Jeremiah 14

Drought, Famine, Sword

¹This is the word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the drought:

²“Judah mourns,

her cities languish;

they wail for the land,

and a cry goes up from Jerusalem.

³The nobles send their servants for water;

they go to the cisterns

but find no water.

They return with their jars unfilled;

dismayed and despairing,

they cover their heads.

⁴The ground is cracked

because there is no rain in the land;

the farmers are dismayed

and cover their heads.

⁵Even the doe in the field

deserts her newborn fawn

because there is no grass.

⁶Wild donkeys stand on the barren heights

and pant like jackals;

their eyes fail

for lack of food.”

⁷Although our sins testify against us,

do something, Lord, for the sake of your name.

For we have often rebelled;

we have sinned against you.

⁸You who are the hope of Israel,

its Savior in times of distress,

why are you like a stranger in the land,

like a traveler who stays only a night?

⁹Why are you like a man taken by surprise,

like a warrior powerless to save?

You are among us, Lord,

and we bear your name;

do not forsake us!

¹⁰This is what the Lord says about this people:

“They greatly love to wander;

they do not restrain their feet.

So the Lord does not accept them;

he will now remember their wickedness

and punish them for their sins.”

¹¹Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for the well-being of this people. ¹²Although they fast, I will not listen to their cry; though they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will destroy them with the sword, famine and plague.”

¹³But I said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord! The prophets keep telling them, ‘You will not see the sword or suffer famine. Indeed, I will give you lasting peace in this place.’ ”

¹⁴Then the Lord said to me, “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I have not sent them or appointed them or spoken to them. They are prophesying to you false visions, divinations, idolatries and the delusions of their own minds. ¹⁵Therefore this is what the Lord says about the prophets who are prophesying in my name: I did not send them, yet they are saying, ‘No sword or famine will touch this land.’ Those same prophets will perish by sword and famine. ¹⁶And the people they are prophesying to will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and sword. There will be no one to bury them, their wives, their sons and their daughters. I will pour out on them the calamity they deserve.

¹⁷“Speak this word to them:

“ ‘Let my eyes overflow with tears

night and day without ceasing;

for the Virgin Daughter, my people,

has suffered a grievous wound,

a crushing blow.

¹⁸If I go into the country,

I see those slain by the sword;

if I go into the city,

I see the ravages of famine.

Both prophet and priest

have gone to a land they know not.’ ”

¹⁹Have you rejected Judah completely?

Do you despise Zion?

Why have you afflicted us

so that we cannot be healed?

We hoped for peace

but no good has come,

for a time of healing

but there is only terror.

²⁰We acknowledge our wickedness, Lord,

and the guilt of our ancestors;

we have indeed sinned against you.

²¹For the sake of your name do not despise us;

do not dishonor your glorious throne.

Remember your covenant with us

and do not break it.

²²Do any of the worthless idols of the nations bring rain?

Do the skies themselves send down showers?

No, it is you, Lord our God.

Therefore our hope is in you,

for you are the one who does all this.