Jeremiah 37
1 And King Zedekiah the sonne of Iosiah reigned for Coniah the sonne of Iehoiakim, whome Nebuchad-nezzar King of Babel made King in the land of Iudah.
THE WORD THAT CAME TO JEREMIAS FROM THE LORD, SAYING,
2 But neither he, nor his seruants, nor the people of the land would obey the wordes of the Lord, which he spake by the ministerie of the Prophet Ieremiah.
Thus speaks the Lord God of Israel, saying, Write all the words which I have spoken to you in a book.
3 And Zedekiah the King sent Iehucal the sonne of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the sonne of Maaseiah the Priest to the Prophet Ieremiah, saying, Pray now vnto the Lord our God for vs.
For, behold, the days come, says 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 (Now Ieremiah went in and out among the people: for they had not put him into the prison.
AND THESE ARE THE WORDS WHICH THE LORD SPOKE CONCERNING ISRAEL AND JUDA;
5 Then Pharaohs hoste was come out of Egypt: and when the Caldeans that besieged Ierusalem, heard tidings of them, they departed from Ierusalem)
Thus said the Lord: You shall hear a sound of fear, [there is] fear, and there is not peace.
6 Then came the worde of the Lord vnto the Prophet Ieremiah, 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 sayth the Lord God of Israel, Thus shall ye say to the King of Iudah, that sent you vnto me to inquire of me, Behold, Pharaohs hoste, which is come forth to helpe you, shall returne to Egypt into their owne 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 Caldeans shall come againe, and fight against this citie, and take it and burne 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 sayth the Lord, Deceiue not your selues, saying, The Caldeans shall surely depart from vs: for they shall not depart.
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 hoste of the Caldeans that fight against you, and there remained but wounded men among them, yet should euery man rise vp in his tent, and burne this citie with fire.
11 When the hoste of the Caldeans was broken vp from Ierusalem, because of Pharaohs armie,
12 Then Ieremiah went out of Ierusalem to goe into the land of Beniamin, separating himselfe thence from among the people.
Thus says the Lord; I have brought on [you] destruction; your stroke is painful.
13 And when hee was in the gate of Beniamin, there was a chiefe officer, whose name was Iriiah, the sonne of Shelemiah, the sonne of Hananiah, and he tooke Ieremiah the Prophet, saying, Thou fleest to the Caldeans.
There is none to judge your cause: you have been painfully treated for healing, there is no help for you.
14 Then sayde Ieremiah, That is false, I flee not to the Caldeans: but he would not heare him: so Iriiah tooke Ieremiah, and brought him to the princes.
All your friends have forgotten you; they shall not ask [about you] at all, for I have struck you with he stroke of an enemy, [even] severe correction: your sins have abounded above all your iniquity.
15 Wherefore the princes were angry with Ieremiah, and smote him, and layde him in prison in the house of Iehonathan the scribe: for they had made that the prison.
Your sins have abounded beyond the multitude of your iniquities, [therefore] they have done these things to you. Therefore all that devour you shall be eaten, and all your enemies shall eat all their [own] flesh.
16 When Ieremiah was entred into the dungeon, and into the prisons, and had remained there a long time,
And they that spoil you shall become a spoil, and I will give up to be plundered all that have plundered you.
17 Then Zedekiah the King sent, and tooke him out, and the King asked him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any worde from the Lord? And Ieremiah sayd, Yea: for, sayd he, thou shalt be deliuered into the hand of the King of Babel.
For I will bring about your healing, I will heal you of your grievous wound, says the Lord; for you are called Dispersed: she is your prey, for no one seeks after her.
18 Moreouer, Ieremiah sayd vnto King Zedekiah, What haue I offended against thee, or against thy seruants, or against this people, that ye haue put me in 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 Where are nowe your prophets, which prophecied vnto you, saying, The King of Babel 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 Therefore heare nowe, I pray thee, O my lorde the King: let my prayer be accepted before thee, that thou cause mee not to returne to the house of Iehonathan the scribe, least 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, that they should put Ieremiah in the court of the prison, and that they should giue him dayly a piece of bread out of the bakers streete vntill all the bread in the citie were eaten vp. Thus Ieremiah remained in the court of the prison.
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? says 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 you shall know these things.
