Jeremiah 9:2–9

²Oh, that I had in the wilderness—

A lodging place for travelers;

That I might leave my people,

And go from them!

For ^bthey are all adulterers,

An assembly of treacherous men.

³“And like their bow ^cthey have bent their tongues for lies.

They are not valiant for the truth on the earth.

For they proceed from ^devil to evil,

And they ^edo not know Me,” says the Lord.

⁴“Everyone ^ftake heed to his ¹neighbor,

And do not trust any brother;

For every brother will utterly supplant,

And every neighbor will ^gwalk with slanderers.

⁵Everyone will ^hdeceive his neighbor,

And will not speak the truth;

They have taught their tongue to speak lies;

They weary themselves to commit iniquity.

⁶Your dwelling place is in the midst of deceit;

Through deceit they refuse to know Me,” says the Lord.

⁷Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts:

“Behold, ⁱI will refine them and ²try them;

^jFor how shall I deal with the daughter of My people?

⁸Their tongue is an arrow shot out;

It speaks ^kdeceit;

One speaks ^lpeaceably to his neighbor with his mouth,

But ³in his heart he ⁴lies in wait.

^9mShall I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord.

“Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?”