Jeremiah 9:9

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Should I not punish them for these things?

Hebrew Names Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? says the LORD; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

King James Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the Lord : shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

English Standard Version
Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord , and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?

New American Standard Bible
"Shall I not punish them for these things?" declares the LORD. "Shall I not avenge Myself On a nation such as this?

New Century Version
Shouldn't I punish the people for doing this?" says the Lord . "Shouldn't I give a nation like this the punishment it deserves?"

Amplified Bible
"Shall I not punish them for these things?" says the LORD. "Shall I not avenge Myself On such a nation as this?

World English Bible
Shall I not visit them for these things? says Yahweh; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Geneva Bible (1587)
Shal I not visit them for these things, saith the Lorde? or shall not my soule be auenged on such a nation as this?

Legacy Standard Bible
Shall I not punish them for these things?" declares Yahweh."On a nation such as thisShall I not avenge Myself?

Berean Standard Bible
Should I not punish them for these things? declares the LORD. Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?"

Contemporary English Version
Give me one good reason not to punish them as they deserve. I, the Lord All-Powerful, have spoken.

Complete Jewish Bible
I weep and wail for the mountains and lament over the desert pastures, because they have been burned up; no one passes through; they no longer hear the sound of cattle; the birds and wild animals have fled, are gone.

Darby Translation
Shall I not visit them for these [things]? saith Jehovah; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Easy-to-Read Version
Should I punish the people of Judah for doing these things?" This message is from the Lord . "You know I should punish a nation such as this. I should give it the punishment it deserves."

George Lamsa Translation
Shall I not punish them for these things? says the LORD; shall I not avenge myself on a people such as this?

Good News Translation
Will I not punish them for these things? Will I not take revenge on a nation like this? I, the Lord , have spoken."

Lexham English Bible
Because of these things shall I not punish them?" declares Yahweh, "On a nation that is like this shall I not take revenge?

Literal Translation
Shall I not visit them for these things ? says Jehovah. Or shall not My soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Shulde I not punysh them for these thinges, saieth the LORDE? Or, shulde I not be auenged of eny soch people, as this?

American Standard Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? saith Jehovah; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Bible in Basic English
Am I not to send punishment for these things? says the Lord: will not my soul take payment from such a nation as this?

JPS Old Testament (1917)
For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the pastures of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are burned up, so that none passeth through. And they hear not the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled, and gone.

King James Version (1611)
Shall I not visit them for these things, saith the Lord ? shall not my soule be auenged on such a nation as this?

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Should I not punishe them for these thinges, saith the Lorde? or shoulde I not be auenged of any suche people as this?

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a people as this?

English Revised Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Whether Y schal not visite on these thingis, seith the Lord, ether schal not my soule take veniaunce on siche a folc?

Update Bible Version
Shall I not visit them for these things? says Yahweh; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Webster's Bible Translation
Shall I not visit them for these [things]? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

New English Translation
I will certainly punish them for doing such things!" says the Lord . "I will certainly bring retribution on such a nation as this!"

New King James Version
Shall I not punish them for these things?" says the LORD. "Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?"

New Living Translation
Should I not punish them for this?" says the Lord . "Should I not avenge myself against such a nation?"

New Life Bible
Should I not punish them for these things?" says the Lord. "Should I not make a nation such as this pay for its sins?

New Revised Standard
Shall I not punish them for these things? says the Lord ; and shall I not bring retribution on a nation such as this?

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
For these things, shall I not bring punishment on them? Demandeth Yahweh, - On a nation such as this, must not my soul avenge herself!

Douay-Rheims Bible
Shall I not visit them for these things, saith the Lord? or shall not my soul be revenged on such a nation?

Revised Standard Version
Shall I not punish them for these things? says the LORD; and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?

Young's Literal Translation
For these things do not I see after them? An affirmation of Jehovah, Against a nation such as this doth not My soul avenge itself?

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Shall I not punish them for these things?" declares the LORD. "On a nation such as this Shall I not avenge Myself?

Contextual Overview

¹I wish my head were a well of water and my eyes fountains of tears So I could weep day and night for casualties among my dear, dear people. At times I wish I had a wilderness hut, a backwoods cabin, Where I could get away from my people and never see them again. They're a faithless, feckless bunch, a congregation of degenerates. ³"Their tongues shoot out lies like a bow shoots arrows— A mighty army of liars, the sworn enemies of truth. They advance from one evil to the next, ignorant of me." God 's Decree. "Be wary of even longtime neighbors. Don't even trust your grandmother! Brother schemes against brother, like old cheating Jacob. Friend against friend spreads malicious gossip. Neighbors gyp neighbors, never telling the truth. They've trained their tongues to tell lies, and now they can't tell the truth. They pile wrong upon wrong, stack lie upon lie, and refuse to know me." God 's Decree. ⁷Therefore, God -of-the-Angel-Armies says: "Watch this! I'll melt them down and see what they're made of. What else can I do with a people this wicked? Their tongues are poison arrows! Deadly lies stream from their mouths. Neighbor greets neighbor with a smile, ‘Good morning! How're things?' while scheming to do away with him. Do you think I'm going to stand around and do nothing?" God 's Decree. "Don't you think I'll take serious measures against a people like this? ¹⁰"I'm lamenting the loss of the mountain pastures. I'm chanting dirges for the old grazing grounds. They've become deserted wastelands too dangerous for travelers. No sounds of sheep bleating or cattle mooing. Birds and wild animals, all gone. Nothing stirring, no sounds of life. I'm going to make Jerusalem a pile of rubble, fit for nothing but stray cats and dogs. I'm going to reduce Judah's towns to piles of ruins where no one lives!"

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Jeremiah 5:9, Jeremiah 5:29, Isaiah 1:24

Reciprocal: Leviticus 18:25 - therefore Psalms 28:3 - speak Jeremiah 19:8 - General Lamentations 4:11 - Lord

Cross-References

Genesis 6:18
"But I'm going to establish a covenant with you: You'll board the ship, and your sons, your wife and your sons' wives will come on board with you. You are also to take two of each living creature, a male and a female, on board the ship, to preserve their lives with you: two of every species of bird, mammal, and reptile—two of everything so as to preserve their lives along with yours. Also get all the food you'll need and store it up for you and them."

Genesis 9:8
Then God spoke to Noah and his sons: "I'm setting up my covenant with you including your children who will come after you, along with everything alive around you—birds, farm animals, wild animals—that came out of the ship with you. I'm setting up my covenant with you that never again will everything living be destroyed by floodwaters; no, never again will a flood destroy the Earth."

Genesis 9:17
And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant that I've set up between me and everything living on the Earth."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the Lord,.... The Targum adds,

"to bring evil upon them.''

Shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? the Targum is,

"or of a people whose works are such, shall I not take vengeance according to my pleasure?''

:-.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

From their punishment the prophet now turns to their sins.

Jeremiah 9:2

The prophet utters the wish that he might be spared his daily striving, and in some lone wilderness give way to his sorrow, without restraint.

A lodging place - It was usual to build in the desert, either by private charity or at the public expense, caravanserais, to receive travelers for a single night, who had however to bring their own supplies with them.

An assembly - Or, a gang.

Treacherous - Faithless toward one another.

Jeremiah 9:3

Rather, “And they bend their tongue to be their bow of lies, i. e.” just as men before a battle get their bows ready, so they of set purpose make ready to do mischief, only their arrows are lying words: “neither do they rule faithfully in the land, i. e.” Judaea.

Jeremiah 9:4

In a state of such utter lawlessness, the bonds of mutual confidence are relaxed, and suspicion takes its place.

Utterly supplant - An allusion to the name of Jacob Genesis 27:36. It might be rendered, “every brother is a thorough Jacob.”

Will walk with slanders - Or, slandereth.

Jeremiah 9:6

A continuation of the warning given in Jeremiah 9:4. “Trust no one: for thou dwellest surrounded by deceit on every side.” Their rejection of God is the result of their want of honesty in their dealings with one another 1 John 4:20.

Jeremiah 9:7

I will melt them, and try them - The punishment is corrective rather than retributive. The terms used are those of the refiner of metals, the first being the smelting to separate the pure metal from the ore; the second the testing to see whether the metal is pure, or still mixed with alloy. God will put the nation into the crucible of tribulation, that whatever is evil being consumed in the fire, all there is in them of good may be purified.

For how shall I do ... - Rather, “for how” else could I act with reference to the “daughter of my people?”

Jeremiah 9:8

An arrow shot out - Rather, “a murderous arrow.”

In heart he layeth his wait - Rather, “inwardly he layeth his ambush.”