Jeremiah 7

1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying:

The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying,

2 Stand in the gate of the LORD'S house, and proclaim there this word, and say: Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.

“Stand at the gate of Yahweh's house and proclaim this word! Say, 'Hear the word of Yahweh, all you of Judah, you who enter these gates to worship Yahweh.

3 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.

Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this: Make your ways and practices good, and I will let you continue to live in this place.

4 Trust ye not in lying words, saying: 'The temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, are these.'

Do not entrust yourself to deceitful words and say, “Temple of Yahweh! Temple of Yahweh! Temple of Yahweh!”

5 Nay, but if ye thoroughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye thoroughly execute justice between a man and his neighbour;

For if you actually make your ways and practices good; if you completely execute justice between a man and his neighbor—

6 if ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt;

if you do not exploit the one staying in the land, the orphan, or the widow and do not pour out innocent blood in this place, and do not walk after other gods to your own harm—

7 then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever.

then I will let you stay in this place, in the land that I gave to your ancestors from ancient times and forever.

8 Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit.

Behold! You are trusting in deceitful words that do not help you.

9 Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and offer unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye have not known,

Do you steal, kill, and commit adultery? Do you swear deceitfully and offer incense to Baal and walk after other gods whom you have not known?

10 and come and stand before Me in this house, whereupon My name is called, and say: 'We are delivered', that ye may do all these abominations?

Then do you come and stand before me in this house that is called by my name and say, “We are saved,” so you can do all of these abominations?

11 Is this house, whereupon My name is called, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it, saith the LORD.

Is this house, which carries my name, a den of bandits in your eyes? But behold, I have seen it—this is Yahweh's declaration.'

12 For go ye now unto My place which was in Shiloh, where I caused My name to dwell at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of My people Israel.

'So go to my place that was in Shiloh, where I allowed my name to stay there in the beginning, and look at what I did to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel.

13 And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spoke unto you, speaking betimes and often, but ye heard not, and I called you, but ye answered not;

So now, on account of your doing all of these practices—this is Yahweh's declaration—I spoke to you time and time again, but you did not listen. I summoned you, but you did not answer.

14 therefore will I do unto the house, whereupon My name is called, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh.

Therefore, what I did to Shiloh, I will also do to this house that is called by my name, the house in which you have trusted, this place that I gave to you and your ancestors.

15 And I will cast you out of My sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim.

For I will send you out from before me just as I had sent out all your brothers, all the descendants of Ephraim.'

16 Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to Me; for I will not hear thee.

As for you, Jeremiah, do not pray for this people, and do not lift up a lamenting wail or say a prayer on their behalf, and do not petition me, for I will not listen to you.

17 Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?

Do you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?

18 The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke Me.

The children are gathering wood and the fathers kindling the fire! The women are kneading dough to make cakes for the queen of the heavens and pour out drink offerings for other gods so that they will provoke me.

19 Do they provoke Me? saith the LORD; do they not provoke themselves, to the confusion of their own faces?

Are they truly provoking me?—this is Yahweh's declaration—is it not themselves whom they are provoking, so that shame is on them?

20 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, Mine anger and My fury shall be poured out upon this place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the trees of the field, and upon the fruit of the land; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched.

Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this, 'See, my anger and wrath will gush out onto this place, on both man and beast, on the tree in the fields and the fruit on the ground. It will burn and never be extinguished.'

21 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Add your burnt-offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat ye flesh.

Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel says this, 'Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and the meat from them.

22 For I spoke not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt-offerings or sacrifices;

For when I brought your ancestors out from the land of Egypt, I did not require anything from them. I gave them no command about matters of burnt offerings and sacrifices.

23 but this thing I commanded them, saying: 'Hearken unto My voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be My people; and walk ye in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.'

I only gave them this command, “Listen to my voice, and I will be your God and you will be my people. So walk in all the ways that I am commanding you, so that it may go well with you.”

24 But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in their own counsels, even in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward,

But they did not listen or pay attention. They lived by their own stubborn plans of their wicked hearts, so they went backwards, not forward.

25 even since the day that your fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt unto this day; and though I have sent unto you all My servants the prophets, sending them daily betimes and often,

Ever since the day when your ancestors went out from the land of Egypt until this day, I have sent every one of my servants, my prophets, to you. I persisted in sending them.

26 yet they hearkened not unto Me, nor inclined their ear, but made their neck stiff; they did worse than their fathers.

But they did not listen to me. They paid no attention. Instead, they hardened their necks. They were more wicked than their ancestors.'

27 And thou shalt speak all these words unto them, but they will not hearken to thee; thou shalt also call unto them, but they will not answer thee.

So proclaim all these words to them, but they will not listen to you. Proclaim these things to them, but they will not answer you.

28 Therefore thou shalt say unto them: This is the nation that hath not hearkened to the voice of the LORD their God, nor received correction; faithfulness is perished, and is cut off from their mouth.

Say to them: This is a nation that does not listen to the voice of Yahweh its God and does not receive discipline. Truth is destroyed and cut off from their mouths.

29 Cut off thy hair, and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on the high hills; for the LORD hath rejected and forsaken the generation of His wrath.

Cut off your hair and shave yourself, and throw away your hair. Sing a funeral song over the open places. For Yahweh has rejected and abandoned this generation in his rage.

30 For the children of Judah have done that which is evil in My sight, saith the LORD; they have set their detestable things in the house whereon My name is called, to defile it.

For the sons of Judah have done evil in my eye—this is Yahweh's declaration—they have set their detestable things in the house that is called by my name, in order to defile it.

31 And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded not, neither came it into My mind.

Then they built the high place of Topheth that is in the Valley of Ben Hinnom. They did this to burn their sons and daughters in fire—something that I did not command, nor did it enter my mind.

32 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be called Topheth, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter; for they shall bury in Topheth, for lack of room.

So see, days are coming—this is Yahweh's declaration—when it will no longer be called Topheth or Valley of Ben Hinnom. It will be the Valley of Slaughter; they will bury bodies in Topheth until there is no room left.

33 And the carcasses of this people shall be food for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of the earth; and none shall frighten them away.

The corpses of this people will be food for the birds of the skies and the beasts of the earth, and there will be no one to frighten them away.

34 Then will I cause to cease from the cities of Judah, and from the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride; for the land shall be desolate.

I will put an end to the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem, the sound of joy and the sound of gladness, the sound of the groom and the sound of the bride, for the land will become a desolation.”