Jeremiah 15 - Prayer Tents

Judah’s Inevitable Doom

15Then the Lord said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for these people, I wouldn’t help them. Away with them! Get them out of my sight!H559H3068H4872H8050H5975H6440H5315H5971H7971H6440H3318 2And if they say to you, ‘But where can we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says: “‘Those who are destined for death, to death; those who are destined for war, to war; those who are destined for famine, to famine; those who are destined for captivity, to captivity.’H559H3318H559H559H3068H4194H4194H2719H2719H7458H7458H7628H7628 3“I will send four kinds of destroyers against them,” says the Lord. “I will send the sword to kill, the dogs to drag away, the vultures to devour, and the wild animals to finish up what is left.H6485H702H4940H5002H3068H2719H2026H3611H5498H5775H8064H929H776H398H7843 4Because of the wicked things Manasseh son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem, I will make my people an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.H5414H2189H2113H4467H776H1558H4519H1121H3169H4428H3063H6213H3389 5“Who will feel sorry for you, Jerusalem? Who will weep for you? Who will even bother to ask how you are?H2550H3389H5110H5493H7592H7965 6You have abandoned me and turned your back on me,” says the Lord. “Therefore, I will raise my fist to destroy you. I am tired of always giving you another chance.H5203H5002H3068H3212H268H5186H3027H7843H3811H5162 7I will winnow you like grain at the gates of your cities and take away the children you hold dear. I will destroy my own people, because they refuse to change their evil ways.H2219H4214H8179H776H7921H6H5971H7725H1870 8There will be more widows than the grains of sand on the seashore. At noontime I will bring a destroyer against the mothers of young men. I will cause anguish and terror to come upon them suddenly.H490H6105H2344H3220H935H517H970H7703H6672H5307H6597H928H5892 9The mother of seven grows faint and gasps for breath; her sun has gone down while it is still day. She sits childless now, disgraced and humiliated. And I will hand over those who are left to be killed by the enemy. I, the Lord, have spoken!”H3205H7651H535H5301H5315H8121H935H3119H3117H954H2659H7611H5414H2719H6440H341H5002H3068

Jeremiah’s Complaint

10Then I said, “What sorrow is mine, my mother. Oh, that I had died at birth! I am hated everywhere I go. I am neither a lender who threatens to foreclose nor a borrower who refuses to pay—yet they all curse me.”H188H517H3205H376H7379H376H4066H776H5383H5383H7043 11The Lord replied, “I will take care of you, Jeremiah. Your enemies will ask you to plead on their behalf in times of trouble and distress.H3068H559H3808H518H2896H8281H8293H518H341H6293H6256H7451H6256H6869 12Can a man break a bar of iron from the north, or a bar of bronze?H1270H7489H6828H1270H5178 13At no cost to them, I will hand over your wealth and treasures as plunder to your enemies, for sin runs rampant in your land.H2428H214H5414H957H4242H2403H1366 14I will tell your enemies to take you as captives to a foreign land. For my anger blazes like a fire that will burn forever.”H5674H341H776H3045H784H6919H639H3344 15Then I said, “Lord, you know what’s happening to me. Please step in and help me. Punish my persecutors! Please give me time; don’t let me die young. It’s for your sake that I am suffering.H3068H3045H2142H6485H5358H7291H3947H639H750H3045H5375H2781 16When I discovered your words, I devoured them. They are my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies.H1697H4672H398H1697H8342H8057H3824H7121H8034H3068H430H6635 17I never joined the people in their merry feasts. I sat alone because your hand was on me. I was filled with indignation at their sins.H3427H5475H7832H5937H3427H910H6440H3027H4390H2195 18Why then does my suffering continue? Why is my wound so incurable? Your help seems as uncertain as a seasonal brook, like a spring that has gone dry.”H3511H5331H4347H605H3985H7495H391H4325H539 19This is how the Lord responds: “If you return to me, I will restore you so you can continue to serve me. If you speak good words rather than worthless ones, you will be my spokesman. You must influence them; do not let them influence you!H559H3068H7725H7725H5975H6440H3318H3368H2151H6310H7725H7725 20They will fight against you like an attacking army, but I will make you as secure as a fortified wall of bronze. They will not conquer you, for I am with you to protect and rescue you. I, the Lord, have spoken!H5414H5971H1219H5178H2346H3898H3201H3467H5337H5002H3068 21Yes, I will certainly keep you safe from these wicked men. I will rescue you from their cruel hands.”H5337H3027H7451H6299H3709H6184