Jeremiah 17

1 “The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, With the point of a diamond, Engraved on the tablet of their heart, And on the horns of your altars,

The sin of Judah, is written With a stylus of iron, With the point of a diamond: It is engraved Upon the tablet of their heart, And upon the horns of your altars;

2 As their sons remember their altars and their Asherim, By the green tree, by the high hills.

So long as their sons remember their altars, and their Sacred Stems, By the green tree, —Upon the high hills,

3 O My mountain in the field—your strength, All your treasures—I give for a prey, Your high places for sin in all your borders.

O my mountain in the field Thy substance all thy treasures, for a prey, will I give: Thy high places for sin, within all thy bounds.

4 And you have let go—even through yourself, Of your inheritance that I gave to you, And I have caused you to serve your enemies, In a land that you have not known, For you have kindled a fire in My anger, It burns for all time.”

So shalt thou even of thyself, suffer to rest the inheritance which I gave thee, Seeing that I will cause thee to serve thine enemies, in the land which thou knowest not; For, a fire, have ye kindled in mine anger, Unto times age-abiding, shall it burn.

5 Thus said YHWH: “Cursed [is] the man who trusts in man, And has made flesh his arm, And whose heart turns from YHWH.

Thus, saith Yahweh Accursed is the man—Who trusteth in a son of earth, And hath made flesh his arm, —And whose heart from Yahweh, turneth aside:

6 And he has been as a naked thing in a desert, And does not see when good comes, And has inhabited parched places in a wilderness, A salt land, and not inhabited.

Therefore shall he become as a shrub in the waste plain, Neither shall he perceive when good cometh, But shall inhabit Parched places in a wilderness, A land of salt that cannot be dwelt in.

7 Blessed [is] the man who trusts in YHWH, And whose confidence has been YHWH.

Blessed is the man Who trusteth in Yahweh, To whom Yahweh is his ground of confidence;

8 And has been as a tree planted by waters, And he sends forth his roots by a stream, And he does not see when heat comes, And his leaf has been green, And he is not sorrowful in a year of scarcity, Nor does he cease from making fruit.

For he shall become like a tree planted by waters, And, by a stream, shall he send out his roots, Neither shall he perceive when heat cometh, But, his leaf shall continue green: Even in a year of dearth, shall he not be anxious, Neither shall he cease from bearing fruit.

9 The heart [is] deceitful above all things, And it [is] incurable—who knows it?

Deceitful is the heart above all things And, dangerously wayward, —Who can know it?

10 I, YHWH, search the heart, try the reins, Even to give to each according to his way, According to the fruit of his doings.

I—Yahweh, Searching the heart, Testing the affections; And giving to every man According to his way, According to the fruit of his doings.

11 A partridge hatching, and not bringing forth, [Is] one making wealth, and not by right, In the midst of his days he forsakes it, And in his latter end—he is a fool.”

As a partridge gathereth eggs she did not lay, [So] is he that maketh riches but not with justice, —In the midst of his days, shall he leave them, And in his latter end, prove to have been base.

12 A throne of glory on high from the beginning, The place of our sanctuary,

A throne of glory, exalted from the beginning, hath been the place of our sanctuary.

13 The hope of Israel [is] YHWH, All forsaking You are ashamed. “And My apostates are written in the earth, For they have forsaken YHWH, A fountain of living waters.”

Thou hope of Israel Yahweh, All who forsake thee, shall turn pale, —Yea, all who depart from me, in the ground, shall be written, For they have forsaken a fountain of living water, even Yahweh.

14 Heal me, O YHWH, and I am healed, Save me, and I am saved, For You [are] my praise.

Heal thou me O Yahweh, that I may be healed, Save me that I may be saved, —For, my praise, thou art!

15 Behold, they are saying to me: “Where [is] the word of YHWH? Pray, let it come.”

Lo! they, are saying unto me, —Where is the word of Yahweh? Pray thee let it come to pass!

16 And I did not hurry from feeding after You, And I have not desired the desperate day, You have known the produce of my lips, It has been before Your face,

But as for me, I have neither forced myself away from tending the flock after thee, Nor yet for the woeful day, have I longed—thou, knowest, —That which came out of my lips, before thy face, was uttered.

17 Do not be to me for a terror, You [are] my hope in a day of calamity.

Do not thou become to me a terror, —My refuge, art thou, in the day of calamity.

18 Let my pursuers be ashamed, And do not let me be ashamed—me! Let them be frightened, And do not let me be frightened—me! Bring in on them a day of calamity, And destroy them a second time [with] destruction.

Let my persecutors, turn pale, but let not me, turn pale, Let, them, be terrified, but let not, me, be terrified, —Bring thou upon them a day of calamity, And with a double fracture, destroy them.

19 Thus said YHWH to me: “Go, and you have stood in the gate of the sons of the people, by which kings of Judah come in, and by which they go out, and in all gates of Jerusalem,

Thus, said Yahweh unto me—Go and stand in the gate of the sons of the people, through which the kings of Judah enter in, and through which they come out, —also in all the gates of Jerusalem.

20 and you have said to them: Hear a word of YHWH, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all inhabitants of Jerusalem, who are coming in by these gates,”

Then shalt thou say unto them—Hear ye the word of Yahweh Ye kings of Judah and all Judah, And all ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, —who enter in through these gates:

21 Thus said YHWH: “Take heed to yourselves, And you do not bear a burden on the day of rest, Nor have you brought [it] in by the gates of Jerusalem.

Thus, saith Yahweh, Take heed unto your souls, —And do not bear any burden on the sabbath day, Nor bring it in through the gates of Jerusalem, —

22 Nor do you take out a burden from your houses on the day of rest, Indeed, you do not do any work, And you have sanctified the day of rest, As I have commanded your fathers.

Neither shall ye take forth any burden out of your houses on the sabbath day, Nor any manner of work, shall ye do, —But ye shall hallow the sabbath day, As I commanded your fathers.

23 And they have not listened nor inclined their ear, And they stiffen their neck not to hear, And not to receive instruction.

Howbeit they hearkened not, neither inclined their ear, —but stiffened their neck, that they might not hearken, neither receive correction.

24 And it has been, if you certainly listen to Me,” A declaration of YHWH, “So as not to bring in a burden by the gates of this city on the day of rest, And to sanctify the day of rest, So as not to do any work in it—

And it shall come to pass, —If ye will, indeed hearken, unto me Declareth Yahweh, To bring in no burden through the gates of this city, on the sabbath day, —But to hallow the sabbath day, by not doing thereon any manner of work,

25 Then kings and princes have entered by the gates of this city, Sitting on the throne of David, Riding in a chariot, and on horses, They, and their princes, the man of Judah, And inhabitants of Jerusalem, And this city has remained for all time.

Then shall enter in through the gates of this city, Kings and princes Sitting on the throne of David, Riding in chariots and on horses They, and their princes, The men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, And this city shall remain unto times age-abiding.

26 And they have come in from cities of Judah, And from outskirts of Jerusalem, And from the land of Benjamin, And from the low country, And from the hill-country, And from the south, Bringing in burnt-offering, and sacrifice, And present, and frankincense, And bringing praise [to] the house of YHWH.

And they shall come in—Out of the cities of Judah and Out of the places round about Jerusalem, and Out of the land of Benjamin, and Out of the lowlands, and out of the hill country, and Out of the South, Bringing in ascending-offering, and peace-offering, and meal-offering, and frankincense, —Even they who bring in a thank-offering into the house of Yahweh,

27 And if you do not listen to Me to sanctify the day of rest, And so as not to bear a burden, And to come in at the gates of Jerusalem on the day of rest, Then I have kindled a fire in its gates, And it has consumed the high places of Jerusalem, And it is not quenched!”

But, if ye will not hearken unto me—To hallow the sabbath day, And to bear no burden and bring in through the gates of Jerusalem, on the sabbath day, Then will I kindle a fire within her gates, And it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, And shall not be quenched.