Jeremiah 15

The Lord Will Not Relent

1 Then the Lord said to me, p "Though q Moses r and Samuel s stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight, and let them go!

2 And when they ask you, 'Where shall we go?' you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord:
t "'Those who are for pestilence, to pestilence,
and those who are for the sword, to the sword;
those who are for famine, to famine,
and those who are for captivity, to captivity.'

3 u I will appoint over them four kinds of destroyers, declares the Lord: the sword to kill, the dogs to tear, and v the birds of the air w and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. 4 x And I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what y Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem.

5 z "Who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem,
z or who will grieve for you?
Who will turn aside
to ask about your welfare?
6 a You have rejected me, declares the Lord;
b you keep going backward,
so I have stretched out my hand against you and destroyed you -
c I am weary of relenting.
7 d I have winnowed them with e a winnowing fork
in the gates of the land;
I have bereaved them; I have destroyed my people;
f they did not turn from their ways.
8 I have made their widows more in number
than g the sand of the seas;
I have brought against the mothers of young men
a destroyer at noonday;
I have made anguish and terror
fall upon them suddenly.
9 h She who bore seven has grown feeble;
i she has fainted away;
j her sun went down while it was yet day;
she has been shamed and disgraced.
And the rest of them I will give to the sword
before their enemies,
declares the Lord."

Jeremiah's Complaint

10 k Woe is me, my mother, that you bore me, a man of strife and contention to the whole land! l I have not lent, nor have I borrowed, yet all of them curse me. 11 The Lord said, "Have I not 1 set you free for their good? Have I not pleaded for you before the enemy in the time of trouble and in the time of distress? 12 Can one break iron, iron m from the north, and bronze?

13 n "Your wealth and your treasures I will give as o spoil, without price, for all your sins, throughout all your territory. 14 I will make you serve your enemies p in a land that you do not know, q for in my anger a fire is kindled that shall burn forever."

15 r O Lord, you know;
s remember me and visit me,
s t and take vengeance for me on my persecutors.
In your forbearance take me not away;
u know that v for your sake I bear reproach.
16 Your words were found, w and I ate them,
and x your words became to me a joy
and the delight of my heart,
y for I am called by your name,
O Lord, God of hosts.
17 z I did not sit in the company of revelers,
nor did I rejoice;
a I sat alone, because your hand was upon me,
for you had filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my pain unceasing,
b my wound incurable,
refusing to be healed?
Will you be to me c like a deceitful brook,
like waters that fail?

19 Therefore thus says the Lord:
d "If you return, I will restore you,
and you shall e stand before me.
If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless,
you shall be as my mouth.
They shall turn to you,
but you shall not turn to them.
20 f And I will make you to this people
a fortified wall of bronze;
they will fight against you,
g but they shall not prevail over you,
h for I am with you
to save you and deliver you,
declares the Lord.
21 g I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked,
and redeem you from the grasp of i the ruthless."

  1. Cross References
    Psalms 99:6
    Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called upon his name. They called to the Lord, and he answered them.
    Ezekiel 14:14
    Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver but their own lives by their righteousness, declares the Lord God.
  2. Cross References
    Psalms 106:23
    Therefore he said he would destroy them - had not Moses, his chosen one, stood in the breach before him, to turn away his wrath from destroying them.
    Exodus 32:11 - 13
    But Moses implored the Lord his God and said, "O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?
  3. Cross References
    1 Samuel 7:9
    So Samuel took a nursing lamb and offered it as a whole burnt offering to the Lord. And Samuel cried out to the Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him.
    1 Samuel 8:6
    But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, "Give us a king to judge us." And Samuel prayed to the Lord.
    1 Samuel 12:23
    Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way.
    1 Samuel 15:11
    I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments." And Samuel was angry, and he cried to the Lord all night.
  4. Cross References
    Jeremiah 35:19
    Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab the son of Rechab shall never lack a man to stand before me.
    Jeremiah 15:19
    Therefore thus says the Lord : "If you return, I will restore you, and you shall stand before me. If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall be as my mouth. They shall turn to you, but you shall not turn to them.
  5. Cross References
    Jeremiah 14:12
    Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, an...
    Jeremiah 16:4
    They shall die of deadly diseases. They shall n...
    Jeremiah 21:9
    He who stays in this city shall die by the swor...
    Jeremiah 43:11
    He shall come and strike the land of Egypt, giv...
    Ezekiel 5:12
    A third part of you shall die of pestilence and...
    Ezekiel 6:11 - 12
    Thus says the Lord God : "Clap your hands and s...
    Zechariah 11:9
    So I said, "I will not be your shepherd. What i...
  6. Cross References
    Leviticus 26:16 - 22
    Then I will do this to you: I will visit you with panic, with wasting disease and fever that consume the eyes and make the heart ache. And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.
  7. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 28:26
    And your dead body shall be food for all birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth, and there shall be no one to frighten them away.
  8. Cross References
    Revelation 6:8
    And I looked, and behold, a pale horse! And its rider's name was Death, and Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth.
  9. Cross References
    Jeremiah 24:9
    I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a reproach, a byword, a taunt, and a curse in all the places where I shall drive them.
    Jeremiah 29:18
    I will pursue them with sword, famine, and pestilence, and will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a terror, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them.
    Jeremiah 34:17
    Therefore, thus says the Lord : You have not obeyed me by proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and to his neighbor; behold, I proclaim to you liberty to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, declares the Lord. I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
    Deuteronomy 28:25
    The Lord will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You shall go out one way against them and flee seven ways before them. And you shall be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.
  10. Cross References
    2 Kings 21:2
    And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel.
    2 Kings 21:11
    Because Manasseh king of Judah has committed these abominations and has done things more evil than all that the Amorites did, who were before him, and has made Judah also to sin with his idols.
    2 Kings 21:16 - 17
    Moreover, Manasseh shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another, besides the sin that he made Judah to sin so that they did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.
    2 Kings 23:26
    Still the Lord did not turn from the burning of his great wrath, by which his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked him.
    2 Kings 24:3 - 4
    Surely this came upon Judah at the command of the Lord, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he had done.
  11. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:19
    These two things have happened to you - who will console you? - devastation and destruction, famine and sword; who will comfort you?
    Nahum 3:7
    And all who look at you will shrink from you and say, Wasted is Nineveh; who will grieve for her? Where shall I seek comforters for you?
  12. Cross References
    Isaiah 51:19
    These two things have happened to you - who will console you? - devastation and destruction, famine and sword; who will comfort you?
    Nahum 3:7
    And all who look at you will shrink from you and say, Wasted is Nineveh; who will grieve for her? Where shall I seek comforters for you?
  13. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 32:15
    But Jeshurun grew fat, and kicked; you grew fat, stout, and sleek; then he forsook God who made him and scoffed at the Rock of his salvation.
  14. Cross References
    Jeremiah 7:24
    But they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in their own counsels and the stubbornness of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward.
  15. Cross References
    Hosea 13:14
    Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol? Shall I redeem them from Death? O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting? Compassion is hidden from my eyes.
  16. Cross References
    Jeremiah 51:2
    And I will send to Babylon winnowers, and they shall winnow her, and they shall empty her land, when they come against her from every side on the day of trouble.
    Isaiah 41:16
    You shall winnow them, and the wind shall carry them away, and the tempest shall scatter them. And you shall rejoice in the Lord ; in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.
    Matthew 3:12
    His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.
    Luke 3:17
    His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.
  17. Cross References
    Isaiah 30:24
    And the oxen and the donkeys that work the ground will eat seasoned fodder, which has been winnowed with shovel and fork.
  18. Cross References
    Jeremiah 5:3
    O Lord, do not your eyes look for truth? You have struck them down, but they felt no anguish; you have consumed them, but they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; they have refused to repent.
    Isaiah 9:13
    The people did not turn to him who struck them, nor inquire of the Lord of hosts.
    Amos 4:6
    I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities, and lack of bread in all your places, yet you did not return to me," declares the Lord.
    Amos 4:8 - 11
    So two or three cities would wander to another city to drink water, and would not be satisfied; yet you did not return to me," declares the Lord.
  19. Cross References
    Genesis 22:17
    I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies.
    Psalms 139:18
    If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.
  20. Cross References
    1 Samuel 2:5
    Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn.
    Lamentations 1:1
    How lonely sits the city that was full of people! How like a widow has she become, she who was great among the nations! She who was a princess among the provinces has become a slave.
  21. Cross References
    Job 11:20
    But the eyes of the wicked will fail; all way of escape will be lost to them, and their hope is to breathe their last.
  22. Cross References
    Amos 8:9
    And on that day," declares the Lord God, "I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight.
  23. Cross References
    Jeremiah 20:14
    Cursed be the day on which I was born! The day when my mother bore me, let it not be blessed!
  24. Cross References
    Exodus 22:25
    If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him.
    Psalms 15:5
    Who does not put out his money at interest and does not take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.
    Isaiah 24:2
    And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the slave, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor.
  25. Cross References
    Jeremiah 1:13
    The word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying, "What do you see?" And I said, "I see a boiling pot, facing away from the north.
  26. Cross References
    Jeremiah 17:3
    On the mountains in the open country. Your wealth and all your treasures I will give for spoil as the price of your high places for sin throughout all your territory.
  27. Cross References
    Psalms 44:12
    You have sold your people for a trifle, demanding no high price for them.
  28. Cross References
    Jeremiah 9:16
    I will scatter them among the nations whom neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send the sword after them, until I have consumed them.
    Jeremiah 16:13
    Therefore I will hurl you out of this land into a land that neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods day and night, for I will show you no favor.
    Jeremiah 17:4
    You shall loosen your hand from your heritage that I gave to you, and I will make you serve your enemies in a land that you do not know, for in my anger a fire is kindled that shall burn forever.
    Jeremiah 22:28
    Is this man Coniah a despised, broken pot, a vessel no one cares for? Why are he and his children hurled and cast into a land that they do not know?
  29. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 32:22
    For a fire is kindled by my anger, and it burns to the depths of Sheol, devours the earth and its increase, and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.
  30. Cross References
    Jeremiah 12:3
    But you, O Lord, know me; you see me, and test my heart toward you. Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, and set them apart for the day of slaughter.
  31. Cross References
    Judges 16:28
    Then Samson called to the Lord and said, "O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged on the Philistines for my two eyes.
  32. Cross References
    Judges 16:28
    Then Samson called to the Lord and said, "O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged on the Philistines for my two eyes.
  33. Cross References
    Jeremiah 11:20
    But, O Lord of hosts, who judges righteously, who tests the heart and the mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you have I committed my cause.
    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.
  34. Cross References
    Jeremiah 17:16
    I have not run away from being your shepherd, nor have I desired the day of sickness. You know what came out of my lips; it was before your face.
  35. Cross References
    Psalms 69:7
    For it is for your sake that I have borne reproach, that dishonor has covered my face.
  36. Cross References
    Ezekiel 3:1
    And he said to me, "Son of man, eat whatever you find here. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.
    Ezekiel 3:3
    And he said to me, "Son of man, feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it." Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey.
    Revelation 10:9 - 10
    So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll. And he said to me, "Take and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.
  37. Cross References
    Psalms 119:111
    Your testimonies are my heritage forever, for they are the joy of my heart.
    Psalms 119:162
    I rejoice at your word like one who finds great spoil.
  38. Cross References
    Jeremiah 14:9
    Why should you be like a man confused, like a mighty warrior who cannot save? Yet you, O Lord, are in the midst of us, and we are called by your name; do not leave us.
  39. Cross References
    Psalms 26:4
    I do not sit with men of falsehood, nor do I consort with hypocrites.
  40. Cross References
    Psalms 102:7
    I lie awake; I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop.
    Lamentations 3:28
    Let him sit alone in silence when it is laid on him.
  41. Cross References
    Jeremiah 30:15
    Why do you cry out over your hurt? Your pain is incurable. Because your guilt is great, because your sins are flagrant, I have done these things to you.
    Job 34:6
    In spite of my right I am counted a liar; my wound is incurable, though I am without transgression.
  42. Cross References
    Job 6:15
    My brothers are treacherous as a torrent-bed, as torrential streams that pass away.
    Isaiah 58:11
    And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
  43. Cross References
    Jeremiah 3:14
    Return, O faithless children, declares the Lord ; for I am your master; I will take you, one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.
  44. Cross References
    Jeremiah 15:1
    Then the Lord said to me, "Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight, and let them go!
  45. Cross References
    Jeremiah 1:18
    And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land.
    Jeremiah 6:27
    I have made you a tester of metals among my people, that you may know and test their ways.
  46. Cross References
    Jeremiah 1:19
    They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you.
    Jeremiah 20:11
    But the Lord is with me as a dread warrior; therefore my persecutors will stumble; they will not overcome me. They will be greatly shamed, for they will not succeed. Their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten.
  47. Cross References
    Jeremiah 1:8
    Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.
  48. Cross References
    Jeremiah 15:20
    And I will make you to this people a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you, for I am with you to save you and deliver you, declares the Lord.
  49. Cross References
    Isaiah 13:11
    I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will put an end to the pomp of the arrogant, and lay low the pompous pride of the ruthless.
    Isaiah 25:4 - 5
    For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat; for the breath of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall.
    Isaiah 29:5
    But the multitude of your foreign foes shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the ruthless like passing chaff. And in an instant, suddenly.
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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