Blessing or Curse

4 If you return, h Israel—

this is the Lord’s declaration—

you will return to Me, i

if you remove your detestable idols j

from My presence

and do not waver,

2 then you can swear, “As the Lord lives,” k

in truth, l in justice, and in righteousness, m

then the nations will be blessed n by Him o

and will pride themselves in Him. p

3 For this is what the Lord says to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:

Break up the unplowed ground; q

do not sow among the thorns. r

4 Circumcise yourselves to the Lord;

remove the foreskin of your hearts, s

men of Judah and residents of Jerusalem.

Otherwise, My wrath will break out like fire

and burn with no one to extinguish it t

because of your evil deeds.

Judgment from the North

5 Declare in Judah, proclaim in Jerusalem, and say:

Blow the ram’s horn throughout the land. u

Cry out loudly and say:

Assemble yourselves,

and let’s flee to the fortified cities.

6 Lift up a signal flag toward * Zion. v

Run for cover! Don’t stand still!

For I am bringing disaster from the north—

a great destruction. w

7 A lion has gone up from his thicket; x

a destroyer of nations has set out.

He has left his lair

to make your land a waste.

Your cities will be reduced to uninhabited ruins. y

8 Because of this, put on * sackcloth;

mourn and wail, z

for the Lord’s burning anger a

has not turned away from us.

9 “On that day”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“the king and the officials will lose their courage. The priests will tremble in fear, and the prophets will be scared speechless.”

10 I said, “Oh no, Lord God, You have certainly deceived b this people and Jerusalem, by announcing, ‘You will have peace,’ c while a sword is at d our throats.”

11 “At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, ‘A searing wind e blows from the barren heights in the wilderness on the way to My dear f people. It comes not to winnow or to sift; 12 a wind too strong for this comes at My call. g Now I will also pronounce judgments against them.’ ” h

13 Look, he advances like clouds; i

his chariots are like a storm. j

His horses are swifter than eagles. k

Woe to us, for we are ruined! l

14 Wash the evil from your heart, m Jerusalem,

so that you will be delivered.

How long will you harbor

malicious thoughts within you? n

15 For a voice announces from Dan,

proclaiming malice from Mount Ephraim.

16 Warn the nations: Look!

Proclaim to Jerusalem:

Those who besiege are coming

from a distant land; o

they raise their voices

against the cities of Judah.

17 They have her surrounded p

like those who guard a field,

because she has rebelled against Me. q

This is the Lord’s declaration.

18 Your way of life and your actions

have brought this on you. r

This is your punishment. It is very bitter,

because it has reached your heart!

Jeremiah’s Lament

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

Oh, the pain in t my heart! u

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 v 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?

22 “For My people are fools;

they do not know Me.

They are foolish children,

without understanding. w

They are skilled in doing what is evil,

but they do not know how to do what is good.” x

23 I looked at the earth,

and it was formless and empty. y

I looked to the heavens,

and their light was gone. z

24 I looked at the mountains,

and they were quaking; a

all the hills shook.

25 I looked, and no man was left; b

all the birds of the sky had fled. c

26 I looked, and the fertile field d was a wilderness. e

All its cities were torn down

because of the Lord

and His burning anger. f

27 For this is what the Lord says:

The whole land will be a desolation, g

but I will not finish it off. h

28 Because of this, the earth will mourn; i

the skies above will grow dark. j

I have spoken; I have planned,

and I will not relent or turn back from it. k

29 Every city flees l

at the sound of the horseman and the archer.

They enter the thickets

and climb among the rocks. m

Every city is abandoned;

no inhabitant is left.

30 And you, devastated one, what are you doing n

that you dress yourself in scarlet,

that you adorn yourself with gold jewelry,

that you enlarge your eyes with paint? o

You beautify yourself for nothing.

Your lovers reject you; p

they want to take your life. q

31 I hear a cry like a woman in labor, r

a cry of anguish like one bearing her first child.

The cry of Daughter Zion gasping for breath,

stretching out her hands: s

Woe is me, for my life is weary

because of the murderers!