Jeremiah 11
New King James Version

The Broken Covenant

11 The word that came to Jeremiah from theLord, saying,²“Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem;³and say to them, ‘Thus says theLordGod of Israel:^(A)“Cursedisthe man who does not obey the words of this covenant⁴which I commanded your fathers in the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt,^(B)from the iron furnace, saying,^(C)‘Obey My voice, and do according to all that I command you; so shall you be My people, and I will be your God,’⁵that I may establish the^(D)oath which I have sworn to your fathers, to give them^(E)‘a land flowing with milk and honey,’ asit isthis day.” ’ ”

And I answered and said,^[a]“So be it,Lord.”

⁶Then theLordsaid to me, “Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: ‘Hear the words of this covenant^(F)and do them.⁷For I earnestly exhorted your fathers in the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, until this day,^(G)rising early and exhorting, saying, “Obey My voice.”⁸^(H)Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but^(I)everyone^[b]followed the dictates of his evil heart; therefore I will bring upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commandedthemto do, butwhichthey have not done.’ ”

⁹And theLordsaid to me,^(J)“A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.¹⁰They have turned back to^(K)the iniquities of their forefathers who refused to hear My words, and they have gone after other gods to serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers.”

¹¹Therefore thus says theLord: “Behold, I will surely bring calamity on them which they will not be able to^[c]escape; and^(L)though they cry out to Me, I will not listen to them.¹²Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and^(M)cry out to the gods to whom they offer incense, but they will not save them at all in the time of their trouble.¹³Foraccording tothe number of your^(N)cities were your gods, O Judah; andaccording tothe number of the streets of Jerusalem you have set up altars tothatshameful thing, altars to burn incense to Baal.

¹⁴“So^(O)do not pray for this people, or lift up a cry or prayer for them; for I will not hearthemin the time that they cry out to Me because of their trouble.

¹⁵“What^(P)has My beloved to do in My house,
Having^(Q)done lewd deeds with many?
And^(R)the holy flesh has passed from you.
When you do evil, then you^(S)rejoice.
¹⁶TheLordcalled your name,
^(T)Green Olive Tree, Lovelyandof Good Fruit.
With the noise of a great tumult
He has kindled fire on it,
And its branches are broken.

¹⁷“For theLordof hosts,^(U)who planted you, has pronounced doom against you for the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have done against themselves to provoke Me to anger in offering incense to Baal.”

Jeremiah’s Life Threatened

¹⁸Now theLordgave me knowledgeof it,and I knowit;for You showed me their doings.¹⁹But Iwaslike a docile lamb brought to the slaughter; and I did not know that they had devised schemes against me,saying,“Let us destroy the tree with its fruit,^(V)and let us cut him off from^(W)the land of the living, that his name may be remembered no more.”

²⁰But, OLordof hosts,
You who judge righteously,
^(X)Testing the^[d]mind and the heart,
Let me see Your^(Y)vengeance on them,
For to You I have revealed my cause.

²¹“Therefore thus says theLordconcerning the men of^(Z)Anathoth who seek your life, saying,^(AA)‘Do not prophesy in the name of theLord, lest you die by our hand’—²²therefore thus says theLordof hosts: ‘Behold, I will punish them. The young men shall die by the sword, their sons and their daughters shall^(AB)die by famine;²³and there shall be no remnant of them, for I will bring catastrophe on the men of Anathoth,even^(AC)the year of their punishment.’ ”