Jeremiah 9:1-11

Common English Bible

9 ^[a] If only my head were a spring of water,
    and my eyes a fountain of tears,
I would weep day and night
    for the wounds of my people.
²^[b] If only I could flee for shelter in the desert,
    to leave my people
        and forget them—
    for they are all adulterers,
        a bunch of crooks.
³They bend their tongues like bows
        to spew out lies;
    they are renowned in the land,
        but not for truth.
They go from bad to worse.
    They don’t know me!
        declares the Lord.
⁴Be wary of your friends!
    Don’t trust your sibling!^[c]
    Every sibling is a cheater,
        and every friend traffics in slander.
⁵One cheats the other;
    no one tells the truth;
        they train themselves to lie;
        they wear themselves out by doing wrong.
⁶You live in a world of deceit,
    and in their deceit
    they refuse to know me,^[d]
        declares the Lord.
⁷Therefore, the Lord of heavenly forces proclaims:
I’m going to refine and test them,
    for what else can I do with my people?
⁸Their tongue is a lethal arrow;
    their words are deceitful.
They wish their neighbors well,
    but in their hearts plot their ruin.
⁹Shouldn’t I punish them for this?
        declares the Lord;
    shouldn’t I avenge such a nation?
¹⁰I will weep and wail for the mountains,
    and lament for the grazing lands in the wilderness.
They are dried up and deserted;
    no sound of the flocks is heard;
    no sign of birds or animals is seen;
        all have vanished.
¹¹I will reduce Jerusalem to ruins,
    a den for wild dogs.
I will make the towns of Judah a wasteland, without inhabitant.