Even your clothes are stained with the lifeblood of the poor who had not done anything wrong; you did not catch them breaking into your homes. Yet, in spite of all these things you have done,

Let us acknowledge our shame. Let us bear the disgrace that we deserve. For we have sinned against the Lord our God, both we and our ancestors. From earliest times to this very day we have not obeyed the Lord our God.'

You must be truthful, honest and upright when you take an oath saying, 'As surely as the Lord lives!' If you do, the nations will pray to be as blessed by him as you are and will make him the object of their boasting."

I thought, "Surely it is only the ignorant poor who act this way. They act like fools because they do not know what the Lord demands. They do not know what their God requires of them.

"You should fear me!" says the Lord. "You should tremble in awe before me! I made the sand to be a boundary for the sea, a permanent barrier that it can never cross. Its waves may roll, but they can never prevail. They may roar, but they can never cross beyond that boundary."

That is how they have grown fat and sleek. There is no limit to the evil things they do. They do not plead the cause of the fatherless in such a way as to win it. They do not defend the rights of the poor.

The prophets prophesy lies. The priests exercise power by their own authority. And my people love to have it this way. But they will not be able to help you when the time of judgment comes!

Their houses will be turned over to others as will their fields and their wives. For I will unleash my power against those who live in this land," says the Lord.

Then the Lord said, "As for you, Jeremiah, do not pray for these people! Do not cry out to me or petition me on their behalf! Do not plead with me to save them, because I will not listen to you.

Such idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They cannot talk. They must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them because they cannot hurt you. And they do not have any power to help you."

I said, "There is no one like you, Lord. You are great. And you are renowned for your power.

The Lord is the one who by his power made the earth. He is the one who by his wisdom established the world. And by his understanding he spread out the skies.

And I cried out, "We are doomed! Our wound is severe! We once thought, 'This is only an illness. And we will be able to bear it!'

Lord, we know that people do not control their own destiny. It is not in their power to determine what will happen to them.

So, Jeremiah, do not pray for these people. Do not cry out to me or petition me on their behalf. Do not plead with me to save them. For I will not listen to them when they call out to me for help when disaster strikes them."

"I will abandon my nation. I will forsake the people I call my own. I will turn my beloved people over to the power of their enemies.

The people I call my own attack me like birds of prey or like hyenas. But other birds of prey are all around them. Let all the nations gather together like wild beasts. Let them come and destroy these people I call my own.

Then the Lord said to me, "Do not pray for good to come to these people!

The people to whom they are prophesying will die through war and famine. Their bodies will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem and there will be no one to bury them. This will happen to the men and their wives, their sons, and their daughters. For I will pour out on them the destruction they deserve."

I, the Lord, say: 'You people have deserted me! You keep turning your back on me.' So I have unleashed my power against you and have begun to destroy you. I have grown tired of feeling sorry for you!"

"I will deliver you from the power of the wicked. I will free you from the clutches of violent people."

Rich and poor alike will die in this land. They will not be buried or mourned. People will not cut their bodies or shave off their hair to show their grief for them.

The Lord said, "So I will now let this wicked people know -- I will let them know my mighty power in judgment. Then they will know that my name is the Lord."

In this place I will thwart the plans of the people of Judah and Jerusalem. I will deliver them over to the power of their enemies who are seeking to kill them. They will die by the sword at the hands of their enemies. I will make their dead bodies food for the birds and wild beasts to eat.

In anger, in fury, and in wrath I myself will fight against you with my mighty power and great strength!

He upheld the cause of the poor and needy. So things went well for Judah.' The Lord says, 'That is a good example of what it means to know me.'

So the Lord has this to say about Josiah's son, King Jehoiakim of Judah: People will not mourn for him, saying, "This makes me sad, my brother! This makes me sad, my sister!" They will not mourn for him, saying, "Poor, poor lord! Poor, poor majesty!"

For the land is full of people unfaithful to him. They live wicked lives and they misuse their power. So the land is dried up because it is under his curse. The pastures in the wilderness are withered.

As to my case, I am in your power. Do to me what you deem fair and proper.

"I made the earth and the people and animals on it by my mighty power and great strength, and I give it to whomever I see fit.

I have at this time placed all these nations of yours under the power of my servant, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. I have even made all the wild animals subject to him.

I also told them, "If they are really prophets and the Lord is speaking to them, let them pray earnestly to the Lord who rules over all. Let them plead with him not to let the valuable articles that are still left in the Lord's temple, in the royal palace, and in Jerusalem be taken away to Babylon.

Work to see that the city where I sent you as exiles enjoys peace and prosperity. Pray to the Lord for it. For as it prospers you will prosper.'

Oh, Lord God, you did indeed make heaven and earth by your mighty power and great strength. Nothing is too hard for you!

You used your mighty power and your great strength to perform miracles and amazing deeds and to bring great terror on the Egyptians. By this means you brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt.

You will die a peaceful death. They will burn incense at your burial just as they did at the burial of your ancestors, the former kings who preceded you. They will mourn for you, saying, "Poor, poor master!" Indeed, you have my own word on this. I, the Lord, affirm it!'"

King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to the prophet Jeremiah. He told them to say, "Please pray to the Lord our God on our behalf."

But he left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people who owned nothing. He gave them fields and vineyards at that time.

They said to him, "Please grant our request and pray to the Lord your God for all those of us who are still left alive here. For, as you yourself can see, there are only a few of us left out of the many there were before.

Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do."

The prophet Jeremiah answered them, "Agreed! I will indeed pray to the Lord your God as you have asked. I will tell you everything the Lord replies in response to you. I will not keep anything back from you."

Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon whom you now fear. Do not be afraid of him because I will be with you to save you and to rescue you from his power. I, the Lord, affirm it!

For the Lord God of Israel who rules over all says, 'If you go to Egypt, I will pour out my wrath on you just as I poured out my anger and wrath on the citizens of Jerusalem. You will become an object of horror and ridicule, an example of those who have been cursed and that people use in pronouncing a curse. You will never see this place again.'

You are making a fatal mistake. For you sent me to the Lord your God and asked me, 'Pray to the Lord our God for us. Tell us what the Lord our God says and we will do it.'

Instead we will do everything we vowed we would do. We will sacrifice and pour out drink offerings to the goddess called the Queen of Heaven just as we and our ancestors, our kings, and our leaders previously did in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For then we had plenty of food, were well-off, and had no troubles.

The women added, "We did indeed sacrifice and pour out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven. But it was with the full knowledge and approval of our husbands that we made cakes in her image and poured out drink offerings to her."

The Lord God of Israel who rules over all says, 'You women have confirmed by your actions what you vowed with your lips! You said, "We will certainly carry out our vows to sacrifice and pour out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven." Well, then fulfill your vows! Carry them out!'

Go up to Gilead and get medicinal ointment, you dear poor people of Egypt. But it will prove useless no matter how much medicine you use; there will be no healing for you.

Pack your bags for exile, you inhabitants of poor dear Egypt. For Memphis will be laid waste. It will lie in ruins and be uninhabited.

Poor dear Egypt will be put to shame. She will be handed over to the people from the north."

The people of Gaza will shave their heads in mourning. The people of Ashkelon will be struck dumb. How long will you gash yourselves to show your sorrow, you who remain of Philistia's power?

Mourn for that nation, all you nations living around it, all of you nations that know of its fame. Mourn and say, 'Alas, its powerful influence has been broken! Its glory and power have been done away!'

Moab's might will be crushed. Its power will be broken. I, the Lord, affirm it!

Why do you brag about your great power? Your power is ebbing away, you rebellious people of Ammon, who trust in your riches and say, 'Who would dare to attack us?'

I will send people to winnow Babylonia like a wind blowing away chaff. They will winnow her and strip her land bare. This will happen when they come against her from every direction, when it is time to destroy her.

He is the one who by his power made the earth. He is the one who by his wisdom fixed the world in place, by his understanding he spread out the heavens.

The Lord says, "Beware! I am opposed to you, Babylon! You are like a destructive mountain that destroys all the earth. I will unleash my power against you; I will roll you off the cliffs and make you like a burned-out mountain.

The Babylonians are all like lions roaring for prey. They are like lion cubs growling for something to eat.

Nebuzaradan, the captain of the royal guard, took into exile some of the poor, the rest of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to him, and the rest of the craftsmen.

But he left behind some of the poor and gave them fields and vineyards.