Jeremiah 9

1 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!

Who doth make my head waters, And mine eye a fountain of tears? And I weep by day and by night, For the wounded of the daughter of my people.

2 Oh that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of travelling men; that I might leave my people, and go from them! for they be all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men.

Who doth give me in a wilderness A lodging-place of travellers? And I leave my people, and go from them, For all of them [are] adulterers, An assembly of treacherous ones.

3 And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me, says the LORD.

And they bend their tongue, their bow [is] a lie, And not for stedfastness have they been mighty in the land, For from evil unto evil they have gone forth, And Me they have not known, An affirmation of Jehovah!

4 Take all of you heed every one of his neighbour, and trust all of you not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbour will walk with slanders.

Each of his friend — beware ye, And on any brother, do not trust, For every brother doth utterly supplant, For every friend slanderously doth walk,

5 And they will deceive every one his neighbour, and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongue to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity.

And each at his friend they mock, And truth they do not speak, They taught their tongue to speak falsehood, To commit iniquity they have laboured.

6 your habitation is in the midst of deceit; through deceit they refuse to know me, says the LORD.

thy dwelling [is] in the midst of deceit, Through deceit they refused to know Me, An affirmation of Jehovah.

7 Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, Behold, I will melt them, and try them; for how shall I do for the daughter of my people?

Therefore, thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Lo, I am refining them, and have tried them, For how do I do because of the daughter of My people?

8 Their tongue is as an arrow shot out; it speaks deceit: one speaks peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth, but in heart he lays his wait.

A slaughtering arrow [is] their tongue, Deceit it hath spoken in its mouth, Peace with its neighbour it speaketh, And in its heart it layeth its ambush,

9 Shall I not visit them for these things? says the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

For these things do not I see after them? An affirmation of Jehovah, Against a nation such as this doth not My soul avenge itself?

10 For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are burned up, so that none can pass through them; neither can men hear the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled; they are gone.

For the mountains I lift up weeping and wailing, And for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, For they have been burnt up without any passing over, Nor have they heard the voice of cattle, From the fowl of the heavens unto the beast they have fled, they have gone.

11 And I will make Jerusalem heaps, and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant.

And I make Jerusalem become heaps, A habitation of dragons, And the cities of Judah I make a desolation, Without inhabitant.

12 Who is the wise man, that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the LORD has spoken, that he may declare it, for what the land perishes and is burned up like a wilderness, that none passes through?

Who [is] the wise man? and he understandeth this, And he to whom the mouth of Jehovah spake? And he doth declare it, For what hath the land perished? It hath been burnt up as a wilderness, Without any passing through.

13 And the LORD says, Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice, neither walked therein;

And Jehovah saith: Because of their forsaking My law that I set before them, And they have not hearkened to My voice nor walked in it,

14 But have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them:

And they walk after the stubbornness of their heart, And after the Baalim, that their fathers taught them,

15 Therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink.

Therefore, thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel: Lo, I am causing them — this people — to eat wormwood, And I have caused them to drink water of gall,

16 I will scatter them also among the heathen, whom neither they nor their fathers have known: and I will send a sword after them, till I have consumed them.

And I have scattered them among nations Which they knew not, they and their fathers, And have sent after them the sword, Till I have consumed them.

17 Thus says the LORD of hosts, Consider all of you, and call for the mourning women, that they may come; and send for cunning women, that they may come:

Thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Consider ye, and call for mourning women, And they come, And to the wise women send, and they come,

18 And let them make haste, and take up a wailing for us, that our eyes may run down with tears, and our eyelids gush out with waters.

And they hasten, and lift up for us a wailing. And run down our eyes do tears, And from our eyelids do waters flow.

19 For a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion, How are we spoiled! we are greatly confounded, because we have forsaken the land, because our dwellings have cast us out.

For — a voice of wailing is heard from Zion: How have we been spoiled! We have been greatly ashamed, Because we have forsaken the land, Because they have cast down our tabernacles.

20 Yet hear the word of the LORD, O all of you women, and let your ear receive the word of his mouth, and teach your daughters wailing, and every one her neighbour lamentation.

But hear, ye women, a word of Jehovah, And your ear receiveth a word of His mouth, And teach ye your daughters wailing, and each her neighbour lamentation.

21 For death has come up into our windows, and is entered into our palaces, to cut off the children from without, and the young men from the streets.

For death hath come up into our windows, It hath come into our palaces, To cut off the suckling from without, Young men from the broad places.

22 Speak, Thus says the LORD, Even the carcasses of men shall fall as dung upon the open field, and as the handful after the harvestman, and none shall gather them.

Speak thus — an affirmation of Jehovah, And fallen hath the carcase of man, As dung on the face of the field, And as a handful after the reaper, And there is none gathering.

23 Thus says the LORD, 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:

Thus said Jehovah: Let not the wise boast himself in his wisdom, Nor let the mighty boast himself in his might, Let not the rich boast himself in his riches,

24 But let him that glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD which exercise loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, says the LORD.

But — in this let the boaster boast himself, In understanding and knowing Me, For I [am] Jehovah, doing kindness, Judgment, and righteousness, in the earth, For in these I have delighted, An affirmation of Jehovah.

25 Behold, the days come, says the LORD, that I will punish all them which are circumcised with the uncircumcised;

Lo, days are coming — an affirmation of Jehovah, And I have laid a charge on all circumcised in the foreskin,

26 Egypt, and Judah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all that are in the utmost corners, that dwell in the wilderness: for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart.

On Egypt, and on Judah, and on Edom, And on the sons of Ammon, and on Moab, And on all cutting the corner [of the beard], Who are dwelling in the wilderness, For all the nations [are] uncircumcised, And all the house of Israel [are] uncircumcised in heart!