1 T he sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, With the point of a diamond, Graven on the tablet of their heart, And on the horns of your altars,

The sin of Judah is written with a pen or stylus of iron and with the point of a diamond; it is engraved on the tablets of their hearts and on the horns of their altars,

2 A s their sons remember their altars and their shrines, By the green tree, by the high hills.

While their children remember their altars and their Asherim beside the green trees upon the high hills.

3 O My mountain in the field -- thy strength, All thy treasures -- for a prey I give, Thy high places for sin in all thy borders.

O My mountain in the field, I will give your wealth and all your treasures to the spoil and your high places for sin throughout all your territory.

4 A nd thou hast let go -- even through thyself, Of thine inheritance that I gave to thee, And I have caused thee to serve thine enemies, In a land that thou hast not known, For a fire ye have kindled in Mine anger, Unto the age it doth burn.

And you, through your own fault, will loosen your hand and discontinue from your heritage which I gave you; and I will cause you to serve your enemies in a land which you do not know, for you have kindled a fire in My anger which will burn throughout the ages.

5 T hus said Jehovah: Cursed the man who doth trust in man, And hath made flesh his arm, And from Jehovah whose heart turneth.

Thus says the Lord: Cursed is the strong man who trusts in and relies on frail man, making weak flesh his arm, and whose mind and heart turn aside from the Lord.

6 A nd he hath been as a naked thing in a desert, And doth not see when good cometh, And hath inhabited parched places in a wilderness, A salt land, and not inhabited.

For he shall be like a shrub or a person naked and destitute in the desert; and he shall not see any good come, but shall dwell in the parched places in the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.

7 B lessed the man who trusteth in Jehovah, And whose confidence hath been Jehovah.

blessed is the man who believes in, trusts in, and relies on the Lord, and whose hope and confidence the Lord is.

8 A nd hath been as a tree planted by waters, And by a rivulet he sendeth forth his roots, And he doth not see when heat cometh, And his leaf hath been green, And in a year of dearth he is not sorrowful, Nor doth he cease from making fruit.

For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters that spreads out its roots by the river; and it shall not see and fear when heat comes; but its leaf shall be green. It shall not be anxious and full of care in the year of drought, nor shall it cease yielding fruit.

9 C rooked the heart above all things, And it incurable -- who doth know it?

The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is exceedingly perverse and corrupt and severely, mortally sick! Who can know it ?

10 I Jehovah do search the heart, try the reins, Even to give to each according to his way, According to the fruit of his doings.

I the Lord search the mind, I try the heart, even to give to every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.

11 A partridge hatching, and not bringing forth, one making wealth, and not by right, In the midst of his days he doth forsake it, And in his latter end -- he is a fool.

Like the partridge that gathers a brood which she did not hatch and sits on eggs which she has not laid, so is he who gets riches by unjust means and not by right. He will leave them, or they will leave him, in the midst of his days, and at his end he will be a fool.

12 A throne of honour on high from the beginning, The place of our sanctuary,

A glorious throne, set on high from the beginning, is the place of our sanctuary (the temple).

13 T he hope of Israel Jehovah, All forsaking Thee are ashamed, And `My apostates' in the earth are written, For they have forsaken Jehovah, A fountain of living waters.

O Lord, the Hope of Israel, all who forsake You shall be put to shame. They who depart from You and me shall writing upon the ground, because they have forsaken the Lord, the Fountain of living waters.

14 H eal me, O Jehovah, and I am healed, Save me, and I am saved, for my praise Thou.

Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for You are my praise.

15 L o, they are saying unto me: `Where the word of Jehovah? pray, let it come.'

Behold, they say to me, Where is the word of the Lord ? Let it come now!

16 A nd I hastened not from feeding after Thee, And the desperate day I have not desired, Thou -- Thou hast known, The produce of my lips, before Thy face it hath been,

But as for me, I have not sought to escape from being a shepherd after You, nor have I desired the woeful day; You know that. Whatever I said was spoken in Your presence and was from You.

17 B e not Thou to me for a terror, My hope Thou in a day of evil.

Be not a terror to me; You are my refuge and my hope in the day of evil.

18 L et my pursuers be ashamed, and let not me be ashamed -- me! Let them be affrighted, and let not me be affrighted -- me! Bring in on them a day of evil, And a second time destruction destroy them.

Let those be put to shame who persecute me, but let me not be put to shame; let them be dismayed, but let me not be dismayed. Bring on them the day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction.

19 T hus said Jehovah unto me: `Go, and thou hast stood in the gate of the sons of the people, by which kings of Judah come in, and by which they go out, and in all gates of Jerusalem,

Thus said the Lord to me: Go and stand in the gate of the sons of the people, through which the kings of Judah enter and through which they go out, and also in all the gates of Jerusalem.

20 a nd thou hast said unto them: Hear a word of Jehovah, ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all inhabitants of Jerusalem, who are coming in by these gates,

Say to them, Hear the word of the Lord, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem who enter through these gates.

21 T hus said Jehovah, Take ye heed to yourselves, And ye bear not a burden on the day of rest, Nor have ye brought in by the gates of Jerusalem.

Thus says the Lord: Take heed to yourselves and for the sake of your lives bear no burden on the Sabbath day or bring it in through the gates of Jerusalem.

22 N or do ye take out a burden from your houses on the day of rest, Yea, any work ye do not do, And ye have sanctified the day of rest, As I have commanded your fathers.

And do not carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day or do any work, but keep the Sabbath day holy (set apart to the worship of God), as I commanded your fathers.

23 A nd they have not hearkened nor inclined their ear, And they stiffen their neck not to hear, And not to receive instruction.

Yet they would not listen and obey or incline their ears; but they stiffened their necks, that they might not hear and might not receive instruction.

24 A nd it hath been, if ye certainly hearken unto Me, An affirmation of Jehovah, So as not to bring in a burden By the gates of this city on the day of rest, And to sanctify the day of rest, So as not to do in it any work --

But if you diligently listen to and obey Me, says the Lord, and bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but keep the Sabbath day holy (set apart to the worship of God), to do no work on it,

25 T hen entered by the gates of this city have kings and princes, Sitting on the throne of David, Riding in a chariot, and on horses, They, and their princes, the man of Judah, And inhabitants of Jerusalem, And this city hath remained to the age.

Then there will enter through the gates of this city kings and princes who will sit upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses—the kings and their princes, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city will be inhabited and last throughout the ages.

26 A nd they have come in from cities of Judah, And from suburbs of Jerusalem, And from the land of Benjamin, And from the low country, And from the hill-country, and from the south, Bringing in burnt-offering, and sacrifice, And present, and frankincense, And bringing praise the house of Jehovah.

And people shall come from the cities of Judah and the places round about Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the lowland, from the hill country, and from the South (the Negeb), bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, cereal offerings and frankincense, and bringing sacrifices of thanksgiving to the house of the Lord.

27 A nd if ye do not hearken unto me to sanctify the day of rest, And so as not to bear a burden, And to come in at the gates of Jerusalem on the day of rest, Then I have kindled a fire in its gates, And it hath consumed the high places of Jerusalem, And it is not quenched!'

But if you will not listen to Me to keep the Sabbath day holy (set apart to the worship of God), and not to bear a burden and enter in at the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in her gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.