Jeremiah 8

1 At that time, saith the Lord, shall they bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, 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.

At that time, says 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 shall spread them out before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, which they have loved, and which they have served, and after which they have walked, and which they have sought, and to which they have prostrated themselves: they shall not be gathered up, and they shall not be buried; dung upon the face of the ground shall they become.

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 shall be preferable to life, for all the residue of those that are left of this evil family, who are left in all the places whither I shall have driven them, saith the Lord of hosts.

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 And thou shalt say unto them, Thus hath said the Lord, Shall they fall, and not arise? will he turn away, and not return?

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

5 Why then remaineth this people, Jerusalem, rebellious by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast on deceit, they refuse to return.

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

6 I listened and heard, but they would not speak aright; no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned again to his course, as the impetuous horse in the battle.

Listen, 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 Yea, the stork in the heavens knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle, and the swallow, atad the crane observe the time of their coming home; but my people know not the ordinance of the Lord.

Yes, 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 judgements of the Lord.

8 How can ye say, We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us? Truly, behold in vain wrought the pen, in vain the writers.

How will you 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 ashamed, they are discouraged and caught, lo, the word of the Lord have they rejected; and what wisdom have they [now]?

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 Therefore will I give their wives unto others, their fields to conquerors; for from the least even unto the greatest, every one is seeking his own gain: from the prophet even unto the priest every one practiseth falsehood.

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

11 And they heal the breach of the daughter of my people very lightly, saying, Peace, peace: when there is no peace.

12 They should have been ashamed, because they had committed abomination; but they neither felt the least shame, nor did they know how to blush: therefore shall they fall among those that fall; at the time of their punishment shall they stumble, saith the Lord.

13 I will surely make an end of them, saith the Lord: [there shall be left] no grapes on the vine, and no figs on the fig-tree, and the leaf shall wither; and the things that I have given them shall pass away from them.

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

14 “Why do we sit still? assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the fortified cities, and let us be silent there; for the Lord our God hath put us to silence, and given us poison-water to drink; because we have sinned 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 hoped for peace, but no happiness is here; for a time of cure, and behold here is terror.”

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

16 From Dan was heard the snorting of his horses; at the sound of the neighing of his war-steeds trembleth the whole land: and they are come, and devour the land, and all that filleth it; the city, and those that dwell therein.

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 For, behold, I will send out against you serpents, basilisks, for which there is no charm, and they shall bite you, saith the Lord.

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

18 When I would cheer myself up against sorrow, my heart within me is pained.

mortally with the pain of your distressed heart.

19 Behold [I hear] the voice of the complaint of the daughter of my people [coming] out of a far-off land: “Is the Lord not in Zion? is her king no more in her?” “Why have they provoked me to anger with their graven images, and with the vanities of the stranger?”

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 harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not yet helped.”

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

21 Because of the breach of the daughter of my people am I broken: I am grieved; astonishment hath taken fast hold on me.

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 [more] balm in Gil'ad? or is no physician there? why then is there not placed a plaster [on the wound of] the daughter of my people?

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?