Jer 6 | NASB2020 | STEP | “Flee to safety , you sons of Benjamin , From the midst of Jerusalem ! Blow a trumpet in Tekoa And raise a warning signal over Beth-haccerem ; For evil looks down from the north , Along with a great destruction .

Jeremiah 6

The Coming Destruction of Jerusalem

1 “Flee to safety, you sons of ^aBenjamin,
From the midst of Jerusalem!
Blow a trumpet in Tekoa
And raise a warning signal over ^{▼▼I.e., house of the vineyard
,} ^cBeth-haccerem;
For evil looks down from the ^dnorth,
Along with a great destruction.
2 “The beautiful and ^edelicate one, ^fthe daughter of Zion, I will destroy.
3 “ ^gShepherds and their flocks will come to her,
They will ^hpitch their tents ^{▼▼Lit against her round about}around her,
They will pasture, each in his ^{▼▼Lit hand}place.
4 ‘ ^{▼▼Lit Sanctify war
,} ^lPrepare for war against her;
Arise, and let’s ^{▼▼Lit go up}attack at ⁿnoon.
Woe to us, for the day declines,
For the shadows of the evening lengthen!
5 ‘Arise, and let’s ^{▼▼Lit go up}attack by night
And ^pdestroy her ^{▼▼Or fortified towers}palaces!’”
6 For this is what the Lord of armies says:
“ ^rCut down her trees
And pile up an ^sassault ramp against Jerusalem.
This is the city to be punished,
In whose midst there is only ^toppression.
7 “ ^uAs a well ^{▼▼Lit keeps cold}keeps its waters fresh,
So she ^{▼▼Lit keeps cold}keeps fresh her wickedness.
^xViolence and destruction are heard in her;
^ySickness and wounds are constantly before Me.
8 “ ^zBe warned, Jerusalem,
Or ^{▼▼Lit my soul
,} ^abI shall be alienated from you,
And make you a desolation,
An uninhabited land.”

9 This is what the Lord of armies says:
“They will ^acthoroughly glean the ^adremnant of Israel like the vine;
Pass your hand over the branches again
Like a grape gatherer.”
10 To whom shall I speak and give warning,
That they may hear?
Behold, their ^aeears are ^{▼▼Lit uncircumcised}closed
And they cannot listen.
Behold, ^agthe word of the Lord has become for them a rebuke;
They take no delight in it.
11 But I am ^ahfull of the wrath of the Lord;
I am ^aiweary of holding it in.
“ ^ajPour it out on the children in the street
And on the ^{▼▼Lit council}gathering of young men together;
For both husband and wife shall be taken,
The old ^{▼▼Lit with fullness of days}and the very old.
12 “Their ^amhouses shall be turned over to others,
Their fields and their wives together;
For I will ^anstretch out My hand
Against the inhabitants of the land,” declares the Lord.
13 “For ^aofrom the least of them to the greatest of them,
Everyone is ^apgreedy for gain,
And from the prophet to the priest
Everyone deals falsely.
14 “They have ^aqhealed the brokenness of My people superficially,
Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’
But there is no peace.
15 “Were they ^arashamed because of the abomination they had done?
They were not ashamed at all,
Nor did they know even how to be ashamed.
Therefore they will fall among those who fall;
At the time that I punish them,
They will collapse,” says the Lord.

16 This is what the Lord says:
“Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ^asancient paths,
Where the good way is, and walk in it;
Then ^atyou will find a resting place for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
17 “And I set ^auwatchmen over you, saying,
‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’
But they said, ‘We will not listen.’
18 “Therefore hear, you nations,
And know, you congregation, what is among them.
19 “ ^avHear, earth: behold, I am bringing disaster on this people,
The ^awfruit of their ^{▼▼Or devices}plans,
Because they have not listened to My words,
And as for My Law, they have ^ayrejected it also.
20 “ ^azFor what purpose does ^bafrankincense come to Me from Sheba,
And the ^{▼▼Lit good
,} ^bcsweet cane from a distant land?
^bdYour burnt offerings are not acceptable
And your sacrifices are not pleasing to Me.”
21 Therefore, this is what the Lord says:
“Behold, ^beI am ^{▼▼Lit giving}placing stumbling blocks before this people.
And they will stumble against them,
^bgFathers and sons together;
Neighbor and ^{▼▼Lit his friend}friend will perish.”

The Enemy from the North

22 This is what the Lord says:
“Behold, there is ^bia people coming from the north land,
And a great nation will be stirred up from the ^bjremote parts of the earth.
23 “They seize ^bkbow and spear;
They are ^blcruel and have no mercy;
Their voice ^bmroars like the sea,
And they ride on horses,
Lined up as a man for the battle
Against you, daughter of Zion!”
24 We have ^bnheard the report of it;
Our hands are limp.
^boAnguish has seized us,
Pain like that of a woman in childbirth.
25 ^bpDo not go out into the field,
And ^bqdo not walk on the road;
For the enemy has a sword,
^brTerror is on every side.
26 Daughter of my people, ^bsput on sackcloth
And ^btroll in ashes;
^{▼▼Lit Make for yourself mourning
,} ^bvMourn as for an only son,
A most bitter mourning.
For suddenly the destroyer
Will come against us.

27 “I have ^bwmade you an assayer and an examiner among My people,
So that you may know and put their way to the test.”
28 All of them are stubbornly rebellious,
^bxGoing about as a slanderer;
They are ^bybronze and iron.
They are, all of them, corrupt.
29 The bellows blow fiercely,
The lead is consumed by the fire;
In vain the refining goes on,
But the ^bzwicked are not ^{▼▼Or drawn off}separated.
30 ^cbThey call them rejected silver,
Because the ^ccLord has rejected them.