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The Sovereignty of God

¹ Hear the word that the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel.² This is what the LORD says: “Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by the signs in the heavens, although the nations are terrified by them.³ For the customs of the peoples are worthless; they cut down a tree from the forest; it is shaped with a chisel by the hands of a craftsman.⁴ They adorn it with silver and gold and fasten it with hammer and nails, so that it will not totter.⁵ Like scarecrows in a cucumber patch, their idols cannot speak. They must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not fear them, for they can do no harm, and neither can they do any good.”⁶ There is none like You, O LORD. You are great, and Your name is mighty in power.⁷ Who would not fear You, O King of nations? This is Your due. For among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like You.⁸ But they are altogether senseless and foolish, instructed by worthless idols made of wood!⁹ Hammered silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz—the work of a craftsman from the hands of a goldsmith. Their clothing is blue and purple, all fashioned by skilled workers.¹⁰ But the LORD is the true God; He is the living God and eternal King. The earth quakes at His wrath, and the nations cannot endure His indignation.”¹¹ Thus you are to tell them: “The gods that did not make heaven or earth will perish from this earth and from under these heavens.&rdquo^(a);¹² God made the earth by His power; He established the world by His wisdom and stretched out the heavens by His understanding.¹³ When He thunders, the waters in the heavens roar, and He causes the clouds to rise from the ends of the earth. He sends lightning with the rain and brings the wind from His storehouses.¹⁴ Everyone is senseless and devoid of knowledge. Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols. For his molten images are a fraud; they have no breath in them.¹⁵ They are worthless, a work to be mocked. In the time of their punishment, they will perish.¹⁶ The Portion of Jacob is not like these, for He is the Maker of all things: Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; the LORD of Hosts is His name.

The Coming Destruction

¹⁷ Gather up your belongings from this land, you who live under siege.¹⁸ For this is what the LORD says: “Behold, at this time I will sling out the inhabitants of the land and bring distress on them so that they may be captured.”¹⁹ Woe to me because of my brokenness; my wound is grievous! But I said, “This is truly my sickness, and I must bear it.”²⁰ My tent is destroyed, and all its ropes are snapped. My sons have departed from me and are no more. I have no one left to pitch my tent or set up my curtains.²¹ For the shepherds have become senseless and do not seek the LORD. Therefore they have not prospered, and all their flock is scattered.²² Listen! The sound of a report is coming—a great commotion from the land to the north. The cities of Judah will be made a desolation, a haunt of jackals.

Jeremiah’s Prayer