Jeremiah 29

1 Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the residue of the elders of the captivity, and to the priests, to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon,

And these [are] the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the remnant of [the] elderly of the expulsion, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people—whom Nebuchadnezzar removed from Jerusalem to Babylon,

2 (after Jeconiah the king, the queen mother, the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem),

after the going forth of Jeconiah the king, and the mistress, and the officers, heads of Judah and Jerusalem, and the craftsman, and the smith, from Jerusalem—

3 by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon). It said:

by the hand of Eleasah son of Shaphan, and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying,

4 The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives whom I have caused to be carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon:

“Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel, to all the expulsion that I removed from Jerusalem to Babylon:

5 “Build houses and dwell in them. Plant gardens and eat their fruit.

Build houses and abide; and plant gardens and eat their fruit;

6 Take wives and father sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters. Multiply there, and don’t be diminished.

take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, and they bear sons and daughters; and multiply there, and you are not few;

7 Seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the LORD for it; for in its peace you will have peace.”

and seek the peace of the city to where I have removed you, and pray to YHWH for it, for in its peace you have peace.

8 For the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel says: “Don’t let your prophets who are among you and your diviners deceive you. Don’t listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed.

For thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: Do not let your prophets who [are] in your midst, and your diviners, lift you up, nor listen to their dreams, that you are causing [them] to dream;

9 For they prophesy falsely to you in my name. I have not sent them,” says the LORD.

for they are prophesying with falsehood to you in My Name; I have not sent them, a declaration of YHWH.

10 For the LORD says, “After seventy years are accomplished for Babylon, I will visit you and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.

For thus said YHWH: Surely at the fullness of Babylon—seventy years—I inspect you, and have established My good word toward you, to bring you back to this place.

11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,” says the LORD, “thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope and a future.

For I have known the thoughts that I am thinking toward you—a declaration of YHWH; thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give posterity and hope to you.

12 You shall call on me, and you shall go and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

And you have called Me, and have gone, and have prayed to Me, and I have listened to you,

13 You shall seek me and find me, when you search for me with all your heart.

and you have sought Me, and have found, for you seek Me with all your heart;

14 I will be found by you,” says the LORD, “and I will turn again your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places where I have driven you,” says the LORD. “I will bring you again to the place from where I caused you to be carried away captive.”

and I have been found by you—a declaration of YHWH; and I have turned back [to] your captivity, and have gathered you out of all the nations, and out of all the places to where I have driven you—a declaration of YHWH—and I have brought you back to the place from where I removed you.

15 Because you have said, “The LORD has raised us up prophets in Babylon,”

Because you have said, YHWH has raised up prophets to us in Babylon,

16 the LORD says concerning the king who sits on David’s throne, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your brothers who haven’t gone with you into captivity,

surely thus said YHWH concerning the king who is sitting on the throne of David, and concerning all the people that are dwelling in this city, your brothers who did not go forth with you in the expulsion—

17 the LORD of Armies says: “Behold, I will send on them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like rotten figs that can’t be eaten, they are so bad.

thus said YHWH of Hosts: Behold, I am sending the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them, and I have given them up as figs that [are] vile, that are not eaten because of badness.

18 I will pursue after them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth, to be an object of horror, an astonishment, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them,

And I have pursued after them with sword, with famine, and with pestilence, and have given them for a trembling to all kingdoms of the earth, for a curse and for an astonishment, and for a hissing, and for a reproach among all the nations to where I have driven them,

19 because they have not listened to my words,” says the LORD, “with which I sent to them my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but you would not hear,” says the LORD.

because that they have not listened to My words—a declaration of YHWH—that I sent to them by My servants the prophets, rising early and sending, and you did not listen—a declaration of YHWH.

20 Hear therefore the LORD’s word, all you captives whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon.

And you, hear a word of YHWH, all you of the captivity that I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon—

21 The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy a lie to you in my name: “Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he will kill them before your eyes.

thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah, and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying falsehood to you in My Name: Behold, I am giving them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he has struck them before your eyes,

22 A curse will be taken up about them by all the captives of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, ‘The LORD make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire;’

and because of them a reviling has been taken by all the expulsion of Judah that [are] in Babylon, saying, YHWH sets you as Zedekiah, and as Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted with fire;

23 because they have done foolish things in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and have spoken words in my name falsely, which I didn’t command them. I am he who knows, and am witness,” says the LORD.

because that they have done folly in Israel, and commit adultery with the wives of their neighbors, and falsely speak a word in My Name that I have not commanded them, and I [am] He who knows and a witness—a declaration of YHWH.

24 Concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite you shall speak, saying,

And you speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying,

25 “The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘Because you have sent letters in your own name to all the people who are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying,

Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel, saying, Because that you have sent letters in your name to all the people who [are] in Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying,

26 “The LORD has made you priest in the place of Jehoiada the priest, that there may be officers in the LORD’s house, for every man who is crazy and makes himself a prophet, that you should put him in the stocks and in shackles.

YHWH has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, for there being inspectors of the house of YHWH over every man [who] is mad and making himself a prophet, and you have put him in the stocks and in the pillory.

27 Now therefore, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who makes himself a prophet to you,

And now, why have you not pushed against Jeremiah of Anathoth, who is making himself a prophet to you?

28 because he has sent to us in Babylon, saying, The captivity is long. Build houses, and dwell in them. Plant gardens, and eat their fruit?”’”

Because that he has sent to us [in] Babylon, saying, It [is] long, build houses and abide; and plant gardens and eat their fruit.”

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

And Zephaniah the priest reads this letter in the ears of Jeremiah the prophet.

30 Then the LORD’s word came to Jeremiah, saying,

And there is a word of YHWH to Jeremiah, saying,

31 “Send to all of the captives, saying, ‘The LORD says concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: “Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, and I didn’t send him, and he has caused you to trust in a lie,”

“Send to all the expulsion, saying, Thus said YHWH concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because that Shemaiah prophesied to you, and I have not sent him, and he causes you to trust on falsehood,

32 therefore the LORD says, “Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his offspring. He will not have a man to dwell among this people. He won’t see the good that I will do to my people,” says the LORD, “because he has spoken rebellion against the LORD.”’”

therefore, thus said YHWH: Behold, I am seeing after Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and after his seed, he has none dwelling in the midst of this people, nor does he look on the good that I am doing to My people,” a declaration of YHWH, “for he has spoken apostasy against YHWH.”