12. What person is wise enough to understand these things? Is there someone who has been taught by the Lord who can explain them? Why was the land ruined? Why has it been made like an empty desert where no one goes?
13. The Lord answered, “It is because Judah quit following my teachings that I gave them. They have not obeyed me or done what I told them to do.
14. Instead, they were stubborn and followed the Baals, as their ancestors taught them to do.
15. So this is what the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says: “I will soon make the people of Judah eat bitter food and drink poisoned water.
16. I will scatter them through other nations that they and their ancestors never knew about. I will chase the people of Judah with the sword until they are all killed.”
17. This is what the Lord All-Powerful says:“Now, think about these things!Call for the women who cry at funerals to come.Send for those women who are good at that job.
18. Let them come quicklyand cry loudly for us.Then our eyes will fill with tears,and streams of water will flow from our eyelids.
19. The sound of loud crying is heard from Jerusalem:‘We are truly ruined!We are truly ashamed!We must leave our land,because our houses are in ruins.’ ”
20. Now, women of Judah, listen to the word of the Lord ;open your ears to hear the words of his mouth.Teach your daughters how to cry loudly.Teach one another a funeral song.
21. Death has climbed in through our windowsand has entered our strong cities.Death has taken away our children who play in the streetsand the young men who meet in the city squares.
22. Say, “This is what the Lord says:‘The dead bodies of people will liein the open field like dung.They will lie like grain a farmer has cut,but there will be no one to gather them.’ ”
23. This is what the Lord says:“The wise must not brag about their wisdom.The strong must not brag about their strength.The rich must not brag about their money.
24. But if people want to brag, let them bragthat they understand and know me.Let them brag that I am the Lord,and that I am kind and fair,and that I do things that are right on earth.This kind of bragging pleases me,” says the Lord.
25. The Lord says, “The time is coming when I will punish all those who are circumcised only in the flesh: