1 OH that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!
2 Oh that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of wayfaring men; that I might leave my people, and go from them! for they be all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men.
3 And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me, saith the Lord.
4 Take ye heed every one of his neighbour, and trust ye not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbour will walk with slanders.
5 And they will deceive every one his neighbour, and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongue to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity.
6 Thine habitation is in the midst of deceit; through deceit they refuse to know me, saith the Lord.
7 Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, Behold, I will melt them, and try them; for how shall I do for the daughter of my people?
8 Their tongue is as an arrow shot out; it speaketh deceit: one speaketh peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth, but in heart he layeth his wait.
9 Shall I not visit them for these things? saith the Lord: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
10 For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are burned up, so that none can pass through them; neither can men hear the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled; they are gone.
11 And I will make Jerusalem heaps, and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant.
12 Who is the wise man, that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken, that he may declare it, for what the land perisheth and is burned up like a wilderness, that none passeth through?
13 And the Lord saith, Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice, neither walked therein;
14 But have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them:
15 Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink.
16 I will scatter them also among the heathen, whom neither they nor their fathers have known: and I will send a sword after them, till I have consumed them.
17 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Consider ye, and call for the mourning women, that they may come; and send for cunning women, that they may come:
18 And let them make haste, and take up a wailing for us, that our eyes may run down with tears, and our eyelids gush out with waters.
19 For a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion, How are we spoiled! we are greatly confounded, because we have forsaken the land, because our dwellings have cast us out.
20 Yet hear the word of the Lord, O ye women, and let your ear receive the word of his mouth, and teach your daughters wailing, and every one her neighbour lamentation.
21 For death is come up into our windows, and is entered into our palaces, to cut off the children from without, and the young men from the streets.
22 Speak, Thus saith the Lord, Even the carcases of men shall fall as dung upon the open field, and as the handful after the harvestman, and none shall gather them.
23 Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches:
24 But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.
25 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will punish all them which are circumcised with the uncircumcised;

1Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountaine of teares, that I might weepe day and night for the slaine of the daughter of my people.

2Oh that I had in the wildernesse a lodging place of wayfaring men, that I might leaue my people, and goe from them: for they be all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men.

3And they bend their tongue like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the trueth vpon the earth: for they proceed from euil to euill, and they know not me, saith the Lord.

4Take yee heede euery one of his neighbour, and trust yee not in any brother: for euery brother will vtterly supplant, and euery neighbour will walke with slanders.

5And they will deceiue euery one his neighbour, and will not speake the trueth, they haue taught their tongue to speake lies, and weary themselues to commit iniquity.

6Thine habitation is in the middest of deceit, through deceit they refuse to know me, sayth the Lord.

7Therfore thus saith the Lord of hostes; Behold, I will melt them, and trie them: for how shall I doe for the daughter of my people?

8Their tongue is as an arrowe shot out, it speaketh deceit: one speaketh peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth, but in heart he layeth his waite.

9 Shall I not visit them for these things, saith the Lord ? shall not my soule be auenged on such a nation as this?

10For the mountaines will I take vp a weeping and wayling, and for the habitations of the wildernesse a lamentation, because they are burnt vp, so that none can passe through them, neither can men heare the voyce of the cattell, both the foule of the heauens, and the beast are fled, they are gone.

11And I will make Ierusalem heapes, and a denne of dragons, and I wil make the cities of Iudah desolate, without an inhabitant.

12 Who is the wise man that may vnderstand this, and who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken, that hee may declare it; for what the land perisheth, and is burnt vp like a wildernesse that none passeth through?

13And the Lord saith; Because they haue forsaken my law, which I set before them, and haue not obeyed my voyce, neither walked therein;

14But haue walked after the imagination of their owne heart, & after Baalim, which their fathers taught them:

15Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I will feed them, euen this people with wormewood, and giue them water of gall to drinke.

16I will scatter them also among the heathen, whome neither they nor their fathers haue knowen: and I wil send a sword after them, til I haue consumed them.

17 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Consider yee, and call for the mourning women, that they may come, and send for cunning women, that they may come.

18And let them make haste, and take vp a wailing for vs, that our eyes may run down with teares, and our eyelids gush out with waters.

19For a voyce of wayling is heard out of Zion, How are we spoiled? wee are greatly confounded, because wee haue forsaken the land, because our dwellings haue cast vs out.

20Yet heare the word of the Lord, O ye women, & let your eare receiue the word of his mouth, and teach your daughters wailing, and euery one her neighbour lamentation.

21For death is come vp into our windowes, and is entred into our palaces, to cut off the children from without and the yong men from the streetes.

22Speake, Thus saith the Lord, Euen the carkeises of men shall fall as dung vpon the open field, and as the handfull after the haruest man, and none shall gather them.

23 Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches.

24But let him that glorieth, glory in this, that hee vnderstandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise louing kindnesse, iudgement and righteousnesse in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.

25 Behold, the dayes come, saith the Lord, that I will punish all them which are circumcised, with the vncircumcised,

26Egypt, and Iudah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all that are in the vtmost corners, that dwell in the wildernesse: for all these nations are vncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are vncircumcised in the heart.

II == Jer 5:7-8

III == 1st Sam 2:12 Ps. 64:3 ; Isa 59:4 , 13 , 15 ; Hos 4:1

iv == Jer 6:28 ; 12:6 ; Mic 7:5-6

VII == Isa 1:25 ; Hos 11:8 ; Mal 3:3

VIII == Ps 12:2 ; 28:3 ; 55:21 ; 120:3 ; Jer 9:3

IX == Jer 5:9 , 29

X == Jer 4:25 ; 12:4 ; 23:10 ; Hos 4:3

XI == Isa 13:22 ; 25:2 ; 34:13 ; Jer 10:22

XII == Ps 107:43 ; Hos 14:9

XIV == Jer 3:17 ; 7:24 ; Gal 1:14

XV == Ps 80:5 ; Jer 8:14 ; 23:15 ; Lam 3:15 , 19

XVI == Lev 26:33 ; Deut 28:64 ; Jer 44:27 ; Ezek 5:2 , 12

XVII == 2nd chr 35:25 ; Matt 9:23

XIX == Lev 18:28 ; 20:22

XXI == Jer 6:11

XXII == Jer 8:2 ; 16:4

XXIII == Eccl 9:11

XXIV == Mic 6:8 ; 7:18 ; 1st Cor 1:31 ; 2nd Cor 10:17

XXV == Rom 2:8-9

XXVI == Lev 18:3 ; 20:23 ; 26:41 ; Jer 25:23 ; 49:32 ; Ezek 44:7 ; Rom 2:28-29

1 Would that I had in the desert a travelers' lodge! That I might leave my people and depart from them. They are all adulterers, a faithless band.

2 They ready their tongues like a drawn bow; with lying, and not with truth, they hold forth in the land. They go from evil to evil, but me they know not, says the LORD.

3 Be on your guard, everyone against his neighbor; put no trust in any brother. Every brother apes Jacob, the supplanter, every friend is guilty of slander.

4 Each one deceives the other, no one speaks the truth. They have accustomed their tongues to lying, and are perverse, and cannot repent.

5 Violence upon violence, deceit upon deceit: They refuse to recognize me, says the LORD.

6 Therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: I will smelt them and test them; how else should I deal with their wickedness?

7 A murderous arrow is his tongue, his mouth utters deceit; He speaks cordially with his friends, but in his heart he lays an ambush!

8 For these things, says the LORD, shall I not punish them? On a nation such as this shall I not take vengeance?

9 Over the mountains, break out in cries of lamentation, over the pasture lands, intone a dirge: They are scorched, and no man crosses them, unheard is the bleat of the flock; Birds of the air as well as beasts, all have fled, and are gone.

10 I will turn Jerusalem into a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals; The cities of Judah I will make into a waste, where no one dwells.

11 Who is so wise that he can understand this? Let him to whom the mouth of the LORD has spoken make it known: Why is the land ravaged, scorched like a wasteland untraversed?

12 The LORD answered: Because they have abandoned my law, which I set before them, and have not followed it or listened to my voice,

13 but followed rather the hardness of their hearts and the Baals, as their fathers had taught them;

14 therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: See now, I will give them wormwood to eat and poison to drink.

15 I will scatter them among nations whom neither they nor their fathers have known; I will send the sword to pursue them until I have completely destroyed them.

16 Thus says the LORD of hosts: Attention! tell the wailing women to come, summon the best of them;

17 Let them come quickly and intone a dirge for us, That our eyes may be wet with weeping, our cheeks run with tears.

18 The dirge is heard from Zion: Ruined we are, and greatly ashamed; We must leave the land, give up our homes!

19 Hear, you women, the word of the LORD, let your ears receive his message. Teach your daughters this dirge, and each other this lament.

20 Death has come up through our windows, has entered our palaces; It cuts down the children in the street, young people in the squares.

21 The corpses of the slain lie like dung on a field, Like sheaves behind the harvester, with no one to gather them.

22 Thus says the LORD: Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, nor the strong man glory in his strength, nor the rich man glory in his riches;

23 But rather, let him who glories, glory in this, that in his prudence he knows me, Knows that I, the LORD, bring about kindness, justice and uprightness on the earth; For with such am I pleased, says the LORD.

24 See, days are coming, says the LORD, when I will demand an account of all those circumcised in their flesh:

25 Egypt and Judah, Edom and the Ammonites, Moab and the desert dwellers who shave their temples. For all these nations, like the whole house of Israel, are uncircumcised in heart.

v 1,2. Jeremiah’s grief for his people made him wish his eyes were a fountain of tears, 13:17; 14:17. But he would rather live in the desert than with these sinful people.

v 3-6. They used their tongues for weapons to lie, slander, deceive and distrust.

v 7-9. God would refine them for their evil tongues and punish them.

v 10-16. These verses jump back and forth from what Jeremiah is saying to what God is saying through him. Sometimes he seems to be thinking out loud., and he is again weeping over Judah’s  plight. God says he will make Judah desolate and a place of jackals, 10:22. When Jeremiah asks why, God says it is because they have forsaken Him and turned to Baal gods. Those suffering but not slain by the sword of Babylon He would scatter among the nations.

v 17-24. The people were to call in professional mourning women to weep and teach their daughters to weep for the children and young men killed by Babylonians. v 22, Dead bodies would lie like mowed grain left unharvested. v 23,24, None were to glory in wisdom, strength or riches, but to delight in intimate understanding of the Lord who exercises both love, justice and righteousness.

v 25,26. God’s chosen circumcised would be punished with the uncircumcised nations, because they were only physically circumcised, not from the heart.