Jeremiah 9
1 Oh, that mine head were full of water and mine eyes a fountaine of teares, that I might weepe day and night for the slayne of the daughter of my people.
I wish that my head was [like] [MET] a spring of water, and that my eyes were [like] a fountain of tears. Then I would cry night and day for all of my people who have been killed [by our enemies].
2 Oh, that I had in the wildernes a cottage of wayfaring men, that I might leaue my people, and go from them: for they be all adulterers and an assembly of rebels,
I wish that I could leave my people and forget them, and go and live in a shack/shelter in the desert, because they have not remained faithful [MET] [to Yahweh]; they are a mob of people who deceive others.
3 And they bende their tongues like their bowes for lyes: but they haue no courage for the trueth vpon the earth: for they proceede from euill to worse, and they haue not knowen mee, sayth the Lord.
[Yahweh replied to me], “They use their tongues [to tell] [MET] lies like people shoot [arrows] with bows. It is because they tell lies that they have become more powerful in this land, and they do not know me.
4 Let euery one take heede of his neighbour, and trust you not in any brother: for euery brother will vse deceite, and euery friend will deale deceitfully,
Do not trust your neighbors and [even] your brothers! They all are as deceitful [as Jacob was]. They slander [each other] and tell lies [about each other].
5 And euery one wil deceiue his friende, and wil not speake the trueth: for they haue taught their tongues to speake lies, and take great paynes to do wickedly.
They deceive their friends and never tell the truth. They lie continually and, because of that, they have become skilled liars; they do one oppressive thing after another, and are unable to stop doing it.
6 Thine habitation is in the middes of deceiuers: because of their deceit they refuse to know me, sayth the Lord.
They habitually lie and deceive [each other], and no one will admit/say that I am God.
7 Therefore thus sayth the Lord of hostes, Behold, I wil melt them, and trie them: for what should I els do for the daughter of my people?
Therefore [I], the Commander of the armies of angels, say this: Listen carefully to what I say: I will [cause my people to experience great afflictions, ] [like a metalworker puts metal in a hot fire] [MET] to completely burn out the impure bits. Because of all [the evil things] that my people have done, there is absolutely nothing else [RHQ] that I can do.
8 Their tongue is as an arow shot out, and speaketh deceite: one speaketh peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth, but in his heart hee layeth waite for him.
What they say [MTY] [injures people like] [MET] poisoned arrows do. They say to their neighbors, ‘I hope things will go well for you,’ while they are planning to kill them.
9 Shal I not visit them for these things, saith the Lord? or shall not my soule be auenged on such a nation as this?
Should I not punish them for doing that [RHQ]? Yes, I should certainly (get revenge on/give what they deserve to) [the people of] a nation that does things like that!”
10 Vpon the mountaines will I take vp a weeping and a lamentation, and vpon the fayre places of the wildernes a mourning, because they are burnt vp: so that none can passe through them, neyther can men heare the voyce of the flocke: both the foule of the aire, and the beast are fled away and gone.
So, I will weep and wail for [the people who live in] the mountains and in the (pastures/places where the livestock eat the grass), because those areas will be desolate, and no one will live there. There will be no cattle there to call to each other, and all the birds and wild animals will have fled [to other places].
11 And I wil make Ierusalem an heape, and a den of dragons, and I will make the cities of Iudah waste, without an inhabitant.
[Yahweh also says], “I will cause Jerusalem to become a heap of ruins, and [only] jackals/wolves will live there. I will destroy the towns of Judah, with the result that they will be completely deserted; no one will live there.”
12 Who is wise, to vnderstande this? and to whome the mouth of the Lord hath spoken, euen he shall declare it. Why doth the land perish, and is burnt vp like a wildernesse, that none passeth through?
[I said], “Only people who are very wise [RHQ] can understand these things. Only those who have been taught by Yahweh can [RHQ] explain these things to others. The wise people are [RHQ] the only ones who can explain why the land will be completely ruined with the result that everyone [RHQ] will be afraid to travel through it.”
13 And the Lord sayeth, Because they haue forsaken my Lawe, which I set before them, and haue not obeyed my voice, neither walked thereafter,
Yahweh replied, “[These things will happen] because my people have rejected my laws which I gave to them; they have not obeyed me or my instructions.
14 But haue walked after the stubbernesse of their owne heart, and after Baalims, which their fathers taught them,
Instead, they have stubbornly done the things that they wanted to do. They have worshiped the idols that represent the god Baal, which is what their ancestors did.
15 Therefore thus sayth the Lord of hostes, the God of Israel, Behold, I will feede this people with wormewood, and giue them waters of gall to drinke:
So now listen to what [I], the Commander of the armies of angels, the God of the Israelis, say: [What I will do will be like] [MET] giving these people bitter things to eat and poison to drink:
16 I wil scatter them also among the heathen, whom neither they nor their fathers haue knowen, and I will send a sworde after them, til I haue consumed them.
I will scatter them to many nations which neither they nor their ancestors have known [anything about]; I will [enable their enemies to] strike them with swords until I have destroyed them.”
17 Thus sayeth the Lord of hostes, Take heede, and call for the mourning women, that they may come, and send for skilfull women that they may come,
This is also what the Commander of the armies of angels says: “Think [about what is happening], [then] summon those women who mourn [when someone has died].
18 And let them make haste, and let them take vp a lamentation for vs, that our eyes may cast out teares and our eye liddes gush out of water.
Tell them to come quickly and start to wail, with the result that tears will stream down from your(pl) eyes.
19 For a lamentable noyse is heard out of Zion, Howe are we destroyed, and vtterly confounded, for we haue forsaken the land, and our dwellings haue cast vs out.
Listen to [the people of] Jerusalem crying/lamenting, saying, ‘We have been ruined/destroyed! We have experienced a terrible disaster! Now we are very ashamed, because our houses have been destroyed [by our enemies], and we [are being forced to] leave our land.’”
20 Therefore heare the worde of the Lord, O ye women, and let your eares regard the words of his mouth, and teach your daughters to mourne, and euery one her neighbour to lament.
You women, listen to what Yahweh says [MTY]. Pay attention to his words [DOU]. Teach your daughters to wail. Teach each other how to sing funeral songs,
21 For death is come vp into our windowes, and is entred into our palaces, to destroy the children without, and the yong men in the streetes.
because people will be dying [PRS] in your houses and in palaces. There will be no more children playing in the streets, there will be no more young men [gathering] in the city squares/marketplaces.
22 Speake, thus sayth the Lord, The carkeises of men shall lye, euen as the doung vpon the fielde, and as the handfull after the mower, and none shall gather them.
There will be corpses scattered across the fields like dung; their dead bodies will lie there like [SIM] grain that has been cut by reapers/farmers, and there will be no one [still alive] to bury them.
23 Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisedome, nor the strong man glorie in his strength, neyther the riche man glorie in his riches.
Yahweh says this: “Wise men should not boast about their being wise, strong men should not boast about their being strong; and rich people should not boast about their being rich.
24 But let him that glorieth, glorie in this, that he vnderstandeth, and knoweth me: for I am the Lord, which shewe mercie, iudgement, and righteousnes in the earth: for in these things I delite, sayth the Lord.
Instead, those who want to boast should boast about their knowing me and about understanding that I am Yahweh, that I am kind and just and righteous, that I faithfully love [people], and that I am delighted with [people who act] that way.
25 Beholde, the dayes come, sayth the Lord, that I wil visite all them, which are circumcised with the vncircumcised:
There will be a time when I will punish all those people of Egypt and of the Moab people-group and of the Edom [people-group] and of the Ammon [people-group], all those people who live close to desert areas (OR, who cut their hair short [to please their gods]) far from Judah, all those people who have [changed their bodies by] circumcising them [MET] but who have not [changed] their inner beings. I will punish the people of Judah also, because they have not changed their inner beings, [either].”
26 Egypt and Iudah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all the vtmost corners of them that dwell in the wildernesse: for all these nations are vncircumcised, and al the house of Israel are vncircumcised in the heart.
