Jeremiah 12
The prophet Jeremiah questions God's justice, asking why the wicked prosper while the righteous suffer. He laments the destruction of the land and the people's rebellion against God, and asks how long this will continue. Jeremiah expresses his own pain and sense of betrayal, feeling that even his own family has turned against him. God responds by warning the neighboring nations that they will be uprooted and destroyed if they do not learn to follow His ways and swear by His name.
Certainly, O Lord, you are just. But if I may contend with you, while still speaking what is just to you: Why does the way of the impious prosper? Why is it well with all those who transgress and act unfairlyYou planted them, and they took root. They are prospering and bearing fruit. You are near to their mouths, but far from their heartsAnd you, O Lord, have known me well. You have seen me, and you have tested my heart with you. Gather them together like a flock for the sacrifice and sanctify them for the day of slaughterHow long shall the earth mourn? And how long shall the plants of every field whither because of the wickedness of the inhabitants within them? It has consumed the wild animals and the birds. For they said: "He will not see our very end."If you have struggled to run on foot, how will you be able to compete with horses? And if you have been secure in a land of peace, what will you do about the arrogance of the JordanFor even your brothers, and the house of your father, even these have fought against you. And they have cried out after you with loud voice: ‘You should not believe them, when they speak good things to you.’ "I have abandoned my house. I have disowned my inheritance. I have given my beloved soul into the hand of its enemiesMy inheritance has become for me like a lion in the forest. It has uttered a voice against me, therefore, I have hated itIs my inheritance to me like a discolored bird? Is it like a bird that has entirely changed color? Approach and assemble, all beasts of the earth! Hurry, so that you may devourMany pastors have demolished my vineyard. They have trampled my portion. They have made my desirable portion into a desert of solitudeThey have squandered it, and it has grieved concerning me. The entire earth has become utterly desolate, because there is no one who understands with the heart.The devastators have arrived, over all the ways of the wilderness. For the sword of the Lord will devour, from one end of the earth even to its furthest limits. There is no peace for all that is fleshThey sowed wheat, but they reaped thorns. They received an inheritance, but it will not benefit them. You will be confounded by your own fruits, because of the wrath of the fury of the LordThus says the Lord against all my wicked neighbors, who touch the inheritance that I have distributed to my people Israel: "Behold, I will root them out of their own land, and I will root the house of Judah out of their midstAnd when I have rooted them out, I will turn back and take pity on them. And I will lead them back, one man to his inheritance, and another man to his landAnd this shall be: if they are taught and they learn the ways of my people, so that they swear by my name, ‘As the Lord lives,’ just as they had taught my people to swear by Baal, then they will be built up in the midst of my peopleBut if they will not listen, I will uproot that nation unto utter destruction and perdition, says the Lord.
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