Jer 12, Jer 30 | ESV | STEP | Righteous are you, O Lord , when I complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you. Why does the way of the wicked prosper ? Why do all who are treacherous thrive ?

1 ^aRighteous are you, O Lord,
when I complain to you;
yet I would plead my case before you.
^bWhy does the way of the wicked prosper?
Why do all ^cwho are treacherous thrive?
2 You plant them, and they take root;
they grow and produce fruit;
^dyou are near in their mouth
and far from their heart.
3 ^eBut you, O Lord, know me;
^fyou see me, and test my heart toward you.
^gPull them out like sheep for the slaughter,
and set them apart for ^hthe day of slaughter.
4 ⁱHow long will the land mourn
and the grass of every field wither?
^jFor the evil of those who dwell in it
^kthe beasts and the birds are swept away,
because they said, “He will not see our latter end.”

The Lord Answers Jeremiah

5 “If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you,
how will you compete with horses?
And if in a safe land you are so trusting,
what will you do in ^lthe thicket of the Jordan?
6 For ^meven your brothers and the house of your father,
ⁿeven they have dealt treacherously with you;
they are in full cry after you;
^odo not believe them,
though they speak friendly words to you.”
7 “I have forsaken my house;
I have abandoned ^pmy heritage;
I have given ^qthe beloved of my soul
into the hands of her enemies.
8 ^rMy heritage has become to me
like a lion in the forest;
she has lifted up her voice against me;
therefore I hate her.
9 Is ^smy heritage to me like ^ta hyena’s lair?
Are the ^ubirds of prey against her all around?
Go, ^vassemble all the wild beasts;
bring them to devour.
10 Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard;
^wthey have trampled down my portion;
they have made my pleasant portion
a desolate wilderness.
11 They have made it a desolation;
desolate, ^xit mourns to me.
The whole land is made desolate,
^ybut no man lays it to heart.
12 Upon all the bare heights in the desert
destroyers have come,
for the sword of the Lord devours
from one end of the land to the other;
no flesh has peace.
13 ^zThey have sown wheat and have reaped thorns;
^aathey have tired themselves out but profit nothing.
They shall be ashamed of their ^{▼▼Hebrew your} harvests
^acbecause of the fierce anger of the Lord.”
14 Thus says the Lord concerning all ^admy evil neighbors ^aewho touch the heritage that ^afI have given my people Israel to inherit: “Behold, I will pluck them up from their land, and I will pluck up the house of Judah from among them. 15 And after I have plucked them up, I will again have compassion on them, ^agand I will bring them again each to his heritage and each to his land. 16 And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, ^ahto swear by my name, ‘As the Lord lives,’ even as they taught my people to swear by Baal, ^aithen they shall be built up in the midst of my people. 17 ^ajBut if any nation will not listen, then I will utterly pluck it up and destroy it, declares the Lord.”

Jeremiah 30

Restoration for Israel and Judah

1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ^akWrite in a book all the words that I have spoken to you. 3 ^alFor behold, days are coming, declares the Lord, ^amwhen I will restore ^anthe fortunes of my people, ^aoIsrael and Judah, says the Lord, ^apand I will bring them back to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall take possession of it.”

4 These are the words that the Lord spoke concerning ^aqIsrael and Judah:

5 “Thus says the Lord:
We have heard a cry of panic,
of terror, and no peace.
6 Ask now, and see,
can a man bear a child?
^arWhy then do I see every man
with his hands on his stomach ^aslike a woman in labor?
^atWhy has every face turned pale?
7 Alas! ^auThat day is so great
^avthere is none like it;
it is a time of distress for Jacob;
yet he shall be saved out of it.
8 “And it shall come to pass in that day, declares the Lord of hosts, that I will ^awbreak his ^axyoke from off your neck, and I will ^ayburst your bonds, ^azand foreigners shall no more make a servant of him. ^{▼▼Or serve him} 9 But they shall serve the Lord their God and ^bbDavid their king, whom I will raise up for them.

10 ^bc“Then fear not, ^bdO Jacob my servant, declares the Lord,
nor be dismayed, O Israel;
for behold, ^beI will save you from far away,
^bfand your offspring from the land of their captivity.
^bgJacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
11 ^bhFor I am with you to save you,

declares the Lord;
^biI will make a full end of all the nations
among whom I scattered you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
^bjI will ^bkdiscipline you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.
12 “For thus says the Lord:
^blYour hurt is incurable,
^bmand your wound is grievous.
13 There is none to uphold your cause,
no medicine for your wound,
^bnno healing for you.
14 ^boAll your lovers have forgotten you;
they care nothing for you;
for I have dealt you the blow of ^bpan enemy,
the punishment ^bqof a merciless foe,
because your guilt is great,
^brbecause your sins are flagrant.
15 ^bsWhy do you cry out over your hurt?
^btYour pain is incurable.
Because your guilt is great,
^bubecause your sins are flagrant,
I have done these things to you.
16 ^bvTherefore all who devour you shall be devoured,
and ^bwall your foes, every one of them, shall go into captivity;
^bxthose who plunder you shall be plundered,
^byand all who prey on you I will make a prey.
17 ^bzFor I will restore ^cahealth to you,
and ^cbyour wounds I will heal,

declares the Lord,
because ^ccthey have called you an outcast:
^cd‘It is Zion, for whom no one cares!’
18 “Thus says the Lord:
Behold, ^ceI will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob
and have compassion on his dwellings;
the city shall be rebuilt on ^cfits mound,
and the palace shall stand where it used to be.
19 ^cgOut of them shall come songs of thanksgiving,
and the voices of those who celebrate.
^chI will multiply them, and they shall not be few;
I will make them honored, and they shall not be small.
20 ^ciTheir children shall be as they were of old,
and their congregation shall be established before me,
and I will punish all who oppress them.
21 ^cjTheir prince shall be one of themselves;
^cktheir ruler shall come out from their midst;
^clI will make him draw near, and he shall approach me,
^cmfor who would dare of himself to approach me?

declares the Lord.
22 ^cnAnd you shall be my people,
and I will be your God.”
23 ^coBehold ^cpthe storm of the Lord!
Wrath has gone forth,
a whirling tempest;
it will burst upon the head of the wicked.
24 ^cqThe fierce anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he has executed and accomplished
the intentions of his mind.
^crIn the latter days you will understand this.