Jeremiah 4

1 If you will return, O Israel, says the LORD, return unto me: and if you will put away your abominations out of my sight, then shall you not remove.

“If you return, O Israel,” A declaration of YHWH, “Return to Me, And if you turn aside Your abominations from My face, Then you do not bemoan.

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

And you have sworn—YHWH lives, In truth, in judgment, and in righteousness, And nations have blessed themselves in Him, And they boast themselves in Him.”

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

For thus said YHWH, To the man of Judah, and to Jerusalem: “Till for yourselves tillage, And do not sow to the thorns.

4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, all of you 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.

Be circumcised to YHWH, And turn aside the foreskins of your heart, O man of Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, Lest My fury goes out as fire, and has burned, And there is none quenching, Because of the evil of your doings.”

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

Declare in Judah, and sound in Jerusalem, and say: “Blow a horn in the land, Call, Fill up together, And say, Assemble yourselves and let us go into the fortified cities.

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

Lift up an ensign toward Zion, Strengthen yourselves, do not stand still, For I am bringing evil in from the north, And a great destruction.”

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

A lion has gone up from his thicket, And a destroyer of nations has journeyed, He has come forth from his place To make your land become a desolation, Your cities are laid waste, without inhabitant.

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

For this, gird on sackcloth, lament and howl, For the fierce anger of YHWH has not turned back from us.

9 And it shall come to pass at that day, says 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.

“And it has come to pass in that day,” A declaration of YHWH, “The heart of the king perishes, And the heart of the princes, And the priests have been astonished, And the prophets wonder.”

10 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! surely you have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, All of you shall have peace; whereas the sword reachs unto the soul.

And I say, “Aah! Lord YHWH, Surely you have entirely forgotten this people and Jerusalem, Saying, Peace is for you, And a sword has struck to the soul!”

11 At 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,

At that time it is said of this people, And of Jerusalem: “A dry wind of high places in the wilderness, The way of the daughter of My people (Not for winnowing, nor for cleansing),

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

A full wind from these comes for Me, Now also, I speak judgments with them.”

13 Behold, 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.

“Behold, he comes up as clouds, And his chariots as a windstorm, His horses have been lighter than eagles, Woe to us, for we have been spoiled.”

14 O Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, that you may be saved. How long shall your vain thoughts lodge within you?

Wash evil from your heart, O Jerusalem, That you may be saved, Until when do you lodge in your heart Thoughts of your strength?

15 For a voice declares from Dan, and publishes affliction from mount Ephraim.

For a voice is declaring from Dan, And sounding sorrow from Mount Ephraim:

16 Make all of you 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.

“Make mention to the nations, Behold, sound to Jerusalem, Besiegers are coming from the far-off land, And they give forth their voice against cities of Judah.

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

As the keepers of a field They have been against her all around, For she has been rebellious with Me,” A declaration of YHWH.

18 Your way and your doings have procured these things unto you; this is your wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reachs unto your heart.

“Your way and your doings have done these to you, This [is] your distress, for [it is] bitter, For it has struck to your heart.”

19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart makes a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because you have heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.

My bowels, my bowels! I am pained [in] the walls of my heart, My heart makes a noise for me, I am not silent, For I have heard the voice of a horn, O my soul—a shout of battle!

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

Destruction on destruction is proclaimed, For all the land has been spoiled, My tents have suddenly been spoiled, In a moment—my curtains.

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

Until when do I see an ensign? Do I hear the voice of a horn?

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

“For My people [are] foolish, They have not known Me, They [are] foolish sons, Indeed, they [are] not intelligent, They [are] wise to do evil, And they have not known to do good.”

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

I looked [to] the earth, and behold—formless and void, And to the heavens, and they [had] no light.

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

I have looked [to] the mountains, And behold, they are trembling. And all the hills moved themselves lightly.

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

I have looked, and behold, man is not, And all birds of the heavens have fled.

26 I 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.

I have looked, and behold, The fruitful place [is] a wilderness, And all its cities have been broken down, Because of YHWH, Because of the fierceness of His anger.

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

For thus said YHWH: “All the land is a desolation, but I do not make a completion.

28 For 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.

For this the earth mourns, And the heavens above have been black, Because I have spoken—I have purposed, And I have not relented, Nor do I turn back from it.

29 The 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.

From the voice of the horseman, And of him shooting with the bow, All the city is fleeing, They have come into thickets, And they have gone up on cliffs, All the city is forsaken, And there is no one dwelling in them.

30 And when you are spoiled, what will you do? Though you cloth yourself with crimson, though you deck you with ornaments of gold, though you rent your face with painting, in vain shall you make yourself fair; your lovers will despise you, they will seek your life.

And you, O spoiled one, what do you do? For you put on scarlet, For you adorn yourself [with] ornaments of gold. For you tear your eyes with pain, In vain you make yourself beautiful, Unhealthy ones have kicked against you, They seek your life.

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

For I have heard a voice as of a travailing woman, Distress, as of one bringing forth a firstborn, The voice of the daughter of Zion, She laments herself, She spreads out her hands, Woe to me now, my soul is weary of slayers!”