Jeremiah 35
35
Learn a Lesson from the Rechabites
1 #
2 K 23.36—24.6; 2 Ch 36.5-7. When Jehoiakim#35.1 Jehoiakim: See the note at 1.3. was king of Judah, the Lord told me, 2“Go to the Rechabite clan and invite them to meet you in one of the side rooms#35.2 side rooms: Probably a room with walls on three sides, and open to the courtyard on the fourth side. of the temple. When they arrive, offer them a drink of wine.”
3So I went to Jaazaniah,#35.3 Jaazaniah: The Hebrew text has “Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah son of Habazziniah”; this is a different Jeremiah than the author of the book. the leader of the clan, and I invited him and all the men of his clan. 4I brought them into the temple courtyard and took them upstairs to a room belonging to the prophets who were followers of Hanan son of Igdaliah. It was next to a room belonging to some of the officials, and that room was over the one belonging to Maaseiah, a priest who was one of the high officials in the temple.#35.4 Maaseiah … temple: Hebrew “Maaseiah son of Shallum, the keeper of the temple door.”
5I set out some large bowls full of wine together with some cups, and then I said to the Rechabites, “Have some wine!”
6But they answered:
No! The ancestor of our clan, Jonadab son of Rechab,#35.6 Jonadab son of Rechab: See 2 Kings 10.15-23. In the Hebrew of this chapter, “Jonadab” is sometimes spelled “Jehonadab.” made a rule that we must obey. He said, “Don't ever drink wine 7or build houses or plant crops and vineyards. Instead, you must always live in tents and move from place to place. If you obey this command, you will live a long time.”
8-10Our clan has always obeyed Jonadab's command. To this very day, we and our wives and sons and daughters don't drink wine or build houses or plant vineyards or crops. And we have lived in tents, 11except now we have to live inside Jerusalem because Nebuchadnezzar#35.11 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2. has taken over the countryside with his army from Babylonia and Syria.
12-13Then the Lord told me to say to the people of Judah and Jerusalem:
I, the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, want you to learn a lesson 14from the Rechabite clan. Their ancestor Jonadab told his descendants never to drink wine, and to this very day they have obeyed him. But I have spoken to you over and over, and you haven't obeyed me! 15You refused to listen to my prophets, who kept telling you, “Stop doing evil and worshiping other gods! Start obeying the Lord, and he will let you live in this land he gave your ancestors.”
16The Rechabites have obeyed the command of their ancestor Jonadab, but you have not obeyed me, 17your God. I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I warned you about the terrible things that would happen to you if you did not listen to me. But you have ignored me, so now disaster will strike you. I, the Lord, have spoken.
The Lord Makes a Promise to the Rechabites
18Then the Lord told me to say to the Rechabite clan:
“I am the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel. You have obeyed your ancestor Jonadab, 19so I promise that your clan will be my servants and will never die out.”
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Jeremiah 35: CEVDCI
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah 35
35
1 THE WORD that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
2 Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak to them and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers; then give them [who are pledged to drink no wine] some wine to drink.
3 So I took Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites,
4 And I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah the man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, above the chamber of Maaseiah son of Shallum the keeper of the door.
5 And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pitchers full of wine, and cups, and I said to them, Drink wine.
6 But they said, We will drink no wine, for Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, commanded us: You shall not drink wine, neither you nor your sons, forever.
7 Neither shall you build a house or sow seed or plant a vineyard or have them; but you shall dwell all your days in tents, that you may live many days in the land where you are temporary residents.
8 And we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, in all that he charged us, to drink no wine all our days–we, our wives, our sons, and our daughters–
9 And not to build ourselves houses to live in; nor do we have vineyard or field or seed.
10 But we have dwelt in tents and have obeyed and done according to all that Jonadab our ancestor commanded us.
11 But when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up against the land, we said, Come and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans and the army of the Syrians. So we are living in Jerusalem.
12 Then came the word of the Lord to Jeremiah:
13 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Go and say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you not receive instruction and listen to My words and obey them? says the Lord.
14 The command which Jonadab son of Rechab gave to his sons not to drink wine, has been carried out and established [as a custom for more than two hundred years]. To this day they drink no wine, but they have obeyed their father's command. But I, even I, have persistently spoken to you, but you have not listened to and obeyed Me.
15 I have sent also to you all My servants the prophets earnestly and persistently, saying, Return now every man from his evil way and amend your doings and go not after other gods to serve them; and then you shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers. But you did not submit and consent to Me or listen to and obey Me.
16 Since the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab have fulfilled and established the command of their father which he commanded them, but these people have not listened to and obeyed Me,
17 Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them, because I have spoken to them, but they have not listened, and I have called to them, but they have not answered.
18 And Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father and have kept all his precepts and have done according to all that he commanded you,
19 Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab son of Rechab shall never fail [to have] a man [descendant] to stand before Me.
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