Jeremiah 4

1If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, return unto me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove.

2And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.

3For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.

4Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

5Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, Blow ye the trumpet in the land: cry, gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the defenced cities.

6Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction.footnote afootnote b

7The lion is come up from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant.

8For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and howl: for the fierce anger of the LORD is not turned back from us.

9And it shall come to pass at that day, saith the LORD, that the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder.

10Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.

11At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to cleanse,

12Even a full wind from those places shall come unto me: now also will I give sentence against them.footnote cfootnote d

13Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled.

14O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?

15For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount Ephraim.

16Make ye mention to the nations; behold, publish against Jerusalem, that watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice against the cities of Judah.

17As keepers of a field, are they against her round about; because she hath been rebellious against me, saith the LORD.

18Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.

19My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.footnote e

20Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.

21How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?

22For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.

23I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.

24I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly.

25I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled.

26I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger.

27For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.

28For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black: because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I turn back from it.

29The whole city shall flee for the noise of the horsemen and bowmen; they shall go into thickets, and climb up upon the rocks: every city shall be forsaken, and not a man dwell therein.

30And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.footnote f

31For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers.

A Plea to Return

1“If you will return, O Israel,return to Me,” declares the LORD.“If you will remove your detestable idols from My sightand no longer waver, 2and if you can swear, ‘As surely as the LORD lives,’in truth, in justice, and in righteousness,then the nations will be blessed by Him,and in Him they will glory.”

3For this is what the LORD says to the men of Judah and Jerusalem:“Break up your unplowed ground,and do not sow among the thorns. 4Circumcise 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 fireand burn with no one to extinguish it,because of your evil deeds.”

Disaster from the North

5Announce in Judah, proclaim in Jerusalem, and say:“Blow the ram’s horn throughout the land.Cry aloud and say,‘Assemble yourselvesand let us flee to the fortified cities.’ 6Raise a signal flag toward Zion.Seek refuge! Do not delay!For I am bringing disaster from the north,and terrible destruction. 7A lion has gone up from his thicket,and a destroyer of nations has set out.He has left his lairto lay waste your land.Your cities will be reduced to ruinsand lie uninhabited. 8So put on sackcloth,mourn and wail,for the fierce anger of the LORDhas not turned away from us.”

9“In that day,” declares the LORD,“the king and officials will lose their courage.The priests will tremble in fear,and the prophets will be astounded.”

10Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD, how completely You have deceived this people and Jerusalem by saying, ‘You will have peace,’ while a sword is at our throats.” 11At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A searing wind from the barren heights in the desert blows toward the daughter of My people, but not to winnow or to sift; 12a wind too strong for that comes from Me. Now I also pronounce judgments against them.”

13Behold, he advances like the clouds,his chariots like the whirlwind.His horses are swifter than eagles.Woe to us, for we are ruined! 14Wash the evil from your heart, O Jerusalem,so that you may be saved.How long will you harborwicked thoughts within you? 15For a voice resounds from Dan,proclaiming disaster from the hills of Ephraim. 16Warn the nations now!Proclaim to Jerusalem:“A besieging army comes from a distant land;they raise their voices against the cities of Judah. 17They surround her like men guarding a field,because she has rebelled against Me,” declares the LORD. 18“Your ways and deedshave brought this upon you.This is your punishment; how bitter it is,because it pierces to the heart!”

Lamentation for Judah

19My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!Oh, the pain in my chest!My heart pounds within me;I cannot be silent.For I have heard the sound of the horn,the alarm of battle. 20Disaster after disaster is proclaimed,for the whole land is laid waste.My tents are destroyed in an instant,my curtains in a moment. 21How long must I see the signal flagand hear the sound of the horn?

22“For My people are fools;they have not known Me.They are foolish children,without understanding.They are skilled in doing evil,but they know not how to do good.”

23I looked at the earth,and it was formless and void;I looked to the heavens,and they had no light. 24I looked at the mountains,and behold, they were quaking;all the hills were swaying. 25I looked, and no man was left;all the birds of the air had fled. 26I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert.All its cities were torn downbefore the LORD,before His fierce anger.

27For this is what the LORD says:“The whole land will be desolate,but I will not finish its destruction. 28Therefore the earth will mournand the heavens above will grow dark.I have spoken, I have planned,and I will not relent or turn back.”

29Every city fleesat the sound of the horseman and archer.They enter the thicketsand climb among the rocks.Every city is abandoned;no inhabitant is left.

30And you, O devastated one, what will you do,though you dress yourself in scarlet,though you adorn yourself with gold jewelry,though you enlarge your eyes with paint?You adorn yourself in vain; your lovers despise you;they want to take your life. 31For I hear a cry like a woman in labor,a cry of anguish like one bearing her first child—the cry of the Daughter of Zion gasping for breath,stretching out her hands to say,“Woe is me,for my soul faints before the murderers!”