1
“If you will return, O Israel,” says the LORD,
return to Me;
and if you will put away your detestable gods,
you need not flee from before Me!
2
And if you swear, ‘As the LORD lives!,’
in truth, in justice, and in righteousness,
then the nations shall bless themselves in Him
and shall glory in Him.”
3
For thus says the LORD to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem:
“Break up for yourselves new ground,
and do not sow among thorns.
4
Circumcise yourselves to the LORD,
and remove the foreskin of your heart,
O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem,
lest My wrath go forth like fire,
and burn with none to quench it,
because of your evil deeds!”
5
Declare in Judah
and proclaim in Jerusalem:
Blow the trumpet in the land,
cry aloud:
“Gather together, and let us go
into the fortified cities!”
6
Raise a standard toward Zion!
Flee for safety, do not stand still!
For I am bringing disaster from the north
and great destruction.
7
A lion has come up from his thicket,
a destroyer of nations has set out,
he has gone forth from his place
to make your land a waste;
your cities will be laid in ruins, without inhabitant.
8
Therefore put on sackcloth,
weep and wail;
for the burning anger of the LORD
has not turned away from us.
9
“In that day,” says the LORD,
“the king and the officials shall lose heart;
the priests shall be appalled
and the prophets shall be astonished,
10
saying: Ah, Lord GOD,
surely You have greatly deceived
this people and Jerusalem’s inhabitants,
by saying, ‘Peace shall be with you,’
while the sword has threatened our lives!”
11
At that time it will be said
to this people and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem:
“A hot wind from the bare heights in the wilderness
blows toward the daughter of My people;
not to winnow and not to cleanse,
12
but a strong wind comes at My command.
Now I Myself will pronounce
judgment against them.”
13
Look, he comes up like clouds,
his chariots are like a whirlwind,
his horses are swifter than eagles.
Woe to us, for we are ruined!
14
Wash your heart from evil, O Jerusalem,
that you may be saved!
How long shall wicked thoughts
lodge within you?
15
Listen! A report comes from Dan,
and news of disaster from the hills of Ephraim.
16
Warn the nations: “Look, he is coming!”
Proclaim it in Jerusalem:
“An attacker is coming from a distant land,
raising his voice against the cities of Judah.
17
Like men guarding a field all around it,
so they have surrounded her, because Judah has rebelled against Me,” declares the LORD.
18
Your ways and your deeds
have brought these things upon you.
This is your doom; how bitter it is,
how it pierces your heart.”
19
Oh, my anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain!
Oh, the walls of my heart!
My heart is pounding;
I cannot keep silent,
because I hear the sound of the trumpet,
the shout of battle.
20
Disaster upon disaster is announced;
the whole land is laid waste.
My tent is destroyed in a moment,
my shelter in an instant.
21
How long must I see the banner
and hear the sound of the trumpet?
22
“Truly, my people are foolish;
they do not know Me.
They are senseless children,
and they have no understanding.
They are skilled at doing evil,
but they do not know how to do good.”
23
I looked at the earth, and it was formless and empty;
and at the heavens, and their light was gone.
24
I looked at the mountains, and they were shaking;
and all the hills were swaying.
25
I looked, and there was no man;
and all the birds of the sky had fled.
26
I looked, and the fertile land had become a wilderness;
and all its cities were broken down before the LORD,
before His blazing anger!
27
For this is what the LORD says:
“This whole land will become desolate,
but I will not make a full end of it.
28
Because of this the earth will mourn,
and the heavens above will grow dark,
because I have spoken, I have planned it;
I will not relent, and I will not turn back from it.”
29
At the noise of horsemen and archers
the whole land flees.
They go into the thickets
and climb among the rocks;
every city is abandoned,
and no one lives in them.
30
And you, who are laid waste,
what will you do?
Why do you dress in scarlet,
adorn yourself with gold ornaments,
and paint your eyes with makeup?
In vain you make yourself beautiful;
your lovers despise you,
even they seek your life.
31
For I hear a sound like a woman in labor,
the cry of one in anguish like a mother giving birth to her first child,
the cry of the daughter of Zion, gasping for breath,
stretching out her hands:
“Woe is me, for I am perishing before the murderers!”
🌪️🔥🧎♂️ Summary of Jeremiah 4 – A Call to Repentance and a Prophecy of Destruction
Jeremiah 4 gives an urgent call to true repentance. God calls His people to return sincerely and not in pretense. If not, judgment will come from the north—a real threat in the form of a foreign invasion. Jeremiah, as a faithful prophet, feels deep sorrow as he sees his people moving toward ruin. This chapter portrays the tension between God’s mercy and His justice.
📌 1. The Call to Repent Sincerely (verses 1–4)
“If you will return, O Israel… return to Me!”
- The Lord is not seeking sweet words, but true repentance from the heart
- He calls the people to “break up new ground” (a hard heart must be softened)
- Circumcision of the heart, not only of the body — a symbol of inward repentance
🎯 True religion is not outward ritual, but a heart changed and surrendered to God.
📌 2. The Threat from the North (verses 5–18)
“Look, disaster is moving from the north, like a great storm…”
- The Lord warns of the coming of a foreign nation (Babylon) like a lion that pounces
- Jerusalem will be besieged because of the sin and apostasy of its people
- They are given a chance to repent, but their sin is plain before their faces
🎯 When a nation rejects the Lord’s warning, judgment is not only possible — it is certain.
📌 3. The Prophet’s Cry of Heart (verses 19–22)
“Oh, my heart, my heart is in pain… I cannot keep silent!”
- Jeremiah feels the burden of his prophecy — his heart is broken as he sees disaster drawing near
- He describes the total confusion and ruin that will come
- The Lord calls His people “foolish” and “without understanding”
🎯 A true servant of God does not rejoice in judgment, but grieves over lost souls.
📌 4. A Picture of the Terror of Judgment (verses 23–31)
“I looked at the earth — and behold, it was formless and empty…”
- This description is like creation turned backward — the sky dark, the earth shattered
- A frightening picture: silent cities, birds gone, people fleeing
- Judah still refused to repent — they preferred ornaments and foreign gods rather than the Lord
🎯 Judgment is not only physical, but cosmic and spiritual — a world without God is total chaos.
📖 Main Teaching
- The Lord longs for His people to repent from the heart, not merely in outward appearance
- God’s warning is real and serious — it must not be taken lightly
- A true prophet feels God’s pain over an unfaithful people
- Sin brings complete ruin, not only moral but also social and environmental
- There is no true comfort without true repentance
✨ Spiritual Meaning (New Testament)
“True circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written law…”
➡️ Jeremiah 4:4 is fulfilled in the Gospel: the Lord desires a circumcised heart, not only outward acts.
“Unless you repent, you will all perish.”
➡️ Christ also emphasized the urgency of urgent repentance, like Jeremiah’s call.
“Godly sorrow produces repentance.”
➡️ Jeremiah wept not without hope — he desired a repentance that saves.
“See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking…”
➡️ The God who spoke through the prophets in the Old Testament now speaks through Christ.
🎯 In the light of the Gospel, Jeremiah 4 is a call for the church today: do not harden your heart, for God’s judgment is still real.
🕊️ “Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, and put away the hardness of your heart…” – Jeremiah 4:4
🕊️ “A lion has risen from the thicket…” – Jeremiah 4:7
🕊️ “Oh, my heart! My heart is in pain; I cannot keep silent…” – Jeremiah 4:19
🕊️ “I looked at the earth, and indeed it was formless and empty…” – Jeremiah 4:23
