The Book of the Prophet Jeremiah

⭑ Literal Standard Version :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 7 -

The word that has been to Jeremiah from YHWH, saying,

“Stand in the gate of the house of YHWH, and you have proclaimed this word there, and have said, Hear a word of YHWH, all you of Judah, who are coming in at these gates, to bow before YHWH.”

Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: “Amend your ways, and your doings, || And I cause you to dwell in this place.

Do not trust for yourselves || To the words of falsehood, saying, || The temple of YHWH! The temple of YHWH! These [are] the temple of YHWH!

For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, || If you thoroughly do judgment || Between a man and his neighbor,

You do not oppress sojourner, fatherless, and widow, || And innocent blood is not shed in this place, || And [you] do not walk after other gods, for evil to yourselves,

Then I have caused you to dwell in this place, || In the land that I gave to your fathers, || From age even to age.

Behold, you are trusting for yourselves || On the words of falsehood, so as not to profit.

Stealing, murdering, and committing adultery, || And swearing to falsehood, and giving incense to Ba‘al, || And going after other gods whom you did not know.

And you have come in and stood before Me, || In this house on which My Name is called, || And have said, We have been delivered, || In order to do all these abominations.

Has this house, || On which My Name is called, || Been a den of burglars in your eyes? Even I, behold, have seen,” || A declaration of YHWH.

“But go now to My place that [is] in Shiloh, || Where I caused My Name to dwell at first, || And see that which I have done to it, || For the wickedess of My people Israel.

And now, because of your doing all these works,” || A declaration of YHWH, || “And I speak to you, rising early and speaking, || And you have not listened, || And I call you, and you have not answered,

I also have done to the house on which My Name is called, || In which you are trusting, || And to the place that I gave to you, and to your fathers, || As I have done to Shiloh.

And I have cast you from before My face, || As I have cast out all your brothers, || The whole seed of Ephraim.

Judah’s Idolatry Persists

And you do not pray for this people, || Nor lift up crying and prayer for them, || Nor intercede with Me, for I do not hear you.

Are you not seeing what they are doing || In cities of Judah, and in streets of Jerusalem?

The sons are gathering wood, || And the fathers are causing the fire to burn, || And the women are kneading dough, || To make cakes to the queen of the heavens, || And to pour out drink-offerings to other gods, || So as to provoke Me to anger.

Are they provoking Me to anger?” A declaration of YHWH, “Is it not themselves, || For the shame of their own faces?”

Therefore, thus said Lord YHWH: “Behold, My anger and My fury is poured out on this place, || On man, and beast, and on tree of the field, || And on fruit of the ground, || And it has burned, and it is not quenched.”

Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: “Add your burnt-offerings to your sacrifices and eat flesh.

For I did not speak with your fathers, || Nor did I command them in the day of My bringing them out of the land of Egypt, || Concerning the matters of burnt-offering and sacrifice,

But this thing I commanded them, saying, || Listen to My voice, || And I have been to you for God, || And you are to Me for a people, || And have walked in all the way that I command you, || So that it is well for you.

And they have not listened, nor inclined their ear, || And they walk in the counsels, || [And] in the stubbornness, of their evil hearts, || And are backward and not forward.

Even from the day when your fathers || Went out of the land of Egypt until this day, || I send all My servants the prophets to you, || Daily rising early and sending,

And they have not listened to Me, || Nor inclined their ear—and they harden their neck, || They have done evil above their fathers.

And you have spoken all these words to them, || And they do not listen to you, || And you have called to them, || And they do not answer you.

And you have said to them: This [is] the nation that has not listened, || To the voice of its God YHWH, || Nor have they accepted instruction, || Steadfastness has perished, || Indeed, it has been cut off from their mouth.

Cut off your crown, and cast [it] away, || And lift up lamentation on high places, || For YHWH has rejected, || And He leaves the generation of His wrath.

The Valley of Slaughter

For the sons of Judah || Have done evil in My eyes,” || A declaration of YHWH, || “They have set their abominations in the house || On which My Name is called—to defile it,

And have built the high places of Tophet, || That [are] in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, || To burn their sons and their daughters with fire, || Which I did not command, || Nor did it come up on My heart.

Therefore, behold, days are coming,” || A declaration of YHWH, || “And it is no longer said, The Tophet, || And, Valley of the Son of Hinnom, || But, Valley of the Slaughter, || And they have buried in Tophet—without place.

And the carcass of this people has been for food || To a bird of the heavens, and to a beast of the earth, || And there is none troubling.

And I have caused to cease from cities of Judah, || And from streets of Jerusalem, || The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, || Voice of bridegroom, and voice of bride, || For the land becomes a desolation!”

The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

“Stand in the gate of the LORD’s house, and proclaim this word there, and say, ‘Hear the LORD’s word, all you of Judah, who enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.’”

The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel says, “Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.

Don’t trust in lying words, saying, ‘The LORD’s temple, the LORD’s temple, the LORD’s temple, are these.’

For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, if you thoroughly execute justice between a man and his neighbor;

if you don’t oppress the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, and don’t shed innocent blood in this place, and don’t walk after other gods to your own hurt,

then I will cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, from of old even forever more.

Behold, you trust in lying words that can’t profit.

Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods that you have not known,

then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered,’ that you may do all these abominations?

Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it,” says the LORD.

“But go now to my place which was in Shiloh, where I caused my name to dwell at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.

Now, because you have done all these works,” says the LORD, “and I spoke to you, rising up early and speaking, but you didn’t hear; and I called you, but you didn’t answer;

therefore I will do to the house which is called by my name, in which you trust, and to the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh.

I will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out all your brothers, even the whole offspring

(a)

of Ephraim.

Judah’s Idolatry Persists

“Therefore don’t pray for this people. Don’t lift up a cry or prayer for them or make intercession to me; for I will not hear you.

Don’t you see what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?

The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough, to make cakes to the queen of the sky, and to pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.

Do they provoke me to anger?” says the LORD. “Don’t they provoke themselves, to the confusion of their own faces?”

Therefore the Lord GOD says: “Behold, my anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place, on man, on animal, on the trees of the field, and on the fruit of the ground; and it will burn and will not be quenched.”

The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel says: “Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat meat.

For I didn’t speak to your fathers or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices;

but this thing I commanded them, saying, ‘Listen to my voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be my people. Walk in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.’

But they didn’t listen or turn their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.

Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day, I have sent to you all my servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them.

Yet they didn’t listen to me or incline their ear, but made their neck stiff. They did worse than their fathers.

“You shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you. You shall also call to them, but they will not answer you.

You shall tell them, ‘This is the nation that has not listened to the LORD their God’s voice, nor received instruction. Truth has perished, and is cut off from their mouth.’

Cut off your hair, and throw it away, and take up a lamentation on the bare heights; for the LORD has rejected and forsaken the generation of his wrath.

The Valley of Slaughter

“For the children of Judah have done that which is evil in my sight,” says the LORD. “They have set their abominations in the house which is called by my name, to defile it.

They have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I didn’t command, nor did it come into my mind.

Therefore behold, the days come”, says the LORD, “that it will no more be called ‘Topheth’ or ‘The valley of the son of Hinnom’, but ‘The valley of Slaughter’; for they will bury in Topheth until there is no place to bury.

The dead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the sky, and for the animals of the earth. No one will frighten them away.

Then I will cause to cease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride; for the land will become a waste.”

Footnotes

(a)7:15 or, seed