LORD had instructed me, and I put it around my waist.

3 And the word of the Lord came to me the second time, saying:

Then the word of the LORD came to me a second time:

4 Take the girdle which thou hast got, which is about thy loins, and arise, and go to the Euphrates, and hide it there in a hole of the rock.

“Take the loincloth that you bought and are wearing, and go at once to Perath and hide it there in a crevice of the rocks.”

5 And I went, and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord had commanded me.

So I went and hid it at Perath, as the LORD had commanded me.

6 And it came to pass after many days, that the Lord said to me: Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take from thence the girdle, which I commanded thee to hide there.

Many days later the LORD said to me, “Arise, go to Perath, and get the loincloth that I commanded you to hide there.”

7 And I went to the Euphrates, and digged, and took the girdle out of the place where I had hid it: and behold the girdle was rotten, so that it was fit for no use.

So I went to Perath and dug up the loincloth, and I took it from the place where I had hidden it. But now it was ruined—of no use at all.

8 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

Then the word of the LORD came to me:

9 Thus saith the Lord: after this manner will I make the pride of Juda, and the great pride of Jerusalem to rot.

“This is what the LORD says: In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem.

10 This wicked people, that will not hear my words, and that walk in the perverseness of their heart, and have gone after strange gods to serve them, and to adore them: and they shall be as this girdle which is fit for no use.

These evil people, who refuse to listen to My words, who follow the stubbornness of their own hearts, and who go after other gods to serve and worship them, they will be like this loincloth—of no use at all.

11 For as the girdle sticketh close to the loins of a man, so have I brought close to me all of the house of Israel, and all the house of Juda, saith the Lord: that they might be my people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear.

For just as a loincloth clings to a man’s waist, so I have made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to Me, declares the LORD, so that they might be My people for My renown and praise and glory. But they did not listen.

12 Thou shalt speak therefore to them this word: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Every bottle shall be filled with wine, and they shall say to thee: Do we not know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?

Therefore you are to tell them that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Every wineskin shall be filled with wine.’ And when they reply, ‘Don’t we surely know that every wineskin should be filled with wine?’

13 And thou shalt say to them: Thus saith the Lord: Behold I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, and the kings of the race of David that sit upon his throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. with drunkenness.

then you are to tell them that this is what the LORD says: ‘I am going to fill with drunkenness all who live in this land—the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets, and all the people of Jerusalem.

14 And I will scatter them every man from his brother, and fathers and sons in like manner, saith the Lord: I will not spare, and I will not pardon: nor will I have mercy, but to destroy them.

I will smash them against one another, fathers and sons alike, declares the LORD. I will allow no mercy or pity or compassion to keep Me from destroying them.’”

15 Hear ye, and give ear: Be not proud, for the Lord hath spoken.

Listen and give heed. Do not be arrogant, for the LORD has spoken.

16 Give ye glory to the Lord your God, before it be dark, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains: you shall look for light, and he will turn it into the shadow of death, and into darkness.

Give glory to the LORD your God before He brings darkness, before your feet stumble on the dusky mountains. You wait for light, but He turns it into deep gloom and thick darkness.

17 But if you will not hear this, my soul shall weep in secret for your pride: weeping it shall weep, and my eyes shall run down the tears, because the flock of the Lord is carried away captive.

But if you do not listen, I will weep in secret because of your pride. My eyes will overflow with tears, because the LORD’s flock has been taken captive.

18 Say to the king, and to the queen: Humble yourselves, sit down: for the crown of your glory is come down from your head.

Say to the king and to the queen mother: “Take a lowly seat, for your glorious crowns have fallen from your heads.”

19 The cities of the south are shut up, and there is none to open them: all Juda is carried away captive with an entire captivity.

The cities of the Negev have been shut tight, and no one can open them. All Judah has been carried into exile, wholly taken captive.

20 Lift up your eyes, and see, you that come from the north: where is the flock that is given thee, thy beautiful cattle?

Lift up your eyes and see those coming from the north. Where is the flock entrusted to you, the sheep that were your pride?

21 What wilt thou say when he shall visit thee? for thou hast taught them against thee, and instructed them against thy own head: shall not sorrows lay hold on thee, as a woman in labour?

What will you say when He sets over you close allies whom you yourself trained? Will not pangs of anguish grip you, as they do a woman in labor?

22 And if thou shalt say in thy heart: Why are these things come upon me? For the greatness of thy iniquity, thy nakedness is discovered, the soles of thy feet are defiled.

And if you ask yourself, “Why has this happened to me?” It is because of the magnitude of your iniquity that your skirts have been stripped off and your body has been exposed.

23 If the Ethiopian can change his skin, or the leopard his spots: you may also do well, when you have learned evil.

Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Neither are you able to do good— you who are accustomed to doing evil.

24 And I will scatter them as stubble, which is carried away by the wind in the desert.

“I will scatter you like chaff driven by the desert wind.

25 This is thy lot, and the portion of thy measure from me, saith the Lord, because thou hast forgotten me, and hast trusted in falsehood.

This is your lot, the portion I have measured to you,” declares the LORD, “because you have forgotten Me and trusted in falsehood.

26 Wherefore I have also bared my thighs against thy face, and thy shame hath appeared.

So I will pull your skirts up over your face, that your shame may be seen.

27 I have seen thy adulteries, and thy neighing, the wickedness of thy fornication: and thy abominations, upon the hills in the field. Woe to thee, Jerusalem, wilt thou not be made clean after me: how long yet?

Your adulteries and lustful neighings, your shameless prostitution on the hills and in the fields— I have seen your detestable acts. Woe to you, O Jerusalem! How long will you remain unclean?”