Jeremiah 15

Judgment Must Come

1Then the Lord said to me, “Even 1though 2Moses and 3Samuel were to 4stand before Me, My 5heart would not be 6with this people; 7send them away from My presence and let them go! 2And it shall be that when they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then you are to tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Those destined 8for death, to death; And those destined for the sword, to the sword; And those destined for famine, to famine; And those destined for captivity, to captivity.”’ 3I will 9appoint over them four kinds of doom,” declares the Lord: “the sword to slay, the 10dogs to drag off, and the 11birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. 4I will 12make them an object of horror among all the kingdoms of the earth because of 13Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.

5“Indeed, who will have 14pity on you, O Jerusalem, Or who will 15mourn for you, Or who will turn aside to ask about your welfare?6You who have 16forsaken Me,” declares the Lord, “You keep 17going backward. So I will 18stretch out My hand against you and destroy you; I am 19tired of relenting!7I will 20winnow them with a winnowing fork At the gates of the land; I will 21bereave them of children, I will destroy My people; 22They did not 23repent of their ways.8Their 24widows will be more numerous before Me Than the sand of the seas; I will bring against them, against the mother of a young man, A 25destroyer at noonday; I will suddenly bring down on her Anguish and dismay.9She who 26bore seven sons pines away; 27Her breathing is labored. Her 28sun has set while it was yet day; She has been 29shamed and humiliated. So I will 30give over their survivors to the sword Before their enemies,” declares the Lord.

1031Woe to me, my mother, that you have borne me As a 32man of strife and a man of contention to all the land! I have not 33lent, nor have men lent money to me, Yet everyone curses me.11The Lord said, “Surely I will 34set you free for purposes of good; Surely I will cause the 35enemy to make supplication to you In a time of disaster and a time of distress.

12“Can anyone smash iron, 36Iron from the north, or bronze?13Your 37wealth and your treasures I will give for booty 38without cost, Even for all your sins And within all your borders.14Then I will cause your enemies to bring 39it Into a 40land you do not know; For a 41fire has been kindled in My anger, It will burn upon you.”

Jeremiah’s Prayer and God’s Answer

1542You who know, O Lord, Remember me, take notice of me, And 43take vengeance for me on my persecutors. Do not, in view of Your patience, take me away; Know that 44for Your sake I endure reproach.16Your words were found and I 45ate them, And Your 46words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; For I have been 47called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts.17I 48did not sit in the circle of merrymakers, Nor did I exult. Because of Your hand upon me I sat 49alone, For You 50filled me with indignation.18Why has my pain been perpetual And my 51wound incurable, refusing to be healed? Will You indeed be to me 52like a deceptive stream With water that is unreliable?

19Therefore, thus says the Lord, “53If you return, then I will restore you-- 54Before Me you will stand; And 55if you extract the precious from the worthless, You will become 56My spokesman. They for their part may turn to you, But as for you, you must not turn to them.20Then I will 57make you to this people A fortified wall of bronze; And though they fight against you, They will not prevail over you; For 58I am with you to save you And deliver you,” declares the Lord.21“So I will 59deliver you from the hand of the wicked, And I will 60redeem you from the 61grasp of the violent.”