Jeremiah 4
1 “If you return, O Israel,” A declaration of YHWH, “Return to Me, And if you turn aside Your abominations from My face, Then you do not bemoan.
If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith Jehovah, return unto me; and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not be a wanderer;
2 And you have sworn—YHWH lives, In truth, in judgment, and in righteousness, And nations have blessed themselves in Him, And they boast themselves in Him.”
— and thou shalt in truth, in justice, and in righteousness swear, [As] Jehovah liveth! and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.
3 For thus said YHWH, To the man of Judah, and to Jerusalem: “Till for yourselves tillage, And do not sow to the thorns.
For thus saith Jehovah to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: Break up for you a fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.
4 Be circumcised to YHWH, And turn aside the foreskins of your heart, O man of Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, Lest My fury goes out as fire, and has burned, And there is none quenching, Because of the evil of your doings.”
Circumcise yourselves for Jehovah, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my fury come forth like fire and burn, and there be none to quench it, because of the evil of your doings.
5 Declare in Judah, and sound in Jerusalem, and say: “Blow a horn in the land, Call, Fill up together, And say, Assemble yourselves and let us go into the fortified cities.
Declare ye in Judah, and cause it to be heard in Jerusalem, and say, ...and blow the trumpet in the land, cry aloud and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the fenced cities.
6 Lift up an ensign toward Zion, Strengthen yourselves, do not stand still, For I am bringing evil in from the north, And a great destruction.”
Set up a banner toward Zion; take to flight, stay not! For I am bringing evil from the north, and a great destruction.
7 A lion has gone up from his thicket, And a destroyer of nations has journeyed, He has come forth from his place To make your land become a desolation, Your cities are laid waste, without inhabitant.
The lion is come up from his thicket, the destroyer of the nations is on his way; he is gone forth from his place, to make thy land desolate; thy cities shall be laid waste, without inhabitant.
8 For this, gird on sackcloth, lament and howl, For the fierce anger of YHWH has not turned back from us.
For this, gird you with sackcloth, lament and howl! for the fierce anger of Jehovah is not turned away from us.
9 “And it has come to pass in that day,” A declaration of YHWH, “The heart of the king perishes, And the heart of the princes, And the priests have been astonished, And the prophets wonder.”
And it shall come to pass in that day, saith Jehovah, that the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall be amazed.
10 And I say, “Aah! Lord YHWH, Surely you have entirely forgotten this people and Jerusalem, Saying, Peace is for you, And a sword has struck to the soul!”
And I said, Alas, Lord Jehovah! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.
11 At that time it is said of this people, And of Jerusalem: “A dry wind of high places in the wilderness, The way of the daughter of My people (Not for winnowing, nor for cleansing),
At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A hot wind [cometh] from the heights in the wilderness, on the way of the daughter of my people, not for fanning, nor for cleansing.
12 A full wind from these comes for Me, Now also, I speak judgments with them.”
A wind more vehement than that shall come from me: now will I also pronounce judgments against them.
13 “Behold, he comes up as clouds, And his chariots as a windstorm, His horses have been lighter than eagles, Woe to us, for we have been spoiled.”
Behold, he cometh up as clouds, and his chariots are as a whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are destroyed.
14 Wash evil from your heart, O Jerusalem, That you may be saved, Until when do you lodge in your heart Thoughts of your strength?
Wash thy heart, Jerusalem, from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?
15 For a voice is declaring from Dan, And sounding sorrow from Mount Ephraim:
For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount Ephraim.
16 “Make mention to the nations, Behold, sound to Jerusalem, Besiegers are coming from the far-off land, And they give forth their voice against cities of Judah.
Inform the nations; behold, make Jerusalem to hear: Besiegers come from a far country, and raise their voice against the cities of Judah.
17 As the keepers of a field They have been against her all around, For she has been rebellious with Me,” A declaration of YHWH.
As keepers of a field are they against her round about; for she hath been rebellious against me, saith Jehovah.
18 “Your way and your doings have done these to you, This [is] your distress, for [it is] bitter, For it has struck to your heart.”
Thy way and thy doings have procured these [things] unto thee; this is thy wickedness, yea, it is bitter, yea, it reacheth unto thy heart.
19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained [in] the walls of my heart, My heart makes a noise for me, I am not silent, For I have heard the voice of a horn, O my soul—a shout of battle!
My bowels! my bowels! I am in travail! [Oh, ] the walls of my heart! My heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace: for thou hearest, my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the clamour of war.
20 Destruction on destruction is proclaimed, For all the land has been spoiled, My tents have suddenly been spoiled, In a moment—my curtains.
Destruction upon destruction is proclaimed; for the whole land is wasted: suddenly are my tents laid waste, my curtains, in a moment.
21 Until when do I see an ensign? Do I hear the voice of a horn?
How long shall I see the standard, [and] hear the sound of the trumpet?
22 “For My people [are] foolish, They have not known Me, They [are] foolish sons, Indeed, they [are] not intelligent, They [are] wise to do evil, And they have not known to do good.”
For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have no intelligence; they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.
23 I looked [to] the earth, and behold—formless and void, And to the heavens, and they [had] no light.
I beheld the earth, and lo, it was waste and empty; and the heavens, and they had no light.
24 I have looked [to] the mountains, And behold, they are trembling. And all the hills moved themselves lightly.
I beheld the mountains, and lo, they trembled, and all the hills shook violently.
25 I have looked, and behold, man is not, And all birds of the heavens have fled.
I beheld, and lo, man was not, and all the fowl of the heavens were fled.
26 I have looked, and behold, The fruitful place [is] a wilderness, And all its cities have been broken down, Because of YHWH, Because of the fierceness of His anger.
I beheld, and lo, the fruitful land was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down, before Jehovah, before his fierce anger.
27 For thus said YHWH: “All the land is a desolation, but I do not make a completion.
For thus saith Jehovah: The whole land shall be a desolation; but I will not make a full end.
28 For this the earth mourns, And the heavens above have been black, Because I have spoken—I have purposed, And I have not relented, Nor do I turn back from it.
For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black; because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I turn back therefrom.
29 From the voice of the horseman, And of him shooting with the bow, All the city is fleeing, They have come into thickets, And they have gone up on cliffs, All the city is forsaken, And there is no one dwelling in them.
At the noise of the horsemen and bowmen, every city fleeth; they go into the thickets, and climb up upon the rocks: every city is forsaken and no man dwelleth therein.
30 And you, O spoiled one, what do you do? For you put on scarlet, For you adorn yourself [with] ornaments of gold. For you tear your eyes with pain, In vain you make yourself beautiful, Unhealthy ones have kicked against you, They seek your life.
— And thou, wasted one, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rendest thine eyes with paint, in vain dost thou make thyself fair: [thy] lovers despise thee, they seek thy life.
31 For I have heard a voice as of a travailing woman, Distress, as of one bringing forth a firstborn, The voice of the daughter of Zion, She laments herself, She spreads out her hands, Woe to me now, my soul is weary of slayers!”
For I hear a voice, as of a woman in travail, anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion: she moaneth, she spreadeth forth her hands, [saying], Woe unto me! for my soul faileth because of murderers.
