Lectionary Calendar
Saturday, August 16th, 2025
the Week of Proper 14 / Ordinary 19
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Read the Bible

Complete Jewish Bible

Jeremiah 9:9

I weep and wail for the mountains and lament over the desert pastures, because they have been burned up; no one passes through; they no longer hear the sound of cattle; the birds and wild animals have fled, are gone.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Israel, Prophecies Concerning;   Truth;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Deceit;   Truth;  

Dictionaries:

- Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Denial;   Funeral;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Lamentations;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Neighbor;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Zechariah, Book of;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Captivity;   ḥanina (Hananiah) B. Abbahu;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Should I not punish them for these things?
Hebrew Names Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? says the LORD; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
King James Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the Lord : shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
English Standard Version
Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord , and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?
New American Standard Bible
"Shall I not punish them for these things?" declares the LORD. "Shall I not avenge Myself On a nation such as this?
New Century Version
Shouldn't I punish the people for doing this?" says the Lord . "Shouldn't I give a nation like this the punishment it deserves?"
Amplified Bible
"Shall I not punish them for these things?" says the LORD. "Shall I not avenge Myself On such a nation as this?
World English Bible
Shall I not visit them for these things? says Yahweh; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Geneva Bible (1587)
Shal I not visit them for these things, saith the Lorde? or shall not my soule be auenged on such a nation as this?
Legacy Standard Bible
Shall I not punish them for these things?" declares Yahweh."On a nation such as thisShall I not avenge Myself?
Berean Standard Bible
Should I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD. Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?"
Contemporary English Version
Give me one good reason not to punish them as they deserve. I, the Lord All-Powerful, have spoken.
Darby Translation
Shall I not visit them for these [things]? saith Jehovah; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Easy-to-Read Version
Should I punish the people of Judah for doing these things?" This message is from the Lord . "You know I should punish a nation such as this. I should give it the punishment it deserves."
George Lamsa Translation
Shall I not punish them for these things? says the LORD; shall I not avenge myself on a people such as this?
Good News Translation
Will I not punish them for these things? Will I not take revenge on a nation like this? I, the Lord , have spoken."
Lexham English Bible
Because of these things shall I not punish them?" declares Yahweh, "On a nation that is like this shall I not take revenge?
Literal Translation
Shall I not visit them for these things ? says Jehovah. Or shall not My soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Shulde I not punysh them for these thinges, saieth the LORDE? Or, shulde I not be auenged of eny soch people, as this?
American Standard Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? saith Jehovah; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Bible in Basic English
Am I not to send punishment for these things? says the Lord: will not my soul take payment from such a nation as this?
JPS Old Testament (1917)
For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the pastures of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are burned up, so that none passeth through. And they hear not the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled, and gone.
King James Version (1611)
Shall I not visit them for these things, saith the Lord ? shall not my soule be auenged on such a nation as this?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Should I not punishe them for these thinges, saith the Lorde? or shoulde I not be auenged of any suche people as this?
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a people as this?
English Revised Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Whether Y schal not visite on these thingis, seith the Lord, ether schal not my soule take veniaunce on siche a folc?
Update Bible Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? says Yahweh; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Webster's Bible Translation
Shall I not visit them for these [things]? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
New English Translation
I will certainly punish them for doing such things!" says the Lord . "I will certainly bring retribution on such a nation as this!"
New King James Version
Shall I not punish them for these things?" says the LORD. "Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?"
New Living Translation
Should I not punish them for this?" says the Lord . "Should I not avenge myself against such a nation?"
New Life Bible
Should I not punish them for these things?" says the Lord. "Should I not make a nation such as this pay for its sins?
New Revised Standard
Shall I not punish them for these things? says the Lord ; and shall I not bring retribution on a nation such as this?
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
For these things, shall I not bring punishment on them? Demandeth Yahweh, - On a nation such as this, must not my soul avenge herself!
Douay-Rheims Bible
Shall I not visit them for these things, saith the Lord? or shall not my soul be revenged on such a nation?
Revised Standard Version
Shall I not punish them for these things? says the LORD; and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?
Young's Literal Translation
For these things do not I see after them? An affirmation of Jehovah, Against a nation such as this doth not My soul avenge itself?
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Shall I not punish them for these things?" declares the LORD. "On a nation such as this Shall I not avenge Myself?

Contextual Overview

1 I wish I were out in the desert, in some travelers' lodge — then I could get away from my people and distance myself from them! "Indeed they are all adulterers, a band of traitors is what they are. 2 They bend their tongues, their ‘bow' of falsehood, and hold sway in the land, but not for truth. For they go from evil to evil, and me they do not know," says Adonai . 3 Everyone, be on guard against your neighbor, don't trust even a brother; for every brother is out to trick you, and every neighbor goes around gossiping. 4 Everyone deceives his neighbor, no one speaks the truth; they have taught their tongues to lie, they wear themselves out with sinning. 5 "You inhabit a world of deceit; deceitfully they refuse to know me," says Adonai . 6 "Therefore," says Adonai -Tzva'ot, "I will refine them and test them. What else can I do with the daughter of my people? 7 Their tongues are sharpened arrows; with their mouths they speak deceit — they say nice words to their neighbors, while inwardly plotting against them. 8 Should I not punish them for these things?" asks Adonai . "Should I not take vengeance on such a nation?" 9 I weep and wail for the mountains and lament over the desert pastures, because they have been burned up; no one passes through; they no longer hear the sound of cattle; the birds and wild animals have fled, are gone. 10 "I will make Yerushalayim a heap of ruins, turn it into a lair for jackals, and make the cities of Y'hudah desolate, with no one living there."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Jeremiah 5:9, Jeremiah 5:29, Isaiah 1:24

Reciprocal: Leviticus 18:25 - therefore Psalms 28:3 - speak Jeremiah 19:8 - General Lamentations 4:11 - Lord

Cross-References

Genesis 6:18
But I will establish my covenant with you; you will come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife and your sons' wives with you.
Genesis 9:7
And you people, be fruitful, multiply, swarm on the earth and multiply on it."
Genesis 9:8
(v) God spoke to Noach and his sons with him; he said,
Genesis 9:9
"As for me — I am herewith establishing my covenant with you, with your descendants after you,
Genesis 9:10
and with every living creature that is with you — the birds, the livestock and every wild animal with you, all going out of the ark, every animal on earth.
Genesis 9:11
I will establish my covenant with you that never again will all living beings be destroyed by the waters of a flood, and there will never again be a flood to destroy the earth."
Genesis 9:17
God said to Noach, "This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between myself and every living creature on the earth."
Genesis 22:17
I will most certainly bless you; and I will most certainly increase your descendants to as many as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the cities of their enemies,
Jeremiah 33:20
"Here is what Adonai says: ‘If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that daytime and nighttime no longer come when they are supposed to,
Romans 1:3
It concerns his Son — he is descended from David physically;

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the Lord,.... The Targum adds,

"to bring evil upon them.''

Shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? the Targum is,

"or of a people whose works are such, shall I not take vengeance according to my pleasure?''

:-.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

From their punishment the prophet now turns to their sins.

Jeremiah 9:2

The prophet utters the wish that he might be spared his daily striving, and in some lone wilderness give way to his sorrow, without restraint.

A lodging place - It was usual to build in the desert, either by private charity or at the public expense, caravanserais, to receive travelers for a single night, who had however to bring their own supplies with them.

An assembly - Or, a gang.

Treacherous - Faithless toward one another.

Jeremiah 9:3

Rather, “And they bend their tongue to be their bow of lies, i. e.” just as men before a battle get their bows ready, so they of set purpose make ready to do mischief, only their arrows are lying words: “neither do they rule faithfully in the land, i. e.” Judaea.

Jeremiah 9:4

In a state of such utter lawlessness, the bonds of mutual confidence are relaxed, and suspicion takes its place.

Utterly supplant - An allusion to the name of Jacob Genesis 27:36. It might be rendered, “every brother is a thorough Jacob.”

Will walk with slanders - Or, slandereth.

Jeremiah 9:6

A continuation of the warning given in Jeremiah 9:4. “Trust no one: for thou dwellest surrounded by deceit on every side.” Their rejection of God is the result of their want of honesty in their dealings with one another 1 John 4:20.

Jeremiah 9:7

I will melt them, and try them - The punishment is corrective rather than retributive. The terms used are those of the refiner of metals, the first being the smelting to separate the pure metal from the ore; the second the testing to see whether the metal is pure, or still mixed with alloy. God will put the nation into the crucible of tribulation, that whatever is evil being consumed in the fire, all there is in them of good may be purified.

For how shall I do ... - Rather, “for how” else could I act with reference to the “daughter of my people?”

Jeremiah 9:8

An arrow shot out - Rather, “a murderous arrow.”

In heart he layeth his wait - Rather, “inwardly he layeth his ambush.”


 
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