| New American Standard Bible | ►► |
Jeremiah’s Prayer 1Righteous are You, LORD, when I plead my case with You; Nevertheless I would discuss matters of justice with You: Why has the way of the wicked prospered? Why are all those who deal in treachery at ease?
2You have planted them, they have also taken root; They grow, they have also produced fruit. You are near [a]to their lips But far from their [b]mind.
3But You know me, LORD; You see me And examine my heart’s attitude toward You. Drag them off like sheep for the slaughter, And [c]set them apart for a day of slaughter!
4How long is the land to mourn, And the vegetation of the [d]countryside to dry up? Due to the wickedness of those who live in it, Animals and birds have been snatched away, Because people have said, “He will not see our final end.”
5“If you have run with infantrymen and they have tired you out, How can you compete with horses? If you fall down in a land of peace, How will you do in the thicket by the Jordan?
6“For even your brothers and the household of your father, Even they have dealt treacherously with you, Even they have called aloud after you. Do not believe them, though they say nice things to you.”
God’s Answer 7“I have forsaken My house, I have abandoned My inheritance; I have handed the beloved of My soul Over to her enemies.
8“My inheritance has become to Me Like a lion in the forest; She has [e]roared against Me; Therefore I have come to hate her.
9“Is My inheritance like a speckled bird of prey to Me? Are the birds of prey against her on every side? Go, gather all the animals of the field, Bring them to devour!
10“Many shepherds have ruined My vineyard, They have trampled down My field; They have made My pleasant field A desolate wilderness.
11“[f]It has been made a desolation; Desolate, it mourns [g]before Me; The whole land has been made desolate, Because |
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