6Hear the word of the LORD, Ye that tremble at His word: Your brethren that hate you, that cast you out for My name's sake, have said: 'Let the LORD be glorified, That we may gaze upon your joy7, But they shall be ashamed. 6Hark! an uproar from the city, Hark! it cometh from the temple, Hark! the LORD rendereth recom- pense to His enemies. 'Before she travailed, she brought forth; Before her pain came, She was delivered of a man-child. 8Who hath heard such a thing? Who hath seen such things? Is a land born in one day? Is a nation brought forth at once? For as soon as Zion travailed, She brought forth her children. 9Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? Saith the LORD; Shall I that cause to bring forth shut the womb? Saith thy God.
10Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, And be glad with her, all ye that love her; j Rejoice for joy with her, All ye that mourn for her; | uThat ye may suck, and be satisfied; With the breast of her consolations; That ye may drink deeply with delight Of the abundance of her glory. 12For thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river.
And the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream, And ye shall suck thereof; Ye shall be borne upon the side, And shall be dandled upon the knees* 13As one whom his mother comforteth, So will I comfort you; And ye shall he comforted in Jerusa- lem. "And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, And your bones shall flourish like young grass; And the hand of the LORD shall be known toward His servants, And He will have indignation against His enemies.
"For, behold, the LORD will come in fire, And His chariots shall be like the whirlwind; To render His anger with fury, And His rebuke with flames of fire. 16For by fire will the LORD contend, And by His sword with all flesh; And the slain of the LORD shall be many. 17They that sanctify themselves and purify themselves To go unto the gardens, Behind one in the midst, Eating swine's flesh, and the detest- able thing, and the mouse, Shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.
18For I [know] their works and their thoughts; [the time] cometh, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and shall see My glory. 19And I will work a sign among ^hem, and I will send such as escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard My fame, ISAIAH ISAIAH neither have seen My glory; and they shall declare My glory among the nations. 20Ancl they shall bring all j your brethren out of all the nations i for an offering unto the LORD, upon j horses, and in chariots, and in litters,. and upon mules, and upon swift; beasts, to My holy mountain Jerusa- lem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring their offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD. 31 And of them also will I take for the j priests and for the Levites, saith the LORD. **For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, saith the LORD, «o shall your seed and your name remain.
it shall come to pass, That from one new moon to an- other, And from one sabbath to another, Shall all flesh come to worship be- fore Mtf, Saith the LORD. 24And they shall go forth, and look Upon the carcasses of the men that have rebelled against Me; For their worm shall not die, Neither shall their fire be quenched; And they shall be an abhorring unto afl flesh.
And it shall come to pass, That from one* new moon to another, And from one sabbath to another, Shall all flesh come to worship before Me, Saith the Lord.
JEREMIAH To root out and to pull down, And to destroy and to overthrow; To build, and to plant.
"Moreover the word of the LORD 1 THE words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were > in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, i 2to whom the word of the LORD came j in the days of Josiah the son of Anion, i — „ „ king of Judah, in the thirteenth year! came unto me, saying: 'Jeremiah, of his reign. 3It came also in the what seest thou?' And I said: 'I days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, see a rod of an *almond-tree.7 12Then king of Judah, unto the end of the eiev- |said the LORD unto me: *Thou hast enth year of Zedekiah the son of Jo- well seen; for I bwatch over My word siah, king of Judah, unto the carrying ' to perform it.' away of Jerusalem captive m the fifth, 13And the word of the LORD came month. i unto me the second time, saying: 4And the word of the LORD came, 4 What seest thou?7 And I said: 'I see unto me, saying:! a seething pot; and the face thereof is 6Before I formed thee in the belly I ' from the north/ "Then the LORD said knew thee, 1 unto me: 'Out of the north the evil And before thou earnest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee; I have appointed thee a prophet unto the nations.
6Then said I: l Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak; for I am a child/ 7But the LORD said unto me: Say not: I am a child; For to whomsoever I shall send thee thou shalt go, And whatsoever I shall command thee thou shalt speak. 8Be not afraid of them; For I am with thee to deliver thee, Saith the LORD.
9Then the LORD put forth His hand, and touched my mouth; and the LORD said unto me: Behold, I have put My words in thy mouth; 10See, I have this day set thee over the shall break forth upon all the inhabit- ants of the land. "For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one hi& throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah. 16And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness; in that they have forsaken Me, and have offered unto other gods, and worshipped the work of their own hands. 17Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee; be not dismayed at them, lest I dis- may thee before them. 18For, behold, I have made thee this day a fortified city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls, against the whole land, against nations and over the kingdoms, the longs of Judah, against the princes » Heb. shaked.' * Heb. staked.
JEREMIAH thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land. "And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against theo; For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.'
O And the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 2Gp, and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying: Thus saith the LORD: I remember for thee the affection of thy youth, The love of thine espousals; How thou wentest after Me in the wilderness, In a land that was not sown. 'Israel is the LORD'S hallowed portion, His first-fruits of the increase; All that devour him shall be held guilty, Evil shall come upon them, Saith the LORD.
4Hear ye the word of the LORD, 0 bourse of Jacob, Arid all the families of the house of Israel; *Thus saith the LORD: What unrighteousness have your fathers found in Me, That they are gone far from Me, And have walked after things of nought, and are become nought? 6Neither said they: 'Where is the LORD that brought us up Out of the land of Egypt; That led us through the wilder- ness, Through a land of deserts and of pits, Through a land of drought and of the shadow of death, Through a land that no man passed through, And where BO man dwelt?'
7And I brought you into a land of fruitful fields, To eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof; But when ye entered, ye defiled My land, And made My heritage an abomi- nation.
8The priests said not: 'Where is the LORD?'
And they that handle the law knew Me not, And the rulers transgressed against Me; The prophets also prophesied by Baal, And walked after things that do not profit.
'Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, And with your children's children will I plead.
10For pass over to the isles of the Kittites, and see, And send unto Kedar, and consider diligently.
And see if there hath been such a thing. uHath a nation changed its gods, Which yet are no gods?
But My people hath changed its glory For that which doth not profit. 12Be astonished, 0 ye heavens, at this, And be horribly afraid, be ye ex- ceeding amazed, Saith the LORD.
13For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the foun- tain of living waters, And hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, That can hold no water.
14Is Israel a servant? Is he a home-born slave? Why is he become a prey?
JEREMIAH 15The young lions have roared upon him, And let their voice resound; And they have made his land des- olate, His cities are laid waste, Without inhabitant. 16The children also of Noph and Tahpanhes j Feed upon the crown of thy head | 17Is it not this that doth cause it unto thee, That thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, When He led thee by the way?
18And now what hast thou to do in the way to Egypt, To drink the waters of Shihor? Or what hast thou to do in the way to Assyria, To drink the waters of the River? 19Thine own wickedness shall correct thee,. And thy backslidings shall reprove thee: Know therefore and see that it is an evil and a bitter thing, That thou hast forsaken the LOKD thy G?d, Neither is My fear in thee, Saith the Lord GOD of hosts.
20For of old time I have broken thy yoke, And burst thy bands, And thou saidst: 'I will not trans- gress'; Upon every high hill And under every leafy tree Thou didst recline, playing the har- lot.
^Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, Wholly a right seed; How then art thou turned into the degenerate plant Of a ytrange vine unto Me? s-For though thou wa&h thee with nitre, And take thee much soap, Yet thine iniquity is marked before Me, Saith the Lord GOD.
canst thou say: 'I am not defiled, I have not gone after the Baalim*? See thy way in the Valley, Know what thou hast done; Thou art a swift young camel traversing her ways; 24A wild ass used to the wilderness, That snuffeth up the wind in her desire; Her lust, who can hinder it? All they that seek her will not weary themselves; In her month they shall find her. 26Withhold thy foot from being unshod, And thy throat from thirst; But thou saidst: 'There is no hope; No, for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.'
the thief is ashamed when he i& found, So is the house of Israel ashamed; They, their kings, their princes, And their priests, and their prophets; 27Who say to a stock: 'Thou art my father7, And to a stone: ' Thou hast brought us forth', For they have turned their back unto Me, and not their face; But in the time of their trouble they will say: 'Arise, and save us.' ^But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? Let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble; JEREMIAH For according to the number of thy J cities I Arc thy gods, O Judah. j 2*Wherefore will ye contend with Me? Ye all have transgressed against Me.
Saith the I-ORD.
aoln vain have I smitten your Chil- dren— They received no correction. Your sword hath devoured your prophets, Like a destroying Hon. *1O generation, see ye the word of the LORD: Have I been a wilderness unto Israel?
Or a land of thick darkness? Wherefore say My |X*ople* *We roam at large; We will come no more unto Thee'? ^"an a maid forget her ornaments, Or a bride her attire? Yet My people have forgotten Me Days without number.
^IIow trimmest thou thy way To seek love!
Therefore — even the wicked women Hast thou taught thy ways; "Also in thy skirts is found the blood Of the souls of the innocent poor; Thou didst not find them breaking in; Yet for all these things ^hou saidst: * I am innocent; Surely His anger is turned away from me ' — Behold, I will enter into judgment with thee, Because thou sayest: 'I have not sinned/ self greatly dost thou cheapen thy- To change thy way?
Thou shalt be ashamed of Egypt also, As thou wast ashamed of Asshur 37Krom him also shalt thou go forth, With thy hands upon thy head; For the LORD hath rejected them in whom thou didst trust, And thou shalt not prosper in them.
a man put away his wile, And she go from him, And become another man's, May he return unto her again? Will not that land be greatly pol- luted? But thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; And wouldest thou yet return to Me?
Saith the LORD. 2Lift up thine eyes unto the high hills, and see Where hast thou not been lain with9 By the ways hast thou sat for them, As an Arabian in the wilderness; And thou hast polluted the land With thy harlotries and with thy wickedness therefore the showers have been withheld, And there hath been no latter rain; Yet thou hadst a harlot's forehead, Thou refusedst to be ashamed. 4Didst thou not just now cry unto Me: ' My father, Thou art the friend of my youth. Will He bear grudge for ever? Will He keep it to the end?' Behold, thou hast spoken, but hast done evil things,, And hast had thy way.
JEREMIAH 6And the LORD said unto me in the days of Josiah the king: 'Hawt thou seen that which backsliding Israel did? she went up upon every high mountain and under every loafy treo, and there played the harlot. 7And I said* After she hath done all these things, she will return unto Me; but she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. 8And I saw, when, forasmuch as backsliding Ibrael had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a bill of divorcement, that yet treacherous Judah her sister feared not; but she also went and played the harlot; 9and it came to pass through the lightness of her harlotry, that the land was polluted, and she committed adultery with stones and with stocks; 10and yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not returned unto Me with her whole heart, but feign- edly, saith the LORD — "even the LORD said unto me— backsliding Israel hath proved herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. ^Go, and pro- claim these words toward the north, and say: Return, thou backsliding Israel, vSaith the LORD; I will not frown upon you; For I am merciful, saith the LORD, I will not bear grudge for ever. ^OnJy acknowledge thine iniquity, That thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, And hast scattered thy ways to the strangers Under every leafy tree, And ye have not hearkened to My voice, Saith the LORD.
"Return, 0 backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am a lord unto you, and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion; "and I will give you 'shepherds according to My heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. 16And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied 1 and increased in the land, in those , days, saith the LORD, they shall say ; no more: The ark of the covenant of the LORD; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they make mention of it; neither shall they j miss it; neither shall it be made any more. 17At that time they shall call Jerusalem The throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem; neither sJiall Ithey walk any more after the stubibornness of thoir evil heart. lHIn those days the hoube of Judah shall , walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.'
19But I said: 'How would I put thoe among the sons, And give thee a pleasant land, i The goodliest heritage of the na- tions!7 And I said: 'Thou shalt call Me, My father; And shalt not turn away from fol- lowing Me.' 20Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband, So have ye dealt treacherously with Me, 0 house of Israel, Saith the LORD.
^Harkf upon the high hills is heard The suppliant weeping of the children of Israel; Fo/ that they have perverted their way, JEREMIAH They have forgotten the LORD their God.
^Return, ye backsliding children, I will heal your backsliding. — *H>re we are, we are come unto Thee; For Thou art the LORD our God. ^Truly vain have proved the hills, The uproar on the mountains; Truly in the LORD our God Is the salvation of Israel. 4lBut the shameful thing hath de- voured The labour of our fathers from our youth; Their flocks and their herds, Their sons and their daughters. 2*Let ud lie down in pur shame, And let our confusion cover us; For we have sinned against the LORD our God, We and our fathers, From our youth even unto this day; And we have not hearkened To the voice of the LORD our God.7 A If thou wilt return, O Israel, ~ Saith the LORD, Yea, return unto Me; And if thou wilt put away thy detestable things out of My sight, And wilt not waver; 2And wilt swear: 'As the LORD liveth' In truth, in justice, and in right- eousness; Then shall the nations bless them- selves by Him, And in Him shall they glor3r.
3For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem: Break up for you a fallow ground, And sow not among thorns.
4Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, And take away the foreskins of your heart, Ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; Lest My fury go forth like fire, And burn that none can quench it, Because of the evil of your doings.
5Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem, And say: ' Blow ye the horn in the land'; Cry aloud and say: 'Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the fortified cities.' ^et up a standard toward Zion; Put yourselves under covert, stay not; For I will bring evil from the north, And a great destruction. 7A lion is gone up from his thicket, And a destroyer of nations Js set out, gone forth from his place; To make thy land desolate, That thy cities be laid waste, with- out inhabitant.
8For this gird you with sackcloth, Lament and wail; For the fierce anger of the LORD Is not turned back from us. 9And it shall come to pass at that day, Saith the LORD, That the heart of the king shall fail, And the heart of the princes; And the priests shall be astonished, And the prophets shall wonder.
10ThensaidI: 'Ah, Lord GOD! surely Thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying: Ye shall have peace, whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.'
.JEREMIAH nAt that time shall it be said of this ] people and of Jerusalem: \ A hot wind of the high hills in the! wilderness | Toward the daughter of My people, • Not to fan, nor to cleanse; WA wind too strong for this shall j come for Me; | Now will I also utter judgments' against them. i 13Behold, he comet h up as clouds, | And his chariots are as the whirl-! wind;!
His horses are swifter than eagles. — 'Woe unto us! for we are undone.' — 14O Jerusalem, wash thy heart from wickedness, That thou mayest be saved.
How long shall thy baleful thoughts Lodge within thee? 16For hark! one declareth from Dan, And announceth calamity from the hills of Ephraim: 16'Make ye mention to the nations:] Behold — publish concerning Jeru-' salem — Watchers come from a far coun- try, And give out their voice against the cities of Judah.' 17As keepers of a field Are they against her round about; Because she hath been rebellious against Me, Saith the LORD.
18Thy way and thy doings have pro- cured These things unto thee; This is thy wickedness; yea, it is bitter, Yea, it reacheth unto thy heart.
19My bowels, my bowels! I writhe in pain!
The chambers of my heart! My heart moaneth within me! I cannot hold my peace!
Because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the horn, The alarm of war.
20Destruction followeth upon destruc- tion, For the whole land is spoiled; Suddenly are my tents spoiled, My curtains in a moment. 21How long shall I see the standard, Shall I hear the sound of the horn?
My people is foolish, They know Me not] They are sottish children, And they have no understanding; They are wise to do evil, But to do good they have no knowl- edge.
^I beheld tho sarth, And, lo, it was waste and void; And the heavens, and they had no light. 24I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, And all the hills moved to and fro. KI beheld, and, lo, there was no man, And all the birds of the heavens were fled. ^1 beheld, and, lo, the fruitful field was a wilderness, And all the cities thereof were broken down At the presence of the LORD, And before His fierce anger.
27For thus saith the LORD: The whole land shall be desolate; Yet will I not make a full end. 28For this shall the earth mourn, And the heavens above be black; Because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, And I have not repented, neither will I turn back from it.
JEREMIAH 29For the noise of the horsemen and bowmen The whole city fleet h; They go into the thickets. And" climb up upon the rooks;! Every city is forsaken, I And not a man dwelleth therein. [ 30And thou, that art spoiled, what) doest thou, That thou dothest thyself with} scarlet, i That thou deekest thee with orna- ments of gold, That thou enlarges! thine eyesj with paint? I In vain dost thou make thyself fair; Thy lover* despise thee, they seek thy life. 31 For I have heard a voice ass of a worimn in travail, The aniniish as of her that bringeth i forth her first child, I The voice of the daughter of Zion, that gaspeth for breath, That spreadeth her hands 'Woe in me, now! for my soul faint eth Before the murderers/ ,X Hun ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, And j?ee now, and know, And seek in the broad places thereof, If ye can find a man, If there be any that doeth justly, that seeketh truth; And I will pardon her. -And though they sav ' As the LORD Surely they swear falsely. 30 LORD 4 are not Thine eyes upon truth? Thou hast stricken them, but they were not affected; Thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correc- tion; They have made their faces harder than a rock; They have refused to return. 4And I said: 'Surely these are poor, They are foolish, for they know not the way of the LORD, t Nor the ordinance of their God, 5I will get me unto the great men, And will speak unto them; For they know the way of the LOKD, And the ordinance of their God ' But these had altogether broken the yoke, And burst the bands. 6Wherefore a lion out of the forest cloth slay them, A wolf of the deserts doth spoil them, A leopard watcheth over their cities, Every one that goeth out thence is torn in pieces; Because their transgressions are many, Their backslidings are increased.
7 Wherefore should I pardon thee9 Thy children have forsaken Me, And sworn by no-gods; And when I had fed them to the full, they committed adultery, And assembled themselves in troops at the harlots7 houses.
8They are become as well-fed horses, lusty stallions; Every one neigheth after his neigh- bour's wife.
9Shall I not punish for these things?
Saith the LORD; And shall not My soul be avenged On such a nation as this?
10Go ye up into her rows, and destroy, But make not a full end; Take away her shoots; For they are not the LORD'S. "For the house of Israel and the house of Judah JEREMIAH Have dealt very treacherously against Me, Saith the LORD. 12They have belied the LORD, And said: 'It is not He, | Neither shall evil come upon as; Neither shall we see sword nor famine; I3And the prophets shall become wind, And the word is not in them; Thus be it done unto thorn/ "Wherefore thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts: Because ye speak this word, Behold, I will make My words in thy mouth fire, And this people wood, and it shall - devour them. j I6Lo, I will bring a nation upon you, from far, 1 0 house of Israel, saith the LORD; It is an enduring nation, It is an ancient nation,: A nation whose language thou I knowest not, Neither understandest what they say. t | 16Their quiver is an open sepulchre,, They are all mighty men.!
17And they shall eat up thy harvest,; and thy bread, " I They shall eat up thy sons and thy -, daughters, | They shall eat up thy flocks and| thy herds, | They shall eat up thy vines and thy!
They shall batter thy fortified cities, Wherein thou trustest, with the I sword. 18But even in those days, saith the LORD, 1 will not make a full end with you. 1&And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say. 'Wherefore hath the LORD our God done all these things unto us?' then shalt Thou say unto them: 'Like as ye have forsaken Me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.'
20Declare ye this in the house of Jacob, And announce it in Judah, naying: 21Hear now this, 0 foolish people, and without undemanding, That have eyes, and see not, That have ears, and hear not: ^Fear ye not Me? saith the LORD; Will ye not tremble at My pres- ence? Who have placed the sand for the bound of the sea, An everlasting ordinance, which it cannot pass; And though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not pre- vail; Though they roar, yet can they not pass over it. ^But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; They are revolted, and gone. 24Neither say they in their heart: *Let us now fear the LORD our God, That giveth the former rain, and the latter in due season; That keepeth for us Theappointed weeks of the harvest/ ^Your iniquities have turned away these things, And your sins have withholden good from you. 26For among My people are found wicked men; They pry, as fowlers lie in wait; They set a trap, they catch men. 27As a cage is full of birds, So are their houses full of deceit; Therefore they are become great, and waxen rich; JEREMIAH "They are waxen fat, they are become sleek; Yea, they overpass in deeds of wick- edne&s; They plead not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, That they might make it to pros- per; And the right of the needy do they not judge, ^hall I not punish for these things?
Saith the LORD; Shall not My soul be avenged On such a nation as this?
i appalling and horrible thing Is come to pass in the land: nThe prophets prophesy in the serv- ice of falsehood, And the priests bear rule at their beck; And My people love to have it so; What then will ye do in the end thereof?
£ Put yourselves under covert, ye children of Benjamin, Away from the midst of Jerusalem, And blow the horn in Tekoa, And set up a signal on Bethcherem; For evil looketh forth from the north, And a great destruction, ^he comely and delicate one, The daughter of Zion, will I cut off. 3Shepherds with their flocks come unto her; They pitch their tents against her round about; They feed bare every one what is nigh at hand.
4£ Prepare ye war against her; Arise, and let us go up at noon!' 'Woe unto us! for the day declineth, For the shadows of the evening are stretched out!'
*' Arise, and let us go up by night, And let us destroy her palaces.'
6For thus hath the LORD of hosts said: Hew ye down her trees, And cast up a mound against Jeru- salem; This is the city to be punished; Everywhere there is oppression in the midst of her.
7As a cistern welleth with her waters, So she welleth with her wickedness; Violence and spoil is heard in her; Before Me continually is sickness and wounds. 8Be thou corrected, 0 Jerusalem, Lest My soul be alienated from thee, Lest I make thee desolate, A land not inhabited.
9Thus saith the LORD of hosts: They shall thoroughly glean as a vine The remnant of Israel; Turn again thy hand As a grape-gatherer upon the shoots. 10To whom shall I speak and give warning, That they may hear? Behold, their ear is dull, And they cannot attend; Behold, the word of the LORD is become unto them a reproach, They have no delight in it. "Therefore I am f uU of the fury of the LORD, I am weary with holding in: Pour it out upon the babes in the street, And upon the assembly of young men together; For even the husband with the wife shall be taken, The aged with him that is full of days.
their houses shall be turned unto others, JEREMIAH Their fields and their wives to- 1 gether; I For I will stretch out My hand upon < the inhabitants of the land,; Saith the LORD. j 13For from the least of them even!
unto the greatest of them | Every one is greedy for gain;!
And from the prophet even unto the priest Every one dealeth falsely. 14They have healed also the hurt of i My people lightly, i Saying: * Peace, peace7, when there is no peace. 15They shall be put to shame because they have committed abomina- tion; Yea, they are not at all ashamed, Neither know they how to blush; Therefore they shall fall among j them that fall, At the time that I punish them they shall stumble, Saith the LORD.
16Thus saith the LORD: Stand ye in the ways and see, And ask for the old paths, Where is the good way, and walk therein, And ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said: 'We will not walk therein.'
17And I set watchmen over you: 'Attend to the sound of the horn', But they said: 'We will not at- tend/ ^Therefore hear, ye nations, And know, O congregation, what is against them. »Hear, O earth: Behold, I will bring evil upon this people, Even the fruit of their thoughts, Because they have not attended unto My words, And as for My teaching, they have rejected it.
2t>To what purpose Is to Me the frankincense that comoth from Shoba, And the sweet canes from a far country?
Your burnt-offerings are not accept- able, Nor your sacrifices pleading unto Me. "Therefore thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will lay stumblingblocks before this people, And the fathers and the sons to- gether shall stumble against them, The neighbour and his friend, and they shall perish.
'"Thus saith the LORD. Behold, a people cometh from the north country, And a great nation shall be roused from the uttermost parts of the earth.
^They lay hold on bow and spear, They are cruel, and have no com- passion;