JERENIAH 44

[당찬 엄마]

Disaster Because of Idolatry

   1 This word came to Jeremiah concerning all the

Jews living in Lower Egypt--in Migdol, Tahpanhes and

Memphis--and in Upper Egypt:   2 "This is what the LORD

Almighty, the God of Israel, says: You saw the great

disaster I brought on Jerusalem and on all the towns of

Judah. Today they lie deserted and in ruins   3 because

of the evil they have done. They aroused my anger by

burning incense to and worshiping other gods that

neither they nor you nor your ancestors ever knew.

4 Again and again I sent my servants the prophets, who

said, 'Do not do this detestable thing that I hate!'   5 But

they did not listen or pay attention; they did not turn

from their wickedness or stop burning incense to other

gods.   6 Therefore, my fierce anger was poured out; it

raged against the towns of Judah and the streets of

Jerusalem and made them the desolate ruins they are

today.

   7 "Now this is what the LORD God Almighty, the God of

Israel, says: Why bring such great disaster on

yourselves by cutting off from Judah the men and

women, the children and infants, and so leave

yourselves without a remnant?   8 Why arouse my anger

with what your hands have made, burning incense to

other gods in Egypt, where you have come to live? You

will destroy yourselves and make yourselves a curse

and an object of reproach among all the nations on

earth.   9 Have you forgotten the wickedness committed

by your ancestors and by the kings and queens of

Judah and the wickedness committed by you and your

wives in the land of Judah and the streets of

Jerusalem?   10 To this day they have not humbled

themselves or shown reverence, nor have they followed

my law and the decrees I set before you and your ancestors.

   11 "Therefore this is what the LORD Almighty, the God

of Israel, says: I am detemined to bring disaster on you

and to destroy all Judah.   12 I will take away the remnant

of Judah who were determined to go to Egypt to settle

there. They will all perish in Egypt; they will fall by the

sword or die from famine. From the least to the

greatest, they will die by sword or famine. They will

become a curse and an object of horror, a curse and an

object of reproach.   13 I will punish those who live in

Egypt with the sword, famine and plague, as I punished

Jerusalem.   14 None of the remnant of Judah who have

gone to live in Egypt will escape or survive to return to

the land of Judah, to which they long to return and live;

none will return except a few fugitives."

   15 Then all the men who knew that their wives were

burning incense to other gods, along with all the

women who were present--a larger assembly--and all

the people living in Lower and Upper Ebypt, said to

Jeremiah,   16 "We will not listen to the message you

have spoken to us in the name of the LORD!   17 We will

certainly do everything we said we would: We will burn

incense to the Queen of Heaven and will pour out drink

offerings to her just as we and our ancestors, our kings

and our officials did in the towns of Judah and in the

streets of Jerusalem. At that time we had plenty of food

and were well off and suffered no harm.   18 But ever

since we stopped burning incense to the Queen of

Heaven and puring out drink offerings to her, we have

had nothing and have been perishing by sword and

famine."

   19 The women added, "When we burned incense to

the Queen of Heaven and poured out drink offerings to

her, did not our husbands know that we were making

cakes impressed with her image and pouring out drink

offerings to her?"

   20 Then Jeremiah said to all the people, both men

and women, who were answering him,   21 "Did not the

LORD remember and call to mind the incense burned in

the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem by

you and your ancestors, your kings and your officials

and the people of the land?   22 When the LORD could no

longer endure your wicked actions and the detestable

things you did, your land became a curse and a

desolate waste without inhavitants, as it is today.

23 Because you have burned incense and have sinned

against the LORD and have not obeyed him or followed

his law or his decrees or his stipulations, this disaster

has come upon you, as you now see."
   24 Then Jeremiah said to all the people, including the

women, "Hear the word of the LORD, all you people of

Judah in Egypt.   25 This is what the LORD Alminghty, the

God of Israel, says: You and your wives have done what

you said you would do when you promised, 'We will

certainly carry out the vows we made to burn incense

and pour out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven.'

   "Go ahead then, do what you promised! Keep your

vows!   26 But hear the word of the LORD, all you Jews

living in Egypt: 'I swear by my great name,' says the

LORD, 'that no one from Judah living anywhere in Egypt

will ever again invoke my name or swear, "As surely as

the Sovereign LORD lives."   27 For I am watching over

them for harm, not for good; the Jews in Egypt will

perish by sword and famine until they are all destroyed.

28 Those who escape the sword and return to the land

of Judah from Egypt will be very few. Then the whole

remnant of Judah who came to live in Egypt will know

whose word will stand--mine or theirs.

   29 " 'This will be the sign to you that I will punish you

in this place,' declares the LORD, 'so that you will know

that my threats of harm against you will surely stand.'

30 This is what the LORD says: 'I am going to deliver

Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hands of his

enemies who want to kill him, just as I gave Zedekiah

king of Judah into the hands of  Nebuchadnezzar king

 of Babylon, the enemy who wanted to kill him.' "