Jeremiah 24

1 Yahweh shewed me, and lo! two baskets of figs, which had been set before the temple of Yahweh, —after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive, Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and the princes of Judah and the carpenters and the smiths out of Jerusalem, and had brought them into Babylon: —

After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, as well as the officials of Judah and the craftsmen and metalsmiths from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon, the LORD showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the LORD.

2 the one basket, was of very good figs, like the first-ripe figs; and, the other basket, was of very bad figs, which could not be eaten for badness.

One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early, but the other basket contained very poor figs, so bad they could not be eaten.

3 Then said Yahweh unto me, —What canst thou see, Jeremiah? And I said, Figs: the good figs, very good; and the bad, very bad, which cannot be eaten, for badness.

“Jeremiah,” the LORD asked, “what do you see?” “Figs!” I replied. “The good figs are very good, but the bad figs are very bad, so bad they cannot be eaten.”

4 Then came the word of Yahweh unto me, saying:

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

5 Thus, saith Yahweh God of Israel, Like these good figs, so, will I regard them of Judah who are carried into captivity, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans, for good.

“This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, so I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans.

6 Therefore will I set mine eye upon them for good, and will bring them back upon this land, —and will build them up, and not pull them down, and will plant them and not root them up;

I will keep My eyes on them for good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them.

7 and will give them a heart to know, me, that, I, am Yahweh, So shall they become my people, And, I, will become their God; for they will return unto me with all their heart.

I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD. They will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with all their heart.

8 And like the bad figs, which cannot be eaten for badness, Surely thus, saith Yahweh—so, will I deliver up Zedekiah king of Judah, and his princes and the remnant of Jerusalem that remain in this land, and them who are dwelling in the land of Egypt;

But like the bad figs, so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the LORD, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land and those living in the land of Egypt.

9 yea I will deliver them up, as a terror of calamity, to all the kingdoms of the earth, —as a reproach and as a byword, as a mockery and as a contempt, in every place whither I will drive them;

I will make them a horror and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a disgrace and an object of scorn, ridicule, and cursing wherever I have banished them.

10 and I will send among them, sword famine and pestilence, —until they are consumed from off the soil which I gave to them and to their fathers.

And I will send against them sword and famine and plague, until they have perished from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.’”