Jeremiah 10

1 Hear the word, O house of Israel, That YHWH has spoken for you.

Hear ye the word which the Lord hath spoken concerning you, O house of Israel:

2 Thus said YHWH: “Do not accustom yourselves to the way of the nations, And do not be frightened by the signs of the heavens, For the nations are frightened by them.

Thus hath said the Lord, Do not habituate yourselves on the way of the nations, and at the signs of the heavens be ye not dismayed; although the nations should be dismayed at them.

3 For the statutes of the peoples are vanity, For one has cut a tree from a forest, Work of the hands of a craftsman, with an axe,

For the statutes of these people concern what is vanity; for it is but a tree which a man hath cut out of a forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.

4 They beautify it with silver and with gold, They fix it with nails and with hammers, And it does not stumble.

With silver and with gold do they ornament it; with nails and with hammers do they fasten it, that it move not from its place.

5 They [are] stiff as a palm, and they do not speak, They are surely carried, for they do not step, Do not be afraid of them, for they do no evil, Indeed, to do good is also not in them.”

As a wrought-out palm-like column are they, and cannot speak; they must needs be borne, because they cannot step along. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do any harm, so also to do any good is not in them.

6 Because there is none like You, O YHWH, You [are] great, and Your Name [is] great in might.

Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O Lord: thou [alone] art great, and great is thy name in might.

7 Who does not fear You, King of the nations? For it is befitting to You, For among all the wise of the nations, And in all their kingdom, there is none like You.

Who would not fear thee, O King of the nations? for to thee doth it appertain; because among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, [they say] there is none like unto thee.

8 And as one they are brutish and foolish, An instruction of vanities [is] the tree itself.

But at once shall they be shown to be brutish and foolish: it is a doctrine of vanities, it concerneth but wood.

9 Spread-out silver is brought from Tarshish, And gold from Uphaz, Work of an artisan, and of the hands of a refiner, Their clothing [is] blue and purple, Work of the skillful—all of them.

The beaten out silver is brought from Tharshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the hands of the goldsmith: blue and purple is their clothing; the work of skilful men are they all.

10 And YHWH [is] a God of truth, He [is] a living God, and a perpetual King, The earth shakes from His wrath, And nations do not endure His indignation.

But the Lord God is the truth, he is the living God, and the everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall quake, and nations cannot endure his indignation.

11 Thus you say to them, “The gods who have not made the heavens and earth, They perish from the earth, And from under these heavens.”

Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, shall perish away from the earth, and from under these heavens.

12 The Maker of the earth by His power, The Establisher of the world by His wisdom, Who, by His understanding, stretched forth the heavens—

He made the earth by his power, he established the world by his wisdom, and by his understanding he stretched out the heavens.

13 When He gives forth His voice, A multitude of waters [is] in the heavens, And He causes vapors to come up from the end of the earth, He has made lightnings for rain, And brings out wind from His treasures.

At the sound when he giveth a multitude of waters in the heavens, and causeth clouds to ascend from the ends of the earth; when he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures:

14 Every man is brutish by knowledge, Every refiner is put to shame by a carved image, For his molten image [is] false. And there is no breath in them.

Then standeth every man as brutish without knowledge; ashamed is every goldsmith because of the graven image; for falsehood is his molten work, and there is no breath therein.

15 They [are] vanity, work of erring ones, They perish in the time of their inspection.

They are vanity, the work of deception; in the time of their punishment shall they vanish.

16 The Portion of Jacob [is] not like these, For He [is] the Framer of all things, And Israel [is] the rod of His inheritance, YHWH of Hosts [is] His Name.

Not like these is the portion of Jacob; for he is the former of all things; and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance: The Lord of hosts is his name.

17 Gather your merchandise from the land, O dweller in the bulwark,

Gather up thy wares from the ground, O inhabitress of the beleaguered city.

18 For thus said YHWH: “Behold, I am slinging out the inhabitants of the land at this time, And have been an adversary to them, So that they are found out.”

For thus hath said the Lord, Behold, I will cast forth as with a sling the inhabitants of the land at this time, and I will enclose them, in order that they may find them.

19 Woe to me for my breaking, My striking has been grievous, And I said, “Surely this [is] my sickness, and I bear it.”

Woe is me for my breach! my wound is painful; but I thought, This is but pain, and I shall be able to bear it.

20 My tent has been spoiled, And all my cords have been broken, My sons have gone out from me, and they are not, There is none stretching out my tent anymore, And raising up my curtains.

[But now] my tent is laid waste, and all my cords are torn asunder; my children are gone away from me, and they are not [here]; there is no one to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.

21 For the shepherds have become brutish, And they have not sought YHWH, Therefore they have not acted wisely, And all their flock is scattered.

For the shepherds were brutish, and the Lord had they not sought; therefore have they not prospered, and all their flocks are scattered.

22 A voice of a report, behold, it has come, Even a great shaking from the north country, To make the cities of Judah a desolation, A habitation of dragons.

Behold, the noise of the report is come, and a great commotion out of the north country, to render the cities of Judah desolate, a dwelling for monsters.

23 I have known, O YHWH, that not of man [is] his way, Not of man [is] the going and establishing of his step.

I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in his own power: it is not in man that passeth away to direct his own steps.

24 Discipline me, O YHWH, only in judgment, Not in Your anger, lest You make me small.

Correct me, O Lord, but with justice; not in thy anger, lest thou bring me to nothing.

25 Pour out Your fury on the nations that have not known You, And on the families that have not called on Your Name, For they have eaten up Jacob, Indeed, they have eaten him up, indeed, they consume him, And they have made his habitation desolate!

Pour out thy fury over the nations that know thee not, and over the families that have not called on thy name; for they have eaten up Jacob, and devoured him, and consumed him, and have made his dwelling desolate.