New Living Translation | International Standard Version |
1Jeremiah wrote a letter from Jerusalem to the elders, priests, prophets, and all the people who had been exiled to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar. | 1These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, to the priests, to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, |
2This was after King Jehoiachin, the queen mother, the court officials, the other officials of Judah, and all the craftsmen and artisans had been deported from Jerusalem. | 2after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the palace officials, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the smiths left Jerusalem. |
3He sent the letter with Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah when they went to Babylon as King Zedekiah’s ambassadors to Nebuchadnezzar. This is what Jeremiah’s letter said: | 3The letter was sent by Shaphan's son Elasah and by Hilkiah's son Gemariah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon in Babylon, and it said, |
4This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives he has exiled to Babylon from Jerusalem: | 4"This is what the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the exiles who were taken from Jerusalem into exile to Babylon, |
5“Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. | 5Build houses and live in them. Plant gardens and eat their produce. |
6Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away! | 6Take wives and father sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so they may have sons and daughters. Increase in numbers there, don't decrease. |
7And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.” | 7Seek the welfare of the city to which I've exiled you and pray to the LORD for it, for your welfare depends on its welfare.' |
8This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let your prophets and fortune-tellers who are with you in the land of Babylon trick you. Do not listen to their dreams, | 8For this is what the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says: 'Don't let the prophets and diviners who are among you deceive you, and don't listen to them when they tell you their dreams. |
9because they are telling you lies in my name. I have not sent them,” says the LORD. | 9Indeed, they're prophesying lies to you in my name. I didn't send them,' declares the LORD. |
10This is what the LORD says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. | 10"For this is what the LORD says: 'When Babylon's seventy years are completed, I'll take note of you and will fulfill my good promises to you by bringing you back to this place. |
11For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. | 11For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for well-being, and not for calamity, in order to give you a future and a hope. |
12In those days when you pray, I will listen. | 12When you call out to me and come and pray to me, I'll hear you. |
13If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. | 13You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart. |
14I will be found by you,” says the LORD. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.” | 14I'll be found by you,' declares the LORD, 'and I'll restore your security and gather you from all the nations and all the places to which I've driven you,' declares the LORD. 'I'll bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.' |
15You claim that the LORD has raised up prophets for you in Babylon. | 15"Indeed, you have said, 'The LORD has raised up prophets for us in Babylon.' |
16But this is what the LORD says about the king who sits on David’s throne and all those still living here in Jerusalem—your relatives who were not exiled to Babylon. | 16"But this is what the LORD says about the king who sits on David's throne, and about the people who live in this city—your brothers who didn't go with you into exile: |
17This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: “I will send war, famine, and disease upon them and make them like bad figs, too rotten to eat. | 17This is what the LORD says: 'I'm about to send the sword, famine, and plague on them, and I'll make them like rotten figs that cannot be eaten because they're so bad. |
18Yes, I will pursue them with war, famine, and disease, and I will scatter them around the world. In every nation where I send them, I will make them an object of damnation, horror, contempt, and mockery. | 18I'll pursue them with the sword, with famine, and with plague, and I'll make them a horrifying sight to all the kingdoms of the earth. I'll make them a curse, an object of horror, and scorn, and a desolation in all the nations to which I've driven them, |
19For they refuse to listen to me, though I have spoken to them repeatedly through the prophets I sent. And you who are in exile have not listened either,” says the LORD. | 19because they didn't listen to my words,' declares the LORD. 'When I sent my servants, the prophets, to you again and again, you didn't listen,' declares the LORD. |
20Therefore, listen to this message from the LORD, all you captives there in Babylon. | 20"Now, all you exiles whom I sent from Jerusalem to Babylon, listen to this message from the LORD! |
21This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says about your prophets—Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah—who are telling you lies in my name: “I will turn them over to Nebuchadnezzar for execution before your eyes. | 21This is what the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says about Kolaiah's son Ahab and Maaseiah's son Zedekiah, who are prophesying lies to you in my name, 'I'm about to give them into the domination of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will kill them before your eyes. |
22Their terrible fate will become proverbial, so that the Judean exiles will curse someone by saying, ‘May the LORD make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon burned alive!’ | 22What happens to them will be the basis for a curse for all the Judean exiles who are in Babylon. People will say, "May the LORD make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the LORD roasted in the fire, |
23For these men have done terrible things among my people. They have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives and have lied in my name, saying things I did not command. I am a witness to this. I, the LORD, have spoken.” A Message for Shemaiah | 23because they did something stupid in Israel. They committed adultery with their neighbors' wives, and in my name they spoke lies that I didn't command them. I'm the one who knows, and I'm a witness," declares the LORD.'" |
24The LORD sent this message to Shemaiah the Nehelamite in Babylon: | 24"You are to say to Shemaiah of Nehelam: |
25“This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: You wrote a letter on your own authority to Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, the priest, and you sent copies to the other priests and people in Jerusalem. You wrote to Zephaniah, | 25This is what the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says: "Because you sent letters in your own name to all the people who are in Jerusalem, to Maaseiah's son Zephaniah the priest and to all the priests— |
26“The LORD has appointed you to replace Jehoiada as the priest in charge of the house of the LORD. You are responsible to put into stocks and neck irons any crazy man who claims to be a prophet. | 26The LORD made you a priest instead of Jehoiada the priest to serve in the LORD's Temple as an official against every crazy prophet, and to put him in stocks and restraints. |
27So why have you done nothing to stop Jeremiah from Anathoth, who pretends to be a prophet among you? | 27And now, why didn't you rebuke Jeremiah from Anathoth who prophesies to you? |
28Jeremiah sent a letter here to Babylon, predicting that our captivity will be a long one. He said, ‘Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce.’” | 28So he sent a message to us in Babylon: 'The exile will be long, so build houses and live in them. Plant gardens and eat their produce.'"'" |
29But when Zephaniah the priest received Shemaiah’s letter, he took it to Jeremiah and read it to him. | 29Then Zephaniah the priest read this letter to Jeremiah the prophet, |
30Then the LORD gave this message to Jeremiah: | 30and this message from the LORD came to Jeremiah: |
31“Send an open letter to all the exiles in Babylon. Tell them, ‘This is what the LORD says concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Since he has prophesied to you when I did not send him and has tricked you into believing his lies, | 31"Send a message to all the exiles: 'This is what the LORD says about Shemaiah from Nehelam, "Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, even though I didn't send him, and has made you trust a lie," |
32I will punish him and his family. None of his descendants will see the good things I will do for my people, for he has incited you to rebel against me. I, the LORD, have spoken!’” | 32therefore, this is what the LORD says: "I'm about to judge Shemaiah from Nehelam along with his descendants. He won't have anyone related to him living among these people. Nor will he see the good that I'll do for my people," declares the LORD, "because he advocated rebellion against the LORD."'" |
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. |
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