Jeremiah 4
1 O Israel, if thou returne, returne vnto me, saith the Lord: and if thou put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remoue.
If thou wilt return to me, O Israel, saith Jehovah, Thou shalt return [[to thy land]]; If thou wilt put away thy abominations from my sight, Thou shalt no more be a wanderer [[in a foreign land]].
2 And thou shalt sweare, The Lord liueth in trueth, in iudgement, and in righteousnesse, and the nations shall be blessed in him, and shall glorie in him.
If thou wilt swear, As Jehovah liveth! In truth, in justice, and in righteousness, Then shall the nations bless themselves by thee, And in thee shall they glory.
3 For thus saith the Lord to the men of Iudah, and to Ierusalem,
Thus saith Jehovah to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: Break up your fallow ground, And sow not among thorns!
4 Breake vp your fallowe ground, and sowe not among the thornes: be circumcised to the Lord, and take away the foreskinnes of your hearts, ye men of Iudah, and inhabitants of Ierusalem, lest my wrath come foorth like fire, and burne, that none can quenche it, because of the wickednesse of your inuentions.
Circumcise yourselves to Jehovah; Yea, circumcise your hearts, Ye men of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Lest, for the evil of your doings, My fury break forth like fire, And burn so that none can quench it.
5 Declare in Iudah, and shewe forth in Ierusalem, and say, Blowe the trumpet in the lande: cry, and gather together, and say, Assemble your selues, and let vs goe into strong cities.
Declare ye in Judah, And proclaim in Jerusalem, and say, Blow ye the trumpet in the land; Cry ye aloud, and say, Gather yourselves together, And let us go into the fortified cities;
6 Set vp the standart in Zion: prepare to flee, and stay not: for I will bring a plague from the North, and a great destruction.
Set up a standard toward Zion, Flee, make no stand! For I am about to bring evil from the north, Even great destruction.
7 The lyon is come vp from his denne, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is departed, and gone forth of his place to lay thy land waste, and thy cities shalbe destroyed without an inhabitant.
The lion goeth up from his thicket, The destroyer of nations is on his way; He goeth forth from his place to make thy land desolate; Thy cities shall be laid waste so as to be without an inhabitant.
8 Wherefore girde you with sackecloth: lament, and howle, for the fierce wrath of the Lord is not turned backe from vs.
For this cause gird on sackcloth, Lament and howl! For the fierce anger of Jehovah is not turned away from us.
9 And in that day, saith the Lord, the heart of the King shall perish, and the heart of the princes and the Priestes shall be astonished, and the Prophets shall wonder.
In that day, saith Jehovah, Shall the heart of the king perish, And the heart of the princes; The priests shall be amazed, And the prophets confounded.
10 Then saide I, Ah, Lord God, surely thou hast deceiued this people and Ierusalem, saying, Ye shall haue peace, and the sworde perceth vnto the heart.
Then said I, Alas, O Lord Jehovah! Surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem; Thou hast said, “Ye shall have peace”; And the sword reacheth to the very life!
11 At that time shall it bee saide to this people and to Ierusalem, A dry winde in the hie places of the wildernes commeth towarde ye daughter of my people, but neither to fanne nor to clense.
At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem: A dry wind cometh from the hills of the desert, It cometh toward my people, Not to fan, nor to cleanse.
12 A mightie winde shall come vnto me from those places, and nowe will I also giue sentence vpon them.
Yea, a wind stronger than this shall come; Now will I myself give sentence against them.
13 Beholde, he shall come vp as the cloudes, and his charets shalbe as a tempest: his horses are lighter then eagles. Woe vnto vs, for wee are destroyed.
Behold, he cometh up like clouds, And his chariots are like a whirlwind; His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us! for we are laid waste!
14 O Ierusalem, wash thine heart from wickednes, that thou maiest be saued: how long shall thy wicked thoughtes remaine within thee?
Wash thy heart from wickedness, O Jerusalem, That thou mayst be saved! How long shall thy evil devices lodge within thee?
15 For a voyce declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount Ephraim.
For a voice proclaimeth tidings from Dan, And announceth calamity from mount Ephraim.
16 Make ye mention of the heathen, and publish in Ierusalem, Beholde, the skoutes come from a farre countrey, and crie out against the cities of Iudah.
Proclaim ye to the nations, Behold, publish ye to Jerusalem, “Watchmen are coming from a far country, And lift their voice against the cities of Judah.”
17 They haue compassed her about as the watchmen of the fielde, because it hath prouoked me to wrath, saith the Lord.
Like keepers of fields are they round about her Because she hath rebelled against me, saith Jehovah.
18 Thy wayes and thine inuentions haue procured thee these things, such is thy wickednesse: therefore it shall be bitter, therefore it shall perce vnto thine heart.
Thy way and thy doings have brought this upon thee; This is the fruit of thy wickedness; It is bitter; it reacheth to thy heart.
19 My bely, my bely, I am pained, euen at the very heart: mine heart is troubled within me: I cannot be still: for my soule hath heard the sounde of the trumpet, and the alarme of the battell.
O my breast, my breast! I am pained in the walls of my heart; My heart trembleth within me; I cannot be silent; For thou hearest, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, The alarm of war!
20 Destruction vpon destruction is cryed, for the whole lande is wasted: suddenly are my tents destroyed, and my curtaines in a moment.
There is a cry of destruction upon destruction; Yea, the whole land is laid waste; Suddenly are my tents destroyed, And my canopies in an instant.
21 Howe long shall I see the standert, and heare the sounde of the trumpet?
How long shall I see the standard, Hear the sound of the trumpet?
22 For my people is foolish, they haue not knowen me: they are foolish children, and haue none vnderstanding: they are wise to doe euill, but to doe well they haue no knowledge.
My people is foolish, They have no regard to me; Stupid children are they, And have no understanding; They are wise to do evil, But for doing good they have no knowledge.
23 I haue looked vpon the earth, and loe, it was without forme and voide: and to the heauens, and they had no light.
I look to the earth, and lo! emptiness and desolation; To the heavens, and there is no light.
24 I behelde the mountaines: and loe, they trembled and all the hilles shooke.
I look to the mountains, and lo! they tremble, And all the hills shake.
25 I behelde, and loe, there was no man, and all the birdes of the heauen were departed.
I look, and lo! there is not a man, And all the birds of heaven are fled.
26 I behelde, and loe, the fruitfull place was a wildernesse, and all the cities thereof were broken downe at the presence of the Lord, and by his fierce wrath.
I look, and lo! Carmel is a desert, And all its cities are thrown down, Before the presence of Jehovah, Before the heat of his anger.
27 For thus hath the Lord saide, The whole lande shall be desolate: yet will I not make a full ende.
For thus saith Jehovah: The whole land shall be desolate, Yet will I not make a full end.
28 Therefore shall the earth mourne, and the heauens aboue shall be darkened, because I haue pronounced it: I haue thought it, and will not repent, neither will I turne backe from it.
Therefore shall the earth mourn, And the heavens above be black, Because I have spoken, and I will not repent; I have purposed, and I will not recede from it.
29 The whole citie shall flee, for the noyse of the horsemen and bowemen: they shall goe into thickets, and clime vp vpon the rockes: euery citie shall be forsaken, and not a man dwell therein.
At the noise of the horsemen and bowmen every city fleeth; They go into thickets, And climb up upon the rocks; All the cities are forsaken, And not a man dwelleth in them.
30 And when thou shalt be destroyed, what wilt thou doe? Though thou clothest thy selfe with skarlet, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of golde, though thou paintest thy face with colours, yet shalt thou trimme thy selfe in vaine: for thy louers will abhorre thee and seeke thy life.
And thou, destined to perish, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothe thyself in scarlet, And deck thyself with ornaments of gold, And rend thine eyes with paint, In vain dost thou adorn thyself; Thy lovers despise thee; They seek thy life.
31 For I haue heard a noyse as of a woman trauailing, or as one labouring of her first child, euen the voyce of the daughter Zion that sigheth and stretcheth out her handes: woe is me nowe: for my soule fainteth because of the murtherers.
I hear a cry, as of a woman in travail, Anguish, as of her that bringeth forth her first child. The voice of the daughter of Zion. She sobbeth, she spreadeth out her hands, “Ah! woe is me! I am dying by murderers!”
