Jeremiah 11:2

THE MESSAGE

"Preach to the people of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem. Tell them this: ‘This is God 's Message, the Message of Israel's God to you. Anyone who does not keep the terms of this covenant is cursed. The terms are clear. I made them plain to your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt, out of the iron furnace of suffering. "‘Obey what I tell you. Do exactly what I command you. Your obedience will close the deal. You'll be mine and I'll be yours. This will provide the conditions in which I will be able to do what I promised your ancestors: to give them a fertile and lush land. And, as you know, that's what I did.'" "Yes, God ," I replied. "That's true." God continued: "Preach all this in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. Say, ‘Listen to the terms of this covenant and carry them out! I warned your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt and I've kept up the warnings. I haven't quit warning them for a moment. I warned them from morning to night: "Obey me or else!" But they didn't obey. They paid no attention to me. They did whatever they wanted to do, whenever they wanted to do it, until finally I stepped in and ordered the punishments set out in the covenant, which, despite all my warnings, they had ignored.'" Then God said, "There's a conspiracy among the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem. They've plotted to reenact the sins of their ancestors—the ones who disobeyed me and decided to go after other gods and worship them. Israel and Judah are in this together, mindlessly breaking the covenant I made with their ancestors." "Well, your God has something to say about this: Watch out! I'm about to visit doom on you, and no one will get out of it. You're going to cry for help but I won't listen. Then all the people in Judah and Jerusalem will start praying to the gods you've been sacrificing to all these years, but it won't do a bit of good. You've got as many gods as you have villages, Judah! And you've got enough altars for sacrifices to that impotent sex god Baal to put one on every street corner in Jerusalem!" "And as for you, Jeremiah, I don't want you praying for this people. Nothing! Not a word of petition. Indeed, I'm not going to listen to a single syllable of their crisis-prayers." "What business do the ones I love have figuring out how to get off the hook? And right in the house of worship! Do you think making promises and devising pious programs will save you from doom? Do you think you can get out of this by becoming more religious? A mighty oak tree, majestic and glorious— that's how I once described you. But it will only take a clap of thunder and a bolt of lightning to leave you a shattered wreck. "I, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, who planted you—yes, I have pronounced doom on you. Why? Because of the disastrous life you've lived, Israel and Judah alike, goading me to anger with your continuous worship and offerings to that sorry god Baal." God told me what was going on. That's how I knew. You, God , opened my eyes to their evil scheming. I had no idea what was going on—naive as a lamb being led to slaughter! I didn't know they had it in for me, didn't know of their behind-the-scenes plots: "Let's get rid of the preacher. That will stop the sermons! Let's get rid of him for good. He won't be remembered for long." Then I said, " God -of-the-Angel-Armies, you're a fair judge. You examine and cross-examine human actions and motives. I want to see these people shown up and put down! I'm an open book before you. Clear my name." That sent a signal to God , who spoke up: "Here's what I'll do to the men of Anathoth who are trying to murder you, the men who say, ‘Don't preach to us in God 's name or we'll kill you.' Yes, it's God -of-the-Angel-Armies speaking. Indeed! I'll call them to account: Their young people will die in battle, their children will die of starvation, and there will be no one left at all, none. I'm visiting the men of Anathoth with doom. Doomsday!"

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“Listen to the words of this covenant and tell them to the men of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem.

Hebrew Names Version
Hear you the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Yehudah, and to the inhabitants of Yerushalayim;

King James Version
Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

English Standard Version
"Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

New American Standard Bible
"Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

New Century Version
"Listen to the words of this agreement and tell them to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem.

Amplified Bible
"Hear the words of this [solemn] covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the people of Jerusalem.

World English Bible
Hear you the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

Geneva Bible (1587)
Heare ye the wordes of this couenant, and speake vnto the men of Iudah, and to the inhabitants of Ierusalem,

Legacy Standard Bible
"Hear the words of this covenant, and you shall speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem

Berean Standard Bible
"Listen to the words of this covenant and tell them to the men of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem.

Complete Jewish Bible
"Listen to the words of this covenant; then speak to the people of Y'hudah and the inhabitants of Yerushalayim;

Darby Translation
Hear ye the words of this covenant; and speak ye unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

Easy-to-Read Version
"Jeremiah, listen to the words of this agreement and tell them to the people living in Jerusalem and the rest of Judah.

George Lamsa Translation
Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

Good News Translation
"Listen to the terms of the covenant. Tell the people of Judah and of Jerusalem

Lexham English Bible
"Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

Literal Translation
Hear the Words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah, and to those living in Jerusalem,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Heare the wordes of the couenant, and speake vnto all Iuda, and to all them that dwel at Ierusalem,

American Standard Version
Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

Bible in Basic English
Give ear to the words of this agreement, and say to the men of Judah and to the people of Jerusalem,

JPS Old Testament (1917)
'Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

King James Version (1611)
Heare yee the words of this Couenant, and speake vnto the men of Iudah, and to the inhabitants of Ierusalem.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Heare the wordes of this couenaunt and speake vnto the men of Iuda, and to all them that dwell at Hierusalem,

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Hear ye the words of this covenant, and thou shalt speak to the men of Juda, and to the dwellers in Jerusalem;

English Revised Version
Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and seide, Here ye the wordis of this couenaunt, and speke ye to the men of Juda, and to the dwelleris of Jerusalem; and thou schalt seie to hem,

Update Bible Version
Hear the words of this covenant. And speak them to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

Webster's Bible Translation
Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

New English Translation
"Hear the terms of the covenant I made with Israel and pass them on to the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem.

New King James Version
"Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

New Living Translation
"Remind the people of Judah and Jerusalem about the terms of my covenant with them.

New Life Bible
"Hear the words of this agreement, and speak to the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem.

New Revised Standard
Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Hear ye the words of this covenant, - and speak ye unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

Douay-Rheims Bible
Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Juda, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

Revised Standard Version
"Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

Young's Literal Translation
`Hear ye the words of this covenant, and ye have spoken unto the men of Judah, and unto the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

Contextual Overview

¹ The Message that came to Jeremiah from God : ²"Preach to the people of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem. Tell them this: ‘This is God 's Message, the Message of Israel's God to you. Anyone who does not keep the terms of this covenant is cursed. The terms are clear. I made them plain to your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt, out of the iron furnace of suffering. "‘Obey what I tell you. Do exactly what I command you. Your obedience will close the deal. You'll be mine and I'll be yours. This will provide the conditions in which I will be able to do what I promised your ancestors: to give them a fertile and lush land. And, as you know, that's what I did.'" "Yes, God ," I replied. "That's true." God continued: "Preach all this in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. Say, ‘Listen to the terms of this covenant and carry them out! I warned your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt and I've kept up the warnings. I haven't quit warning them for a moment. I warned them from morning to night: "Obey me or else!" But they didn't obey. They paid no attention to me. They did whatever they wanted to do, whenever they wanted to do it, until finally I stepped in and ordered the punishments set out in the covenant, which, despite all my warnings, they had ignored.'" Then God said, "There's a conspiracy among the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem. They've plotted to reenact the sins of their ancestors—the ones who disobeyed me and decided to go after other gods and worship them. Israel and Judah are in this together, mindlessly breaking the covenant I made with their ancestors." "Well, your God has something to say about this: Watch out! I'm about to visit doom on you, and no one will get out of it. You're going to cry for help but I won't listen. Then all the people in Judah and Jerusalem will start praying to the gods you've been sacrificing to all these years, but it won't do a bit of good. You've got as many gods as you have villages, Judah! And you've got enough altars for sacrifices to that impotent sex god Baal to put one on every street corner in Jerusalem!" "And as for you, Jeremiah, I don't want you praying for this people. Nothing! Not a word of petition. Indeed, I'm not going to listen to a single syllable of their crisis-prayers." "What business do the ones I love have figuring out how to get off the hook? And right in the house of worship! Do you think making promises and devising pious programs will save you from doom? Do you think you can get out of this by becoming more religious? A mighty oak tree, majestic and glorious— that's how I once described you. But it will only take a clap of thunder and a bolt of lightning to leave you a shattered wreck. "I, God -of-the-Angel-Armies, who planted you—yes, I have pronounced doom on you. Why? Because of the disastrous life you've lived, Israel and Judah alike, goading me to anger with your continuous worship and offerings to that sorry god Baal." God told me what was going on. That's how I knew. You, God , opened my eyes to their evil scheming. I had no idea what was going on—naive as a lamb being led to slaughter! I didn't know they had it in for me, didn't know of their behind-the-scenes plots: "Let's get rid of the preacher. That will stop the sermons! Let's get rid of him for good. He won't be remembered for long." Then I said, " God -of-the-Angel-Armies, you're a fair judge. You examine and cross-examine human actions and motives. I want to see these people shown up and put down! I'm an open book before you. Clear my name." That sent a signal to God , who spoke up: "Here's what I'll do to the men of Anathoth who are trying to murder you, the men who say, ‘Don't preach to us in God 's name or we'll kill you.' Yes, it's God -of-the-Angel-Armies speaking. Indeed! I'll call them to account: Their young people will die in battle, their children will die of starvation, and there will be no one left at all, none. I'm visiting the men of Anathoth with doom. Doomsday!" ⁵The Terms of This Covenant The Message that came to Jeremiah from God : "Preach to the people of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem. Tell them this: ‘This is God 's Message, the Message of Israel's God to you. Anyone who does not keep the terms of this covenant is cursed. The terms are clear. I made them plain to your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt, out of the iron furnace of suffering. "‘Obey what I tell you. Do exactly what I command you. Your obedience will close the deal. You'll be mine and I'll be yours. This will provide the conditions in which I will be able to do what I promised your ancestors: to give them a fertile and lush land. And, as you know, that's what I did.'" "Yes, God ," I replied. "That's true." ⁶ God continued: "Preach all this in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. Say, ‘Listen to the terms of this covenant and carry them out! I warned your ancestors when I delivered them from Egypt and I've kept up the warnings. I haven't quit warning them for a moment. I warned them from morning to night: "Obey me or else!" But they didn't obey. They paid no attention to me. They did whatever they wanted to do, whenever they wanted to do it, until finally I stepped in and ordered the punishments set out in the covenant, which, despite all my warnings, they had ignored.'" ⁹Then God said, "There's a conspiracy among the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem. They've plotted to reenact the sins of their ancestors—the ones who disobeyed me and decided to go after other gods and worship them. Israel and Judah are in this together, mindlessly breaking the covenant I made with their ancestors."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

am 3406, bc 598, Jeremiah 11:6, Jeremiah 34:13-16, Exodus 19:5, 2 Kings 11:17, 2 Kings 23:2, 2 Kings 23:3, 2 Chronicles 23:16, 2 Chronicles 29:10, 2 Chronicles 34:31

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 29:1 - the words 1 Chronicles 16:17 - an everlasting Jeremiah 4:5 - Declare ye

Cross-References

Genesis 14:1
Then this: Amraphel king of Shinar, Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam, and Tidal king of Goiim went off to war to fight Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela, that is, Zoar.

Isaiah 11:11
Also on that day, the Master for the second time will reach out to bring back what's left of his scattered people. He'll bring them back from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Ethiopia, Elam, Sinar, Hamath, and the ocean islands.

Zechariah 5:11
He said, "East to the land of Shinar. They will build a garage to house it. When it's finished, the basket will be stored there."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Hear ye the words of this covenant,.... Which. Dr. Lightfoot understands of the covenant lately made in the times of Josiah, upon finding and reading the law of Moses, 2 Kings 23:3, but it seems rather to design the law of Moses itself; or the covenant made with the people of Israel on Mount Horeb, Exodus 24:7, or rather which was made with them in the land of Moab, Deuteronomy 29:1. The words of it are the things contained in it, the blessings and curses; the order to hear them is in the plural number, and is directed, not to Jeremiah only, but to others with him, the rest of the prophets that were in his days; as Zephaniah, who prophesied, as Kimchi observes, in the reign of Josiah; and there was Baruch his companion; or the priests at Anathoth are here addressed with him; though it is usual, in the Hebrew language, to put one number for another; and Jeremiah, in the next verse, is singly addressed; and the Syriac version renders it in the singular number; perhaps the book of the law might lie before him, and be pointed at; and so he is bid to take it, or "receive" it, as the Targum is, and read and publish it to the Jews, as follows:

and speak unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: the words of the covenant, and what follows.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The words of this covenant - The phrase used 2 Kings 23:3 to describe the contents of the Book of the Law.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Jeremiah 11:2. Hear ye the words of this covenant — It is possible that the prophet caused the words of the covenant made with their fathers in the desert (Exodus 24:4-8) to be read to them on this occasion; or, at least, the blessings and the cursings which Moses caused to be pronounced to the people as soon as they had set foot in Canaan, Deuteronomy 27:1-68.