Study Desk

The kingdom of Judah wasn't sorry for being a prostitute, and she didn't care that she had made both herself and the land unclean by worshiping idols of stone and wood.

Then I'll appoint wise rulers who will obey me, and they will care for you like shepherds.

On hilltops, we worshiped idols and made loud noises, but it was all for nothing— only you can save us.

The Lord said: "Sound the trumpets, my people. Warn the people of Judah, ‘Run for your lives!

Head for Jerusalem or another walled town!' "Jeremiah, tell them I'm sending disaster from the north.

When disaster comes, the Lord will tell you people of Jerusalem, "I am sending a windstorm from the desert— not a welcome breeze. And it will sweep you away as punishment for your sins. <

But Jerusalem, there is still time for you to be saved. Wash the evil from your hearts and stop making sinful plans,

Enemy cavalry and archers shout their battle cry. People run for their lives and try to find safety among trees and rocks. Every town is empty.

I heard groaning and crying. Was it a woman giving birth to her first child? No, it was Jerusalem. She was gasping for breath and begging for help. "I'm dying!" she said. "They have murdered me."

The Lord said to me: "Search Jerusalem for honest people who try to be faithful. If you can find even one, I'll forgive the whole city.

I answered, "I know that you look for truth. You punished your people for their lies, but in spite of the pain, they became more stubborn and refused to turn back to you."

Prophets give their messages in the name of a false god, my priests don't want to serve me, and you—my own people— like it this way! But on the day of disaster, where will you turn for help?

The Lord said: Run for your lives, people of Benjamin. Get out of Jerusalem. Sound a trumpet in Tekoa and light a signal fire in Beth-Haccherem. Soon you will be struck by disaster from the north.

I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I will command these armies to chop down trees and build a ramp up to the walls of Jerusalem. People of Jerusalem, I must punish you for your injustice.

All they ever offer to my deeply wounded people are empty hopes for peace.

The Lord said, "Look toward the north, where a powerful nation has prepared for war.

You steal and murder; you lie in court and are unfaithful in marriage. You worship idols and offer incense to Baal, when these gods have never done anything for you.

And as for you, people of Judah, I'm going to send you away from my land, just as I sent away the people of Ephraim and the other northern tribes.

Jeremiah, don't pray for these people! I, the Lord , would refuse to listen.

Children gather firewood, their fathers build fires, and their mothers mix dough to bake bread for the goddess they call the Queen of Heaven. They even offer wine sacrifices to other gods, just to insult me.