Jeremiah 9:2–9

^21aOh that I had in the desert

A wayfarers’ lodging place;

That I might leave my people

And go from them!

For all of them are ^badulterers,

An assembly of ^ctreacherous men.

³“They ^abend their tongue like their bow;

Lies and not truth prevail in the land;

For they ^bproceed from evil to evil,

And they ^cdo not know Me,” declares the Lord.

⁴“Let everyone ^abe on guard against his neighbor,

And ^bdo not trust any brother;

Because every ^cbrother deals ¹craftily,

And every neighbor ^dgoes about as a slanderer.

⁵“Everyone ^adeceives his neighbor

And does not speak the truth,

They have taught their tongue to speak lies;

They ^bweary themselves committing iniquity.

⁶“Your ^adwelling is in the midst of deceit;

Through deceit they ^brefuse to know Me,” declares the Lord.

⁷Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts,

“Behold, I will refine them and ^aassay them;

For ^bwhat else can I do, because of the daughter of My people?

⁸“Their ^atongue is a deadly arrow;

It speaks deceit;

With his mouth one ^bspeaks peace to his neighbor,

But inwardly he ^csets an ambush for him.

⁹“^aShall I not punish them for these things?” declares the Lord.

“On a nation such as this

Shall I not avenge Myself?