Read the Bible

¹ The word that has been to Jeremiah from YHWH, saying,² "Stand in the gate of the house of YHWH, and you have proclaimed this word there, and have said, Hear a word of YHWH, all you of Judah, who are coming in at these gates, to bow before YHWH."³ Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: "Amend your ways, and your doings, || And I cause you to dwell in this place.⁴ Do not trust for yourselves || To the words of falsehood, saying, || The temple of YHWH! The temple of YHWH! These [are] the temple of YHWH!⁵ For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, || If you thoroughly do judgment || Between a man and his neighbor,⁶ You do not oppress sojourner, fatherless, and widow, || And innocent blood is not shed in this place, || And [you] do not walk after other gods, for evil to yourselves,⁷ Then I have caused you to dwell in this place, || In the land that I gave to your fathers, || From age even to age.⁸ Behold, you are trusting for yourselves || On the words of falsehood, so as not to profit.⁹ Stealing, murdering, and committing adultery, || And swearing to falsehood, and giving incense to Ba‘al, || And going after other gods whom you did not know.¹⁰ And you have come in and stood before Me, || In this house on which My Name is called, || And have said, We have been delivered, || In order to do all these abominations.¹¹ Has this house, || On which My Name is called, || Been a den of burglars in your eyes? Even I, behold, have seen," || A declaration of YHWH.¹² "But go now to My place that [is] in Shiloh, || Where I caused My Name to dwell at first, || And see that which I have done to it, || For the wickedess of My people Israel.¹³ And now, because of your doing all these works," || A declaration of YHWH, || "And I speak to you, rising early and speaking, || And you have not listened, || And I call you, and you have not answered,¹⁴ I also have done to the house on which My Name is called, || In which you are trusting, || And to the place that I gave to you, and to your fathers, || As I have done to Shiloh.¹⁵ And I have cast you from before My face, || As I have cast out all your brothers, || The whole seed of Ephraim.

¹⁶ And you do not pray for this people, || Nor lift up crying and prayer for them, || Nor intercede with Me, for I do not hear you.¹⁷ Are you not seeing what they are doing || In cities of Judah, and in streets of Jerusalem?¹⁸ The sons are gathering wood, || And the fathers are causing the fire to burn, || And the women are kneading dough, || To make cakes to the queen of the heavens, || And to pour out drink-offerings to other gods, || So as to provoke Me to anger.¹⁹ Are they provoking Me to anger?" A declaration of YHWH, "Is it not themselves, || For the shame of their own faces?"²⁰ Therefore, thus said Lord YHWH: "Behold, My anger and My fury is poured out on this place, || On man, and beast, and on tree of the field, || And on fruit of the ground, || And it has burned, and it is not quenched."

²¹ Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: "Add your burnt-offerings to your sacrifices and eat flesh.²² For I did not speak with your fathers, || Nor did I command them in the day of My bringing them out of the land of Egypt, || Concerning the matters of burnt-offering and sacrifice,²³ But this thing I commanded them, saying, || Listen to My voice, || And I have been to you for God, || And you are to Me for a people, || And have walked in all the way that I command you, || So that it is well for you.²⁴ And they have not listened, nor inclined their ear, || And they walk in the counsels, || [And] in the stubbornness, of their evil hearts, || And are backward and not forward.²⁵ Even from the day when your fathers || Went out of the land of Egypt until this day, || I send all My servants the prophets to you, || Daily rising early and sending,²⁶ And they have not listened to Me, || Nor inclined their ear—and they harden their neck, || They have done evil above their fathers.²⁷ And you have spoken all these words to them, || And they do not listen to you, || And you have called to them, || And they do not answer you.²⁸ And you have said to them: This [is] the nation that has not listened, || To the voice of its God YHWH, || Nor have they accepted instruction, || Steadfastness has perished, || Indeed, it has been cut off from their mouth.

²⁹ Cut off your crown, and cast [it] away, || And lift up lamentation on high places, || For YHWH has rejected, || And He leaves the generation of His wrath.³⁰ For the sons of Judah || Have done evil in My eyes," || A declaration of YHWH, || "They have set their abominations in the house || On which My Name is called—to defile it,³¹ And have built the high places of Tophet, || That [are] in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, || To burn their sons and their daughters with fire, || Which I did not command, || Nor did it come up on My heart.³² Therefore, behold, days are coming," || A declaration of YHWH, || "And it is no longer said, The Tophet, || And, Valley of the Son of Hinnom, || But, Valley of the Slaughter, || And they have buried in Tophet—without place.³³ And the carcass of this people has been for food || To a bird of the heavens, and to a beast of the earth, || And there is none troubling.³⁴ And I have caused to cease from cities of Judah, || And from streets of Jerusalem, || The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, || Voice of bridegroom, and voice of bride, || For the land becomes a desolation!"