1 ¶ Oh that my head were waters and my eyes a fountain of tears that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!

Who doth make my head waters, And mine eye a fountain of tears? And I weep by day and by night, For the wounded of the daughter of my people.

2 O h that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of wayfaring men that I might leave my people and go from them! for they are all adulterers, a congregation of rebels.

Who doth give me in a wilderness A lodging-place of travellers? And I leave my people, and go from them, For all of them adulterers, An assembly of treacherous ones.

3 A nd they bend their tongues like their bow for lies, but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth for they proceed from evil to evil, and they did not recognize me, said the LORD.

And they bend their tongue, their bow a lie, And not for stedfastness have they been mighty in the land, For from evil unto evil they have gone forth, And Me they have not known, An affirmation of Jehovah!

4 T ake heed each one of his neighbour, and trust ye not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbour will walk with slanders.

Each of his friend -- beware ye, And on any brother, do not trust, For every brother doth utterly supplant, For every friend slanderously doth walk,

5 A nd they will deceive each one his neighbour and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongue to speak lies and weary themselves to commit iniquity.

And each at his friend they mock, And truth they do not speak, They taught their tongue to speak falsehood, To commit iniquity they have laboured.

6 T hine habitation is in the midst of deceit; through deceit they refuse to know me, saith the LORD.

thy dwelling in the midst of deceit, Through deceit they refused to know Me, An affirmation of Jehovah.

7 T herefore thus hath the LORD of the hosts said, Behold, I will melt them and try them; for how shall I do for the daughter of my people?

Therefore, thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Lo, I am refining them, and have tried them, For how do I do because of the daughter of My people?

8 T heir tongue is as a sharp arrow; it speaks deceit: one speaks peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth but in heart he lays in wait.

A slaughtering arrow their tongue, Deceit it hath spoken in its mouth, Peace with its neighbour it speaketh, And in its heart it layeth its ambush,

9 S hall I not visit them for these things? saith the LORD; shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

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?

10 U pon the mountains I will lift up weeping and wailing and lamentation upon the habitations of the wilderness because they are burned up, so that no one can pass through them; neither can men hear the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and even the beasts of the earth are fled; they are gone.

For the mountains I lift up weeping and wailing, And for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, For they have been burnt up without any passing over, Nor have they heard the voice of cattle, From the fowl of the heavens unto the beast they have fled, they have gone.

11 A nd I will make Jerusalem heaps and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant.

And I make Jerusalem become heaps, A habitation of dragons, And the cities of Judah I make a desolation, Without inhabitant.

12 ¶ Who is the wise man that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the LORD has spoken that he may declare for what cause the land perishes and is burned up like a wilderness that no one passes through?

Who the wise man? and he understandeth this, And he to whom the mouth of Jehovah spake? And he doth declare it, For what hath the land perished? It hath been burnt up as a wilderness, Without any passing through.

13 A nd the LORD said, Because they have forsaken my law, which I set before them, and have not heard my voice, neither walked therein,

And Jehovah saith: Because of their forsaking My law that I set before them, And they have not hearkened to My voice nor walked in it,

14 b ut have walked after the imagination of their own heart and after the Baalim, which their fathers taught them,

And they walk after the stubbornness of their heart, And after the Baalim, that their fathers taught them,

15 T herefore thus hath the LORD of the hosts the God of Israel said: Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood and give them water of gall to drink.

Therefore, thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel: Lo, I am causing them -- this people -- to eat wormwood, And I have caused them to drink water of gall,

16 I will scatter them also among Gentiles whom neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them.

And I have scattered them among nations Which they knew not, they and their fathers, And have sent after them the sword, Till I have consumed them.

17 T hus hath the LORD of the hosts said, Consider ye and call for the mourning women that they may come and send for cunning women that they may come,

Thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Consider ye, and call for mourning women, And they come, And to the wise women send, and they come,

18 a nd let them make haste and take up a wailing for us that our eyes may run down with tears and our eyelids gush out with waters.

And they hasten, and lift up for us a wailing. And run down our eyes do tears, And from our eyelids do waters flow.

19 F or a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion, How are we destroyed! We are greatly confounded. Why have we forsaken the land? Why have our dwellings cast us out?

For -- a voice of wailing is heard from Zion: How have we been spoiled! We have been greatly ashamed, Because we have forsaken the land, Because they have cast down our tabernacles.

20 Y et hear the word of the LORD, O ye women, and let your ear receive the word of his mouth and teach your daughters wailing and each one her neighbour lamentation.

But hear, ye women, a word of Jehovah, And your ear receiveth a word of His mouth, And teach ye your daughters wailing, and each her neighbour lamentation.

21 F or death is come up into our windows and is entered into our palaces to cut off the children from without and the young men from the streets.

For death hath come up into our windows, It hath come into our palaces, To cut off the suckling from without, Young men from the broad places.

22 S peak, Thus hath the LORD said, Even the carcasses of men shall fall as dung upon the open field and as the handful after the harvestman, and there shall be none to gather them.

Speak thus -- an affirmation of Jehovah, And fallen hath the carcase of man, As dung on the face of the field, And as a handful after the reaper, And there is none gathering.

23 ¶ Thus hath the LORD said, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches;

Thus said Jehovah: Let not the wise boast himself in his wisdom, Nor let the mighty boast himself in his might, Let not the rich boast himself in his riches,

24 b ut let him that glories glory in this, that he understands me and knows me, that I am the LORD who does mercy, judgment, and righteousness in the earth: for in these things I delight, said the LORD.

But -- in this let the boaster boast himself, In understanding and knowing Me, For I Jehovah, doing kindness, Judgment, and righteousness, in the earth, For in these I have delighted, An affirmation of Jehovah.

25 B ehold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will visit all those who are circumcised with the uncircumcised:

Lo, days are coming -- an affirmation of Jehovah, And I have laid a charge on all circumcised in the foreskin,

26 E gypt and Judah and Edom and the sons of Ammon and Moab and all that are in the utmost corners, that dwell in the wilderness: for all the Gentiles are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart.

On Egypt, and on Judah, and on Edom, And on the sons of Ammon, and on Moab, And on all cutting the corner, Who are dwelling in the wilderness, For all the nations uncircumcised, And all the house of Israel uncircumcised in heart!