The Broken Covenant

Jeremiah 11

1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 a "Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 3 You shall say to them, Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: b Cursed be the man who does not hear the words of this covenant 4 that I commanded your fathers when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, c from the iron furnace, saying, d Listen to my voice, and do all that I command you. d So shall you be my people, and I will be your God, 5 e that I may confirm the oath that I swore to your fathers, f to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as at this day." Then I answered, "So be it, Lord."

6 And the Lord said to me, g "Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: h Hear the words of this covenant and do them. 7 For I solemnly warned your fathers when I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, i warning them persistently, even to this day, saying, d Obey my voice. 8 j Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, k but everyone walked in the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore I brought upon them all h the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did not."

9 Again the Lord said to me, l "A conspiracy exists among the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10 They have turned back to m the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words. m They have gone after other gods to serve them. n The house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant that I made with their fathers. 11 Therefore, thus says the Lord, Behold, I am bringing disaster upon them that they cannot escape. o Though they cry to me, I will not listen to them. 12 Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem p will go and cry to the gods to whom they make offerings, p but they cannot save them in the time of their trouble. 13 p For your gods have become as many as your cities, O Judah, and as many as the streets of Jerusalem are the altars you have set up to shame, q altars to make offerings to Baal.

14 "Therefore r do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer on their behalf, o for I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their trouble. 15 s What right has my beloved in my house, t when she has done many vile deeds? Can even sacrificial flesh avert your doom? u Can you then exult? 16 The Lord once called you v 'a green olive tree, beautiful with good fruit.' But w with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and x its branches will be consumed. 17 The Lord of hosts, y who planted you, has decreed disaster against you, because of the evil that the house of Israel and the house of Judah have done, z provoking me to anger by making offerings to Baal."

18 The Lord made it known to me and I knew;
then you showed me their deeds.
 19 But I was a like a gentle lamb
led to the slaughter.
I did not know b it was against me
they devised schemes, saying,
"Let us destroy the tree with its fruit,
c let us cut him off from d the land of the living,
that his name be remembered no more."
 20 But, O Lord of hosts, who judges righteously,
who e tests f the heart and the mind,
g let me see your vengeance upon them,
for to you have I committed my cause.

21 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the men of h Anathoth, i who seek your life, and say, j "Do not prophesy in the name of the Lord, or you will die by our hand" - 22 therefore thus says the Lord of hosts: "Behold, I will punish them. The young men shall die by the sword, their sons and their daughters shall die by famine, 23 and none of them shall be left. For I will bring disaster upon the men of k Anathoth, l the year of their punishment."

  1. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:6
    And the Lord said to me, "Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: Hear the words of this covenant and do them.
    Jeremiah 11:8
    Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but everyone walked in the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore I brought upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did not.
    2 Kings 23:3
    And the king stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant.
  2. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 27:26
    "'Cursed be anyone who does not confirm the words of this law by doing them.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'
    Galatians 3:10
    For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.
  3. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 4:20
    But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be a people of his own inheritance, as you are this day.
  4. Cross References
    Jeremiah 7:22 - 23
    For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to your fathers or command them concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices.
    Leviticus 26:3
    If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them.
    Leviticus 26:12
    And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.
  5. Cross References
    Jeremiah 7:22 - 23
    For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to your fathers or command them concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices.
    Leviticus 26:3
    If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them.
    Leviticus 26:12
    And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people.
  6. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 7:12 - 13
    And because you listen to these rules and keep and do them, the Lord your God will keep with you the covenant and the steadfast love that he swore to your fathers.
    Psalms 105:9 - 10
    The covenant that he made with Abraham, his sworn promise to Isaac.
  7. Cross References
    Exodus 3:8
    And I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
  8. Cross References
    Jeremiah 19:2
    And go out to the Valley of the Son of Hinnom at the entry of the Potsherd Gate, and proclaim there the words that I tell you.
  9. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:2
    Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
    Jeremiah 11:8
    Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but everyone walked in the stubbornness of his evil heart. Therefore I brought upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did not.
    2 Kings 23:3
    And the king stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk after the Lord and to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people joined in the covenant.
  10. Cross References
    Jeremiah 7:25
    From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day, I have persistently sent all my servants the prophets to them, day after day.
    2 Chronicles 36:15
    The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place.
  11. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:4
    That I commanded your fathers when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, Listen to my voice, and do all that I command you. So shall you be my people, and I will be your God.
  12. Cross References
    Jeremiah 7:26
    Yet they did not listen to me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck. They did worse than their fathers.
    Jeremiah 32:23
    And they entered and took possession of it. But they did not obey your voice or walk in your law. They did nothing of all you commanded them to do. Therefore you have made all this disaster come upon them.
  13. Cross References
    Jeremiah 3:17
    At that time Jerusalem shall be called the throne of the Lord, and all nations shall gather to it, to the presence of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they shall no more stubbornly follow their own evil heart.
  14. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:6
    And the Lord said to me, "Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: Hear the words of this covenant and do them.
  15. Cross References
    Ezekiel 22:25
    The conspiracy of her prophets in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing the prey; they have devoured human lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in her midst.
    Isaiah 8:12
    Do not call conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread.
    Hosea 6:9
    As robbers lie in wait for a man, so the priests band together; they murder on the way to Shechem; they commit villainy.
  16. Cross References
    Jeremiah 17:23
    Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck, that they might not hear and receive instruction.
    Psalms 78:8
    And that they should not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God.
    Psalms 79:8
    Do not remember against us our former iniquities; let your compassion come speedily to meet us, for we are brought very low.
    Ezekiel 20:18
    And I said to their children in the wilderness, Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor keep their rules, nor defile yourselves with their idols.
  17. Cross References
    Jeremiah 17:23
    Yet they did not listen or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck, that they might not hear and receive instruction.
    Psalms 78:8
    And that they should not be like their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God.
    Psalms 79:8
    Do not remember against us our former iniquities; let your compassion come speedily to meet us, for we are brought very low.
    Ezekiel 20:18
    And I said to their children in the wilderness, Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor keep their rules, nor defile yourselves with their idols.
  18. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 31:16
    And the Lord said to Moses, "Behold, you are about to lie down with your fathers. Then this people will rise and whore after the foreign gods among them in the land that they are entering, and they will forsake me and break my covenant that I have made with them.
    Deuteronomy 31:20
    For when I have brought them into the land flowing with milk and honey, which I swore to give to their fathers, and they have eaten and are full and grown fat, they will turn to other gods and serve them, and despise me and break my covenant.
  19. Cross References
    Proverbs 1:28
    Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me.
    Isaiah 1:15
    When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood.
    Ezekiel 8:18
    Therefore I will act in wrath. My eye will not spare, nor will I have pity. And though they cry in my ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them.
    Micah 3:4
    Then they will cry to the Lord, but he will not answer them; he will hide his face from them at that time, because they have made their deeds evil.
  20. Cross References
    Jeremiah 2:28
    But where are your gods that you made for yourself? Let them arise, if they can save you, in your time of trouble; for as many as your cities are your gods, O Judah.
    Acts 17:16
    Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.
  21. Cross References
    Jeremiah 2:28
    But where are your gods that you made for yourself? Let them arise, if they can save you, in your time of trouble; for as many as your cities are your gods, O Judah.
    Acts 17:16
    Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.
  22. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:12
    Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry to the gods to whom they make offerings, but they cannot save them in the time of their trouble.
  23. Cross References
    Hosea 9:10
    Like grapes in the wilderness, I found Israel. Like the first fruit on the fig tree in its first season, I saw your fathers. But they came to Baal-peor and consecrated themselves to the thing of shame, and became detestable like the thing they loved.
    Judges 6:25 - 32
    That night the Lord said to him, "Take your father's bull, and the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it
  24. Cross References
    Jeremiah 7:16
    As for you, do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with me, for I will not hear you.
    Hebrews 10:26
    For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins.
    1 John 5:16
    If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life - to those who commit sins that do not lead to death. There is sin that leads to death; I do not say that one should pray for that.
  25. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:11
    Therefore, thus says the Lord, Behold, I am bringing disaster upon them that they cannot escape. Though they cry to me, I will not listen to them.
  26. Cross References
    Isaiah 1:11 - 12
    What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the Lord ; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats.
  27. Cross References
    Ezekiel 16:25
    At the head of every street you built your lofty place and made your beauty an abomination, offering yourself to any passerby and multiplying your whoring.
  28. Cross References
    Proverbs 2:14
    Who rejoice in doing evil and delight in the perverseness of evil.
  29. Cross References
    Psalms 52:8
    But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.
    Hosea 14:6
    His shoots shall spread out; his beauty shall be like the olive, and his fragrance like Lebanon.
  30. Cross References
    Psalms 83:2
    For behold, your enemies make an uproar; those who hate you have raised their heads.
  31. Cross References
    Romans 11:17
    But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree.
    Romans 11:20
    That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear.
  32. Cross References
    Jeremiah 2:21
    Yet I planted you a choice vine, wholly of pure seed. How then have you turned degenerate and become a wild vine?
    Isaiah 5:2
    He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; he built a watchtower in the midst of it, and hewed out a wine vat in it; and he looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes.
  33. Cross References
    Jeremiah 7:18
    The children gather wood, the fathers kindle fire, and the women knead dough, to make cakes for the queen of heaven. And they pour out drink offerings to other gods, to provoke me to anger.
  34. Cross References
    Isaiah 53:7
    He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.
    Revelation 5:6
    And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.
  35. Cross References
    Jeremiah 18:18
    Then they said, "Come, let us make plots against Jeremiah, for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not pay attention to any of his words.
    Lamentations 3:60 - 61
    You have seen all their vengeance, all their plots against me.
  36. Cross References
    Psalms 83:4
    They say, "Come, let us wipe them out as a nation; let the name of Israel be remembered no more!
    Isaiah 53:8
    By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?
  37. Cross References
    Psalms 27:13
    I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!
  38. Cross References
    Jeremiah 17:10
    "I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds."
    Jeremiah 20:12
    O Lord of hosts, who tests the righteous, who sees the heart and the mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you have I committed my cause.
    Psalms 7:9
    Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end, and may you establish the righteous - you who test the minds and hearts, O righteous God!
    Revelation 2:23
    And I will strike her children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works.
  39. Cross References
    1 Samuel 16:7
    But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.
  40. Cross References
    Jeremiah 15:15
    O Lord, you know; remember me and visit me, and take vengeance for me on my persecutors. In your forbearance take me not away; know that for your sake I bear reproach.
    Jeremiah 17:18
    Let those be put to shame who persecute me, but let me not be put to shame; let them be dismayed, but let me not be dismayed; bring upon them the day of disaster; destroy them with double destruction!
    Jeremiah 20:12
    O Lord of hosts, who tests the righteous, who sees the heart and the mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you have I committed my cause.
    Lamentations 3:64
    You will repay them, O Lord, according to the work of their hands.
  41. Cross References
    Joshua 21:18
    Anathoth with its pasturelands, and Almon with its pasturelands - four cities.
  42. Cross References
    Jeremiah 12:6
    For even your brothers and the house of your father, even they have dealt treacherously with you; they are in full cry after you; do not believe them, though they speak friendly words to you.
    Matthew 13:57
    And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household.
  43. Cross References
    Isaiah 30:10
    Who say to the seers, "Do not see," and to the prophets, "Do not prophesy to us what is right; speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions.
  44. Cross References
    Joshua 21:18
    Anathoth with its pasturelands, and Almon with its pasturelands - four cities.
  45. Cross References
    Jeremiah 23:12
    Therefore their way shall be to them like slippery paths in the darkness, into which they shall be driven and fall, for I will bring disaster upon them in the year of their punishment, declares the Lord.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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