Jeremiah 29

1Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders of the captivity, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon,

1This is the text of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders, priests, prophets, and all the people King Nebuchadnezzar had taken away as captives from Jerusalem to Babylon.

2(after that Jeconiah the king, and the queen-mother, and the eunuchs, and the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the craftsmen, and the smiths, were departed from Jerusalem),

2This happened after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metalworkers had been taken from Jerusalem.

3by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), saying,

3He sent the letter with Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. The letter said:

4Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all the captivity, whom I have caused to be carried away captive from Jerusalem unto Babylon:

4This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives I sent from Jerusalem into exile in Babylon:

5Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them.

5Build houses and live in them. Plant gardens and eat the food they produce.

6Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters: and multiply ye there, and be not diminished.

6Get married and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons and let your daughters get married so they can have children too. Multiply there; do not decrease in number.

7And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto Jehovah for it; for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

7Work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you as captives. Pray to the LORD for it, for if it prospers, you will prosper too.

8For thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: Let not your prophets that are in the midst of you, and your diviners, deceive you; neither hearken ye to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed.

8This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: Do not let the prophets and fortune-tellers among you trick you. Do not listen to the dreams they encourage you to have.

9For they prophesy falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith Jehovah.

9They are telling you lies in my name. I did not send them, says the LORD.

10For thus saith Jehovah, After seventy years are accomplished for Babylon, I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.

10This is what the LORD says: You will be in Babylon for seventy years. After that, I will come to you and keep my promise to bring you back to this place.

11For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith Jehovah, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope in your latter end.

11For I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD. They are plans for peace and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

12And ye shall call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.

12In those days when you pray, I will listen to you.

13And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

13If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me.

14And I will be found of you, saith Jehovah, and I will turn again your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith Jehovah; and I will bring you again unto the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.

14I will be found by you, says the LORD. I will end your captivity and gather you from all the nations and places where I pushed you away. I will bring you back to the home I took you from, says the LORD.

15Because ye have said, Jehovah hath raised us up prophets in Babylon;

15You may claim, 'The LORD has given us prophets here in Babylon.'

16thus saith Jehovah concerning the king that sitteth upon the throne of David, and concerning all the people that dwell in this city, your brethren that are not gone forth with you into captivity;

16But this is what the LORD says about the king sitting on David’s throne and all the people still living in Jerusalem—your relatives who were not taken away with you:

17thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Behold, I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so bad.

17The LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: I am sending war, hunger, and disease against them. I will make them like rotten figs that are too bad to eat.

18And I will pursue after them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be tossed to and fro among all the kingdoms of the earth, to be an execration, and an astonishment, and a hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I have driven them;

18I will chase them with war, hunger, and disease. I will make them a horrifying sight to all the kingdoms of the earth. They will be cursed, mocked, hissed at, and insulted by all the nations where I drive them.

19because they have not hearkened to my words, saith Jehovah, wherewith I sent unto them my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear, saith Jehovah.

19This is because they refused to listen to me, says the LORD. I sent my servants the prophets to them again and again, but you would not listen, says the LORD.

20Hear ye therefore the word of Jehovah, all ye of the captivity, whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon.

20So listen to the word of the LORD, all you captives whom I sent from Jerusalem to Babylon.

21Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy a lie unto you in my name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall slay them before your eyes;

21This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are telling you lies in my name: I will hand them over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will kill them right before your eyes.

22and of them shall be taken up a curse by all the captives of Judah that are in Babylon, saying, Jehovah make thee like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire;

22Their names will become a curse word among all the captives from Judah in Babylon. People will say, 'May the LORD make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon burned alive!'

23because they have wrought folly in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and have spoken words in my name falsely, which I commanded them not; and I am he that knoweth, and am witness, saith Jehovah.

23For they have done terrible things in Israel. They committed adultery with their neighbors' wives and spoke lies in my name that I did not command. I know what they did and I am a witness to it, says the LORD.

24And concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite thou shalt speak, saying,

24The LORD told me to give this message to Shemaiah the Nehelamite:

25Thus speaketh Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, Because thou hast sent letters in thine own name unto all the people that are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying,

25The LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: You sent letters in your own name to all the people in Jerusalem, to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, and to all the other priests. You said:

26Jehovah hath made thee priest in the stead of Jehoiada the priest, that there may be officers in the house of Jehovah, for every man that is mad, and maketh himself a prophet, that thou shouldest put him in the stocks and in shackles.

26'The LORD has appointed you priest in place of Jehoiada to be in charge of the LORD’s Temple. You should put any crazy person who claims to be a prophet into the stocks and neck-irons.'

27Now therefore, why hast thou not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who maketh himself a prophet to you,

27'So why haven't you punished Jeremiah of Anathoth, who claims to be a prophet among you?'

28forasmuch as he hath sent unto us in Babylon, saying, The captivity is long: build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them?

28'He even sent a letter to us in Babylon saying our captivity will last a long time. He told us to build houses, settle down, plant gardens, and eat our own produce.'

29And Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the ears of Jeremiah the prophet.

29Zephaniah the priest read Shemaiah’s letter to the prophet Jeremiah.

30Then came the word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah, saying,

30Then the LORD gave this message to Jeremiah:

31Send to all them of the captivity, saying, Thus saith Jehovah concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him not, and he hath caused you to trust in a lie;

31Send this message to all the captives in Babylon: This is what the LORD says about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Shemaiah has prophesied to you, even though I did not send him, and he has made you believe a lie.

32therefore thus saith Jehovah, Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and his seed; he shall not have a man to dwell among this people, neither shall he behold the good that I will do unto my people, saith Jehovah, because he hath spoken rebellion against Jehovah.

32Therefore, the LORD says: I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his family. None of his descendants will live to see the good things I am going to do for my people, says the LORD, because he has encouraged rebellion against me.