HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1035
JER EM IAH 2
page 665
of the north to come to Jerusalem. I, the Lord,
have spoken!
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“They will set their thrones
at the gates of the city.
They will attack its walls
and all the other towns of Judah.
I will pronounce judgment
on my people for all their evil—
for deserting me and burning incense to
other gods.
Yes, they worship idols made with their
own hands!
“Get up and prepare for action.
Go out and tell them everything I tell
you to say.
Do not be afraid of them,
or I will make you look foolish in front
of them.
For see, today I have made you strong
like a fortified city that cannot be
captured,
like an iron pillar or a bronze wall.
You will stand against the whole land—
the kings, officials, priests, and people
of Judah.
They will fight you, but they will fail.
For I am with you, and I will take care
of you.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”
The LORD’s Case against His People
The Lord gave me another message. He
said, 2 “Go and shout this message to Jerusalem. This is what the Lord says:
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“I remember how eager you were to please me
as a young bride long ago,
how you loved me and followed me
even through the barren wilderness.
In those days Israel was holy to the Lord,
the first of his children.*
All who harmed his people were declared
guilty,
and disaster fell on them.
I, the Lord, have spoken!”
4 Listen to the word of the Lord, people of
Jacob—all you families of Israel! 5 This is what
the Lord says:
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“What did your ancestors find wrong with me
that led them to stray so far from me?
They worshiped worthless idols,
only to become worthless themselves.
They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord
who brought us safely out of Egypt
and led us through the barren wilderness—
a land of deserts and pits,
a land of drought and death,
where no one lives or even travels?’
2:3 Hebrew the firstfruits of his harvest. 2:10 Hebrew Kittim.
2:11 Hebrew their glory.
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“And when I brought you into a fruitful land
to enjoy its bounty and goodness,
you defiled my land
and corrupted the possession I had
promised you.
The priests did not ask,
‘Where is the Lord?’
Those who taught my word ignored me,
the rulers turned against me,
and the prophets spoke in the name of Baal,
wasting their time on worthless idols.
Therefore, I will bring my case against you,”
says the Lord.
“I will even bring charges against your
children’s children
in the years to come.
“Go west and look in the land of Cyprus*;
go east and search through the land
of Kedar.
Has anyone ever heard of anything
as strange as this?
Has any nation ever traded its gods for
new ones,
even though they are not gods at all?
Yet my people have exchanged their
glorious God*
for worthless idols!
The heavens are shocked at such a thing
and shrink back in horror and dismay,”
says the Lord.
“For my people have done two evil things:
They have abandoned me—
the fountain of living water.
And they have dug for themselves cracked
cisterns
that can hold no water at all!
The Results of Israel’s Sin
14 “Why has Israel become a slave?
Why has he been carried away as plunder?
15 Strong lions have roared against him,
and the land has been destroyed.
• Abortion
JE R E M I A H 1:5
While Jeremiah was still an unborn child,
a powerful relationship began between
him and God. God knew him as a person
and set him apart for a special job. Over
the centuries, the book of Jeremiah has
had a profound impact on people around
the world. What if Jeremiah had been
aborted by his parents and had never
been given the opportunity to minister
to the people of his day and to inspire
millions through the centuries?