Aug 28 - Jeremiah 39-43
Jeremiah
1In the ninth year of Zedekiah, the king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem, with his entire army, and they besieged it2Then, in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the fifth of the month, the city was opened3And all the rulers of the king of Babylon entered and were seated at the middle gate: Nergal-Sharezer, the priest of Nebo, Sarsechim, the chief eunuch, Nergal-Sharezer, the chief magi, and all the other rulers of the king of Babylon4And when Zedekiah, the king of Judah, with all the men of war, had seen them, they fled. And they departed from the city at night, by way of the king’s garden, and through the gate which was between the two walls. And they departed along the way of the desert5But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them. And they overtook Zedekiah in the plain of the desert of Jericho. And having captured him, they led him to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, at Riblah, which is in the land of Hamath. And he declared a judgment against hi6And the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah, at Riblah, before his eyes. And the king of Babylon killed all the nobles of Judah7Also, he plucked out the eyes of Zedekiah. And he bound him with fetters, to be led away to Babylon8Also, the Chaldeans burned the house of the king and the house of the people with fire, and they overturned the wall of Jerusalem9And Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, carried away captive to Babylon the remnant of the people who had remained in the city, and the fugitives who had fled to him, and all the rest of the people who had remained10And Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, released some of the poor people, those who had almost nothing, into the land of Judah. And he gave them vineyards and cisterns in that day11Now Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, had instructed Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, about Jeremiah, saying12"Take him, and set your eyes on him, and you shall do no harm to him at all. But as he is willing, so shall you do with him.13Therefore, Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, sent, and Nebushazban, the chief eunuch, and Nergal-Sharezer, the chief magi, and all the nobles of the king of Babylon sent,14and they took Jeremiah from the vestibule of the prison, and they delivered him to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, so that he could enter a house and live among the people15But the word of the Lord had come to Jeremiah, when he had been confined to the vestibule of the prison, saying: "Go, and speak to Ebedmelech, the Ethiopian, saying16Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring my words over this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be in your sight in that day17And I will free you in that day, says the Lord. And you will not be delivered into the hands of the men whom you dread18But when delivering, I will free you. And you will not fall by the sword. Instead, your life will be saved for you, because you had faith in me, says the Lord.
1The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, had released him from Ramah, where he had taken him, bound in chains, along with all those who were being carried away from Jerusalem and from Judah, and were being led to Babylon2Therefore, the leader of the military, taking Jeremiah, said to him: "The Lord your God has declared this evil over this place3and he has brought it. And the Lord has done just as he has spoken. For you have sinned against the Lord, and you have not heeded his voice, and so this word has happened to you4Now therefore, behold, I have released you this day from the chains which were on your hands. If it pleases you to come with me into Babylon, then come. And I will set my eyes upon you. But if it displeases you to come with me into Babylon, then remain. Behold, all the land is in your sight. Whatever you will choose, and wherever it will please you to go, so shall you go, proceeding to that place5And you may decline to come with me. For you may live with Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has made governor over the cities of Judah. Therefore, you may live with him in the midst of the people. And you may go wherever it will please you to go." And the leader of the military also gave him foods and gifts, and he released him6Then Jeremiah went to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah. And he lived with him in the midst of the people, those who had been left behind in the land7And when all the leaders of the army, who had been dispersed throughout the regions, they and their associates, had heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, governor of the land, and that he had committed to him the men, and women, and children, and the poor of the land, who had not been carried away to Babylon8they went to Gedaliah at Mizpah, with Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathan, the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah, the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai, who were of Netophathi, and Jezaniah, the son of Maacathi, they and their men9And Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, swore to them and to their companions, saying: "Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Live in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it will be well with you10Behold, I live at Mizpah, so that I may follow the instruction of the Chaldeans who are sent to us. But as for you, gather the vintage, and the harvest, and the oil, and store it up in your vessels, and dwell in your cities, which you hold.11So then, all the Jews, who were in Moab, and among the sons of Ammon, and in Idumea, and in all the regions, when they had heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judea, and that he had made Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, governor over them12all the Jews, I say, returned from all the places to which they had fled, and they came into the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah. And they gathered wine and an exceedingly great harvest13Then Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the army, who had been dispersed in the regions, came to Gedaliah at Mizpah14And they said to him: "Know that Baalis, the king of the sons of Ammon, has sent Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, to strike down your life." And Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, did not believe them15But Johanan, the son of Kareah, spoke to Gedaliah, separately, at Mizpah, saying: "I will go, and I will strike down Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, without anyone knowing; otherwise he may kill you, and all the Jews will be scattered who have been gathered to you, and the remnant of Judah will perish.16And Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, said to Johanan, the son of Kareah: "Do not do this word. For what you have said about Ishmael is false.
1And it happened that, in the seventh month, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama of royal descent, with the nobles of the king, and accompanied by ten men, went to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah. And they ate bread together there, in Mizpah2Then Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, rose up, and the ten men who were with him, and they struck down Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword, and they killed him whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land3Likewise, Ishmael struck down all the Jews who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, with the Chaldeans who were found there, and the men of war4Then, on the second day after he had killed Gedaliah, while no one yet knew of it5men arrived from Shechem, and from Shiloh, and from Samaria, eighty men, with their beards shaved, and their garments rent, and unbathed. And they had gifts and frankincense in hand, so that they might make an offering in the house of the Lord6Therefore, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, departing from Mizpah to meet them, went forth weeping as he was walking. And when he had met them, he said to them, "Come to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam.7And when they had arrived at the center of the city, Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, put them to death around the public cistern, he and the men who were with him8But ten men were found among them, who said to Ishmael: "Do not kill us! For in the field we have storehouses of grain and barley and oil and honey." And so he ceased, and he did not put them to death with their brothers9Now the cistern, into which Ishmael cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had struck down because of Gedaliah, is the same one that king Asa made out of fear of Baasha, the king of Israel. This same cistern Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, filled with those who were slain10Then Ishmael led away captive all the remnant of the people who were at Mizpah, the king’s daughters as well as all the people who remained at Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, had committed to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam. And Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, seized them and went away, so that he might go over to the sons of Ammon11But Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the fighters who were with him, heard about all the evil that Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, had done12And taking all the men, they set out to make war against Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah. And they found him at the great waters that are in Gibeon13And when all the people who were with Ishmael had seen Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the fighters who were with him, they rejoiced14And all the people whom Ishmael had seized turned back to Mizpah. And they returned and went over to Johanan, the son of Kareah15But Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, fled with eight men from the face of Johanan, and they went over to the sons of Ammon16Therefore, Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the fighters who were with him, took from Mizpah the entire remnant of the common people, whom they had led away from Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, after he had struck down Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam. These were strong men of battle, and women, and children, and eunuchs: those whom he had led away from Gibeon17And they went away and settled as sojourners at Chimham, which is near Bethlehem, so that they might continue on and enter into Egypt18away from the face of the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of them, because Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, had struck down Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had made governor in the land of Judah
1And all the leaders of the warriors, and Johanan, the son of Kareah, and Azariah, the son of Hoshaiah, and the rest of the common people, from the least even to the greatest, drew near2And they said to Jeremiah the prophet: "Let our supplication fall before your sight. And pray for us to the Lord your God, on behalf of this entire remnant. For few out of many have been left behind, just as your eyes behold us3And so, may the Lord your God announce to us the way that we must travel, and the word that we must accomplish.4Then Jeremiah, the prophet, said to them: "I have listened. Behold, I will pray to the Lord your God according to your words. And whatever word he will respond to me, I will declare to you. And I will conceal nothing from you.5And they said to Jeremiah: "May the Lord be the witness between us of truth and fidelity, if we do not act according to whatever word the Lord your God will send by you to us6Whether it is for good or for harm, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God, to whom we are sending you. So may it be well with us, when we heed the voice of the Lord our God.7Then, when ten days had been completed, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah8And he called Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of warriors who were with him, and all the people, from the least even to the greatest9And he said to them: "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you have sent me, so that I may present your petitions in his sight10If you dwell quietly in this land, I will build you up, and I will not tear you down. I will plant you, and I will not uproot you. For now I have been appeased by the harm that I have done to you11Do not be afraid before the face of the king of Babylon, whom you have dreaded with great fear. Do not dread him, says the Lord. For I am with you, so that I may accomplish your salvation, and so that I may rescue you from his hand12And I will give you mercies, and I will take pity on you, and I will cause you to live in your own land13But if you say: ‘We will not live in this land, nor will we heed the voice of the Lord our God,14saying: ‘Never! Instead, we will travel to the land of Egypt, where we will not see war, and we will not hear the blast of the trumpet, and we will not endure famine. And there we shall live.15Because of this, hear now the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: If you set your faces so as to advance into Egypt, and if you enter so that you may live there16the sword which you dread will overtake you there, in the land of Egypt, and the famine, about which you are anxious, will cling to you in Egypt, and there you shall die17And all the men, who have set their faces so that they may advance to Egypt in order to live there, will die by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence. None of them will remain, nor will they escape from the face of the evil that I will bring over them18For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Just as my fury and my indignation has been enflamed over the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so will my indignation be enflamed over you, when you will have entered into Egypt. And so you will be an oath, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a disgrace. And you will never see this place again19This is the word of the Lord concerning you, O remnant of Judah: Do not choose to enter into Egypt, for certainly you understand what I have sworn to you this day20For you have deceived your own souls. For you have sent me to the Lord our God, saying: ‘Pray on our behalf to the Lord our God. And in accord with anything whatsoever that the Lord our God will tell you, announce this to us, and we will do it.21And I have announced it to you this day, and you have not heeded the voice of the Lord your God, concerning everything about which he has sent me to you22Therefore, know with certainty now, that you will die by the sword, and by famine, and by pestilence, in the place which you wish to enter so that you may live there.
1Then it happened that, when Jeremiah had finished speaking all the words of the Lord their God to the people, all those words concerning which the Lord their God had sent him to them2Azariah, the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the exalted men, spoke to Jeremiah, saying: "You are speaking a lie! The Lord our God has not sent you to say: ‘You shall not enter into Egypt so as to live in that place.3Instead, Baruch, the son of Neriah, has incited you against us, so as to deliver us into the hands of the Chaldeans, to put us to death and to cause us to be led away into Babylon.4And so Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the warriors, and all the people, did not heed the voice of the Lord to remain in the land of Judah5But Johanan, the son of Kareah, and all the leaders of the warriors, took away all the remnant of Judah, who had returned from all the nations (to which they had been scattered before) to live in the land of Judah6men, and women, and children, and the daughters of the king, and every soul that Nebuzaradan, the leader of the military, had left behind with Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, as well as Jeremiah, the prophet, and Baruch, the son of Neriah7And they entered into the land of Egypt. For they did not obey the voice of the Lord. And they went as far as Tahpanhes8And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah at Tahpanhes, saying9"Take great stones in your hand, and you shall conceal them in the crypt which is under the brick wall at the gate of the house of Pharaoh at Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah10And you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send for and take Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will set his throne over these stones which I have concealed, and he will establish his throne upon them11And he will come and strike the land of Egypt: those who are meant for death, shall go to death, and those for captivity, to captivity, and those for the sword, to the sword12And he will kindle a fire in the shrines of the gods of Egypt, and he will burn them down, and he will lead them away captive. And he will clothe himself with the land of Egypt, just as a shepherd is clothed with his cloak. And he will go forth from that place in peace13And he will crush the statues of the house of the Sun, those that are in the land of Egypt, and the shrines of the gods of Egypt he will burn up with fire.