Jeremiah 6
1 Take your goods into safety, ye sons of Benjamin out of the midst of Jerusalem, And in Tekoa, blow ye a horn, And on Beth-haccherem, raise a fire-signal, —For calamity, hath looked out from the North, Even a great destruction.
Find safety, people of Benjamin, by leaving Jerusalem. Blow a trumpet in Tekoa. Raise up over Beth Hakkerem a signal, since wickedness is appearing from the north; a great crushing is coming.
2 To a comely and delicate woman, have I likened the daughter of Zion:
The daughter of Zion, the beautiful and delicate woman, will be destroyed.
3 Against her, shall come shepherds with their flocks; They have pitched against her their tents, round about, They tend their flocks every one near at hand.
The shepherds and their flocks will go to them; they will set up tents against her all around; each man will shepherd with his own hand.
4 Hallow ye against her a war, Arise! and let us go up in broad noon. Woe to us, for the day, hath turned, for the shadows of evening, stretch along.
“Dedicate yourselves to the gods for the battle. Arise, let us attack at noon. It is too bad that the daylight is fading away, that the evening shadows are falling.
5 Arise! and let us go up in the night, And let us destroy her palaces.
But let us attack at night and destroy her fortresses.”
6 For, Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, Cut ye down timber, And cast up, against Jerusalem a mound, —That, is the city to be punished! There is, nothing, but oppression in her midst;
For Yahweh of hosts says this: Cut her trees, and heap up siegeworks against Jerusalem. This is the right city to attack, because it is filled with oppression.
7 Like the casting forth by a well of its waters, So, hath she cast forth her wickedness, —Violence and destruction, are heard in her, Before my face, continually, are suffering and smiting.
As a well pours out fresh water, so this city keeps producing wickedness. Violence and disorder are heard within her; sickness and wounds are continually before my face.
8 Receive thou correction O Jerusalem, Lest my soul be torn from thee, —Lest I make thee A desolation, A land not habitable.
Accept discipline, Jerusalem, or I will turn away from you and make you into a ruin, an uninhabited land.'”
9 Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts, They shall thoroughly glean as a vine the remnant of Israel—Turn back thy hand, as a grape gatherer over the tendrils.
Yahweh of hosts says this, “They will certainly glean those who are left in Israel like a vineyard. Reach out again with your hand to pick grapes from the vines.
10 Unto whom, can I speak—and bear witness, that they may hear? Lo! uncircumcised, is their ear, that they cannot attend, —Lo! the word of Yahweh, hath become to them a reproach, they take no delight therein.
To whom should I declare and warn so they will listen? Look! Their ears are uncircumcised; they are not able to pay attention! Look! The word of Yahweh has come to them to correct them, but they do not want it.”
11 So then, with the indignation of Yahweh, am I full, I am too weary to hold it in, [I am constrained] to pour it out, upon the boy in the street, and upon the circle of young men, together, —For, even husband with wife, will be captured, The elder with him who is full of days;
But I am filled with Yahweh's fury. I am tired of holding it in. He said, to me, “Pour it out on the children in the streets and on the groups of young men. For every man will be taken away with his wife; and every old person heavy with years.
12 And their houses shall be turned over to others, Fields and wives together, —For I will stretch out my hand against the inhabitants of the land, Declareth Yahweh.
Their houses will be turned over to others, both their fields and their wives together. For I will attack the inhabitants of the land with my hand—this is Yahweh's declaration.
13 For, from the least of them, even unto the greatest of them, Every one, graspeth with greed, —And from the prophet even unto the priest, Every one, dealeth, falsely;
Yahweh declares that from the least to the greatest, all of them are greedy for dishonest gain. From the prophet to the priest, all of them practice deceit.
14 And so they have healed the grievous wound of my people, slightly, Saying, Peace, peace, when there was no peace,
They have healed the wounds of my people lightly, saying, 'Peace, Peace,' when there is no peace.
15 Were they led to turn pale because an abominable thing, they had done! Nay! they did not, at all turn pale, Nay! they did not so much as know how, to exhibit shame, Therefore, shall they fall among them who are falling, In the time when I punish them, shall they be overthrown, Saith Yahweh.
Were they ashamed when they practiced abominations? They were not ashamed; they did not know how to blush! So they will fall among the fallen; they will be brought down when they are punished, says Yahweh.
16 Thus saith Yahweh—Stand ye at the ways—and see, And ask for the paths of age-past times, Where is the good way? And walk therein, And ye shall find rest to your souls. But they said, We will not walk [therein]!
Yahweh says this, “Stand at the road crossing and look; ask for the ancient pathways. 'Where is this good way?' Then go on it and find a resting place for yourselves. But the people say, 'We will not go.'
17 Therefore will I raise up over you, watchmen, Give ye heed to the sound of a horn, —But they said, We will not give heed!
I appointed for you watchmen to listen for the trumpet. But they said, 'We will not listen.'
18 Therefore, hear O ye nations, —And take knowledge O assembly, Of that which befalleth them:
Therefore, nations, listen! See, you witnesses, what will happen to them.
19 Hear thou—O earth, Lo! I, am bringing in Calamity against this people the fruit of their own devices, —For unto my words, have they not given heed, And as for my law, they have rejected it.
Hear, earth! See, I am about to bring disaster to this people—the fruit of their thoughts. They paid no attention to my word or law, but they instead rejected it.”
20 What then is it to me that—Frankincense from Shebah come in, or Sweet cane from a land afar off? Your own ascending-offerings, are not acceptable, Nor are, your sacrifices, pleasing to me.
“What does this frankincense going up from Sheba mean to me? Or these sweet smells from a distant land? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable to me, nor are your sacrifices.
21 Wherefore, Thus, saith Yahweh, Behold me! laying before this people, stumblingblocks, —And fathers and sons together, shall stumble against them, The neighbour and his friend, shall perish.
So Yahweh says this, 'See, I am about to place a stumbling block against this people. They will stumble over it—fathers and sons together. Inhabitants and their neighbors will also perish.'
22 Thus, saith Yahweh, Lo! a people coming in from the land of the North, —Yea a great nation, shall be stirred up out of the remote parts of the earth:
Yahweh says this, 'See, a people is coming from the land of the north, a great nation is being stirred up from the farthest parts of the earth.
23 Bow and javelin, shall they grasp, Cruel, is he! So they will not have compassion, Their voice, like the sea, will roar, And on horses, will they ride, —Arrayed each one, like a man for battle, Against thee, O daughter of Zion!
They will pick up bows and spears. They are cruel and have no compassion. Their sound is like the sea roar, and they are riding on horses, set out in order as men for battle, against you, daughter of Zion.'”
24 We have heard the report thereof, Relaxed are our hands, —Anguish, hath taken hold on us, Pangs, as on her that is giving birth.
We have heard the reports about them and our hands fall limp in distress. Anguish seizes us as a woman giving birth.
25 Do not go out into the field, And in the road, do not walk, -Because a sword, hath the foe, —Terror round about!
Do not go out to the fields, and do not walk on the roads, for the swords of the enemy and terror are all around.
26 O daughter of my people Gird thee with sackcloth and roll thyself in ashes, —The mourning for an only son, make thou for thyself, Most bitter lamentation! For suddenly, shall the destroyer come upon us.
Daughter of my people, put on sackcloth and roll in ashes; mourn with painful sobs as for an only son, for the destroyer will suddenly come upon us.
27 An assayer, have I set thee amongst my people, of gold-ore, —That thou mayest note and try their way:
“I have made you, Jeremiah, one who tests my people like one would test metal, so you will inspect and test their ways.
28 They all, are rebels of rebels, Slander-walkers [They are] bronze and iron! As for them all, corrupters, they are!
They are all the most stubborn of people, who go about slandering others. All of them are bronze and iron, acting corruptly.
29 Scorched are the bellows, By fire, is lead wont to be, consumed, —In vain, hath he gone on refining, For the wicked, have not been drawn out:
The bellows are scorched by the fire that is burning them; the lead is consumed in the flames. The refining continues among them, but it is useless, because the evil is not removed.
30 Rejected silver, are they called, For, Yahweh, hath rejected them.
They will be called rejected silver, for Yahweh has rejected them.”
