Jeremiah Chapter 4 verse 1 Holy Bible
If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith Jehovah, if thou wilt return unto me, and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight; then shalt thou not be removed;
read chapter 4 in ASV
If you will come back, O Israel, says the Lord, you will come back to me: and if you will put away your disgusting ways, you will not be sent away from before me.
read chapter 4 in BBE
If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith Jehovah, return unto me; and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not be a wanderer;
read chapter 4 in DARBY
If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the LORD, return unto me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then shalt thou not remove.
read chapter 4 in KJV
read chapter 4 in WBT
If you will return, Israel, says Yahweh, if you will return to me, and if you will put away your abominations out of my sight; then you shall not be removed;
read chapter 4 in WEB
If thou dost turn back, O Israel, An affirmation of Jehovah, unto Me turn back, And if thou dost turn aside Thine abominations from My face, Then thou dost not bemoan.
read chapter 4 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerses 1, 2. - The form and structure of the translation require a change. Render, If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith Jehovah, wilt return unto me; and if thou wilt put away, etc., and not wander; and wilt swear, As Jehovah liveth, with good faith, with justice, and with righteousness; then shall the nations bless themselves by him, and in him shall they glory. The clause, "and not wander," seems too short; the Septuagint had a choicer reading, "and put away, etc., from his [thy] mouth, and not wander from before me." It is the close of the prophecy which we have here. The prophet subjoins a promise which he has heard from Jehovah. True, it does not appeal to Israel's self-love (as Isaiah 48:18, 19; Psalm 81:13-16), but to a nobler feeling of responsibility for the world's welfare. Israel has been entrusted with a mission, and on the due performance of this mission hangs the weal or woe of humanity. Hence Jehovah's longing for Israel's repentance. If Israel will but "return," and obey God's commandments, all nations will be attracted to the true religion. The form of expression used for the latter statement is borrowed probably from Genesis 22:18; Genesis 26:4 (it is less closely parallel with Genesis 12:3; Genesis 18:18). To "bless by" any one is to use his name in the benediction formula. Seeing Israel so blessed through his allegiance to Jehovah, all nations shall wish themselves a similar blessing (the reverse of the process in Jeremiah 29:22; comp. Isaiah 65:16). To "swear, As Jehovah liveth," means to call Jehovah to witness to the truth of a statement. This is to be done "with good faith," etc., i.e. the object of the oath must be consistent with honesty and probity. Abominations; i.e. idols, as often (see 2 Kings 23:24).
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English ReadersIV.(1) If thou wilt return.--The "if" implies a return from the hopes with which Jeremiah 3 ended to the language of misgiving, and so, inferentially, of earnest exhortation.Abominations.--Literally, things of shame, as in Jeremiah 3:24; the idols which Israel had worshipped.Then shalt thou not remove.--Better, as continuing the conditions of forgiveness, if thou wilt not wander.
