CHAPTER 18
1 The word that was made of the Lord to Jeremy, and said,
2 Rise thou, and go down into the house of a potter, and there thou shalt hear my words.
3 And I went down into the house of a potter, and lo! he made a work on a wheel.
4 And the vessel was destroyed, which he made of clay with his hands; and he turned it, and made it another vessel, as it pleased in his eyes to make.
5 And the word of the Lord was made to me, and he said,
6 Whether as this potter doeth, I may not do to you, the house of Israel? saith the Lord. Lo! as clay is in the hand of a potter, so ye, the house of Israel, be in mine hand.
7 Suddenly I shall speak against a folk, and against a realm, that I draw out, and destroy, and lose [or scatter] it.
8 If that folk doeth penance of his evil, which I spake against it, also I shall do penance on the evil, which I thought to do to it.
9 And I shall speak suddenly of a folk, and of a realm, that I build, and plant it.
10 If it doeth evil before mine eyes, that it hear not my voice, I shall do penance on the good which I spake, that I should do to it.
11 Now therefore say thou to a man of Judah, and to the dweller of Jerusalem, and say, The Lord saith these things, Lo! I make evil against you, and I think a thought against you; each man turn again from his evil way, and dress ye your ways and your studies.
12 Which said, We have despaired, for we shall go after our thoughts, and we shall do each man the shrewdness of his evil heart.
13 Therefore the Lord saith these things, Ask ye heathen men, who heard such horrible things, which the virgin of Israel hath done greatly?
14 Whether [the] snow of the Lebanon shall fail from the stone of the field? either cold waters breaking out, and floating down, may be taken away?
15 For my people hath forgotten me, and they offered sacrifices in vain, and stumbled in their ways, and in the paths of the world, that they went by those [or them] in a way not trodden;
16 that the land of them should be into desolation, and into an hissing everlasting; for why each that passeth by it, shall be astonied, and shall move his head.
17 As a burning wind I shall scatter them before the enemy; I shall show to them the back and not the face, in the day of the perdition of them.
18 And they said, Come ye, and think we thoughts against Jeremy; for why the law shall not perish from a priest, neither counsel shall perish from a wise man, neither word shall perish from a prophet; come ye, and smite we him with tongue, and take we none heed to all the words of him.
19 Lord, give thou attention to me, and hear thou the voice of mine adversaries.
20 Whether evil is yielded for good, for they have digged a pit to my soul; have thou mind, that I stood in thy sight, to speak good for them, and to turn away thine indignation from them.
21 Therefore give thou the sons of them into hunger, and lead forth them into the hands of [the] sword; the wives of them be made without children, and be made widows, and the husbands of them be slain by death; the young men of them be pierced together by sword in battle.
22 Cry be heard of the houses of them, for thou shalt bring suddenly a thief on them; for they digged a pit to take me, and hid snares to my feet.
23 But thou, Lord, knowest all the counsel of them against me into death; do thou not mercy to the wickedness of them, and the sin of them be not done away from thy face; be they made falling down in thy sight, in the time of thy strong vengeance; use thou them to other thing than they were ordained.