Page images
PDF
EPUB

They shall no more say, The ark of the covenant

of JEHOVAH,

Nor shall it be the delight of their heart,

Nor shall they remember it, nor shall they care [about it,]

Nor shall it be made any more.

17 At that time shall Jerusalem be called the throne of JEHOVAH;

And all nations shall resort to it in the name of

JEHOVAH;

And they shall not walk any more after the lusting of their evil heart.

18 In those days shall the house of Judah go untò the house of Israel,

And they shall come together out of the north country,

Unto the land which I made your fathers to inherit. 19 And when I said, How shall I place thee among

sons,

And give unto thee the land of desire,

The inheritance of the glory of hosts of nations? Then said I, Thou shalt call me, My father; And thou shalt not turn aside from following me. 20 Surely as a wicked woman breaketh her faith; So have ye broken your faith towards me, O house of Israel, saith JEHOVAH.

21

A voice hath been heard upon the plains, Weeping and supplications of the children of Israel;

Because they have perverted their way,

They have forgotten JEHOVAH their God..

22 Return, O revolted children, I will heal your apostasies.-Behold we come unto thee,

For thou art JEHOVAH Our God.

23 Surely hills are lies, the tumult of mountains;

24

25

1

Surely in JEHOVAH our God is the salvation of
Israel.

But that thing of shame hath devoured the sub-
stance of our fathers from our youth;

Their sheep, and their oxen,

Their sons, and their daughters.

We shall lie down in our shame,

And our ignominy will overwhelm us;

Because we have sinned against JEHOVAH Our God,
We and our fathers from our youth even until this
day,

And have not obeyed the voice of JEHOVAH Our
God.

CHAP. IV.

IF thou wilt turn again, O Israel, Saith JEHOVAH, unto me shalt thou return; And if thou wilt put away thine abominations, From before me shalt thou not be removed: 2 But thou shalt swear, As JEHOVAH liveth, In truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; And the nations shall bless themselves in him, And in him shall they glory.

3

SURELY thus saith JEHOVAH

To the men of Judah and to Jerusalem;
Break up your ground in tillage,

And sow not among thorns.

4 Be ye circumcised unto JEHovah,

And take away the foreskins of your hearts,

O ye men of Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusa

lem;

Lest my wrath go forth like fire,

And it be kindled that none can quench it,

Because of the evil of your doings.

5 Declare ye in Judah,

And in Jerusalem publish ye, and say;
Sound ye the trumpet in the land,

Proclaim throughout, and say,

Gather together, and let us enter into the forti

fied cities.

6 Set up a standard in Sion,

Retire in a body, make no stand;

For I am about to bring evil from the north,
Even a great destruction.

7 A lion is gone up from his thicket,

And a destroyer of nations is on his way;

He is gone forth from his place to make thy land a desolation;

Thy cities shall be ruined, so as to be without inhabitant.

8 For this cause gird on sackcloth, lament, and wail, Because the fierce anger of JEHOVAH is not turned away from him.

9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith JEHOVAH,

10

The heart of the king shall fail, and the heart of the princes;

And the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder.

Then said I, Alas! O Lord JEHOVAH! Surely thou hast altogether deceived this people and Jerusalem,

Saying, ye shall have peace;

Although the sword penetrateth to the very quick. 11 At that time shall it be said concerning this people, and concerning Jerusalem;

A wind that scorcheth the plains in the wilderness

7

[Shall come] toward the daughter of my people,

not to winnow, nor to cleanse ;

12 A full wind for a curse shall come at my bidding;
Now even I will proceed judicially with them.
13 Behold, like clouds shall he come up,

And as a whirlwind his chariots;
Swifter than eagles are his horses,

Wo unto us! for we are laid waste.

14 Cleanse thy heart from wickedness,

O Jerusalem, that thou mayest be saved.
How long shall there harbour within thee
The devices of thine iniquity!

15 For a voice declareth from Dan,

And publisheth iniquity from mount Ephraim. 16 Proclaim ye unto the nations, Behold! Publish ye concerning Jerusalem,

17

That watchers are coming from a far country,
And they shall lift up their voice against the
cities of Judah.

Like keepers of fields are they round about her,
Because she hath rebelled against me, saith JE-

HOVAH.

18 Thy way and thy doings have brought a curse upon thee;

19

Such is thy calamity; for it is bitterness; for it is a plague even unto thy heart.

My bowels, my bowels are pained, the walls

of my heart;

My heart is troubled within me; I cannot be
silent;

Because I have heard the sound of the trumpet,
My soul the alarm of war.

20 Destruction is come upon the heels of destruction; Surely the whole land is spoiled:

On a sudden have my tents been spoiled,
My curtains in an instant.

21 How long shall I see the standard?
Shall I hear the sound of the trumpet ?
Surely my people is foolish,

22

23

Me have they not known;
Infatuated children are they,

And they are without understanding:
They are well skilled to do evil,

But for doing good they have no knowledge.

I beheld the earth, and, lo! disorder and confusion;

The heavens also, and there was no light.

24 I beheld the mountains, and, lo! they trembled ; And all the hills shook.

25 I beheld, and, lo! there was not a man;

And all the fowls of the heavens were fled. 26 I beheld, and, lo! the fruitful field [was become] the desart;

27

And all its cities were thrown down,

Before the presence of JEHOVAH,

Before the fierce heat of his anger.

For thus saith JEHOVAH,

The whole land shall become a desolation,
And I will not make an end.

28 For this cause shall the earth mourn,

And the heavens shall be covered with blackness;
Because I have spoken, and I do not repent;

I have purposed, and will not recede from it.

29 At the shout of the horseman, and of the archer, Every city fleeth;

They are gone into thick woods,

And they have climbed up upon the rocks;

Every city is forsaken,

And there is not a man dwelling in them,

« PreviousContinue »