Jeremiah 13
1 Thus said Jehovah unto me, 'Go, and thou hast got for thee a girdle of linen, and hast placed it on thy loins, and into water thou dost not cause it to enter:'
Thus says the Lord to me: “Go, and obtain for yourself a linen waistcloth. And you shall place it over your loins, and you shall not put it into water.”
2 and I get the girdle, according to the word of Jehovah, and I place [it] on my loins.
And so I obtained a waistcloth, according to the word of the Lord, and I placed it around my loins.
3 And there is a word of Jehovah unto me a second time, saying,
And the word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying:
4 'Take the girdle that thou hast got, that [is] on thy loins, and rise, go to Phrat, and hide it there in a hole of the rock;
“Take the waistcloth, which you obtained, which is around your loins, and, rising up, go to the Euphrates, and hide it there in an opening of the rock.”
5 and I go and hide it by Phrat, as Jehovah commanded me.
And so I went, and I hid it by the Euphrates, just as the Lord had instructed me.
6 And it cometh to pass, at the end of many days, that Jehovah saith unto me, 'Rise, go to Phrat, and take thence the girdle, that I commanded thee to hide there;'
And it happened that, after many days, the Lord said to me: “Rise up, go to the Euphrates, and take from there the waistcloth, which I instructed you to hide there.”
7 and I go to Phrat, and dig, and take the girdle from the place where I had hid it; and lo, the girdle hath been marred, it is not profitable for anything.
And so I went to the Euphrates, and I dug up and took the waistcloth from the place where I had hidden it. And behold, the waistcloth had rotted, so that it was not fit for any use.
8 And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying, 'Thus said Jehovah:
And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
9 Thus do I mar the excellency of Judah, And the great excellency of Jerusalem.
“Thus says the Lord: In the same way, I will cause the arrogance of Judah and the arrogance of Jerusalem to rot.
10 This evil people, who refuse to hear My words, Who walk in the stubbornness of their heart, And go after other gods to serve them, And to bow themselves to them, Yea it is — as this girdle, that is not profitable for anything.
This most wicked people, they are not willing to listen to my words, for they walk in the depravity of their own heart, and they have gone after strange gods, so as to serve them and to adore them. And so, they will become like this waistcloth, which is not fit for any use.
11 For, as the girdle cleaveth unto the loins of a man, So I caused to cleave unto Me The whole house of Israel, And the whole house of Judah, an affirmation of Jehovah, To be to Me for a people, and for a name, And for praise, and for beauty, And they have not hearkened.
For just as the waistcloth clings to the loins of a man, so have I brought close to me the entire house of Israel and the entire house of Judah, says the Lord, so that they would be to me: a people, and a name, and a praise, and a glory. But they did not listen.
12 And thou hast said unto them this word, Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, 'Every bottle is full of wine,' And they have said unto thee: 'Do we not certainly know that every bottle is full of wine?'
Therefore, you shall speak to them this word: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘Every bottle will be filled with wine.’ And they will say to you: ‘Are we ignorant that every bottle will be filled with wine?’
13 And thou hast said unto them, 'Thus said Jehovah: Lo, I am filling all the inhabitants of this land, And the kings who sit for David on his throne, And the priests, and the prophets, And all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, [With] drunkenness,
And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord: Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, and the kings from the stock of David who sit upon his throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, unto inebriation.
14 And have dashed them one against another, And the fathers and the sons together, An affirmation of Jehovah, I do not pity, nor spare, nor have I mercy, So as not to destroy them.
And I will scatter them, a man from his brother, and fathers and sons similarly, says the Lord. I will not spare them, and I will not pardon them, and I will not take pity, so as not to destroy them.”
15 Hear, and give ear — be not haughty, For Jehovah hath spoken.
Hear and pay close attention. Do not choose to lift yourself up, for the Lord has spoken.
16 Give ye to Jehovah your God honour, Before He doth cause darkness, And before your feet stumble on dark mountains, And ye have waited for light, And He hath made it for death-shade, And hath appointed [it] for thick darkness.
Give glory to the Lord your God, before darkness falls, and before your feet stumble on the darkened mountains. You will expect light, but he will turn it into the shadow of death and into utter darkness.
17 And if ye do not hear it, In secret places doth my soul weep, because of pride, Yea, it weepeth sore, And the tear cometh down mine eyes, For the flock of Jehovah hath been taken captive.
But if you will not listen to this, then my soul will weep in secret before the face of your pride. It will weep bitterly, and my eyes will flow with tears, because the flock of the Lord has been taken captive.
18 Say to the king and to the mistress: Make yourselves low — sit still, For come down have your principalities, The crown of your beauty.
“Say to the king and to the female ruler: Humble yourselves, sit down. For the crown of your glory has gone down from your head.
19 The cities of the south have been shut up, And there is none opening, Judah hath been removed — all of her, She hath been removed completely —
The cities of the south have been closed, and there is no one who may open them. All of Judah has been taken away into complete captivity.
20 Lift up your eyes, and see those coming in from the north, Where [is] the drove given to thee, thy beautiful flock?
Lift up your eyes and see, you who are arriving from the north. Where is the flock that was given to you, your famous cattle?
21 What dost thou say, when He looketh after thee? And thou — thou hast taught them [to be] over thee — leaders for head? Do not pangs seize thee as a travailing woman?
What will you say when he visits upon you? For you have taught them against you, and you have instructed them with your own head. Will not pains take hold of you, as with a woman in labor?
22 And when thou dost say in thy heart, 'Wherefore have these met me?' For the abundance of thine iniquity Have thy skirts been uncovered, Have thy heels suffered violence.
But if you say in your heart, ‘Why have these things happened to me?’ it is because of the greatness of your iniquity that your shame has been uncovered and the soles of your feet have been defiled.
23 Doth a Cushite change his skin? and a leopard his spots? Ye also are able to do good, who are accustomed to do evil.
If the Ethiopian is able to change his skin, or the leopard is able to change his spots, then you also may be able to do well, though you have learned evil.
24 And I scatter them as stubble, Passing away, by a wind of the wilderness.
And I will scatter them like chaff, which is carried away by the wind in the desert.
25 This [is] thy lot, the portion of thy measures from Me — an affirmation of Jehovah, Because thou hast forgotten me, And dost trust in falsehood.
This is your lot, and this is the portion of your measure from me, says the Lord, because you have forgotten me, and you have had confidence in what is false.
26 I also have made bare thy skirts before thy face, And thy shame hath been seen.
Therefore, I have even bared your thighs before your face, and your shame has been seen.
27 Thine adulteries, and thy neighings, The wickedness of thy whoredom, on heights in a field, I have seen thine abominations. Woe to thee, O Jerusalem, Thou art not cleansed, after when [is it] again?
For I have seen your adulteries, and your neighing for the wickedness of your fornication, and your abominations upon the hills in the field. Woe to you, Jerusalem! How much longer before you will be made clean after me?”
