Old Testament · Prophets

Jeremiah chapter 13

This is what told me: “Go buy yourself a and wear it around your waist — but don’t wash it in water.”So I bought the undergarment, just as Yahweh told me, and I put it on.Then Yahweh’s message came to me a second time:“Take the undergarment you bought — the one you’re wearing — and go to the . Hide it there in a crack in the rocks.”So I went and hid it near the Euphrates, just as Yahweh told me to.A long time later, Yahweh said to me, “Go back to the Euphrates and get the undergarment I told you to hide there.”So I went to the Euphrates and dug it up from the place where I had hidden it — and the undergarment was . Completely useless.Then Yahweh’s message came to me:“This is what Yahweh says: In the same way, I will ruin the of Judah and the massive arrogance of Jerusalem.”“These evil people who refuse to listen to what I say, who , who chase after other gods to serve them and bow down to them — they will end up just like this undergarment: completely useless.”“Because just as an undergarment to a person’s waist, I made the entire house of Israel and the entire house of Judah cling to me” — this is Yahweh’s — “so they would be my people, my reputation, my praise, and my . But they refused to listen.”“Now tell them this: ‘This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says: Every should be filled with wine.’ And when they say to you, ‘Obviously! Don’t we already know that every wineskin gets filled with wine?’“Then tell them: ‘This is what Yahweh says: I’m about to fill everyone who lives in this land with — the kings who sit on , the priests, the prophets, and everyone living in Jerusalem.’”“And I will — parents and children alike” — this is Yahweh’s declaration. “I won’t feel sorry for them, I won’t show mercy, I won’t have any compassion that would stop me from destroying them.”Listen — really listen. Don’t be arrogant, because Yahweh has spoken.Give Yahweh your God the he deserves before he brings the darkness — before your feet stumble on the mountains at twilight. You’re hoping for light, but he’ll turn it into , reshaping it into pitch black.But if you won’t listen, I will weep in secret because of your arrogance. My eyes will overflow, streaming with tears, because has been taken captive.Tell the king and the : “Come down from your thrones, because your magnificent crowns have fallen from your heads.”The cities in the are sealed shut; no one can open them. All of Judah has been carried off — every last person, taken into .Look up, Jerusalem, and see them coming ! Where is the flock that was given to you — your beautiful sheep?What will you say when he puts people over you as rulers — the very ones you trained to be your closest allies? Won’t seize you like a woman in labor?And if you ask yourself, “Why is this happening to me?” — it’s because of your overwhelming that your skirts have been torn off, your body .Can an change the color of his skin? Can a leopard get rid of its spots? Then maybe you could do something good — you who are so trained in doing evil.“So I will scatter you like blown by the desert wind.”“This is what you get — the I’ve measured out for you,” declares Yahweh, “because you forgot me and put your trust in .”“So I myself will strip your skirts up over your face, and your will be on full display.”“I’ve seen your disgusting acts — your , your lustful cravings, your shameless — on the hills and in the fields. , Jerusalem! How long will you stay so filthy?”