Pray ¹  for the peace of Jerusalem! May those who love her prosper! ² 

The men examined ¹  some of their provisions, but they failed to ask the Lord’s advice. ² 

They travel down to Egypt without seeking my will, ¹  seeking Pharaoh’s protection, and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. ² 

ד (Dalet) The infant’s tongue sticks to the roof of its mouth due to thirst; little children beg for bread, ¹  but no one gives them even a morsel. ² 

“I made myself available to those who did not ask for me; ¹  I appeared to those who did not look for me. ²  I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!’ to a nation that did not invoke ³  my name.

Therefore, the Lord says, “Ask the people of other nations whether they have heard of anything like this. Israel should have been like a virgin. But she has done something utterly revolting!

Ask yourselves this and consider it carefully: ¹  Have you ever seen a man give birth to a baby? Why then do I see all these strong men grabbing their stomachs in pain like ²  a woman giving birth? And why do their faces turn so deathly pale?

Then they asked Baruch, “How did you come to write all these words? Do they actually come from Jeremiah’s mouth?” ¹ 

Ask the Lord for rain in the season of the late spring rains ¹  – the Lord who causes thunderstorms – and he will give everyone showers of rain and green growth in the field.

I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; ¹  I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure. ²  So all my accomplishments gave me joy; ³  this was my reward for all my effort. ⁴