Jeremiah’s Message at the Temple Gate

1The woordes that came to Ieremiah from the Lorde, saying, 2Stand in the gate of the Lordes house and crie this woorde there, and say, Heare the woorde of the Lord, all yee of Iudah that enter in at these gates to worship the Lorde. 3Thus sayeth the Lord of hostes, the God of Israel, Amend your waies and your woorkes, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4Trust not in lying woordes, saying, The Temple of the Lorde, the Temple of the Lorde: this is the Temple of the Lord. 5For if you amende and redresse your waies and your woorkes: if you execute iudgement betweene a man and his neighbour, 6And oppresse not the stranger, the fatherlesse and the widow and shed no innocent blood in this place, neither walke after other gods to your destruction, 7Then will I let you dwell in this place in the lande that I gaue vnto your fathers, for euer and euer.

8Beholde, you trust in lying woordes, that can not profite. 9Will you steale, murder, and commit adulterie, and sweare falsely and burne incense vnto Baal, and walke after other gods whome yee knowe not? 10And come and stande before mee in this House, whereupon my Name is called, and saye, We are deliuered, though we haue done all these abominations? 11Is this House become a denne of theeues, whereupon my Name is called before your eyes? Beholde, euen I see it, sayeth the Lord.

12But go ye nowe vnto my place which was in Shilo, where I set my Name at the beginning, and beholde, what I did to it for the wickednesse of my people Israel. 13Therefore nowe because yee haue done all these woorkes, sayeth the Lorde, (and I rose vp earely and spake vnto you: but when I spake, yee would not heare me, neither when I called, would yee answere). 14Therefore will I do vnto this House, wherupon my Name is called, wherein also yee trust, euen vnto the place that I gaue to you & to your fathers, as I haue done vnto Shilo. 15And I will cast you out of my sight, as I haue cast out all your brethren, euen the whole seede of Ephraim.

Judah’s Idolatry Persists

16Therfore thou shalt not pray for this people, neither lift vp crie or praier for them neither intreat me, for I will not heare thee. 17Seest thou not what they doe in the cities of Iudah and in the streetes of Ierusalem? 18The children gather wood, & the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knede the dough to make cakes to the Queene of heauen and to powre out drinke offrings vnto other gods, that they may prouoke me vnto anger. 19Doe they prouoke me to anger, sayeth the Lorde, and not themselues to the confusion of their owne faces? 20Therefore thus sayeth the Lorde God, Beholde, mine anger and my wrath shall be powred vpon this place, vpon man and vpon beast, and vpon the tree of the fielde, and vpon the fruite of the grounde, and it shall burne and not bee quenched.

21Thus sayth the Lord of hostes, the God of Israel, Put your burnt offerings vnto your sacrifices, and eat the flesh. 22For I spake not vnto your fathers, nor commaunded them, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offrings and sacrifices. 23But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voyce, and I will be your God, and yee shalbe my people: and walke yee in all the wayes which I haue commaunded you, that it may be well vnto you. 24But they would not obey, nor incline their eare, but went after the counsels and the stubbernesse of their wicked heart, and went backewarde and not forwarde. 25Since the day that your fathers came vp out of the lande of Egypt, vnto this day, I haue euen sent vnto you al my seruants the Prophets, rising vp earely euery day, and sending them. 26Yet would they not heare me nor encline their eare, but hardened their necke & did worse then their fathers.

27Therefore shalt thou speake al these words vnto them, but they will not heare thee: thou shalt also crie vnto them, but they will not answere thee. 28But thou shalt say vnto them, This is a nation that heareth not the voice of the Lorde their God, nor receiueth discipline: trueth is perished, and is cleane gone out of their mouth.

29Cut off thine heare, O Ierusalem, and cast it away, and take vp a complaint on the hie places: for the Lorde hath reiected and forsaken the generation of his wrath.

The Valley of Slaughter

30For the children of Iudah haue done euill in my sight, sayth the Lorde: they haue set their abominations in the House, whereupon my Name is called, to pollute it. 31And they haue built the hie place of Topheth, which is in the valley of Ben-Hinnom to burne their sonnes & their daughters in the fire, which I commaunded them not, neither came it in mine heart.

32Therefore beholde, the dayes come, sayeth the Lord, that it shall no more be called Topheth, nor the valley of Ben-Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter: for they shall burie in Topheth til there be no place. 33And ye carkeises of this people shalbe meat for the foules of the heauen and for the beastes of the earth, and none shall fraie them away. 34Then I will cause to cease from the cities of Iudah and from the streetes of Ierusalem the voice of mirth & the voice of gladnesse, the voice of the bridegrom & the voice of the bride: for the lande shalbe desolate.