Jeremiah 4:18–21

18 “Your own conduct and actions

have brought this on you.

This is your punishment.

How bitter it is!

How it pierces to the heart!”

19 Oh, my anguish, my anguish!

I writhe in pain.

Oh, the agony of my heart!

My heart pounds within me,

I cannot keep silent.

For I have heard the sound of the trumpet;

I have heard the battle cry.

20 Disaster follows disaster;

the whole land lies in ruins.

In an instant my tents are destroyed,

my shelter in a moment.

21 How long must I see the battle standard

and hear the sound of the trumpet?

18 Your ways and your deeds

have brought this upon you.

This is your doom, and it is bitter;

it has reached your very heart.”

19 My 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.

20 Crash follows hard on crash;

the whole land is laid waste.

Suddenly my tents are laid waste,

my curtains in a moment.

21 How long must I see the standard

and hear the sound of the trumpet?

18 Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee;

This is thy wickedness, because it is bitter,

Because it reacheth unto thine heart.

19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart;

My heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace,

Because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.

20 Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled:

Suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.

21 How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?

18 “Your own actions have brought this upon you.

This punishment is bitter, piercing you to the heart!”

19 My heart, my heart—I writhe in pain!

My heart pounds within me! I cannot be still.

For I have heard the blast of enemy trumpets

and the roar of their battle cries.

20 Waves of destruction roll over the land,

until it lies in complete desolation.

Suddenly my tents are destroyed;

in a moment my shelters are crushed.

21 How long must I see the battle flags

and hear the trumpets of war?

18 “Your ways and your doings

Have procured these things for you.

This is your wickedness,

Because it is bitter,

Because it reaches to your heart.”

19 O my soul, my soul!

I am pained in my very heart!

My heart makes a noise in me;

I cannot hold my peace,

Because you have heard, O my soul,

The sound of the trumpet,

The alarm of war.

20 Destruction upon destruction is cried,

For the whole land is plundered.

Suddenly my tents are plundered,

And my curtains in a moment.

21 How long will I see the standard,

And hear the sound of the trumpet?

18 “The way you have lived and acted

has brought this trouble to you.

This is your punishment.

How terrible it is!

The pain stabs your heart!”

19 Oh, how I hurt! How I hurt!

I am bent over in pain.

Oh, the torture in my heart!

My heart is pounding inside me.

I cannot keep quiet,

because I have heard the sound of the trumpet.

I have heard the shouts of war.

20 Disaster follows disaster;

the whole country has been destroyed.

My tents are destroyed in only a moment.

My curtains are torn down quickly.

21 How long must I look at the war flag?

How long must I listen to the war trumpet?

18 Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness; for it is bitter, for it reacheth unto thy heart.

19 My anguish, my anguish! I am pained at my very heart; my heart is disquieted in me; I cannot hold my peace; because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. 20 Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is laid waste: suddenly are my tents destroyed, and my curtains in a moment. 21 How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?

18 Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness, yea, it is bitter, yea, it reacheth unto thy heart.

19 My bowels! my bowels! I am in travail! Oh, the walls of my heart! My heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace: for thou hearest, my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the clamour of war. 20 Destruction upon destruction is proclaimed; for the whole land is wasted: suddenly are my tents laid waste, my curtains, in a moment. 21 How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?

18 “You brought this on yourself. 

This is your punishment. 

It is bitter. 

It breaks your heart.” 

19 My anguish, my anguish! 

I writhe in pain. 

My heart is beating wildly! 

My heart is pounding! 

I can’t keep quiet 

because I hear a ram’s horn sounding the alarm for war. 

20 One disaster follows another. 

The whole land is ruined. 

My tents are suddenly destroyed. 

Their curtains are torn in an instant. 

21 How long must I see the battle flag and hear the sound of rams’ horns? 

18 Your way of life and your actions

have brought this on you.

This is your punishment. It is very bitter,

because it has reached your heart!

19 My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in agony!

Oh, the pain in my heart!

My heart pounds;

I cannot be silent.

For you, my soul,

have heard the sound of the ram’s horn—

the shout of battle.

20 Disaster after disaster is reported

because the whole land is destroyed.

Suddenly my tents are destroyed,

my tent curtains, in a moment.

21 How long must I see the signal flag

and hear the sound of the ram’s horn?

18 Your ways and your doings

have brought this upon you.

This is your doom; how bitter it is!

It has reached your very heart.”

19 My 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.

20 Disaster overtakes disaster;

the whole land is laid waste.

Suddenly my tents are destroyed,

my curtains in a moment.

21 How long must I see the standard

and hear the sound of the trumpet?

18 “The army will attack you

because of your conduct and actions.

That is how you will be punished.

It will be so bitter!

It will cut deep down into your hearts!”

19 I’m suffering! I’m really suffering!

I’m hurting badly.

My heart is suffering so much!

It’s pounding inside me.

I can’t keep silent.

I’ve heard the sound of trumpets.

I’ve heard the battle cry.

20 One trouble follows another.

The whole land is destroyed.

In an instant my tents are gone.

My home disappears in a moment.

21 How long must I look at our enemy’s battle flag?

How long must I hear the sound of the trumpets?

18 “Your ways and your deeds

Have brought these things to you.

This is your evil. How bitter!

How it has touched your heart!”

19 My soul, my soul! I am in anguish! Oh, my heart!

My heart is pounding in me;

I cannot be silent,

Because you have heard, O my soul,

The sound of the trumpet,

The alarm of war.

20 Disaster on disaster is proclaimed,

For the whole land is devastated;

Suddenly my tents are devastated,

My curtains in an instant.

21 How long must I see the standard

And hear the sound of the trumpet?