Jeremiah 9:3–5
3 pThey bend their tongue like a bow;
falsehood and not truth has grown strong3 in the land;
for they proceed from evil to evil,
qand they do not know me, declares the Lord.
4 rLet everyone beware of his neighbor,
and put no trust in any brother,
for every sbrother is a deceiver,
and every neighbor tgoes about as a slanderer.
5 Everyone deceives his neighbor,
and no one speaks the truth;
they have taught their tongue to speak lies;
they weary themselves committing iniquity.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — The New International Version (NIV)
3 “They make ready their tongue
like a bow, to shoot lies;
it is not by truth
that they triumph in the land.
They go from one sin to another;
they do not acknowledge me,”
declares the Lord.
4 “Beware of your friends;
do not trust anyone in your clan.
For every one of them is a deceiver,
and every friend a slanderer.
5 Friend deceives friend,
and no one speaks the truth.
They have taught their tongues to lie;
they weary themselves with sinning.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — King James Version (KJV 1900)
3 And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies:
But they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth;
For they proceed from evil to evil,
And they know not me, saith the Lord.
4 Take ye heed every one of his neighbour,
And trust ye not in any brother:
For every brother will utterly supplant,
And every neighbour will walk with slanders.
5 And they will deceive every one his neighbour,
And will not speak the truth:
They have taught their tongue to speak lies,
And weary themselves to commit iniquity.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — New Living Translation (NLT)
3 “My people bend their tongues like bows
to shoot out lies.
They refuse to stand up for the truth.
They only go from bad to worse.
They do not know me,”
says the Lord.
4 “Beware of your neighbor!
Don’t even trust your brother!
For brother takes advantage of brother,
and friend slanders friend.
5 They all fool and defraud each other;
no one tells the truth.
With practiced tongues they tell lies;
they wear themselves out with all their sinning.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — The New King James Version (NKJV)
3 “And like their bow they have bent their tongues for lies.
They are not valiant for the truth on the earth.
For they proceed from evil to evil,
And they do not know Me,” says the Lord.
4 “Everyone take heed to his neighbor,
And do not trust any brother;
For every brother will utterly supplant,
And every neighbor will walk with slanderers.
5 Everyone will deceive his neighbor,
And will not speak the truth;
They have taught their tongue to speak lies;
They weary themselves to commit iniquity.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — New Century Version (NCV)
3 “They use their tongues like a bow,
shooting lies from their mouths like arrows.
Lies, not truth,
have grown strong in the land.
They go from one evil thing to another.
They do not know who I am,” says the Lord.
4 “Watch out for your friends,
and don’t trust your own relatives,
because every relative is a cheater,
and every friend tells lies about you.
5 Everyone lies to his friend,
and no one speaks the truth.
The people of Judah have taught their tongues to lie.
They have become tired from sinning.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — American Standard Version (ASV)
3 And they bend their tongue, as it were their bow, for falsehood; and they are grown strong in the land, but not for truth: for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me, saith Jehovah. 4 Take ye heed every one of his neighbor, and trust ye not in any brother; for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbor will go about with slanders. 5 And they will deceive every one his neighbor, and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongue to speak lies; they weary themselves to commit iniquity.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)
3 And they bend their tongue, their bow of falsehood, and not for fidelity are they valiant in the land; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me, saith Jehovah. 4 Take ye heed every one of his friend, and confide not in any brother; for every brother only supplanteth, and every friend goeth about with slander. 5 And they act deceitfully every one with his neighbour, and speak not the truth: they teach their tongue to speak falsehood, they weary themselves with perverse dealing.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
3 They use their tongues like bows that shoot arrows.
Lies and dishonesty rule the land.
They go from one evil thing to another,
and they don’t know me,” declares the Lord.
4 “Beware of your neighbors.
Don’t trust your relatives.
Every relative cheats.
Every neighbor goes around slandering.
5 Everyone cheats his neighbor.
No one speaks the truth.
My people train their tongues to speak lies.
They wear themselves out doing wrong.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
3 They bent their tongues like their bows;
lies and not faithfulness prevail in the land,
for they proceed from one evil to another,
and they do not take Me into account.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
4 Everyone has to be on guard against his friend.
Don’t trust any brother,
for every brother will certainly deceive,
and every friend spread slander.
5 Each one betrays his friend;
no one tells the truth.
They have taught their tongues to speak lies;
they wear themselves out doing wrong.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
3 They bend their tongues like bows;
they have grown strong in the land for falsehood, and not for truth;
for they proceed from evil to evil,
and they do not know me, says the Lord.
4 Beware of your neighbors,
and put no trust in any of your kin;
for all your kin are supplanters,
and every neighbor goes around like a slanderer.
5 They all deceive their neighbors,
and no one speaks the truth;
they have taught their tongues to speak lies;
they commit iniquity and are too weary to repent.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)
3 And they bend their tongue like their bow,
for falsehood and not truth is superior in the land,
for they go forth from evil to evil,
and they do not know me,” declares Yahweh.
4 “Let everyone be on your guard against his neighbor,
and you must not trust in any brother,
for everyone surely betrays,
and every neighbor goes about with slander.
5 And everyone deceives his neighbor,
and they do not speak the truth,
they have taught their tongues to speak lies,
they are tired from going astray.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — New International Reader’s Version (1998) (NIrV)
3 “They get ready to use
their tongues like bows,”
announces the Lord.
“Their mouths shoot out lies like arrows.
They tell lies to gain power in the land.
They go from one sin to another.
They do not pay any attention to me.
4 Be on guard against your friends.
Do not trust the members of your own family.
Every one of them cheats.
Every friend tells lies.
5 One friend cheats another.
No one tells the truth.
They have taught their tongues how to lie.
They wear themselves out sinning.
Jeremiah 9:3–5 — New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (NASB95)
3 “They bend their tongue like their bow;
Lies and not truth prevail in the land;
For they proceed from evil to evil,
And they do not know Me,” declares the Lord.
4 “Let everyone be on guard against his neighbor,
And do not trust any brother;
Because every brother deals craftily,
And every neighbor goes about as a slanderer.
5 “Everyone deceives his neighbor
And does not speak the truth,
They have taught their tongue to speak lies;
They weary themselves committing iniquity.