The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 “^aStand at the gate of the LORD’S house and proclaim there this word, and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, all you of Judah, who enter by these gates to worship the LORD!’” 3 This is what the LORD of armies, the God of Israel says: “^aAmend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you live in this place. 4 ^aDo not trust in deceptive words, saying, ‘¹This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’ 5 For ^aif you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly ^bpractice justice between a person and his neighbor, 6 if you do not oppress the stranger, the ^1aorphan, or the widow, and do not shed ^binnocent blood in this place, nor ^cfollow other gods to your own ruin, 7 then I will let you ^alive in this place, in the ^bland that I gave to your fathers forever and ever.

8 “Behold, you are trusting in ^adeceptive words to no avail. 9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, ^1aoffer sacrifices to Baal, and follow ^bother gods that you have not known, 10 then ^acome and stand before Me in ^bthis house which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are saved!’—so that you may do all these abominations? 11 Has ^athis house, which is called by My name, become a ^bden of robbers in your sight? Behold, ^cI Myself have seen it,” declares the LORD.

12 “But go now to My place which was in ^aShiloh, where I ^bmade My name dwell at the beginning, and ^csee what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel. 13 And now, because you have done all these things,” declares the LORD, “and I spoke to you, ^aspeaking again and again, but you did not listen, and I ^bcalled you but you did not answer, 14 therefore I will do to the ^ahouse which is called by My name, ^bin which you trust, and to the place which I gave you and your fathers, just as I ^cdid to Shiloh. 15 I will ^ahurl you out of My sight, just as I have hurled out all your brothers, all the ¹descendants of ^bEphraim.

16 “As for you, ^ado not pray for this people, and do not lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do not plead with Me; for I am not listening to you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The ¹children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough to make sacrificial cakes for the queen of heaven; and they ^apour out drink offerings to other gods in order to ^bprovoke Me to anger. 19 ^aAre they provoking Me?” declares the LORD. “Is it not themselves instead, to their ¹own ^bshame?” 20 Therefore this is what the Lord ¹GOD says: “Behold, My ^aanger and My wrath will be poured out on this place, on human and animal life, and on the ^btrees of the field and the fruit of the ground; and it will burn and not be quenched.”

21 This is what the LORD of armies, the God of Israel says: “Add your ^aburnt offerings to your sacrifices and ^beat flesh. 22 For I did not ^aspeak to your fathers, or command them on the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23 But this is ¹what I commanded them, saying, ‘^aObey My voice, and ^bI will be your God, and you will be My people; and you shall walk ²entirely in the way which I command you, so that it may ^cgo well for you.’ 24 Yet they ^adid not obey or incline their ear, but walked by their own advice and in the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and they ^1bwent backward and not forward. 25 Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have ^asent you all My servants the prophets, sending them daily, again and again. 26 Yet they did not listen to Me or incline their ear, but ^astiffened their neck; they ^bdid more evil than their fathers.

27 “So you shall ^aspeak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you; and you shall call to them, but they will ^bnot answer you. 28 And you shall say to them, ‘This is the nation that ^adid not obey the voice of the LORD their God or accept discipline; ^1btrustworthiness has perished and has been eliminated from their mouth.

30 For the sons of Judah have done that which is evil in My sight,” declares the LORD. “They have ^aput their detestable things in the house which is called by My name, to defile it. 31 They have ^abuilt the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of Ben-hinnom, to ^bburn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I ^cdid not command, and it did not come into My ¹mind.

32 “^aTherefore, behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when it will no longer be called Topheth, or the Valley of Ben-hinnom, but the Valley of the Slaughter; for they will ^bbury in Topheth ¹because there is no other place. 33 The ^adead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the sky and for the animals of the earth; and no one will frighten them away. 34 Then I will ^aeliminate from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride; for the ^bland will become a site of ruins.

The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 “^aStand in the gate of the LORD’S house and proclaim there this word and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, all you of Judah who enter by these gates to worship the LORD.’” 3 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “^aChange your ways and your behavior, and I will let you live in this place. 4 ^aDo not trust in the deceptive and lying words of the false prophets who claim that Jerusalem will be protected by God because of the temple, saying, ‘This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD.’ 5 For ^aif you thoroughly change your ways and your behavior, if you thoroughly and honestly ^bpractice justice between a man and his neighbor, 6 if you do not oppress the transient and the foreigner, the ^aorphan, or the widow, and do not shed ^binnocent blood by oppression and by unjust judicial murders in Jerusalem, nor ^cfollow after other gods to your own ruin, 7 then I will let you ^alive in this place, in the ^bland that I gave to your fathers to live in forever and ever.

8 “Behold, you are trusting in ^adeceptive and useless words that bring no benefit. 9 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear oaths falsely, ^aoffer sacrifices or burn incense to Baal, and follow after ^bother gods that you have not known, 10 and then dare to ^acome and stand before Me in ^bthis house, which is called by My ¹Name, and say, ‘We are protected and set free by this act of religious ritual!’—only to go on with this wickedness and these disgusting and loathsome things? 11 Has ^athis house, which is called by My Name, become a ^bden of robbers in your eyes a place of retreat for you between acts of violence? Behold, ^cI Myself have seen it,” says the LORD.

12 “But go now to My place which was in ^aShiloh in Ephraim, where I first ^bset My Name, and ^csee what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel. 1+@Sam 4:10-18 13 And now, because you have done all these things,” says the LORD, “and I ^aspoke persistently to you, even ^brising up early and speaking, but you did not listen, and ^cI called you but you did not answer, 14 therefore, I will do to this ^ahouse (the temple) which is called by My Name, ^bin which you trust, and to the place which I gave you and your fathers, just as I ^cdid to Shiloh. 15 I will ^acast you out of My sight, as I have cast out all your brothers (relatives through Jacob) , all the descendants of ^bEphraim.

16 “Therefore, ^ado not pray for this people of Judah or lift up a cry or entreaty for them or make intercession to Me, for I do not hear you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough to make cakes for the ¹queen of heaven; and they ^apour out drink offerings to other gods that they may ^boffend and provoke Me to anger. 19 Do ^athey offend and provoke Me to anger?” says the LORD. “Is it not themselves they offend, to their own ^bshame?” 20 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, My ^aanger and My wrath will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the ^btrees of the field and the fruit of the ground; and it will burn and the fire will not be quenched.”

21 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Add your ^aburnt offerings to your sacrifices and ^beat the meat. 22 For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I did not ^aspeak to your fathers or command them concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices. 23 But this thing I did command them: ‘^aListen to and obey My voice, and ^bI will be your God, and you shall be My people; and you will walk in all the way which I command you, so that it may ^cbe well with you.’ 24 But they ^adid not obey Me or bend their ear to hear Me, but followed the counsels and the stubbornness of their own evil heart (mind) , and they turned and ^bwent backward instead of forward. 25 Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have persistently ^asent you all My servants the prophets, sending them daily, early and late. 26 Yet they did not listen to Me and obey Me or bend their ear to hear Me, but ^astiffened their neck; they ^bdid more evil and behaved worse than their fathers.

27 “^aYou shall speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you; and you shall also call to them, but they will ^bnot answer you. 28 You shall say to them, ‘This is the nation that ^adid not obey the voice of the LORD their God or accept correction and warning; ^btruth and faithfulness have perished and have completely vanished from their mouths.

30 For the children of Judah have done evil in My sight,” says the LORD; “they have ^aset their disgusting and shamefully vile things in the house which is called by My Name, to defile it. 31 They have ^abuilt the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of Ben-hinnom (son of Hinnom) , to ^bburn their sons and their daughters in the fire to honor Molech, the fire god—which I ^cdid not command, nor did it come into My heart (mind) . Lev 18:21; Josh 15:8; 2+@Kin 16:2, 3; 21:1, 6; Is 30:33

32 “^aTherefore, behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when it will no longer be called Topheth or the Valley of Ben-hinnom, but the Valley of the Slaughter, for in bloody warfare they will ^bbury the dead in Topheth until there is no more room. Jer 19:6 33 And the ^adead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth and no one will frighten them away. 34 Then I will cause the voices of joy and gladness, and the voices of the bridegroom and the bride to ^avanish from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem; for the ^bland will become a ruin—a wasteland.

The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying, 2 “^aStand in the gate of the house of Yahweh, and you shall call out there this word, and you shall say, ‘Hear the word of Yahweh, all you of Judah, who enter by these gates to worship Yahweh!’” 3 Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, “^aMake your ways and your deeds good, and I will let you dwell in this place. 4 ^aDo not trust in lying words, saying, ‘¹This is the temple of Yahweh, the temple of Yahweh, the temple of Yahweh.’ 5 For ^aif you truly make your ways and your deeds good, if you truly ^bdo justice between a man and his neighbor, 6 if you do not oppress the sojourner, the ^1aorphan, or the widow, and do not shed ^binnocent blood in this place, nor ^cwalk after other gods to your own evil demise, 7 then I will let you ^adwell in this place, in the ^bland that I gave to your fathers forever and ever.

8 “Behold, you are trusting in ^alying words to no avail. 9 Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear while lying, and ^aburn incense to Baal and walk after ^bother gods that you have not known, 10 then ^acome and stand before Me in ^bthis house, which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—that you may do all these abominations? 11 Has ^athis house, which is called by My name, become a ^brobbers’ den in your sight? Behold, ^cI, even I, have seen it,” declares Yahweh.

12 “But go now to My place which was in ^aShiloh, where I ^bmade My name dwell at the first, and ^csee what I did to it because of the evil of My people Israel. 13 And now, because you have done all these works,” declares Yahweh, “and I spoke to you, ^arising up early and ^bspeaking, but you did not hear, and I ^ccalled you but you did not answer, 14 therefore, I will do to the ^ahouse which is called by My name, ^bin which you trust, and to the place which I gave you and your fathers, as I ^cdid to Shiloh. 15 I will ^acast you out of My presence, as I have cast out all your brothers, all the seed of ^bEphraim.

16 “As for you, ^ado not pray for this people and do not lift up a cry of lamentation or prayer for them and do not intercede with Me, for I am not hearing you. 17 Are you not seeing what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The ¹children gather wood, and the fathers make the fire burn, and the women knead dough to make cakes for the queen of heaven; and they ^apour out drink offerings to other gods in order to ^bprovoke Me. 19 ^aDo they provoke Me?” declares Yahweh. “Is it not themselves they provoke to the ^bshame of their own face?” 20 Therefore thus says Lord Yahweh, “Behold, My ^aanger and My wrath will be poured out on this place, on man and on beast and on the ^btrees of the field and on the fruit of the ground; and it will burn and not be quenched.”

21 Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, “Add your ^aburnt offerings to your sacrifices and ^beat flesh. 22 For I did not ^aspeak to your fathers or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. 23 But this is ¹what I commanded them, saying, ‘^aListen to My voice, and ^bI will be your God, and you will be My people; and you will walk in the entire way which I command you, that it may ^cbe well with you.’ 24 Yet they ^adid not listen or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart and ^1bwent backward and not forward. 25 Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have ^asent you all My slaves the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them. 26 Yet they did not listen to Me or incline their ear, but ^astiffened their neck; they ^bdid more evil than their fathers.

27 “You shall ^aspeak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you; and you shall call to them, but they will ^bnot answer you. 28 You shall say to them, ‘This is the nation that ^adid not listen to the voice of Yahweh their God or receive discipline; ^1btruth has perished and has been cut off from their mouth.

30 For the sons of Judah have done that which is evil in My sight,” declares Yahweh, “they have ^aset their detestable things in the house, which is called by My name, to defile it. 31 They have ^abuilt the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to ^bburn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I ^cdid not command, and it did not come upon My heart.

32 “^aTherefore, behold, days are coming,” declares Yahweh, “when it will no longer be called Topheth or the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the valley of the Slaughter; for they will ^bbury in Topheth ¹because there is no other place. 33 The ^adead bodies of this people will be food for the birds of the sky and for the beasts of the earth; and no one will frighten them away. 34 Then I will make to ^acease from the cities of Judah and from the streets of Jerusalem the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, for the ^bland will become a waste place.