Lockman - Bible questions and answers

		Jer 14:1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:
		Jer 14:2 "Judah mourns And her gates languish; Her people sit on the ground in mourning clothes And the cry of Jerusalem has gone up.
		Jer 14:3 "Their nobles have sent their servants for water; They have come to the cisterns and found no water. They have returned with empty vessels; They have been shamed and humiliated, And they cover their heads.
		Jer 14:4 "The ground is cracked Because there has been no rain on the land; The farmers are distressed, And they have covered their heads [in shame].
		Jer 14:5 "The doe in the field has given birth only to abandon her young Because there is no grass.
		Jer 14:6 "And the wild donkeys stand on the barren heights; They pant for air like jackals, Their eyesight fails Because there is no grass.
		Jer 14:7 "O LORD, though our many sins testify against us" [prays Jeremiah], "Act now [for us and] for Your name's sake [so that the faithless may witness Your faithfulness]! For our backslidings are countless; We have sinned against You.
		Jer 14:8 "O Hope of Israel, Her Savior in time of distress and trouble, Why should You be like a sojourner (temporary resident) in the land Or like a traveler who turns aside and spreads his tent to linger [only] for a night?
		Jer 14:9 "Why should You be [hesitant and inactive] like a man astounded and perplexed, Like a mighty man unable to save? Yet You, O LORD, are among us, And we are called by Your name; Do not leave us!"
		Jer 14:10 ¶ Thus says the LORD to this people [Judah], "In the manner and to the degree [already pointed out] they have loved to wander; they have not restrained their feet. Therefore the LORD does not accept them; He will now remember [in detail] their wickedness and punish them for their sins."
		Jer 14:11 So the LORD said to me, "Do not pray for good things for this people.
		Jer 14:12 "Though they fast, I will not hear their cry; and though they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them [because they are done as obligations, and not as acts of loving obedience]. Instead I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence."
		Jer 14:13 ¶ But I said, "Alas, Lord GOD! Behold, the [false] prophets are telling them, 'You will not see the sword nor will you have famine, but I [the LORD] will give you lasting peace in this place.'"
		Jer 14:14 Then the LORD said to me, "The [counterfeit] prophets are prophesying lies in My Name. I have neither sent them nor authorized them nor spoken to them. They are prophesying to you made-up visions [pretending to call forth responses from handmade gods], a worthless divination and the deceit of their own mind.
		Jer 14:15 "Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning the [false] prophets who are prophesying in My Name, although I did not send them--yet they keep saying, 'Sword and famine shall not be in this land': by sword and famine those prophets shall meet their end and be consumed.
		Jer 14:16 "And the people to whom they are prophesying will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem, victims of famine and sword; and they will have no one to bury them--neither them, nor their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters. For I will pour out their [own] wickedness on them [and not only on the imposters posing as prophets, for the people could not have been deceived without their own consent].
		Jer 14:17 "Therefore [Jeremiah] you will say this word to them, 'Let my eyes flow with tears night and day, And let them never cease; For the virgin daughter of my people has been crushed with a great blow, With a very serious and severely infected wound.
		Jer 14:18 'If I go out into the field, Then I gaze on those slaughtered with the sword! And if I enter the city, Then I gaze on [those tormented with] the diseases of famine! For both prophet and priest [who should have guided the people] Go about [bewildered and exiled] in a land (Babylon) that they do not know or understand.'"
		Jer 14:19 ¶ Have You [O LORD] completely rejected Judah? Do You loathe Zion? Why have You stricken us so that there is no healing for us? We looked for peace and completeness, but nothing good came; And [we hoped] for a time of healing, but behold, terror!
		Jer 14:20 We know and acknowledge, O LORD, Our wickedness and the iniquity of our fathers; for we have sinned against You.
		Jer 14:21 Do not treat us with contempt and condemn us, for Your own name's sake; Do not disgrace Your glorious throne; Remember [with consideration] and do not break Your [solemn] covenant with us.
		Jer 14:22 Are there any among the idols of the nations who can send rain? Or can the heavens [of their own will] give showers? Is it not You, O LORD our God? Therefore we will wait and hope [confidently] in You, For You are the one who has made all these things [the heavens and the rain].

Search for your Bible question and answer here: