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Jeremiah 5

Jerusalem's Godlessness

1

aRoam to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, And look now and take note. And seek in her open squares, If you can  bfind a man,  cIf there is one who does justice, who seeks  1truth, Then I will pardon her.

2

"And  aalthough they say, `As the LORD lives,' Surely they swear falsely."

3

O LORD, do not  aYour eyes look for  1truth? You have  bsmitten them, But they did not  2weaken; You have consumed them, But they  crefused to take correction. They have  dmade their faces harder than rock; They have refused to repent.

4

Then I said, "They are only the poor, They are foolish; For they  ado not know the way of the LORD Or the ordinance of their God.

5

"I will go to the great And will speak to them, For  athey know the way of the LORD And the ordinance of their God." But they too, with one accord, have  bbroken the yoke And burst the bonds.

6

Therefore  aa lion from the forest will slay them, A  bwolf of the deserts will destroy them, A  cleopard is watching their cities. Everyone who goes out of them will be torn in pieces, Because their  dtransgressions are many, Their apostasies are numerous.

7

"Why should I pardon you? Your sons have forsaken Me And  asworn by those who are  bnot gods. When I had fed them to the full, They  ccommitted adultery And trooped to the harlot's house.

8

"They were well-fed lusty horses, Each one neighing after his  aneighbor's wife.

9

"Shall I not punish  1these people," declares the LORD, "And on a nation such as this  aShall I not avenge Myself?

10

"Go up through her vine rows and destroy, But do not execute a complete destruction; Strip away her branches, For they are not the LORD'S.

11

"For the  ahouse of Israel and the house of Judah Have dealt very treacherously with Me," declares the LORD.

12

They have  alied about the LORD And said, " 1 bNot He; Misfortune will  cnot come on us, And we  dwill not see sword or famine.

13

"The  aprophets are as wind, And the word is not in them. Thus it will be done to them!"

Judgment Proclaimed

14

Therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, "Because you have spoken this word, Behold, I am  amaking My words in your mouth fire And this people wood, and it will consume them.

15

"Behold, I am  abringing a nation against you from afar, O house of Israel," declares the LORD. "It is an enduring nation, It is an ancient nation, A nation whose  blanguage you do not know, Nor can you understand what they say.

16

"Their  aquiver is like an  bopen grave, All of them are mighty men.

17

"They will  adevour your harvest and your food; They will devour your sons and your daughters; They will devour your flocks and your herds; They will devour your  bvines and your fig trees; They will demolish with the sword your  cfortified cities in which you trust.

18

"Yet even in those days," declares the LORD, "I will not make you a complete destruction.

19

"It shall come about  awhen  1they say, `Why has the LORD our God done all these things to us?' then you shall say to them, `As you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so you will  bserve strangers in a land that is not yours.'

20

"Declare this in the house of Jacob And proclaim it in Judah, saying,

21

`Now hear this, O foolish and  1senseless people, Who have  aeyes but do not see; Who have ears but do not hear.

22

`Do you not  afear Me?' declares the LORD. `Do you not tremble in My presence? For I have  bplaced the sand as a boundary for the sea, An eternal decree, so it cannot cross over it. Though the waves toss, yet they cannot prevail; Though they roar, yet they cannot cross over it.

23

`But this people has a  astubborn and rebellious heart; They have turned aside and departed.

24

`They do not say in their heart, "Let us now fear the LORD our God, Who  agives rain in its season, Both  bthe autumn rain and the spring rain, Who keeps for us The  cappointed weeks of the harvest."

25

`Your  ainiquities have turned these away, And your sins have withheld good from you.

26

`For wicked men are found among My people, They  awatch like fowlers  1lying in wait; They set a trap, They catch men.

27

`Like a cage full of birds, So their houses are full of  adeceit; Therefore they have become great and rich.

28

`They are  afat, they are sleek, They also  1excel in deeds of wickedness; They do not plead the cause, The cause of the  2 borphan, that they may prosper; And they do not  3defend the rights of the poor.

29

aShall I not punish  1these people?' declares the LORD, `On a nation such as this Shall I not avenge Myself?'

30

"An appalling and  ahorrible thing Has happened in the land:

31

The  aprophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule  1on their own authority; And My people  blove it so! But what will you do at the end of it?



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(Produced: Sat Dec 22 11:23:44 2007)

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