Jeremiah 6

    6:1 Impending Destruction from the North

    "O you children of Benjamin,Gather yourselves to flee from the midst of Jerusalem!Blow the trumpet
    in Tekoa, And set up a signal-fire in Beth Haccerem; For disaster appears out of the north,And great
    destruction. 2 I have likened the daughter of Zion to a lovely and delicate woman. 3 The shepherds
    with their flocks shall come to her. They shall pitch their tents against her all around. Each one shall
    pasture in his own place."

    4 "Prepare war against her;Arise, and let us go up at noon. Woe to us, for the day goes away,For the
    shadows of the evening are lengthening. 5 Arise, and let us go by night,And let us destroy her palaces"
    6 For thus has the LORD of hosts said:

    "Cut down trees,And build a mound against Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished. She is full of
    oppression in her midst. 7 As a fountain wells up with water,So she wells up with her
    wickedness. Violence and plundering are heard in her. Before Me continually are
    grief and wounds. 8 Be instructed, O Jerusalem,Lest My soul depart from you; Lest I make you
    desolate, A land not inhabited."

    Thus says the LORD of hosts:

    9 "They shall thoroughly glean as a vine the remnant of Israel;As a grape-gatherer, put your hand back
    into the branches."

    10 To whom shall I speak and give warning,That they may hear? Indeed their ear is uncircumcised,
    And they cannot give heed. Behold, the word of the LORD is a reproach to them;They have no delight
    in it. 11 Therefore I am full of the fury of the LORD. I am weary of holding it in. "I will pour it out on
    the children outside,And on the assembly of young men together; For even the husband shall be
    taken with the wife, The aged with him who is full of days.

    2 And their houses shall be turned over to others,Fields and wives together; For I will stretch out My
    hand Against the inhabitants of the land," says the LORD. 13 "Because from the least of
    them even to the greatest of them,Everyone is given to covetousness;And
    from the prophet even to the priest,Everyone deals falsely. 14 They have also
    healed the hurt of My people slightly,Saying, 'Peace, peace! 'When there is no peace. 15 Were they
    ashamed when they had committed abomination? No! They were not at all ashamed; Nor did they
    know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; At the time I punish them, they
    shall be cast down," says the LORD.

    Thus says the LORD:

    16"Stand in the ways and see,And ask for the old paths, where the good way is, And walk in it; Then
    you will find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk in it.' 17 Also, I set watchmen over
    you, saying, 'Listen to the sound of the trumpet! 'But they said, 'We will not listen.' 18 Therefore hear,
    you nations, And know, O congregation, what is among them. 19 Hear, O earth!Behold, I will certainly
    bring calamity on this people --The fruit of their thoughts, Because they have not heeded My words
    Nor My law, but rejected it. 20 For what purpose to Me Comes frankincense from Sheba,And sweet
    cane from a far country? Your burnt offerings are not acceptable, Nor your sacrifices sweet to Me."

    Therefore thus says the LORD:

    21 "Behold, I will lay stumbling blocks before this people, And the fathers and the sons together shall
    fall on them. The neighbor and his friend shall perish."

    Thus says the LORD:

    22 "Behold, a people comes from the north country,And a great nation will be
    raised from the farthest parts of the earth. 23 They will lay hold on bow and spear;They
    are cruel and have no mercy; Their voice roars like the sea; And they ride on horses, As men of war
    set in array against you, O daughter of Zion."

    24 We have heard the report of it; Our hands grow feeble. Anguish has taken hold of us, Pain as of a
    woman in labor. 25 Do not go out into the field, Nor walk by the way. Because of the sword of the
    enemy, Fear is on every side. 26 O daughter of my people, Dress in sackcloth And roll about in
    ashes! Make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation; For the plunderer
    will suddenly come upon us.

    27 "I have set you as an assayer and a fortress among My people,That you may know and test their
    way. 28 They are all stubborn rebels, walking as slanderers. They are bronze and iron, They are all
    corrupters; 29 The bellows blow fiercely,The lead is consumed by the fire;The smelter refines in vain,
    For the wicked are not drawn off. 30 People will call them rejected silver, Because the LORD has
    rejected them."
Dreams and Visions
Impending Destruction from the North
March 24, 2010