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Jeremiah 5
New International Reader's Version
Jeremiah 5
New International Reader's Version
No One Is Honest
5 The Lord says, “Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem.
Look around.
Think about what you see.
Search through the market.
See if you can find one honest person who tries to be truthful.
If you can, I will forgive this city.
2 They make their promises in my name.
They say, ‘You can be sure that the Lord is alive.’
But their promises can’t be trusted.”
3 Lord, don’t your eyes look for truth?
You struck down your people.
But they didn’t feel any pain.
You crushed them.
But they refused to be corrected.
They made their faces harder than stone.
They refused to turn away from their sins.
4 I thought, “The people of
Jerusalem are foolish.
They don’t know how the Lord wants them to live.
They don’t know what their God requires of them.
5 So I will go to the leaders.
I’ll speak to them.
They should know how the Lord wants them to live.
They must know what their God requires of them.”
But all of them had broken off the yoke the Lord had put on them.
They had torn off the ropes he had tied them up with.
6 So a lion from the forest will attack them.
A wolf from the desert will destroy them.
A leopard will hide and wait near their towns.
It will tear to pieces anyone who dares to go out.
Again and again they have refused to obey the Lord.
They have turned away from him many times.
7 The Lord says, “Jerusalem, why should I forgive you?
Your people have deserted me.
They have made their promises in the names of gods
that are not really gods at all.
I supplied everything they needed.
But they committed adultery.
Large crowds went to the houses of prostitutes.
8 Your people are like stallions that have plenty to eat.
Their sinful desires are out of control.
Each of them goes after another man’s wife.
9 Shouldn’t I punish them for this?”
announces the Lord.
“Shouldn’t I pay back the nation
that does these things?
10 “Armies of Babylon, go through their vineyards and destroy them.
But do not destroy them completely.
Strip off their branches.
These people do not belong to me.
11 The people of Israel and the people of Judah
have not been faithful to me at all,”
announces the Lord.
12 They have told lies about the Lord.
They said, “He won’t do anything!
No harm will come to us.
We will never see war or be hungry.
13 The prophets are nothing but wind.
Their message doesn’t come from the Lord.
So let what they say will happen be done to them.”
14 The Lord God rules over all. He says to me,
“The people have spoken these words.
So my words will be like fire in your mouth.
I will make the people like wood.
And the fire will burn them up.”
15 “People of Israel, listen to me,”
announces the Lord.
“I am bringing against you
a nation from far away.
It is an old nation. And it will last for a long time.
Its people speak a language you do not know.
You can’t understand what they are saying.
16 The bags they carry their arrows in are like an open grave.
All their soldiers are mighty.
17 They will eat up your crops and your food.
They will strike down your sons and daughters.
They will kill your sheep and cattle.
They will destroy your vines and fig trees.
You trust in your cities that have high walls around them.
But the people in them will be killed by swords.
18 “In spite of that, even in those days I will not destroy you completely,” announces the Lord. 19 “ ‘Jeremiah,’ the people will ask, ‘Why has the Lord our God done all this to us?’ Then you will tell them, ‘You have deserted the Lord. You have served other gods in your own land. So now you will serve another nation in a land that is not your own.’
20 “Here is what I want you to announce
to the people of Jacob.
Tell it in Judah.
Tell them I say,
21 ‘Listen to this, you foolish people,
who do not have any sense.
You have eyes, but you do not see.
You have ears, but you do not hear.
22 Shouldn’t you have respect for me?’
announces the Lord.
‘Shouldn’t you tremble with fear in front of me?
I made the sand to hold the ocean back.
It will do that forever.
The ocean can’t go past it.
The waves might roll, but they can’t sweep over it.
They might roar, but they can’t go across it.
23 But you people have stubborn hearts.
You refuse to obey me.
You have turned away from me.
You have gone astray.
24 You do not say to yourselves,
“Let us have respect for the Lord our God.
He sends rain in the fall and the spring.
He promises us that the harvest will come
at the same time each year.”
25 But the things you have done wrong
have robbed you of these gifts.
Your sins have kept these good things
far away from you.’
26 “Jeremiah, some of my people are evil.
They hide and wait just as people hide to catch birds.
They set traps for people.
27 A hunter uses tricks to fill his cage with birds.
And my people have filled their houses with a lot of goods.
They have become rich and powerful.
28 They have grown fat and heavy.
There is no limit to the evil things they do.
In court they do not seek justice.
They don’t protect the rights of children whose fathers have died.
They do not stand up for poor people.
29 Shouldn’t I punish them for this?”
announces the Lord.
“Shouldn’t I pay back the
nation that does these things?
30 “Something horrible and shocking
has happened in the land.
31 The prophets prophesy lies.
The priests rule by their own authority.
And my people love it this way.
But what will you do in the end?”
Jeremiah 5
New International Version
Jeremiah 5
New International Version
Not One Is Upright
5 “Go up and down(A) the streets of Jerusalem,
look around and consider,(B)
search through her squares.
If you can find but one person(C)
who deals honestly(D) and seeks the truth,
I will forgive(E) this city.
2 Although they say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’(F)
still they are swearing falsely.(G)”
3 Lord, do not your eyes(H) look for truth?
You struck(I) them, but they felt no pain;
you crushed them, but they refused correction.(J)
They made their faces harder than stone(K)
and refused to repent.(L)
4 I thought, “These are only the poor;
they are foolish,(M)
for they do not know(N) the way of the Lord,
the requirements of their God.
5 So I will go to the leaders(O)
and speak to them;
surely they know the way of the Lord,
the requirements of their God.”
But with one accord they too had broken off the yoke
and torn off the bonds.(P)
6 Therefore a lion from the forest(Q) will attack them,
a wolf from the desert will ravage(R) them,
a leopard(S) will lie in wait near their towns
to tear to pieces any who venture out,
for their rebellion is great
and their backslidings many.(T)
7 “Why should I forgive you?
Your children have forsaken me
and sworn(U) by gods that are not gods.(V)
I supplied all their needs,
yet they committed adultery(W)
and thronged to the houses of prostitutes.(X)
8 They are well-fed, lusty stallions,
each neighing for another man’s wife.(Y)
9 Should I not punish them for this?”(Z)
declares the Lord.
“Should I not avenge(AA) myself
on such a nation as this?
10 “Go through her vineyards and ravage them,
but do not destroy them completely.(AB)
Strip off her branches,
for these people do not belong to the Lord.
11 The people of Israel and the people of Judah
have been utterly unfaithful(AC) to me,”
declares the Lord.
12 They have lied(AD) about the Lord;
they said, “He will do nothing!
No harm will come to us;(AE)
we will never see sword or famine.(AF)
13 The prophets(AG) are but wind(AH)
and the word is not in them;
so let what they say be done to them.”
14 Therefore this is what the Lord God Almighty says:
“Because the people have spoken these words,
I will make my words in your mouth(AI) a fire(AJ)
and these people the wood it consumes.(AK)
15 People of Israel,” declares the Lord,
“I am bringing a distant nation(AL) against you—
an ancient and enduring nation,
a people whose language(AM) you do not know,
whose speech you do not understand.
16 Their quivers(AN) are like an open grave;
all of them are mighty warriors.
17 They will devour(AO) your harvests and food,
devour(AP) your sons and daughters;
they will devour(AQ) your flocks and herds,
devour your vines and fig trees.(AR)
With the sword(AS) they will destroy
the fortified cities(AT) in which you trust.(AU)
18 “Yet even in those days,” declares the Lord, “I will not destroy(AV) you completely. 19 And when the people ask,(AW) ‘Why has the Lord our God done all this to us?’ you will tell them, ‘As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods(AX) in your own land, so now you will serve foreigners(AY) in a land not your own.’
20 “Announce this to the descendants of Jacob
and proclaim(AZ) it in Judah:
21 Hear this, you foolish and senseless people,(BA)
who have eyes(BB) but do not see,
who have ears but do not hear:(BC)
22 Should you not fear(BD) me?” declares the Lord.
“Should you not tremble(BE) in my presence?
I made the sand a boundary for the sea,(BF)
an everlasting barrier it cannot cross.
The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail;
they may roar,(BG) but they cannot cross it.
23 But these people have stubborn and rebellious(BH) hearts;
they have turned aside(BI) and gone away.
24 They do not say to themselves,
‘Let us fear(BJ) the Lord our God,
who gives autumn and spring rains(BK) in season,
who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.’(BL)
25 Your wrongdoings have kept these away;
your sins have deprived you of good.(BM)
26 “Among my people are the wicked(BN)
who lie in wait(BO) like men who snare birds
and like those who set traps(BP) to catch people.
27 Like cages full of birds,
their houses are full of deceit;(BQ)
they have become rich(BR) and powerful
28 and have grown fat(BS) and sleek.
Their evil deeds have no limit;
they do not seek justice.
They do not promote the case of the fatherless;(BT)
they do not defend the just cause of the poor.(BU)
29 Should I not punish them for this?”
declares the Lord.
“Should I not avenge(BV) myself
on such a nation as this?
Jeremiah 5
King James Version
Jeremiah 5
King James Version
5 Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it.
2 And though they say, The Lord liveth; surely they swear falsely.
3 O Lord, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.
4 Therefore I said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the way of the Lord, nor the judgment of their God.
5 I will get me unto the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have known the way of the Lord, and the judgment of their God: but these have altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds.
6 Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities: every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased.
7 How shall I pardon thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots' houses.
8 They were as fed horses in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbour's wife.
9 Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
10 Go ye up upon her walls, and destroy; but make not a full end: take away her battlements; for they are not the Lord's.
11 For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the Lord.
12 They have belied the Lord, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine:
13 And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.
14 Wherefore thus saith the Lord 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.
15 Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith the Lord: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say.
16 Their quiver is as an open sepulchre, they are all mighty men.
17 And they shall eat up thine harvest, and thy bread, which thy sons and thy daughters should eat: they shall eat up thy flocks and thine herds: they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig trees: they shall impoverish thy fenced cities, wherein thou trustedst, with the sword.
18 Nevertheless in those days, saith the Lord, I will not make a full end with you.
19 And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the Lord our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer 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 your's.
20 Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying,
21 Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not:
22 Fear ye not me? saith the Lord: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?
23 But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone.
24 Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the Lord our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: he reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.
25 Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.
26 For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men.
27 As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich.
28 They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass the deeds of the wicked: they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper; and the right of the needy do they not judge.
29 Shall I not visit for these things? saith the Lord: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
30 A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land;
31 The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?
New International Reader's Version (NIRV) 
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.