Jer 9:9-14 | ESV | STEP | Shall I not punish them for these things ? declares the Lord , and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this ?

Jeremiah 9:9-14

9 ^aShall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord,
and shall I not avenge myself
on a nation such as this?
10 “I will take up weeping and wailing for the mountains,
and a lamentation for ^bthe pastures of the wilderness,
^cbecause they are laid waste so that no one passes through,
and the lowing of cattle is not heard;
^dboth the birds of the air and the beasts
have fled and are gone.
11 ^eI will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins,
^fa lair of jackals,
^gand I will make the cities of Judah a desolation,
without inhabitant.”
12 ^hWho is the man so wise that he can understand this? To whom has the mouth of the Lord spoken, that he may declare it? Why is the land ruined ⁱand laid waste like a wilderness, so that no one passes through? 13 And the Lord says: ^j“Because they have forsaken my law that I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice or walked in accord with it, 14 but ^khave stubbornly followed their own hearts and have gone after the Baals, as their fathers taught them.