Lamentations 1

Worthless, Cheap, Abject! 1 Oh, oh, oh . . . How empty the city, once teeming with people. A widow, this city, once in the front rank of nations, once queen of the ball, she’s now a drudge in the kitchen. 2 She cries herself to sleep each night, tears soaking her pillow. No one’s […]

Lamentations 2

God Walked Away from His Holy Temple 1 Oh, oh, oh . . . How the Master has cut down Daughter Zion from the skies, dashed Israel’s glorious city to earth, in his anger treated his favorite as throwaway junk. 2 The Master, without a second thought, took Israel in one gulp. Raging, he smashed […]

Lamentations 4

Waking Up with Nothing 1 Oh, oh, oh . . . How gold is treated like dirt, the finest gold thrown out with the garbage, Priceless jewels scattered all over, jewels loose in the gutters. 2 And the people of Zion, once prized, far surpassing their weight in gold, Are now treated like cheap pottery, […]

Lamentations 5

Give Us a Fresh Start 1-22 “Remember,God, all we’ve been through. Study our plight, the black mark we’ve made in history. Our precious land has been given to outsiders, our homes to strangers. Orphans we are, not a father in sight, and our mothers no better than widows. We have to pay to drink our […]

Jeremiah 1

Demolish, and Then Start Over 1-4 The Message of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah of the family of priests who lived in Anathoth in the country of Benjamin.God’s Message began to come to him during the thirteenth year that Josiah son of Amon reigned over Judah. It continued to come to him during the time Jehoiakim […]

Jeremiah 2

Israel Was God’s Holy Choice 1-3 God’s Message came to me. It went like this: “Get out in the streets and call to Jerusalem, ‘God’s Message! I remember your youthful loyalty, our love as newlyweds. You stayed with me through the wilderness years, stuck with me through all the hard places. Israel wasGod’s holy choice, […]

Jeremiah 3

Your Sex-and-Religion Obsessions 1 God’s Message came to me as follows: “If a man’s wife walks out on him And marries another man, can he take her back as if nothing had happened? Wouldn’t that raise a huge stink in the land? And isn’t that what you’ve done— ‘whored’ your way with god after god? […]

Jeremiah 4

1-2 “If you want to come back, O Israel, you must really come back to me. You must get rid of your stinking sin paraphernalia and not wander away from me anymore. Then you can say words like, ‘AsGodlives . . . ’ and have them mean something true and just and right. And the […]

Jeremiah 5

Sins Are Piled Sky-High 1-2 “Patrol Jerusalem’s streets. Look around. Take note. Search the market squares. See if you can find one man, one woman, A single soul who does what is right and tries to live a true life. I want to forgive that person.” God’s Decree. “But if all they do is say, […]