8 “‘The Lord says: At that time they will ·remove [L bring out] from their tombs the bones of Judah’s kings and ·officers [princes], priests and prophets, and the ·people [inhabitants] of Jerusalem. 2 The bones will be spread on the ground under the sun, moon, and ·stars [L the hosts of heaven] that the people loved and served and went after and searched for and ·worshiped [bowed down to]. No one will gather up the bones and bury them. So they will be like dung on the ground. 3 ·I will force the people of Judah to leave their homes and their land. Those of this evil family who are not dead will wish they were [L Death will be preferred to life by all the remnant of those who remain from this evil clan in all the places where I have driven them], says the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts].’
Sin and Punishment
4 “Say to them [C the people of Judah]: ‘This is what the Lord says:
When people fall down, don’t they get up again?
And when someone goes the wrong way, doesn’t he turn back?
5 Why, then, have the people of Jerusalem gone the wrong way
and not turned back?
They ·believe their own lies [persisted in deceit/treachery]
and refuse to turn back.
6 I have ·listened to them very carefully [paid attention and listened],
but they do not say what is ·right [honest].
They do not ·feel sorry about their wicked ways [L repent of evil],
saying, “What have I done?”
Each person ·goes his own way [runs his course],
like a horse ·charging [plunging] into a battle.
7 Even the storks in the ·sky [heavens]
know ·the right times to do things [their appointed times].
The ·doves [turtledoves], ·swifts [or swallows], and ·thrushes [or cranes]
·know [observe] when it is time to ·migrate [return].
But my people don’t know
·what the Lord wants them to do [L the ordinances/judgments of the Lord].
8 “‘·You keep saying [L How can you say…?], “We are wise,
·because we have the teachings of the Lord [L and the teachings/laws/instructions of the Lord are with us].”
But actually, ·those who explain the Scriptures
have written lies with their pens [L the false pens of the scribes have made it a lie].
9 These wise teachers ·refused to listen to [L rejected] the word of the Lord,
so ·they are not really wise at all [L what wisdom is in them?].
They will be ·ashamed [humiliated].
They will be ·shocked [stunned; astonished] and trapped.
10 So I will give their wives to other men
and their fields to ·new owners [or conquerors].
Everyone, from the least important to the greatest,
is greedy for ·money [unjust gain].
Even the prophets and priests
all ·tell lies [act falsely; are deceptive; 6:13].
11 They tried to heal my people’s ·serious injuries [fracture]
as if they were small wounds.
They said, “·It’s all right, it’s all right [L Peace, peace].”
But ·really, it is not all right [L there is no peace; 6:14].
12 They should be ashamed of the ·terrible way they act [abominations they do],
but they are not ashamed at all.
They don’t even know how to blush [C about their sins].
So they will fall, along with ·everyone else [L those who fall].
They will ·be thrown to the ground [stumble] ·when [L at the time] I punish them, says the Lord [6:15].
13 “‘I will ·take away their crops [L gather them; or bring an end to them], says the Lord.
There will be no grapes on the vine
and no figs on the fig tree.
Even the leaves will dry up.
I will take away what I gave them.’”
14 “Why are we just sitting here?
Let’s ·get [gather] together!
We have sinned against the Lord,
so he has given us poisoned water to drink.
Come, let’s ·run [L go] to the ·strong, walled [fortified] cities.
The Lord our God has ·decided that we must die [doomed us],
so let’s ·die [meet our doom] there.
15 We hoped to have peace,
but ·nothing good has come [L there is none].
We hoped for a time when he would heal us,
but only terror has come.
16 From the land of Dan [C in the far north of Israel, the direction from which the Babylonians attacked],
the snorting of its [C the enemy’s] horses is heard.
The ·ground [earth] shakes from the neighing of their ·large horses [stallions].
They have come and ·destroyed [L consumed]
the land and everything in it,
the city and all ·who live there [its inhabitants].”
17 “Look! I am sending poisonous snakes [C to attack you].
These ·snakes [vipers] cannot be charmed,
and they will bite you,” says the Lord.
Jeremiah’s Sadness
18 God, ·you are my comfort when I am very sad [L my cheerfulness is gone; grief has come on me]
and ·when I am afraid [L my heart is sick].
19 Listen to the ·sound [L cry of distress] of ·my people [L the daughter of my people].
They cry from a faraway land:
“Isn’t the Lord still in ·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple]?
Isn’t ·Jerusalem’s [L its] king still there?”
But God says, “Why did the people make me angry ·by worshiping idols [L with their images],
useless foreign idols?”
20 And the people say, “Harvest time is over;
summer has ended,
and we have not been ·saved [rescued].”
21 Because my people are ·crushed [broken; fractured], I am ·crushed [broken; fractured].
I ·cry loudly [mourn; lament; wail] and ·am afraid for them [L horror has seized me].
22 Isn’t there balm [C the resin of the storax tree used as medicine] in the land of Gilead [C southern section of the Transjordan region]?
Isn’t there a doctor there?
So why ·aren’t the hurts of my people healed [L is there no new skin on the wound of the daughter of my people]?