Jeremiah 42

1 And all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even to the greatest,

Then all the commanders of the forces, along with Johanan son of Kareah, Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, approached

2 came near and said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication come before thee, and pray for us unto Jehovah thy God, for all this remnant (for we are left a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us);

Jeremiah the prophet and said, “May our petition come before you; pray to the LORD your God on behalf of this entire remnant. For few of us remain of the many, as you can see with your own eyes.

3 that Jehovah thy God may shew us the way wherein we should walk, and the thing that we should do.

Pray that the LORD your God will tell us the way we should walk and the thing we should do.”

4 And Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard; behold, I will pray unto Jehovah your God according to your words; and it shall come to pass [that] whatsoever thing Jehovah shall answer you, I will declare it unto you: I will keep nothing back from you.

“I have heard you,” replied Jeremiah the prophet. “I will surely pray to the LORD your God as you request, and I will tell you everything that the LORD answers; I will not withhold a word from you.”

5 And they said to Jeremiah, Jehovah be a true and faithful witness amongst us, if we do not even according to all the word for which Jehovah thy God shall send thee to us.

Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act upon every word that the LORD your God sends you to tell us.

6 Whether it be good or whether it be evil, we will hearken unto the voice of Jehovah our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us when we hearken unto the voice of Jehovah our God.

Whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, so that it may go well with us, for we will obey the voice of the LORD our God!”

7 And it came to pass at the end of ten days, that the word of Jehovah came unto Jeremiah.

After ten days the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah,

8 And he called Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest,

and he summoned Johanan son of Kareah, all the commanders of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest.

9 and said unto them, Thus saith Jehovah the God of Israel, to whom ye sent me to present your supplication before him:

Jeremiah told them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition:

10 If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not overthrow [you], and I will plant you, and not pluck [you] up; for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you.

‘If you will indeed stay in this land, then I will build you up and not tear you down; I will plant you and not uproot you, for I will relent of the disaster I have brought upon you.

11 Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid: be not afraid of him, saith Jehovah; for I will be with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand.

Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, whom you now fear; do not be afraid of him, declares the LORD, for I am with you to save you and deliver you from him.

12 And I will grant mercies to you, that he may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return to your own land.

And I will show you compassion, and he will have compassion on you and restore you to your own land.’

13 But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land; so as not to hearken unto the voice of Jehovah your God,

But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ and you thus disobey the voice of the LORD your God,

14 saying, No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have hunger for bread; and there will we dwell;

and if you say, ‘No, but we will go to the land of Egypt and live there, where we will not see war or hear the sound of the ram’s horn or hunger for bread,’

15 — and now, therefore, hear the word of Jehovah, ye remnant of Judah: thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: If ye really set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there,

then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah! This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you are determined to go to Egypt and reside there,

16 then it shall come to pass, that the sword which ye fear shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye are afraid, shall follow hard after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die.

then the sword you fear will overtake you there, and the famine you dread will follow on your heels into Egypt, and you will die there.

17 And it shall be that all the men that have set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them.

So all who resolve to go to Egypt to reside there will die by sword and famine and plague. Not one of them will survive or escape the disaster I will bring upon them.’

18 For thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: As mine anger and my fury have been poured forth upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall my fury be poured forth upon you, when ye shall enter into Egypt; and ye shall be an execration, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach, and ye shall see this place no more.

For this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Just as My anger and wrath were poured out on the residents of Jerusalem, so will My wrath be poured out on you if you go to Egypt. You will become an object of cursing and horror, of vilification and disgrace, and you will never see this place again.’

19 Jehovah hath said concerning you, the remnant of Judah, Go ye not into Egypt. Know certainly that I have admonished you this day.

The LORD has told you, O remnant of Judah, ‘Do not go to Egypt.’ Know for sure that I have warned you today!

20 For ye deceived yourselves in your own souls, when ye sent me unto Jehovah your God, saying, Pray for us unto Jehovah our God; and according to all that Jehovah our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it.

For you have deceived yourselves by sending me to the LORD your God, saying, ‘Pray to the LORD our God on our behalf, and as for all that the LORD our God says, tell it to us and we will do it.’

21 And I have this day declared [it] to you; but ye have not obeyed the voice of Jehovah your God, nor anything for which he hath sent me unto you.

For I have told you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in all He has sent me to tell you.

22 And now know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye desire to go to sojourn.

Now therefore, know for sure that by sword and famine and plague you will die in the place where you desire to go to reside.”