17 ‘The people of Judah love to do bad things. [ a ]
Their sins are deep inside them.
It is like they are written on their hearts
and on the horns of their altars.
They are written with an iron pen.
Nobody can remove the list of their sins.
2 Even their children always think about their altars
where they worship false gods.
They have put up their Asherah poles
under the big trees and on the high hills.
3 They also worship their false gods
on the mountains and in the fields.
So I will cause enemies to take all your valuable things.
They will take your riches for themselves.
That will be the price that you pay for your sins.
You have done evil things everywhere in the land.
4 I gave you this land to be your home for ever.
But it will no longer belong to you.
Your enemies will take you to a land that you do not know.
You will be their slaves.
You have made me very angry,
like a fire that nobody can stop.’
5 The Lord says,
‘I will curse those who only trust people to help them.
They think that human strength will save them,
and they turn away from me, the Lord .
6 They will be like a bush that grows in the desert.
It grows in a place where nobody can live.
The ground is very dry and is spoiled by salt.
Even when good times come,
those people will not receive any good thing.
7 The Lord blesses people who trust in him.
They know that the Lord will help them.
8 They will be like trees that grow beside a river.
Their roots reach into the water.
When the sun is hot, they are not afraid.
Their leaves continue to be green.
They give fruit each year,
even when there is no rain.
9 A person's own mind deceives him,
more than anything else does.
Nobody can change it to be better.
Nobody completely understands it.
10 But I, the Lord , look inside a person's mind.
I see what he thinks and what he feels.
I see how everyone lives,
and I see the things that they do.
I give to each one what he deserves.
11 Someone may get rich because he cheats other people.
He is like a bird that sits on eggs
that it has taken from another nest.
He will lose his riches before he is old.
At the end of his life, he will die as a fool.’
12 Lord , your beautiful throne is high above.
You have ruled there from the beginning.
That is where we worship you. [ b ]
13 You are the one that the Israelites hope in.
Everyone who turns away from you will be ashamed.
They will disappear,
as if their names are written in the dust.
Lord , you give life to your people,
like a spring of fresh water.
But they have turned against you.
14 Lord , please make me well again.
Then I will be completely well.
Rescue me so that I am completely safe.
You are the one that I praise!
15 People are asking me questions.
They say, ‘Nothing has happened to us yet!
When will the Lord 's message become true?’
16 Lord , I have not stopped taking care of your people.
I have never asked you to destroy them on one final day.
You know that,
and you know everything that I have said.
17 Please do not make me afraid!
When I am in trouble,
I run to you to be safe.
18 Please bring shame on those who want to hurt me.
Do not make me ashamed.
Make those people afraid,
but do not make me afraid.
Destroy them with a time of great trouble.
Punish them completely!
19 The Lord said to me, ‘Go and stand at the gate of the city that is called “The People's Gate”. That is the gate that the kings of Judah use to go in and out of the city. Then go and stand at the other gates of Jerusalem. 20 Stand in those places and say, “Listen, you kings of Judah, everyone who lives in Jerusalem and all the people of Judah. Hear this message from the Lord . 21 This is what the Lord says:
Be careful to obey these rules if you want to continue to live! On a Sabbath day, do not carry any loads in through the gates of Jerusalem. 22 Do not carry any loads out of your houses. Do not do any work on a Sabbath day. You must keep the Sabbath day as a special day for me. That is what I commanded your ancestors to do. [ c ] 23 But they did not listen to me and they did not obey me. They refused to accept the rules that I gave to them. When I warned them, they would not change.”
24 The Lord says, “But you must be careful to obey me. Do not carry any loads through the gates of this city on a Sabbath day. You must keep the Sabbath day as a special day for me. Do not do any work on a Sabbath day. 25 If you obey me, kings from David's family will continue to rule. Kings and their officers will pass through these gates, together with the people of Jerusalem and all Judah. They will ride on horses and in chariots. Many people will always live in this city. 26 People will come here from everywhere in Judah. They will bring offerings to the Lord 's temple. They will come from Judah's towns and from the villages around Jerusalem. They will come from the land that belongs to Benjamin's tribe. They will come from the low hills in the west and from the hill country and the wilderness in the south. They will bring burnt offerings, grain offerings, other sacrifices and incense. They will offer sacrifices to the Lord to thank him.
27 But you must remember to obey me. You must keep the Sabbath day as a special day for me. You must not carry any loads in through Jerusalem's gates on a Sabbath day. If you do not obey this rule, I will burn Jerusalem's gates with fire. The fire will destroy all the strong buildings in Jerusalem. Nobody will be able to stop that fire.” ’
17 “The sins of Judah are written where they cannot be erased—
cut into stone with an iron pen,
cut deep with a hard tip into the stone that is the hearts of the people.
Their sins are carved into the horns of their altars. [ a ]
2 Their children remember the altars
that were dedicated to false gods.
They remember the wooden poles
that were dedicated to Asherah.
They remember those things
under the green trees and on the hills.
3 They remember those things
on the mountains in the open country.
The people of Judah have many treasures.
I will give those things to other people.
People will destroy all the high places in your country.
You worshiped there, and that was a sin.
4 You will lose the land I gave you.
I will let your enemies take you to be their slaves.
That is because I am very angry.
My anger is like a hot fire, and you will be burned forever.”
5 This is what the Lord says:
“Bad things will happen to those who put their trust in people.
Bad things will happen to those who depend on human strength.
That is because they have stopped trusting the Lord .
6 They are like a bush in a desert where no one lives.
It is in a hot and dry land.
It is in bad soil.
That bush does not know about the good things that God can give.
7 “But those who trust in the Lord will be blessed.
They know that the Lord will do what he says.
8 They will be strong like trees planted near a stream
that send out roots to the water.
They have nothing to fear when the days get hot.
Their leaves are always green.
They never worry, even in a year that has no rain.
They always produce fruit.
9 “Nothing can hide its evil as well as the human mind.
It can be very sick,
and no one really understands it.
10 But I am the Lord ,
and I can look into a person’s heart.
I can test a person’s mind and decide what each one should have.
I can give each person the right payment for what they do.
11 Sometimes a bird will hatch an egg that it did not lay.
Those who cheat to get money are like that bird.
But when their lives are half finished, they will lose the money.
At the end of their lives, it will be clear that they were fools.”
12 From the very beginning, our Temple
has been a glorious throne for God.
It is a very important place.
13 Lord , you are the hope of Israel.
You are like a spring of living water.
Those who stop following the Lord
will have a very short life. [ b ]
14 Lord , if you heal me, I surely will be healed.
Save me, and I surely will be saved.
Lord, I praise you!
15 The people of Judah continue to ask me questions.
They say, “Jeremiah, what about the message from the Lord ?
Let’s see that message come true.”
16 Lord, I did not run away from you.
I followed you.
I became the shepherd [ c ] you wanted.
I did not want the terrible day to come.
You know what I said.
You see all that is happening.
17 Please don’t make me afraid of you.
I depend on you in times of trouble.
18 People are hurting me.
Make them ashamed,
but don’t disappoint me.
Let them be filled with fear,
but don’t give me any reason to fear.
Bring the terrible day of disaster to my enemies.
Break them, and break them again.
19 This is what the Lord said to me: “Jeremiah, go and stand at the People’s Gate, [ d ] where the kings of Judah go in and out. Tell the people my message, and then go to all the other gates of Jerusalem and do the same.”
20 Say to the people, “Listen to this message from the Lord . Listen, kings of Judah. Listen, all you people of Judah. All you who come through these gates into Jerusalem, listen to me! 21 This is what the Lord says: ‘Be careful that you don’t carry a load on the Sabbath day. And don’t bring a load through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. 22 Don’t bring a load out of your houses on the Sabbath day. Don’t do any work on that day. You must make the Sabbath day a holy day. I gave this same command to your ancestors, 23 but they did not obey me. They did not pay attention to me. Your ancestors were very stubborn. I punished them, but it did not do any good. They did not listen to me. 24 But you must be careful to obey me, says the Lord . You must not bring a load through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath. You must make the Sabbath day a holy day. You will do this by not doing any work on that day.
25 “‘If you obey this command, the kings and leaders will be from David’s family. It will be the kings who sit on David’s throne and the leaders from Judah and Jerusalem who come through the gates of Jerusalem riding on chariots and on horses. And Jerusalem will have people living in it forever. 26 People will come to Jerusalem from the towns and villages of Judah, from the land where the tribe of Benjamin lives, [ e ] from the western foothills, from the hill country, and from the Negev. All these people will bring burnt offerings, sacrifices, grain offerings, incense, and thank offerings to the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem.
27 “‘But if you don’t listen to me and obey me, bad things will happen. If you carry loads into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, you are not keeping it as a holy day. So I will start a fire that cannot be put out. That fire will start at the gates of Jerusalem, and it will burn until it burns even the palaces.’”
17 The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the horns of your altars;
2 Whilst their children remember their altars and their groves by the green trees upon the high hills.
3 O my mountain in the field, I will give thy substance and all thy treasures to the spoil, and thy high places for sin, throughout all thy borders.
4 And thou, even thyself, shalt discontinue from thine heritage that I gave thee; and I will cause thee to serve thine enemies in the land which thou knowest not: for ye have kindled a fire in mine anger, which shall burn for ever.
5 Thus saith the Lord ; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord .
6 For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited.
7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord , and whose hope the Lord is.
8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.
9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
10 I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.
11 As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.
12 A glorious high throne from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary.
13 O Lord , the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the Lord , the fountain of living waters.
14 Heal me, O Lord , and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise.
15 Behold, they say unto me, Where is the word of the Lord ? let it come now.
16 As for me, I have not hastened from being a pastor to follow thee: neither have I desired the woeful day; thou knowest: that which came out of my lips was right before thee.
17 Be not a terror unto me: thou art my hope in the day of evil.
18 Let them be confounded that persecute me, but let not me be confounded: let them be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed: bring upon them the day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction.
19 Thus said the Lord unto me; Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by the which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem;
20 And say unto them, Hear ye the word of the Lord , ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these gates:
21 Thus saith the Lord ; Take heed to yourselves, and bear no burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem;
22 Neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the sabbath day, neither do ye any work, but hallow ye the sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers.
23 But they obeyed not, neither inclined their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, nor receive instruction.
24 And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently hearken unto me, saith the Lord , to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the sabbath day, but hallow the sabbath day, to do no work therein;
25 Then shall there enter into the gates of this city kings and princes sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: and this city shall remain for ever.
26 And they shall come from the cities of Judah, and from the places about Jerusalem, and from the land of Benjamin, and from the plain, and from the mountains, and from the south, bringing burnt offerings, and sacrifices, and meat offerings, and incense, and bringing sacrifices of praise, unto the house of the Lord .
27 But if ye will not hearken unto me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden, even entering in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.
17 The ( A ) sin of Judah is written with an ( B ) iron stylus;
With a diamond point it is ( C ) engraved on the tablet of their hearts
And on the horns of [ a ] their altars,
2 As they remember their ( D ) children,
So they remember their altars and their [ b ] ( E ) Asherim
By ( F ) green trees on the high hills.
3 ( G ) Mountain of Mine in the countryside,
I will ( H ) turn over your wealth and all your treasures as plunder,
Your high places for sin throughout your borders.
4 And you will, even of yourself, ( I ) let go of your inheritance
That I gave you;
And I will make you serve your ( J ) enemies
In the ( K ) land which you do not know;
For you have ( L ) kindled a fire in My anger
Which will burn forever.
5 This is what the Lord says:
“ ( M ) Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind
And makes ( N ) flesh his [ c ] strength,
And whose heart turns away from the Lord .
6 For he will be like a ( O ) bush in the desert,
And will not see when prosperity comes,
But will live in stony wastes in the wilderness,
A ( P ) land of salt that is not inhabited.
7 ( Q ) Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord ,
And whose ( R ) trust is the Lord .
8 For he will be like a ( S ) tree planted by the water
That extends its roots by a stream,
And does not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of ( T ) drought,
Nor cease to yield fruit.
9 “The ( U ) heart is more ( V ) deceitful than all else
And is desperately ( W ) sick;
Who can understand it?
10 I, the Lord , ( X ) search the heart,
I test the [ d ] mind,
( Y ) To give to each person according to his ways,
According to the [ e ] results of his deeds.
11 As a partridge that hatches eggs which it has not laid,
So is a person who ( Z ) makes a fortune, but unjustly;
In the middle of his days it will abandon him,
And in [ f ] the end he will be a ( AA ) fool.”
12 ( AB ) A glorious throne on high from the beginning
Is the place of our sanctuary.
13 Lord , the ( AC ) hope of Israel,
All who ( AD ) abandon You will be put to shame.
Those who turn [ g ] away on earth will be ( AE ) written down,
Because they have forsaken the fountain of living water, that is the Lord .
14 ( AF ) Heal me, Lord , and I will be healed;
( AG ) Save me and I will be saved,
For You are my ( AH ) praise.
15 Look, they keep ( AI ) saying to me,
“Where is the word of the Lord ?
Let it come now!”
16 But as for me, I have not hurried away from being a shepherd following after You,
Nor have I longed for the disastrous day;
( AJ ) You Yourself know that the utterance of my lips
Was in Your presence.
17 Do not be a ( AK ) terror to me;
You are my ( AL ) refuge in a day of disaster.
18 Let those who persecute me be ( AM ) put to shame, but as for me, ( AN ) let me not be put to shame;
Let them be dismayed, but let me not be dismayed.
( AO ) Bring on them a day of disaster,
And crush them with double destruction!
19 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and stand at the [ h ] public gate, through which the kings of Judah come in and go out, as well as at all the gates of Jerusalem; 20 and say to them, ‘ ( AP ) Listen to the word of the Lord , you ( AQ ) kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all inhabitants of Jerusalem who come in through these gates. 21 This is what the Lord says: “ ( AR ) Take care for yourselves, and ( AS ) do not carry any [ i ] load on the Sabbath day or bring anything in through the gates of Jerusalem. 22 You shall not bring a load out of your houses on the Sabbath day ( AT ) nor do any work, but keep the Sabbath day holy, just as I ( AU ) commanded your [ j ] forefathers. 23 Yet they ( AV ) did not listen or incline their ears, but ( AW ) stiffened their necks so as not to listen or accept discipline.
24 “But it will come about, if you ( AX ) give your attention to Me,” declares the Lord , “to ( AY ) bring no load in through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, ( AZ ) but to keep the Sabbath day holy by doing no work on it, 25 ( BA ) then there will come in through the gates of this city kings and officials ( BB ) sitting on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their officials, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and this ( BC ) city will be inhabited forever. 26 They will come in from the ( BD ) cities of Judah and from the areas surrounding Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the ( BE ) lowland, from the hill country, and from the ( BF ) Negev, bringing burnt offerings, sacrifices, grain offerings, and frankincense, and bringing sacrifices of thanksgiving to the house of the Lord . 27 But ( BG ) if you do not listen to Me, to keep the Sabbath day holy by not carrying a load and coming in through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then ( BH ) I will set fire to its gates, and it will ( BI ) devour the palaces of Jerusalem and ( BJ ) not go out.”’”
17 “Judah’s sin is engraved with an iron tool, ( A )
inscribed with a flint point,
on the tablets of their hearts ( B )
and on the horns ( C ) of their altars.
2 Even their children remember
their altars and Asherah poles [ a ] ( D )
beside the spreading trees
and on the high hills. ( E )
3 My mountain in the land
and your [ b ] wealth and all your treasures
I will give away as plunder, ( F )
together with your high places, ( G )
because of sin throughout your country. ( H )
4 Through your own fault you will lose
the inheritance ( I ) I gave you.
I will enslave you to your enemies ( J )
in a land ( K ) you do not know,
for you have kindled my anger,
and it will burn ( L ) forever.”
5 This is what the Lord says:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man, ( M )
who draws strength from mere flesh
and whose heart turns away from the Lord . ( N )
6 That person will be like a bush in the wastelands;
they will not see prosperity when it comes.
They will dwell in the parched places ( O ) of the desert,
in a salt ( P ) land where no one lives.
7 “But blessed ( Q ) is the one who trusts ( R ) in the Lord ,
whose confidence is in him.
8 They will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream. ( S )
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought ( T )
and never fails to bear fruit.” ( U )
9 The heart ( V ) is deceitful above all things
and beyond cure.
Who can understand it?
10 “I the Lord search the heart ( W )
and examine the mind, ( X )
to reward ( Y ) each person according to their conduct,
according to what their deeds deserve.” ( Z )
11 Like a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay
are those who gain riches by unjust means.
When their lives are half gone, their riches will desert them,
and in the end they will prove to be fools. ( AA )
12 A glorious throne, ( AB ) exalted from the beginning,
is the place of our sanctuary.
13 Lord , you are the hope ( AC ) of Israel;
all who forsake ( AD ) you will be put to shame.
Those who turn away from you will be written in the dust ( AE )
because they have forsaken the Lord ,
the spring of living water. ( AF )
14 Heal me, Lord , and I will be healed; ( AG )
save ( AH ) me and I will be saved,
for you are the one I praise. ( AI )
15 They keep saying to me,
“Where is the word of the Lord ?
Let it now be fulfilled!” ( AJ )
16 I have not run away from being your shepherd;
you know I have not desired the day of despair.
What passes my lips ( AK ) is open before you.
17 Do not be a terror ( AL ) to me;
you are my refuge ( AM ) in the day of disaster. ( AN )
18 Let my persecutors be put to shame,
but keep me from shame;
let them be terrified,
but keep me from terror.
Bring on them the day of disaster;
destroy them with double destruction. ( AO )
19 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and stand at the Gate of the People, [ c ] through which the kings of Judah go in and out; stand also at all the other gates of Jerusalem. ( AP ) 20 Say to them, ‘Hear the word of the Lord , you kings of Judah and all people of Judah and everyone living in Jerusalem ( AQ ) who come through these gates. ( AR ) 21 This is what the Lord says: Be careful not to carry a load on the Sabbath ( AS ) day or bring it through the gates of Jerusalem. 22 Do not bring a load out of your houses or do any work on the Sabbath, but keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your ancestors. ( AT ) 23 Yet they did not listen or pay attention; ( AU ) they were stiff-necked ( AV ) and would not listen or respond to discipline. ( AW ) 24 But if you are careful to obey me, declares the Lord , and bring no load through the gates of this city on the Sabbath, but keep the Sabbath day holy ( AX ) by not doing any work on it, 25 then kings who sit on David’s throne ( AY ) will come through the gates of this city with their officials. They and their officials will come riding in chariots and on horses, accompanied by the men of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, and this city will be inhabited forever. ( AZ ) 26 People will come from the towns of Judah and the villages around Jerusalem, from the territory of Benjamin and the western foothills, from the hill country and the Negev, ( BA ) bringing burnt offerings and sacrifices, grain offerings and incense, and bringing thank offerings to the house of the Lord . 27 But if you do not obey ( BB ) me to keep the Sabbath ( BC ) day holy by not carrying any load as you come through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle an unquenchable fire ( BD ) in the gates of Jerusalem that will consume her fortresses.’” ( BE )
