“Jeremiah, do not pray for these people, do not lift up a cry or a prayer for them, and do not intercede with me, for I will not hear you. Don’t you see what they’re doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the wives knead dough to make ritual cakes for the goddess Ishtar, known as the Queen of Heaven. They also pour out drink offerings to other gods to defy me. Yet, I am not the one they are hurting, says YAHWEH; they are hurting themselves to their own shame. Therefore, listen to the words of the Lord YAHWEH: ‘My anger and my wrath will be poured out in this place, on the people and the animals, on the trees and on the crops; my anger will burn as a fire that no one can put out.’
“This is what YAHWEH, God of Israel, Commander of Angel Armies says: ‘You might as well eat all your burnt offerings yourselves. For when I led your ancestors out of Egypt, I did not command them to bring me burnt offerings and sacrifices. Rather, I commanded them: “Listen to my voice, and I will be your God, and you will be my people. Live your lives according to what I command you that all may go well with you.” But they did not listen or obey. They followed their own stubborn plans of their evil hearts. They disrespected me and went backward, not forward. From the day that I led your ancestors out of Egypt until now, I have persistently sent you my servants the prophets, but my people did not listen to me or obey; rather, they stubbornly did more evil than their fathers.’
“And when you tell them all this, they will not hear you. You will call to them, but they won’t respond to you. Then you will say to them: ‘You are the nation that refused to listen to the voice of your God, YAHWEH. Truth has perished and disappeared from their lips, for they did not accept YAHWEH’s correction.’ ”
“People of Jerusalem, cut off your long hair and throw it away, and raise your song of mourning on the hilltops, for YAHWEH has rejected and abandoned the generation of his fury.
Bible App
Bible App for Kids
