Jeremiah 11

1 The Lord’s word came to Jeremiah:

2 “Listen to the words of this covenant. And you are to speak to the men of Judah and to those living in Jerusalem,”

3 “and say to them: This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Cursed is the man who will not listen to the words of this covenant,”

4 “which I commanded your fathers on the day I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace: Listen to my voice and do everything I command you, and you will be my people, and I will be your God,”

5 “so that I may uphold the oath I swore to your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey — as it is today.”

Then I answered,

“Let it be so, Lord.”

6 And the Lord said to me:

“Read these words aloud in the cities of Judah and outside Jerusalem: Listen to the words of this covenant, and do them.”

8 “But they did not do them.”

9 And the Lord said to me:

“A conspiracy has been found among the men of Judah and among those living in Jerusalem.”

10 “They have turned back to the wrongdoings of their fathers before them, who refused to listen to my words. And look — they are walking after foreign gods to serve them, and the house of Israel and the house of Judah have shattered my covenant, the one I made with their fathers.”

11 “Therefore this is what the Lord says: Look, I am bringing on this people disaster they will not be able to escape. They will cry out to me, but I will not listen to them.”

12 “And the cities of Judah and those living in Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods they burn incense to — but will those rescue them in the time of their troubles?”

13 “For your gods were as many as your cities, Judah, and you set up altars to burn incense to Baal in as many streets as Jerusalem has.”

14 “And you — do not pray for this people, and do not plead for them with petition and prayer, because I will not listen at the time they call to me, the time of their affliction.”

15 “Why has my beloved done a detestable thing in my house? Will prayers and holy meat take away your wickedness from you? Will you escape by these?”

16 “The Lord named you a beautiful olive tree, lovely and well-shaded to look at. At the sound of its pruning, fire was set against it — great is the affliction coming on you — and its branches have become useless.”

17 “And the Lord who planted you has pronounced disaster against you, because of the wickedness of the house of Israel and the house of Judah — what they did to themselves to provoke me to anger by burning incense to Baal.”

18 “Lord, make it known to me, and I will know. Then I saw their conduct.”

19 “But I was like an innocent lamb being led off to be sacrificed; I did not know. Against me they plotted an evil plot: ‘Come, let us put wood into his bread; let us wipe him out from the land of the living, so that his name will not be remembered anymore.’”

20 “Lord, you who judge rightly, who test the deepest thoughts and the heart — let me see your vengeance on them, for I have laid my case before you.”

21 Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the men of Anathoth, who seek my life and say, “You must not prophesy in the name of the Lord — or you will die by our hands”:

22 “Look, I will call them to account. Their young men will die by the sword, and their sons and their daughters will die by famine,”

23 “and nothing will be left of them, because I will bring disaster on the people of Anathoth in the year I call them to account.”