Jeremiah 29

1 These are the words in the scroll that Jeremiah the prophet sent out from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the captives and to the priests, prophets, and all the people that Nebuchadnezzar exiled from Jerusalem to Babylon.

And these are the words of the letter which Jeremiah, the prophet, sent from Jerusalem to the remnant of the elders of the transmigration, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had led away from Jerusalem to Babylon,

2 This was after Jehoiachin the king, the queen mother, and the high officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, and the craftsmen had been sent away from Jerusalem.

after king Jeconiah, with the queen, and the eunuchs, and the leaders of Judah and of Jerusalem, and the craftsmen and engravers, had departed from Jerusalem.

3 He sent this scroll by the hand of Elasah son of Shapan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah whom Zedekiah, king of Judah, had sent to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

It was sent by the hand of Elasah, the son of Shaphan, and by Gemariah, the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah, the king of Judah, sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, saying:

4 The scroll said, “Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this to all the captives whom I caused to be exiled from Jerusalem to Babylon,

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who have been taken away, whom I have caused to be transferred from Jerusalem to Babylon:

5 'Build houses and live in them. Plant gardens and eat their fruit.

Build houses and live in them. And plant gardens, and eat from their fruit.

6 Take wives and give birth to sons and daughters. Then take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands. Let them give birth to sons and daughters and increase there so you do not become too few.

Take wives, and conceive sons and daughters. And give wives to your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, and let them bear sons and daughters. And be multiplied there, and do not choose to be few in number.

7 Seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be exiled, and intercede with me on its behalf since there will be peace for you if it is at peace.'

And seek the peace of the city, to which I have caused you to be taken away, and pray to the Lord on its behalf. For your peace will be in its peace.

8 For Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this, 'Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that you yourselves are having.

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not allow your prophets and your diviners, who are in your midst, to seduce you. And you should pay no attention to your dreams, which you are dreaming.

9 For they are prophesying deceitfully to you in my name. I did not send them—this is Yahweh's declaration.'

For they prophesy falsely to you in my name, and I have not sent them, says the Lord.

10 For Yahweh says this, 'When Babylon has ruled you for seventy years, I will help you and carry out my good word for you to bring you back to this place.

For thus says the Lord: When the seventy years will begin to be completed in Babylon, I will visit you. And I will raise up over you my good word, so that I may lead you back to this place.

11 For I myself know the plans that I have for you—this is Yahweh's declaration—plans for peace and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

For I know the thoughts that I think over you, says the Lord: thoughts of peace and not of affliction, so that I may give you patience and an end.

12 Then you will call to me, and go and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

And you shall call upon me, and you shall go forth. And you shall pray to me, and I will heed you.

13 For you will seek me and find me, since you will seek me with all your heart.

You shall seek me. And you will find me, when you have sought me with your whole heart.

14 Then I will be found by you—this is Yahweh's declaration—and I will bring back your fortunes; I will gather you from all the nations and places where I scattered you—this is Yahweh's declaration—for I will bring you back to the place from where I caused you to be exiled.'

And I will be found by you, says the Lord. And I will lead you back from your captivity. And I will gather you from all the nations and all the places, to which I have expelled you, says the Lord. And I will return you from the place to which I sent you into captivity.

15 Since you said that Yahweh has raised up prophets for us in Babylon,

For you have said: ‘The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon.’

16 Yahweh says this to the king who sits on the throne of David and to all the people who are staying in that city, your brothers who have not gone out with you into captivity—

For thus says the Lord, to the king who sits upon the throne of David, and to all the people who live in this city, to your brothers who have not departed with you in the transmigration:

17 Yahweh of hosts says this, 'See, I am about to send sword, famine, and disease on them. For I will make them like rotten figs that are too bad to be eaten.

Thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will send among them the sword, and famine, and pestilence. And I will make them like the bad figs, which cannot be eaten, because they are very bad.

18 Then I will pursue them with sword, famine, and plague and make them a horrible sight to all the kingdoms on earth—a horror, an object of curses and hissing, and a shameful thing among all the nations where I scattered her.

And I will pursue them with the sword, and with famine, and with pestilence. And I will give them over to affliction, amid all the kingdoms of the earth: as a curse, and in stupor, and with hissing, and as a disgrace among all the nations to which I have driven them out.

19 This is because they did not listen to my word—this is Yahweh's declaration—that I sent out to them through my servants the prophets. I repeatedly sent them, but you would not listen—this is Yahweh's declaration.'

For they have not listened to my words, says the Lord, which I sent to them through my servants, the prophets, rising while it was still night, and sending. But you have not listened, says the Lord.

20 So you yourselves listen to the word of Yahweh, all you exiles whom he has sent out from Jerusalem to Babylon,

Therefore, listen to the word of the Lord, all you of the transmigration, whom I have sent away from Jerusalem into Babylon.

21 'Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who prophesy falsely to you in my name: See, I am about to put them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. He will kill them before your eyes.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to Ahab, the son of Kolaiah, and to Zedekiah, the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy falsely to you in my name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and he will strike them down before your eyes.

22 Then a curse will be spoken about these persons by all the captives of Judah in Babylon. The curse will say: May Yahweh make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in fire.

And a curse will be taken up about them, by all the captives of Judah that are in Babylon, saying: ‘May the Lord make you like Zedekiah, and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon fried in the fire!’

23 This will happen because of the shameful things they did in Israel when they committed adultery with their neighbor's wives and declared false words in my name, things that I never commanded them to say. For I am the one who knows; I am the witness—this is Yahweh's declaration.'”

For they have acted foolishly in Israel, and they have committed adultery with the wives of their friends, and they have spoken lying words in my name, which I did not command them. I am the Judge and the Witness, says the Lord.

24 “About Shemaiah the Nehelamite, say this:

And to Shemaiah of Nehelam, you shall say:

25 'Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel, says this: Because you sent out letters in your own name to all the people in Jerusalem, to Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, and said,

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Similarly, you have sent letters in your name to all the people that are in Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying:

26 “Yahweh has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, for you to be in charge of Yahweh's house. You are in control of all the people who rave and make themselves into prophets. You should put them in stocks and chains.

‘The Lord has made you priest in place of Jehoiada, the priest, so that you would be the ruler in the house of the Lord over every man who raves and prophesies, to send him to the stocks and to prison.

27 So now, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who makes himself into a prophet against you?

And now why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who prophesies to you?

28 For he has sent to us in Babylon and said, 'It will be a long time. Build houses and live in them, and plant gardens and eat their fruit.”'”

For about this, he has sent to us in Babylon, saying: It is a long time. Build houses and live in them. And plant gardens, and eat from their fruits.’”

29 Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet.

Thus, Zephaniah, the priest, read this letter, in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet.

30 Then the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:

31 “Send word to all the exiles and say, 'Yahweh says this about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you when I myself did not send him, and he has led you to believe lies,

“Send to all those of the transmigration, saying: Thus says the Lord to Shemaiah of Nehelam: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, though I did not send him, and because he has caused you to trust in a lie:

32 therefore Yahweh says this: Look, I am about to punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants. There will not be a man for him to stay among this people. He will not see the good that I will do for my people—this is Yahweh's declaration—for he has proclaimed rebellion against Yahweh.'”

For this reason, thus says the Lord: Behold, I will visit upon Shemaiah of Nehelam, and upon his offspring. There will not be, for him, even one man sitting in the midst of this people. And he will not see the good that I will accomplish for my people, says the Lord. For he has spoken a betrayal against the Lord.”