Jerusalem Under Siege

6 “Flee for safety, people of Benjamin!

Flee from Jerusalem!

Sound the trumpets in Tekoa!t

Raise the signal over Beth Hakkerem!u

For disaster looms out of the north,v

even terrible destruction.

2 I will destroy Daughter Zion,w

so beautiful and delicate.x

3 Shepherdsy with their flocks will come against her;

they will pitch their tents aroundz her,

each tending his own portion.”

4 “Prepare for battle against her!

Arise, let us attack at noon!a

But, alas, the daylight is fading,

and the shadows of evening grow long.

5 So arise, let us attack at night

and destroy her fortresses!”

6 This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Cut down the treesb

and build siege rampsc against Jerusalem.

This city must be punished;

it is filled with oppression.d

7 As a well pours out its water,

so she pours out her wickedness.

Violencee and destructionf resound in her;

her sickness and wounds are ever before me.

8 Take warning, Jerusalem,

or I will turn awayg from you

and make your land desolate

so no one can live in it.”

9 This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Let them glean the remnanth of Israel

as thoroughly as a vine;

pass your hand over the branches again,

like one gathering grapes.”

10 To whom can I speak and give warning?

Who will listeni to me?

Their ears are closeda j

so they cannot hear.k

The wordl of the Lord is offensive to them;

they find no pleasure in it.

11 But I am full of the wrathm of the Lord,

and I cannot hold it in.n

“Pour it out on the children in the street

and on the young meno gathered together;

both husband and wife will be caught in it,

and the old, those weighed down with years.p

12 Their houses will be turned over to others,q

together with their fields and their wives,r

when I stretch out my hands

against those who live in the land,”

declares the Lord.

13 “From the least to the greatest,

allt are greedy for gain;u

prophets and priests alike,

all practice deceit.v

14 They dress the wound of my people

as though it were not serious.

‘Peace, peace,’ they say,

when there is no peace.w

15 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?

No, they have no shame at all;

they do not even know how to blush.x

So they will fall among the fallen;

they will be brought down when I punishy them,”

says the Lord.

16 This is what the Lord says:

“Stand at the crossroads and look;

ask for the ancient paths,z

ask where the good waya is, and walk in it,

and you will find restb for your souls.

But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’

17 I appointed watchmenc over you and said,

‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’d

But you said, ‘We will not listen.’e

18 Therefore hear, you nations;

you who are witnesses,

observe what will happen to them.

19 Hear, you earth:f

I am bringing disasterg on this people,

the fruit of their schemes,h

because they have not listened to my wordsi

and have rejected my law.j

20 What do I care about incense from Shebak

or sweet calamusl from a distant land?

Your burnt offerings are not acceptable;m

your sacrificesn do not please me.”o

21 Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“I will put obstacles before this people.

Parents and children alike will stumblep over them;

neighbors and friends will perish.”

22 This is what the Lord says:

“Look, an army is coming

from the land of the north;q

a great nation is being stirred up

from the ends of the earth.r

23 They are armed with bow and spear;

they are cruel and show no mercy.s

They sound like the roaring seat

as they ride on their horses;u

they come like men in battle formation

to attack you, Daughter Zion.v”

24 We have heard reports about them,

and our hands hang limp.w

Anguishx has gripped us,

pain like that of a woman in labor.y

25 Do not go out to the fields

or walk on the roads,

for the enemy has a sword,

and there is terror on every side.z

26 Put on sackcloth,a my people,

and roll in ashes;b

mourn with bitter wailingc

as for an only son,d

for suddenly the destroyere

will come upon us.

27 “I have made you a testerf of metals

and my people the ore,

that you may observe

and test their ways.

28 They are all hardened rebels,g

going about to slander.h

They are bronze and iron;i

they all act corruptly.

29 The bellows blow fiercely

to burn away the lead with fire,

but the refiningj goes on in vain;

the wicked are not purged out.

30 They are called rejected silver,k

because the Lord has rejected them.”l

False Religion Worthless

7 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Standm at the gate of the Lord’s house and there proclaim this message:

“ ‘Hear the word of the Lord, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the Lord. 3 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your waysn and your actions, and I will let you liveo in this place. 4 Do not trustp in deceptiveq words and say, “This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord!” 5 If you really changer your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly,s 6 if you do not oppresst the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent bloodu in this place, and if you do not follow other godsv to your own harm, 7 then I will let you live in this place, in the landw I gave your ancestorsx for ever and ever. 8 But look, you are trustingy in deceptivez words that are worthless.

9 “ ‘Will you steala and murder,b commit adulteryc and perjury,a d burn incense to Baale and follow other godsf you have not known, 10 and then come and standg before me in this house,h which bears my Name, and say, “We are safe”—safe to do all these detestable things?i 11 Has this house,j which bears my Name, become a den of robbersk to you? But I have been watching!l declares the Lord.

12 “ ‘Go now to the place in Shilohm where I first made a dwellingn for my Name,o and see what I didp to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel. 13 While you were doing all these things, declares the Lord, I spokeq to you again and again,r but you did not listen;s I calledt you, but you did not answer.u 14 Therefore, what I did to Shilohv I will now do to the house that bears my Name,w the templex you trust in, the place I gave to you and your ancestors. 15 I will thrust you from my presence,y just as I did all your fellow Israelites, the people of Ephraim.’z

16 “So do not pray for this people nor offer any pleaa or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listenb to you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven.c They pour out drink offeringsd to other gods to arousee my anger. 19 But am I the one they are provoking?f declares the Lord. Are they not rather harming themselves, to their own shame?g

20 “ ‘Therefore this is what the Sovereignh Lord says: My angeri and my wrath will be pouredj out on this place—on man and beast, on the trees of the field and on the crops of your land—and it will burn and not be quenched.k

21 “ ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Go ahead, add your burnt offerings to your other sacrificesl and eatm the meat yourselves! 22 For when I brought your ancestors out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not just give them commandsn about burnt offerings and sacrifices,o 23 but I gave them this command:p Obeyq me, and I will be your God and you will be my people.r Walk in obedience to alls I command you, that it may go wellt with you. 24 But they did not listenu or pay attention;v instead, they followed the stubborn inclinations of their evil hearts.w They went backwardx and not forward. 25 From the time your ancestors left Egypt until now, day after day, again and againy I sent you my servantsz the prophets.a 26 But they did not listen to me or pay attention.b They were stiff-neckedc and did more evil than their ancestors.’d

27 “When you telle them all this, they will not listenf to you; when you call to them, they will not answer.g 28 Therefore say to them, ‘This is the nation that has not obeyed the Lord its God or responded to correction.h Truthi has perished; it has vanished from their lips.

29 “ ‘Cut offj your hair and throw it away; take up a lamentk on the barren heights, for the Lord has rejected and abandonedl this generation that is under his wrath.

The Valley of Slaughter

30 “ ‘The people of Judah have done evilm in my eyes, declares the Lord. They have set up their detestable idolsn in the house that bears my Name and have defiledo it. 31 They have built the high places of Tophethp in the Valley of Ben Hinnomq to burn their sons and daughtersr in the fire—something I did not command, nor did it enter my mind.s 32 So beware, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when people will no longer call it Topheth or the Valley of Ben Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter,t for they will buryu the dead in Topheth until there is no more room. 33 Then the carcassesv of this people will become foodw for the birds and the wild animals, and there will be no one to frighten them away.x 34 I will bring an end to the soundsy of joy and gladness and to the voices of bride and bridegroomz in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem,a for the land will become desolate.b

8 “ ‘At that time, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bonesc of the people of Jerusalem will be removedd from their graves. 2 They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and servede and which they have followed and consulted and worshiped.f They will not be gathered up or buried,g but will be like dung lying on the ground.h 3 Wherever I banish them,i all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life,j declares the Lord Almighty.’

Sin and Punishment

4 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“ ‘When people fall down, do they not get up?k

When someone turns away,l do they not return?

5 Why …