Jeremiah 11

The word that came from the Lord to Jeremiah, saying:

Hear the words of this covenant; and you shall speak to the men of Judah and to those who dwell in Jerusalem.

And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Cursed is the man who will not hear the words of this covenant,

which I commanded your fathers in the day when I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying: Hear my voice and do all that I command you, and you shall be a people to me, and I will be a God to you,

that I may establish my oath which I swore to your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day. And I answered and said: So be it, O Lord.

And the Lord said to me: Read these words in the cities of Judah and outside Jerusalem, saying: Hear the words of this covenant and do them.

But they did not do them.

And the Lord said to me: A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and among those who dwell in Jerusalem.

They have turned back to the iniquities of their former fathers, who would not hear my words; and behold, they themselves walk 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.

Therefore thus says the Lord: Behold, I am bringing evils upon this people, from which they shall not be able to escape; and they shall cry out to me, but I will not listen to them.

And the cities of Judah and those who dwell in Jerusalem shall go and cry out to the gods to whom they burn incense; but shall these save them in the time of their evils?

For according to the number of your cities were your gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the exits of Jerusalem you set up altars to burn incense to Baal.

And you, do not pray for this people, and do not make request for them with supplication and prayer, for I will not listen at the time when they call upon me, in the time of their affliction.

Why has my beloved done an abomination in my house? Shall vows and holy flesh take away your evils from you? Or shall you escape by these?

A fair olive tree, well-shaded in form: so the Lord called your name. At the sound of its pruning a fire was kindled upon it, great is the affliction upon you, its branches have been made useless.

And the Lord who planted you has spoken evils against you, because of the evil of the house of Israel and the house of Judah, in that they did it to themselves, provoking me to anger by burning incense to Baal.

O Lord, make it known to me, and I shall know; then I saw their practices.

But I was like an innocent lamb led to be slaughtered; I did not know that they had devised an evil device against me, saying: Come, let us put wood into his bread, and let us wipe him out from the land of the living, and let his name be remembered no more.

O Lord, who judges justly, who tests kidneys and hearts, may I see the vengeance from you upon them, for to you I have revealed my case.

Therefore thus says the Lord concerning the men of Anathoth who seek my life, who say: You shall not prophesy in the name of the Lord, or else you shall die by our hands.

Behold, I will visit upon them: their young men shall die by the sword, and their sons and their daughters shall die of famine.

And there shall be no remnant of them, for I will bring evils upon those who dwell in Anathoth in the year of their visitation.