Jeremiah 18

1 The word that came unto Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying:

The word that has been to Jeremiah from YHWH, saying,

2 Arise and go down to the house of the potter, —and, there, will I cause thee to hear my words.

“Rise, and you have gone down [to] the potter’s house, and there I cause you to hear My words”;

3 So I went down, to the house of the potter, —and there he was! making a piece of work on the wheels,

and I go down [to] the potter’s house, and behold, he is doing a work on the stones,

4 Then was marred, the vessel that he was making, while yet it was clay in the hand of the potter, —so he turned and made of it another vessel, as seemed right in the eyes of the potter to make it.

and the vessel that he is making is marred, as clay in the hand of the potter, and he has turned and he makes it another vessel, as it was right in the eyes of the potter to make.

5 Then came the word of Yahweh unto me, saying:

And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying,

6 Like this potter, can I not deal with you O house of Israel? Demandeth Yahweh: Lo! as clay in the hand of the potter, So, are, ye, in my hand O house of Israel.

“O house of Israel, am I not able to do to you as this potter?” A declaration of YHWH. “Behold, as clay in the hand of the potter, So [are] you in My hand, O house of Israel.

7 The moment I speak, concerning a nation or concerning a kingdom, —to pull up and to break down, and to destroy;

The moment I speak concerning a nation, And concerning a kingdom, To pluck up and to break down, and to destroy,

8 and that nation return from its wickedness against whom I have spoken, then will I repent concerning the calamity which I had devised to bring upon it.

And that nation has turned from its evil, Because I have spoken against it, Then I have relented of the calamity that I thought to do to it.

9 And, the moment I speak, concerning a nation or concerning a kingdom, —to build and to plant;

And the moment I speak concerning a nation, And concerning a kingdom, to build, and to plant,

10 and it commit wickedness in mine eyes, in not hearkening unto my voice, then will I repent concerning the good wherewith I had said I would do it good.

And it has done evil in My eyes, So as not to listen to My voice, Then I have relented of the good That I have spoken of doing to it.

11 Now, therefore, I pray thee, speak unto the men of Judah and concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem saying, Thus, saith Yahweh, —Lo! I am fashioning against you calamity, and devising against you, a device, —Return I pray you every man from his wicked way, And amend your ways and your doings.

And now, speak now to men of Judah, And against inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus said YHWH: Behold, I am framing calamity against you, And devising a scheme against you; Please turn back, each from his evil way, And amend your ways and your doings.”

12 And, since they will say, Hopeless! For after our own devices, will we walk, And, every one, the stubbornness of his own wicked heart, will we do!

And they have said, “It is incurable, For we go after our own plans, And each of us does the stubbornness of his evil heart.”

13 Therefore, Thus saith Yahweh, Ask I pray you among the nations, —Who hath heard such things as these? A very horrible thing, hath, the virgin, Israel done!

Therefore, thus said YHWH: “Now ask among the nations, Who has heard such things? The virgin of Israel has done a very horrible thing.

14 Shall the snow of Lebanon, fail from the rock of the field? Or shall waters from afar, deep, overflowing, be dried up?

Does snow of Lebanon Cease from the rock of the field? Will the cold strange [waters] that are flowing be forsaken?

15 Yet my people have forgotten me, Unto vanity, have they been burning incense; And it hath caused them to stumble In their ways The roads of age-past times, To walk in by-paths—A way not cast up.

But My people have forgotten Me, they make incense to a vain thing, And they cause them to stumble in their ways—paths of old, To walk in paths—a way not raised up,

16 To make their land a desolation The hissings of age-abiding times, —Every one that passeth by her, shall be astonished and wag his head.

To make their land become a desolation, A continuous hissing, Everyone passing by it is astonished, And bemoans with his head.

17 Like an east wind, will I scatter them before the enemy, —The back and not the face, will I let them see in the day of their distress.

I scatter them before an enemy as with an east wind, I show them the neck and not the face, In the day of their calamity.”

18 Then said they, —Come ye and let us devise against Jeremiah devices, For the law shall not perish from the priest, Nor, counsel, from the wise, Nor, the word from the prophet: Come and let as smite him with the tongue, And let us not give ear to any of his words!

And they say, “Come, And we devise schemes against Jeremiah, For law does not perish from the priest, Nor counsel from the wise, Nor the word from the prophet, Come, and we strike him with the tongue, And we do not attend to any of his words.”

19 Give thou ear O Yahweh unto me, —And hearken unto the voice of mine accusers.

Give attention, O YHWH, to me, And listen to the voice of those contending with me.

20 Shall, evil, be recompensed for good? For they have digged a pit for my life, —Remember how I stood before thee To speak in their behalf what was good! To turn back thine indignation from them.

Is evil repaid instead of good, That they have dug a pit for my soul? Remember my standing before You to speak good of them, To turn back Your wrath from them.

21 Therefore, give thou up their sons to the famine And deliver them into the hands of the sword, And let their, wives, become, childless and widows, And let, their men, be slain by death, Their young men be smitten by the sword in battle.

Therefore, give up their sons to famine, And cause them to run on the sides of the sword, And their wives are bereaved and widows, And their men are slain by death, Their young men [are] struck by sword in battle,

22 Let there be heard a cry out of their houses, When thou shalt bring in upon them a troop, suddenly, —Because they digged a pit to capture me, And snares, did they hide for my feet.

A cry is heard from their houses, For You suddenly bring a troop against them, For they dug a pit to capture me, And they have hidden snares for my feet.

23 But, thou, O Yahweh, knowest all their counsels against me to put me to death, Put thou no propitiatory-covering over their iniquity, And their sin from before thee, do not thou blot out, —But let them be overthrown before thee, In the time of thine anger, deal thou effectively with them.

And You, O YHWH, You have known, All their counsel against me [is] for death, You do not cover over their iniquity, Nor blot out their sin from before You, And they are made to stumble before You, Work against them in the time of Your anger!