Jeremiah
29
- This is the text of the letter that the
prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders among the exiles
and to the priests, the prophets and all the other people Nebuchadnezzar had
carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.
- (This was after King Jehoiachin and the
queen mother, the court officials and the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem,
the craftsmen and the artisans had gone into exile from Jerusalem.)
- He entrusted the letter to Elasah son of
Shaphan and to Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to
King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. It said:
- This is what the LORD Almighty, the God
of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon:
- "Build houses and settle down; plant
gardens and eat what they produce.
- Marry and have sons and daughters; find
wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too
may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease.
- Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the
city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because
if it prospers, you too will prosper."
- Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the
God of Israel, says: "Do not let the prophets and diviners among you
deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have.
- They are prophesying lies to you in my name.
I have not sent them," declares the LORD.
- This is what the LORD says: "When seventy
years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious
promise to bring you back to this place.
- For I know the plans I have for you,"
declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to
give you hope and a future.
- Then you will call upon me and come and
pray to me, and I will listen to you.
- You will seek me and find me when you seek
me with all your heart.
- I will be found by you," declares the
LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from
all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD,
"and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."
- You may say, "The LORD has raised up
prophets for us in Babylon,"
- but this is what the LORD says about the
king who sits on David's throne and all the people who remain in this city,
your countrymen who did not go with you into exile --
- yes, this is what the LORD Almighty says:
"I will send the sword, famine and plague against them and I will make
them like poor figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten.
- I will pursue them with the sword, famine
and plague and will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth and
an object of cursing and horror, of scorn and reproach, among all the nations
where I drive them.
- For they have not listened to my words,"
declares the LORD, "words that I sent to them again and again by my servants
the prophets. And you exiles have not listened either," declares the
LORD.
- Therefore, hear the word of the LORD, all
you exiles whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon.
- This is what the LORD Almighty, the God
of Israel, says about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who
are prophesying lies to you in my name: "I will hand them over to Nebuchadnezzar
king of Babylon, and he will put them to death before your very eyes.
- Because of them, all the exiles from Judah
who are in Babylon will use this curse: 'The LORD treat you like Zedekiah
and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon burned in the fire.'
- For they have done outrageous things in
Israel; they have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives and in my
name have spoken lies, which I did not tell them to do. I know it and am a
witness to it," declares the LORD.
- Tell Shemaiah the Nehelamite,
- "This is what the LORD Almighty, the
God of Israel, says: You sent letters in your own name to all the people in
Jerusalem, to Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the other priests.
You said to Zephaniah,
- 'The LORD has appointed you priest in place
of Jehoiada to be in charge of the house of the LORD; you should put any madman
who acts like a prophet into the stocks and neck-irons.
- So why have you not reprimanded Jeremiah
from Anathoth, who poses as a prophet among you ?
- He has sent this message to us in Babylon:
It will be a long time. Therefore build houses and settle down; plant gardens
and eat what they produce.'"
- Zephaniah the priest, however, read the
letter to Jeremiah the prophet.
- Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
- "Send this message to all the exiles:
'This is what the LORD says about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah
has prophesied to you, even though I did not send him, and has led you to
believe a lie,
- this is what the LORD says: I will surely
punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants. He will have no one left
among this people, nor will he see the good things I will do for my people,
declares the LORD, because he has preached rebellion against me.'"
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