Jeremiah 8 Free Bible Version
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
1 When that happens, declares the Lord, the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of the officials, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the people of Jerusalem will be taken out of their graves.
1 “At that time,” says Yahweh, “they will bring the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of his princes, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves.
2 They will lie exposed to the sun and moon, and to all the stars which they loved, which they served, which they followed, which they consulted, and which they worshiped. Their bones will not be collected or reburied, but will be left like manure lying on the ground.
2 They will spread them before the sun, the moon, and all the army of the sky, which they have loved, which they have served, after which they have walked, which they have sought, and which they have worshiped. They will not be gathered or be buried. They will be like dung on the surface of the earth.
3 Those who are left of this evil family will prefer to die rather than live in every place I've scattered them, declares the Lord Almighty.
3 Death will be chosen rather than life by all the residue that remain of this evil family, that remain in all the places where I have driven them,” says Yahweh of Armies.
4 Tell them this is what the Lord says: When people fall down, don't they get up again? When people go the wrong way, don't they turn around?
4 “Moreover you shall tell them, ‘Yahweh says: “‘Do men fall, and not rise up again? Does one turn away, and not return?
5 So why have these people of Jerusalem gone the wrong way? Why do they refuse to turn around from their repeated betrayals, holding on to all their lies?
5 Why then have the people of Jerusalem fallen back by a perpetual backsliding? They cling to deceit. They refuse to return.
6 I've heard exactly what they said, but they don't tell the truth. No one is sorry for doing wrong, asking, “What have I done?” Everyone chooses their own way, like a horse charging into battle.
6 I listened and heard, but they didn’t say what is right. No one repents of his wickedness, saying, “What have I done?” Everyone turns to his course, as a horse that rushes headlong in the battle.
7 Even storks high in the sky know when it's time to migrate. Turtledoves, swifts, and songbirds know when to fly away at the right time of the year. But my people don't know the laws of the Lord.
7 Yes, the stork in the sky knows her appointed times. The turtledove, the swallow, and the crane observe the time of their coming; but my people don’t know Yahweh’s law.
8 How on earth can you say, “We're wise, and we have the Law of the Lord?” Can't you see that the writings of your teachers of the Law have turned it into lies?
8 “‘How do you say, “We are wise, and Yahweh’s law is with us”? But, behold, the false pen of the scribes has made that a lie.
9 The wise will be shown to be foolish; they will be shocked at being caught out. Can't you see that they've rejected what the Lord says—so do they have any wisdom at all?
9 The wise men are disappointed. They are dismayed and trapped. Behold, they have rejected Yahweh’s word. What kind of wisdom is in them?
10 I'm going to give their wives to others, and their fields to different owners, since everyone cheats because they're greedy, poor and rich alike. Even prophets and priests—they are all dishonest liars!
10 Therefore I will give their wives to others and their fields to those who will possess them. For everyone from the least even to the greatest is given to covetousness; from the prophet even to the priest everyone deals falsely.
11 They give my wounded people first aid, but they don't really care about them. They tell them, “Don't worry! We have peace!” even as war approaches.
11 They have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, “Peace, peace,” when there is no peace.
12 Are they ashamed of the disgusting things they did? No, they're not ashamed at all, they can't even blush. So they will fall just like the others, when I punish them; they will drop down dead, says the Lord.
12 Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? No, they were not at all ashamed. They couldn’t blush. Therefore they will fall among those who fall. In the time of their visitation they will be cast down, says Yahweh.
13 I'm going to destroy them, declares the Lord. There will be no grapes left on the vines, no figs on the trees—even the leaves will wither. They will lose whatever I gave them.
13 “‘I will utterly consume them, says Yahweh. No grapes will be on the vine, no figs on the fig tree, and the leaf will fade. The things that I have given them will pass away from them.’”
14 The people say, “Why are we sitting around here? Let's get together and run to the fortified towns. We can die there, for the Lord our God is killing us by giving us poisoned water to drink, because we sinned against him.
14 “Why do we sit still? Assemble yourselves! Let’s enter into the fortified cities, and let’s be silent there; for Yahweh our God has put us to silence, and given us poisoned water to drink, because we have sinned against Yahweh.
15 We hoped for peace, but instead nothing good has come; we hoped for a time of healing, but instead there was only sudden terror.”
15 We looked for peace, but no good came; and for a time of healing, and behold, dismay!
16 The snorting of enemy horses can be heard from Dan. The whole country shakes in fear at the sound of the neighing of these strong stallions, They have come to destroy the country and everything in it; Jerusalem and everyone who lives there.
16 The snorting of his horses is heard from Dan. The whole land trembles at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones; for they have come, and have devoured the land and all that is in it, the city and those who dwell therein.”
17 Watch out! I'm sending snakes among you, vipers that can't be charmed. They will come and bite you, declares the Lord.
17 “For, behold, I will send serpents, adders among you, which will not be charmed; and they will bite you,” says Yahweh.
18 Nothing comforts me in my suffering; I feel terrible inside.
18 Oh that I could comfort myself against sorrow! My heart is faint within me.
19 Listen to my people crying out for help from a distant land, asking “Isn't the Lord present in Zion anymore? Has her King left?” Why have they made me angry, worshiping their carved images and their useless foreign idols?
19 Behold, the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people from a land that is very far off: “Isn’t Yahweh in Zion? Isn’t her King in her?” “Why have they provoked me to anger with their engraved images, and with foreign idols?”
20 “The harvest is over, the summer is finished, but we're not saved,” say the people.
20 “The harvest is past. The summer has ended, and we are not saved.”
21 I'm crushed by the injuries suffered by my people; I mourn for them. I'm horrified at what's happened!
21 For the hurt of the daughter of my people, I am hurt. I mourn. Dismay has taken hold of me.
22 Isn't there any ointment from Gilead to help heal them? Aren't there any doctors there? So why haven't my people been healed from their wounds?
22 Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then isn’t the health of the daughter of my people recovered?
Cross references (22)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Ezekiel 6:5; 2 Chronicles 34:4–5; 2 Kings 23:20; 2 Kings 23:16; 1 Kings 13:2
- 2 2 Kings 23:5; Deuteronomy 4:19; Zephaniah 1:5; Jeremiah 9:22; Acts 7:42
- 3 Revelation 9:6; Jeremiah 29:14; Jeremiah 23:8; Jeremiah 23:3; Deuteronomy 30:4
- 4 Proverbs 24:16; Micah 7:8; Isaiah 55:7; Jeremiah 3:1; Hosea 6:1
- 5 Jeremiah 9:6; Zechariah 7:11; Jeremiah 5:3; Hebrews 12:25; John 5:40
- 6 Psalm 14:2; Ezekiel 18:28; Luke 15:17–19; 2 Peter 3:9; Isaiah 30:18
- 7 Isaiah 1:3; Jeremiah 5:4–5; Isaiah 5:12; Proverbs 6:6–8; Song of Songs 2:12
- 8 John 9:41; Isaiah 10:1–2; Job 5:12–13; Matthew 15:6; 1 Corinthians 3:18–20
- 9 Psalm 119:98–100; Job 5:12; Jeremiah 6:15; Psalm 19:7; Isaiah 19:11
- 10 Jeremiah 6:12–13; Ezekiel 33:31; Amos 5:11; Zephaniah 1:13; Ezekiel 22:27–28
- 11 Jeremiah 6:14; Ezekiel 13:10–16; Jeremiah 28:3–9; Jeremiah 27:9–10; Lamentations 2:14
- 12 Jeremiah 3:3; Isaiah 3:9; Deuteronomy 32:35; Jeremiah 6:15; Psalm 52:7
- 13 Matthew 21:19; Joel 1:7; Psalm 1:3–4; Jeremiah 17:8; Haggai 2:17
- 14 Jeremiah 23:15; Jeremiah 9:15; Psalm 69:21; Jeremiah 35:11; Lamentations 3:19
- 15 Jeremiah 14:19; Micah 1:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:3; Jeremiah 4:10; Jeremiah 8:11
- 16 Judges 5:22; 1 Corinthians 10:28; Judges 18:29; Jeremiah 4:15–16; Judges 20:1
- 17 Psalm 58:4–5; Ecclesiastes 10:11; Deuteronomy 32:24; Isaiah 14:29; Numbers 21:6
- 18 Jeremiah 6:24; Lamentations 1:16–17; Isaiah 22:4; Lamentations 5:17; Jeremiah 10:19–22
- 19 Isaiah 39:3; Isaiah 13:5; Revelation 2:1; Jeremiah 14:19; Isaiah 33:22
- 20 Luke 13:25; Proverbs 10:5; Matthew 25:1–12; Luke 19:44; Hebrews 3:7–15
- 21 Jeremiah 14:17; Nahum 2:10; Joel 2:6; Song of Songs 1:5–6; Psalm 137:3–6
- 22 Jeremiah 46:11; Genesis 37:25; Jeremiah 51:8; Jeremiah 30:12–17; Luke 8:43
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… hear the voice of his swift horses from Dan; the whole earth shall be moved by the voice of the neighing of his galloping horses: he shall also come and devour the earth, and the fulness thereof, the city also, and they that dwell therein." This, too, is the reason that this tribe is not reckoned in the Apocalypse along …
But about not despairing, it is said, "Doth he fall, and not arise? Doth he turn away, and not return?" and, "I do not will the death of the sinner, so much as that he should turn and live:" and, "To-day if ye will hear His voice:" and many other such things, both sayings and examples are set in the …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
Hast thou not heard that he brought out the bones of the kings from their graves into the light?
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 7 (1894)