| King James Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel: | 1Hear the word that the LORD speaks to you, O Israel! |
| 2Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. | 2This 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. |
| 3For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. | 3Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree, and a craftsman carves an idol. |
| 4They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. | 4They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won’t fall over. |
| 5They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good. | 5Their 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.” |
| 6Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee, O LORD; thou art great, and thy name is great in might. | 6LORD, there is no one like you! For you are great, and your name is full of power. |
| 7Who would not fear thee, O King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none like unto thee. | 7Who 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. |
| 8But they are altogether brutish and foolish: the stock is a doctrine of vanities. | 8People who worship idols are stupid and foolish. The things they worship are made of wood! |
| 9Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the hands of the founder: blue and purple is their clothing: they are all the work of cunning men. | 9They 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. |
| 10But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation. | 10But 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. |
| 11Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens. | 11Say 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.” |
| 12He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion. | 12But the LORD made the earth by his power, and he preserves it by his wisdom. With his own understanding he stretched out the heavens. |
| 13When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, and he causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; he maketh lightnings with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures. | 13When 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. |
| 14Every man is brutish in his knowledge: every founder is confounded by the graven image: for his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them. | 14The 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. |
| 15They are vanity, and the work of errors: in the time of their visitation they shall perish. | 15Idols are worthless; they are ridiculous lies! On the day of reckoning they will all be destroyed. |
| 16The portion of Jacob is not like them: for he is the former of all things; and Israel is the rod of his inheritance: The LORD of hosts is his name. | 16But 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! The Coming Destruction |
| 17Gather up thy wares out of the land, O inhabitant of the fortress. | 17Pack your bags and prepare to leave; the siege is about to begin. |
| 18For thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will sling out the inhabitants of the land at this once, and will distress them, that they may find it so. | 18For 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.” |
| 19Woe is me for my hurt! my wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it. | 19My wound is severe, and my grief is great. My sickness is incurable, but I must bear it. |
| 20My tabernacle is spoiled, and all my cords are broken: my children are gone forth of me, and they are not: there is none to stretch forth my tent any more, and to set up my curtains. | 20My 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. |
| 21For the pastors are become brutish, and have not sought the LORD: therefore they shall not prosper, and all their flocks shall be scattered. | 21The 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. |
| 22Behold, the noise of the bruit is come, and a great commotion out of the north country, to make the cities of Judah desolate, and a den of dragons. | 22Listen! 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. Jeremiah’s Prayer |
| 23O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps. | 23I know, LORD, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course. |
| 24O LORD, correct me, but with judgment; not in thine anger, lest thou bring me to nothing. | 24So correct me, LORD, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die. |
| 25Pour out thy fury upon the heathen that know thee not, and upon the families that call not on thy name: for they have eaten up Jacob, and devoured him, and consumed him, and have made his habitation desolate. | 25Pour 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. |
| King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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