1 ¶ The word that was sent to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,

2 S tand in the gate of the LORD’s house and proclaim there this word and say, Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD.

Stand in the gate of the Lord’s house and proclaim there this word and say, Hear the word of the Lord, all you of Judah who enter in at these gates to worship the Lord.

3 T hus hath the LORD of the hosts the God of Israel said, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.

4 D o not trust in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD are these.

Trust not in the lying words, saying, This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord.

5 F or if ye thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, if ye thoroughly do right between a man and his neighbour,

For if you thoroughly amend your ways and your doings, if you thoroughly and truly execute justice between every man and his neighbor,

6 i f ye do not oppress the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed no innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt,

If you do not oppress the transient and the alien, the fatherless, and the widow or shed innocent blood in or go after other gods to your own hurt,

7 t hen I will cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers for ever and ever.

Then I will cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave of old to your fathers to dwell in forever.

8 B ehold, ye trust in lying words that cannot profit.

Behold, you trust in lying words that cannot benefit.

9 W ill ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not,

Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known,

10 a nd come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are free to do all these abominations?

And come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My Name, and say, we are set free!—only to go on with this wickedness and these abominations?

11 I s this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, said the LORD.

Has this house, which is called by My Name, become a den of robbers in your eyes ? Behold, I Myself have seen it, says the Lord.

12 B ut go now unto my place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first and see what I did to it for the wickedness of my people Israel.

But go now to My place which was in Shiloh, where I set My Name at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of My people Israel.

13 A nd now because ye have done all these works, said the LORD and I spoke well unto you, rising up early and speaking, but ye did not hear; and I called you, but ye did not answer;

And now, because you have done all these things, says the Lord, and when I spoke to you persistently, you did not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer,

14 t herefore I will do unto this house, which is called by my name, in which ye trust, and unto this place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh.

Therefore will I do to this house (the temple), which is called by My Name and in which you trust, to the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh.

15 A nd I will cast you out of my sight as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim.

And I will cast you out of My sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole posterity of Ephraim.

16 ¶ Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.

Therefore do not pray for this people or lift up a cry or entreaty for them or make intercession to Me, for I will not listen to or hear you.

17 D ost thou not see what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?

Do you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?

18 T he sons gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough to make cakes to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods that they may provoke me to anger.

The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and they pour out drink offerings to other gods, that they may provoke Me to anger!

19 S hall they provoke me to anger? said the LORD: do they not provoke themselves to the confusion of their own faces?

Am I the One Whom they provoke to anger? says the Lord. Is it not themselves, to their own confusion and vexation and to their own shame?

20 T herefore thus hath the Lord GOD said: Behold, my anger and my fury shall be poured out upon this place, upon man and upon beast and upon the trees of the field and upon the fruit of the ground, and it shall burn and shall not be quenched.

Therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, My anger and My wrath will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the trees of the field and the fruit of the ground; it will burn and not be quenched.

21 ¶ Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said: Add your burnt offerings upon your sacrifices and eat flesh.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat the flesh.

22 F or I did not speak unto your fathers, nor command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices:

For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to your fathers or command them concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices.

23 B ut this thing I commanded them, saying, Hear my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the way that I have commanded you that it may be well unto you.

But this thing I did command them: Listen to and obey My voice, and I will be your God and you will be My people; and walk in the whole way that I command you, that it may be well with you.

24 B ut they did not hearken, nor incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels in the imagination of their evil heart and went backward, and not forward

But they would not listen to and obey Me or bend their ear, but followed the counsels and the stubborn promptings of their own evil hearts and minds, and they turned their backs and went in reverse instead of forward.

25 s ince the day that your fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt unto this day. I have even sent unto you all my slaves, the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them;

Since the day that your fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt to this day, I have persistently sent to you all My servants the prophets, sending them daily, early and late.

26 y et they did not hearken unto me, nor incline their ear, but hardened their neck: they did worse than their fathers.

Yet the people would not listen to and obey Me or bend their ears, but stiffened their necks and behaved worse than their fathers.

27 T herefore thou shalt speak all these words unto them; but they will not hearken to thee: thou shalt even call unto them; but they will not answer thee.

Speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to and obey you; also call to them, but they will not answer you.

28 T herefore thou shalt say unto them, This is the nation that did not hear the voice of the LORD their God, nor receive chastisement; the faith is lost and was cut off from their mouth.

Yet you shall say to them, This is the nation that did not obey the voice of the Lord their God or receive instruction and correction and warning; truth and faithfulness have perished and have completely vanished from their mouths.

29 ¶ Cut off thine hair, O Jerusalem, and cast it away and take up a lamentation on high places; for the LORD has cast off and forsaken the nation of his wrath.

Cut off your hair and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on the bare heights, for the Lord has rejected and forsaken the generation of His wrath.

30 F or the sons of Judah have done evil in my sight, said the LORD; they have set their abominations in the house which is called by my name to pollute it.

For the children of Judah have done evil in My sight, says the Lord; they have set their abominations (extremely disgusting and shamefully vile things) in the house which is called by My Name to defile it.

31 A nd they have built the high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command them, neither did it come into my heart.

And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of Ben-hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire —which I did not command, nor did it come into My mind or heart.

32 T herefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no longer be called Tophet, nor the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter; for they shall bury in Tophet, for there shall be no other place.

Therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when it shall no more be called Topheth or the Valley of Ben-hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter, for they will bury in Topheth till there is no more room and no place else to bury.

33 A nd the carcasses of this people shall be food for the fowls of the heaven and for the beasts of the earth; and there shall be no one to chase them away.

And the dead bodies of this people will be meat for the fowls of the air and for the beasts of the earth, and none will frighten them away.

34 T hen I will cause to cease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride: for the land shall be desolate.

Then will I cause to cease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride; for the land will become a waste.