7. “But those who trust in the Lord will be blessed. They know that the Lord will do what he says.
8. They will be strong like trees planted near a stream that send out roots to the water. They have nothing to fear when the days get hot. Their leaves are always green. They never worry, even in a year that has no rain. They always produce fruit.
9. “Nothing can hide its evil as well as the human mind. It can be very sick, and no one really understands it.
10. But I am the Lord, and I can look into a person’s heart. I can test a person’s mind and decide what each one should have. I can give each person the right payment for what they do.
11. Sometimes a bird will hatch an egg that it did not lay. Those who cheat to get money are like that bird. But when their lives are half finished, they will lose the money. At the end of their lives, it will be clear that they were fools.”
12. From the very beginning, our Temple has been a glorious throne for God. It is a very important place.
13. Lord, you are the hope of Israel. You are like a spring of living water. Those who stop following the Lord will have a very short life.
14. Lord, if you heal me, I surely will be healed. Save me, and I surely will be saved. Lord, I praise you!
15. The people of Judah continue to ask me questions. They say, “Jeremiah, what about the message from the Lord? Let’s see that message come true.”
16. Lord, I did not run away from you. I followed you. I became the shepherd you wanted. I did not want the terrible day to come. You know what I said. You see all that is happening.
17. Please don’t make me afraid of you. I depend on you in times of trouble.
18. People are hurting me. Make them ashamed, but don’t disappoint me. Let them be filled with fear, but don’t give me any reason to fear. Bring the terrible day of disaster to my enemies. Break them, and break them again.
19. This is what the Lord said to me: “Jeremiah, go and stand at the People’s Gate, where the kings of Judah go in and out. Tell the people my message, and then go to all the other gates of Jerusalem and do the same.”
20. Say to the people, “Listen to this message from the Lord. Listen, kings of Judah. Listen, all you people of Judah. All you who come through these gates into Jerusalem, listen to me!
21. This is what the Lord says: ‘Be careful that you don’t carry a load on the Sabbath day. And don’t bring a load through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day.