Therefore thus says the LORD; Behold, I will plead your cause, and take vengeance for you; and I will dry up her sea, and make her springs dry.

Her cities are a desolation, a dry land, and a wilderness, a land in which no man dwells, neither does any son of man pass by there.

And lest your heart faint, and you fear for the rumor that shall be heard in the land; a rumor shall both come one year, and after that in another year shall come a rumor, and violence in the land, ruler against ruler.

You that have escaped the sword, go away, stand not still: remember the LORD afar off, and let Jerusalem come into your mind.

We are ashamed, because we have heard reproach: shame has covered our faces: for strangers have come into the sanctuaries of the LORD's house.

Because the plunderer has come upon her, even upon Babylon, and her mighty men are taken, everyone of their bows is broken: for the LORD God of recompenses shall surely repay.

The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah into Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. And this Seraiah was the quartermaster.

So Jeremiah wrote in a book all the evil that should come upon Babylon, even all these words that are written against Babylon.

And you shall say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her: and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and encamped against it, and built a siege wall against it round about.

So the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.

Then the city wall was broken through, and all the men of war fled, and went forth out of the city by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king's garden; (now the Chaldeans were by the city round about:) and they went by the way of the plain.

Then they took the king, and carried him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath; where he pronounced judgment upon him.

Now in the fifth month, in the tenth day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzar-adan, captain of the guard, who served the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem,

And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, broke down all the walls of Jerusalem round about.

Also the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the LORD, and the stands, and the bronze sea that was in the house of the LORD, the Chaldeans broke, and carried all their bronze to Babylon.

The two pillars, one sea, and twelve bronze bulls that were under the stands, which king Solomon had made in the house of the LORD: the bronze of all these vessels was beyond weight.

And a capital of bronze was upon it; and the height of one capital was five cubits, with network and pomegranates upon the capitals round about, all of bronze. The second pillar also and the pomegranates were like unto these.

And there were ninety and six pomegranates on a side; and all the pomegranates upon the network were a hundred round about.

He took also out of the city a eunuch, who had charge of the men of war; and seven men of them that were the king's counsel, who were found in the city; and the principal scribe of the army, who mustered the people of the land; and threescore men of the people of the land, that were found in the midst of the city.

These are the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year three thousand Jews and three and twenty:

In the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem eight hundred thirty and two persons:

In the three and twentieth year of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred forty and five persons: all the persons were four thousand and six hundred.

And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon in the first year of his reign lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison,

And spoke kindly unto him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon,

She weeps bitterly in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks: among all her lovers she has none to comfort her: all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, they have become her enemies.

The roads to Zion do mourn, because none come to the solemn feasts: all her gates are desolate: her priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness.

The adversary has spread out his hand over all her precious things: for she has seen that the nations entered into her sanctuary, whom you did command that they should not enter into your congregation.

The yoke of my transgressions is bound by his hand: they are woven together, and come up upon my neck: he has made my strength to fall, the Lord has delivered me into their hands, from whom I am not able to rise up.

For these things I weep; my eye, my eye runs down with water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me: my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed.

They have heard that I sigh: there is none to comfort me: all my enemies have heard of my trouble; they are glad that you have done it: you will bring the day that you have announced, and they shall be like unto me.

Let all their wickedness come before you; and do unto them, as you have done unto me for all my transgressions: for my sighs are many, and my heart is faint.

He has bent his bow like an enemy: he stood with his right hand as an adversary, and has slain all that were pleasant to the eye in the tent of the daughter of Zion: he poured out his fury like fire.

And he has violently taken away his tabernacle, as if it were a garden: he has destroyed his places of the assembly: the LORD has caused the solemn feasts and sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion, and has despised in the indignation of his anger the king and the priest.

Her gates are sunk into the ground; he has destroyed and broken her bars: her king and her princes are among the nations: the law is no more; her prophets also find no vision from the LORD.

They say to their mothers, Where is grain and wine? when they faint as the wounded in the streets of the city, when their soul was poured out into their mothers' bosom.

What thing shall I take to witness for you? what thing shall I liken to you, O daughter of Jerusalem? what shall I equal to you, that I may comfort you, O virgin daughter of Zion? for your run is vast as the sea: who can heal you?

Your prophets have seen vain and foolish things for you: and they have not uncovered your iniquity, to turn away your captivity; but have given you false oracles and causes of banishment.

All your enemies have opened their mouth against you: they hiss and gnash the teeth: they say, We have swallowed her up: certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it.

The LORD has done that which he had purposed; he has fulfilled his word that he had commanded in the days of old: he has thrown down, and has not pitied: and he has caused your enemy to rejoice over you, he has set up the might of your adversaries.

Their heart cried unto the Lord, O wall of the daughter of Zion, let tears run down like a river day and night: give yourself no relief; let not your eyes rest.

Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out your heart like water before the face of the Lord: lift up your hands toward him for the life of your young children, that faint for hunger at the head of every street.

The young and the old lie on the ground in the streets: my virgins and my young men have fallen by the sword; you have slain them in the day of your anger; you have killed, and not pitied.

He has set me in dark places, like they that are long dead.

He has bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.

It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.

They are new every morning: great is your faithfulness.

Let us search and examine our ways, and turn again to the LORD.

Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens.

You have covered yourself with a cloud, that our prayer should not pass through.

All our enemies have opened their mouths against us.

I called upon your name, O LORD, out of the lowest dungeon.

You have heard my voice: hide not your ear at my breathing, at my cry.

Give them sorrow of heart, your curse unto them.

How has the gold become dim! how has the most fine gold changed! the stones of the sanctuary are poured out at the head of every street.

The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!

They that did eat delicacies are desolate in the streets: they that were brought up in scarlet embrace ash heaps.

Her princes were purer than snow, they were whiter than milk, they were more ruddy in body than rubies, their appearance was of sapphire:

Their appearance is now blacker than coal; they are not known in the streets: their skin cleaves to their bones; it is withered, it has become like a dry stick.

They that are slain with the sword are better than they that are slain with hunger: for these pine away, stricken through for lack of the fruits of the field.

The hands of the compassionate women have boiled their own children: they were their food in the destruction of the daughter of my people.

As for us, our eyes as yet failed, watching for our vain help: in our watching we have watched for a nation that could not save us.

They hunt our steps, so that we cannot go in our streets: our end is near, our days are fulfilled; for our end has come.

Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of the heaven: they pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness.

The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the LORD, was taken in their pits, of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the nations.

The punishment of your iniquity is accomplished, O daughter of Zion; he will no more carry you away into captivity: he will punish your iniquity, O daughter of Edom; he will uncover your sins.

Remember, O LORD, what is come upon us: consider, and behold our reproach.

Our inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to aliens.

We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows.

We have drunk our water at a price; our wood is sold unto us.

Our necks are under persecution: we labor, and have no rest.

Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne their iniquities.

We got our bread at the peril of our lives because of the sword in the wilderness.

Our skin was black like an oven because of the terrible famine.

Princes were hung up by their hands: the faces of elders were not honored.

The joy of our heart has ceased; our dance has turned into mourning.

The crown has fallen from our head: woe unto us, that we have sinned!

For this our heart is faint; for these things our eyes are dim.

You, O LORD, remain forever; your throne from generation to generation.

Turn us back to you, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old.

But you have utterly rejected us; you are very angry against us.

Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

On the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,

And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot: and they sparkled like the color of burnished bronze.

Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went each one straight forward.

Thus were their faces: and their wings were stretched upward; two wings of each one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies.

The appearance of the wheels and their workings was like the color of beryl: and the four had the same likeness: and their appearance and their workings was, as it were, a wheel in the middle of a wheel.

As for their rims, they were so high that they were awesome; and their rims were full of eyes, round about the four of them.

And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them: and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.

Wherever the spirit was to go, they went, there was their spirit to go; and the wheels were lifted up with them: for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up along with them: for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

And under the firmament were their wings spread out straight, the one toward the other: each one had two, which covered on this side, and each one had two, which covered on that side, their bodies.

And I saw as the color of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his waist even upward, and from the appearance of his waist even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about.

And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon your feet, and I will speak unto you.

For they are impudent children and stubborn. I do send you unto them; and you shall say unto them, Thus says the Lord GOD.

And they, whether they will hear, or whether they refuse, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there has been a prophet among them.

And you, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you, and you do dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.

And you shall speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they refuse: for they are most rebellious.

But you, son of man, hear what I say unto you; Be not you rebellious like that rebellious house: open your mouth, and eat what I give you.

And he said unto me, Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.