JEREMIAH 6 [†] Flee for safety,  z O people of Benjamin,

from the midst of Jerusalem!

Blow the trumpet in  a Tekoa,

and raise a signal on  b Beth-haccherem,

for disaster looms  c out of the north,

and great destruction.

2[†] The lovely and delicately bred I will destroy,

 d the daughter of Zion. [1]

3  e Shepherds with their flocks shall come against her;

 f they shall pitch their tents around her;

they shall pasture, each in his place.

4[†]  g “Prepare war against her;

arise, and let us attack  h at noon!

Woe to us, for the day declines,

for the shadows of evening lengthen!

5 Arise, and let us attack by night

and destroy her palaces!”

6[†] For thus says the LORD of hosts:

 i “Cut down her trees;

 j cast up a siege mound against Jerusalem.

This is the city that must be  k punished;

there is nothing but oppression within her.

7[†]  l As a well keeps its water fresh,

so she keeps fresh her evil;

 m violence and destruction are heard within her;

sickness and wounds are ever before me.

8[†] Be warned, O Jerusalem,

 n lest I turn from you in disgust,

lest I make you  o a desolation,

an uninhabited land.”

9[†] Thus says the LORD of hosts:

 p “They shall glean thoroughly as a vine

the remnant of Israel;

like a grape gatherer pass your hand again

over its branches.”

10[†]  q To whom shall I speak and give warning,

that they may hear?

 r Behold, their ears are uncircumcised,

 s they cannot listen;

behold,  t the word of the LORD is to them an object of scorn;

they take no pleasure in it.

11[†] Therefore I am full of the wrath of the LORD;

 u I am weary of holding it in.

 v “Pour it out upon the children in the street,

and upon the gatherings of young men, also;

 w both husband and wife  x shall be taken,

the elderly and the very aged.

12[†]  y Their houses shall be turned over to others,

their fields and wives together,

for I will stretch out my hand

against the inhabitants of the land,”

declares the LORD.

13[†]  z “For from the least to the greatest of them,

everyone  a is greedy for unjust gain;

and from  b prophet to priest,

everyone deals falsely.

14[^] They have healed the wound of my people lightly,

saying,  c ‘Peace, peace,’

 d when there is no peace.

15  e Were they ashamed when they committed abomination?

No, they were not at all ashamed;

they did not know how to blush.

Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;

 f at the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown,”

says the LORD.

16[†] Thus says the LORD:

“Stand by the roads, and look,

and ask for  g the ancient paths,

where the good way is; and walk in it,

 h and find rest for your souls.

But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’

17[†]  i I set watchmen over you, saying,

‘Pay attention to  j the sound of the trumpet!’

But they said,  k ‘We will not pay attention.’

18[†] Therefore hear, O nations,

and know, O congregation, what will happen to them.

19 Hear, O earth; behold, I am bringing disaster upon this people,

 l the fruit of their devices,

because they have not paid attention to my words;

and as for my law, they have rejected it.

20[†]  m What use to me is  n frankincense that comes from  o Sheba,

or sweet cane from a distant land?

 p Your burnt offerings are not acceptable,

nor your sacrifices pleasing to me.

21[†] Therefore thus says the LORD:

 q ‘Behold, I will lay before this people

stumbling blocks against which they shall stumble;

fathers and sons together,

neighbor and friend shall perish.’”

22[†] Thus says the LORD:

 r “Behold, a people is coming  s from the north country,

a great nation is stirring from  t the farthest parts of the earth.

23 They lay hold on bow and javelin;

they are  u cruel and have no mercy;

 v the sound of them is like the roaring sea;

they ride on horses,

set in array as a man for battle,

against you, O daughter of Zion!”

24[†] We have heard the report of it;

 w our hands fall helpless;

anguish has taken hold of us,

 x pain as of a woman in labor.

25[†] Go not out into the field,

nor walk on the road,

for the enemy has a sword;

 y terror is on every side.

26[†] O daughter of my people,  z put on sackcloth,

and  a roll in ashes;

 b make mourning as for an only son,

most bitter lamentation,

for suddenly the destroyer

will come upon us.

27[†] “I have made you  c a tester of metals among my people,

that you may know and  d test their ways.

28  e They are all stubbornly rebellious,

 f going about with slanders;

they are  g bronze and iron;

all of them act corruptly.

29 The  g bellows blow fiercely;

the lead is consumed by the fire;

 h in vain the refining goes on,

for the wicked are not removed.

30[†]  i Rejected silver they are called,

for the LORD has rejected them.”