'Says the Lord' in the Bible

Therefore, thus says the Lord God of hosts,“Because you [people] have spoken this word,Behold, I am making My words a fire in your mouth [Jeremiah]And this people wood, and My words will consume them.

“Behold, I am bringing a nation against you from far away, O house of Israel,” says the Lord.“It is a mighty and enduring nation,It is an ancient nation,A nation whose language you do not know,Whose words you do not comprehend.

“But even in those days,” says the Lord, “I will not totally destroy you.

It will come about when your people say, ‘Why has the Lord our God done all these things to us?’ then you shall answer them, ‘As you have abandoned (rejected) Me,’ [says the Lord,] ‘and have served strange and foreign gods in your land, so you will serve strangers in a land that is not yours.’

‘Do you not fear Me?’ says the Lord.‘Do you not tremble [in awe] in My presence?For I have placed the sand as a boundary for the sea,An eternal decree and a perpetual barrier beyond which it cannot pass.Though the waves [of the sea] toss and break, yet they cannot prevail [against the sand ordained to hold them back];Though the waves and the billows roar, yet they cannot cross over [the barrier].[Is not such a God to be feared?]

‘Shall I not punish them [for these things]?’ says the Lord.‘Shall I not avenge MyselfOn such a nation as this?’

For thus says the Lord of hosts,“Cut down her treesAnd cast up a siege against Jerusalem.This is the city to be punished,In whose midst there is only oppression.

Thus says the Lord of hosts,“They will thoroughly gather like [fruit on] a vine what is left of Israel;Pass your hand [over the vine] again and again [Babylon, tool of destruction] like a grape gatherer,Over the branches [stripping the tendrils off the vine].”

“Their houses shall be turned over to others,Their fields and their wives together;For I will stretch out My handAgainst the inhabitants of the land,” says the Lord.

“Were they ashamed because they had committed disgusting and vile things?No, they were not at all ashamed;They did not even know how to blush [at their idolatry].Therefore they will fall among those who fall;At the time that I punish themThey will be overthrown,” says the Lord.

Thus says the Lord,“Stand by the roads and look; ask for the ancient paths,Where the good way is; then walk in it,And you will find rest for your souls.But they said, ‘We will not walk in it!’

Therefore, thus says the Lord,“Behold, I am laying stumbling blocks before this people.The fathers and the sons togetherWill stumble against them;The neighbor and his friend will perish.”

Thus says the Lord,“Behold, a people is coming from the north country,And a great nation shall be stirred up and put into action from the remote parts of the earth.

“I [the Lord] have set you as an assayer [O Jeremiah] and as a tester [of the ore] of My people,That you may know and analyze their acts.”

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Change your ways and your behavior, and I will let you live in this place.

Has this house, which is called by My Name, become a den of robbers in your eyes [a place of retreat for you between acts of violence]? Behold, I Myself have seen it,” says the Lord.

And now, because you have done all these things,” says the Lord, “and I spoke [persistently] to you, even rising up early and speaking, but you did not listen, and I called you but you did not answer,

Do they offend and provoke Me to anger?” says the Lord. “Is it not themselves [they offend], to their own shame?”

Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, My anger and My wrath will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the trees of the field and the fruit of the ground; and it will burn and [the fire will] not be quenched.”

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat the meat.

For the children of Judah have done evil in My sight,” says the Lord; “they have set their disgusting and shamefully vile things in the house which is called by My Name, to defile it.

“Therefore, behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when it will no longer be called Topheth or the Valley of Ben-hinnom, but the Valley of the Slaughter, for [in bloody warfare] they will bury [the dead] in Topheth until there is no more room.

“At that time,” says the Lord, “they [the Babylonian army] will bring out from their graves the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of its princes, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

And death will be chosen rather than life by all the remnant of those who remain of this evil family (nation), who remain in all the places to which I have driven them,” says the Lord of hosts.

“Moreover [Jeremiah], you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord,“Do men fall and not rise up again?Does one turn away [from God] and not repent and return [to Him]?

“Were they ashamed because of the extremely disgusting and shamefully vile things they had done?They were not at all ashamed,And they did not know how to blush.Therefore, they shall fall among those who fall;At the time of their punishment they shall be overthrown,”Says the Lord.

“I will gather and snatch them away [utterly consuming them],” says the Lord.“There will be no grapes on the vine,Nor figs on the fig tree,And even the leaf will wither;And the things that I have given them will pass away [by the hand of those whom I have appointed].”’”

“For behold, I am sending serpents among you,Vipers which cannot be charmed,And they will bite you,” says the Lord.

“They bend their tongue like their bow;[Their] lies and not truth prevail and grow strong in the land;For they proceed from evil to evil,And they do not know and understand and acknowledge Me,” says the Lord.

“Your dwelling is in the midst of deceit [oppression upon oppression and deceit upon deceit];Through deceit they refuse to know (understand) Me,” says the Lord.

Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts,“Behold, I will refine them [through suffering] and test them;For how else should I deal with the daughter of My people?

“Shall I not punish them for these things?” says the Lord.“Shall I not avenge MyselfOn such a nation as this?

therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “behold, I will feed them, this people, with wormwood and give them bitter and poisonous water to drink.

Thus says the Lord of hosts,“Consider and call for the mourning women to come;Send for the wailing women to come.

Speak, “Thus says the Lord,‘The dead bodies of men will fall like dung on the open field,And like sheaves [of grain] behind the reaper,And no one will gather them.’”

Thus says the Lord, “Let not the one who is wise and skillful boast in his insight; let not the one who is mighty and powerful boast in his strength; let not the one who is rich boast in his [temporal satisfactions and earthly] abundance;

but let the one who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me [and acknowledges Me and honors Me as God and recognizes without any doubt], that I am the Lord who practices lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on the earth, for in these things I delight,” says the Lord.

“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when I will punish all who are circumcised [physically] and yet uncircumcised [spiritually]—

Thus says the Lord,“Do not learn the way of the [pagan] nations,And do not be terrified and distressed by the signs of the heavensAlthough the pagans are terrified by them;

For thus says the Lord;“Behold, I am slinging out at this time the people of this land,And will cause them [great] distress,That they may find it [to be as I have said].”

Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, “Cursed is the man who does not heed the words of this covenant

Therefore thus says the Lord, “Behold I am bringing disaster and suffering on them which they will not be able to escape; though they cry to Me, I will not listen to them.

Therefore thus says the Lord regarding the men of Anathoth, who seek your life, saying, “Do not prophesy in the name of the Lord, so that you will not die by our hand.”

Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold, I am about to punish them. Their young men will die by the sword, their sons and their daughters will die by famine;

Thus says the Lord regarding all My evil neighbors (Gentile nations) who strike at the inheritance which I have granted to My people Israel, “Behold, I will uproot them from their land and I will uproot the house of Judah from among them.

But if [any nation] will not listen and obey, I will [completely] uproot and destroy that nation, says the Lord.”

Thus says the LORD unto me, Go and buy you a linen belt, and put it upon your waist, and put it not in water.

“Thus says the Lord, ‘In this same way I shall destroy the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem.

For as the waistband clings to the body of a man, so I caused the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah to cling to Me,’ says the Lord, ‘that they might be for Me a people, a name, a praise, and a glory; but they did not listen and obey.’

“Therefore you are to speak this word to them, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, “Every jar should be filled with wine.”’ The people will say to you, ‘Do we not already know that every jar should be filled with wine?’

Then say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Behold, I am about to fill with drunkenness all the people of this land, even the kings who sit on David’s throne, the priests, the prophets and all the people of Jerusalem.

I will smash them one against another, both the fathers and the sons together,” says the Lord. “I shall destroy them [nothing will restrain Me]; I will not show pity nor be sorry nor have compassion.”’”

“This is your destiny, the portion [of judgment] measured to youFrom Me,” says the Lord,“Because you have forgotten MeAnd trusted in [pagan] lies [the counterfeit gods, and the pretense of alliance].”

Thus says the Lord to this people [Judah], “In the manner and to the degree [already pointed out] they have loved to wander; they have not restrained their feet. Therefore the Lord does not accept them; He will now remember [in detail] their wickedness and punish them for their sins.”

Therefore, thus says the Lord concerning the [false] prophets who are prophesying in My Name, although I did not send them—yet they keep saying, ‘Sword and famine shall not be in this land’: by sword and famine those prophets shall meet their end and be consumed.

And it shall be that when they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord:“Those [destined] for death, to death;Those for the sword, to the sword;Those for famine, to famine;Those for captivity, to captivity.”’

I will appoint four kinds of destroyers over them,” says the Lord, “the sword to slay, the dogs to tear and drag away, and the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth to devour and to destroy.

“You have abandoned (rejected) Me,” says the Lord.“You keep going backward.Therefore I shall stretch out My hand against you and destroy you;I am tired of delaying [your punishment]!

“She who has borne seven [sons] languishes;She has breathed out her soul.Her sun has set while it was still day;She has been shamed and humiliated.So I will hand over [the rest of] the survivors to the swordBefore their enemies,” says the Lord.

Therefore, thus says the Lord [to Jeremiah],“If you repent [and give up this mistaken attitude of despair and self-pity], then I will restore you [to a state of inner peace]So that you may stand before Me [as My obedient representative];And if you separate the precious from the worthless [examining yourself and cleansing your heart from unwarranted doubt concerning My faithfulness],You will become My spokesman.Let the people turn to you [and learn to value My values]—But you, you must not turn to them [with regard for their idolatry and wickedness].

“And I will make you to this peopleA fortified wall of bronze;They will fight against you,But they will not prevail over you,For I am with you [always] to save youAnd protect you,” says the Lord.

For thus says the Lord concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and concerning the mothers who give birth to them, and the fathers who father them in this land:

For thus says the Lord, “Do not enter a house of mourning, nor go to lament (express grief) or bemoan [the dead], for I have taken My peace away from this people,” says the Lord, “even My lovingkindness and compassion.

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Behold, I will remove from this place, before your very eyes and in your time, the sound of joy and the shout of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.

Then you are to say to them, ‘It is because your fathers have abandoned (rejected) Me,’ says the Lord, ‘and have walked after other gods and have served them and bowed down to the handmade idols and have abandoned (rejected) Me and have not kept My law,

“Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when it will no longer be said, ‘As the Lord lives, who brought up the sons of Israel out of the land of Egypt,’

“Behold (listen carefully), I will send for many fishermen,” says the Lord, “and they will fish for them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them from every mountain and from every hill and out of the clefts of the rocks.

“Therefore,” [says the Lord] “behold, I will make them know—This time I will make them knowMy power and My might;And they will know and recognize [without any doubt] that My Name is the Lord.”

Thus says the Lord,“Cursed is the man who trusts in and relies on mankind,Making [weak, faulty human] flesh his strength,And whose mind and heart turn away from the Lord.

Thus says the Lord, “Pay attention for your own good, [and for the sake of your future] do not carry any load on the Sabbath day or bring anything in through the gates of Jerusalem.

But it will come about, if you listen diligently to Me,” says the Lord, “to bring no load in through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but keep the Sabbath day holy by doing no work on it,

“O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter does?” says the Lord. “Look carefully, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel.

Now then, say to the men of Judah and to the citizens of Jerusalem, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Behold, I am shaping a disaster and working out a plan against you. Turn back, each of you from his evil way; correct your habits and change your actions for the better.”’

“Therefore thus says the Lord,‘Ask now among the nations,Who has heard of such things?The virgin IsraelHas done a very vile and horrible thing.

‘I will scatter them like an east windBefore the enemy;I will show them My back and not My faceIn the day of their disaster [says the Lord].’”

Thus says the Lord, “Go and buy a potter’s earthenware jar, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the senior priests

and say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O kings of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Behold (listen carefully), I am going to bring such disaster on this place that the ears of everyone who hears about it will tingle [in shock].

therefore, listen very closely, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “when this place shall no longer be called Topheth or the Valley of Ben-hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter.

and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Just so will I break this people and this city, even as one breaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot again be repaired; and they will bury in Topheth because there is no other place for burial.

This I will do to this place,” says the Lord, “and to its inhabitants; and I will even make this city like Topheth.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am going to bring on this city and on all its towns, all the devastation that I have declared against it, because they have become stiff-necked and refused to hear and obey My words.’”

For thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; they will fall by the sword of their enemies while you look on. And I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon; he will carry them away to Babylon as captives and will slaughter them with the sword.

‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, “Behold, I will turn back and dull the edge of the weapons of war that are in your hands, [those] with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the walls; and I will bring them into the center of this city (Jerusalem).

Then afterward,” says the Lord, “I will hand over Zedekiah king of Judah and his servants and the people in this city who survive the virulent disease, the sword, and the famine, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemy, into the hand of those who seek their lives. And he will strike them with the edge of the sword; he will not spare them nor have mercy and compassion on them.”’

“And to this people you (Jeremiah) shall also say, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death.

For I have set My face against this city to do harm and not good,” says the Lord. “It shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon and he will burn it with fire.”’

O house of David, thus says the Lord:“Administer justice in the morning,And rescue the one who has been robbed from the hand of his oppressor,That My wrath will not roar up like fireAnd burn so [hotly] that none can extinguish it,Because of the evil of their deeds.

“Understand this, I am against you, O inhabitant of the valley,O rock of the plain,” says the Lord—“You who say, ‘Who will come down against us?Or who will enter into our dwelling places?’

“But I will punish you in accordance with the [appropriate] consequences of your decisions and your actions,” says the Lord.“I will kindle a fire in your forest,And it will devour all that is around you.”’”

Thus says the Lord, “Go down to the house of the king of Judah and speak this word there:

Thus says the Lord, “Execute justice and righteousness, and rescue the one who has been robbed from the hand of his oppressor. And do no wrong; do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.

But if you will not hear and obey these words, I swear [an oath] by Myself,” says the Lord, “that this house will become a desolation.”’”

For thus says the Lord in regard to the house of the king of Judah:“You are [as valuable] to Me as [the green pastures of] Gilead [east of the Jordan]Or as the [plentiful] summit of Lebanon [west of the Jordan],Yet most certainly [if you will not listen to Me] I will make you a wilderness,And uninhabited cities.

For thus says the Lord in regard to Shallum (Jehoahaz) the [third] son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father and who went from this place, “Shallum will not return here anymore;

“He defended the cause of the afflicted and needy;Then all was well.Is that not what it means to know Me?”Says the Lord.

Therefore thus says the Lord in regard to Jehoiakim the [second] son of Josiah, king of Judah,“The relatives will not lament (mourn over with expressions of grief) for him:‘Alas, my brother!’ or, ‘Alas, sister,’ [how great our loss]!The subjects will not lament for him:‘Alas, master!’ or ‘Alas, majesty [how great was his glory]!’

“As I live,” says the Lord, “though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet [ring] on My right hand, yet would I pull you (Coniah) off.

Thus says the Lord,‘Write this man [Coniah] down as childless,A man who will not prosper (succeed) in his lifetime;For not one of his descendants will succeedIn sitting on the throne of DavidOr ruling again in Judah.’”

“Woe to the shepherds (civil leaders, rulers) who are destroying and scattering the sheep of My pasture!” says the Lord.

Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, in regard to the shepherds who care for and feed My people: “You have scattered My flock and driven them away, and have not attended to them; hear this, I am about to visit and attend to you for the evil of your deeds,” says the Lord.