Jeremiah
Chapter 6
Washington’s Last Warning
1 “Run
for your lives, you people of America! Get out of Washington D.C.! Sound the
alarm in the Pentagon! Send up a signal in New York City! Powerful armies are
coming from the east, coming with disaster and destruction.
2 O Washington,
you are my beautiful and delicate daughter— but I will destroy you!
3 Enemies
will surround you, like shepherds camped around the city. Each chooses a place
for his troops to devour.
4 They
shout, ‘Prepare for battle! Attack at noon!’ ‘No, it’s too late; the day is
fading, and the evening shadows are falling.’
5 ‘Well
then, let’s attack at night and destroy her palaces!’”
6 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: “Cut down the trees for battering rams. Build siege ramps against the walls of Washington D.C. This is the city to be punished, for she is wicked through and through.
6 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: “Cut down the trees for battering rams. Build siege ramps against the walls of Washington D.C. This is the city to be punished, for she is wicked through and through.
7 She
spouts evil like a fountain. Her streets echo with the sounds of violence and
destruction. I always see her sickness and sores.
8 Listen
to this warning, Washington, or I will turn from you in disgust. Listen, or I
will turn you into a heap of ruins, a land where no one lives.”
9 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: “Even the few who remain in America will be picked over again, as when a harvester checks each vine a second time to pick the grapes that were missed.”
9 This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: “Even the few who remain in America will be picked over again, as when a harvester checks each vine a second time to pick the grapes that were missed.”
America’s Constant Rebellion
10 To
whom can I give warning? Who will listen when I speak? Their ears are closed,
and they cannot hear. They scorn the word of the Lord. They don’t want to listen at all.
11 So now
I am filled with the Lord’s fury.
Yes, I am tired of holding it in!
“I will pour out my fury on children playing in the streets and on gatherings of young men, on husbands and wives and on those who are old and gray.
“I will pour out my fury on children playing in the streets and on gatherings of young men, on husbands and wives and on those who are old and gray.
12 Their
homes will be turned over to their enemies, as will their fields and their
wives. For I will raise my powerful fist against the people of this land,” says
the Lord.
13 “From
the least to the greatest, their lives are ruled by greed. From politicians, to
pastors, to priests, they are all frauds.
14 They
offer superficial treatments for my people’s mortal wound. They give assurances
of peace when there is no peace.
15 Are
they ashamed of their disgusting actions? Not at all—they don’t even know how
to blush! Therefore, they will lie among the slaughtered. They will be brought
down when I punish them,” says the Lord.
America Rejects the Lord’s Way
16 This
is what the Lord says: “Stop at
the crossroads and look around. Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it.
Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, ‘No,
that’s not the road we want!’
17 I
posted watchmen over you who said, ‘Listen for the sound of the alarm.’ But you
replied, ‘No! We won’t pay attention!’
18 “Therefore, listen to this, all you nations. Take note of my people’s situation.
18 “Therefore, listen to this, all you nations. Take note of my people’s situation.
19 Listen,
all the earth! I will bring disaster on my people. It is the fruit of their own
schemes, because they refuse to listen to me. They have rejected my word.
20 There’s
no use offering me sweet incense from Paris. Keep your fragrant perfumes imported from distant lands! I will not accept your burnt offerings. Your
sacrifices have no pleasing aroma for me.”
21 Therefore,
this is what the Lord says: “I
will put obstacles in my people’s path. Fathers and sons will both fall over
them. Neighbors and friends will die together.”
An Invasion from the East
22 This
is what the Lord says: “Look! A
great army coming from the east! Great nations are rising against you from
far-off lands.
23 They
are armed with guided missiles and deadly chemicals. They are cruel and show no mercy. They
sound like a roaring sea as they come forward in their war machines. They are
coming in battle formation, planning to destroy you, beautiful Washington. ”
24 We have heard reports about the enemy, and we wring our hands in fright. Pangs of anguish have gripped us, like those of a woman in labor.
24 We have heard reports about the enemy, and we wring our hands in fright. Pangs of anguish have gripped us, like those of a woman in labor.
25 Don’t
go out to the fields! Don’t travel on the roads! The enemy’s sword is
everywhere and terrorizes us at every turn!
26 Oh, my
people, dress yourselves in burlap and sit among the ashes. Mourn and weep
bitterly, as for the loss of an only son. For suddenly the destroying armies
will be upon you!
27 “Word of the Lord, I have made you a tester of metals, that you may determine the quality of my people.
27 “Word of the Lord, I have made you a tester of metals, that you may determine the quality of my people.
28 They
are the worst kind of rebel, full of slander. They are as hard as bronze and
iron, and they lead others into corruption.
29 The
bellows fiercely fan the flames to burn out the corruption. But it does not
purify them, for the wickedness remains.
30 I will
label them ‘Rejected Silver,’ for I, the Lord,
am discarding them.”
New Living Translation / Gatekeeper's USA version)
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