Study Desk

"If you will return, Israel," declares the LORD, "Then you should return to Me. And if you will put away your detestable things from My presence, And will not waver,

If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the Lord , return unto me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove.

And if you will swear, 'As the LORD lives,' In truth, in justice, and in righteousness; Then the nations will bless themselves in Him, And in Him they will boast."

And thou shalt swear, The Lord liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.

For this is what the LORD says to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem: "Break up your uncultivated ground, And do not sow among thorns.

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

"Circumcise yourselves to the LORD And remove the foreskins of your hearts, Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, Or else My wrath will spread like fire And burn with no one to quench it, Because of the evil of your deeds."

Circumcise yourselves to the Lord , and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye 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.

Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say, "Blow the trumpet in the land; Cry aloud and say, 'Assemble, and let's go Into the fortified cities.'

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

"Raise a flag toward Zion! Take refuge, do not stand still, For I am bringing evil from the north, And great destruction.

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

"A lion has gone up from his thicket, And a destroyer of nations has set out; He has gone out from his place To make your land a waste. Your cities will be ruins, Without an inhabitant.

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

"For this, put on sackcloth, Mourn and wail; For the fierce anger of the LORD Has not turned away from us."

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

"And it shall come about on that day," declares the LORD, "that the heart of the king and the hearts of the leaders will fail; and the priests will tremble, and the prophets will be astonished."

And it shall come to pass at that day, saith 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.

Then I said, "Oh, Lord GOD! Surely You have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, 'You will have peace'; yet a sword touches the throat."

Then said I, Ah, Lord God ! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.

At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, "A scorching wind from the bare heights in the wilderness, in the direction of the daughter of My people—not to winnow and not to cleanse,

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,

a wind too strong for this—will come at My command; now I will also pronounce judgments against them."

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

"Behold, he goes up like clouds, And his chariots like the whirlwind; His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us, for we are ruined!"

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.

Wash your heart from evil, Jerusalem, So that you may be saved. How long will your wicked thoughts Lodge within you?

O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?

For a voice declares from Dan, And proclaims wickedness from Mount Ephraim.

For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount Ephraim.

"Report it to the nations, now! Proclaim to Jerusalem, 'Enemies are coming from a remote country, And they raise their voices against the cities of Judah.

Make ye 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.

'Like watchmen of a field they are against her all around, Because she has rebelled against Me,' declares the LORD.

As keepers of a field, are they against her round about; because she hath been rebellious against me, saith the Lord .

"Your ways and your deeds Have brought these things upon you. This is your evil. How bitter! How it has touched your heart!"

Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.

My soul, my soul! I am in anguish! Oh, my heart! My heart is pounding in me; I cannot keep silent, Because, my soul, you have heard The sound of the trumpet, The alarm of war.

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

Disaster upon disaster is proclaimed, For the whole land is devastated; Suddenly my tents are devastated, And my curtains in an instant.

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

How long must I see the flag And hear the sound of the trumpet?

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

"For My people are foolish, They do not know Me; They are foolish children And have no understanding. They are skillful at doing evil, But they do not know how to do good."

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

I looked at the earth, and behold, it was a formless and desolate emptiness; And to the heavens, and they had no light.

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

I looked on the mountains, and behold, they were quaking, And all the hills jolted back and forth.

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

I looked, and behold, there was no human, And all the birds of the sky had fled.

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

I looked, and behold, the fruitful land was a wilderness, And all its cities were pulled down Before the LORD, before His fierce anger.

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.

For this is what the LORD says: "The whole land shall be a desolation, Yet I will not execute a complete destruction.

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

"For this the earth will mourn, And the heavens above will become dark, Because I have spoken, I have purposed, And I have not changed My mind, nor will I turn from it."

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.

At the sound of the horseman and archer every city flees; They go into the thickets and climb among the rocks; Every city is abandoned, And no one lives in them.

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.

And you, desolate one, what will you do? Although you dress in scarlet, Although you adorn yourself with jewelry of gold, Although you enlarge your eyes with makeup, In vain you make yourself beautiful. Your lovers despise you; They seek your life.

And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.

For I heard a voice cry as of a woman in labor, The anguish as of one giving birth to her first child. The voice of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath, Stretching out her hands, saying, "Ah, woe to me, for I faint before murderers."

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