it came also in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, - as far as the carrying away of Jerusalem captive, in the fifth month.

Before I formed thee at thy birth, I took knowledge of thee, And before thy nativity, I hallowed thee, - A prophet to the nations, I appointed thee.

Moreover the Word of Yahweh came unto me saying, What canst thou see Jeremiah? And I said, A twig of an almond-tree, can I see.

Then said Yahweh unto me - Thou hast rightly seen, - for keeping watch, am I over my word to perform it.

And the word of Yahweh came unto me a second time saying, What canst thou see? And I said, A boiling caldron, Can I see, with, the front thereof lion the North.

Then said Yahweh unto me, - Out of the North, shall break forth calamity, against all the inhabitants of the land.

For behold me! calling for all the families of the kingdoms of the North, Declareth Yahweh, - and they shall come, and set every one his throne at the opening of the gates of Jerusalem and against all her walls round about, and against all the cities of Judah!

Go and cry in the ears of Jerusalem saying - Thus saith Yahweh, I remember in thy behalf, the lovingkindness of thy youthful days, The love of thy bridal estate, - Thy coming out after me, Through the desert, Through a land, not sown:

Holiness, was Israel unto Yahweh, The first-fruit of his increase, - All that devoured it, were held guilty, Calamity used to come upon them, - Declareth Yahweh.

Thus, saith Yahweh, - What did your fathers find in me by way of perversity, that they removed far from me, - and went after vanity, and became vain?

Neither said they, Where is Yahweh, Who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, - Who led us Through the desert, Through a land of wastes and clefts, Through a land of parched places and of death-shade, Through a land, Along which no man had passed, And in which no son of earth dwelt?

Then brought I you into a country of garden land, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof, - and yet when ye entered, then defiled ye my land, and mine inheritance, ye made an abomination

Therefore yet further will I plead with you Declareth Yahweh, Yea with your children's children, will I plead.

Hath a nation, changed gods, although they were No-gods? Yet my people have changed my glory for that which could not profit!

Be amazed, O ye heavens, at this, - And shudder, be dried up utterly, Urgeth Yahweh.

For two wicked things, have my people committed, - Me, have they forsaken a fountain of living water, To hew out for themselves cisterns broken cisterns, that cannot hold water.

Is not this what thou wast certain to do for thyself, - in that thou didst forsake Yahweh thy God, when he was leading thee by the way?

Now, therefore what hast thou to do with the way to Egypt, to drink the waters of Shihor? Or what hast thou to do with the way to Assyria, to drink the waters of the River?

Let thy wickedness correct thee And thine apostasies, rebuke thee, Know therefore and see That it is a wicked thing and a bitter, that thou shouldest have forsaken Yahweh thy God, And that the dread of me should not have pertained to thee, Declareth My Lord, Yahweh of hosts.

Yet, I, planted thee a precious vine, a wholly true seed, - How then didst thou change thyself towards me, into the degenerate plantings of the alien vine?

For though thou wash thee with nitre, And take thee much soap, Yet is thine iniquity inscribed before me Declareth My Lord Yahweh.

How canst thou say, I have not defiled myself, After the Baalim, have I not gone? See thy way, in the valley, Own what thou hast done, - A nimble young she-camel, crossing her own ways;

Can, a virgin, forget, her ornaments, - A bride, her girdle? Yet, my people, have forgotten me, days without number.

Even in thy skirts, is there found, The blood of the lives of the helpless innocents, - Not in the act of breaking in, didst thou find them, yet the blood is on all these.

He hath said, If a man send away his wife, and she go from him and become another man's, will he return unto her, again? would not that land be, utterly defiled? And, thou, hast been unchaste with many neighbours, and yet thinkest to return unto me! Declareth Yahweh.

Therefore have been withholden the showers, And, the latter rain, hath not come, - Yet the forehead of an unchaste woman, hast thou, Thou hast refused to be ashamed.

Will he maintain his anger to times age-abiding? Will he keep it perpetually? Lo! thou hast spoken thus but hast done wicked things and had thy way!

And Yahweh said unto me, in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen what apostate Israel, did? She used to go upon every high mountain and beneath every green tree, and commit unchastity there.

And I said, after she had been doing all these things, Unto me, shall thou return? and she returned not, - and her treacherous sister Judah saw it!

Though she saw that for all this, apostate Israel having committed adultery, I had sent her away, and had given a scroll of divorcement unto her, yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but, she also, went and committed unchastity.

Yea though it had come to pass that through the levity of her unchastity, she had defiled the land, - and committed adultery with Stone and with Tree,

yet, in spite of all this, her treacherous sister Judah returned not unto me, with all her heart, - but, falsely, Declareth Yahweh.

And it shall come to pass when ye shall be multiplied and become fruitful in the land, in those days, Declareth Yahweh, They shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of Yahweh, Neither shall it come up on the heart, Neither shall they remember it, Neither shall they miss it, Neither shall it be made any more.

At that time, shall they call Jerusalem, The throne of Yahweh, and there shall be gathered unto her all the nations - to the Name of Yahweh, to Jerusalem; and they shall walk no more after the stubbornness of their own wicked heart.

In those days, shall the house of Judah go unto the house of Israel, - that they may enter together out of the land of the North, upon the land which I gave as an inheritance unto your fathers.

Though, I myself, had said, - How can I put thee among the sons, And give thee a land to be coveted, An inheritance of beauty, of the hosts of nations? Yet I said, My father, shalt thou call me, And away from me, shalt thou not turn.

Circumcise yourselves unto Yahweh So shall ye remove the impurity of your heart, ye men of Judah and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, - Lest mine indignation, go forth as fire, and burn and there be none to quench it, Because of the wickedness of your doings.

Declare ye in Judah And in Jerusalem, let it be heard, And say, Blow ye a horn in the land, - Cry, with frill voice And say, Gather yourselves together, And let us enter the defenced cities.

There hath come up a lion out of his thicket, Yea, a destroyer of nations - hath set forward, hath come forth out of his place, - To make thy land a desolation, Thy cities, shall fall in ruins, so as to have no inhabitant.

And it shall come to pass, in that day, Declareth Yahweh, That the courage of the king shall fail, And the courage of the princes, - And the priests shall be astonished, And, the prophets, shall be amazed.

At that time, shall it be said of this people and of Jerusalem, - The sharp wind of the bare heights in the desert, cometh towards the daughter of my people, - not to winnow nor to cleanse.

Thine own way And thine own doings, Have done these things unto thee, - This thy wickedness, Surely it is bitter, Surely it hath reached unto thy heart.

I beheld, The earth; and lo! it was waste and wild, - The heavens also and their light was not:

At the noise of horseman and archer, The whole city is in flight, They have entered dark thickets, Yea unto the crags, have they gone up, - Every city, is forsaken, There remaineth not in them a man!

And when, thou, art laid waste, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothe thyself with crimson Though thou deck thyself with ornaments of gold Though thou enlarge with antimony thine eyes, In vain, shalt thou make thyself fair, - Paramours have rejected thee, Thy life, will they seek!

Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, And see I pray you and know and seek out in the broad places thereof, Whether ye can find, a man, Whether there is one Doing justice Demanding fidelity, - That I may pardon her.

Even though they say By the life of Yahweh, Yet in fact falsely, do they swear.

O Yahweh! thine own eyes, are they not directed to fidelity? Thou hast smitten them Yet have they not grieved, Thou hast consumed them - They have refused to receive correction, - They have made their faces bolder than a cliff, They have refused to return.

For this cause, hath the lion out of the forest smitten them, The wolf of the waste plains, preyeth upon them, The leopard, is keeping watch over their cities, Every one that goeth out from thence, is torn in pieces, - For they have multiplied their transgressions, Numerous are their apostasies.

But the prophets, shall prove to be wind, And there is no one speaking in them, - Thus, shall it be done to themselves!

Therefore, Thus, saith Yahweh, God of hosts, Because ye have spoken this word, - Behold me! making my words in thy mouth to be fire, And, this people, - wood, So shall it devour them.

Behold me! bringing upon you a nation from afar, O house of Israel, Declareth Yahweh, - A nation invincible, it is, A nation from age-past times, hath it been, A nation whose tongue thou shalt not know, Neither shalt thou understand what it speaketh:

Then shall it eat thy harvest and thy bread which thy sons and thy daughters should eat, - It shall eat thy flock and thy herd, It shall eat thy vine and thy fig-tree, - It shall destroy thy defenced cities wherein thou, art trusting, with the sword.

Yet, even in those days, Declareth Yahweh, Will I not make of you, a full end.

And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, For what cause hath Yahweh our God done to us all these things? Then shalt thou say unto them, - As ye forsook me, and served the gods of the foreigner in your own land, So, shall ye serve aliens in a land not your own.

Tell ye this, throughout the house of Jacob, - And let it be heard throughout Judah saying:

Even for me, will ye have no reverence? Enquireth Yahweh, And because of me, will ye not he pained? In that though I placed the sand as a bound to the sea, A decree age-abiding, and it should not pass beyond it, - When they would toss themselves Then should they not prevail, When the waves thereof would roar Then should they not pass beyond it,

Yet, this people hath an obstinate and rebellious heart, - They have turned aside, and gone their way;

For there have been found among my people lawless men, - One lieth in wait, as with the stooping of fowlers, They have set a trap, they capture men:

The prophets, have prophesied, falsely, And the priests tread down by their means, And, my people, love it, so, - What then can ye do as to her latter end?

Take your goods into safety, ye sons of Benjamin out of the midst of Jerusalem, And in Tekoa, blow ye a horn, And on Beth-haccherem, raise a fire-signal, - For calamity, hath looked out from the North, Even a great destruction.

Against her, shall come shepherds with their flocks; They have pitched against her their tents, round about, They tend their flocks every one near at hand.

So then with the indignation of Yahweh, am I full I am too weary to hold it in, am constrained to pour it out, upon the boy in the street, and upon the circle of young men, together, - For, even husband with wife, will be captured, The eider with him who is full of days;

And their houses shall be turned over to others, Fields and wives together, - For I will stretch out my hand against the inhabitants of the land, Declareth Yahweh.

Were they led to turn pale because an abominable thing, they had done! Nay! they did not, at all turn pale, Nay! they did not so much as know how, to exhibit shame, Therefore, shall they fall among them who are falling, In the time when I punish them, shall they be overthrown, Saith Yahweh.

Thus saith Yahweh - Stand ye at the ways - and see, And ask for the paths of age-past times, Where is the good way? And walk therein, And ye shall find rest to your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein !

Hear thou - O earth, Lo! I, am bringing in Calamity against this people the fruit of their own devices, - For unto my words, have they not given heed, And as for my law, they have rejected it.

What then is it to me that - Frankincense from Shebah come in, or Sweet cane from a land afar off? Your own ascending-offerings, are not acceptable, Nor are, your sacrifices, pleasing to me.

Thus, saith Yahweh, Lo! a people coming in from the land of the North, - Yea a great nation, shall be stirred up out of the remote parts of the earth:

Do not go out into the field, And in the road, do not walk,-Because a sword, hath the foe, - Terror round about!

Scorched are the bellows, By fire, is lead wont to be, consumed, - In vain, hath he gone on refining, For the wicked, have not been drawn out:

Stand thou in the gate of the house of Yahweh, and thou shalt proclaim there this word, - and shalt say - Hear ye the word of Yahweh all Judah ye who are entering in at these gates, to bow down unto Yahweh:

The sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, shall not oppress, And innocent blood, shall not shed in this place, - And after other gods, shall not walk to your own hurt,

A den of robbers, hath this house on which my Name hath been called become in your own eyes? I, also, - lo! I have seen it Declareth Yahweh.

For go I pray you, unto my place which was in Shiloh, Where I made my Name to dwell, at first, - And see what I did to it, because of the wickedness of my people Israel!

Now, therefore - Because ye have done all these deeds Declareth Yahweh, - And though I spake unto you betimes speaking, Yet ye hearkened not, And though I cried unto you Yet ye answered not,

And will cast you out from before me, - Just as I have cast out All your brethren, All the seed of Ephraim.

Dost thou not see what, they, are doing In the cities of Judah, - and In the streets of Jerusalem?

The children, gather wood, and The fathers, kindle the fire, and The women, knead dough, - To make sacrificial cakes to the queen of the heavens, And to pour out drink-offerings to other gods, Provoking me to anger!

Is it me, they are provoking? Enquireth Yahweh, - Is it not themselves, - unto the shame of their own faces?

Wherefore, Thus, saith My Lord Yahweh - Lo! mine anger and mine indignation, are about to be poured out upon this place, On man and on beast, and On the tree of the field and On the fruit of the ground, - And it shall burn and shall not be quenched.

Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts God of Israel, - Your ascending-offerings, add ye unto your peace-offerings and eat ye flesh.

For I bade not your fathers Neither commanded I them, In the day I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, - Concerning the matter of ascending-offering and peace-offering;

But, this thing, I commanded them - saying, Hearken ye unto my voice, So will I become unto you - a God, And, ye, shall become unto me - a people, - Ye shall therefore walk in all the way that I may command you, To the end it may be well with you;

Yet they hearkened not Neither inclined their ear, But walked, In the counsels - In the stubbornness of their own wicked heart; And went backward, and not forward.

Ever since the day that your fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt, until this day, Have I sent unto you all my servants the prophets, Daily, betimes, sending them;

Yet they hearkened not unto me, Neither inclined their ear, - But stiffened their neck, They did more wickedly than their fathers.

But thou shalt say unto them, - This, is the nation that hearkened not unto the voice of Yahweh its God, Neither accepted they correction, - Perished is fidelity, And is cut off out of their mouth.

Cut thou off thy crown of hair O Jerusalem , and cast it away, And lift thou up on the bare heights, a dirge, - For Yahweh hath rejected and cast out the generation with which he was wroth.

For the sons of Judah, have done, that which was wicked in mine eyes, Declareth Yahweh, - They have set their abominations in the house whereon my Name hath been called to defile it;

And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, To burn up their sons and their daughters in the fire, - Which I commanded not, Neither came it up on my heart,

Therefore, lo! days are coming, Declareth Yahweh, When it shall not be called any more - The Topheth, nor The valley of Ben-hinnom, but The valley of Slaughter, - And they shall bury in Topheth, for want of place;

At that time, Declareth Yahweh, Shall they bring forth, The bones of the kings of Judah, and The bones of his princes, and The bones of the priests, and The bones of the prophets, and The bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Out of their graves,

And shall spread them out - To the sun, and To the moon, and To all the host of the heavens, Whom they have loved, And whom they have served, And after whom they have walked, And whom they have sought, And to whom they have bowed themselves down, - They shall not be gathered, Neither shall they be buried, As heaps of dung on the face of the ground, shall they be.

I hearkened and heard - Not aright, did they speak, - Not a man, repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done! They have every one, turned to their course again, Like a horse sweeping on through the battle.

Ashamed are the wise, dismayed and captured! Lo! the word of Yahweh, have they rejected, And, what wisdom, have, they?

Were they led to turn pale because an abominable thing, they had done? Nay! they did not, at all turn pale Nay! they did not so much as know how to exhibit shame! Therefore, shall they fall among them who are falling, In the time when they are punished, shall they be overthrown, Saith Yahweh:

From Dan, was heard the snorting of his horses At the sound of the neighing of his chargers, the whole land trembled, - Yea they came in and did sat up The land and the fulness thereof, The city, and them who were dwelling therein.

A pointed arrow, is their tongue Deceit, hath it spoken, - With his mouth peace unto his neighbour, doth one speak, But within himself, he layeth his ambush.

Who, is the man that is wise That he may discern this? And, unto whom, hath the mouth of Yahweh spoken, That he may declare it? For what cause Hath the land perished, Hath it been burned as a wilderness that no man passeth through?