Study Desk

The living, the living, he, can praise thee, As I do this day, - A father, to his children, can make known thy faithfulness.

Now, therefore hear this, Thou Lady of pleasure Who dwelleth securely, Who saith in her heart, - I, am , and there is no one besides, I shall not sit a widow, Nor know loss of children.

Yet shall there come to thee - both these, in a moment, in one day, Loss of children and widowhood, - To their full, have they come on thee, Spite of the mass of thine incantations, Spite of the great throng of thy spells.

The children of whom thou wast bereaved shall yet say in thine ears, - Too strait for me, is the place Make room for me that I may settle down.

Surely, thus, saith Yahweh - Even the captive of the mighty one, shall be taken away, And the prey of the tyrant, be delivered; And thine opposers, I, will oppose, And thy children, I, will save;

Shout in triumph, O barren one, Who hadst not borne, - Break forth into shouts of triumph - and trill thy voice, Who hadst not travailed in birth, For, more, are the children of the Desolate Than the children of Her who had the husband, Saith Yahweh.

And, all thy boundaries, stones of delight; And, all thy children, shall be the instructed of Yahweh, - And, great, shall be the prosperity of thy children.

Against whom would ye disport yourselves? Against whom would ye widen the mouth and lengthen the tongue, - Are not, ye, Children of transgression, A Seed of falsehood.

Who inflame yourselves With the terebinths, Under every green tree - Slaying the children, In the torrent-valleys, Under the clefts of the crags:

They shall not labour in vain, Nor have children for terror, - For the seed of the blessed ones of Yahweh, shall they be, And their offspring, with them.

Who hath heard the like of this? Who hath seen the like of these things? Can a land, be made to bring forth in one day? Or a nation, be born, at one time? As soon as she travaileth, Zion hath also given birth to her children.

Therefore yet further will I plead with you Declareth Yahweh, Yea with your children's children, will I plead.

In vain, have I smitten your children, Correction, have they not accepted, - Your sword hath devoured your prophets, as a lion that destroyeth.

The children, gather wood, and The fathers, kindle the fire, and The women, knead dough, - To make sacrificial cakes to the queen of the heavens, And to pour out drink-offerings to other gods, Provoking me to anger!

My tent, is laid waste, And all my tent-cords, are broken, - My children, are gone forth from me and they, are not. There is none, To stretch out any more my tent, Or to set up my curtains.

Thus, saith Yahweh - A voice, in Ramah, is heard, Wailing, bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children, - She refuseth to be comforted for her children, For they are not!

Executing lovingkindness unto thousands, But recompensing the iniquity of fathers, into the bosom of their children, after them, Thou GOD, the great the mighty, Yahweh of hosts, is his name:

And I will give them one heart, and one way, That they may revere me, all the days, - For the good of them and of their children after them;

Yea thou shalt behold all thy wives and thy children brought forth unto the Chaldeans, and thou, shalt not escape out of their hand, - but by the hand of the king of Babylon, shalt thou be taken, and, this city, shall be burned with fire.

Now, when all the captains of the forces which were in the field - they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had set Gedaliah son of Ahikam in charge over the land, - and that he had committed to him men and women and children, and the poor of the land of those who had not been carried away captive to Babylon,