11 Yahweh’s message came to Yirmeyah (Jeremiah) to say: 2 Listen to the words of this agreement and tell them to everyone in Yehudah (Judah), including those who live in Yerushalem (Jerusalem) 3 and tell them, “Yisrael’s god Yahweh says that anyone who won’t listen to the words of this agreement will be cursed. 4 It’s the same agreement that I commanded for your ancestors at the time when I brought them out of the iron furnace that was Egypt, telling them: ‘Listen to my voice and follow the instructions that I’ve given you all, and then you’ll be my people, and I’ll become your god 5 in order to fulfill the promise that I made to your ancestors to give them a land that’s flowing with milk and honey, as it is right now.’ ”

“So be it, Yahweh,” I answered.

6 Then Yahweh told me, “Proclaim all these things in Yehudah’s cities, including in Yerushalem’s streets. Tell them to listen to the words of this agreement and carry them out 7 because I solemnly warned your ancestors at the time when I brought them out of Egypt until today, repeatedly warning them to listen to my voice. 8 However, they didn’t listen or even pay any attention to me, and each one of them stubbornly followed their own evil desires, so I ordered all the consequences from not obeying the agreement, to come to them.”

9 Then Yahweh told me, “A conspiracy has been found across Yehudah, and including Yerushalem’s inhabitants. 10 They’ve returned to the evil ways of their ancestors from the past who refused to listen to my messages, and then they followed after other gods to serve them. The people of both Yisrael and Yehudah broke the agreement that I made with the ancestors. 11 So now,, listen: Yahweh says that I’m about to bring calamity to them which they won’t be able to avoid, and they’ll cry out to me for help but I won’t listen to them. 12 Then Yehudah’s cities, including those living in Yerushalem, will go and cry out to the gods for help that they’ve been burning incense to, but those gods won’t be able to rescue them from their calamity 13 because there are now as many gods in Yehudah as you all have cities, and as many incense altars for Baal in Yerushalem as you all have streets. 14 Yirmeyah, don’t pray for those people, and don’t plead with me to rescue them, because I won’t be listening when they call out to me for help during their difficulties.

15 “My dear Yehudah, what right do you have to be in my temple after doing so much evil?

≈ You offer holy sacrifices then go and happily do wicked things.

16 Yahweh called you a luxuriant olive tree with beautiful, good-looking fruit.

^ Now he’ll kindle a fire with a loud roar on its branches that have gone bad.

17 Commander-in-chief Yahweh who planted you, has decided that you’ll experience evil because of the evil done by the peoples of Yisrael and Yehudah when they’ve provoked me to anger by offering incense to Baal.