1‘ “At that time, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings and officials of Judah, the bones of the priests and prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be removed from their graves. 2They will be exposed to the sun and the moon and all the stars of the heavens, which they have loved and served and which they have followed and consulted and worshipped. They will not be gathered up or buried, but will be like dung lying on the ground. 3Wherever I banish them, all the survivors of this evil nation will prefer death to life, declares the Lord Almighty.”

Sin and punishment

4‘Say to them, “This is what the Lord says:

‘ “When people fall down, do they not get up?

When someone turns away, do they not return?

5Why then have these people turned away?

Why does Jerusalem always turn away?

They cling to deceit;

they refuse to return.

6I have listened attentively,

but they do not say what is right.

None of them repent of their wickedness,

saying, ‘What have I done?’

Each pursues their own course

like a horse charging into battle.

7Even the stork in the sky

knows her appointed seasons,

and the dove, the swift and the thrush

observe the time of their migration.

But my people do not know

the requirements of the Lord.

8‘ “How can you say, ‘We are wise,

for we have the law of the Lord,’

when actually the lying pen of the scribes

has handled it falsely?

9The wise will be put to shame;

they will be dismayed and trapped.

Since they have rejected the word of the Lord,

what kind of wisdom do they have?

10Therefore I will give their wives to other men

and their fields to new owners.

From the least to the greatest,

all are greedy for gain;

prophets and priests alike,

all practise deceit.

11They dress the wound of my people

as though it were not serious.

‘Peace, peace,’ they say,

when there is no peace.

12Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?

No, they have no shame at all;

they do not even know how to blush.

So they will fall among the fallen;

they will be brought down when they are punished,

says the Lord.

13‘ “I will take away their harvest,

declares the Lord.

There will be no grapes on the vine.

There will be no figs on the tree,

and their leaves will wither.

What I have given them

will be taken from them.8:13 The meaning of the Hebrew for this sentence is uncertain.” ’

14Why are we sitting here?

Gather together!

Let us flee to the fortified cities

and perish there!

For the Lord our God has doomed us to perish

and given us poisoned water to drink,

because we have sinned against him.

15We hoped for peace

but no good has come,

for a time of healing

but there is only terror.

16The snorting of the enemy’s horses

is heard from Dan;

at the neighing of their stallions

the whole land trembles.

They have come to devour

the land and everything in it,

the city and all who live there.

17‘See, I will send venomous snakes among you,

vipers that cannot be charmed,

and they will bite you,’

declares the Lord.

18You who are my Comforter8:18 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain. in sorrow,

my heart is faint within me.

19Listen to the cry of my people

from a land far away:

‘Is the Lord not in Zion?

Is her King no longer there?’

‘Why have they aroused my anger with their images,

with their worthless foreign idols?’

20‘The harvest is past,

the summer has ended,

and we are not saved.’

21Since my people are crushed, I am crushed;

I mourn, and horror grips me.

22Is there no balm in Gilead?

Is there no physician there?

Why then is there no healing

for the wound of my people?