Jeremiah 10 :: New Living Translation (NLT)

Idolatry Brings Destruction

Jer 10:1Hear the word that the LORD speaks to you, O Israel!

Jer 10:2This is what the LORD says:
“Do not act like the other nations,
who try to read their future in the stars.
Do not be afraid of their predictions,
even though other nations are terrified by them.

Jer 10:3

Jer 10:3Their ways are futile and foolish.
They cut down a tree, and a craftsman carves an idol.

Jer 10:4

Jer 10:4They decorate it with gold and silver
and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails
so it won’t fall over.

Jer 10:5

Jer 10:5Their gods are like
helpless scarecrows in a cucumber field!
They cannot speak,
and they need to be carried because they cannot walk.
Do not be afraid of such gods,
for they can neither harm you nor do you any good.”

Jer 10:6

Jer 10:6LORD, there is no one like you!
For you are great, and your name is full of power.

Jer 10:7

Jer 10:7Who would not fear you, O King of nations?
That title belongs to you alone!
Among all the wise people of the earth
and in all the kingdoms of the world,
there is no one like you.

Jer 10:8

Jer 10:8People who worship idols are stupid and foolish.
The things they worship are made of wood!

Jer 10:9

Jer 10:9They bring beaten sheets of silver from Tarshish
and gold from Uphaz,
and they give these materials to skillful craftsmen
who make their idols.
Then they dress these gods in royal blue and purple robes
made by expert tailors.

Jer 10:10

Jer 10:10But the LORD is the only true God.
He is the living God and the everlasting King!
The whole earth trembles at his anger.
The nations cannot stand up to his wrath.

Jer 10:11

Jer 10:11Say this to those who worship other gods: “Your so-called gods, who did not make the heavens and earth, will vanish from the earth and from under the heavens.”[fn]

Jer 10:12

Jer 10:12But God made the earth by his power,
and he preserves it by his wisdom.
With his own understanding
he stretched out the heavens.

Jer 10:13

Jer 10:13When he speaks in the thunder,
the heavens roar with rain.
He causes the clouds to rise over the earth.
He sends the lightning with the rain
and releases the wind from his storehouses.

Jer 10:14

Jer 10:14The whole human race is foolish and has no knowledge!
The craftsmen are disgraced by the idols they make,
for their carefully shaped works are a fraud.
These idols have no breath or power.

Jer 10:15

Jer 10:15Idols are worthless; they are ridiculous lies!
On the day of reckoning they will all be destroyed.

Jer 10:16

Jer 10:16But the God of Israel[fn] is no idol!
He is the Creator of everything that exists,
including Israel, his own special possession.
The LORD of Heaven’s Armies is his name!

The Coming Destruction

Jer 10:17

Jer 10:17Pack your bags and prepare to leave;
the siege is about to begin.

Jer 10:18

Jer 10:18For this is what the LORD says:
“Suddenly, I will fling out
all you who live in this land.
I will pour great troubles upon you,
and at last you will feel my anger.”

Jer 10:19

Jer 10:19My wound is severe,
and my grief is great.
My sickness is incurable,
but I must bear it.

Jer 10:20

Jer 10:20My home is gone,
and no one is left to help me rebuild it.
My children have been taken away,
and I will never see them again.

Jer 10:21

Jer 10:21The shepherds of my people have lost their senses.
They no longer seek wisdom from the LORD.
Therefore, they fail completely,
and their flocks are scattered.

Jer 10:22

Jer 10:22Listen! Hear the terrifying roar of great armies
as they roll down from the north.
The towns of Judah will be destroyed
and become a haunt for jackals.

Jeremiah’s Prayer

Jer 10:23

Jer 10:23I know, LORD, that our lives are not our own.
We are not able to plan our own course.

Jer 10:24

Jer 10:24So correct me, LORD, but please be gentle.
Do not correct me in anger, for I would die.

Jer 10:25

Jer 10:25Pour out your wrath on the nations that refuse to acknowledge you—
on the peoples that do not call upon your name.
For they have devoured your people Israel[fn];
they have devoured and consumed them,
making the land a desolate wilderness.

See the NLT Preface (Especially for Parenthesis, Brackets, & Asterisks).

NLT Footnotes

(10:11)

The original text of this verse is in Aramaic.

(10:16)

Hebrew the Portion of Jacob. See note on 5:20.

(10:25)

Hebrew devoured Jacob. See note on 5:20.

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For more information on this translation, see the NLT Preface.

Jeremiah Chapter 10 — Additional Translations:

King James Version New King James Version New International Version English Standard Version Christian Standard Bible New American Standard Bible 2020 New American Standard Bible 1995 Legacy Standard Bible Amplified Bible New English Translation Revised Standard Version American Standard Version Young's Literal Translation Darby Translation Webster's Bible Hebrew Names Version Latin Vulgate Westminster Leningrad Codex Septuagint Smith Van Dyck Arabic Bible Open New Arabic Version Brenton's English Septuagint Reina Valera 1909 Reina-Valera 1960 Bible in Basic English Chinese Traditional Union Espanol Moderno Korean Holy Bible Louis Segond German Luther Russian Synodal Translation Sagradas Escrituras

Jeremiah 10 :: New Living Translation (NLT)

NLT Footnotes

Jeremiah Chapter 10 — Additional Translations:

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