A Call to Repentance
1 The Lord says, “People of Israel, if you want to turn, then turn back to me. If you are faithful to me and remove the idols I hate, 2 it will be right for you to swear by my name. Then all the nations will ask me to bless them, and they will praise me.”
3 The Lord says to the people of Judah and Jerusalem, “Plow up your unplowed fields; do not plant your seeds among thorns. 4 Keep your covenant with me, your Lord, and dedicate yourselves to me, you people of Judah and Jerusalem. If you don't, my anger will burn like fire because of the evil things you have done. It will burn, and there will be no one to put it out.”
Judah Is Threatened with Invasion
5 Blow the trumpet throughout the land!
Shout loud and clear!
Tell the people of Judah and Jerusalem
to run to the fortified cities.
6 Point the way to Zion!
Run for safety! Don't delay!
The Lord is bringing disaster
and great destruction from the north.
7 Like a lion coming from its hiding place,
a destroyer of nations has set out.
He is coming to destroy Judah.
The cities of Judah will be left in ruins,
and no one will live in them.
8 So put on sackcloth, and weep and wail
because the fierce anger of the Lord
has not turned away from Judah.
9 The Lord said, “On that day kings and officials will lose their courage; priests will be shocked and prophets will be astonished.”
10 Then I said, “Sovereign Lord, you have completely deceived the people of Jerusalem! You have said there would be peace, but a sword is at their throats.”
11 The time is coming when the people of Jerusalem will be told that a scorching wind is blowing in from the desert toward them. It will not be a gentle wind that only blows away the chaff— 12 the wind that comes at the Lord's command will be much stronger than that! It is the Lord himself who is pronouncing judgment on his people.
Judah Is Surrounded by Enemies
13 Look, the enemy is coming like clouds. Their war chariots are like a whirlwind, and their horses are faster than eagles. We are lost! We are doomed!
14 Jerusalem, wash the evil from your heart, so that you may be saved. How long will you go on thinking sinful thoughts?
15 Messengers from the city of Dan and from the hills of Ephraim announce the bad news. 16 They have come to warn the nations and to tell Jerusalem that enemies are coming from a country far away. These enemies will shout against the cities of Judah 17 and will surround Jerusalem like men guarding a field, because her people have rebelled against the Lord. The Lord has spoken.
18 Judah, you have brought this on yourself by the way you have lived and by the things you have done. Your sin has caused this suffering; it has stabbed you through the heart.
Jeremiah's Sorrow for His People
19 The pain! I can't bear the pain!
My heart! My heart is beating wildly!
I can't keep quiet;
I hear the trumpets
and the shouts of battle.
20 One disaster follows another;
the whole country is left in ruins.
Suddenly our tents are destroyed;
their curtains are torn to pieces.
21 How long must I see the battle raging
and hear the blasts of trumpets?
22 The Lord says, “My people are stupid;
they don't know me.
They are like foolish children;
they have no understanding.
They are experts at doing what is evil,
but failures at doing what is good.”
Jeremiah's Vision of the Coming Destruction
23 I looked at the earth—it was a barren waste;
at the sky—there was no light.
24 I looked at the mountains—they were shaking,
and the hills were rocking back and forth.
25 I saw that there were no people;
even the birds had flown away.
26 The fertile land had become a desert;
its cities were in ruins
because of the Lord's fierce anger.
( 27 The Lord has said that the whole earth will become a wasteland, but that he will not completely destroy it.)
28 The earth will mourn;
the sky will grow dark.
The Lord has spoken
and will not change his mind.
He has made his decision
and will not turn back.
29 At the noise of the cavalry and archers
everyone will run away.
Some will run to the forest;
others will climb up among the rocks.
Every town will be left empty,
and no one will live in them again.
30 Jerusalem, you are doomed!
Why do you dress in scarlet?
Why do you put on jewelry and paint your eyes?
You are making yourself beautiful for nothing!
Your lovers have rejected you
and want to kill you.
31 I heard a cry, like a woman in labor,
a scream like a woman bearing her first child.
It was the cry of Jerusalem gasping for breath,
stretching out her hand and saying,
“I am doomed!
They are coming to kill me!”
الدعوة إلى التوبة
1 وقال الرّبُّ: «إنْ رَجَعْتِ يا إِسرائيلُ إليَّ ونَزَعْتِ أصنامَكِ الرَّجسةَ مِنْ أمامِ وجهي وكُنتِ أمينةً لي. 2 وإنْ حَلَفْتِ: «حَيٌّ هوَ الرّبُّ»، بِالحَقِّ والعَدلِ والاستِقامةِ، تَبارَكَت بِكِ الأُمَمُ وافتَخَرت».
3 وقالَ الرّبُّ لِرجالِ يَهوذا ولأورُشليمَ: «إفلَحوا أرضَكُم غَيرَ المَفلوحَةِ ولا تَزرَعوا بَينَ الأشواكِ. 4 عاهِدوا الرّبَّ في قُلوبِكُم يا رِجالَ يَهوذا وسُكَّانَ أورُشليمَ لِئلاَّ يَخرُجَ غضَبـي كالنَّارِ لِشَرِّ أعمالِكُم، فَيُحرِقَ ولا مَنْ يُطفئُ.
الغزو يهدد يهوذا
5 أخبروا في يَهوذا،
أَذيعوا في أُورُشليمَ،
أنفُخوا بِالبوقِ في الأرضِ.
نادوا بِمِلءِ أفواهِكُم
وقولوا: إِجتمعوا.
أُدخُلوا المُدُنَ الحصينةَ.
6 إرفعوا رايةً نحوَ صِهيَونَ،
أُهربوا، لا تَقِفوا.
سَأجلِبُ شَرًّا مِنَ الشِّمالِ
وويلا شديدَ الهَولِ.
7 طلَعَ الأسدُ مِنْ عَرينِهِ!
ها هوَ قاهِرُ الأُمَمِ!
يزحَفُ خارِجا مِنْ مكانِهِ
ليَجعَلَ الأرضَ خَرابا،
لا يسكُنُ فيها ساكِنٌ.
8 لذلِكَ اتَّزِروا بالمُسوحِ!
وَلْوِلوا والطِموا الخُدودَ،
فَحِدَّةُ غضَبِ الرّبِّ
لم تَنصَرِفْ عنَّا».
9 وقالَ الرّبُّ: «في ذلِكَ اليومِ يخُورُ قلبُ المَلِكِ وقلوبُ الرُّؤساءِ، ويتَحَيَّرُ الكهَنةُ ويتَعَجَّبُ الأنبـياءُ 10 ويقولُ الشَّعبُ: أيُّها السَّيِّدُ الرّبُّ! أنتَ حقًّا خدَعْتَنا حينَ قلتَ لنا: تَنعَمونَ بالسَّلامِ، وها هوَ السَّيفُ على رِقابِنا».
11 في ذلِكَ الزَّمانِ يقولُ الرّبُّ لِهذا الشَّعبِ ولأورُشليمَ: «رِيحٌ لافِحةٌ تَهُبُّ مِنْ رَوابـي البرِّيَّةِ على قَومي، لا لِتَذْريةِ البَيادِرِ ولا لِتَنقيتِها. 12 هيَ ريحٌ أشَدُّ مِنها تَهُبُّ مِنْ عِندي، فَأُعلِنُ أنا نفسي حُكْمي علَيكُم.
13 أُنظُروا. ها العَدُوُّ صاعِدٌ كسَحابٍ، مركَباتُهُ كالزَّوبَعَةِ وخَيلُهُ أخَفُّ مِنَ النُّسورِ. ويلٌ لنا، هلَكْنا!
14 إِغسِلي مِنَ الشَّرِّ قلبَكِ يا أورُشليمُ فتَخلُصي. إلى متى تَبـيتُ في داخِلِك أفكارُكِ الشِّرِّيرةُ؟
15 صوتُ مُخبِرٍ مِنْ دانَ بالبليَّةِ ومُنادٍ بِها مِنْ جبَلِ أفرايمَ: 16 أُنذُروا الأُمَمَ! أَخبِروا أورُشليمَ! المُحاصِرونَ قادِمونَ مِنْ أرضٍ بَعيدةٍ. يَرفعونَ الصَّوتَ على مُدُنِ يَهوذا، 17 ويُحيطونَ بِها كَنواطيرِ الحُقولِ، لأنَّها تمَرَّدَت عليَّ يقولُ الرّبُّ».
18 طُرُقكِ وأعمالُكِ جَلَبَت علَيكِ هذا كُلَّهُ. ذلِكَ مَصيرُكِ وهوَ مُرٌّ، ومرارتُهُ بَلَغَت إلى قلبِكِ.
حزن إرميا على الشعب
19 أحشائي، أحشائي تُوجِعُني!
قلبـي يَئِنُّ بَينَ جُدرانِهِ.
كيفَ السُّكوتُ وأنا سَمِعْتُ
صوتَ البُوقِ وهُتافَ الحربِ؟
20 نَكبَةٌ على نَكبَةٍ أشَدَّ،
فالأرضُ كُلُّها خرابٌ.
دُمِّرَت خيامُنا بَغتَةً
ومَساكِنُنا في لَحظَةٍ.
21 إلى متى أرى رايةَ الحربِ
وأسمَعُ صوتَ البُوقِ؟
22 شعبـي جاهلٌ لا يَعرفُني.
بَنونَ حَمْقى لا فَهْمَ لهُم
وحُكَماءُ في عمَلِ الشَّرِّ
لا يَعرفونَ ما لِلخَيرِ.
رؤيا الخراب الآتي
23 نظَرتُ إلى الأرضِ، فهيَ خَلاءٌ
وإلى السَّماواتِ فلا نُورَ فيها،
24 نظَرتُ إلى الجِبالِ، فهيَ تَرتَجِفُ
وجميعُ التِّلالِ تـتَزَعزعُ.
25 نظَرتُ فما مِنْ إنسانٍ،
وطُيورُ السَّماءِ كُلُّها هرَبَت.
26 ورَأيتُ الجنَائِنَ صارَت قَفرا
وجميعَ المَدائِنِ أنقاضا
مِنْ وجهِ الرّبِّ وحِدَّةِ غضَبِهِ.
27 فهذا ما قالَ الرّبُّ:
«سأُخرِّبُ الأرضَ كُلَّها،
لكِنِّي لا أفنيها».
28 فتَنوحُ الأرضُ نُواحا
وتُظلِمُ السَّماواتُ مِنْ فَوقُ
أنا تَكَلَّمْتُ ولا أندَمُ،
وعَزَمتُ ولا أرجِـعُ عَنهُ».
29 مِنْ صوتِ الفارسِ والرَّامي بالقوسِ
فَرَّ سُكَّانُ المُدُنِ جميعا.
دَخَلوا الغابَ أو صَعِدوا الصُّخورَ،
فكُلُّ مدينةٍ مَهجورةٍ،
ولا إنسانَ ساكنٌ فيها.
30 وأنتِ ماذا تفعَلينَ
أيَّتُها المدينةُ الخرابُ؟
تَلبَسينَ ثيابَ القِرمِزِ،
وتَتَحَلينَ بِـحُلِـيِّ الذَّهَبِ،
وتُكَحِّلينَ بالإثْمِدِ عينَيكِ،
ولكِنْ باطِلا تـتَجَمَّلينَ.
عُشَّاقُكِ الآنَ يَمقُتونَكِ
وهُم يَطلبونَ حياتَكِ!
31 سَمِعتُ صوتا كصوتِ المَخاضِ
كتَوَجُّعِ الّتي تَلِدُ بِكْرَها.
هوَ صوتُ ابنَةِ صِهيَونَ
تَنتَحِبُ وتَبسِطُ كَفَّيها:
«ويلٌ لي، أُغميَ عليَّ
مِنَ القتَلَةِ المُحيطينَ بـي».
