Jeremiah 21 Cross References - MSB

¹ This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur son of Malchijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah. They said, ² “Please inquire of the LORD on our behalf, since Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is waging war against us. Perhaps the LORD will perform for us something like all His past wonders, so that Nebuchadnezzar will withdraw from us.” ³ But Jeremiah answered, “You are to tell Zedekiah that ⁴ this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will turn against you the weapons of war in your hands, with which you are fighting the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who besiege you outside the wall, and I will assemble their forces in the center of this city. ⁵ And I Myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, with anger, fury, and great wrath. ⁶ I will strike down the residents of this city, both man and beast. They will die in a terrible plague.’ ⁷ ‘After that,’ declares the LORD, ‘I will hand over Zedekiah king of Judah, his officers, and the people in this city who survive the plague and sword and famine, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to their enemies who seek their lives. He will put them to the sword; he will not spare them or show pity or compassion.’ ⁸ Furthermore, you are to tell this people that this is what the LORD says: ‘Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. ⁹ Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who besiege you will live; he will retain his life like a spoil of war. ¹⁰ For I have set My face against this city to bring disaster and not good, declares the LORD. It will be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, who will destroy it with fire.’ ¹¹ Moreover, tell the house of the king of Judah to hear the word of the LORD. ¹² O house of David, this is what the LORD says: ‘Administer justice every morning, and rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor, or My wrath will go forth like fire and burn with no one to extinguish it because of their evil deeds. ¹³ Behold, I am against you who dwell above the valley, atop the rocky plateau—declares the LORD—you who say, “Who can come against us? Who can enter our dwellings?” ¹⁴ I will punish you as your deeds deserve, declares the LORD. I will kindle a fire in your forest that will consume everything around you.’”

¹⁷ Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place and changed his name to Zedekiah. ¹⁸ Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.

¹⁸ The captain of the guard also took away Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest of second rank, and the three doorkeepers. ¹⁹ Of those still in the city, he took a court official who had been appointed over the men of war, as well as five royal advisors. He also took the scribe of the captain of the army, who had enlisted the people of the land, and sixty men who were found in the city. ²⁰ Nebuzaradan captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. ²¹ There at Riblah in the land of Hamath, the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death. So Judah was taken into exile, away from its own land.

¹⁵ The sons of Josiah: Johanan was the firstborn, Jehoiakim the second, Zedekiah the third, and Shallum the fourth.

¹² Adaiah son of Jeroham, the son of Pashhur, the son of Malchijah; Maasai son of Adiel, the son of Jahzerah, the son of Meshullam, the son of Meshillemith, the son of Immer;

¹⁰ In the spring, King Nebuchadnezzar summoned Jehoiachin and brought him to Babylon, along with the articles of value from the house of the LORD. And he made Jehoiachin’s relative Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem. ¹¹ Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. ¹² And he did evil in the sight of the LORD his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke for the LORD. ¹³ He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. But Zedekiah stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel.

¹² and their associates who did the work at the temple—822 men; Adaiah son of Jeroham, the son of Pelaliah, the son of Amzi, the son of Zechariah, the son of Pashhur, the son of Malchijah;

²⁵ this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “In your own name you have sent out letters to all the people of Jerusalem, to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, and to all the priests. You said to Zephaniah:

¹ This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. ² At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was imprisoned in the courtyard of the guard, which was in the palace of the king of Judah. ³ For Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him, saying: “Why are you prophesying like this? You claim that the LORD says, ‘Behold, I am about to deliver this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.

¹ Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made Zedekiah son of Josiah the king of Judah, and he reigned in place of Coniah son of Jehoiakim.

³ Yet King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, to Jeremiah the prophet with the message, “Please pray to the LORD our God for us!”

¹ Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchijah heard that Jeremiah had been telling all the people:

¹ Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah. ² And Zedekiah did evil in the sight of the LORD, just as Jehoiakim had done. ³ For because of the anger of the LORD, all this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He finally banished them from His presence. And Zedekiah also rebelled against the king of Babylon.

²⁴ The captain of the guard also took away Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest of second rank, and the three doorkeepers.

¹ Then the LORD said to Moses, ² “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. You are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal-zephon. ³ For Pharaoh will say of the Israelites, ‘They are wandering the land in confusion; the wilderness has boxed them in.’ ⁴ And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he will pursue them. But I will gain honor by means of Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD.” So this is what the Israelites did. ⁵ When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have released Israel from serving us.” ⁶ So Pharaoh prepared his chariot and took his army with him. ⁷ He took 600 of the best chariots, and all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. ⁸ And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out defiantly. ⁹ The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi-hahiroth, opposite Baal-zephon. ¹⁰ As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up and saw the Egyptians marching after them, and they were terrified and cried out to the LORD. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us into the wilderness to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? ¹² Did we not say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” ¹³ But Moses told the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the LORD’s salvation, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. ¹⁴ The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” ¹⁵ Then the LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go forward.

¹ Now Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard that Joshua had captured Ai and devoted it to destruction—doing to Ai and its king as he had done to Jericho and its king—and that the people of Gibeon had made peace with Israel and were living near them. ² So Adoni-zedek and his people were greatly alarmed, because Gibeon was a great city, like one of the royal cities; it was larger than Ai, and all its men were mighty. ³ Therefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent word to Hoham king of Hebron, Piram king of Jarmuth, Japhia king of Lachish, and Debir king of Eglon, saying, ⁴ “Come up and help me. We will attack Gibeon, because they have made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.” ⁵ So the five kings of the Amorites—the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon—joined forces and advanced with all their armies. They camped before Gibeon and made war against it. ⁶ Then the men of Gibeon sent word to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal: “Do not abandon your servants. Come quickly and save us! Help us, because all the kings of the Amorites from the hill country have joined forces against us.” ⁷ So Joshua and his whole army, including all the mighty men of valor, came from Gilgal. ⁸ The LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for I have delivered them into your hand. Not one of them shall stand against you.” ⁹ After marching all night from Gilgal, Joshua caught them by surprise. ¹⁰ And the LORD threw them into confusion before Israel, who defeated them in a great slaughter at Gibeon, pursued them along the ascent to Beth-horon, and struck them down as far as Azekah and Makkedah. ¹¹ As they fled before Israel along the descent from Beth-horon to Azekah, the LORD cast down on them large hailstones from the sky, and more of them were killed by the hailstones than by the swords of the Israelites.

¹ After Ehud died, the Israelites again did evil in the sight of the LORD. ² So the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his forces was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-hagoyim. ³ Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD, because Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and he had harshly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years. ⁴ Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. ⁵ And she would sit under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, where the Israelites would go up to her for judgment.

²⁷ And the Israelites inquired of the LORD. (In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there,

¹⁰ As the Philistines drew near to fight against Israel, Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering. But that day the LORD thundered loudly against the Philistines and threw them into such confusion that they fled before Israel. ¹¹ Then the men of Israel charged out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, striking them down all the way to an area below Beth-car. ¹² Afterward, Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us.”

²² So again they inquired of the LORD, “Has the man come here yet?” And the LORD replied, “Behold, he has hidden himself among the baggage.”

⁶ Jonathan said to the young man bearing his armor, “Come, let us cross over to the outpost of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the LORD will work on our behalf. Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few.” ⁷ His armor-bearer replied, “Do all that is in your heart. Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.” ⁸ “Very well,” said Jonathan, “we will cross over toward these men and show ourselves to them. ⁹ If they say, ‘Wait until we come to you,’ then we will stay where we are and will not go up to them. ¹⁰ But if they say, ‘Come on up,’ then we will go up, because this will be our sign that the LORD has delivered them into our hands.” ¹¹ So the two of them showed themselves to the outpost of the Philistines, who exclaimed, “Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes in which they were hiding!” ¹² So the men of the outpost called out to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, “Come on up, and we will teach you a lesson!” “Follow me,” Jonathan told his armor-bearer, “for the LORD has delivered them into the hand of Israel.” ¹³ So Jonathan climbed up on his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer behind him. And the Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer followed and finished them off. ¹⁴ In that first assault, Jonathan and his armor-bearer struck down about twenty men over half an acre of land.

⁴⁵ But David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD of Hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. ⁴⁶ This day the LORD will deliver you into my hand. This day I will strike you down, cut off your head, and give the carcasses of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the creatures of the earth. Then the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. ⁴⁷ And all those assembled here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give all of you into our hands.” ⁴⁸ As the Philistine started forward to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. ⁴⁹ Then David reached into his bag, took out a stone, and slung it, striking the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground. ⁵⁰ Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.

⁶ He inquired of the LORD, but the LORD did not answer him by dreams or Urim or prophets.

¹⁵ Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” “I am deeply distressed,” replied Saul. “The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has turned away from me. He no longer answers me, either by prophets or by dreams. So I have called on you to tell me what to do.”

² and Jeroboam said to his wife, “Now get up, disguise yourself so they will not recognize you as my wife, and go to Shiloh. For Ahijah the prophet is there; it was he who spoke about my kingship over this people. ³ Take with you ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will become of the boy.”

³ who said to his servants, “Do you not know that Ramoth-gilead is ours, but we have failed to take it from the hand of the king of Aram?” ⁴ So he asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight against Ramoth-gilead?” Jehoshaphat answered the king of Israel, “I am like you, my people are your people, and my horses are your horses.” ⁵ But Jehoshaphat also said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire first for the word of the LORD.” ⁶ So the king of Israel assembled the prophets, about four hundred men, and asked them, “Should I go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I refrain?” “Go up,” they replied, “and the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king.” ⁷ But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here of whom we can inquire?” ⁸ The king of Israel answered, “There is still one man who can ask the LORD, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good for me, but only bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.” “The king should not say that!” Jehoshaphat replied.

³ But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are on your way to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?’

¹¹ But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the LORD here? Let us inquire of the LORD through him.” And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.” ¹² Jehoshaphat affirmed, “The word of the LORD is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him. ¹³ Elisha, however, said to the king of Israel, “What have we to do with each other? Go to the prophets of your father and of your mother!” “No,” replied the king of Israel, “for it is the LORD who has summoned these three kings to deliver them into the hand of Moab.” ¹⁴ Then Elisha said, “As surely as the LORD of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not for my regard for the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you or acknowledge you.

¹³ “Go and inquire of the LORD for me, for the people, and for all Judah concerning the words in this book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the LORD that burns against us because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book by doing all that is written about us.” ¹⁴ So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went and spoke to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, the keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the Second District.

¹ So in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army. They encamped outside the city and built a siege wall all around it. ² And the city was kept under siege until King Zedekiah’s eleventh year.

⁹ Then Zerah the Cushite came against them with an army of 1,000,000 men and 300 chariots, and they advanced as far as Mareshah. ¹⁰ So Asa marched out against him and lined up in battle formation in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah. ¹¹ Then Asa cried out to the LORD his God: “O LORD, there is no one besides You to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O LORD our God, for we rely on You, and in Your name we have come against this multitude. O LORD, You are our God. Do not let a mere mortal prevail against You.” ¹² So the LORD struck down the Cushites before Asa and Judah, and the Cushites fled. ¹³ Then Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar. The Cushites fell and could not recover, for they were crushed before the LORD and His army. So the people of Judah carried off a great amount of plunder

¹ After this, the Moabites and Ammonites, together with some of the Meunites, came to make war against Jehoshaphat. ² Then some men came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from beyond the Sea; they are already in Hazazon-tamar” (that is, En-gedi). ³ Jehoshaphat was alarmed and set his face to seek the LORD. And he proclaimed a fast throughout Judah. ⁴ So the people of Judah gathered to seek the LORD, and indeed, they came from all the cities of Judah to seek Him. ⁵ Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the house of the LORD in front of the new courtyard ⁶ and said, “O LORD, God of our fathers, are You not the God who is in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand, and no one can stand against You. ⁷ Our God, did You not drive out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham Your friend? ⁸ They have lived in the land and have built in it a sanctuary for Your Name, saying, ⁹ ‘If disaster comes upon us—whether sword or judgment, plague or famine—we will stand before this temple and before You, for Your Name is in this temple. We will cry out to You in our distress, and You will hear us and save us.’ ¹⁰ And now, here are the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, whom You did not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt; but Israel turned away from them and did not destroy them. ¹¹ See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession that You gave us as an inheritance. ¹² Our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this vast army that comes against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.” ¹³ Meanwhile all the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, were standing before the LORD. ¹⁴ Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite from Asaph’s descendants, as he stood in the midst of the assembly. ¹⁵ And he said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army, for the battle does not belong to you, but to God. ¹⁶ Tomorrow you are to march down against them. You will see them coming up the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the valley facing the Wilderness of Jeruel. ¹⁷ You need not fight this battle. Take up your positions, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out and face them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you.’” ¹⁸ Then Jehoshaphat bowed facedown, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down before the LORD to worship Him. ¹⁹ And the Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, shouting in a very loud voice. ²⁰ Early in the morning they got up and left for the Wilderness of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood up and said, “Hear me, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be upheld; believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.” ²¹ Then Jehoshaphat consulted with the people and appointed those who would sing to the LORD and praise the splendor of His holiness. As they went out before the army, they were singing: “Give thanks to the LORD, for His loving devotion endures forever.” ²² The moment they began their shouts and praises, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir who had come against Judah, and they were defeated. ²³ The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, devoting them to destruction. And when they had made an end to the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another. ²⁴ When the men of Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked for the vast army, but there were only corpses lying on the ground; no one had escaped. ²⁵ Then Jehoshaphat and his people went to carry off the plunder, and they found on the bodies an abundance of goods and valuables—more than they could carry away. They were gathering the plunder for three days because there was so much. ²⁶ On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Beracah, where they blessed the LORD. Therefore that place is called the Valley of Beracah to this day. ²⁷ Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat at their head, returned joyfully to Jerusalem, for the LORD had made them rejoice over their enemies. ²⁸ So they entered Jerusalem and went into the house of the LORD with harps, lyres, and trumpets. ²⁹ And the fear of God came upon all the kingdoms of the lands when they heard that the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel. ³⁰ Then Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side.

²¹ and the LORD sent an angel who annihilated every mighty man of valor and every leader and commander in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he withdrew to his own land in disgrace. And when he entered the temple of his god, some of his own sons struck him down with the sword.

¹ For the choirmaster. A Maskil of the sons of Korah. We have heard with our ears, O God; our fathers have told us the work You did in their days, in the days of old. ² With Your hand You drove out the nations and planted our fathers there; You crushed the peoples and cast them out. ³ For it was not by their sword that they took the land; their arm did not bring them victory. It was by Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your face, because You favored them. ⁴ You are my King, O God, who ordains victories for Jacob.

⁸ Come, see the works of the LORD, who brings devastation upon the earth. ⁹ He makes wars to cease throughout the earth; He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; He burns the shields in the fire. ¹⁰ “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted over the earth.” ¹¹ The LORD of Hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

⁴ For behold, the kings assembled; they all advanced together. ⁵ They saw and were astounded; they fled in terror. ⁶ Trembling seized them there, anguish like a woman in labor. ⁷ With a wind from the east You wrecked the ships of Tarshish. ⁸ As we have heard, so we have seen in the city of the LORD of Hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish her forever. Selah

⁵ Remember the wonders He has done, His marvels, and the judgments He has pronounced, ⁶ O offspring of His servant Abraham, O sons of Jacob, His chosen ones. ⁷ He is the LORD our God; His judgments carry throughout the earth. ⁸ He remembers His covenant forever, the word He ordained for a thousand generations— ⁹ the covenant He made with Abraham, and the oath He swore to Isaac. ¹⁰ He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant: ¹¹ “I will give you the land of Canaan as the portion of your inheritance.” ¹² When they were few in number, few indeed, and strangers in the land, ¹³ they wandered from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another. ¹⁴ He let no man oppress them; He rebuked kings on their behalf: ¹⁵ “Do not touch My anointed ones! Do no harm to My prophets!” ¹⁶ He called down famine on the land and cut off all their supplies of food. ¹⁷ He sent a man before them—Joseph, sold as a slave. ¹⁸ They bruised his feet with shackles and placed his neck in irons, ¹⁹ until his prediction came true and the word of the LORD proved him right. ²⁰ The king sent and released him; the ruler of peoples set him free. ²¹ He made him master of his household, ruler over all his substance, ²² to instruct his princes as he pleased and teach his elders wisdom. ²³ Then Israel entered Egypt; Jacob dwelt in the land of Ham. ²⁴ And the LORD made His people very fruitful, more numerous than their foes, ²⁵ whose hearts He turned to hate His people, to conspire against His servants. ²⁶ He sent Moses His servant, and Aaron, whom He had chosen. ²⁷ They performed His miraculous signs among them, and wonders in the land of Ham. ²⁸ He sent darkness, and it became dark—yet they defied His words. ²⁹ He turned their waters to blood and caused their fish to die. ³⁰ Their land teemed with frogs, even in their royal chambers. ³¹ He spoke, and insects swarmed—gnats throughout their country. ³² He gave them hail for rain, with lightning throughout their land. ³³ He struck their vines and fig trees and shattered the trees of their country. ³⁴ He spoke, and the locusts came—young locusts without number. ³⁵ They devoured every plant in their land and consumed the produce of their soil. ³⁶ Then He struck all the firstborn in their land, the firstfruits of all their vigor. ³⁷ He brought Israel out with silver and gold, and none among His tribes stumbled. ³⁸ Egypt was glad when they departed, for the dread of Israel had fallen on them. ³⁹ He spread a cloud as a covering and a fire to light up the night. ⁴⁰ They asked, and He brought quail and satisfied them with the bread of heaven. ⁴¹ He opened a rock, and water gushed out; it flowed like a river in the desert. ⁴² For He remembered His holy promise to Abraham His servant. ⁴³ He brought forth His people with rejoicing, His chosen with shouts of joy. ⁴⁴ He gave them the lands of the nations, that they might inherit the fruit of others’ labor, ⁴⁵ that they might keep His statutes and obey His laws. Hallelujah!

¹ Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good. His loving devotion endures forever. ² Give thanks to the God of gods. His loving devotion endures forever. ³ Give thanks to the Lord of lords. His loving devotion endures forever. ⁴ He alone does great wonders. His loving devotion endures forever. ⁵ By His insight He made the heavens. His loving devotion endures forever. ⁶ He spread out the earth upon the waters. His loving devotion endures forever. ⁷ He made the great lights—His loving devotion endures forever. ⁸ the sun to rule the day, His loving devotion endures forever. ⁹ the moon and stars to govern the night. His loving devotion endures forever. ¹⁰ He struck down the firstborn of Egypt His loving devotion endures forever. ¹¹ and brought Israel out from among them His loving devotion endures forever. ¹² with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. His loving devotion endures forever. ¹³ He divided the Red Sea in two His loving devotion endures forever. ¹⁴ and led Israel through the midst, His loving devotion endures forever. ¹⁵ but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea. His loving devotion endures forever. ¹⁶ He led His people through the wilderness. His loving devotion endures forever. ¹⁷ He struck down great kings His loving devotion endures forever. ¹⁸ and slaughtered mighty kings—His loving devotion endures forever. ¹⁹ Sihon king of the Amorites His loving devotion endures forever. ²⁰ and Og king of Bashan—His loving devotion endures forever. ²¹ and He gave their land as an inheritance, His loving devotion endures forever. ²² a heritage to His servant Israel. His loving devotion endures forever. ²³ He remembered us in our low estate His loving devotion endures forever. ²⁴ and freed us from our enemies. His loving devotion endures forever. ²⁵ He gives food to every creature. His loving devotion endures forever. ²⁶ Give thanks to the God of heaven! His loving devotion endures forever.

¹ Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear. ² But your iniquities have built barriers between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear.

¹⁷ “Oh, Lord GOD! You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for You!

²⁴ See how the siege ramps are mounted against the city to capture it. And by sword and famine and plague, the city has been given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What You have spoken has happened, as You now see!

⁷ “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says that you are to tell the king of Judah, who sent you to Me: Behold, Pharaoh’s army, which has marched out to help you, will go back to its own land of Egypt.

¹⁴ Then King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and received him at the third entrance to the house of the LORD. “I am going to ask you something,” said the king to Jeremiah. “Do not hide anything from me.” ¹⁵ “If I tell you,” Jeremiah replied, “you will surely put me to death. And even if I give you advice, you will not listen to me.” ¹⁶ But King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As surely as the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you, nor will I deliver you into the hands of these men who are seeking your life.” ¹⁷ Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive. ¹⁸ But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’” ¹⁹ But King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Jews who have deserted to the Chaldeans, for the Chaldeans may deliver me into their hands to abuse me.” ²⁰ “They will not hand you over,” Jeremiah replied. “Obey the voice of the LORD in what I am telling you, that it may go well with you and you may live. ²¹ But if you refuse to surrender, this is the word that the LORD has shown me: ²² All the women who remain in the palace of the king of Judah will be brought out to the officials of the king of Babylon, and those women will say: ‘They misled you and overcame you—those trusted friends of yours. Your feet sank into the mire, and they deserted you.’ ²³ All your wives and children will be brought out to the Chaldeans. And you yourself will not escape their grasp, for you will be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned down.” ²⁴ Then Zedekiah warned Jeremiah, “Do not let anyone know about this conversation, or you will die. ²⁵ If the officials hear that I have spoken with you, and they come and demand of you, ‘Tell us what you said to the king and what he said to you; do not hide it from us, or we will kill you,’ ²⁶ then tell them, ‘I was presenting to the king my petition that he not return me to the house of Jonathan to die there.’” ²⁷ When all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him, he relayed to them the exact words the king had commanded him to say. So they said no more to him, for no one had overheard the conversation.

¹ In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army and laid siege to the city. ² And on the ninth day of the fourth month of Zedekiah’s eleventh year, the city was breached.

⁴ “I have heard you,” replied Jeremiah the prophet. “I will surely pray to the LORD your God as you request, and I will tell you everything that the LORD answers; I will not withhold a word from you.” ⁵ Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act upon every word that the LORD your God sends you to tell us. ⁶ Whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, so that it may go well with us, for we will obey the voice of the LORD our God!”

³ For because of the anger of the LORD, all this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He finally banished them from His presence. And Zedekiah also rebelled against the king of Babylon. ⁴ So in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army. They encamped outside the city and built a siege wall all around it. ⁵ And the city was kept under siege until King Zedekiah’s eleventh year. ⁶ By the ninth day of the fourth month, the famine in the city was so severe that the people of the land had no food.

³ “Son of man, these men have set up idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces. Should I consult with them in any way? ⁴ Therefore speak to them and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘When any Israelite sets up idols in his heart and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face, and then comes to the prophet, I the LORD will answer him according to his great idolatry, ⁵ so that I may take hold of the hearts of the people of Israel. For because of their idols, they are all estranged from Me.’ ⁶ Therefore tell the house of Israel that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Repent and turn away from your idols; turn your faces away from all your abominations. ⁷ For when any Israelite or any foreigner dwelling in Israel separates himself from Me, sets up idols in his heart, and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face, and then comes to the prophet to inquire of Me, I the LORD will answer him Myself.

¹ In the seventh year, on the tenth day of the fifth month, some of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and they sat down before me. ² Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ³ “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: Have you come to inquire of Me? As surely as I live, I will not be consulted by you, declares the Lord GOD.

⁵ Now I will tell you what I am about to do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be consumed; I will tear down its wall, and it will be trampled.

⁴ Nothing will remain but to crouch among the captives or fall among the slain. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.

⁴ Listen, a tumult on the mountains, like that of a great multitude! Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms, like nations gathered together! The LORD of Hosts is mobilizing an army for war.

⁵ He will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will stay until I attend to him, declares the LORD. If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will not succeed.’”

⁵ The Chaldeans are coming to fight and to fill those places with the corpses of the men I will strike down in My anger and in My wrath. I have hidden My face from this city because of all its wickedness.

⁸ Then the Chaldeans will return and fight against this city. They will capture it and burn it down. ⁹ This is what the LORD says: Do not deceive yourselves by saying, ‘The Chaldeans will go away for good,’ for they will not! ¹⁰ Indeed, if you were to strike down the entire army of the Chaldeans that is fighting against you, and only wounded men remained in their tents, they would still get up and burn this city down.”

² “This is what the LORD says: Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever surrenders to the Chaldeans will live; he will retain his life like a spoil of war, and he will live. ³ This is what the LORD says: This city will surely be delivered into the hands of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.”

¹⁷ Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive. ¹⁸ But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’”

³ Then all the officials of the king of Babylon entered and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-sarsekim the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon.

¹⁸ They also took away the pots, shovels, wick trimmers, sprinkling bowls, dishes, and all the articles of bronze used in the temple service.

⁵ The Lord is like an enemy; He has swallowed up Israel. He has swallowed up all her palaces and destroyed her strongholds. He has multiplied mourning and lamentation for the Daughter of Judah.

⁷ The Lord has rejected His altar; He has abandoned His sanctuary; He has delivered the walls of her palaces into the hand of the enemy. They have raised a shout in the house of the LORD as on the day of an appointed feast.

³⁷ therefore I will surely gather all the lovers with whom you found pleasure, all those you loved and all those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and expose you before them, and they will see you completely naked. ³⁸ And I will sentence you to the punishment of women who commit adultery and those who shed blood; so I will bring upon you the wrath of your bloodshed and jealousy. ³⁹ Then I will deliver you into the hands of your lovers, and they will level your mounds and tear down your lofty shrines. They will strip off your clothes, take your fine jewelry, and leave you naked and bare. ⁴⁰ They will bring a mob against you, who will stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords. ⁴¹ Then they will burn down your houses and execute judgment against you in the sight of many women. I will put an end to your prostitution, and you will never again pay your lovers.

¹² Even if they raise their children, I will bereave them of each one. Yes, woe be to them when I turn away from them!

² For I will gather all the nations for battle against Jerusalem, and the city will be captured, the houses looted, and the women ravished. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be removed from the city.

⁷ When he heard this, the king was enraged, and he sent his troops to destroy those murderers and burn their city.

⁶ Therefore tell the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.

¹⁵ For by this time I could have stretched out My hand and struck you and your people with a plague to wipe you off the earth.

²³ Be careful that you do not forget the covenant of the LORD your God that He made with you; do not make an idol for yourselves in the form of anything He has forbidden you.

³⁴ Or has any god tried to take as his own a nation out of another nation—by trials, signs, wonders, and war, by a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors—as the LORD your God did for you in Egypt, before your eyes?

²⁵ Therefore the anger of the LORD burns against His people; His hand is raised against them to strike them down. The mountains quake, and the corpses lay like refuse in the streets. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.

¹² Aram from the east and Philistia from the west have devoured Israel with open mouths. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.

¹⁷ Therefore the Lord takes no pleasure in their young men; He has no compassion on their fatherless and widows. For every one of them is godless and wicked, and every mouth speaks folly. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.

²¹ Manasseh devours Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh; together they turn against Judah. Despite all this, His anger is not turned away; His hand is still upraised.

¹⁰ But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit. So He turned and became their enemy, and He Himself fought against them.

¹² Their houses will be turned over to others, their fields and wives as well, for I will stretch out My hand against the inhabitants of the land,” declares the LORD.

³⁷ I will surely gather My people from all the lands to which I have banished them in My furious anger and great wrath, and I will return them to this place and make them dwell in safety.

⁴ He has bent His bow like an enemy; His right hand is positioned. Like a foe He has killed all who were pleasing to the eye; He has poured out His wrath like fire on the tent of the Daughter of Zion. ⁵ The Lord is like an enemy; He has swallowed up Israel. He has swallowed up all her palaces and destroyed her strongholds. He has multiplied mourning and lamentation for the Daughter of Judah.

³³ As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, with a strong hand, an outstretched arm, and outpoured wrath I will rule over you. ³⁴ With a strong hand, an outstretched arm, and outpoured wrath I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands to which you have been scattered.

⁵ The mountains quake before Him, and the hills melt away; the earth trembles at His presence—the world and all its dwellers. ⁶ Who can withstand His indignation? Who can endure His burning anger? His wrath is poured out like fire; even rocks are shattered before Him.

⁷ So the LORD said, “I will blot out man, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—every man and beast and crawling creature and bird of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them.”

¹¹ Then I asked: “How long, O Lord?” And He replied: “Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left unoccupied and the land is desolate and ravaged,

¹ Behold, the LORD lays waste the earth and leaves it in ruins. He will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants— ² people and priest alike, servant and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower, creditor and debtor. ³ The earth will be utterly laid waste and thoroughly plundered. For the LORD has spoken this word. ⁴ The earth mourns and withers; the world languishes and fades; the exalted of the earth waste away. ⁵ The earth is defiled by its people; they have transgressed the laws; they have overstepped the decrees and broken the everlasting covenant. ⁶ Therefore a curse has consumed the earth, and its inhabitants must bear the guilt; the earth’s dwellers have been burned, and only a few survive.

²⁰ Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, My anger and My fury will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the trees of the field and the produce of the land, and it will burn and not be extinguished.

³ But You know me, O LORD; You see me and test my heart toward You. Drag away the wicked like sheep to the slaughter and set them apart for the day of carnage. ⁴ How long will the land mourn and the grass of every field be withered? Because of the evil of its residents, the animals and birds have been swept away, for the people have said, “He cannot see what our end will be.”

¹² Although they may fast, I will not listen to their cry; although they may offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will finish them off by sword and famine and plague.”

¹² This is what the LORD of Hosts says: In this desolate place, without man or beast, and in all its cities, there will once more be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.

¹⁷ Therefore this is what the LORD says: You have not obeyed Me; you have not proclaimed freedom, each man for his brother and for his neighbor. So now I proclaim freedom for you, declares the LORD—freedom to fall by sword, by plague, and by famine! I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.

²⁹ You are to proclaim concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah that this is what the LORD says: You have burned the scroll and said, ‘Why have you written on it that the king of Babylon would surely come and destroy this land and deprive it of man and beast?’

²² Now therefore, know for sure that by sword and famine and plague you will die in the place where you desire to go to reside.”

¹² A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them. ¹³ And when My anger is spent and I have vented My wrath against them, I will be appeased. And when I have spent My wrath on them, they will know that I, the LORD, in My zeal have spoken.

¹⁵ The sword is outside; plague and famine are within. Those in the country will die by the sword, and those in the city will be devoured by famine and plague.

¹⁶ But I will spare a few of them from sword and famine and plague, so that in the nations to which they go, they can recount all their abominations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

¹³ “Son of man, if a land sins against Me by acting unfaithfully, and I stretch out My hand against it to cut off its supply of food, to send famine upon it, and to cut off from it both man and beast,

¹⁷ Or if I bring a sword against that land and say, ‘Let a sword pass through it,’ so that I cut off from it both man and beast,

¹⁹ Or if I send a plague into that land and pour out My wrath upon it through bloodshed, cutting off from it both man and beast,

²¹ For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘How much worse will it be when I send against Jerusalem My four dire judgments—sword, famine, wild beasts, and plague—in order to cut off from it both man and beast?

²⁷ Tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘As surely as I live, those in the ruins will fall by the sword, those in the open field I will give to be devoured by wild animals, and those in the strongholds and caves will die by plague.

²⁹ Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I have made the land a desolate waste because of all the abominations they have committed.’

³ Therefore the land mourns, and all who dwell in it will waste away with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air; even the fish of the sea disappear.

¹² Therefore, because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of rubble, and the temple mount a wooded ridge.

³ “I will sweep away man and beast; I will sweep away the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, and the idols with their wicked worshipers. I will cut off mankind from the face of the earth,” declares the LORD.

²⁴ They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led captive into all the nations. And Jerusalem will be trodden down by the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

⁵⁰ a ruthless nation with no respect for the old and no pity for the young.

⁵ but the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was separated from him. ⁶ The Chaldeans seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where they pronounced judgment on him. ⁷ And they slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. Then they put out his eyes, bound him with bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon.

¹⁷ So He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who put their young men to the sword in the sanctuary, sparing neither young men nor young women, neither elderly nor infirm. God gave them all into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, ¹⁸ who carried off everything to Babylon—all the articles of the house of God, both large and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD and of the king and his officials. ¹⁹ Then the Chaldeans set fire to the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned down all the palaces and destroyed every article of value. ²⁰ Those who escaped the sword were carried by Nebuchadnezzar into exile in Babylon, and they became servants to him and his sons until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

¹⁷ Behold, I will stir up against them the Medes, who have no regard for silver and no desire for gold. ¹⁸ Their bows will dash young men to pieces; they will have no mercy on the fruit of the womb; they will not look with pity on the children.

¹¹ When its limbs are dry, they are broken off. Women come and use them for kindling; for this is a people without understanding. Therefore their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor.

⁶ I was angry with My people; I profaned My heritage, and I placed them under your control. You showed them no mercy; even on the elderly you laid a most heavy yoke.

¹⁴ I will smash them against one another, fathers and sons alike, declares the LORD. I will allow no mercy or pity or compassion to keep Me from destroying them.’”

⁸ But like the bad figs, so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the LORD, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land and those living in the land of Egypt. ⁹ I will make them a horror and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a disgrace and an object of scorn, ridicule, and cursing wherever I have banished them. ¹⁰ And I will send against them sword and famine and plague, until they have perished from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.’”

¹⁹ The officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the pieces of the calf, ²⁰ I will deliver into the hands of their enemies who seek their lives. Their corpses will become food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. ²¹ And I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials into the hands of their enemies who seek their lives, to the army of the king of Babylon that had withdrawn from you. ²² Behold, I am going to give the command, declares the LORD, and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it, capture it, and burn it down. And I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.”

¹⁷ Later, King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah and received him in his palace, where he asked him privately, “Is there a word from the LORD?” “There is,” Jeremiah replied. “You will be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.”

²¹ But if you refuse to surrender, this is the word that the LORD has shown me: ²² All the women who remain in the palace of the king of Judah will be brought out to the officials of the king of Babylon, and those women will say: ‘They misled you and overcame you—those trusted friends of yours. Your feet sank into the mire, and they deserted you.’ ²³ All your wives and children will be brought out to the Chaldeans. And you yourself will not escape their grasp, for you will be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned down.”

⁴ When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled. They left the city at night by way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls, and they went out along the route to the Arabah. ⁵ But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They seized him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced judgment on him. ⁶ There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also killed all the nobles of Judah. ⁷ Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with bronze chains to take him to Babylon.

⁸ but the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was separated from him. ⁹ The Chaldeans seized the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced judgment on Zedekiah. ¹⁰ There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also killed all the officials of Judah. ¹¹ Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him with bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon, where he kept him in custody until his dying day.

²⁴ The captain of the guard also took away Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest of second rank, and the three doorkeepers. ²⁵ Of those still in the city, he took a court official who had been appointed over the men of war, as well as seven trusted royal advisers. He also took the scribe of the captain of the army, who had enlisted the people of the land, and sixty men who were found in the city. ²⁶ Nebuzaradan captain of the guard took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. ²⁷ There at Riblah in the land of Hamath, the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death. So Judah was taken into exile, away from its own land.

⁹ I will not look on you with pity, nor will I spare you, but I will punish you for your ways and for the abominations among you. Then you will know that it is I, the LORD, who strikes the blow.

¹⁸ Therefore I will respond with wrath. I will not look on them with pity, nor will I spare them. Although they shout loudly in My ears, I will not listen to them.”

⁵ And as I listened, He said to the others, “Follow him through the city and start killing; do not show pity or spare anyone! ⁶ Slaughter the old men, the young men and maidens, the women and children; but do not go near anyone who has the mark. Now begin at My sanctuary.” So they began with the elders who were before the temple.

¹⁰ But as for Me, I will not look on them with pity, nor will I spare them. I will bring their deeds down upon their own heads.”

¹² And at dusk the prince among them will lift his bags to his shoulder and go out. They will dig through the wall to bring him out. He will cover his face so he cannot see the land. ¹³ But I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, and there he will die. ¹⁴ And I will scatter to every wind all the attendants around him and all his troops, and I will draw a sword to chase after them. ¹⁵ And they will know that I am the LORD, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them throughout the countries. ¹⁶ But I will spare a few of them from sword and famine and plague, so that in the nations to which they go, they can recount all their abominations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

²⁰ I will spread My net over him and catch him in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon and execute judgment upon him there for the treason he committed against Me. ²¹ All his choice troops will fall by the sword, and those who survive will be scattered to every wind. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken.’

²⁵ And you, O profane and wicked prince of Israel, the day has come for your final punishment.’ ²⁶ This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Remove the turban, and take off the crown. Things will not remain as they are: Exalt the lowly and bring low the exalted.

⁶ For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans—that ruthless and impetuous nation which marches through the breadth of the earth to seize dwellings not their own. ⁷ They are dreaded and feared; from themselves they derive justice and sovereignty. ⁸ Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves of the night. Their horsemen charge ahead, and their cavalry comes from afar. They fly like a vulture, swooping down to devour. ⁹ All of them come bent on violence; their hordes advance like the east wind; they gather prisoners like sand. ¹⁰ They scoff at kings and make rulers an object of scorn. They laugh at every fortress and build up siege ramps to seize it.

²⁶ See, today I am setting before you a blessing and a curse—

¹⁵ See, I have set before you today life and goodness, as well as death and disaster.

¹⁹ I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore choose life, so that you and your descendants may live,

¹⁹ If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best of the land. ²⁰ But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

⁷ ‘After that,’ declares the LORD, ‘I will hand over Zedekiah king of Judah, his officers, and the people in this city who survive the plague and sword and famine, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to their enemies who seek their lives. He will put them to the sword; he will not spare them or show pity or compassion.’

¹³ Why should you and your people die by sword and famine and plague, as the LORD has decreed against any nation that does not serve the king of Babylon?

² “This is what the LORD says: Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever surrenders to the Chaldeans will live; he will retain his life like a spoil of war, and he will live.

¹⁷ Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive. ¹⁸ But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’” ¹⁹ But King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Jews who have deserted to the Chaldeans, for the Chaldeans may deliver me into their hands to abuse me.” ²⁰ “They will not hand you over,” Jeremiah replied. “Obey the voice of the LORD in what I am telling you, that it may go well with you and you may live.

¹⁸ For I will surely rescue you so that you do not fall by the sword. Because you have trusted in Me, you will escape with your life like a spoil of war, declares the LORD.’”

⁵ But as for you, do you seek great things for yourself? Stop seeking! For I will bring disaster on every living creature, declares the LORD, but wherever you go, I will grant your life as a spoil of war.”

¹⁰ If anyone from the house of Israel or a foreigner living among them eats any blood, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from among his people.

³ And I will set My face against that man and cut him off from his people, because by giving his offspring to Molech, he has defiled My sanctuary and profaned My holy name. ⁴ And if the people of the land ever hide their eyes and fail to put to death the man who gives one of his children to Molech, ⁵ then I will set My face against that man and his family and cut off from among their people both him and all who follow him in prostituting themselves with Molech.

¹⁷ And I will set My face against you, so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee when no one pursues you.

¹⁹ Then the Chaldeans set fire to the house of God and broke down the wall of Jerusalem. They burned down all the palaces and destroyed every article of value.

¹⁶ But the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to wipe out all memory of them from the earth.

²⁷ But if you do not listen to Me to keep the Sabbath day holy by not carrying a load while entering the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle an unquenchable fire in its gates to consume the citadels of Jerusalem.’”

⁶ then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city an object of cursing among all the nations of the earth.’”

²⁸ Therefore this is what the LORD says: Behold, I am about to deliver this city into the hands of the Chaldeans and of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will capture it. ²⁹ And the Chaldeans who are fighting against this city will come in, set it on fire, and burn it, along with the houses of those who provoked Me to anger by burning incense to Baal on their rooftops and by pouring out drink offerings to other gods. ³⁰ For the children of Israel and of Judah have done nothing but evil in My sight from their youth; indeed, they have done nothing but provoke Me to anger by the work of their hands, declares the LORD. ³¹ For this city has aroused My wrath and fury from the day it was built until now. Therefore I will remove it from My presence

² The LORD, the God of Israel, told Jeremiah to go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him that this is what the LORD says: “Behold, I am about to deliver this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it down.

²² Behold, I am going to give the command, declares the LORD, and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it, capture it, and burn it down. And I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.”

³ This is what the LORD says: This city will surely be delivered into the hands of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.”

¹⁸ But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’”

²³ All your wives and children will be brought out to the Chaldeans. And you yourself will not escape their grasp, for you will be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned down.”

⁸ The Chaldeans set fire to the palace of the king and to the houses of the people, and they broke down the walls of Jerusalem.

¹¹ Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: I will set My face to bring disaster and to cut off all Judah.

²⁷ I am watching over them for harm and not for good, and every man of Judah who is in the land of Egypt will meet his end by sword or famine, until they are finished off.

¹³ He burned down the house of the LORD, the royal palace, and all the houses of Jerusalem—every significant building.

⁷ And I will set My face against them. Though they may have escaped the fire, yet another fire will consume them. And when I set My face against them, you will know that I am the LORD.

⁴ Though they are driven by their enemies into captivity, there I will command the sword to slay them. I will fix My eyes upon them for harm and not for good.”

⁶ But did not My words and My statutes, which I commanded My servants the prophets, overtake your fathers? They repented and said, ‘Just as the LORD of Hosts purposed to do to us according to our ways and deeds, so He has done to us.’”

¹⁸ Say to the king and to the queen mother: “Take a lowly seat, for your glorious crowns have fallen from your heads.”

²⁰ Say to them, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, O kings of Judah, all people of Judah and Jerusalem who enter through these gates.

¹ Then I said: “Hear now, O leaders of Jacob, you rulers of the house of Israel. Should you not know justice?

¹³ The next day Moses took his seat to judge the people, and they stood around him from morning until evening.

²⁸ then I will walk in fury against you, and I, even I, will punish you sevenfold for your sins.

²² For a fire has been kindled by My anger, and it burns to the depths of Sheol; it consumes the earth and its produce, and scorches the foundations of the mountains.

¹⁵ Thus David reigned over all Israel and administered justice and righteousness for all his people:

¹⁷ I shattered the fangs of the unjust and snatched the prey from his teeth.

¹ Of Solomon. Endow the king with Your justice, O God, and the son of the king with Your righteousness. ² May he judge Your people with righteousness and Your afflicted with justice. ³ May the mountains bring peace to the people, and the hills bring righteousness. ⁴ May he vindicate the afflicted among the people; may he save the children of the needy and crush the oppressor.

¹² For he will deliver the needy who cry out and the afflicted who have no helper. ¹³ He will take pity on the poor and needy and save the lives of the oppressed. ¹⁴ He will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their blood is precious in his sight.

² “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah ³ Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; uphold the rights of the afflicted and oppressed. ⁴ Rescue the weak and needy; save them from the hand of the wicked.

⁸ Every morning I will remove all the wicked of the land, that I may cut off every evildoer from the city of the LORD.

¹¹ Rescue those being led away to death, and restrain those stumbling toward the slaughter. ¹² If you say, “Behold, we did not know about this,” does not He who weighs hearts consider it? Does not the One who guards your life know? Will He not repay a man according to his deeds?

⁸ Open your mouth for those with no voice, for the cause of all the dispossessed. ⁹ Open your mouth, judge righteously, and defend the cause of the poor and needy.

¹⁶ Woe to you, O land whose king is a youth, and whose princes feast in the morning. ¹⁷ Blessed are you, O land whose king is a son of nobles, and whose princes feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness.

¹⁷ Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow.”

³¹ The strong man will become tinder and his work will be a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the flames.

² When it was reported to the house of David that Aram was in league with Ephraim, the hearts of Ahaz and his people trembled like trees in the forest shaken by the wind.

¹³ Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, O house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of men? Will you try the patience of my God as well?

³ “Give us counsel; render a decision. Shelter us at noonday with shade as dark as night. Hide the refugees; do not betray the one who flees. ⁴ Let my fugitives stay with you; be a refuge for Moab from the destroyer.” When the oppressor has gone, destruction has ceased, and the oppressors have vanished from the land, ⁵ in loving devotion a throne will be established in the tent of David. A judge seeking justice and hastening righteousness will sit on it in faithfulness.

¹ Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in their abundance of chariots and in their multitude of horsemen. They do not look to the Holy One of Israel; they do not seek the LORD. ² Yet He too is wise and brings disaster; He does not call back His words. He will rise up against the house of the wicked and against the allies of evildoers.

⁴ Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and remove the foreskins of your hearts, O men of Judah and people of Jerusalem. Otherwise, My wrath will break out like fire and burn with no one to extinguish it, because of your evil deeds.”

¹⁴ Therefore this is what the LORD God of Hosts says: “Because you have spoken this word, I will make My words a fire in your mouth and this people the wood it consumes.

²⁸ They have grown fat and sleek, and have excelled in the deeds of the wicked. They have not taken up the cause of the fatherless, that they might prosper; nor have they defended the rights of the needy.

⁴ And you yourself will relinquish the inheritance that I gave you. I will enslave you to your enemies in a land that you do not know, for you have kindled My anger; it will burn forever.”

⁵ And I Myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, with anger, fury, and great wrath.

² saying, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, who sits on the throne of David—you and your officials and your people who enter these gates. ³ This is what the LORD says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Do not shed innocent blood in this place.

¹⁵ Does it make you a king to excel in cedar? Did not your father have food and drink? He administered justice and righteousness, and so it went well with him. ¹⁶ He took up the cause of the poor and needy, and so it went well with him. Is this not what it means to know Me?” declares the LORD. ¹⁷ “But your eyes and heart are set on nothing except your own dishonest gain, on shedding innocent blood, on practicing extortion and oppression.”

⁵ Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He will reign wisely as King and will administer justice and righteousness in the land.

¹⁹ Behold, the storm of the LORD has gone out with fury, a whirlwind swirling down upon the heads of the wicked.

⁷ Perhaps they will bring their petition before the LORD, and each one will turn from his wicked way; for great are the anger and fury that the LORD has pronounced against this people.”

³ In fierce anger He has cut off every horn of Israel and withdrawn His right hand at the approach of the enemy. He has burned in Jacob like a flaming fire that consumes everything around it. ⁴ He has bent His bow like an enemy; His right hand is positioned. Like a foe He has killed all who were pleasing to the eye; He has poured out His wrath like fire on the tent of the Daughter of Zion.

¹¹ The LORD has exhausted His wrath; He has poured out His fierce anger; He has kindled a fire in Zion, and it has consumed her foundations.

⁴⁷ Say to the forest of the Negev: Hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Lord GOD says: I am about to ignite in you a fire, and it will devour all your trees, both green and dry. The blazing flame will not be quenched, and by it every face from south to north will be scorched. ⁴⁸ Then all people will see that I, the LORD, have kindled it; it will not be quenched.”

¹⁸ “Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me. All of them are copper, tin, iron, and lead inside the furnace; they are but the dross of silver. ¹⁹ Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Because all of you have become dross, behold, I will gather you into Jerusalem. ²⁰ Just as one gathers silver, copper, iron, lead, and tin into the furnace to melt with a fiery blast, so I will gather you in My anger and wrath, leave you there, and melt you. ²¹ Yes, I will gather you together and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted within the city. ²² As silver is melted in a furnace, so you will be melted within the city. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have poured out My wrath upon you.’”

³¹ So I have poured out My indignation upon them and consumed them with the fire of My fury. I have brought their ways down upon their own heads, declares the Lord GOD.”

⁸ In order to stir up wrath and take vengeance, I have placed her blood on the bare rock, so that it would not be covered.’ ⁹ Yes, this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Woe to the city of bloodshed! I, too, will pile the kindling high. ¹⁰ Pile on the logs and kindle the fire; cook the meat well and mix in the spices; let the bones be burned. ¹¹ Set the empty pot on its coals until it becomes hot and its copper glows. Then its impurity will melt within; its rust will be consumed. ¹² It has frustrated every effort; its thick rust has not been removed, even by the fire. ¹³ Because of the indecency of your uncleanness I tried to cleanse you, but you would not be purified from your filthiness. You will not be pure again until My wrath against you has subsided. ¹⁴ I, the LORD, have spoken; the time is coming, and I will act. I will not refrain or show pity, nor will I relent. I will judge you according to your ways and deeds,’ declares the Lord GOD.”

⁶ Who can withstand His indignation? Who can endure His burning anger? His wrath is poured out like fire; even rocks are shattered before Him.

¹⁸ Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them on the Day of the LORD’s wrath. The whole earth will be consumed by the fire of His jealousy.” For indeed, He will make a sudden end of all who dwell on the earth.

⁵ The LORD within her is righteous; He does no wrong. He applies His justice morning by morning; He does not fail at dawn, yet the unjust know no shame.

⁹ “This is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Administer true justice. Show loving devotion and compassion to one another. ¹⁰ Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. And do not plot evil in your hearts against one another.’ ¹¹ But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder; they stopped up their ears from hearing.

⁴³ If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two hands and go into hell, into the unquenchable fire, ⁴⁴ where ‘their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.’ ⁴⁵ If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell, into the unquenchable fire, ⁴⁶ where ‘their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.’ ⁴⁷ And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell, ⁴⁸ where ‘their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.’

⁶⁹ He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David,

³ And there was a widow in that town who kept appealing to him, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ ⁴ For a while he refused, but later he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect men, ⁵ yet because this widow keeps pestering me, I will give her justice. Then she will stop wearing me out with her perpetual requests.’”

⁴ For he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not carry the sword in vain. He is God’s servant, an agent of retribution to the wrongdoer.

⁸ And on that day you are to explain to your son, ‘This is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’

²⁰ They set out from Succoth and camped at Etham on the edge of the wilderness.

⁶ Now the king and his men marched to Jerusalem against the Jebusites who inhabited the land. The Jebusites said to David: “You will never get in here. Even the blind and lame can repel you.” For they thought, “David cannot get in here.” ⁷ Nevertheless, David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the City of David).

² As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds His people, both now and forevermore.

¹ This is the burden against the Valley of Vision: What ails you now, that you have all gone up to the rooftops,

⁴ Do not trust in deceptive words, chanting: ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’

³⁰ “Therefore behold,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who steal from one another words they attribute to Me.” ³¹ “Yes,” declares the LORD, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and proclaim, ‘The LORD declares it.’” ³² “Indeed,” declares the LORD, “I am against those who prophesy false dreams and retell them to lead My people astray with their reckless lies. It was not I who sent them or commanded them, and they are of no benefit at all to these people,” declares the LORD.

⁴ Why do you boast of your valleys—your valleys so fruitful, O faithless daughter? You trust in your riches and say, ‘Who can come against me?’ ⁵ Behold, I am about to bring terror upon you, declares the Lord GOD of Hosts, from all those around you. You will each be driven headlong, with no one to regather the fugitives.

¹⁶ The terror you cause and the pride of your heart have deceived you, O dwellers in the clefts of the rocks, O occupiers of the mountain summit. Though you elevate your nest like the eagle, even from there I will bring you down,” declares the LORD.

³¹ “Behold, I am against you, O arrogant one,” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts, “for your day has come, the time when I will punish you.

²⁵ “Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, you who devastate the whole earth, declares the LORD. I will stretch out My hand against you; I will roll you over the cliffs and turn you into a charred mountain.

¹² The kings of the earth did not believe, nor any people of the world, that an enemy or a foe could enter the gates of Jerusalem.

⁸ Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Because you have uttered vain words and seen false visions, I am against you, declares the Lord GOD.

³ The pride of your heart has deceived you, O dwellers in the clefts of the rocks whose habitation is the heights, who say in your heart, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ ⁴ Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I will bring you down,” declares the LORD.

¹¹ Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets practice divination for money. Yet they lean upon the LORD, saying, “Is not the LORD among us? No disaster can come upon us.”

³¹ So they will eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.

¹⁰ Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their labor. ¹¹ Woe to the wicked; disaster is upon them! For they will be repaid with what their hands have done.

¹² So when the Lord has completed all His work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria for the fruit of his arrogant heart and the proud look in his eyes.

¹⁸ The splendor of its forests and orchards, both soul and body, it will completely destroy, as a sickness consumes a man. ¹⁹ The remaining trees of its forests will be so few that a child could count them.

²¹ In that day the LORD will punish the host of heaven above and the kings of the earth below.

¹⁰ For the fortified city lies deserted—a homestead abandoned, a wilderness forsaken. There the calves graze, and there they lie down; they strip its branches bare. ¹¹ When its limbs are dry, they are broken off. Women come and use them for kindling; for this is a people without understanding. Therefore their Maker has no compassion on them, and their Creator shows them no favor.

²⁴ Through your servants you have taunted the Lord, and you have said: “With my many chariots I have ascended to the heights of the mountains, to the remote peaks of Lebanon. I have cut down its tallest cedars, the finest of its cypresses. I have reached its farthest heights, the densest of its forests.

²⁹ The bellows blow fiercely, blasting away the lead with fire. The refining proceeds in vain, for the wicked are not purged.

²⁵ “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will punish all who are circumcised yet uncircumcised:

²² So this is what the LORD of Hosts says: “I will punish them. Their young men will die by the sword, their sons and daughters by famine.

¹⁰ I, the LORD, search the heart; I examine the mind to reward a man according to his way, by what his deeds deserve.

⁷ I will appoint destroyers against you, each man with his weapons, and they will cut down the choicest of your cedars and throw them into the fire.

¹⁹ the One great in counsel and mighty in deed, whose eyes are on all the ways of the sons of men, to reward each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds.

⁴⁶ “Son of man, set your face toward the south, preach against it, and prophesy against the forest of the Negev.

¹ Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may consume your cedars!

⁷ Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. ⁸ The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.