Jeremiah 42

1 Then drew near all the captains of the forces, and Johanan son of Kareah and Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, —and all the people from the least even unto 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 and said unto Jeremiah the prophet—Let our supplication we beseech thee fall prostrate before thee, and pray thou in our behalf unto Yahweh thy God, in behalf of all this remnant, —for we are left a few out of many, just as thine own 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 Yahweh thy God may tell 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 me! praying unto Yahweh your God according to your words, —and it shall come to pass that the whole thing that Yahweh shall answer you, I will tell you, I will keep back from you, nothing.

“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 They, therefore said unto Jeremiah, Yahweh be against us, as a witness true and faithful, —if according to all the word which Yahweh thy God shall send thee unto us, so we do not perform:

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 for good or for ill, unto the voice of Yahweh our God for which we are sending thee unto him, will we hearken, —to the end it may be well with us, because we will hearken unto the voice of Yahweh 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 Yahweh came unto Jeremiah.

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

8 Then called he for Johanan son of Kareah, and for all the princes of the forces who were with him—and for 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 Yahweh, God of Israel—unto whom ye sent me, to cause your supplication to fall prostrate 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 indeed abide, in this land, then will I build you up, and not pull [you] down, and plant you and not uproot [you], —for I have compassion as touching the calamity which I have caused 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 Do not fear the face of the king of Babylon, of whose face ye are afraid, —do not fear him, Urgeth Yahweh, for with you, am I, to save you, and to deliver you out of 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 that I may grant you compassions and he may have compassion upon you, —and suffer you to return unto your own soil.

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

13 But, since ye are saying, —We will not dwell in this land, —nor hearken unto the voice of Yahweh 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! for, into the land of Egypt, will we go, where we shall not see war, nor the sound of a horn, shall we hear, —nor for bread, shall we be famished, —there, then 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 Now, therefore, for this cause, hear ye the word of Yahweh, O remnant of Judah, —Thus! saith Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, —If, ye do indeed set your faces to enter Egypt and do enter 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 shall it come to pass that the sword which ye are fearing shall, there, overtake you, in the land of Egypt, —and the famine which ye are dreading, shall, there, lay fast hold of you, in Egypt, and, there, shall ye 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 So shall it be with all the men who have set their faces to enter Egypt to sojourn there, they shall die by sword, by famine or by pestilence, —and they shall have neither survival nor escape, from the face of the calamity which I am about to bring in 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 Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, —Just as mine anger and mine indignation have been poured out upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall mine indignation be poured out upon you when ye enter into Egypt, —thus shall ye become a curse, and an astonishment and a contempt and a reproach, and ye shall no more see this place.

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 Yahweh hath spoken concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah, Do not enter into Egypt: Know certainly, that I have taken you to witness to-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 have deceived yourselves at the cost of your lives, for, ye yourselves, sent me unto Yahweh your God, saying, —Pray thou in our behalf, unto Yahweh our God, —and according to all that Yahweh our God shall say, so, tell 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 Therefore have I told you to-day, —and yet ye have not hearkened unto the voice of Yahweh your God, even in any thing 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 Now, therefore, know ye certainly, that by sword, by famine, or by pestilence, shall ye die, —in the place whither ye have desired 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.”