Bible in 90 Days

²³ Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying:

²⁴ Dost thou not consider what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD has chosen, he has even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should no longer be a nation before them.

²⁵ Thus hath the LORD said: If my covenant remains not with the day and the night, and if I have not appointed the laws of the heaven and the earth,

²⁶ then I will cast away the seed of Jacob and David my slave, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob; for I will cause their captivity to turn, and I will have mercy on them.

34 ¶ The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, (when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth of his dominion, and all the peoples, fought against Jerusalem and against all the cities thereof) saying,

² Thus hath the LORD God of Israel said: Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, Thus hath the LORD said: Behold, I give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire:

³ and thou shalt not escape out of his hand but shalt surely be taken and delivered into his hand; and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth, and thou shalt go to Babylon.

⁴ Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah; Thus hath the LORD said of thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword:

⁵ but thou shalt die in peace: and according to the burnings of thy fathers, the former kings which were before thee, so shall they burn odours for thee; and they will lament thee, saying, Ah lord! for I have pronounced the word, said the LORD.

⁶ Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem

⁷ when the king of Babylon’s army fought against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah, for of the strong cities of Judah these had remained.

⁸ ¶ This is the word that came unto Jeremiah from the LORD after king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty unto them;

⁹ that every man should let his manslave, and every man his maidslave, being a Hebrew or a Hebrewess, go free; that no one should use of his brethren, the Jews, as a slave.

¹⁰ Now when all the princes and all the people, who had entered into the covenant, heard that each one should let his manslave and each one his maidslave go free, that no one should use them any more as servants, then they listened and let them go.

¹¹ But afterward they repented and caused the slaves and the handmaids, whom they had let go free, to return and brought them into subjection for slaves and for handmaids.

¹² Therefore the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

¹³ Thus saith the LORD God of Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, saying,

¹⁴ At the end of seven years each one shall let his Hebrew brother go, who has been sold unto thee; therefore he shall serve thee six years, and thou shalt send him forth free from thee: but your fathers did not hearken unto me, nor incline their ear.

¹⁵ And ye were now converted and had done right in my sight in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name:

¹⁶ but ye turned and polluted my name and caused each man his slave and each man his handmaid, whom ye had set at liberty at their pleasure, to return and brought them into subjection, to be unto you for slaves and for handmaids.

¹⁷ Therefore thus hath the LORD said: Ye have not hearkened unto me, in proclaiming liberty, each one to his brother and each man to his neighbour; behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, said the LORD, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.

¹⁸ And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, who have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in two and passed between the parts thereof,

¹⁹ the princes of Judah and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, which passed between the parts of the calf;

²⁰ I will even give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those that seek their soul; and their dead bodies shall be for food unto the fowls of the heaven and to the beasts of the earth.

²¹ And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes I will give into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those that seek their soul and into the hand of the king of Babylon’s army, which are gone up from you.

²² Behold, I command, said the LORD and will cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against her and take her and burn her with fire; and I will give the cities of Judah unto desolation until they are without an inhabitant.

35 ¶ The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,

² Go unto the house of the Rechabites and speak with them and bring them into the house of the LORD into one of the chambers and give them wine to drink.

³ Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habaziniah, and his brethren, 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, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the vessels:

⁵ and I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine and cups, and I said unto them, Drink wine.

⁶ But they said, We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever:

⁷ neither shall ye build a house, nor sow seed, nor plant a vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye are strangers.

⁸ Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab our father, the son of Rechab, in all that he has charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters;

⁹ nor to build houses for us to dwell in: neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed:

¹⁰ But we have dwelt in tents and have obeyed and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.

¹¹ But it came to pass, nevertheless, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, that we said, Come, and let us go to Jerusalem from before the army of the Chaldeans and from before of the army of the Syrians: and so we remain in Jerusalem.

¹² ¶ Then the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying,

¹³ Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said: Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye never receive chastisement hearkening to my words? said the LORD.

¹⁴ The word of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons not to drink wine, was not moved; for unto this day they drink none, but obey their father’s commandment: notwithstanding I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye did not hearken unto me.

¹⁵ I have sent also unto you all my slaves the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, Turn ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and do not go after other gods to serve them, and ye shall live in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers: but ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto me.

¹⁶ Certainly the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have not moved the commandment of their father, which he commanded them; but this people has not hearkened unto me:

¹⁷ therefore thus hath the LORD God of the hosts, the God of Israel said; Behold, I bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them: because I spoke unto them, but they did not hear; and I called unto them, but they did not answer.

¹⁸ And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, God of Israel said; Because ye listened to the commandment of Jonadab your father and kept all his commandments and have done according unto all that he has commanded you:

¹⁹ therefore thus hath the LORD of the hosts, God of Israel said; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not lack a man to stand before me for ever.

36 ¶ And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,

² Take thee a roll of a book and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the Gentiles, from the day I began to speak unto thee, from the days of Josiah, unto today.

³ If peradventure the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may turn each one from his evil way; and I will forgive their iniquity and their sin.

⁴ Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah, and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the LORD, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book.

⁵ And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am shut up; I cannot go into the house of the LORD:

⁶ therefore go thou, and read from the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the LORD in the ears of the people in the LORD’s house upon the day of fasting: and also in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities. Thou shalt read them

⁷ if peradventure their prayer will fall into the presence of the LORD, and they shall turn each one from his evil way; for great is the anger and the fury that the LORD has pronounced against this people.

⁸ And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in the book the words of the LORD in the LORD’s house.

⁹ ¶ And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, in the ninth month, that they proclaimed a fast before the LORD to all the people of Jerusalem and to all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem.

¹⁰ Then Baruch read in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the higher court, at the entry of the new gate of the LORD’s house, in the ears of all the people.

¹¹ When Michaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had heard out of the book all the words of the LORD,

¹² then he went down into the king’s house, into the scribe’s chamber; and, behold, all the princes sat there, even Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan the son of Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes.

¹³ Then Michaiah declared unto them all the words that he had heard when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people.

¹⁴ Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, unto Baruch, saying, Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand and came unto them.

¹⁵ And they said unto him, Sit down now and read it in our ears. So Baruch read it in their ears.

¹⁶ Now it came to pass when they had heard all the words, each one turned to his companion in fear, and they said unto Baruch, We will surely tell the king of all these words.

¹⁷ And they asked Baruch, saying, Tell us now, How didst thou write all these words at his mouth?

¹⁸ Then Baruch answered them, He pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book.

¹⁹ Then the princes said unto Baruch, Go, hide thee, thou and Jeremiah; and let no man know where ye be.

²⁰ ¶ And they went in to the king into the court, but they laid up the roll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe and told all the words in the ears of the king.

²¹ So the king sent Jehudi to fetch the roll: and he took it out of Elishama the scribe’s chamber. And Jehudi read in it in the ears of the king and in the ears of all the princes which stood beside the king.

²² Now the king sat in the winterhouse in the ninth month, and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him.

²³ And it came to pass, that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.

²⁴ Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his slaves that heard all these words.

²⁵ Nevertheless when Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah made intercession to the king that he not burn the roll; he would not hear them.

²⁶ But the king commanded Jerahmeel the son of Hammelech, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet; but the LORD hid them.

²⁷ Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, after the king burned the roll, the words which Baruch had written at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying:

²⁸ Take thee again another roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah has burned.

²⁹ And thou shalt say to Jehoiakim king of Judah, Thus hath the LORD said: Thou hast burned this roll, saying, Why hast thou written therein, saying, The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land and shall cause to cease from there man and beast?

³⁰ Therefore thus hath the LORD said unto Jehoiakim king of Judah: He shall have no one to sit upon the throne of David; and his body shall be cast out in the day to the heat and in the night to the frost.

³¹ And I will visit upon him and upon his seed and upon his slaves, their iniquity; and I will bring upon them and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem and upon the men of Judah all the evil that I have pronounced against them; but they did not hearken.

³² Then Jeremiah took another roll and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah, who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire, and there were added besides upon them many like words.

37 ¶ And king Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned instead of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah.

² But neither he nor his slaves nor the people of the land hearkened unto the words of the LORD, which he spoke by the prophet Jeremiah.

³ And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest to the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Pray now unto the LORD our God for us.

⁴ (Now Jeremiah came in and went out among the people: for they had not put him into prison.

⁵ And as Pharaoh’s army was come forth out of Egypt; and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them, they departed from Jerusalem.)

⁶ Then came the word of the LORD unto the prophet Jeremiah, saying,

⁷ Thus hath the LORD, the God of Israel said; Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me to enquire of me: Behold, Pharaoh’s army, which had come forth to help you, has returned to Egypt into their own land.

⁸ And the Chaldeans shall come again and fight against this city and take it and burn it with fire.

⁹ Thus hath the LORD said; Do not deceive yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans have surely departed from us; for they shall not depart.

¹⁰ For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight against you and there remained but wounded men among them, yet should they rise up each man from his tent and burn this city with fire.

¹¹ ¶ And it came to pass, that when the army of the Chaldeans was broken up from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh’s army,

¹² then Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin to separate himself there in the midst of the people.

¹³ And when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the ward was there, whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and he took Jeremiah the prophet, saying, Thou fallest away to the Chaldeans.

¹⁴ Then said Jeremiah It is false; I do not fall away to the Chaldeans. But he did not hearken to him: so Irijah took Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes.

¹⁵ Therefore the princes were wroth with Jeremiah and smote him and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe; for they had made that the prison.

¹⁶ When Jeremiah was entered into the dungeon and into the cabins, and Jeremiah had remained there many days;

¹⁷ then Zedekiah the king sent and took him out: and the king asked him secretly in his house and said, Is there any word from the LORD? And Jeremiah said, There is: for, said he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.

¹⁸ Moreover Jeremiah said unto king Zedekiah, In what have I sinned against thee or against thy slaves or against this people that ye have put me in prison?

¹⁹ Where are now your prophets which prophesied unto you, saying, The king of Babylon shall not come against you nor against this land?

²⁰ Therefore hear now, I pray thee, O my lord the king: let my supplication, I pray thee, be accepted before thee that thou cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there.

²¹ Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the guard and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers’ street until all the bread in the city was spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

38 ¶ Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashur, and Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashur the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken unto all the people, saying,

² Thus hath the LORD said, He that remains in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, but he that goes forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey and shall live.

³ Thus hath the LORD said, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon’s army, which shall take it.

⁴ Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let this man be put to death: for thus he weakens the hands of the men of war that remain in this city and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them; for this man does not seek the peace of this people, but the hurt.

⁵ Then Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hand, for the king can not do any thing against you.

⁶ Then they took Jeremiah and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the guard: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire; so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.

⁷ Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king was then sitting in the gate of Benjamin,

⁸ Ebedmelech went forth out of the king’s house and spoke to the king, saying,

⁹ My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is, for there is no more bread in the city.

¹⁰ Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from here thirty men with thee and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon before he dies.

¹¹ So Ebedmelech took the men with him and went into the house of the king under the treasury and took from there old cast clouts and old rotten rags and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah.

¹² And Ebedmelech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah, Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so.

¹³ So they drew up Jeremiah with cords and took him up out of the dungeon; and Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

¹⁴ ¶ Then Zedekiah the king sent and took Jeremiah the prophet unto him into the third entry that is in the house of the LORD: and the king said unto Jeremiah, I will ask thee a word; hide nothing from me.

¹⁵ Then Jeremiah said unto Zedekiah, If I declare it unto thee, wilt thou not surely put me to death? and if I give thee counsel, thou wilt not hearken unto me.

¹⁶ So Zedekiah the king swore secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD lives, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.

¹⁷ Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus hath the LORD, the God of the hosts, the God of Israel said: If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon’s princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house:

¹⁸ but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.

¹⁹ And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.

²⁰ But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Hear now the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live.

²¹ But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath showed me:

²² and, behold, all the women that are left in the king of Judah’s house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon’s princes, and those women shall say, Thy friends have deceived thee and have prevailed against thee; thy feet are sunk in the mire, and they are turned away back.

²³ So they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans; and thou shalt not escape out of their hand but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon; and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire.

²⁴ Then said Zedekiah unto Jeremiah, Let no man know of these words, and thou shalt not die.

²⁵ But if the princes hear that I have talked with thee, and they come unto thee, and say unto thee, Declare unto us now what thou hast said unto the king, hide it not from us, and we will not put thee to death; also what the king said unto thee:

²⁶ then thou shalt say unto them, I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan’s house, to die there.

²⁷ Then all the princes came unto Jeremiah, and asked him: and he told them according to all those words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking with him; for the matter was not perceived.

²⁸ So Jeremiah abode in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken; and he was there when Jerusalem was taken.

39 ¶ In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem, and they besieged it.

² And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, the city was broken up.

³ And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate even Nergalsharezer, Samgarnebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergalsharezer, Rabmag, with all the residue of the princes of the king of Babylon.

⁴ And it came to pass, that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them and all the men of war, then they fled and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king’s garden, by the gate between the two walls; and the king went out by the way of the desert.

⁵ But the Chaldeans’ army pursued after them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he sentenced him.

⁶ Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah before his eyes; also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah.

⁷ Moreover he put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with chains, to carry him to Babylon.

⁸ And the Chaldeans burned the king’s house and the houses of the people with fire and broke down the walls of Jerusalem.

⁹ Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive into Babylon the remnant of the people that remained in the city, and those that had come over to him, with the rest of the people that remained.

¹⁰ But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left of the poor of the people, which had nothing, in the land of Judah, and gave them vineyards and fields at the same time.

¹¹ ¶ Now Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, saying,

¹² Take him, and look well to him and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee.

¹³ So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard sent, and Nebushasban, Rabsaris, and Nergalsharezer, Rabmag, and all the king of Babylon’s princes;

¹⁴ even they sent, and took Jeremiah out of the court of the guard, and committed him unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, that he should carry him home: so he dwelt among the people.

¹⁵ Now the word of the LORD had come unto Jeremiah, while he was shut up in the court of the prison, saying,

¹⁶ Go and speak to Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said: Behold, I will bring my words upon this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished in that day before thee.

¹⁷ But I will deliver thee in that day, said the LORD, and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou art afraid.

¹⁸ For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee, because thou hast put thy trust in me, said the LORD.

40 ¶ The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all that were carried away captive of Jerusalem and Judah, which were carried away captive unto Babylon.

² And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him, The LORD thy God has pronounced this evil upon this place.

³ Now the LORD has brought it and done according as he had said; because ye have sinned against the LORD, and did not listen to his voice, therefore this thing is come upon you.

⁴ And now, behold, I loose thee this day from the chains which were upon thine hand. If it seems good unto thee to come with me into Babylon, come; and I will look well unto thee: but if it seems ill unto thee to come with me into Babylon, forbear: behold, all the land is before thee; where it seems good and convenient for thee to go, go there.

⁵ Now while he had not yet replied that he would go back, the captain said, Go back also to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has made governor over the cities of Judah and dwell with him among the people, or go wherever it seems convenient unto thee to go. So the captain of the guard gave him victuals and a reward and sent him forth.

⁶ Then Jeremiah came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah and dwelt with him among the people that were left in the land.

⁷ ¶ And all the princes of the army which were in the field, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor over the land and had committed unto him the men and the women and the children and the poor of the land, those that were not carried away captive to Babylon;

⁸ then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah the son of a Maachathite, they and their men.

⁹ And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan swore unto them and to their men, saying, Fear not to serve the Chaldeans; dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.

¹⁰ As for me, behold, I dwell in Mizpah to serve the Chaldeans, which will come unto us; but ye, gather ye the wine and the bread and the oil and put them in your vessels and dwell in your cities that ye have taken.

¹¹ Likewise when all the Jews that were in Moab and among the Ammonites and in Edom and that were in all the lands heard how the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judah and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan,

¹² all these Jews returned out of all places where they were driven and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah in Mizpah, and gathered wine and much fruit.

¹³ Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah and all the princes of the armies that were in the fields came to Gedaliah to Mizpah

¹⁴ and said unto him, Dost thou certainly know that Baalis the king of the Ammonites has sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to slay thee? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam did not believe them.

¹⁵ Then Johanan the son of Kareah spoke to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying, I will go now, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it; why should he slay thee, that all the Jews which are gathered unto thee should be scattered and the remnant in Judah perish?

¹⁶ But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said unto Johanan the son of Kareah, Thou shalt not do this thing, for thou dost speak falsely of Ishmael.

41 ¶ Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the royal seed, and some princes of the king, and ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam in Mizpah; and there they ate bread together in Mizpah.

² Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword and slew him whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land.

³ Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him, even with Gedaliah at Mizpah and the Chaldean soldiers that were found there.

⁴ And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, when no one knew of it yet

⁵ that there came certain men of Shechem, of Shiloh, and of Samaria, eighty men, having their beards shaven, and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the LORD.

⁶ And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went: and it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam.

⁷ And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them and cast them into the midst of a pit, he, and the men that were with him.

⁸ But ten men were found among them that said unto Ishmael, Slay us not: for we have treasures in the field, of wheat and of barley and of oil and of honey. So he forbare, and did not slay them among their brethren.

⁹ Now the pit in which Ishmael had cast all the dead bodies of the men, whom he had slain because of Gedaliah, was the same which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with those that were slain.

¹⁰ Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king’s daughters and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive and departed to go over to the Ammonites.

¹¹ ¶ But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the princes of the armies that were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done,

¹² then they took all the men and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon.

¹³ Now it came to pass, that when all the people which were with Ishmael heard Johanan the son of Kareah and all the princes of the armies that were with him, then they were glad.

¹⁴ So all the people that Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah.

¹⁵ But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men and went to the Ammonites.

¹⁶ Then Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the princes of the armies that were with him, took all the remnant of the people which had turned from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam; men of war, and the women, and the children, and the eunuchs, whom Johanan had caused to turn from Gibeon:

¹⁷ and they departed and dwelt in the habitation of Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, that they might go and enter into Egypt

¹⁸ because of the Chaldeans; for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor in the land.

42 ¶ Then all the princes of the armies, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near,

² and said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the LORD thy God, even for all this remnant (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us)

³ that the LORD thy God may show us the way in which we walk, and that which we should do.

⁴ Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray unto the LORD your God according to your words; and it shall come to pass, that whatever thing the LORD shall answer you, I will declare it unto you; I will keep nothing back from you.

⁵ Then they said to Jeremiah, The LORD be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to all things for the which the LORD thy God shall send thee to us.

⁶ Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will hear the voice of the LORD our God, to whom we send thee; that, obeying the voice of the LORD our God, it may be well with us.

⁷ ¶ And it came to pass after ten days, that the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah.

⁸ Then he called Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the princes of the armies which were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest,

⁹ and said unto them, Thus hath the LORD, the God of Israel said, unto whom ye sent me to present your supplication before him,

¹⁰ If ye will still abide in this land, then I will build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I repent of the evil that I have done unto you.

¹¹ Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid; do not be afraid of him, said the LORD: for I am with you to save you and to deliver you from his hand.

¹² And I will show mercies unto you, that he may have mercy upon you and cause you to dwell in your own land.

¹³ But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, not listening to the voice of the LORD your God,

¹⁴ saying, No, but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the shofar, nor have hunger of bread; and there we will dwell:

¹⁵ and now therefore hear the word of the LORD, ye remnant of Judah; thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said: If ye altogether set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there;

¹⁶ then it shall come to pass that the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, of which ye were afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die.

¹⁷ So shall it be with all the men that set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there; they shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them.

¹⁸ For thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said: As my anger and my fury have been poured forth upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall my fury be poured forth upon you when ye shall enter into Egypt, and ye shall be an execration and an astonishment and a curse and a reproach; and ye shall see this place no more.

¹⁹ The LORD hath said concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah. Do not go into Egypt; know certainly that I have admonished you this day.

²⁰ Why did ye cause your souls to err? For ye sent me unto the LORD your God, saying, Pray for us unto the LORD our God; and according unto all that the LORD our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it.

²¹ And now I have this day declared it to you, but ye have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God, nor any thing for which he has sent me unto you.

²² Now therefore know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place where ye desire to go and to sojourn.

43 ¶ And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto all the people all the words of the LORD their God, for which the LORD their God had sent him to them, even all these words,

² Then spoke Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying unto Jeremiah, Thou dost speak falsely; the LORD our God has not sent thee to say, Do not go into Egypt to sojourn there:

³ but Baruch the son of Neriah sets thee on against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they might put us to death and carry us away captives into Babylon.

⁴ So Johanan the son of Kareah and all the princes of the armies and all the people, did not hear the voice of the LORD, to dwell in the land of Judah.

⁵ But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the princes of the armies, took all the remnant of Judah, that had returned from among all the Gentiles, where they had been driven, to dwell in the land of Judah;

⁶ men and women and children and the king’s daughters, and every soul that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah;

⁷ and they left for the land of Egypt; because they did not listen to the voice of the LORD: thus they came even to Tahpanhes.

⁸ ¶ Then the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying,

⁹ Take great stones in thine hand and cover them with clay in a brickkiln, which is at the entry of Pharaoh’s house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah;

¹⁰ and say unto them, Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said; Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my slave and will set his throne upon these stones that I have hid, and he shall spread his royal pavilion over them.

¹¹ And he shall come and smite the land of Egypt and deliver such as are for death to death; and such as are for captivity to captivity; and such as are for the sword to the sword.

¹² And I will put fire to the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them and carry them away captives: and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt as a shepherd puts on his garment; and he shall go forth from there in peace.

¹³ He shall also break the images of Bethshemesh, that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of the Egyptians shall he burn with fire.

44 ¶ The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews which dwelt in the land of Egypt, which dwelt at Migdol and at Tahpanhes and at Noph and in the country of Pathros, saying,

² Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said: Ye have seen all the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah; and, behold, this day they are a desolation, and no man dwells therein,

³ because of their wickedness which they have committed to provoke me to anger, in that they went to burn incense and to serve other gods, whom they knew not, neither they, ye, nor your fathers.

⁴ Howbeit I sent unto you all my slaves the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate.

⁵ But they did not hearken, nor incline their ear to turn from their wickedness, to burn no incense unto other gods.

⁶ Therefore my fury and my anger was poured forth and was kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; and they are wasted and desolate, as at this day.

⁷ Therefore now thus hath the LORD, the God of the hosts, the God of Israel said: Why do ye commit this great evil against your souls, that ye be cut off, man and woman, child and suckling, out of Judah. Why do ye not desire to have a remnant?

⁸ In that ye provoke me unto wrath with the works of your hands, burning incense unto other gods in the land of Egypt, where ye are gone to dwell. Why do ye cut yourselves off that ye might be a curse and a reproach to all the Gentiles of the earth?

⁹ Have ye forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, and the wickedness of the kings of Judah, and the wickedness of their wives, and your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, which was committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?

¹⁰ They are not broken even unto this day, neither have they feared, nor walked in my law, nor in my rights, that I set before you and before your fathers.

¹¹ Therefore thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel said: Behold, I will set my face against you for evil and to cut off all Judah.

¹² And I will take the remnant of Judah that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to dwell there, and they shall all be consumed and fall in the land of Egypt; they shall even be consumed by the sword and by the famine; they shall die, from the least even unto the greatest, by the sword and by the famine; and they shall be for an oath and an astonishment and a curse and a reproach.

¹³ For I will visit those that dwell in the land of Egypt as I visited Jerusalem with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence:

¹⁴ so that none of the remnant of Judah, which are gone into the land of Egypt to dwell there, shall escape or remain alive to return into the land of Judah, unto which they have a desire to return to dwell there; for none shall return but some fugitives.

¹⁵ ¶ Then all the men who knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying,

¹⁶ As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee.

¹⁷ But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goes forth out of our own mouth to burn incense unto the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings unto her as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil.

¹⁸ But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have lacked all things and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine.

¹⁹ And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men?

²⁰ ¶ Then Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, and to all the people who had given him that answer, saying,

²¹ The incense that ye burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye, and your fathers, your kings, and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the LORD remember them and did it not come into his mind?

²² So that the LORD could no longer bear because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land a desolation and an astonishment and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day.

²³ Because ye have burned incense and because ye have sinned against the LORD and have not listened to the voice of the LORD nor walked in his law nor in his rights, nor in his testimonies; therefore this evil has come upon you, as at this day.

²⁴ Moreover Jeremiah said unto all the people, and to all the women, Hear the word of the LORD, all Judah that are in the land of Egypt:

²⁵ Thus hath spoken the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel, saying: Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouths and fulfilled with your hand, saying, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings unto her; ye will surely accomplish your vows and surely perform your vows.

²⁶ Therefore hear ye the word of the LORD, all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt; Behold, I have sworn by my great name, said the LORD, that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, The Lord GOD lives.

²⁷ Behold, I will watch over them for evil, and not for good: and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine until there is an end of them.

²⁸ Yet a small number that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, so that all the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of Egypt to dwell there, shall know whose words shall stand, mine, or theirs.

²⁹ And this shall be a sign unto you, saith the LORD, that I will visit you in this place, that ye may know that my words shall surely stand against you for evil:

³⁰ thus hath the LORD said: Behold, I will give Pharaohhophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies and into the hand of those that seek his soul; as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, his enemy, and that sought his soul.

45 ¶ The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he had written these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,

² Thus hath the LORD, the God of Israel said unto thee, O Baruch:

³ Thou didst say, Woe is me now! for the LORD has added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I have found no rest.

⁴ Thus shalt thou say unto him, The LORD said thus: Behold, I destroy those whom I have built up and those whom I have planted I pluck up, even this whole land.

⁵ And dost thou seek great things for thyself? seek them not; for, behold, I bring evil upon all flesh, said the LORD: but I will give thee thy life as a spoil of battle in all places where thou goest.

46 ¶ The word of the LORD which came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Gentiles.

² To Egypt: against the army of Pharaohnecho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.

³ Order ye the buckler and shield, and draw near to battle.

⁴ Harness the horses; and get up, ye horsemen, and stand forth with your helmets; furbish the spears, and put on the brigandines.

⁵ Why have I seen them dismayed and turned away back? and their mighty ones are beaten down and are fled in haste, and do not look back: for fear was round about, said the LORD.

⁶ Do not let the swift flee away, nor the mighty man escape; they stumbled and fell toward the north by the river Euphrates.

⁷ Who is this that comes up as a flood, whose waters move as rivers?

⁸ Egypt rises up like a flood, and his waters move like rivers; and he said, I will go up and will cover the earth; I will destroy the city and its inhabitants.

⁹ Come up, ye horses; and rage, ye chariots; and let the mighty men come forth; the Ethiopians and the Libyans, that handle the shield; and the Lydians, that handle and bend the bow.

¹⁰ But this day shall be unto the Lord GOD of the hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries; and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiated and made drunk with their blood; for it shall be a slaughter unto the Lord GOD of the hosts in the north country by the river Euphrates.

¹¹ Go up into Gilead, and take balm, O virgin, the daughter of Egypt: in vain shalt thou use many medicines; for there is no cure for thee.

¹² ¶ The nations have heard of thy shame, and thy cry has filled the land; for the mighty man has stumbled against the mighty, and they are both fallen together.

¹³ The word that the LORD spoke to Jeremiah the prophet, how Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon should come and smite the land of Egypt.

¹⁴ Declare ye in Egypt, and publish in Migdol, and publish in Memphis and in Tahpanhes: say ye, Stand fast, and prepare thee; for the sword shall devour round about thee.

¹⁵ Why is thy fortress swept away? It could not stand because the LORD pushed it over.

¹⁶ He multiplied the fallen; yea, one fell upon another; and they said, Arise, and let us go again to our own people and to the land of our nativity, away from the overcoming sword.

¹⁷ They cried there: Pharaoh king of Egypt is but a noise; he allowed the appointed time to pass by.

¹⁸ As I live, saith the King, whose name is the LORD of the hosts, Surely as Tabor is among the mountains, and as Carmel by the sea, so shall he come.

¹⁹ O thou daughter dwelling in Egypt, furnish thyself to go into captivity; for Memphis shall be a pasture and shall be made desolate without an inhabitant.

²⁰ Egypt is like a very fair heifer, but destruction comes; it comes out of the north.

²¹ Also her soldiers are in the midst of her like fatted bullocks; for they also turned back, and all fled away without stopping: because the day of their calamity was come upon them and the time of their visitation.

²² Her voice shall go forth like a serpent; for they shall march with an army and come against her with axes as hewers of wood.

²³ They shall cut down her forest, saith the LORD, for they cannot be counted because they are more than the locusts; they are innumerable.

²⁴ The daughter of Egypt shall be confounded; she shall be delivered into the hand of the people of the north.

²⁵ The LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel, said: Behold, I will visit the multitude of Alexandria, and Pharaoh, and Egypt, with their gods, and their kings; even Pharaoh, and all those that trust in him.

²⁶ And I will deliver them into the hand of those that seek their soul and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of his slaves; and afterward it shall be inhabited, as in the days of old, saith the LORD.

²⁷ But fear not thou, O my slave Jacob, and be not dismayed, O Israel: for, behold, I will save thee from afar off, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return and be in rest and be prospered, and no one shall make him afraid.

²⁸ Fear thou not, O Jacob my slave, saith the LORD: for I am with thee; for I will make a full end of all the Gentiles where I have driven thee: but I will not make a full end of thee, but I will chastise thee with judgment; and I will not completely cut thee off.

47 ¶ The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Palestinians, before Pharaoh smote Gaza.

² Thus hath the LORD said: Behold, waters rise up out of the north and shall be an overflowing flood and shall overflow the land, and all that is therein; the cities and those that dwell therein; then the men shall cry, and all the inhabitants of the land shall howl.

³ At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong horses, at the rushing of his chariots, and at the rumbling of his wheels, the fathers shall not look back to their children for feebleness of hands;

⁴ because of the day that comes to destroy all the Palestinians, and to cut off from Tyre and Zidon every helper that remains: for the LORD will destroy the Palestinians, the remnant of the island of Caphtor.

⁵ Baldness is come upon Gaza; Ashkelon is cut off with the remnant of their valley: how long wilt thou cut thyself?

⁶ O thou sword of the LORD, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thyself into thy scabbard, rest, and be still.

⁷ How can it be quiet, seeing the LORD has given it a charge against Ashkelon and against the sea shore? there has he appointed it.