Jeremiah — Chapter 8

At that time—declares GOD—the bones of the kings of Judah, of its officers, of the priests, of the prophets, and of the inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be taken out of their graves

and exposed to the sun, the moon, and all the host of heaven that they loved and served and followed, to which they turned and bowed down. They shall not be gathered for reburial; they shall become dung upon the face of the earth.

And death shall be preferable to life for all that are left of this wicked folk, in all the other places to which I shall banish them—declares GOD of Hosts.

Say to them: Thus said GOD:When people fall, do they not get up again?If they turn aside, do they not turn back?

Why is this people—Jerusalem—rebelliousWith a persistent rebellion?They cling to deceit,They refuse to return.

I have listened and heard:They do not speak honestly.No one regrets their own wickednessAnd says, “What have I done!”They all persist in their wayward courseLike a steed dashing forward in the fray.

Even the stork in the sky knows its seasons,And the turtledove, swift, and craneKeep the time of their coming;But My people pay no heedTo GOD’s law.

How can you say, “We are wise,And we possess GOD’s Instruction”? Assuredly, for naught has the pen labored,For naught the scribes!

The wise men shall be put to shame,Shall be dismayed and caught;See, they reject the word of GOD,So their wisdom amounts to nothing.

Assuredly, I will give their wives to others,And their fields to dispossessors;For from the smallest to the greatest,They are all greedy for gain;Priest and prophet alike,They all act falsely.

They offer healing offhandFor the wounds of My poor people,Saying, “All is well, all is well,”When nothing is well.

They have acted shamefully;They have done abhorrent things—Yet they do not feel shame,They cannot be made to blush.Assuredly, they shall fall among the falling,They shall stumble at the time of their doom—said GOD.

I will make an end of themaI will make an end of them Meaning of Heb. uncertain; change of vocalization yields “Their fruit harvest has been gathered in.” —declares GOD:No grapes left on the vine,No figs on the fig tree,The leaves all withered;Whatever I have given them is gone.bWhatever I have given them is gone Meaning of Heb. uncertain.

Why are we sitting by?Let us gather into the fortified citiesAnd meet our doom there.For the ETERNAL our God has doomed us—And has made us drink a bitter draft,Because we sinned against GOD.

We hoped for good fortune, but no happiness came;For a time of relief—instead there is terror!

The snorting of their horses was heard from Dan;At the loud neighing of their steedsThe whole land quaked.They came and devoured the land and what was in it,The towns and those who dwelt in them.

Lo, I will send serpents against you,Adders that cannot be charmed,And they shall bite you—declares GOD.

When in grief I would seek comfort,cWhen in grief I would seek comfort Meaning of Heb. uncertain. My heart is sick within me.

dHere God is speaking. “Is not GOD in Zion?Is not her Sovereign in her midst?Why then did they anger Me with their images,With alien futilities?”Hark! The outcry of my poor peopleFrom the land far and wide:

“Harvest is past,Summer is gone,But we have not been saved.”

Because my people is shattered I am shattered;I am dejected, seized by desolation.

Is there no balm in Gilead?Can no physician be found?Why has healing not yetCome to my poor people?

Oh, that my head were water,My eyes a fount of tears!Then would I weep day and nightFor the slain of my poor people.