They are like trees that grow beside a stream, that bear fruit at the right time, and whose leaves do not dry up. They succeed in everything they do.

You never thought to honor me, even though I send the autumn rains and the spring rains and give you the harvest season each year.

When the time came to gather the grapes, he sent his slaves to the tenants to receive his share of the harvest.

Again the man sent other slaves, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way.

When the time came to gather the grapes, he sent a slave to the tenants to receive from them his share of the harvest.

Then the owner sent another slave; the tenants beat him over the head and treated him shamefully.

and he sent them a prophet who brought them this message from the LORD, the God of Israel: "I brought you out of slavery in Egypt.

I told you that I am the LORD your God and that you should not worship the gods of the Amorites, whose land you are now living in. But you have not listened to me."

The LORD had sent his messengers and prophets to warn Israel and Judah: "Abandon your evil ways and obey my commands, which are contained in the Law I gave to your ancestors and which I handed on to you through my servants the prophets."

The LORD, the God of their ancestors, had continued to send prophets to warn his people, because he wanted to spare them and the Temple.

But they made fun of God's messengers, ignoring his words and laughing at his prophets, until at last the LORD's anger against his people was so great that there was no escape.

Year after year you patiently warned them. You inspired your prophets to speak, but your people were deaf, so you let them be conquered by other nations.

"For twenty-three years, from the thirteenth year that Josiah son of Amon was king of Judah until this very day, the LORD has spoken to me, and I have never failed to tell you what he said. But you have paid no attention.

They told you to turn from your wicked way of life and from the evil things you are doing, so that you could go on living in the land that the LORD gave you and your ancestors as a permanent possession.

But the LORD himself says that you refused to listen to him. Instead, you made him angry with your idols and have brought his punishment on yourselves.

the LORD said to me, "Stand in the court of the Temple and proclaim all I have commanded you to say to the people who come from the towns of Judah to worship there. Do not leave out anything.

The LORD told me to say to the people, "I, the LORD, have said that you must obey me by following the teaching that I gave you,

If you continue to disobey, then I will do to this Temple what I did to Shiloh, and all the nations of the world will use the name of this city as a curse."

I have continued to send you all my servants the prophets, and they have told you to give up your evil ways and to do what is right. They warned you not to worship and serve other gods, so that you could go on living in the land that I gave you and your ancestors. But you would not listen to me or pay any attention to me.

I kept sending you my servants the prophets, who told you not to do this terrible thing that I hate.

But you would not listen or pay any attention. You would not give up your evil practice of sacrificing to other gods.

But the LORD says, "Israel and Judah, what am I going to do with you? Your love for me disappears as quickly as morning mist; it is like dew, that vanishes early in the day.

I want your constant love, not your animal sacrifices. I would rather have my people know me than burn offerings to me.

but now I say to you, 'Return to me, and I will return to you.

Your ancestors and those prophets are no longer alive.

"Long ago I gave these commands to my people: 'You must see that justice is done, and must show kindness and mercy to one another.

"But my people stubbornly refused to listen. They closed their minds

Because they did not listen when I spoke, I did not answer when they prayed.

You did not choose me; I chose you and appointed you to go and bear much fruit, the kind of fruit that endures. And so the Father will give you whatever you ask of him in my name.

That is how it is with you, my friends. As far as the Law is concerned, you also have died because you are part of the body of Christ; and now you belong to him who was raised from death in order that we might be useful in the service of God.

How terrible for you! You make fine tombs for the prophets---the very prophets your ancestors murdered.

For this reason the Wisdom of God said, 'I will send them prophets and messengers; they will kill some of them and persecute others.'

"Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets, you stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times I wanted to put my arms around all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me!

Then the prophet Zedekiah went up to Micaiah, slapped his face, and asked, "Since when did the LORD's spirit leave me and speak to you?"

This made Asa so angry with the prophet that he had him put in chains. It was at this same time that Asa began treating some of the people cruelly.

The LORD sent prophets to warn them to return to him, but the people refused to listen.

King Joash joined in a conspiracy against Zechariah, and on the king's orders the people stoned Zechariah in the Temple courtyard.

"But your people rebelled and disobeyed you; they turned their backs on your Law. They killed the prophets who warned them, who told them to turn back to you. They insulted you time after time,

I punished you, but it did no good; you would not let me correct you. Like a raging lion, you have murdered your prophets.

he had me beaten and placed in chains near the upper Benjamin Gate in the Temple.

(There was another man, Uriah son of Shemaiah from Kiriath Jearim, who spoke in the name of the LORD against this city and nation just as Jeremiah did.

King Jehoiakim, however, sent Elnathan son of Achbor and some other men to Egypt to get Uriah.

But because I had the support of Ahikam son of Shaphan, I was not handed over to the people and killed.

"The LORD made you a priest in place of Jehoiada, and you are now the chief officer in the Temple. It is your duty to see that every crazy person who pretends to be a prophet is placed in chains with an iron collar around the neck.

Why haven't you done this to Jeremiah of Anathoth, who has been speaking as a prophet to the people?

They were furious with me and had me beaten and locked up in the house of Jonathan, the court secretary, whose house had been made into a prison.

I was put in an underground cell and kept there a long time.

Then the officials went to the king and said, "This man must be put to death. By talking like this he is making the soldiers in the city lose their courage, and he is doing the same thing to everyone else left in the city. He is not trying to help the people; he only wants to hurt them."

So they took me and let me down by ropes into Prince Malchiah's well, which was in the palace courtyard. There was no water in the well, only mud, and I sank down in it.