HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1038
J EREMIA H 4
16 “And when your land is once more filled
with people,” says the Lord, “you will no longer
wish for ‘the good old days’ when you possessed
the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant. You will not miss
those days or even remember them, and there
will be no need to rebuild the Ark. 17 In that day
Jerusalem will be known as ‘The Throne of the
Lord.’ All nations will come there to honor the
Lord. They will no longer stubbornly follow
their own evil desires. 18 In those days the people
of Judah and Israel will return together from exile
in the north. They will return to the land I gave
your ancestors as an inheritance forever.
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4
2
— promises —
from God
“Come back to me,
and I will heal your
wayward hearts.”
J E R E M I A H 3:2 2
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“I thought to myself,
‘I would love to treat you as my own
children!’
I wanted nothing more than to give you this
beautiful land—
the finest possession in the world.
I looked forward to your calling me ‘Father,’
and I wanted you never to turn from me.
But you have been unfaithful to me, you
people of Israel!
You have been like a faithless wife who
leaves her husband.
I, the Lord, have spoken.”
Voices are heard high on the windswept
mountains,
the weeping and pleading of Israel’s
people.
For they have chosen crooked paths
and have forgotten the Lord their God.
“My wayward children,” says the Lord,
“come back to me, and I will heal your
wayward hearts.”
“Yes, we’re coming,” the people reply,
“for you are the Lord our God.
Our worship of idols on the hills
and our religious orgies on the
mountains
are a delusion.
Only in the Lord our God
will Israel ever find salvation.
From childhood we have watched
as everything our ancestors worked for—
their flocks and herds, their sons and
daughters—
was squandered on a delusion.
Let us now lie down in shame
and cover ourselves with dishonor,
for we and our ancestors have sinned
against the Lord our God.
From our childhood to this day
we have never obeyed him.”
“O Israel,” says the Lord,
“if you wanted to return to me,
you could.
You could throw away your detestable idols
and stray away no more.
Then when you swear by my name, saying,
‘As surely as the Lord lives,’
you could do so
with truth, justice, and righteousness.
Then you would be a blessing to the nations
of the world,
and all people would come and praise
my name.”
1
Coming Judgment against Judah
3 This is what the Lord says to the people of Judah and Jerusalem:
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“Plow up the hard ground of your hearts!
Do not waste your good seed among
thorns.
O people of Judah and Jerusalem,
surrender your pride and power.
Change your hearts before the Lord,*
or my anger will burn like an
unquenchable fire
because of all your sins.
“Shout to Judah, and broadcast to Jerusalem!
Tell them to sound the alarm throughout
the land:
‘Run for your lives!
Flee to the fortified cities!’
Raise a signal flag as a warning for
Jerusalem*:
‘Flee now! Do not delay!’
For I am bringing terrible destruction
upon you
from the north.”
A lion stalks from its den,
a destroyer of nations.
It has left its lair and is headed your way.
It’s going to devastate your land!
Your towns will lie in ruins,
with no one living in them anymore.
So put on clothes of mourning
and weep with broken hearts,
for the fierce anger of the Lord
is still upon us.
“In that day,” says the Lord,
“the king and the officials will tremble
in fear.
4:4 Hebrew Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and take away
the foreskins of your heart. 4:6 Hebrew Zion.