Parallel Bible results for "jeremiah 4"

Jeremiah 4

New Revised Standard NRS

1 If you return, O Israel, says the Lord, if you return to me, if you remove your abominations from my presence, and do not waver,

2 and if you swear, "As the Lord lives!" in truth, in justice, and in uprightness, then nations shall be blessed by him, and by him they shall boast.

3 For thus says the Lord to the people of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns.

4 Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, remove the foreskin of your hearts, O people of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or else my wrath will go forth like fire, and burn with no one to quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

5 Declare in Judah, and proclaim in Jerusalem, and say: Blow the trumpet through the land; shout aloud and say, "Gather together, and let us go into the fortified cities!"

6 Raise a standard toward Zion, flee for safety, do not delay, for I am bringing evil from the north, and a great destruction.

7 A lion has gone up from its thicket, a destroyer of nations has set out; he has gone out from his place to make your land a waste; your cities will be ruins without inhabitant.

8 Because of this put on sackcloth, lament and wail: "The fierce anger of the Lord has not turned away from us."

9 On that day, says the Lord, courage shall fail the king and the officials; the priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded.

10 Then I said, "Ah, Lord God, how utterly you have deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, "It shall be well with you,' even while the sword is at the throat!"

11 At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem: A hot wind comes from me out of the bare heights in the desert toward my poor people, not to winnow or cleanse—

12 a wind too strong for that. Now it is I who speak in judgment against them.

13 Look! He comes up like clouds, his chariots like the whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles— woe to us, for we are ruined!

14 O Jerusalem, wash your heart clean of wickedness so that you may be saved. How long shall your evil schemes lodge within you?

15 For a voice declares from Dan and proclaims disaster from Mount Ephraim.

16 Tell the nations, "Here they are!" Proclaim against Jerusalem, "Besiegers come from a distant land; they shout against the cities of Judah.

17 They have closed in around her like watchers of a field, because she has rebelled against me, says the Lord.

18 Your ways and your doings have brought this upon you. This is your doom; how bitter it is! It has reached your very heart."

19 My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain! Oh, the walls of my heart! My heart is beating wildly; I cannot keep silent; for I hear the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.

20 Disaster overtakes disaster, the whole land is laid waste. Suddenly my tents are destroyed, my curtains in a moment.

21 How long must I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?

22 "For my people are foolish, they do not know me; they are stupid children, they have no understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but do not know how to do good."

23 I looked on the earth, and lo, it was waste and void; and to the heavens, and they had no light.

24 I looked on the mountains, and lo, they were quaking, and all the hills moved to and fro.

25 I looked, and lo, there was no one at all, and all the birds of the air had fled.

26 I looked, and lo, the fruitful land was a desert, and all its cities were laid in ruins before the Lord, before his fierce anger.

27 For thus says the Lord: The whole land shall be a desolation; yet I will not make a full end.

28 Because of this the earth shall mourn, and the heavens above grow black; for I have spoken, I have purposed; I have not relented nor will I turn back.

29 At the noise of horseman and archer every town takes to flight; they enter thickets; they climb among rocks; all the towns are forsaken, and no one lives in them.

30 And you, O desolate one, what do you mean that you dress in crimson, that you deck yourself with ornaments of gold, that you enlarge your eyes with paint? In vain you beautify yourself. Your lovers despise you; they seek your life.

31 For I heard a cry as of a woman in labor, anguish as of one bringing forth her first child, the cry of daughter Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands, "Woe is me! I am fainting before killers!"

The Message Bible MSG

1 "If you want to come back, O Israel, you must really come back to me. You must get rid of your stinking sin paraphernalia and not wander away from me anymore.

2 Then you can say words like, 'As God lives . . . ' and have them mean something true and just and right. And the godless nations will get caught up in the blessing and find something in Israel to write home about."

3 Here's another Message from God to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: "Plow your unplowed fields, but then don't plant weeds in the soil!

4 Yes, circumcise your lives for God's sake. Plow your unplowed hearts, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem. Prevent fire - the fire of my anger - for once it starts it can't be put out. Your wicked ways are fuel for the fire. God's Sledgehammer Anger

5 "Sound the alarm in Judah, broadcast the news in Jerusalem. Say, 'Blow the ram's horn trumpet through the land!' Shout out - a bullhorn bellow! - 'Close ranks! Run for your lives to the shelters!'

6 Send up a flare warning Zion: 'Not a minute to lose! Don't sit on your hands!' Disaster's descending from the north. I set it off! When it lands, it will shake the foundations.

7 Invaders have pounced like a lion from its cover, ready to rip nations to shreds, Leaving your land in wrack and ruin, your cities in rubble, abandoned.

8 Dress in funereal black. Weep and wail, For God's sledgehammer anger has slammed into us head-on.

9 "When this happens" - God's Decree - "King and princes will lose heart; priests will be baffled and prophets stand dumbfounded."

10 Then I said, "Alas, Master God! You've fed lies to this people, this Jerusalem. You assured them, 'All is well, don't worry,' at the very moment when the sword was at their throats."

11 At that time, this people, yes, this very Jerusalem, will be told in plain words: "The northern hordes are sweeping in from the desert steppes -

12 a gale-force wind. I ordered this wind. I'm pronouncing my hurricane judgment on my people." Your Evil Life Is Piercing Your Heart

13 Look at them! Like banks of storm clouds, racing, tumbling, their chariots a tornado, Their horses faster than eagles! Woe to us! We're done for!

14 Jerusalem! Scrub the evil from your lives so you'll be fit for salvation. How much longer will you harbor devious and malignant designs within you?

15 What's this? A messenger from Dan? Bad news from Ephraim's hills!

16 Make the report public. Broadcast the news to Jerusalem: "Invaders from far off are raising war cries against Judah's towns.

17 They're all over her, like a dog on a bone. And why? Because she rebelled against me." God's Decree.

18 "It's the way you've lived that's brought all this on you. The bitter taste is from your evil life. That's what's piercing your heart."

19 I'm doubled up with cramps in my belly - a poker burns in my gut. My insides are tearing me up, never a moment's peace. The ram's horn trumpet blast rings in my ears, the signal for all-out war.

20 Disaster hard on the heels of disaster, the whole country in ruins! In one stroke my home is destroyed, the walls flattened in the blink of an eye.

21 How long do I have to look at the warning flares, listen to the siren of danger? Experts at Evil

22 "What fools my people are! They have no idea who I am. A company of half-wits, dopes and donkeys all! Experts at evil but klutzes at good."

23 I looked at the earth - it was back to pre-Genesis chaos and emptiness. I looked at the skies, and not a star to be seen.

24 I looked at the mountains - they were trembling like aspen leaves, And all the hills rocking back and forth in the wind.

25 I looked - what's this! Not a man or woman in sight, and not a bird to be seen in the skies.

26 I looked - this can't be! Every garden and orchard shriveled up. All the towns were ghost towns. And all this because of God, because of the blazing anger of God.

27 Yes, this is God's Word on the matter: "The whole country will be laid waste - still it won't be the end of the world.

28 The earth will mourn and the skies lament Because I've given my word and won't take it back. I've decided and won't change my mind." You're Not Going to Seduce Anyone

29 Someone shouts, "Horsemen and archers!" and everybody runs for cover. They hide in ditches, they climb into caves. The cities are emptied, not a person left anywhere.

30 And you, what do you think you're up to? Dressing up in party clothes, Decking yourselves out in jewelry, putting on lipstick and rouge and mascara! Your primping goes for nothing. You're not going to seduce anyone. They're out to kill you!

31 And what's that I hear? The cry of a woman in labor, the screams of a mother giving birth to her firstborn. It's the cry of Daughter Zion, gasping for breath, reaching out for help: "Help, oh help me! I'm dying! The killers are on me!"