Through the Bible – Day 298

Bible text(s)

Jeremiah 11

Judah has broken the LORD's agreement

_1-3The LORD God told me to say to the people of Judah and Jerusalem:

I, the LORD, am warning you that I will put a curse on anyone who doesn't keep the agreement I made with Israel. So pay attention to what it says. ₄My commands haven't changed since I brought your ancestors out of Egypt, a nation that seemed like a blazing furnace where iron ore is melted. I told your ancestors that if they obeyed my commands, I would be their God, and they would be my people. ₅Then I did what I had promised and gave them this wonderful land, where you now live.

“Yes, LORD,” I replied, “that's true.”

₆Then the LORD told me to say to everyone in the streets of Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah:

Pay attention to the commands in my agreement with you. ₇Ever since I brought your ancestors out of Egypt, I have been telling your people to obey me. But you and your ancestors ₈have always been stubborn. You have refused to listen, and instead you have done whatever your sinful hearts have desired.

You have not kept the agreement we made, so I will make you suffer every curse that goes with it.

₉The LORD said to me:

Jeremiah, the people of Judah and Jerusalem are plotting against me. ₁₀They have sinned in the same way their ancestors did, by turning from me and worshipping other gods. The northern kingdom of Israel broke the agreement I made with your ancestors, and now the southern kingdom of Judah has done the same.

₁₁Here is what I've decided to do. I will bring suffering on the people of Judah and Jerusalem, and no one will escape. They will beg me to help, but I won't listen to their prayers. _12-13Then they will offer sacrifices to their other gods and ask them for help. After all, the people of Judah have more gods than towns, and more altars for Baal than there are streets in Jerusalem. But those gods won't be able to rescue the people of Judah from disaster.

₁₄Jeremiah, don't pray for these people or beg me to rescue them. If you do, I won't listen, and I certainly won't listen if they pray!

₁₅Then the LORD told me to say to the people of Judah:

You are my chosen people,

but you have no right

to be here in my temple,

doing such terrible things.

The sacrifices you offer me

won't protect you from disaster,

so stop celebrating.

₁₆Once you were like an olive tree

covered with fruit.

But soon I will send a noisy mob

to break off your branches

and set you on fire.

₁₇I am the LORD All-Powerful. You people of Judah were like a tree that I had planted, but you have made me angry by offering sacrifices to Baal, just as the northern kingdom did. And now I'm going to pull you up by the roots.

The plot to kill Jeremiah

_18-19Some people plotted to kill me.

And like a lamb

being led to the butcher,

I knew nothing

about their plans.

But then the LORD told me

that they had planned

to chop me down like a tree—

fruit and all—

so that no one would ever

remember me again.

₂₀I prayed, “LORD All-Powerful,

you always do what is right,

and you know every thought.

So I trust you to help me

and to take revenge.”

₂₁Then the LORD said:

Jeremiah, some men from Anathoth say they will kill you, if you keep on speaking for me. ₂₂But I will punish them. Their young men will die in battle, and their children will starve to death. ₂₃And when I have finished, no one from their families will be left alive.

Jeremiah 12

Jeremiah complains to the LORD

₁Whenever I complain

to you, LORD,

you are always fair.

But now I have questions

about your justice.

Why is life easy for sinners?

Why are they successful?

₂You plant them like trees;

you let them prosper

and produce fruit.

Yet even when they praise you,

they don't mean it.

₃But you know, LORD,

how faithful I've always been,

even in my thoughts.

So drag my enemies away

and butcher them like sheep!

₄How long will the ground be dry

and the pasture lands parched?

The birds and animals

are dead and gone.

And all this happened because

the people are so sinful.

They even boast, “God can't see

the sins we commit.”

The LORD answers Jeremiah

₅Jeremiah, if you get tired

in a race against people,

how can you possibly run

against horses?

If you fall in open fields,

what will happen in the forest

along the River Jordan?

₆Even your own family

has turned against you.

They act friendly,

but don't trust them.

They're out to get you,

and so is everyone else.

The LORD is furious with his people

₇I loved my people and chose them

as my very own.

But now I will reject them

and hand them over

to their enemies.

₈My people have turned against me

and roar at me like lions.

That's why I hate them.

₉My people are like a hawk

surrounded and attacked

by other hawks.

Tell the wild animals

to come and eat their fill.

₁₀My beautiful land is ruined

like a field or a vineyard

trampled by shepherds

and stripped bare

by their flocks.

₁₁Every field I see lies barren,

and no one cares.

₁₂A destroying army

marches along desert roads

and attacks everywhere.

They are my deadly sword;

no one is safe from them.

₁₃My people, you planted wheat,

but because I was furious,

I let only weeds grow.

You wore yourselves out

for nothing!

The LORD will have pity on other nations

₁₄The LORD said:

I gave this land to my people Israel, but enemies around it have attacked and robbed it. So I will uproot them from their own countries just as I will uproot Judah from its land. ₁₅But later, I will have pity on these nations and bring them back to their own lands. ₁₆They once taught my people to worship Baal. But if they admit I am the only true God, and if they let my people teach them how to worship me, these nations will also become my people. ₁₇However, if they don't listen to me, I will uproot them from their lands and completely destroy them. I, the LORD, have spoken.

Jeremiah 13

Jeremiah's linen shorts

₁The LORD told me, “Go and buy a pair of linen shorts. Wear them for a while, but don't wash them.” ₂So I bought a pair of shorts and put them on.

₃Then the LORD said, ₄“Take off the shorts. Go to Parah and hide the shorts in a crack between some large rocks.” ₅And that's what I did.

₆Some time later the LORD said, “Go back and get the shorts.” ₇I went back and dug the shorts out of their hiding place, but the cloth had rotted, and the shorts were ruined.

₈Then the LORD said:

₉Jeremiah, I will use Babylonia to destroy the pride of the people of Judah and Jerusalem. ₁₀The people of Judah are evil and stubborn. So instead of listening to me, they do whatever they want and even worship other gods. When I have finished with these people, they will be good for nothing, just like this pair of shorts. ₁₁These shorts were tight around your waist, and that's how tightly I held on to the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. I wanted them to be my people. I wanted to make them famous, so that other nations would praise and honour me, but they refused to obey me.

Wine jars

The LORD said:

₁₂Jeremiah, tell the people of Judah, “The LORD God of Israel orders you to fill your wine jars with wine.”

They will answer, “Of course we fill our wine jars with wine! Why are you telling us something we already know?”

₁₃Then say to them:

I am the LORD, and what I'm going to do will make everyone in Judah and Jerusalem appear to be full of wine. And the worst ones will be the kings of David's family and the priests and the prophets. ₁₄Then I will smash them against each other like jars. I will have no pity on the young or the old, and they will all be destroyed. I, the LORD, have spoken.

The people of Judah will be taken away

₁₅People of Judah,

don't be too proud to listen

to what the LORD has said.

₁₆You hope for light,

but God is sending darkness.

Evening shadows already deepen

in the hills.

So return to God

and confess your sins to him

before you trip and fall.

₁₇If you are too proud to listen,

I will weep alone.

Tears will stream from my eyes

when the LORD's people

are taken away as prisoners.

₁₈The LORD told me to tell you

that your king and his mother

must surrender their thrones

and remove their crowns.

₁₉The cities in the Southern Desert

are surrounded;

no one can get in or out.

Everyone in Judah

will be taken away.

₂₀Jerusalem, you were so proud

of ruling the people of Judah.

But where are they now?

Look north, and you will see

your enemies approaching.

₂₁You once trusted them to help,

but now I'll let them rule you.

What do you say about that?

You will be in pain

like a woman giving birth.

₂₂Do you know why

your clothes were torn off

and you were abused?

It was because

of your terrible sins.

₂₃Can you ever change

and do what's right?

Can people change the colour

of their skin,

or can a leopard

remove its spots?

If so, then perhaps you can change

and learn to do right.

₂₄I will scatter you,

just as the desert wind

blows husks from grain

tossed in the air.

₂₅I won't change my mind.

I, the LORD, have spoken.

You rejected me

and worshipped false gods.

_26-27You were married to me,

but you were unfaithful.

You even became a prostitute

by worshipping disgusting gods

on hilltops and in fields.

So I'll rip off your clothes

and leave you naked and ashamed

for everyone to see.

You are doomed!

Will you ever be worthy

to worship me again?

Jeremiah 11:1-13:27CEVOpen in Bible reader

2 Timothy 4

₁When Christ Jesus comes as king, he will be the judge of everyone, whether they are living or dead. So with God and Christ as witnesses, I command you ₂to preach God's message. Do it willingly, even if it isn't the popular thing to do. You must correct people and point out their sins. But also cheer them up, and when you instruct them, always be patient. ₃The time is coming when people won't listen to good teaching. Instead, they will look for teachers who will please them by telling them only what they are itching to hear. ₄They will turn from the truth and eagerly listen to senseless stories. ₅But you must stay calm and be willing to suffer. You must work hard to tell the good news and to do your job well.

₆Now the time has come for me to die. My life is like a drink offering being poured out on the altar. ₇I have fought well. I have finished the race, and I have been faithful. ₈So a crown will be given to me for pleasing the Lord. He judges fairly, and on the day of judgment he will give a crown to me and to everyone else who wants him to appear with power.

Personal instructions and final greetings

Personal instructions

₉Come to see me as soon as you can. ₁₀Demas loves the things of this world so much that he left me and went to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus has gone to Dalmatia. ₁₁Only Luke has stayed with me.

Mark can be very helpful to me, so please find him and bring him with you. ₁₂I sent Tychicus to Ephesus.

₁₃When you come, bring the coat I left at Troas with Carpus. Don't forget to bring the scrolls, especially the ones made of leather.

₁₄Alexander, the metalworker, has hurt me in many ways. But the Lord will pay him back for what he has done. ₁₅Alexander opposes what we preach. You had better watch out for him.

₁₆When I was first put on trial, no one helped me. In fact, everyone deserted me. I hope it won't be held against them. ₁₇But the Lord stood beside me. He gave me the strength to tell his full message, so that all Gentiles would hear it. And I was kept safe from hungry lions. ₁₈The Lord will always keep me from being harmed by evil, and he will bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. Praise him for ever and ever! Amen.

Final greetings

₁₉Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila and to the family of Onesiphorus.

₂₀Erastus stayed at Corinth.

Trophimus was sick when I left him at Miletus.

₂₁Do your best to come before winter.

Eubulus, Pudens, Linus, and Claudia send you their greetings, and so do the rest of the Lord's followers.

₂₂I pray that the Lord will bless your life and will be kind to you.

2 Timothy 4:1-22CEVOpen in Bible reader