Jeremiah 42

1 Then all the captaines of the hoste, and Iohanan the sonne of Kareah, and Iezaniah the sonne of Hoshaaiah, and all the people from the least vnto the most came,

Then all the army commanders and Johanan son of Kareah, Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest approached Jeremiah the prophet.

2 And saide vnto Ieremiah the Prophete, Heare our prayer, we beseeche thee, and pray for vs vnto the Lord thy God, euen for all this remnant (for we are left, but a fewe of many, as thine eyes doe beholde)

They said to him, “Let our pleas come before you. Pray for us to Yahweh your God for these people who remain since we are so few in number, as you see.

3 That the Lord thy God may shewe vs the way wherein wee may walke, and the thing that we may doe.

Ask Yahweh your God to tell us the way we should go and what we should do.”

4 Then Ieremiah the Prophet said vnto them, I haue heard you: behold, I will pray vnto ye Lord your God according to your wordes, and whatsoeuer thing the Lord shall answere you, I will declare it vnto you: I will keepe nothing backe from you.

So Jeremiah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you. Look, I will pray to Yahweh your God as you have requested. Whatever Yahweh answers, I will tell you. I will keep nothing back from you.”

5 Then they said to Ieremiah, The Lord be a witnesse of trueth, and faith betweene vs, if we doe not, euen according to all things for ye which the Lord thy God shall send thee to vs.

They said to Jeremiah, “May Yahweh be a true and faithful witness against us, if we do not do everything that Yahweh your God tells us to do.

6 Whether it be good or euill, we will obey the voyce of the Lord God, to whom we sende thee that it may be well with vs, when wee obey the voyce of the Lord our God.

Whether it is good or if it is bad, we will obey the voice of Yahweh our God, to whom we are sending you, so that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of Yahweh our God.”

7 And so after ten dayes came the word of the Lord vnto Ieremiah.

At the end of ten days, the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah.

8 Then called he Iohanan the sonne of Kareah, and all the captaines of the hoste, which were with him, and all ye people from ye least to the most,

So Jeremiah called to Johanan son of Kareah and all the army commanders with him, and to all the people from the least to the greatest.

9 And saide vnto them, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, vnto whom ye sent me to present your prayers before him,

Then he said to them, “This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel—to whom you sent me so I might lay your pleas before him—says,

10 If ye will dwell in this land, then I wil build you, and not destroy you, and I will plant you, and not roote you out: for I repent me of the euill that I haue done vnto you.

'If you go back and live in this land, then I will build you and not tear you down; I will plant you and not pull you up, for I will turn back the disaster that I have brought on you.

11 Feare not for the King of Babel, of whom ye are afraide: be not afraid of him, saith the Lord: for I am with you, to saue you, and to deliuer you from his hand,

Do not fear the king of Babylon, whom you are fearing. Do not fear him—this is Yahweh's declaration—since I am with you to save you and rescue you from his hand.

12 And I will graunt you mercie that he may haue compassion vpon you, and he shall cause you to dwell in your owne land.

For I will give you mercy. I will have compassion on you, and I will bring you back to your land.

13 But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, neither heare the voyce of the Lord your God,

But suppose that you say, “We will not stay in this land”—if you do not listen to my voice, the voice of Yahweh your God.

14 Saying, Nay, but we will goe into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no warre, nor heare the sounde of the trumpet, nor haue hunger of bread, and there will we dwell,

Suppose that you say, “No! We will go to the land of Egypt, where we will not see any war, where we will not hear the sound of the trumpet, and we will not go hungry for food. We will live there.”

15 (And nowe therefore heare the worde of the Lord, ye remnant of Iudah: thus sayeth the Lord of hostes the God of Israel, If ye set your faces to enter into Egypt, and goe to dwell there)

Now listen to this word of Yahweh, you remnant of Judah. Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this, 'If you actually set out to go to Egypt, to go and live there,

16 Then the sworde that ye feared, shall take you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, for the which ye care, shall there hang vpon you in Egypt, and there shall ye die.

then the sword that you fear will overtake you there in the land of Egypt. The famine that you are worrying about will pursue you to Egypt, and you will die there.

17 And all the men that set their faces to enter into Egypt to dwell there, shall die by ye sword, by the famine and by the pestilence, and none of them shall remaine nor escape from the plague, that I will bring vpon them.

So it will happen that all the men who set out to go to Egypt to live there will die by sword, famine, or plague. There will be no survivor of them, no one to escape the disaster that I will bring on them.

18 For thus saith the Lord of hostes the God of Israel, As mine anger and my wrath hath bene powred foorth vpon the inhabitants of Ierusalem: so shall my wrath be powred foorth vpon you, when ye shall enter into Egypt, and ye shall be a detestation, and an astonishment, and a curse and a reproche, and ye shall see this place no more.

For Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this: Just as my wrath and my fury were poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, in the same way my fury will be poured out on you if you go to Egypt. You will become an object of cursing and a horror, an object for speaking curses, and something dishonorable, and you will not see this place again.'”

19 O ye remnant of Iudah, the Lord hath said concerning you, Goe not into Egypt: knowe certeinely that I haue admonished you this day.

Then Jeremiah said, “Yahweh has spoken concerning you—the remnant of Judah. Do not go to Egypt! You certainly know that I have been a witness against you today.

20 Surely ye dissembled in your hearts When ye sent me vnto the Lord your God, saying, Pray for vs vnto the Lord our God, and declare vnto vs euen according vnto al that the Lord our God shall say, and we will doe it.

For you fatally deceived yourselves when you sent me to Yahweh your God and said, 'Pray to Yahweh our God for us. Everything that Yahweh our God says, tell us, and we will carry it out.'

21 Therefore I haue this day declared it you, but you haue not obeyed the voyce of the Lord your God, nor any thing for the which he hath sent me vnto you.

For I have reported to you today, but you have not listened to the voice of Yahweh your God or to anything about which he sent me to you.

22 Nowe therefore, knowe certeinely that ye shall die by the sworde, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye desire to goe and dwell.

So now, you should certainly know that you will die by sword, famine, and plague in the place where you desired to go to live.”