Jeremiah 1-4

New Life Version

The Call of Jeremiah

1 These are the words of Jeremiah, the son of Hilkiah, one of the religious leaders at Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. ² The Word of the Lord came to Jeremiah in the days of Josiah, the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his rule. ³ It came also in the days of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem were taken away.

⁴ Now the Word of the Lord came to me saying, ⁵ “Before I started to put you together in your mother, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart as holy. I chose you to speak to the nations for Me.” ⁶ Then I said, “O, Lord God! I do not know how to speak. I am only a boy.” ⁷ But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy.’ You must go everywhere I send you. And you must say whatever I tell you. ⁸ Do not be afraid of them. For I am with you to take you out of trouble,” says the Lord. ⁹ Then the Lord put out His hand and touched my mouth, and said to me, “See, I have put My words in your mouth. ¹⁰ I have chosen you this day to be over the nations and the kings, to dig up and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.”

¹¹ And the Word of the Lord came to me saying, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” I said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.” ¹² Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching to see that My Word is completed.”

¹³ The Word of the Lord came to me a second time saying, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see a boiling pot, with its face turned away from the north.” ¹⁴ Then the Lord said to me, “Out of the north trouble will come upon all the people of the land. ¹⁵ For, see, I am calling all the families of the nations of the north,” says the Lord. “And they will come. Then every one will set up his throne at the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls around it, and against all the cities of Judah. ¹⁶ And I will tell how they are to be punished for all their sin. For they have turned away from Me and have given gifts to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands. ¹⁷ Now get ready. Stand up and tell them everything that I tell you. Do not be afraid of them, or I will make trouble for you in front of them. ¹⁸ Today I have made you as a strong city ready for war, as a pillar of iron and as walls of brass against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, the rulers, its religious leaders, and the people of the land. ¹⁹ And they will fight against you. But they will not have power over you, for I am with you to take you out of trouble,” says the Lord.

Israel Turns Away from God

2 The Word of the Lord came to me saying, ² “Go and speak so those in Jerusalem will hear, ‘This is what the Lord says: “I remember how you loved Me when you were young. Your love was as a bride. I remember how you followed Me in the desert, through a land that had not been planted. ³ Israel was holy to the Lord, the first-fruits of His gathering. All who ate of it (Israel) were guilty, and trouble came upon them,” says the Lord.’”

The Sin of Israel’s Early Families

⁴ Hear the Word of the Lord, O family of Jacob, and all the families of the people of Israel. ⁵ The Lord says, “What wrong did your fathers find in Me, that they turned so far from Me and followed false gods? ⁶ They did not say, ‘Where is the Lord Who brought us up from the land of Egypt? Where is He Who led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and deep holes, through a land without water and with much trouble, through a land that no one traveled and where no man lived?’ ⁷ And I brought you into a rich land to eat its fruit and its good things. But you came and made My land unclean. You made the land I gave you sinful and hated. ⁸ The religious leaders did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’ And those who worked with the Law did not know Me. The rulers sinned against Me. And the men of God spoke by the false god of Baal, and went after things that did not help.

The Lord Speaks against His People

⁹ “So I will still fight with you,” says the Lord. “And I will fight your children’s children. ¹⁰ Go over to the land of Cyprus and see. Or send men to Kedar to watch with care. And see if there has been such a thing as this! ¹¹ Has a nation changed its gods, even when they are not gods? But My people have changed their greatness for that which does not help them. ¹² Be full of wonder at this, O heavens. Shake with fear and waste away,” says the Lord. ¹³ “For My people have done two sinful things: They have turned away from Me, the well of living waters. And they have cut out of the rock wells for water for themselves. They are broken wells that cannot hold water.

What Happens When Israel Is Not Faithful

¹⁴ “Is Israel a servant? Is he born as a servant? Why can he be taken away? ¹⁵ The young lions have made noise against him. They have made a loud noise. And they have made his land a waste. His cities have been destroyed, and have no people. ¹⁶ The men of Memphis and Tahpanhes have broken the crown of your head. ¹⁷ Have you not brought this upon yourself, by turning away from the Lord your God, when He led you in the way? ¹⁸ Now why are you going to Egypt to drink water from the Nile? Or why are you going to Assyria to drink water from the Euphrates? ¹⁹ Your own sin will punish you. Your turning away from the Lord will punish you. So know and see that it is sinful and bitter for you to leave the Lord your God. You have no fear of Me,” says the Lord God of All.

Israel Turns Its Back on God

²⁰ “Long ago I broke the load from your neck and tore off your chains. But you said, ‘I will not serve!’ For on every high hill and under every green tree you have lain down as a woman who sells the use of her body. ²¹ Yet I planted you as a vine of much worth, in every way a true seed. How then have you turned away from Me and become a wild vine? ²² Even when you wash yourself with much strong soap, the mark of your sin is still before Me,” says the Lord God. ²³ “How can you say, ‘I am clean. I have not gone after the false gods of Baal’? Look at what you did in the valley! Know what you have done! You are like a wild young camel wanting to mate. ²⁴ You are a wild donkey used to the desert, that smells the wind in her desire. In the time of her mating who can turn her away? All who look for her will not become tired. In her month of mating they will find her. ²⁵ Do not run until your shoes wear out or until your mouth is dry. But you said, ‘It is of no use, for I love strange gods, and I will go after them.’

Israel Should Be Punished

²⁶ “As a robber is put to shame when he is caught, so the family of Israel is put to shame: they, their kings, their rulers, their religious leaders, and their men of God. ²⁷ They say to a tree, ‘You are my father,’ and to a stone, ‘You gave me birth.’ For they have turned their back to Me, and not their face. But in the time of their trouble they will say, ‘Rise up and save us.’ ²⁸ But where are your gods that you made for yourself? Let them come if they can save you when you are in trouble. For you have as many gods as cities, O Judah.

²⁹ “Why do you complain against Me? You have all sinned against Me,” says the Lord. ³⁰ “I have punished your children for nothing, for they would not learn from it. Your sword has destroyed your men of God like a destroying lion. ³¹ O people of this day, listen to the Word of the Lord. Have I been a desert to Israel, or a land of much darkness? Why do My people say, ‘We are free to go, and we will come to You no more’? ³² Can a young woman forget the beautiful objects she wears? Can a bride forget her clothing? Yet My people have forgotten Me too many days to number. ³³ How you dress yourself and go after lovers! You have taught your ways even to the sinful women. ³⁴ On your clothing is found the blood of the poor who could not be blamed. You did not find them breaking in. But even with all these things, ³⁵ you say, ‘I am not guilty. For sure He has turned His anger away from me.’ See, I will punish you because you say, ‘I have not sinned.’ ³⁶ Why do you go around so much changing your way? You will be put to shame by Egypt as you were put to shame by Assyria. ³⁷ From Egypt also you will go out with your hands on your head. For the Lord has turned against those in whom you trust, and as you are with them, it will not go well for you.”

Israel Is Not Faithful

3 God says, “If a husband divorces his wife and she leaves him and marries another man, should he return to her again? Would not the land be made unclean? But you are like a sinful woman with many lovers, yet would you return to Me?” says the Lord. ² “Lift up your eyes to the open hill-tops and see. Is there any place you have not lain with your lovers? You have sat by the roads waiting for them like an Arab in the desert. And you have made the land unclean with your sinful ways and your wrong-doing. ³ So the rains have been held back. There has been no spring rain. You look like a woman who sells the use of her body, and would not be ashamed. ⁴ Have you not just now called to Me? You said, ‘My Father, You have been my friend since I was young. ⁵ Will You be angry forever? Will You be angry to the end?’ See, this is how you talk, but you do all the sinful things you can.”

Israel and Judah Must Turn Away from Their Sins

⁶ The Lord said to me in the days of King Josiah, “Have you seen what Israel did, and what little faith she has? She went up on every high hill and under every green tree, like one who sells the use of her body. ⁷ And I thought, ‘After she has done all these things, she will return to Me.’ But she did not return, and her sister Judah, who has not been faithful, saw it. ⁸ She saw that for all of Israel’s sins and how she had not been faithful, I had sent her away and given her a paper of divorce. Yet her sister Judah had no fear, but she went and sold the use of her body also. ⁹ And because this sin was so easy for her, she sinned by worshiping stones and trees. ¹⁰ Even with all this, her sister Judah did not return to Me with all her heart, but in a false way,” says the Lord.

¹¹ And the Lord said to me, “Israel, who has not been faithful, has shown herself more right and good than Judah who could not be trusted. ¹² Go and make these words known to the north, saying, ‘Return, Israel, who has not been faithful,’ says the Lord. ‘I will not look on you in anger. For I show loving-kindness,’ says the Lord. ‘I will not be angry forever. ¹³ Only know and tell of your guilt, that you have sinned against the Lord your God and have given your favors to the strangers under every green tree. Know that you have not obeyed My voice,’ says the Lord. ¹⁴ ‘Return, O sons who are not faithful,’ says the Lord. ‘For you belong to Me. I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.’ ¹⁵ Then I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you with much learning and understanding. ¹⁶ And in those days when you have become many in the land,” says the Lord, “they will no more say, ‘The special box with the Law of the Lord.’ It will not come to mind, and they will not remember it. They will not miss it, and it will not be made again. ¹⁷ At that time they will call Jerusalem ‘The throne of the Lord.’ And all the nations will gather in Jerusalem to honor the name of the Lord. They will not follow the strong-will of their sinful heart any more. ¹⁸ In those days the people of Judah will walk with the people of Israel. They will come together from the land of the north to the land that I gave your fathers as a gift.

God’s People Worship False Gods

¹⁹ “Then I said, ‘How I would like to make you My sons and give you a pleasing land, the most beautiful land of the nations!’ And I said, ‘You will call Me, “My Father,” and not turn away from following Me.’ ²⁰ For sure, as a woman is not faithful and leaves her husband, so you have not been faithful to Me, O people of Israel,” says the Lord.

²¹ A voice is heard on the open hill-tops, the cries and prayers of the sons of Israel, because they have made their way sinful. They have forgotten the Lord their God. ²² “Return, O sons who are not faithful. I will heal you and make you faithful.” “See, we come to You, for You are the Lord our God. ²³ For sure the hills are a false hope, a noise on the mountains. In truth, the saving of Israel is in the Lord our God. ²⁴ But false gods have brought us shame and have destroyed what our fathers worked for since we were young, their flocks and cattle, their sons and their daughters. ²⁵ Let us lie down in our shame, and let our shame cover us. For we and our fathers have sinned against the Lord our God ever since we were young. We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God.”

God Asks Israel to Turn from Its Sins

4 “If you will return, O Israel,” says the Lord, “return to Me. If you will put away your false gods from Me and be faithful to Me, ² and promise, ‘As the Lord lives,’ by what is true and right and good, then the nations will be happy in Him. And in Him they will have honor.”

³ For the Lord says to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, “Break up your ground which has not been planted, and do not plant seeds among thorns. ⁴ Set yourselves apart to the Lord, and put away the flesh from your heart, men of Judah and people of Jerusalem. Or My anger will go out like fire and burn with no one to stop it, because of the sinful things you do.”

Armies from the North Are Coming

⁵ Make it known in Judah and Jerusalem, and say, “Sound the horns in the land.” Cry out and say, “Gather together, and let us go into the strong cities made ready for battle.” ⁶ Lift up a flag toward Zion! Run to a safe place, do not stand still. For I am bringing much trouble from the north that will destroy much. ⁷ A lion has gone up from his secret place. A destroyer of nations has begun to move. He has gone out from his place to make your land a waste. Your cities will be destroyed and no people will live in them. ⁸ Cover yourselves with cloth made from hair because of this. Cry out in sorrow. For the burning anger of the Lord has not turned away from us. ⁹ “In that day,” says the Lord, “the heart of the king and the hearts of the rulers will become weak. The religious leaders will be filled with fear. And the men of God will be troubled and filled with wonder.”

¹⁰ Then I said, “O Lord God, for sure You have fooled these people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘You will have peace,’ when in truth a sword brings danger to their lives.”

¹¹ At that time it will be said to these people and Jerusalem, “A hot wind from the open hill-tops in the desert will come toward My people, but not to blow away what is of no worth, and not to make clean. ¹² A wind too strong for this will come at My word. Now I will bring punishment against them.”

Armies Are All Around Judah

¹³ See, he comes up like clouds. His war-wagons come like the strong-wind. His horses are faster than eagles. It is bad for us, for we are destroyed!

¹⁴ Wash your heart from sin, O Jerusalem, that you may be saved. How long will your sinful thoughts stay within you? ¹⁵ For a voice calls out from Dan, and tells of sin from Mount Ephraim. ¹⁶ “Tell it to the nations now! Make it known over all Jerusalem, saying, ‘An army is coming from a far country, and they lift up their voices against the cities of Judah. ¹⁷ They are against her all around, like watchmen of a field, because she has turned against Me,’ says the Lord. ¹⁸ “Your ways and what you do have brought these things to you. This is your sin. How bitter it is! It has touched your very heart!”

Jeremiah Feels Pain for His People

¹⁹ My soul, my soul! I am in pain! O, my heart! My heart is beating so hard! It cannot be quiet, for I hear the sound of the horn, telling of the coming war. ²⁰ News of much trouble comes again and again, for the whole land is laid waste. All at once my tents and my curtains are destroyed. ²¹ How long must I see the flag and hear the sound of the horn? ²² “For My people are foolish. They do not know Me. They are children who do not think, and they have no understanding. They know a lot about how to do sinful things, but they do not know how to do good.”

Jeremiah Saw What the Future Would Be Like

²³ I looked on the earth and saw that it was an empty waste. I looked to the heavens, and they had no light. ²⁴ I looked on the mountains and saw they were shaking, and all the hills moved this way and that. ²⁵ I looked and saw that there were no people. And all the birds of the heavens had left. ²⁶ I looked and saw that the rich land was a desert. All its cities were laid waste before the Lord and His burning anger.

²⁷ For the Lord says, “The whole land will be laid waste, yet I will not destroy everything. ²⁸ For the earth will be filled with sorrow and the heavens above will be dark, because I have spoken. I have planned it, and will not change My mind or turn back.” ²⁹ Every city runs as they hear the sound of the horseman and the one who fights with arrows. They go among the trees and the rocks. Every city is left empty, and no one lives in them. ³⁰ And you, O destroyed one, what will you do? Even when you dress in red, and wear objects of gold, and color your eyes to make them look bigger, you make yourself beautiful for nothing. Your lovers hate you, and want to kill you. ³¹ I heard a cry as of a woman in pain, as if she were giving birth to her first child. It was the cry of the people of Zion, working hard to breathe, holding out hands, and saying, “O, it is bad for me! I am losing strength in front of those who want to kill me.”