Jeremiah 1:1-19
These are the words Jeremiah received from the Lord. Jeremiah was the son of Hilkiah. Jeremiah was one of the priests at Anathoth. That’s a town in the territory of Benjamin. A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah. It came in the 13th year that Josiah was king over Judah. Josiah was the son of Amon. After Josiah, his son Jehoiakim was king over Judah. The Lord’s message also came to Jeremiah during the whole time Jehoiakim ruled. The Lord continued to speak to Jeremiah while Zedekiah was king over Judah. He did this until the fifth month of the 11th year of Zedekiah’s rule. That’s when the people of Jerusalem were forced to leave their country. Zedekiah was the son of Josiah. Here is what Jeremiah said.
The Lord Appoints Jeremiah to Speak for Him
A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said,
“Before I formed you in your mother’s body I chose you.
Before you were born I set you apart to serve me.
I appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
“You are my Lord and King,” I said. “I don’t know how to speak. I’m too young.”
But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I’m too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to. You must say everything I command you to say. Do not be afraid of the people I send you to. I am with you. I will save you,” announces the Lord.
Then the Lord reached out his hand. He touched my mouth and spoke to me. He said, “I have put my words in your mouth. Today I am appointing you to speak to nations and kingdoms. I give you authority to pull them up by the roots and tear them down. I give you authority to destroy them and crush them. I give you authority to build them up and plant them.”
A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord asked me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
“The branch of an almond tree,” I replied.
The Lord said to me, “You have seen correctly. I am watching to see that my word comes true.”
Another message from the Lord came to me. The Lord asked me, “What do you see?”
“A pot that has boiling water in it,” I answered. “It’s leaning toward us from the north.”
The Lord said to me, “Something very bad will be poured out on everyone who lives in this land. It will come from the north. I am about to send for all the armies in the northern kingdoms,” announces the Lord.
“Their kings will come to Jerusalem.
They will set up their thrones at the very gates of the city.
They will attack all the walls that surround the city.
They will go to war against all the towns of Judah.
I will judge my people.
They have done many evil things.
They have deserted me.
They have burned incense to other gods.
They have worshiped the gods
their own hands have made.
“So get ready! Stand up! Tell them everything I command you to. Do not let them terrify you. If you do, I will terrify you in front of them. Today I have made you like a city that has a high wall around it. I have made you like an iron pillar and a bronze wall. Now you can stand up against the whole land. You can stand against the kings and officials of Judah. You can stand against its priests and its people. They will fight against you. But they will not win the battle over you. I am with you. I will save you,” announces the Lord.
Jeremiah 2:1-30
Israel Deserts the Lord
A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, “Go. Announce my message to the people in Jerusalem. I want everyone to hear it. Tell them,
“Here is what the Lord says.
“ ‘I remember how faithful you were to me when you were young.
You loved me as if you were my bride.
You followed me through the desert.
Nothing had been planted there.
Your people were holy to me.
They were the first share of my harvest.
All those who destroyed them were held guilty.
And trouble came to their enemies,’ ”
announces the Lord.
People of Jacob, hear the Lord’s message.
Listen, all you tribes of Israel.
The Lord says,
“What did your people of long ago find wrong with me?
Why did they wander so far away from me?
They worshiped worthless statues of gods.
Then they themselves became worthless.
They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord?
He brought us up out of Egypt.
He led us through a dry and empty land.
He guided us through deserts and deep valleys.
It was a land of total darkness where there wasn’t any rain.
No one lived or traveled there.’
But I brought you into a land that has rich soil.
I gave you its fruit and its finest food.
In spite of that, you made my land impure.
You turned it into something I hate.
The priests did not ask,
‘Where is the Lord?’
Those who taught my law did not know me.
The leaders refused to obey me.
The prophets prophesied in the name of Baal.
They worshiped worthless statues of gods.
“So I am bringing charges against you again,”
announces the Lord.
“And I will bring charges against your children’s children.
Go over to the coasts of Cyprus and look.
Send people to the land of Kedar and have them look closely.
See if there has ever been anything like this.
Has a nation ever changed its gods?
Actually, they are not even gods at all.
But my people have traded away their glorious God.
They have traded me for worthless statues of gods.
Sky above, be shocked over this.
Tremble with horror,”
announces the Lord.
“My people have sinned twice.
They have deserted me,
even though I am the spring of water that gives life.
And they have dug their own wells.
But those wells are broken.
They can’t hold any water.
Are you people of Israel servants?
You were not born as slaves, were you?
Then why have you been carried off like stolen goods?
Lions have roared.
They have growled at you.
They have destroyed your land.
Your towns are burned and deserted.
The men of Memphis and Tahpanhes
have cracked your skulls.
Haven’t you brought this on yourselves?
I am the Lord your God, but you deserted me.
You left me even while I was leading you.
Why do you go to Egypt
to drink water from the Nile River?
Why do you go to Assyria
to drink from the Euphrates River?
You will be punished because you have sinned.
You will be corrected for turning away from me.
I am the Lord your God.
If you desert me, bad things will happen to you.
If you do not respect me, you will suffer bitterly.
I want you to understand that,”
announces the Lord who rules over all.
“Long ago you broke off the yoke I put on you.
You tore off the ropes I tied you up with.
You said, ‘I won’t serve you!’
In fact, on every high hill
you lay down like a prostitute.
You worshiped other gods under every green tree.
You were like a good vine when I planted you.
You were a healthy plant.
Then how did you turn against me?
How did you become a bad, wild vine?
You might wash yourself with soap.
You might use plenty of strong soap.
But I can still see the stains your guilt covers you with,”
announces the Lord and King.
“You say, ‘I am “clean.”
I haven’t followed the gods that are named Baal.’
How can you say that?
Remember how you acted in the valley.
Consider what you have done.
You are like a female camel running quickly here and there.
You are like a wild donkey that lives in the desert.
She smells the wind when she longs for a mate.
Who can hold her back?
The males that run after her do not need to wear themselves out.
At mating time they will easily find her.
Do not run after other gods
until your sandals are worn out and your throat is dry.
But you said, ‘It’s no use!
I love those gods.
I must go after them.’
“A thief is dishonored when he is caught.
And you people of Israel are filled with shame.
Your kings and officials are dishonored.
So are your priests and your prophets.
You say to a piece of wood, ‘You are my father.’
You say to a stone, ‘You are my mother.’
You have turned your backs to me.
You refuse to look at me.
But when you are in trouble, you say,
‘Come and save us!’
Then where are the gods you made for yourselves?
Let them come when you are in trouble!
Let them save you if they can!
Judah, you have as many gods
as you have towns.
“Why do you bring charges against me?
All of you have refused to obey me,”
announces the Lord.
“I punished your people. But it did not do them any good.
They did not pay attention when they were corrected.
You have killed your prophets by swords.
You have swallowed them up like a hungry lion.
