Jeremiah 4

Judah Threatened with Invasion

1“If you will 1return, O Israel,” declares the Lord, “Then you should return to Me. And 2if you will put away your detested things from My presence, And will not waver,2And you will 3swear, ‘As the Lord lives,’ 4In truth, in justice and in righteousness; Then the 5nations will bless themselves in Him, And 6in Him they will glory.”

3For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem, “78Break up your fallow ground, And 9do not sow among thorns.410Circumcise yourselves to the Lord And remove the foreskins of your heart, Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Or else My 11wrath will go forth like fire And burn with 12none to quench it, Because of the evil of your deeds.”

5Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say, “13Blow the trumpet in the land; Cry aloud and say, ‘14Assemble yourselves, and let us go Into the fortified cities.’6Lift up a 15standard toward Zion! Seek refuge, do not stand still, For I am bringing 16evil from the north, And great destruction.7A 17lion has gone up from his thicket, And a 18destroyer of nations has set out; He has gone out from his place To 19make your land a waste. Your cities will be ruins Without inhabitant.8For this, 20put on sackcloth, Lament and wail; For the 21fierce anger of the Lord Has not turned back from us.” 9“It shall come about in that day,” declares the Lord, “that the 22heart of the king and the heart of the princes will fail; and the priests will be appalled and the 23prophets will be astounded.”

10Then I said, “Ah, Lord 24God! Surely You have utterly 25deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, ‘26You will have peace’; whereas a sword touches the 27throat.”

11In that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A 28scorching wind from the bare heights in the wilderness in the direction of the daughter of My people--not to winnow and not to cleanse, 12a wind too strong for 29this--will come 30at My command; now I will also pronounce judgments against them.13Behold, he 31goes up like clouds, And his 32chariots like the whirlwind; His horses are 33swifter than eagles. Woe to us, for 34we are ruined!”

14Wash your heart from evil, O Jerusalem, That you may be saved. How long will your 35wicked thoughts Lodge within you?15For a voice declares from 36Dan, And proclaims wickedness from Mount Ephraim.16“Report it to the nations, now! Proclaim over Jerusalem, ‘Besiegers come from a 37far country, And 38lift their voices against the cities of Judah.17Like watchmen of a field they are 39against her round about, Because she has 40rebelled against Me,’ declares the Lord.18Your 41ways and your deeds Have 42brought these things to you. This is your evil. How 43bitter! How it has touched your heart!”

Lament over Judah’s Devastation

1944My 45soul, my 46soul! I am in anguish! 47Oh, my heart! My 48heart is pounding in me; I cannot be silent, Because 49you have heard, O my soul, The 50sound of the trumpet, The alarm of war.2051Disaster on disaster is proclaimed, For the 52whole land is devastated; Suddenly my 53tents are devastated, My curtains in an instant.21How long must I see the standard And hear the sound of the trumpet?22“54For My people are foolish, They know Me not; They are stupid children And have no understanding. They are shrewd to 55do evil, But to do good they do not know.”

23I looked on the earth, and behold, it was 5657formless and void; And to the heavens, and they had no light.24I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were 58quaking, And all the hills 59moved to and fro.25I looked, and behold, there was no man, And all the 60birds of the heavens had fled.26I looked, and behold, 61the 62fruitful land was a wilderness, And all its cities were pulled down Before the Lord, before His fierce anger.

27For thus says the Lord, “The 63whole land shall be a desolation, Yet I will 64not execute a complete destruction.28For this the 65earth shall mourn And the 66heavens above be dark, Because I have 67spoken, I have purposed, And I will not 68change My mind, nor will I turn from it.”29At the sound of the horseman and bowman 69every city flees; They 70go into the thickets and climb among the rocks; 71Every city is forsaken, And no man dwells in them.30And you, O desolate one, 72what will you do? Although you dress in scarlet, Although you decorate yourself with ornaments of gold, Although you 73enlarge your eyes with paint, In vain you make yourself beautiful. Your 7475lovers despise you; They seek your life.31For I heard a 76cry as of a woman in labor, The anguish as of one giving birth to her first child, The 77cry of the daughter of Zion 78gasping for breath, 79Stretching out her 80hands, saying, “Ah, woe is me, for 81I faint before murderers.”