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New Living Translation |   | |
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| | Jer 10:1 | Hear the word of the LORD, O Israel!
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| | Jer 10:2 | This is what the LORD says: "Do not act like 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.
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| | Jer 10:3 | Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree and carve an idol.
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| | Jer 10:4 | They decorate it with gold and silver and then fasten it securely with hammer and nails so it won't fall over.
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| | Jer 10:5 | There stands their god like a helpless scarecrow in a garden! It cannot speak, and it needs to be carried because it cannot walk. Do not be afraid of such gods, for they can neither harm you nor do you any good."
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| | Jer 10:6 | LORD, there is no one like you! For you are great, and your name is full of power.
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| | Jer 10:7 | Who 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.
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| | Jer 10:8 | The wisest of people who worship idols are stupid and foolish. The things they worship are made of wood!
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| | Jer 10:9 | They 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 purple robes made by expert tailors.
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| | Jer 10:10 | But the LORD is the only true God, the living God. He is the everlasting King! The whole earth trembles at his anger. The nations hide before his wrath.
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| | Jer 10:11 | Say this to those who worship other gods: "Your so-called gods, who did not make the heavens and earth, will vanish from the earth."
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| | Jer 10:12 | But God made the earth by his power, and he preserves it by his wisdom. He has stretched out the heavens by his understanding.
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| | Jer 10:13 | When he speaks, there is thunder in the heavens. He causes the clouds to rise over the earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the wind from his storehouses.
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| | Jer 10:14 | Compared to him, all people are foolish and have no knowledge at all! They make idols, but the idols will disgrace their makers, for they are frauds. They have no life or power in them.
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| | Jer 10:15 | Idols are worthless; they are lies! The time is coming when they will all be destroyed.
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| | Jer 10:16 | But the God of Israel is no idol! He is the Creator of everything that exists, including Israel, his own special possession. The LORD Almighty is his name!
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| | Jer 10:17 | "Pack your bag and prepare to leave; the siege is about to begin,"
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| | Jer 10:18 | says the LORD. "For suddenly, I will fling you from this land and pour great troubles upon you. At last you will feel my anger."
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| | Jer 10:19 | My wound is desperate, and my grief is great. My sickness is incurable, but I must bear it.
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| | Jer 10:20 | My 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.
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| | Jer 10:21 | The shepherds of my people have lost their senses. They no longer follow the LORD or ask what he wants of them. Therefore, they fail completely, and their flocks are scattered.
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| | Jer 10:22 | Listen! Hear the terrifying roar of great armies as they roll down from the north. The towns of Judah will be destroyed and will become a haunt for jackals.
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| | Jer 10:23 | I know, LORD, that a person's life is not his own. No one is able to plan his own course.
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| | Jer 10:24 | So correct me, LORD, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die.
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| | Jer 10:25 | Pour out your wrath on the nations that refuse to recognize you--on nations that do not call upon your name. For they have utterly devoured your people Israel, making the land a desolate wilderness.
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