| New Living Translation | New American Standard Bible 1995 |
| 1Hear the word that the LORD speaks to you, O Israel! | 1Hear the word which the LORD speaks to you, O house of Israel. |
| 2This is what the LORD says: “Do not act like the other nations, who try to read their future in the stars. Do not be afraid of their predictions, even though other nations are terrified by them. | 2Thus says the LORD, "Do not learn the way of the nations, And do not be terrified by the signs of the heavens Although the nations are terrified by them; |
| 3Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree, and a craftsman carves an idol. | 3For the customs of the peoples are delusion; Because it is wood cut from the forest, The work of the hands of a craftsman with a cutting tool. |
| 4They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won’t fall over. | 4"They decorate it with silver and with gold; They fasten it with nails and with hammers So that it will not totter. |
| 5Their gods are like helpless scarecrows in a cucumber field! They cannot speak, and they need to be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of such gods, for they can neither harm you nor do you any good.” | 5"Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field are they, And they cannot speak; They must be carried, Because they cannot walk! Do not fear them, For they can do no harm, Nor can they do any good." |
| 6LORD, there is no one like you! For you are great, and your name is full of power. | 6There is none like You, O LORD; You are great, and great is Your name in might. |
| 7Who would not fear you, O King of nations? That title belongs to you alone! Among all the wise people of the earth and in all the kingdoms of the world, there is no one like you. | 7Who would not fear You, O King of the nations? Indeed it is Your due! For among all the wise men of the nations And in all their kingdoms, There is none like You. |
| 8People who worship idols are stupid and foolish. The things they worship are made of wood! | 8But they are altogether stupid and foolish In their discipline of delusion-- their idol is wood! |
| 9They bring beaten sheets of silver from Tarshish and gold from Uphaz, and they give these materials to skillful craftsmen who make their idols. Then they dress these gods in royal blue and purple robes made by expert tailors. | 9Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish, And gold from Uphaz, The work of a craftsman and of the hands of a goldsmith; Violet and purple are their clothing; They are all the work of skilled men. |
| 10But the LORD is the only true God. He is the living God and the everlasting King! The whole earth trembles at his anger. The nations cannot stand up to his wrath. | 10But the LORD is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth quakes, And the nations cannot endure His indignation. |
| 11Say this to those who worship other gods: “Your so-called gods, who did not make the heavens and earth, will vanish from the earth and from under the heavens.” | 11Thus you shall say to them, "The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens." |
| 12But the LORD made the earth by his power, and he preserves it by his wisdom. With his own understanding he stretched out the heavens. | 12It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; And by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens. |
| 13When he speaks in the thunder, the heavens roar with rain. He causes the clouds to rise over the earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the wind from his storehouses. | 13When He utters His voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens, And He causes the clouds to ascend from the end of the earth; He makes lightning for the rain, And brings out the wind from His storehouses. |
| 14The whole human race is foolish and has no knowledge! The craftsmen are disgraced by the idols they make, for their carefully shaped works are a fraud. These idols have no breath or power. | 14Every man is stupid, devoid of knowledge; Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols; For his molten images are deceitful, And there is no breath in them. |
| 15Idols are worthless; they are ridiculous lies! On the day of reckoning they will all be destroyed. | 15They are worthless, a work of mockery; In the time of their punishment they will perish. |
| 16But the God of Israel is no idol! He is the Creator of everything that exists, including Israel, his own special possession. The LORD of Heaven’s Armies is his name! The Coming Destruction | 16The portion of Jacob is not like these; For the Maker of all is He, And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; The LORD of hosts is His name. |
| 17Pack your bags and prepare to leave; the siege is about to begin. | 17Pick up your bundle from the ground, You who dwell under siege! |
| 18For this is what the LORD says: “Suddenly, I will fling out all you who live in this land. I will pour great troubles upon you, and at last you will feel my anger.” | 18For thus says the LORD, "Behold, I am slinging out the inhabitants of the land At this time, And will cause them distress, That they may be found." |
| 19My wound is severe, and my grief is great. My sickness is incurable, but I must bear it. | 19Woe is me, because of my injury! My wound is incurable. But I said, "Truly this is a sickness, And I must bear it." |
| 20My home is gone, and no one is left to help me rebuild it. My children have been taken away, and I will never see them again. | 20My tent is destroyed, And all my ropes are broken; My sons have gone from me and are no more. There is no one to stretch out my tent again Or to set up my curtains. |
| 21The shepherds of my people have lost their senses. They no longer seek wisdom from the LORD. Therefore, they fail completely, and their flocks are scattered. | 21For the shepherds have become stupid And have not sought the LORD; Therefore they have not prospered, And all their flock is scattered. |
| 22Listen! Hear the terrifying roar of great armies as they roll down from the north. The towns of Judah will be destroyed and become a haunt for jackals. Jeremiah’s Prayer | 22The sound of a report! Behold, it comes-- A great commotion out of the land of the north-- To make the cities of Judah A desolation, a haunt of jackals. |
| 23I know, LORD, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course. | 23I know, O LORD, that a man's way is not in himself, Nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps. |
| 24So correct me, LORD, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die. | 24Correct me, O LORD, but with justice; Not with Your anger, or You will bring me to nothing. |
| 25Pour out your wrath on the nations that refuse to acknowledge you— on the peoples that do not call upon your name. For they have devoured your people Israel ; they have devoured and consumed them, making the land a desolate wilderness. | 25Pour out Your wrath on the nations that do not know You And on the families that do not call Your name; For they have devoured Jacob; They have devoured him and consumed him And have laid waste his habitation. |
| Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org |
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