Jeremiah 4
1 Yahweh says, “You Israeli [people], come back to me! If you get rid of those detestable idols and do not turn away from me [again],
If thou wilt return to me, O Israel, saith Jehovah, Thou shalt return [[to thy land]]; If thou wilt put away thy abominations from my sight, Thou shalt no more be a wanderer [[in a foreign land]].
2 and if you declare, ‘Just as surely as Yahweh lives, what he says is true,’ and if you [start to] always say what is true and act justly/fairly and righteously, then the [people in the other] nations [of the world] will request that I bless them [as I have blessed you], and they will [all come and] honor/praise me.”
If thou wilt swear, As Jehovah liveth! In truth, in justice, and in righteousness, Then shall the nations bless themselves by thee, And in thee shall they glory.
3 This is what Yahweh says to the people of Jerusalem and [the other cities in] Judah: “[Prepare yourselves to receive my messages] like farmers plow up hard ground [in order that they can plant seed in it]. Just as farmers do not [waste good seed by] sowing seeds among thorny plants, [I do not want to waste my time telling you messages that you are not ready to receive].
Thus saith Jehovah to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: Break up your fallow ground, And sow not among thorns!
4 Purify your inner beings and your minds for me. If you do not do that, my being angry with you [MTY] because of [all] the sins that you have committed will be like a fire that will be impossible to extinguish.”
Circumcise yourselves to Jehovah; Yea, circumcise your hearts, Ye men of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Lest, for the evil of your doings, My fury break forth like fire, And burn so that none can quench it.
5 “Declare this [DOU] to [all the people in] Jerusalem and [the rest of] Judea; blow the trumpets everywhere in the land [to warn the people]. Tell them that they should flee to the cities that have high walls around them.
Declare ye in Judah, And proclaim in Jerusalem, and say, Blow ye the trumpet in the land; Cry ye aloud, and say, Gather yourselves together, And let us go into the fortified cities;
6 Shout to the people of Jerusalem, ‘Run away [now]! Do not delay, because I am about to cause you to experience a terrible disaster [DOU] that will come from the north.
Set up a standard toward Zion, Flee, make no stand! For I am about to bring evil from the north, Even great destruction.
7 [An army] that has destroyed [many] nations will attack you [like] [MET] a lion that comes out of its den [to attack other animals]. [The soldiers of that army] have taken down their tents and they are ready to march toward your land. They will destroy your cities and leave them without any people still living in them.’
The lion goeth up from his thicket, The destroyer of nations is on his way; He goeth forth from his place to make thy land desolate; Thy cities shall be laid waste so as to be without an inhabitant.
8 So, put on sackcloth/rough clothes and weep and beat your chests [to show that you are very sorry for what you have done], because Yahweh is still very angry with us.
For this cause gird on sackcloth, Lament and howl! For the fierce anger of Jehovah is not turned away from us.
9 Yahweh said that at the time [he punishes you], the King of Judah and [all his] officials will be very afraid. The priests and the prophets will be terrified.
In that day, saith Jehovah, Shall the heart of the king perish, And the heart of the princes; The priests shall be amazed, And the prophets confounded.
10 Then I replied, “Yahweh [my] God, you completely deceived the people by telling them that there would be peace in Jerusalem, but now [our enemies] [PRS] are ready to slaughter us with their swords!”
Then said I, Alas, O Lord Jehovah! Surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem; Thou hast said, “Ye shall have peace”; And the sword reacheth to the very life!
11 When that happens, [Yahweh] will say to the people of Jerusalem, [“A huge army will come to attack you]. They will not [be like a gentle breeze that] separates wheat from chaff. [They will be like] a very hot wind [that blows in] from the desert [MET].
At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem: A dry wind cometh from the hills of the desert, It cometh toward my people, Not to fan, nor to cleanse.
12 [They will be like] [MET] a strong blast that I will send. Now I am declaring that I will punish/destroy you.”
Yea, a wind stronger than this shall come; Now will I myself give sentence against them.
13 [Our enemies] are about to rush down on us; their chariots are like [SIM] whirlwinds. Their horses are faster than eagles. It will be terrible for us!
Behold, he cometh up like clouds, And his chariots are like a whirlwind; His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us! for we are laid waste!
14 [You people of] Jerusalem [APO], purify your hearts/inner beings, in order that Yahweh will rescue you. How long will you continue to think about [doing] evil things?
Wash thy heart from wickedness, O Jerusalem, That thou mayst be saved! How long shall thy evil devices lodge within thee?
15 From Dan [city in the far north] to the hills of Ephraim [a few miles/kilometers north of Jerusalem] messengers are proclaiming that disasters are coming.
For a voice proclaimeth tidings from Dan, And announceth calamity from mount Ephraim.
16 Tell this to the [people in other] nations [but also] announce it in Jerusalem: [Yahweh says], “An army is coming to Jerusalem from far away; they will shout [a battle-cry] against the cities in Judah.
Proclaim ye to the nations, Behold, publish ye to Jerusalem, “Watchmen are coming from a far country, And lift their voice against the cities of Judah.”
17 They will set up tents around Jerusalem like people set up temporary shelters [SIM] around a field [at harvest time]. That will happen because the people of Judah have rebelled against me.
Like keepers of fields are they round about her Because she hath rebelled against me, saith Jehovah.
18 You will be punished very severely; it will [be as though a sword] has stabbed your inner beings. But you are causing those things to happen to you because of the evil things that you have done.”
Thy way and thy doings have brought this upon thee; This is the fruit of thy wickedness; It is bitter; it reacheth to thy heart.
19 I am extremely anguished/sad; the pain in my inner being is very severe. My heart beats wildly. But I cannot remain silent because I have heard [our enemies] blowing their trumpets to announce that the battle [against Judah will start immediately].
O my breast, my breast! I am pained in the walls of my heart; My heart trembleth within me; I cannot be silent; For thou hearest, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, The alarm of war!
20 Disasters will occur one after another until the whole land is ruined. Suddenly [all] our tents will be destroyed; [even] the curtains [inside the tents] will be ripped apart.
There is a cry of destruction upon destruction; Yea, the whole land is laid waste; Suddenly are my tents destroyed, And my canopies in an instant.
21 How long will this battle continue? How long will I continue to see the enemy battle flags and hear the sound of their trumpets being blown?
How long shall I see the standard, Hear the sound of the trumpet?
22 [Yahweh says], “My people are [very] foolish! They do not have a relationship with me. They are [like] [MET] stupid children who do not understand [anything]. They very cleverly do what is wrong, but they do not know how to do what is good.”
My people is foolish, They have no regard to me; Stupid children are they, And have no understanding; They are wise to do evil, But for doing good they have no knowledge.
23 [God gave me a vision in which] I saw that the earth was barren and without form. I looked at the sky, and there was no light there.
I look to the earth, and lo! emptiness and desolation; To the heavens, and there is no light.
24 I looked at the mountains and hills, and they shook and moved from side to side.
I look to the mountains, and lo! they tremble, And all the hills shake.
25 I looked and saw that there were no [more] people, and all the birds had flown away.
I look, and lo! there is not a man, And all the birds of heaven are fled.
26 I looked and saw that the fields that previously were fertile had become a desert. The cities were all ruined; they had all been destroyed by Yahweh because he was extremely angry.
I look, and lo! Carmel is a desert, And all its cities are thrown down, Before the presence of Jehovah, Before the heat of his anger.
27 This is what Yahweh is saying: “The entire land [of Judah] will be ruined, but I will not destroy it completely.
For thus saith Jehovah: The whole land shall be desolate, Yet will I not make a full end.
28 I will do to my people what I said that I would do, and I will not change my mind. So [when that happens, it will be as though] the earth will mourn and the sky will become very dark.”
Therefore shall the earth mourn, And the heavens above be black, Because I have spoken, and I will not repent; I have purposed, and I will not recede from it.
29 [When the people hear] the sound of the [enemy] army marching, [they will be terrified as] they flee from their cities. Some of them will find places to hide in the bushes, and others will run toward the mountains/hills [to escape being killed by their enemies]. All the cities [in Judah] will be abandoned; not one person will remain in them.
At the noise of the horsemen and bowmen every city fleeth; They go into thickets, And climb up upon the rocks; All the cities are forsaken, And not a man dwelleth in them.
30 So you who will surely be destroyed, [why are you doing the things that you are doing now]? Why are you wearing beautiful clothes and jewelry? Why are you putting paint around your eyes? Doing those things will not help you, because the people [in other countries that you think] love you [actually] despise you, and they will try to kill you.
And thou, destined to perish, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothe thyself in scarlet, And deck thyself with ornaments of gold, And rend thine eyes with paint, In vain dost thou adorn thyself; Thy lovers despise thee; They seek thy life.
31 [It is as though] I already hear [the people in Jerusalem] crying very loudly, like [SIM] a woman cries when she is giving birth to her first child; she gasps for breath and pleads for someone to help her. [It is as though Jerusalem] is crying, “Something terrible is happening to me! They are about to murder me!”
I hear a cry, as of a woman in travail, Anguish, as of her that bringeth forth her first child. The voice of the daughter of Zion. She sobbeth, she spreadeth out her hands, “Ah! woe is me! I am dying by murderers!”
