Jeremiah 29
29
Jeremiah’s Letter to the Captives
1Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the remainder of the elders who were #Jer. 27:20carried away captive—to the priests, the prophets, and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2(This happened after #2 Kin. 24:12–16; 2 Chr. 36:9, 10; Jer. 22:24–28Jeconiah the king, the #2 Kin. 24:12, 15; Jer. 13:18queen mother, the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem.) 3The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of #2 Chr. 34:8Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying,
4Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who were carried away captive, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon:
5Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. 6Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters—that you may be increased there, and not diminished. 7And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, #Ezra 6:10; Neh. 1:4–11; Dan. 9:16; 1 Tim. 2:2and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. 8For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are in your midst #Jer. 14:14; 23:21; 27:14, 15; Eph. 5:6deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed. 9For they prophesy #Jer. 28:15; 37:19falsely to you in My name; I have not sent them, says the Lord.
10For thus says the Lord: After #2 Chr. 36:21–23; Ezra 1:1–4; Jer. 25:12; 27:22; Dan. 9:2; Zech. 7:5seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to #(Jer. 24:6, 7); Zeph. 2:7return to this place. 11For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12Then you will #Ps. 50:15; Jer. 33:3; Dan. 9:3call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will #Ps. 145:19listen to you. 13And #Lev. 26:39–42; Deut. 30:1–3you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me #1 Chr. 22:19; 2 Chr. 22:9; Jer. 24:7with all your heart. 14#(Deut. 4:7); Ps. 32:6; 46:1; (Is. 55:6, 7); Jer. 24:7I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; #Is. 43:5, 6; Jer. 23:8; 32:37I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.
15Because you have said, “The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon”— 16#Jer. 38:2, 3, 17–23therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, concerning all the people who dwell in this city, and concerning your brethren who have not gone out with you into captivity— 17thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will send on them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like #Jer. 24:3, 8–10rotten figs that cannot be eaten, they are so bad. 18And I will pursue them with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence; and I #Deut. 28:25; 2 Chr. 29:8; Jer. 15:4; 24:9; 34:17; Ezek. 12:15will deliver them to trouble among all the kingdoms of the earth—to be #Jer. 26:6; 42:18a curse, an astonishment, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them, 19because they have not heeded My words, says the Lord, which #Jer. 25:4; 26:5; 35:15I sent to them by My servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; neither would you heed, says the Lord. 20Therefore hear the word of the Lord, all you of the captivity, whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon.
21Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy a #Jer. 14:14, 15; Lam. 2:14; 2 Pet. 2:1lie to you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall slay them before your eyes. 22#Gen. 48:20; Is. 65:15And because of them a curse shall be taken up by all the captivity of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, “The Lord make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, #Dan. 3:6, 21whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire”; 23because #Jer. 23:14they have done disgraceful things in Israel, have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and have spoken lying words in My name, which I have not commanded them. Indeed I #(Prov. 5:21; Jer. 16:17); Mal. 3:5; (Heb. 4:13)know, and am a witness, says the Lord.
24You shall also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying, 25Thus speaks the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: You have sent letters in your name to all the people who are at Jerusalem, #2 Kin. 25:18; Jer. 21:1to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying, 26“The Lord has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, so that there should be #Jer. 20:1officers in the house of the Lord over every man who is #2 Kin. 9:11; Hos. 9:7; Mark 3:21; John 10:20; Acts 26:24; (2 Cor. 5:13)demented and considers himself a prophet, that you should #Jer. 20:1, 2; Acts 16:24put him in prison and in the stocks. 27Now therefore, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth who makes himself a prophet to you? 28For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying, ‘This captivity is long; build houses and dwell in them, and plant gardens and eat their fruit.’ ”
29Now Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet. 30Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying: 31Send to all those in captivity, saying, Thus says the Lord concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, #Jer. 28:15and I have not sent him, and he has caused you to trust in a #Ezek. 13:8–16, 22, 23lie— 32therefore thus says the Lord: Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his family: he shall not have anyone to dwell among this people, nor shall he see the good that I will do for My people, says the Lord, #Jer. 28:16because he has taught rebellion against the Lord.
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Jeremiah 29: NKJV
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah 29
29
1 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 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 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 "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. And plant gardens, and eat from their fruit.
6 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 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 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 prophesy falsely to you in my name, and I have not sent them, says the Lord.
10 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 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 And you shall call upon me, and you shall go forth. And you shall pray to me, and I will heed you.
13 You shall seek me. And you will find me, when you have sought me with your whole heart.
14 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 For you have said: 'The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon.'
16 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 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 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 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 Therefore, listen to the word of the Lord, all you of the transmigration, whom I have sent away from Jerusalem into Babylon.
21 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 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 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 And to Shemaiah of Nehelam, you shall say:
25 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 '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 And now why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who prophesies to you?
28 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 Thus, Zephaniah, the priest, read this letter, in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet.
30 And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
31 "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 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."
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