Jeremiah 13:1-11

The Lesson from the Marred Girdle

13¹ Thus said Jehovah unto me, 'Go, and thou hast got for thee a girdle of linen, and hast placed it on thy loins, and into water thou dost not cause it to enter:' ² and I get the girdle, according to the word of Jehovah, and I place 'it' on my loins. ³ And there is a word of Jehovah unto me a second time, saying, ⁴ 'Take the girdle that thou hast got, that 'is' on thy loins, and rise, go to Phrat, and hide it there in a hole of the rock; ⁵ and I go and hide it by Phrat, as Jehovah commanded me. ⁶ And it cometh to pass, at the end of many days, that Jehovah saith unto me, 'Rise, go to Phrat, and take thence the girdle, that I commanded thee to hide there;' ⁷ and I go to Phrat, and dig, and take the girdle from the place where I had hid it; and lo, the girdle hath been marred, it is not profitable for anything. ⁸ And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying, 'Thus said Jehovah: ⁹ Thus do I mar the excellency of Judah, And the great excellency of Jerusalem. ¹⁰ This evil people, who refuse to hear My words, Who walk in the stubbornness of their heart, And go after other gods to serve them, And to bow themselves to them, Yea it is—as this girdle, that is not profitable for anything. ¹¹ For, as the girdle cleaveth unto the loins of a man, So I caused to cleave unto Me The whole house of Israel, And the whole house of Judah, an affirmation of Jehovah, To be to Me for a people, and for a name, And for praise, and for beauty, And they have not hearkened.