THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET
JEREMIAH
Jeremiah 2 ©
God sets before the eyes of His people, in a serious manner, the mercies which He had bestowed on them from the beginning, and complains vehemently of their abominable, continual and most unreasonable idolatrous unthankfulness, v. 1, etc. Such was not to be found among the heathen, 10. And their horrible and double wickedness, 12. Whereby they themselves are the cause of their miseries, 14. An upbraiding of their running in vain to Egypt and Asshur, 18, 36. Likewise of their loose, impudent, stiff-necked, manifold and more than paganish idolatry, and shamefully forgetting and forsaking of God, 20. Likewise blood-shedding and hypocrisy, 34.
MOREOVER the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Go and cry in the ears of 1Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; 2I remember thee, the kindness 3of thy youth, the love of thine espousals,a when thou wentest after me in the wilderness, 4in a land that was not sown.
Israel was 5holiness unto the LORD, and the firstfruits of his increase: all that 6devour him shall 7offend; 8evil shall come upon them, saith the LORD.
Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:
¶Thus saith the LORD, Whatb iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after 9vanity, and are become vain?
Neither 10said they, Where is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us through the wilderness, through a land of 11deserts and of pits, through a land of drought, and of the 12shadow of death, through a land that no man passed through, and where no man dwelt?
And 13I brought you into a 14plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine 15heritage an 16abomination.
The priests said not, Where is the LORD? and they 17thatc handle the law knew me not: the pastors also 18transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied 19by Baal, and walked after things that do 20not profit.
¶Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children's children will I plead.
For pass over the isles of 21Chittim, and see; and send unto 22Kedar, and consider 23diligently, and see if there be such a thing.
Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changedd their 24glory for that which doth not profit.
Be astonished, O ye 25heavens,e at this, and 26be horribly afraid, 27be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.
For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the 28fountainf of 29living waters, and hewed them out 30cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.
¶Is Israel a 31servant? is he a 32homeborn slave? why 33is he spoiled?
Theg young 34lions roared upon him, and 35yelled, and they made his land waste:h his cities are burned without inhabitant.
Also the 36children of Noph and 37Tahapanes have broken the 38crown of thy head.
Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when he led thee by the 39way?
And now what 40hast thou to do in the way of Egypt,i to drink the waters of 41Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the 42river?
Thine own wickednessj43shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of 44hosts.
¶ 45For 46of old time I have broken thy 47yoke, and 48burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not 49transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou 50wanderest, playing the 51harlot.
Yet I had plantedk thee a noble vine, wholly a 52right seed: how then art thou turned into the 53degenerate plant of a 54strange vine unto me?
For though thou 55washl thee with 56nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is 57marked before me, saith the Lord GOD.
How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy 58way in the 59valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a 60swift dromedary 61traversing her ways;
A wild ass 62used to the wilderness, that 63snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? 64all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her 65month they shall find her.
66Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, 67There is no hope: no; for I have loved 68strangers, and after them will I go.
69As the thief is ashamed when he is 70found, so 71is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets,
Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast 72brought me forth: for they have turned their 73back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of their 74trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.
But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee? 75let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble: for 76according to them number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah.
Wherefore will ye plead with me? ye all have transgressed 77against me, saith the LORD.
In vain have I 78smittenn your children; they received noo79correction: your own 80sword hath devoured your prophets, like a 81destroying lion.
¶Op generation, 82see ye the word of the LORD. 83Have I been a wilderness unto Israel? a land 84of darkness? wherefore say my people, 85We are lords; we will come no more unto thee?
Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her 86attire? yet my people have forgottenq87me 88days without number.
Why trimmestr thou thy way to seek 89love? 90therefore hast thou also taught the wicked ones thy ways.
Also in thy 91skirts is found the blood of the 92souls of the poor innocents: I have not found 93it by secret search, but upon 94all these.
Yet thou sayest, Because I am innocent, surely 95his anger shall turn from me. Behold, I will 96plead with thee, because thou sayest, I have not sinned.
Why gaddest thou about so 97much 98to change thy way? thou also shalt be 99ashamed of 100Egypt,s as thou wast ashamed of 101Assyria.
Yea, thou shalt go forth 102from him, and thine 103hands upon thine head: for the LORD hath rejected 104thy confidences, and thou shalt not prosper in them.