Jeremiah 5

1 “Go to and fro in streets of Jerusalem, And see now and know, And seek in her broad places, If you find a man, If there is one doing judgment, Seeking steadfastness—Then I am propitious to her.

Run ye through the streets of Jerusalem, [[saith Jehovah, ]] And see now, and know, and seek in her broad places If ye can find a single man, If there be one that doeth justice, That seeketh uprightness, And I will forgive her.

2 And if they say, YHWH lives, Surely they swear to a falsehood.”

Yea, though they say, “As Jehovah liveth!” Yet do they swear falsely.

3 YHWH, Your eyes, are they not on steadfastness? You have struck them, and they have not grieved, You have consumed them, They have refused to receive instruction, They made their faces harder than a rock, They have refused to turn back.

Are not thine eyes upon the truth, O Jehovah! Thou hast smitten them, but they have not grieved; Thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction; They have made their faces harder than a rock; They have refused to return.

4 And I said, “Surely these [are] poor, They have been foolish, For they have not known the way of YHWH, The judgment of their God.

Then I said, These are only the poor; They are foolish, because they know not the way of Jehovah, The law of their God.

5 I go to the great, and I speak with them, For they have known the way of YHWH, The judgment of their God.” Surely they have broken the yoke together, They have drawn away the bands.

I will get me to the great ones, And I will speak to them; For they know the way of Jehovah, The law of their God. But these also have together broken the yoke; They have burst the bands.

6 Therefore a lion out of the forest has struck them, A wolf of the deserts spoils them, A leopard is watching over their cities, Everyone who is going out of them is torn, For their transgressions have been many, Their backslidings have been mighty.

Therefore the lion out of the forest shall slay them, And the evening wolf shall destroy them. The leopard shall keep watch upon their cities; Every one that goeth out from them shall be torn in pieces; Because their transgressions are multiplied, Their rebellions are increased.

7 “I am not propitious to you for this, Your sons have forsaken Me, And are satisfied by [those who are] not gods, I satisfy them, and they commit adultery, And at the house of a harlot They gather themselves together.

How can I pardon thee for this? [[saith Jehovah; ]] Thy children have forsaken me, And sworn by them that are no gods. I have fed them to the full, yet do they commit adultery, And assemble themselves in crowds in the house of the harlot.

8 Fed horses—they have been early risers, They each neigh to the wife of his neighbor.

They are as well-fed horses in the morning; Every one neigheth after his neighbor's wife.

9 Do I not lay a charge for these?” A declaration of YHWH, “And on a nation such as this, Does My soul not avenge itself?

Shall I not punish for these things, saith Jehovah? Shall I not avenge myself on such a nation as this?

10 Go up on her walls, and destroy, And I do not make a completion, Turn her branches aside, For they [are] not YHWH’s,

Go ye up upon her walls and destroy! Yet make ye not a full end! Take ye away her branches, For they belong not to Jehovah!

11 For the house of Israel has dealt treacherously against Me, And the house of Judah,” A declaration of YHWH.

For they have proved false to me, The house of Israel and the house of Judah, saith Jehovah.

12 They have lied against YHWH, And they say, “[It is] not He, Nor does evil come in against us, Indeed, we do not see sword and famine.

They have denied Jehovah, And have said, “It is not He; Evil shall not come upon us, Nor shall we see sword or famine.

13 And the prophets become wind, And the word is not in them, Thus it is done to them.”

The prophets are but wind, And the word is not in them; Thus may it happen to them!”

14 Therefore, thus said YHWH, God of Hosts: “Because of your speaking this word, Behold, I am making My words become fire in your mouth, And this people wood, And it has devoured them.

Therefore thus saith Jehovah, God of hosts: Because ye say such things, Behold, I will make thy words in thy mouth fire, And this people wood, And it shall devour them.

15 Behold, I am bringing against you a nation from afar, O house of Israel,” A declaration of YHWH, “It [is] a strong nation, It [is] an ancient nation, A nation whose tongue you do not know, Nor understand what it speaks.

Behold, I will bring against you a nation from afar, O house of Israel, saith Jehovah; It is a mighty nation; It is an ancient nation; A nation whose language thou dost not know, And whose words thou canst not understand.

16 Its quiver [is] as an open tomb, All of them—mighty ones.

Their quiver is like an open sepulchre; They are all mighty men.

17 And it has consumed your harvest and your bread, They consume your sons, and your daughters, It consumes your flock, and your herd, It consumes your vine and your fig tree, It makes your fortified cities poor, In which you are trusting—by the sword.

They shall consume thy harvest and thy bread; They shall consume thy sons and thy daughters; They shalt consume thy sheep and thy oxen; They shall consume thy vine and thy fig-tree; They shall destroy with the sword thy fortified cities, In which thou placest thy trust.

18 And even in those days,” A declaration of YHWH, “I do not make you a completion.

Yet even in those days, saith Jehovah, I will not make a full end with you.

19 And it has come to pass, when you say, Why has our God YHWH done all these [things] to us? That you have said to them, As you have forsaken Me, And serve the gods of a foreigner in your land, So you serve strangers in a land [that is] not yours.

And when they shall say, Wherefore hath Jehovah our God brought all these things upon us? Then shalt thou say to them, “As ye have forsaken me, And served strange gods in your land, So shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.”

20 Declare this in the house of Jacob, And sound it in Judah, saying,

Declare ye this in the house of Jacob, And publish it in Judah, saying:

21 Now hear this, O people, foolish and without heart, They have eyes, and they do not see, They have ears, and they do not hear.

Hear ye now this, O foolish people and without understanding, Who have eyes and see not, Who have ears and hear not!

22 Do you not fear Me?” A declaration of YHWH; “Are you not pained from My presence? Who has made sand the border of the sea, A perpetual limit, and it does not pass over it, They shake themselves, and they are not able, Indeed, its billows have sounded, and they do not pass over.

Will ye not fear me, saith Jehovah? Will ye not tremble before me, Who appointed the sand a bound to the sea, A perpetual barrier, which it cannot pass? Though the waves thereof toss themselves, Yet do they not prevail, Though they roar, yet can they not pass over it.

23 And this people has an apostatizing and rebelling heart, They have turned aside, and they go on.

But this people hath a revolting and rebellious heart; They revolt continually.

24 And they have not said in their heart, Now let us fear our God YHWH, who is giving rain, The autumn rain and the spring rain, in its season, He keeps the appointed weeks of harvest for us.

Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear Jehovah our God, Who giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in its season, And secureth to us the appointed weeks of the harvest.

25 Your iniquities have turned these away, And your sins have kept the good from you.

Your iniquities have turned away these things, And your sins have withholden that which is good from you.

26 For the wicked have been found among My people. He watches like one who sets snares, They have set up a trap—they capture men.

For among my people are found wicked men, Who lie on the watch like fowlers; They set a trap that they may catch men.

27 As a cage full of birds, So their houses are full of deceit, Therefore they have been great, and are rich.

As a cage is full of birds, So are their houses full of fraud. Therefore are they grown great and rich;

28 They have been fat, they have shone, Indeed, they have surpassed the acts of the evil, They have not judged judgment, The judgment of the fatherless—and they prosper, And they have not judged the judgment of the needy.

They have become fat and shine; Yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked; They maintain no cause, No cause of the fatherless, and they prosper; And the right of the needy do they not defend.

29 Do I not inspect for these,” A declaration of YHWH, “On a nation such as this, Does My soul not avenge itself?

Shall I not punish for these things, saith Jehovah? Shall I not be avenged on such a nation as this?

30 An astonishing and horrible thing has been in the land:

Astonishing and horrible is that which is done in this land;

31 The prophets have prophesied falsely, And the priests bear rule by their means, And My people have loved [it] so, And what do they do at its latter end?”

The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule under their guidance, And my people love to have it so. But what will ye do in the end of it?