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 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, came near,

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:

and said to Jeremiah the prophet, “Please let our supplication be presented before you, and pray for us to the LORD your God, even for all this remnant, for we are left but a few of many, as your eyes see us,

3 that Yahweh thy God may tell us the way wherein we should walk, —and the thing that we should do.

that the LORD your God may show us the way in which we should walk, and the things that 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.

Then Jeremiah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you. Behold, I will pray to the LORD your God according to your words; and it will happen that whatever thing the LORD answers you, I will declare it to you. I will keep nothing back 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 amongst us, if we don’t do according to all the word with which 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 good, or whether it is bad, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God, to whom we send you; that it may be well with us, when we 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 LORD’s word 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;

Then he called Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least even 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: —

and said to them, “The LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your supplication before him, says:

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 still live in this land, then I will build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I grieve over the distress that I have brought on 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:

Don’t be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid. Don’t be afraid of him,’ says the LORD, ‘for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand.

12 that I may grant you compassions and he may have compassion upon you, —and suffer you to return unto your own soil.

I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you, and cause you to return 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 dwell in this land,” so that you don’t obey the LORD your God’s voice,

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

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

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,

now therefore hear the LORD’s word, O remnant of Judah! The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘If you indeed set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to live 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 it will happen that the sword, which you fear, will overtake you there in the land of Egypt; and the famine, about which you are afraid, will follow close behind you there in 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 will it be with all the men who set their faces to go into Egypt to live there. They will die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence. None of them will remain or escape from the evil that I will bring on 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 the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘As my anger and my wrath has been poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my wrath will be poured out on you, when you enter into Egypt; and you will be an object of horror, an astonishment, a curse, and a reproach; and you will see this place no more.’

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 spoken concerning you, remnant of Judah, ‘Don’t go into Egypt!’ Know certainly that I have testified to 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 dealt deceitfully against your own souls; for you sent me to the LORD your God, saying, ‘Pray for us to the LORD our God; and according to all that the LORD our God says, so declare 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.

I have declared it to you today; but you have not obeyed the LORD your God’s voice in anything for which he has sent me to 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 certainly that you will die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence in the place where you desire to go to live.”