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Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places in the wilderness, toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to cleanse;

Even a full wind from those places shall come unto me: now also will I give sentence against them.

Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles: woe unto us, for we are spoiled.

O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved: how long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?

For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount Ephraim.

Make ye mention to the nations, behold, publish against Jerusalem, that watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice against the cities of Judah.

As keepers of a field are they against her round about; because she hath been rebellious against me, saith the LORD.

Thy way and thy deings have procured these things unto thee, this is thy wickedness, because it is bitter. because it reacheth unto thine heart.

My bowels, my bowels, I am pained at my very heart, my heart maketh a noise in me, I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.

Destruction upon destruction is cried, for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.

How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?

For my people are foolish, they have not known me, they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.

I behield the earth, and lo, it was without form and void and the heavens, and they had no light.

I beheld the mountains, and lo, they trembled: and all the hills moved lightly.

I beheld, and lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled.

J beheld, and lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger.

For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall' be desolate yet will I not make a full end.

For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black because I have spoken it, I have purposed it. and will not repent, neither will I turn back from it.

The whole city shall flee, for the noise of the horsemen, and bow-men, they shall go into thickets, and climb up upon the rocks: every city shall be forsaken, and not a man dwell therein.

And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rendest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair, thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.

For I have heard a voice as of a woman in her utmost pain and anguish; the voice of the daughter of Zion that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Wo is me now, fór my soul is wearied because of murderers.

ANNOTATIONS AND REFLECTIONS.

Jeremiah saw with his mind's eye, by Divine inspi-ration, the conqueror on his march to execute Divine vengeance on Judah; and the various calamities that would ensue. He laments, in the most pathetic terms,

the

the approaching ruin of his country; and calls upon his cotemporaries most affectionately, in the name of the LORD, to repent, and amend before it was too late. The sad catastrophe is next represented by a beautiful. assemblage of the most lively images.

SECTION XI.

PART OF THE PROPHECY OF JEREMIAH.

From Chap. v.

RUN ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth, and I will pardon it.

And though they say, the LORD liveth, surely they swear falsely.

O LORD, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction they have made their faces harder than a rock, they have refused to return.

Therefore I said, Surely these are poor, they are foolish; for they know not the way of the LORD, nor the judgment of their God.

I will get me unto the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have. known the way of the LORD, and the judgment of their GoD: but these have altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds.

Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf, of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities: every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings are increased.

Shall

Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?

Go ye up upon her walls, and destroy, but make not a full end take away her battlements, for they are not the LORD'S.

For the house of Israel, and the house of Judah, have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the LORD. They have belied the LORD, and said, It is not He, neither shall evil come upon us, neither shall we see sword nor famine:

And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.

Wherefore thus saith the LORD GOD of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith the LORD: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say.

Their quiver is as an open sepulchre; they are all mighty men.

And they shall eat up thine harvest, and thy bread, which thy sons and thy daughters should eat: they shall eat up thy flocks and thine herbs; they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig-trees; they shall impoverish thy fenced cities wherein thou trustest, with the sword. Nevertheless in those days, saith the LORD, I will not make a full end of you.

And it shall come to pass when ye shall say, Wherefore doth the LORD our GoD all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me and served strange gods in your land; so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.

Declare

:

Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying, Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding, which have eyes and see not, which have ears and hear not: fear ye not me? saith the LORD will he not tremble at my presence, which, have placed the sand for the bound of the sea, by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it, and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail though they roar, yet can they not pass over it ? But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart: they are revolted and gone.

Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the LORD our GOD, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter in his season: he reserveth unto us the appointed in the weeks of the harvest.

Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.

For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait as he that setteth snares, they set a trap, they catch men.

As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich.

They are waxen fat, they shine: yea they overpass the deeds of the wicked; they judge not the cause, the cause of the fatherless, yet they prosper: and the right of the needy do they not judge.

Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this? A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land.

The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means, and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?

To whom shall I speak and give warning, that they

may

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