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Jeremiah

Chapter 3

Jeremiah · Prophet Jeremiah

¹ If a man put away his wife, and she depart from him, and become another man’s, shall she return to him anymore at all? shall not that woman be utterly defiled? yet thou hast gone a-whoring with many shepherds, and hast returned to me, saith the Lord. ² Lift up thine eyes [to look] straight forward, and see where thou hast not been utterly defiled. Thou hast sat for them by the wayside as a deserted crow, and hast defiled the land with thy fornications and thy wickedness. ³ And thou didst retain many shepherds for a stumbling block to thyself: thou hadst a whore’s face, thou didst become shameless toward all.

ΕΑΝ ἐξαποστείλῃ ἀνὴρ τὴν γυναῖκα αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀπέλθῃ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ καὶ γένηται ἀνδρί ἑτέρῳ, μὴ ἀνακάμπτουσα ἀνακάμψει πρὸς αὐτὸν ἔτι; οὐ μιαινομένη μιανθήσεται ἡ γυνὴ ἐκείνη; καὶ σὺ ἐξεπόρνευσας ἐν ποιμέσι πολλοῖς· καὶ ἀνέκαμπτες πρός με; λέγει Κύριος. ἆρον τοὺς ὀφθαλμούς σου εἰς εὐθεῖαν καὶ ἰδέ· πῶς οὐχὶ ἐξεφύρθης; ἐπὶ ταῖς ὁδοῖς ἐκάθισας αὐτοῖς ὡσεὶ κορώνη ἐρημουμένη καὶ ἐμίανας τὴν γῆν ἐν ταῖς πορνείαις σου καὶ ἐν ταῖς κακίαις σου. καὶ ἔσχες ποιμένας πολλοὺς εἰς πρόσκομμα σεαυτῇ· ὄψις πόρνης ἐγένετό σοι, ἀπηναισχύντησας πρὸς πάντας.

Jer 3:1-3

⁴ Hast thou not called me as it were a home, and the father and guide of thy virgin time? ⁵ Will [God’s anger] continue forever, or be preserved to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken and done these bad things, and hadst power [to do them].

οὐχ ὡς οἶκόν με ἐκάλεσας καὶ πατέρα καὶ ἀρχηγὸν τῆς παρθενίας σου; μὴ διαμενεῖ εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα ἢ φυλαχθήσεται εἰς νῖκος; ἰδοὺ ἐλάλησας καὶ ἐποίησας τὰ πονηρὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἠδυνάσθης.

Jer 3:4-5

⁶ And the Lord said to me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen what things the house of Israel has done to me? they have gone on every high mountain, and under every shady tree, and have committed fornication there. ⁷ And I said after she had committed all these acts of fornication, Turn again to me. Yet she returned not. And faithless Judah saw her faithlessness. ⁸ And I saw that (for all the sins of which she was convicted, wherein the house of Israel committed adultery, and I put her away, and gave into her hands a bill of divorcement), yet faithless Judah feared not, but went and herself also committed fornication. ⁹ And her fornication was nothing accounted of; and she committed adultery with wood and stone. ¹⁰ And for all these things faithless Judah turned not to me with all her heart, but falsely.

Καὶ εἶπε Κύριος πρός με ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις Ἰωσίου τοῦ βασιλέως· εἶδες ἃ ἐποίησέ μοι ἡ κατοικία τοῦ Ἰσραήλ; ἐπορεύθησαν ἐπὶ πᾶν ὄρος ὑψηλὸν καὶ ὑποκάτω παντὸς ξύλου ἀλσώδους, καὶ ἐπόρνευσαν ἐκεῖ. καὶ εἶπα μετὰ τὸ πορνεῦσαι αὐτὴν ταῦτα πάντα· πρός με ἀνάστρεψον, καὶ οὐκ ἀνέστρεψε· καὶ εἶδε τὴν ἀσυνθεσίαν αὐτῆς ἡ ἀσύνθετος Ἰούδα. καὶ εἶδον διότι περὶ πάντων ὧν κατελήφθη, ἐν οἷς ἐμοιχᾶτο ἡ κατοικία Ἰσραήλ, καὶ ἐξαπέστειλα αὐτὴν καὶ ἔδωκα αὐτῇ βιβλίον ἀποστασίου εἰς τὰς χεῖρας αὐτῆς· καὶ οὐκ ἐφοβήθη ἡ ἀσύνθετος Ἰούδα καὶ ἐπορεύθη καὶ ἐπόρνευσε καὶ αὐτή. καὶ ἐγένετο εἰς οὐθὲν ἡ πορνεία αὐτῆς, καὶ ἐμοίχευσε τὸ ξύλον καὶ τὸν λίθον. καὶ ἐν πᾶσι τούτοις οὐκ ἀπεστράφη πρός με ἡ ἀσύνθετος Ἰούδα ἐξ ὅλης τῆς καρδίας αὐτῆς, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ ψεύδει.

Jer 3:6-10

¹¹ And the Lord said to me, Israel has justified himself more than faithless Judah. ¹² Go and read these words toward the north, and thou shalt say, Return to me, O house of Israel, saith the Lord; and I will not set my face against you: for I am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not be angry with you forever. ¹³ Nevertheless, know thine iniquity, that thou hast sinned against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to strangers under every shady tree, but thou didst not hearken to my voice, saith the Lord. ¹⁴ Turn, ye children that have revolted, saith the Lord; for I will rule over you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you in to Zion: ¹⁵ and I will give you shepherds after my heart, and they shall certainly tend you with knowledge.

καὶ εἶπε Κύριος πρός με· ἐδικαίωσε τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ Ἰσραὴλ ἀπὸ τῆς ἀσυνθέτου Ἰούδα. πορεύου καὶ ἀνάγνωθι τοὺς λόγους τούτους πρὸς βορρᾶν καὶ ἐρεῖς· ἐπιστράφηθι πρός με, ἡ κατοικία τοῦ Ἰσραήλ, λέγει Κύριος, καὶ οὐ στηριῶ τὸ πρόσωπόν μου ἐφ' ὑμᾶς· ὅτι ἐλεήμων ἐγώ εἰμι, λέγει Κύριος, καὶ οὐ μηνιῶ ὑμῖν εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. πλήν, γνῶθι τὴν ἀδικίαν σου, ὅτι εἰς Κύριον τὸν Θεόν σου ἠσέβησας καὶ διέχεας τὰς ὁδούς σου εἰς ἀλλοτρίους ὑποκάτω παντὸς ξύλου ἀλσώδους, τῆς δὲ φωνῆς μου οὐχ ὑπήκουσας, λέγει Κύριος. ἐπιστράφητε, υἱοὶ ἀφεστηκότες, λέγει Κύριος, διότι ἐγὼ κατακυριεύσω ὑμῶν καὶ λήψομαι ὑμᾶς ἕνα ἐκ πόλεως καὶ δύο ἐκ πατριᾶς καὶ εἰσάξω ὑμᾶς εἰς Σιὼν καὶ δώσω ὑμῖν ποιμένας κατὰ τὴν καρδίαν μου, καὶ ποιμανοῦσιν ὑμᾶς ποιμαίνοντες μετ' ἐπιστήμης.

Jer 3:11-15

¹⁶ And it shall come to pass that when ye are multiplied and increased upon the land, saith the Lord, in those days they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the Holy One of Israel: it shall not come to mind; it shall not be named; neither shall it be visited; nor shall [this] be done anymore. ¹⁷ In those days and at that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered to it: and they shall not walk anymore after the imaginations of their evil heart.

καὶ ἔσται ἐὰν πληθυνθῆτε καὶ αὐξηθῆτε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, λέγει Κύριος, ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις, οὐκ ἐροῦσιν ἔτι· κιβωτὸς διαθήκης ἁγίου Ἰσραήλ, οὐκ ἀναβήσεται ἐπὶ καρδίαν, οὐκ ὀνομασθήσεται οὐδὲ ἐπισκεφθήσεται καὶ οὐ ποιηθήσεται ἔτι. ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις καὶ ἐν τῷ καιρῷ ἐκείνῳ καλέσουσι τὴν Ἱερουσαλὴμ Θρόνον Κυρίου, καὶ συναχθήσονται πάντα τὰ ἔθνη εἰς αὐτὴν καὶ οὐ πορεύσονται ἔτι ὀπίσω τῶν ἐνθυμημάτων τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν τῆς πονηρᾶς.

Jer 3:16-17

¹⁸ In those days the house of Judah shall come together to the house of Israel, and they shall come, together, from the land of the north, and from all the countries, to the land, which I caused their fathers to inherit. ¹⁹ And I said, So be it, Lord, for [thou saidst], I will set thee among children, and will give thee a choice land, the inheritance of the Almighty God of the Gentiles: and I said, Ye shall call me Father; and ye shall not turn away from me. ²⁰ But as a wife acts treacherously against her husband, so has the house of Israel dealt treacherously against me, saith the Lord.

ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ἐκείναις συνελεύσονται ὁ οἶκος Ἰούδα ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ Ἰσραήλ, καὶ ἥξουσιν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ ἀπὸ γῆς βορρᾶ καὶ ἀπὸ πασῶν τῶν χωρῶν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, ἣν κατεκληρονόμησα τοὺς πατέρας αὐτῶν. καὶ ἐγὼ εἶπα· γένοιτο, Κύριε· ὅτι τάξω σε εἰς τέκνα καὶ δώσω σοι γῆν ἐκλεκτήν, κληρονομίαν Θεοῦ παντοκράτορος ἐθνῶν. καὶ εἶπα· πατέρα καλέσετέ με καὶ ἀπ' ἐμοῦ οὐκ ἀποστραφήσεσθε. πλὴν ὡς ἀθετεῖ γυνὴ εἰς τὸν συνόντα αὐτῇ, οὕτως ἠθέτησεν εἰς ἐμὲ ὁ οἶκος Ἰσραήλ, λέγει Κύριος.

Jer 3:18-20

²¹ A voice from the lips was heard, [even] of weeping and supplication of the children of Israel: for they have dealt unrighteously in their ways, they have forgotten God their Holy One. ²² Turn, ye children that are given to turning, and I will heal your bruises.

φωνὴ ἐκ χειλέων ἠκούσθη κλαυθμοῦ καὶ δεήσεως υἱῶν Ἰσραήλ, ὅτι ἠδίκησαν ἐν ταῖς ὁδοῖς αὐτῶν, ἐπελάθοντο Θεοῦ ἁγίου αὐτῶν. ἐπιστράφητε, υἱοί, ἐπιστρέφοντες, καὶ ἰάσομαι τὰ συντρίμματα ὑμῶν. ἰδοὺ δοῦλοι ἡμεῖς ἐσόμεθά σοι, ὅτι σὺ Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν εἶ.

Jer 3:21-22

²³ Truly the hills and the strength of the mountains were a lying refuge: but by the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel. ²⁴ But shame has consumed the labors of our fathers from our youth; their sheep and their calves, and their sons and their daughters. ²⁵ We have lain down in our shame, and our disgrace has covered us: because we and our fathers have sinned before our God, from our youth until this day; and we have not hearkened to the voice of the Lord our God.

ὄντως εἰς ψεῦδος ἦσαν οἱ βουνοὶ καὶ ἡ δύναμις τῶν ὀρέων, πλὴν διὰ Κυρίου Θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἡ σωτηρία τοῦ Ἰσραήλ. ἡ δὲ αἰσχύνη κατηνάλωσε τοὺς μόχθους τῶν πατέρων ἡμῶν ἀπὸ νεότητος ἡμῶν, τὰ πρόβατα αὐτῶν καὶ τοὺς μόσχους αὐτῶν καὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτῶν καὶ τὰς θυγατέρας αὐτῶν. ἐκοιμήθημεν ἐν τῇ αἰσχύνῃ ἡμῶν, καὶ ἐπεκάλυψεν ἡμᾶς ἡ ἀτιμία ἡμῶν, διότι ἔναντι τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἡμάρτομεν ἡμεῖς καὶ οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν ἀπὸ νεότητος ἡμῶν ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης καὶ οὐχ ὑπηκούσαμεν τῆς φωνῆς Κυρίου τοῦ Θεοῦ ἡμῶν.

Jer 3:23-25

Greek: Septuagint, public domain via eBible.org (grclxx). The English remains the primary text; the Greek is offered for study.

The Fathers on this passage

How the fathers, councils, and saints of the corpus read Jeremiah: Chapter 3. Drawn by meaning from across the tradition; follow any link to read it in full context.