Jeremiah Chapter 15
Showing all 21 verses for Jeremiah Chapter 15.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth. "
"The Lord said, "Even if Moses and Samuel stood right here pleading for them, I still wouldn't relent towards this people. Send them away from my presence - let them go.""
I always want to hear you, but real relationship requires two sides - genuine change matters, not just repeated requests for a pass. Don't mistake patience for permission to keep going forever without turning around.
"And it shall come to pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt tell them, Thus saith the LORD; Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity. "
""And if they ask you, 'Where should we go?' tell them: 'Those destined for death, to death; for war, to war; for famine, to famine; for captivity, to captivity.'""
Sometimes consequences simply have to play out - I can't always shield you from what you've set in motion. But even here my care for individuals doesn't disappear; it's an entrenched pattern in a whole society that finally has to break.
"And I will appoint over them four kinds, saith the LORD: the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and destroy. "
""I will send four kinds of destroyers against them: the sword to kill, dogs to drag off bodies, birds of the sky and wild animals to devour and destroy what's left.""
I see the full weight of consequences that come from a society refusing to change course, and it grieves me. This is not what I want for anyone - it's the harvest of choices repeatedly made.
"And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem. "
""I will make them refugees scattered among all the nations, because of what Manasseh son of Hezekiah did in Jerusalem.""
The choices you make, especially in positions of influence, ripple forward further than you might realise. Lead and live in ways you'd genuinely want your legacy to be.
"For who shall have pity upon thee, O Jerusalem? or who shall bemoan thee? or who shall go aside to ask how thou doest? "
""Who will have pity on you, Jerusalem? Who will mourn for you or even stop to ask how you're doing?""
Don't wait until crisis hits to build real connection - genuine relationships, built on honesty now, are what sustain you when things get hard. I never stop caring, even when others might.
"Thou hast forsaken me, saith the LORD, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting. "
""You have abandoned me and kept turning away, so I will reach out my hand and destroy you - I'm tired of holding back.""
There's a difference between being patient and being endlessly exploited. I'm endlessly loving, but love sometimes means allowing real consequences so a pattern can finally break.
"And I will fan them with a fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children, I will destroy my people, since they return not from their ways. "
""I will scatter them like chaff at the city gates, take away their children, destroy my people - because they refuse to turn from their ways.""
Persistent refusal to change course has real costs, for yourself and often for those you love. If you sense a pattern isn't working, it's worth the courage to actually turn, before the cost grows.
"Their widows are increased to me above the sand of the seas: I have brought upon them against the mother of the young men a spoiler at noonday: I have caused him to fall upon it suddenly, and terrors upon the city. "
""Their widows will outnumber the grains of sand on the seashore. I've brought a destroyer against the mothers of young men, striking at midday, falling on them suddenly, bringing terror to the city.""
Life's hardest blows often come suddenly, without warning, and that's part of being human in an uncertain world. Build resilience and real relationships now, not just when trouble is already at the door.
"She that hath borne seven languisheth: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the LORD. "
""The woman who had seven children collapses in grief; her hope dies inside her while it's still daylight, humiliated and confused. Those who remain, I will hand over to the sword before their enemies.""
When loss feels like it came too soon, too unfairly, your grief is valid and doesn't need justifying. I sit with you in loss that feels premature and wrong, not just the losses that make "sense."
"Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth! I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury; yet every one of them doth curse me. "
""Oh, my mother, why did you give birth to me - a man everyone argues with and contends against across the whole land! I haven't lent money at interest or borrowed at interest from anyone, yet everyone curses me.""
You can be doing exactly the right thing and still feel utterly alone and hated for it - I don't ask you to pretend that doesn't hurt. Bring me your genuine anguish; I can handle your rawest honesty.
"The LORD said, Verily it shall be well with thy remnant; verily I will cause the enemy to entreat thee well in the time of evil and in the time of affliction. "
"The Lord replied, "It will truly go well for those who remain faithful - I will make even your enemies treat you well when hard times and trouble come.""
I don't dismiss your pain with quick reassurance, but I do want you to know that hard seasons aren't the permanent verdict on your life. Hold on - there's more ahead than what you're feeling right now.
"Shall iron break the northern iron and the steel? "
""Can iron break iron from the north, or steel?" - a question about whether anyone can break the coming invader, likened to unbreakable northern iron."
Sometimes you have to recognise what you genuinely cannot fight or control, and stop wasting your strength on it. Wisdom means knowing where real change is possible and where it isn't.
"Thy substance and thy treasures will I give to the spoil without price, and that for all thy sins, even in all thy borders. "
""I will hand over your wealth and treasures to be plundered, worth nothing in return, because of all your sins throughout your land.""
Material wealth built on or protected by injustice doesn't have lasting security. What you build matters less than how you build it.
"And I will make thee to pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not: for a fire is kindled in mine anger, which shall burn upon you. "
""I will make you go with your enemies into a land you don't know, because a fire has been kindled by my anger, and it will burn against you.""
Uprooting from what's familiar is one of life's hardest experiences, but even displacement isn't beyond my reach or care. I go with you even into unfamiliar, hard places.
"O LORD, thou knowest: remember me, and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away in thy longsuffering: know that for thy sake I have suffered rebuke. "
""Lord, you know everything - remember me, look after me, pay back those who persecute me. Don't let your patience with them cost me my life; remember I've suffered insults for your sake.""
It's alright to ask me for justice when you're mistreated for doing the right thing. I hear specific, honest prayers, not just polite generalities.
"Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. "
""When I found your words, I devoured them - they became the joy and delight of my heart, because I bear your name, Lord God of heaven's armies.""
You can love something deeply and still find it painfully hard - those two truths don't cancel each other out. Hold onto what genuinely gives you joy even while being honest about what's difficult.
"I sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of thy hand: for thou hast filled me with indignation. "
""I didn't sit with those who mock and celebrate; I sat alone because of your hand on me - you filled me with anger and distress.""
Staying true to your values sometimes means feeling like an outsider, and that loneliness is real and worth acknowledging, not just pushing through in silence. I understand what it costs to stand apart for what's right.
"Why is my pain perpetual, and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? wilt thou be altogether unto me as a liar, and as waters that fail? "
""Why won't my pain stop? Why is my wound incurable, refusing to heal? Will you really be like someone who deceives me, like a stream that dries up right when I need it most?""
You're allowed to tell me when you feel like I've let you down - I won't punish you for honesty, even angry honesty. Real relationship includes the freedom to say "this hurts, and I don't understand."
"Therefore thus saith the LORD, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them. "
"The Lord replies, "If you turn back to me, I will restore you and let you stand in my presence again. If you speak what is genuine instead of worthless words, you'll be my spokesman again. Let the people come around to your way of thinking - don't you go along with theirs.""
Even after you've been brutally honest with me about your doubts, I still have a purpose for you - I don't hold your honesty against you. Just don't let the crowd's opinions become your compass; let truth be your guide, even when it's unpopular.
"And I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the LORD. "
""I will make you like a fortified bronze wall against this people - they'll fight you, but they won't overcome you, because I am with you to save and rescue you.""
I don't promise you a life free of opposition when you stand for what's true - but I do promise you won't be destroyed by it. Stand firm; you're not alone in the fight.
"And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible. "
""I will rescue you from the power of wicked people, and free you from the grip of the ruthless.""
When you feel surrounded by hostility, hold onto the promise that you're not left to face it alone or unrescued. I redeem what looks like defeat into eventual deliverance.