Jeremiah 4:13–22

¹³Behold, he comes up like clouds;

^uhis chariots like the whirlwind;

his horses are ^vswifter than eagles—

woe to us, ^wfor we are ruined!

¹⁴O Jerusalem, ^xwash your heart from evil,

that you may be saved.

How long shall your wicked thoughts

lodge within you?

¹⁵For a voice ^ydeclares from Dan

and proclaims trouble from ^zMount Ephraim.

¹⁶Warn the nations that he is coming;

announce to Jerusalem,

“Besiegers come ^afrom a distant land;

they shout against the cities of Judah.

¹⁷Like keepers of a field ^bare they against her all around,

because she has rebelled against me,

declares the Lord.

¹⁸Your ways and your deeds

have brought this upon you.

This is your doom, and ^cit is bitter;

it has reached your very heart.”

Anguish over Judah’s Desolation

^19dMy anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!

Oh the walls of my heart!

My heart is beating wildly;

I cannot keep silent,

for I hear the sound of the trumpet,

the alarm of war.

^20eCrash follows hard on crash;

the whole land is laid waste.

^fSuddenly my tents are laid waste,

my curtains in a moment.

²¹How long must I see the standard

and hear the sound of the trumpet?

²²“For ^gmy people are foolish;

they know me not;

they are stupid children;

they have no understanding.

^hThey are ‘wise’—in doing evil!

But how to do good they know not.”