Jeremiah 14 | King James Version

King James Version

1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth. 2 Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up. 3 And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads. 4 Because the ground is chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their heads. 5 Yea, the hind also calved in the field, and forsook it , because there was no grass. 6 And the wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did fail, because there was no grass. 7 O LORD, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy name' sake: for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against thee. 8 O the hope of Israel, the saviour thereof in time of trouble, why shouldest thou be as a stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night? 9 Why shouldest thou be as a man astonied, as a mighty man that cannot save? yet thou, O LORD, art in the midst of us, and we are called by thy name; leave us not. 10 Thus saith the LORD unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins. 11 Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for their good. 12 When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence. 13 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place. 14 Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. 15 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the prophets that prophesy in my name, and I sent them not, yet they say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land; By sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed. 16 And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; and they shall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters: for I will pour their wickedness upon them. 17 Therefore thou shalt say this word unto them; Let mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not cease: for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach, with a very grievous blow. 18 If I go forth into the field, then behold the slain with the sword! and if I enter into the city, then behold them that are sick with famine! yea, both the prophet and the priest go about into a land that they know not. 19 Hast thou utterly rejected Judah? hath thy soul lothed Zion? why hast thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us? we looked for peace, and there is no good; and for the time of healing, and behold trouble! 20 We acknowledge, O LORD, our wickedness, and the iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against thee. 21 Do not abhor us , for thy name' sake, do not disgrace the throne of thy glory: remember, break not thy covenant with us. 22 Are there any among the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause rain? or can the heavens give showers? art not thou he, O LORD our God? therefore we will wait upon thee: for thou hast made all these things .

New International Reader’s Version

War and hunger

1 A message from the LORD came to Jeremiah. He told Jeremiah there wouldn’t be any rain in the land. The LORD said, 2 ‘Judah is filled with sadness. Its cities are wasting away. The people weep for the land. Crying is heard in Jerusalem. 3 The nobles send their servants to get water. They go to the wells. But they do not find any water. They return with empty jars. They are terrified. They do not have any hope. They cover their heads. 4 The ground is dry and cracked. There isn’t any rain in the land. The farmers are terrified. They cover their heads. 5 Even the female deer in the fields desert their newborn fawns. There isn’t any grass to eat. 6 Wild donkeys stand on the bare hilltops. They long for water as wild dogs do. Their eyesight fails because they do not have any food to eat.’ 7 LORD, our sins are a witness against us. But do something for the honour of your name. We have often turned away from you. We’ve sinned against you. 8 You are Israel’s only hope. You save us when we’re in trouble. Why are you like a stranger to us? Why are you like a traveller who stays for only one night? 9 Why are you like a man taken by surprise? Why are you like a soldier who can’t save anyone? LORD, you are among us. And we are your people. Please don’t desert us! 10 The LORD gave Jeremiah a message about these people. The LORD said, ‘They really love to wander away from me. Their feet go down the wrong path. I do not accept these people. I will remember the evil things they have done. I will punish them for their sins.’ 11 The LORD continued, ‘Do not pray that things will go well with them. 12 Even if they go without food, I will not listen to their cry for help. They might sacrifice burnt offerings and grain offerings. But I will not accept them. Instead, I will destroy them with war, hunger and plague.’ 13 But I said, ‘LORD and King, the prophets keep telling them something else. They say, “You won’t have to suffer from war or hunger. Instead, the LORD will give you peace and rest in this place.” ’ 14 Then the LORD said to me, ‘The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I have not sent them or appointed them. I have not even spoken to them. Everything they tell you about their visions or secret knowledge is a lie. They pretend to bring you messages from other gods. They try to get you to believe their own mistaken ideas. 15 So here is what I am saying about the prophets who are prophesying in my name. I did not send them. But they are saying, “No war or hunger will come to this land.” Those same prophets will die because of war and hunger. 16 And the people they are prophesying to will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem. They will die because of hunger and war. No one will bury them. No one will bury their wives and children. I will pour out trouble on them. That is exactly what they should get. 17 ‘Jeremiah, give them this message. Tell them, ‘ “Let tears flow from my eyes. Let them pour out night and day. Never let them stop. The people of my own nation have suffered a terrible wound. They have been crushed. 18 Suppose I go into the country. Then I see people who have been killed by swords. Or suppose I go into the city. Then I see people who have died of hunger. Prophet and priest alike have gone to a land they hadn’t known about before.” ’ 19 LORD, have you completely turned your back on Judah? Do you hate the city of Zion? Why have you made us suffer? We can’t be healed. We hoped peace would come. But nothing good has happened to us. We hoped we would finally be healed. But all we got was terror. 20 LORD, we admit we’ve done evil things. We also admit that our people of long ago were guilty. It’s true that we’ve sinned against you. 21 For the honour of your name, don’t turn your back on us. Don’t bring shame on your glorious throne in the temple. Remember the covenant you made with us. Please don’t break it. 22 Do any of the worthless gods of the nations bring rain? Do the skies send down showers all by themselves? No. LORD our God, you send the rain. So we put our hope in you. You are the one who does all these things.