10Hear the word that the Lord speaks to you, O Israel!H8085H1697H3068H1696H1004H34782This is what the Lord says: “Do not act like the other nations, who try to read their future in the stars. Do not be afraid of their predictions, even though other nations are terrified by them.H559H3068H3925H1870H1471H2865H226H8064H1471H2865H19923Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree, and a craftsman carves an idol.H2708H5971H1892H3772H6086H3293H4639H3027H2796H46214They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won’t fall over.H3302H3701H2091H2388H4548H4717H63285Their gods are like helpless scarecrows in a cucumber field! They cannot speak, and they need to be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of such gods, for they can neither harm you nor do you any good.”H4749H8560H1696H5375H5375H6805H3372H7489H31906Lord, there is no one like you! For you are great, and your name is full of power.H3068H1419H8034H1419H13697Who would not fear you, O King of nations? That title belongs to you alone! Among all the wise people of the earth and in all the kingdoms of the world, there is no one like you.H3372H4428H1471H2969H2450H1471H44388People who worship idols are stupid and foolish. The things they worship are made of wood!H259H1197H3688H6086H4148H18929They bring beaten sheets of silver from Tarshish and gold from Uphaz, and they give these materials to skillful craftsmen who make their idols. Then they dress these gods in royal blue and purple robes made by expert tailors.H3701H7554H935H8659H2091H210H4639H2796H3027H6884H8504H713H3830H4639H245010But the Lord is the only true God. He is the living God and the everlasting King! The whole earth trembles at his anger. The nations cannot stand up to his wrath.H3068H571H430H2416H430H5769H4428H7110H776H7493H1471H3557H219511Say this to those who worship other gods: “Your so-called gods, who did not make the heavens and earth, will vanish from the earth and from under the heavens.”H1836H560H426H3809H5648H8065H778H7H772H8460H429H806512But God made the earth by his power, and he preserves it by his wisdom. With his own understanding he stretched out the heavens.H6213H776H3581H3559H8398H2451H5186H8064H839413When he speaks in the thunder, the heavens roar with rain. He causes the clouds to rise over the earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the wind from his storehouses.H5414H6963H1995H4325H8064H5387H5927H7097H776H6213H1300H4306H3318H7307H21414The whole human race is foolish and has no knowledge! The craftsmen are disgraced by the idols they make, for their carefully shaped works are a fraud. These idols have no breath or power.H120H1197H1847H6884H3001H6459H5262H8267H730715Idols are worthless; they are ridiculous lies! On the day of reckoning they will all be destroyed.H1892H4639H8595H6256H6486H616But the God of Israel is no idol! He is the Creator of everything that exists, including Israel, his own special possession. The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is his name!H2506H3290H3335H3478H7626H5159H3068H6635H8034
The Coming Destruction
17Pack your bags and prepare to leave; the siege is about to begin.H622H3666H776H3427H469218For this is what the Lord says: “Suddenly, I will fling out all you who live in this land. I will pour great troubles upon you, and at last you will feel my anger.”H559H3068H7049H3427H776H6471H6887H467219My wound is severe, and my grief is great. My sickness is incurable, but I must bear it.H188H7667H4347H2470H559H389H2483H537520My home is gone, and no one is left to help me rebuild it. My children have been taken away, and I will never see them again.H168H7703H4340H5423H1121H3318H5186H168H6965H340721The shepherds of my people have lost their senses. They no longer seek wisdom from the Lord. Therefore, they fail completely, and their flocks are scattered.H7462H1197H1875H3068H7919H4830H632722Listen! Hear the terrifying roar of great armies as they roll down from the north. The towns of Judah will be destroyed and become a haunt for jackals.H6963H8052H935H1419H7494H6828H776H7760H5892H3063H8077H4583H8577
Jeremiah’s Prayer
23I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course.H3068H3045H1870H120H376H1980H3559H680624So correct me, Lord, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die.H3068H3256H4941H639H459125Pour out your wrath on the nations that refuse to acknowledge you—on the peoples that do not call upon your name. For they have devoured your people Israel; they have devoured and consumed them, making the land a desolate wilderness.H8210H2534H1471H3045H4940H7121H8034H398H3290H398H3615H5116H8074
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