Jeremiah 29

1 And these be the words of the book, which Jeremy, the prophet, sent from Jerusalem to the residues of [the] elder men of [the] passing over (And these be the words of the letter, which the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem, to the remaining elders among those carried away captive), and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had led over from Jerusalem into Babylon,

2 after that Jeconiah, the king, went out, and the lady, and the honest servants and chaste, and the princes of Judah went out of Jerusalem, and a subtle craftsman, and a goldsmith of Jerusalem, (after that King Jeconiah, and the queen mother, and the honest and chaste servants, or the eunuchs, and the princes, or the leaders, of Judah and of Jerusalem, and the craftsmen, and the goldsmiths, had left Jerusalem,)

3 in the hand of Elasah, (the) son of Shaphan, and of Gemariah, the son of Hilkiah, which Zedekiah, king of Judah, sent to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, into Babylon. And Jeremy said, (by the hand of Elasah, the son of Shaphan, and of Gemariah, the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah, the king of Judah, sent to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, in Babylon. And Jeremiah said,)

4 The Lord of hosts, God of Israel, saith these things to all the passing over, which I translated from Jerusalem into Babylon, (The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saith these things to all those, whom I carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon,)

5 Build ye houses, and inhabit (them), and plant ye orchards, and eat ye [the] fruit of them;

6 take ye wives, and engender ye sons and daughters, and give ye wives to your sons, and give ye your daughters to husbands, and bear they sons and daughters; and be ye multiplied there, and do not ye be few in number.

7 And seek ye [the] peace of the cities, to which I made you to pass over; and pray ye the Lord for it, for in the peace thereof shall be peace to you. (And seek ye the peace of any city, to which I made you to be carried away captive; yea, pray ye to the Lord for it, for in its peace shall be peace for you.)

8 The Lord of hosts, God of Israel, saith these things, Your prophets, that be in the midst of you, and your diviners, deceive you not (Let not your prophets, and your diviners, who be in the midst of you, deceive you); and take ye none heed to your dreams, which ye dream;

9 for they prophesy falsely to you in my name, and I sent not them, saith the Lord. (for they prophesy falsely to you in my name, and I did not send them, saith the Lord.)

10 For the Lord saith these things, When seventy years begin to be [ful]filled in Babylon, I shall visit you, and I shall raise on you my good word, and I shall bring you again to this place.

11 For I know the thoughts which I think on you, saith the Lord, the thoughts of peace, and not of torment, that I give to you an end and patience. (For I know the thoughts which I think about you, saith the Lord, the thoughts of peace, and not of torment, so that I shall give you a good ending.)

12 And ye shall call me to help (And ye shall call on me for help), and ye shall go, and shall worship me, and I shall hear you;

13 ye shall seek me, and ye shall find, when ye seek me in all your heart. (ye shall seek me, and ye shall find me, when ye seek me with all your heart.)

14 And I shall be found of you, saith the Lord, and I shall bring (you back) again (from) your captivity, and I shall gather you from all folks, and from all places, to which I casted out you, saith the Lord; and I shall make you to turn again from the place, to which I made you to pass over. (And I shall be found by you, saith the Lord, and I shall restore your fortunes, and I shall gather you from all the nations, and from all the places, to which I cast you out, saith the Lord; and I shall bring you back from the place, to which I made you to be carried away captive.)

15 For ye said, The Lord shall raise (up) prophets to us in Babylon. (For ye said, The Lord hath raised up prophets for us in Babylon.)

16 For the Lord saith these things to the king, that sitteth on the seat of David, and to all the people, dweller(s) of this city, (and) to your brethren, that went not out with you into the passing over, (For the Lord saith these things to the king, who sitteth on David's throne, and to all the people, the inhabitants of this city, and to your kinsmen, who did not go out with you into captivity,)

17 The Lord of hosts saith these things, Lo! I shall send among them sword, and hunger, and pestilence; and I shall set them as evil figs, that may not be eaten, for those be full evil (for they be too rotten to eat).

18 And I shall pursue them in sword, and in hunger, and in pestilence; and I shall give them into travailing in all realms of earth, into cursing, and into wondering, and into scorning, and into shame to all folks, to which I casted them out. (And I shall pursue them with the sword, and with hunger, and with pestilence; and I shall give them into despising in all the kingdoms of the earth, and into cursing, and into wondering, and into mocking, and into shame to all the nations, to which I cast them out.)

19 For they heard not my words, saith the Lord, which I sent to them by my servants, (the) prophets, and rose (up) by night, and sent, and ye heard not, saith the Lord (but ye did not listen, or obey, saith the Lord).

20 Therefore all the passing over, which I sent out from Jerusalem into Babylon, hear ye the word of the Lord. (And so all the captives, whom I sent out from Jerusalem to Babylon, hear ye the word of the Lord.)

21 The Lord of hosts, God of Israel, saith these things to Ahab, the son of Kolaiah, and to Zedekiah, the son of Maaseiah, that prophesy to you leasing in my name, Lo! I shall betake them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and he shall smite them before your eyes. (The Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saith these things about Ahab, the son of Kolaiah, and about Zedekiah, the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy lies to you in my name, Lo! I shall deliver them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and he shall strike them down before your eyes.)

22 And cursing shall be taken of them to all the passing over of Judah, which is in Babylon, of men saying, The Lord set thee as Zedekiah, and as Ahab, which the king of Babylon fried in fire, (And their names shall be used as curses by all the captives from Judah who be in Babylon, yea, by people saying, The Lord make thee like Zedekiah, and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon fried in the fire,)

23 for they did folly in Israel, and did adultery on the wives of their friends (for they did foolishness in Israel, and did adultery with the wives of their friends); and they spake a word falsely in my name, which I commanded not to them; I am judge and witness, saith the Lord.

24 And thou shalt say to Shemaiah (the) Nehelamite,

25 The Lord of hosts, God of Israel, saith these things, For that that thou sentest books in my name to all the people, which is in Jerusalem (who be in Jerusalem), and to Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, and saidest,

26 The Lord gave thee priest for Jehoiada, the priest, that thou be duke in the house of the Lord on each man that is travailed of the fiend, and prophesying, that thou send him into stocks, and into prison. (The Lord made thee to be priest in place of the priest Jehoiada, so that thou be the leader, or the chief official, in the House of the Lord, over each person who is troubled by a fiend, and prophesying falsely, and that thou send such people into the stocks, and into prison.)

27 And now why blamest thou not Jeremy of Anathoth, that prophesieth to you? (And so now why hast thou not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who prophesieth to you?)

28 For on this thing he sent to us into Babylon, and said, It is long; build ye houses, and inhabit, and plant ye orchards, and eat ye the fruit of them. (For about this thing he sent to us in Babylon, and said, Ye shall be there a long time; so build ye houses, and inhabit them, and plant ye orchards, and eat ye their fruit.)

29 Therefore Zephaniah, the priest, read this book in the ears of Jeremy, the prophet. (And so Zephaniah, the priest, read this letter to the prophet Jeremiah.)

30 And the word of the Lord was made to Jeremy, and said,

31 Send thou to all the passing over, and say, The Lord saith these things to Shemaiah (the) Nehelamite, For that that Shemaiah prophesied to you, and I sent not him, and he made you to trust in a leasing; (Send thou to all the captives, and say, The Lord saith these things to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, Because of what Shemaiah prophesied to you, and I did not send him, and he made you to trust in a lie;)

32 therefore the Lord saith these things, Lo! I shall visit on Shemaiah (the) Nehelamite, and on his seed; and no man sitting in the midst of this people shall be to him; and he shall not see the good, which I shall do to my people, saith the Lord, for he spake trespassing against the Lord. (and so the Lord saith these things, Lo! I shall punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and his children; and none of his descendants shall sit in the midst of this people; and he shall not see the good which I shall do for my people, saith the Lord, for he spoke trespassing against the Lord.)

Jeremiah 29 Commentary

Chapter 29

Two letters to the captives in Babylon; In the first, they are recommended to be patient and composed. (1-19) In the second, judgments are denounced against the false prophets who deceived them. (20-32)

Verses 1-7 The written word of God is as truly given by inspiration of God as his spoken word. The zealous servant of the Lord will use every means to profit those who are far off, as well as those who are near him. The art of writing is very profitable for this end; and by the art of printing it is rendered most beneficial for circulating the knowledge of the word of God. God's sending to the captives by this letter would show that he had not forsaken them, though he was displeased, and corrected them. If they live in the fear of God, they may live comfortably in Babylon. In all conditions of life, it is our wisdom and duty not to throw away the comfort of what we may have, because we have not all we would have. They are directed to seek the good of the country where they were captives. While the king of Babylon protected them, they must live quiet and peaceable lives under him, in all godliness and honesty; patiently leaving it to God to work deliverance for them in due time.

Verses 8-19 Let men beware how they call those prophets whom they choose after their own fancies, and how they consider their fancies and dreams to be revelations from God. False prophets flatter people in their sins, because they love to be flattered; and they speak smoothly to their prophets, that their prophets may speak smoothly to them. God promises that they should return after seventy years were accomplished. By this it appears, that the seventy years of the captivity are not to be reckoned from the last captivity, but the first. It will be the bringing to pass of God's good word to them. This shall form God's purposes. We often do not know our own minds, but the Lord is never at an uncertainty. We are sometimes ready to fear that God's designs are all against us; but as to his own people, even that which seems evil, is for good. He will give them, not the expectations of their fears, or the expectations of their fancies, but the expectations of their faith; the end he has promised, which will be the best for them. When the Lord pours out an especial spirit of prayer, it is a good sign that he is coming toward us in mercy. Promises are given to quicken and encourage prayer. He never said, Seek ye me in vain. Those who remained at Jerusalem would be utterly destroyed, notwithstanding what the false prophets said to the contrary. The reason has often been given, and it justifies the eternal ruin of impenitent sinners; Because they have not hearkened to my words; I called, but they refused.

Verses 20-32 Jeremiah foretells judgments upon the false prophets, who deceived the Jews in Babylon. Lying was bad; lying to the people of the Lord, to delude them into a false hope, was worse; but pretending to rest their own lies upon the God of truth, was worst of all. They flattered others in their sins, because they could not reprove them without condemning themselves. The most secret sins are known to God; and there is a day coming when he will bring to light all the hidden works of darkness. Shemaiah urges the priests to persecute Jeremiah. Their hearts are wretchedly hardened who justify doing mischief by having power to do it. They were in a miserable thraldom for mocking the messengers of the Lord, and misusing his prophets; yet in their distress they trespass still more against the Lord. Afflictions will not of themselves cure men of their sins, unless the grace of God works with them. Those who slight the blessings, deserve to lose the benefit of God's word, like Shemaiah. The accusations against many active Christians in all ages, amount to no more than this, that they earnestly counsel men to attend to their true interest and duties, and to wait for the performance of God's promises in his appointed way.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 29

Thus chapter contains a letter of Jeremiah to the captives in Babylon; and gives an account of another sent from thence by Shemaiah to the people at Jerusalem; and is closed with threatening him with punishment for so doing. Jeremiah's letter concerns both the captives at Babylon, and the people left at Jerusalem, The persons to whom and by whom it was sent, and the time of writing and sending it, are mentioned in Jer 29:1-3; and though the prophet was the amanuensis, God was the author of it, as well as of their captivity, Jer 29:4; the contents of, it, respecting the captives, are advices to them to provide for their comfortable settlement in Babylon, and not think of returning quickly, by building houses, planting gardens, marrying, and giving in marriage, Jer 29:5,6; and to seek and pray for the prosperity of the place where they were; in which their own was concerned, Jer 29:7; to give no heed to their false prophets and diviners, Jer 29:8,9; and to expect a return to Jerusalem at the end of seventy years; which they might be assured of, since God had resolved upon it in his own mind, Jer 29:10,11; and especially if they called upon him, prayed to him, and sought him heartily, Jer 29:12-14; the other part of the letter respects the Jews in Jerusalem; concerning whom the captives are directed to observe, that both the king and people should suffer much by sword, famine, pestilence, and captivity, with the reason of it, Jer 29:15-19; particularly it is foretold, that Ahab and Zedekiah, two lying prophets, should be made an example of vengeance; and a proverbial curse should be taken of them, because of their villany, lewdness, and lies, Jer 29:20-23; next follows some account of Shemaiah's letter from Babylon, to the people and priests at Jerusalem, stirring them up against Jeremiah the prophet; which came to be known, by the priests reading it to him, Jer 29:24-29; upon which Shemaiah is threatened with punishment, and his seed after him, Jer 29:30-32.