Jeremiah 32
32
1The word that hath been unto Jeremiah from Jehovah, in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah — it [is] the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar,
2And then the forces of the king of Babylon are laying siege against Jerusalem, and
3Where Zedekiah king of Judah hath shut him up, saying, ‘Wherefore art thou prophesying, saying, Thus said Jehovah, Lo, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he hath captured it;
4And Zedekiah king of Judah doth not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but is certainly given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and his mouth hath spoken with his mouth, and his eyes see his eyes,
5And [to] Babylon he leadeth Zedekiah, and there he is till My inspecting him, — an affirmation of Jehovah — because ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye do not prosper.’
6And Jeremiah saith, ‘A word of Jehovah hath been unto me saying,
7Lo, Hanameel son of Shallum, thine uncle, is coming unto thee, saying, Buy for thee my field that [is] in Anathoth, for thine [is] the right of redemption — to buy.
8And Hanameel, my uncle's son, cometh in unto me, according to the word of Jehovah, unto the court of the prison, and saith unto me, ‘Buy, I pray thee, my field that [is] in Anathoth, that [is] in the land of Benjamin, for thine [is] the right of possession, and thine of redemption — buy for thee.’ And I know that it [is] the word of Jehovah,
9And I buy the field, that [is] in Anathoth, from Hanameel, my uncle's son, and I weigh to him the money — seventeen shekels of silver.
10And I write in a book, and seal, and cause witnesses to testify, and weigh the silver in balances;
11And I take the purchase-book, the sealed one, according to law and custom, and the open one.
12And I give the purchase-book unto Baruch son of Neriah, son of Maaseiah, before the eyes of Hanameel, my uncle's son, and before the eyes of the witnesses, those writing in the purchase-book, before the eyes of all the Jews who are sitting in the court of the prison.
13And I charge Baruch before their eyes, saying,
14‘Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, Take these books, this purchase-book, both the sealed one and the open one, and thou hast put them in an earthen vessel, that they may remain many days;
15For thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, Again are houses and fields and vineyards bought in this land.’
16And I pray unto Jehovah — after my giving the purchase-book unto Baruch son of Neriah — saying,
17‘Ah, Lord Jehovah, lo, Thou hast made the heavens and the earth by Thy great power, and by Thy stretched-out arm; there is nothing too wonderful for Thee:
18Doing kindness to thousands, and recompensing iniquity of fathers into the bosom of their sons after them; God, the great, the mighty, Jehovah of Hosts [is] His name,
19Great in counsel, and mighty in act, in that Thine eyes are open on all the ways of the sons of Adam, to give to each according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings:
20In that thou hast done signs and wonders in the land of Egypt unto this day, and in Israel, and among men, and Thou dost make for Thee a name as [at] this day.
21‘And Thou bringest forth Thy people Israel from the land of Egypt, with signs and with wonders, and by a strong hand, and by a stretched-out arm, and by great fear,
22And thou givest to them this land that thou didst swear to their fathers to give to them, a land flowing with milk and honey,
23And they come in, and possess it, and they have not hearkened to Thy voice, and in Thy law have not walked, all that which Thou didst lay a charge on them to do they have not done, and Thou dost proclaim [to] them all this evil.
24‘Lo, the mounts — they have come in to the city to capture it, and the city hath been given into the hand of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it, because of the sword, and the famine, and the pestilence; and that which Thou hast spoken hath come to pass, and lo, Thou art seeing;
25Yet Thou hast said unto me, O Lord Jehovah, Buy for thee the field with money, and cause witnesses to testify — and the city hath been given into the hand of the Chaldeans!’
26And the word of Jehovah is unto Jeremiah, saying:
27‘Lo, I [am] Jehovah, God of all flesh: For Me is anything too wonderful?
28‘Therefore, thus said Jehovah, Lo, I am giving this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he hath captured it;
29And come in have the Chaldeans who are fighting against this city, and they have set this city on fire, and have burned it, and the houses on whose roofs they made perfume to Baal, and poured out libations to other gods, so as to provoke Me to anger.
30For the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah have been only doing evil in Mine eyes, from their youth; for the sons of Israel are only provoking Me with the work of their hands — an affirmation of Jehovah.
31‘For a cause of Mine anger, and a cause of My fury, hath this city been to Me, even from the day that they built it, and unto this day — to turn it aside from before My face,
32Because of all the evil of the sons of Israel, and of the sons of Judah that they have done, so as to provoke Me — they, their kings, their heads, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
33And they turn unto Me the neck, and not the face, and teaching them, rising early and teaching, and they are not hearkening to accept instruction.
34‘And they set their abominations in the house over which My name is called, so as to defile it;
35And they build the high places of Baal, that [are] in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through to Molech, which I did not command them, nor did it come up on my heart to do this abomination, so as to cause Judah to sin.
36‘And now, therefore, thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, concerning this city, of which ye are saying, It hath been given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, and by famine, and by pestilence,
37Lo, I am gathering them out of all the lands whither I have driven them in Mine anger, and in My fury, and in great wrath, and I have brought them back unto this place, and have caused them to dwell confidently;
38and they have been to Me for a people, and I am to them for God;
39and I have given to them one heart, and one way, to fear Me all the days, for good to them, and to their sons after them:
40and I have made for them a covenant age-during, in that I turn not back from after them for My doing them good, and My fear I put in their heart, so as not to turn aside from me;
41and I have rejoiced over them to do them good, and have planted them in this land in truth, with all my heart, and with all My soul.
42‘For thus said Jehovah: As I brought in unto this people all this great evil, so I am bringing in on them all the good that I am speaking concerning them;
43and bought hath been the field in this land of which ye are saying, A desolation it [is], without man and beast, it hath been given into the hand of the Chaldeans.
44Fields with money they buy, so as to write in a book, and to seal, and to cause witnesses to testify, in the land of Benjamin, and in suburbs of Jerusalem, and in cities of Judah, and in cities of the hill-country, and in cities of the lowcountry, and in cities of the south, for I turn back their captivity — an affirmation of Jehovah.’
Currently Selected:
Jeremiah 32: YLT98
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Jeremiah 32
32
Jeremiah Buys a Field
1 #
2 K 25.1-7. The Lord spoke to me in the tenth year that Zedekiah#32.1 Zedekiah: See the note at 1.3. was king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year that Nebuchadnezzar#32.1 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2. was king of Babylonia. 2At that time, the Babylonian army had surrounded Jerusalem, and I was in the prison at the courtyard of the palace guards. 3Zedekiah had ordered me to be held there because I told everyone that the Lord had said:
I am the Lord, and I am about to let the king of Babylonia conquer Jerusalem. 4King Zedekiah will be captured and taken to King Nebuchadnezzar, who will speak with him face to face. 5Then Zedekiah will be led away to Babylonia, where he will stay until I am finished with him. So, if you people of Judah fight against the Babylonians, you will lose. I, the Lord, have spoken.
6Later, when I was in prison, the Lord said:
7Jeremiah, your cousin Hanamel, the son of your uncle Shallum, will visit you. He must sell his field near the town of Anathoth, and because you are his nearest relative, you have the right and the responsibility to buy it and keep it in the family.#32.7 you have the right … in the family: See Leviticus 25.25-32.
8Hanamel came, just as the Lord had promised. And he said, “Please buy my field near Anathoth in the territory of the Benjamin tribe. You have the right to buy it, and if you do, it will stay in our family.”
The Lord had told me to buy it 9from Hanamel, and so I did. The price was 17 pieces of silver, and I weighed out the full amount on a scale. 10-11I had two copies of the bill of sale written out: an official copy containing the details of our agreement and another copy, without the details. Some witnesses and I signed the official copy, which was folded and tied, before being sealed shut with hot wax.#32.10,11 signed the official copy, which was folded and tied, before being sealed shut with hot wax: The signing was actually done by pressing a carved clay stamp (called a “seal”) into the hot wax, leaving the design in the wax. Then I gave Hanamel the silver. 12And while he, the witnesses, and all the other Jews sitting in the courtyard were still watching, I gave both copies to Baruch son of Neriah.#32.12 Baruch son of Neriah: Hebrew “Baruch son of Neriah and grandson of Mahseiah.”
13-14I told Baruch that the Lord had said:
Take both copies of this bill of sale, one sealed shut and the other open, and put them in a clay jar so they will last a long time. 15I am the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, and I promise you that people will once again buy and sell houses, farms, and vineyards in this country.
Jeremiah Questions the Lord
16Then I prayed:
17 Lord God, you stretched out your mighty arm and made the sky and the earth. You can do anything. 18You show kindness for a thousand generations,#32.18 for a thousand generations: Or “to thousands of people.” but you also punish people for the sins of their parents. You are the Lord All-Powerful. 19With great wisdom you make plans, and with your great power you do all the mighty things you planned. Nothing we do is hidden from your eyes, and you reward or punish us as we deserve.
20You are famous because you worked miracles in Egypt, and you are still working them in Israel and in the rest of the world as well. 21You terrified the Egyptians with your miracles, and you reached out your mighty arm and rescued your people Israel from Egypt. 22Then you gave Israel this land rich with milk and honey, just as you had promised our ancestors.
23But when our ancestors took over the land, they did not obey you. And now you have punished Israel with disaster. 24Jerusalem is under attack, and we suffer from hunger and disease. The Babylonians have already built dirt ramps up to the walls of our city, and you can see that Jerusalem will be captured just as you said.
25So why did you tell me to get some witnesses and buy a field with my silver, when Jerusalem is about to be captured by the Babylonians?
The Lord Explains about the Field
26The Lord explained:
27Jeremiah, I am the Lord God. I rule the world, and I can do anything!
28 #
2 K 25.1-11; 2 Ch 36.17-21. It is true that I am going to let King Nebuchadnezzar#32.28 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2. of Babylonia capture Jerusalem. 29The Babylonian army is already attacking, and they will capture the city and set it on fire. The people of Jerusalem have made me angry by going up to the flat roofs of their houses and burning incense to Baal and offering wine sacrifices to other gods. Now these houses will be burned to the ground!
30-33The kings and the officials, the priests and the prophets, and everyone else in Israel and Judah have turned from me and made me angry by worshiping idols. Again and again I have tried to teach my people to obey me, but they refuse to be corrected.
I am going to get rid of Jerusalem, because its people have done nothing but evil. 34#2 K 23.10; Jr 7.30,31; 19.1-6. They have set up repulsive idols in my temple, and now it isn't a fit place to worship me. 35#2 K 23.10; Jr 7.31; Lv 18.21. And they led Judah into sin by building places to worship Baal in Hinnom Valley, where they also sacrificed their sons and daughters to the god Molech. I have never even imagined they would commit such disgusting sins.
36Jeremiah, what you said is true. The people of Jerusalem are suffering from hunger and disease, and so the king of Babylonia will be able to capture Jerusalem.
37I am angry with the people of Jerusalem, and I will scatter them in foreign countries. But someday I will bring them back here and let them live in safety. 38They will be my people, and I will be their God. 39-41I will make their thoughts and desires pure. Then they will realize that, for their own good and the good of their children, they must worship only me. They will even be afraid to turn away from me. I will make an agreement with them that will never end, and I won't ever stop doing good things for them. With all my heart I promise that they will be planted in this land once again. 42Even though I have brought disaster on the people, I will someday do all these good things for them.
43Jeremiah, when you bought the field, you showed that fields will someday be bought and sold again. You say that this land has been conquered by the Babylonians and has become a desert, emptied of people and animals. 44But someday, people will again spend their silver to buy fields everywhere—in the territory of Benjamin, the region around Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, and in the hill country, the foothills to the west, and the Southern Desert. Buyers and sellers and witnesses will sign and seal the bills of sale for the fields. It will happen, because I will give this land back to my people. I, the Lord, have spoken.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.