Jeremiah 37
1 And king Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned instead of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon having made him king in the land of Judah.
THE WORD THAT CAME TO JEREMIAS FROM THE LORD, SAYING,
2 And neither he, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, hearkened unto the words of Jehovah, which he had spoken through the prophet Jeremiah.
Thus speaks the Lord God of Israel, saying, Write all the words which I have spoken to thee in a book.
3 And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest to the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Pray now unto Jehovah our God for us.
For, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will bring back the captivity of my people Israel and Juda, said the Lord: and I will bring them back to the land which I gave to their fathers, and they shall be lords of it.
4 And Jeremiah came in and went out among the people; for they had not put him into prison.
AND THESE ARE THE WORDS WHICH THE LORD SPOKE CONCERNING ISRAEL AND JUDA;
5 And Pharaoh's army was come forth out of Egypt; and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them, they went up from Jerusalem.
Thus said the Lord: Ye shall hear a sound of fear, [there is] fear, and there is not peace.
6 And the word of Jehovah came unto Jeremiah the prophet, saying,
Enquire, and see if a male has born a child? and [ask] concerning the fear, wherein they shall hold their loins, and [look for] safety: for I have seen every man, and his hands are on his loins; [their] faces are turned to paleness.
7 Thus saith Jehovah the God of Israel: Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me to inquire of me: Behold, Pharaoh's army, which is come forth to help you, shall return to Egypt into their own land.
For that day is great, and there is not such [another]; and it is a time of straitness to Jacob; but he shall be saved out of it.
8 And the Chaldeans shall come again, and fight against this city, and take it, and burn it with fire.
In that day, said the Lord, I will break the yoke off their neck, and will burst their bonds, and they shall no longer serve strangers:
9 Thus saith Jehovah: Deceive not yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans are certainly gone away from us; for they are not gone.
but they shall serve the Lord their God; and I will raise up to them David their king.
10 For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight against you, and there remained [but] wounded men among them, [yet] should they rise up every man in his tent, and burn this city with fire.
11 And it came to pass when the army of the Chaldeans was gone up from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh's army,
12 that Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, to have his portion there among the people.
Thus saith the Lord; I have brought on [thee] destruction; thy stroke is painful.
13 And when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the guard was there whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and he laid hold on the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Thou art deserting to the Chaldeans.
There is none to judge thy cause: thou hast been painfully treated for healing, there is no help for thee.
14 And Jeremiah said, It is false: I am not deserting to the Chaldeans. But he hearkened not to him; and Irijah laid hold on Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes.
All thy friends have forgotten thee; they shall not ask [about thee] at all, for I have smitten thee with he stroke of an enemy, [even] severe correction: thy sins have abounded above all thine iniquity.
15 And the princes were wroth with Jeremiah, and smote him, and put him in the place of confinement in the house of Jonathan the scribe: for they had made that the prison.
Thy sins have abounded beyond the multitude of thine iniquities, [therefore] they have done these things to thee. Therefore all that devour thee shall be eaten, and all thine enemies shall eat all their [own] flesh.
16 When Jeremiah was come into the dungeon and into the vaults, and Jeremiah had remained there many days,
And they that spoil thee shall become a spoil, and I will give up to be plundered all that have plundered thee.
17 king Zedekiah sent and took him out. And the king asked of him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any word from Jehovah? And Jeremiah said, There is; and he said, Thou shalt be given into the hand of the king of Babylon.
For I will bring about thy healing, I will heal thee of thy grievous wound, saith the Lord; for thou art called Dispersed: she is your prey, for no one seeks after her.
18 And Jeremiah said unto king Zedekiah, What have I offended against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in the prison?
Thus said the Lord; Behold, I will turn the captivity of Jacob, and will have pity upon his prisoners; and the city shall be built upon her hill, and the people shall settle after their manner.
19 And where are your prophets that prophesied unto you, saying, The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land?
And there shall go forth from them singers, [even] the sound of men making merry: and I will multiply them, and they shall not at all be diminished.
20 And now hear, I pray thee, my lord, O king: let my supplication, I pray thee, come before thee; and cause me not to return into the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there.
And their sons shall go in as before, and their testimonies shall be established before me, and I will visit them that afflict them.
21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded, and they committed Jeremiah into the court of the guard, and they gave him daily a loaf of bread out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city was spent. And Jeremiah abode in the court of the guard.
And their mighty ones shall be over them, and their prince shall proceed of themselves; and I will gather them, and they shall return to me: for who is this that has set his heart to return to me? saith the Lord.
For the wrathful anger of the lord has gone forth, [even] a whirlwind of anger has gone forth: it shall come upon the ungodly.
The fierce anger of the Lord shall not return, until he shall execute [it], and until he shall establish the purpose of his heart: in the latter days ye shall know these things.
