< Jeremiah 10 >
1 Hear ye the word which Yahweh hath spoken unto you, O house of Israel: —
Hear ye the word which the Lord hath spoken concerning you, O house of Israel.
2 Thus, saith Yahweh—Unto the way of the nations, become not ye accustomed, Nor at the signs of the heavens, be ye dismayed, —Because the nations are dismayed at them.
Thus saith the Lord: Learn not according to the ways of the Gentiles: and be not afraid of the signs of heaven, which the heathens fear:
3 For as for the prescribed customs of the peoples, vanity, they are, —For a tree out of the forest, one cutteth down, Work for the hands of a skilled workman with the axe:
For the laws of the people are vain: for the works of the hand of the workman hath cut a tree out of the forest with an axe.
4 With silver and with gold, he decketh it, —With nails and with hammers, they fasten them, that it may not totter.
He hath decked it with silver and gold: he hath put it together with nails and hammers, that it may not fall asunder.
5 Mere palm-trunks turned, they are and cannot speak, They must needs be, carried, for they cannot take a step, Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do harm, And even to do good, is not in their power.
They are framed after the likeness of a palm tree, and shall not speak: they must be carried to be removed, because they cannot go. Therefore, fear them not, for they can neither do evil nor good.
6 None, there is, like unto thee, O Yahweh, —Great, art, thou, And, great, is thy Name, for might.
There is none like to thee, O Lord: thou art great and great is thy name in might.
7 Who would not revere thee, O King of nations? For, thee, doth it beseem; Forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations And throughout all their royal estate, None, there is like unto thee.
Who shall fear thee, O king of nations? for thine is the glory: among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms there is none like unto thee.
8 But at once, do they become brutish and stupid, —An example of utmost vanity, is, a tree!
They shall all proved together to be senseless and foolish: the doctrine of their vanity is wood.
9 Silver spread into plates, from Tarshish is brought, And gold, from Uphaz, Work for the craftsman and for the hands of the smith, —Blue and purple, is their clothing, Work for the skilled, are they all.
Silver spread into plates is brought from Tharsis, and gold from Ophaz: the work of the artificer, and of the hand of the coppersmith: violet and purple is their clothing: all these things are the work of artificers.
10 But, Yahweh, is God in truth, He, is a God that, liveth, And a King of times age-abiding, —At his anger, quaketh the earth, And nations cannot endure his wrath.
But the Lord is the true God: he is the living God, and the everlasting king, at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his threatening.
11 Thus, shall ye say unto them, The gods that made not the heavens, And the earth, Shall perish out of the earth, And from under these heavens!
Thus then shall you say to them: The gods that have not made heaven and earth, let them perish from the earth, and from among those places that are under heaven.
12 He that made the earth by his power, That established the world by his wisdom, —And by his understanding stretched out the heavens,
He that maketh the earth by his power, that prepareth the world by his wisdom, and stretcheth out the heavens by his knowledge.
13 At the voice that he uttered, there was a tumult of waters in the heavens, And he caused vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth, —The lightnings for rain, he made, And brought forth wind out of his treasuries.
At his voice he giveth a multitude of waters in the heaven, and lifteth up the clouds from the ends of the earth: he maketh lightnings for rain, and bringeth for the wind out of his treasures.
14 Every son of earth hath become too brutish to discern, Every goldsmith, hath been put to shame by a graven image, —For a falsehood, is his molten image, Seeing there is no breath in them.
Every man is become a fool for knowledge every artist is confounded in his graven idol: for what he hath cast is false, and there is no spirit in them.
15 Vanity, they are, the handiwork of mockeries, —In the time of their visitation, shall they perish.
They are vain things and a ridiculous work: in the time of their visitation they shall perish.
16 Not like these, is the portion of Jacob, For the fashioner of all things, is, he, And, Israel, is his inherited sceptre, —Yahweh of hosts, is his name.
The portion of Jacob is not like these: for it is he who formed all things: and Israel is the rod of his inheritance: the Lord of hosts is his name.
17 Fold up, from the ground thy travelling carpet, —O inhabitress of the fortress;
Gather up thy shame out of the land, thou that dwellest in a siege.
18 For, thus, saith Yahweh, Behold me! slinging out the inhabitants of the land at this throw, —And I will distress them that they may discover it.
For thus saith the Lord: Behold I will cast away far off the inhabitants of the land at this time: and I will afflict them, so that they may be found.
19 Woe to me! for my grievous injury, Severe, is my wound, —But, I, said, Verily, this, is an affliction and I must bear it:
Woe is me for my destruction, my wound is very grievous. But I said: Truly this is my own evil, and I will bear it.
20 My tent, is laid waste, And all my tent-cords, are broken, —My children, are gone forth from me and they, are not. There is none, To stretch out any more my tent, Or to set up my curtains.
My tabernacle is laid waste, all my cords are broken: my children are gone out from me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains.
21 For the shepherds, have become brutish, And Yahweh, have they not sought, —For this cause, have they not prospered, And, all their flock, is scattered.
Because the pastors have done foolishly, and have not sought the Lord: therefore have they not understood, and all their flock is scattered.
22 The noise of a rumour! lo it hath come! Even a great commotion out of the land of the North, —To make the cities of Judah, A desolation, A den of jackals.
Behold the sound of a noise cometh, a great commotion out of the land of the north: to make the cities of Juda a desert, and a dwelling for dragons.
23 I know O Yahweh, That not to a son of earth, pertaineth his own path, —Not, to the man who walketh, also to direct his own steps.
I know, O Lord, that the way of a man is not his: neither is it in a man to walk, and to direct his steps.
24 Chastise me, O Yahweh But yet in measure, —Not in thine anger, lest thou make me few.
Correct me, O Lord, but yet with judgement: and not in fury, lest thou bring me to nothing.
25 Pour out thy wrath—Upon the nations that know thee not, and Upon the families that, upon thy Name, have not called, —For they have devoured Jacob Yea they have devoured him and consumed him, And, his habitation, have they made desolate.
Pour out thy indignation upon the nations that have not known thee, and upon the provinces that have not called upon thy name: because they have eaten up Jacob, and devoured him, and consumed him, and have destroyed his glory.