Jeremiah 29
29
Jeremiah’s Letter to the Jews in Babylon
1Jeremiah the prophet sent a letter from Jerusalem to Babylon. It was for the Jewish elders still alive there. It was also for the priests and prophets in Babylon. And it was for all the other people Nebuchadnezzar had taken from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2It was sent to them after King Jehoiachin had been forced to leave Jerusalem. His mother and the court officials were taken with him. The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem had been forced to go to Babylon. All the skilled workers had also been forced to go. 3Jeremiah gave the letter to Elasah and Gemariah. Elasah was the son of Shaphan. Gemariah was the son of Hilkiah. Zedekiah, the king of Judah, had sent Elasah and Gemariah to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. Here is what the letter said.
4The Lord who rules over all is the God of Israel. He speaks to all those he forced to go from Jerusalem to Babylon. He says, 5“Build houses and make your homes there. Plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6Get married. Have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons. Give your daughters to be married. Then they too can have sons and daughters. Let there be many more of you and not fewer. 7Also work for the success of the city I have sent you to. Pray to the Lord for that city. If it succeeds, you too will enjoy success.” 8The Lord who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says, “Do not let the prophets trick you. Do not be fooled by those who claim to have secret knowledge. Do not listen to people who try to explain their dreams to you. 9All of them are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” announces the Lord.
10The Lord says, “You will be forced to live in Babylon for 70 years. After they are over, I will come to you. My good promise to you will come true. I will bring you back home. 11I know the plans I have for you,” announces the Lord. “I want you to enjoy success. I do not plan to harm you. I will give you hope for the years to come. 12Then you will call out to me. You will come and pray to me. And I will listen to you. 13When you look for me with all your heart, you will find me. 14I will be found by you,” announces the Lord. “And I will bring you back from where you were taken as prisoners. I will gather you from all the nations. I will gather you from the places where I have forced you to go,” announces the Lord. “I will bring you back to the place I sent you away from.”
15You might say, “The Lord has given us prophets in Babylon.” 16But here is what the Lord says about the king who now sits on David’s throne. He also says it about all the people who remain in this city. And he says it about all those who did not go with you to Babylon. 17The Lord who rules over all says, “I will send war, hunger and plague against them. I will make them like bad figs. They are so bad they can’t be eaten. 18I will hunt them down with war, hunger and plague. I will make all the kingdoms on earth displeased with them. They will use their name in a curse. All the nations where I drive them will be shocked at them. They will make fun of them. And they will bring shame on them. 19That’s because they have not listened to my words,” announces the Lord. “I sent messages to them again and again. I sent them through my servants the prophets. And you who were taken to Babylon have not listened either,” announces the Lord.
20So listen to the Lord’s message. Listen, all you whom he has sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon. 21The Lord who rules over all is the God of Israel. He speaks about Ahab and Zedekiah. Ahab is the son of Kolaiah. Zedekiah is the son of Maaseiah. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. The Lord says about Ahab and Zedekiah, “I will hand them over to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. He will put them to death. You will see it with your own eyes. 22Because of what happens to them, people will use their names when they curse someone. All those who have been taken from Judah to Babylon will use their names in that way. They will say, ‘May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab. The king of Babylon burned them in the fire.’ 23That will happen because they have done awful things in Israel. They have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives. They have spoken lies in my name. I did not give them the authority to speak those things. I know what they have done. And I am a witness to it,” announces the Lord.
Shemaiah Opposes Jeremiah
24Tell Shemaiah, the Nehelamite, 25“The Lord who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says, ‘You sent letters in your own name to all the people in Jerusalem. You also sent them to Zephaniah the priest. He is the son of Maaseiah. And you sent them to all the other priests. You said to Zephaniah, 26“The Lord has appointed you priest in place of Jehoiada. He has put you in charge of the Lord’s house. You are supposed to arrest any crazy person who claims to be a prophet. You should put him in prison. You should put iron bands around his neck. 27So why haven’t you punished Jeremiah from Anathoth? He claims to be a prophet among you. 28He has sent a message to us in Babylon. It says, ‘You will be there a long time. So build houses and make your homes there. Plant gardens and eat what they produce.’ ” ’ ”
29But Zephaniah the priest read the letter to me. 30Then a message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, 31“Send a message to all the people who were taken away. Tell them, ‘The Lord speaks about Shemaiah, the Nehelamite. He says, “Shemaiah has prophesied to you. But I did not send him. He has made you trust in lies. 32So I say, ‘I will certainly punish Shemaiah, the Nehelamite. I will also punish his children after him. He will not have any children left among these people. I will do good things for my people. But he will not see them,’ ” ’ ” announces the Lord. “ ‘ “ ‘That’s because he has taught people to turn against me.’ ” ’ ”
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Jeremiah 29: NIrV
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Yirmeyah 29
29
1Now these are the Devarim of the sefer that Yirmeyah HaNavi sent from Yerushalayim unto the surviving Zekenim of the Golus and to the Kohanim, and to the Nevi'im, and to kol HaAm whom Nevukhadnetzar had carried away captive from Yerushalayim to Bavel —
2This was after Yechanyah HaMelech, and the Gevirah (Queen Mother), and the sarisim, the sarim of Yehudah and Yerushalayim, and the carpenters, and the artisans had departed from Yerushalayim;
3The sefer was sent by the yad of El'asah Ben Shaphan, and Gemaryah Ben Chilkiyah, whom Tzidkiyah Melech Yehudah sent unto Bavel to Nevukhadnetzar Melech Bavel — and it said,
4Thus saith Hashem Tzva'os Elohei Yisroel, unto all that are carried away into the Golus, whom I have caused to be carried away from Yerushalayim unto Bavel;
5Build ye batim (houses), and dwell in them; and plant gannot (gardens), and eat the p'ri (fruit) of them;
6Take ye nashim, and father banim and banot; and take nashim for your banim, and give your banot to anashim, that they may bear banim and banot; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished.
7And seek the shalom of the city where I have caused you to be carried away into the Golus, and daven unto Hashem for it; for in the shalom thereof shall ye have shalom.
8For thus saith Hashem Tzva'os Elohei Yisroel: Let not your nevi'im and your kesamim that be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither pay heed to your chalomot which ye cause to be dreamed.
9For they prophesy b'sheker (falsely) unto you in My Name; I have not sent them, saith Hashem.
10For thus saith Hashem, That after shiv'im shanah (seventy years) are accomplished at Bavel I will visit you, and perform My Davar Hatov toward you, in causing you to return to this makom.
11For I know the machshavot (thoughts, plans) that I think toward you, saith Hashem, machshavot shalom, and not of ra'ah, to give you an acharit (future) and a tikvah (hope).
12Then shall ye call upon Me, and ye shall go and v'hitpalaltem (and you [plural] will pray) unto Me, and I will pay heed unto you.#29:12 plural
13And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me b'chol lvavchem (with all your heart).
14And I will be found by you, saith Hashem; and I will bring you back from captivity, and I will gather you from all the Goyim, and from all the mekomot (places) where I have driven you, saith Hashem; and I will bring you back into the makom (place) from which I caused you to be carried away into the Golus.
15Because ye have said, Hashem hath raised up nevi'im for us in Bavel;
16Know that thus saith Hashem of HaMelech that sitteth upon the Kisse Dovid, and of kol HaAm that dwelleth in this city, and of your achim that are not gone forth with you into the Golus;
17Thus saith Hashem Tzva'os; Hineni, I will send upon them the cherev, the ra'av, and the dever, and will make them like rotten figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so bad.
18And I will pursue them with the cherev, with the ra'av, and with the dever, and will make them a horror to all the mamlechot ha'aretz, to be a curse, and an astonishment, and a hissing, and a cherpah, among all the Goyim where I have driven them;
19Because they have not paid heed to My devarim, saith Hashem, which I sent unto them by My Avadim the nevi'im, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear, saith Hashem.
20Hear ye therefore the Devar Hashem, all ye of the Golus, whom I have sent from Yerushalayim to Bavel;
21Thus saith Hashem Tzva'os Elohei Yisroel, about Ach'av Ben Kolayah, and of Tzidkiyah Ben Ma'aseiyah, which prophesy sheker unto you in My Name; Hineni, I will deliver them into the yad Nevukhadretzar Melech Bavel; and he shall slay them before your eynayim;
22And of them shall be taken up a kelalah (curse) by all the Golus of Yehudah which are in Bavel, saying, Hashem make thee like Tzidkiyah and like Ach'av, whom Melech Bavel roasted in the eish;
23Because they have done nevalah (a foul deed, outrage) in Yisroel, and have committed ni'uf with their neighborsʼ nashim, and have spoken davar sheker in My Name, which I have not commanded them; I know, and am Ed (Witness), saith Hashem.
24Thus shalt thou also speak to Shema'yahu the Nechelami, saying,
25Thus speaketh Hashem Tzva'os Elohei Yisroel, saying, Because thou hast sent sefarim in thy shem unto kol HaAm that are in Yerushalayim, and to Tzephanyah Ben Ma'aseiyah the kohen, and to all the kohanim, saying,
26 Hashem hath made thee kohen in the place of Yehoyada the kohen, that there should be pekidim (officers) in the Beis Hashem, over every ish that is meshuggah (mad, insane), and maketh himself a navi, that thou shouldest put him in the stocks, and in the neck iron.
27Now therefore why hast thou not reproved Yirmeyah of Anatot, which maketh himself a navi to you?
28For therefore he sent unto us in Bavel, saying, This captivity is long; build ye batim (houses), and dwell in them; and plant gannot (gardens), and eat the fruit of them.
29And Tzephanyah the kohen read this sefer in the oznayim of Yirmeyah HaNavi.
30Then came the Devar Hashem unto Yirmeyah, saying,
31Send to all them of the Golus, saying, Thus saith Hashem concerning Shema'yah the Nechelami; Because that Shemaiyah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him not, and he caused you to trust in sheker;
32Therefore thus saith Hashem: Hinei, I will punish Shema'yah the Nechelami, and his zera; he shall not have an ish to dwell among this people; neither shall he behold the tov that I will do for My people, saith Hashem; because he hath spoken sarah (rebellion) against Hashem.
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