Jeremiah 29:1-19

Message to the Exiles

1 Now these are the words of the ¹letter which Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the rest of the elders of the exile, the priests, the prophets and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.

2 (This was after King ²Jeconiah and the ³queen mother, the court officials, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem.)

3 The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of ⁴Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying,

4 "Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have ⁵sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon,

5 '⁶Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce.

6 'Take ⁷wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease.

7 '⁸Seek the welfare of the city where * I have sent you into exile, and ⁹pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.'

8 "For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, 'Do not let your ¹⁰prophets who are in your midst and your diviners ¹¹deceive you, and do not listen to ¹²the dreams which they dream.

9 'For they ¹³prophesy falsely to you in My name; ¹⁴I have not sent them,' declares the LORD.

10 "For thus says the LORD, 'When ¹⁵seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My ¹⁶good word to you, to bring you back to this place.

11 'For I know the ¹⁷plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for ¹⁸welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a ¹⁹hope.

12 'Then you will ²⁰call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will ²¹listen to you.

13 'You will ²²seek Me and find Me when you ²³search for Me with all your heart.

14 'I will be ²⁴found by you,' declares the LORD, 'and I will ²⁵restore your fortunes and will ²⁶gather you from all the nations and from all the places where * I have driven you,' declares the LORD, 'and I will ²⁷bring you back to the place from where * I sent you into exile.'

15 "Because you have said, 'The LORD has raised up ²⁸prophets for us in Babylon '-

16 for thus says the LORD concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your brothers who did ²⁹not go with you into exile -

17 thus says the LORD of hosts, 'Behold, I am sending upon them the ³⁰sword, famine and pestilence, and I will make them like ³¹split-open figs that cannot be eaten due to rottenness.

18 'I will pursue them with the sword, with famine and with pestilence; and I will ³²make them a terror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a ³³curse and a horror and a ³⁴hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where * I have driven them,

19 because * they have ³⁵not listened to My words,' declares the LORD, 'which I sent to them again and again by ³⁶My servants the prophets; but you did not listen,' declares the LORD.

Jeremiah 29:1-19 Meaning and Commentary

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.

Cross References

• 1. 2 Chronicles 30:1, 6; Esther 9:20; Jeremiah 29:25, 29
• 2. Jeremiah 24:12-16">2 Kin Jeremiah 24:12-16; 2 Chronicles 36:9, 10; Jeremiah 22:24-28; Jeremiah 24:1; Jeremiah 27:20
• 3. 2 Kings 24:12, 15; Jeremiah 13:18; Jeremiah 22:26
• 4. 1 Chronicles 6:13
• 5. Jeremiah 24:5
• 6. Jeremiah 29:28
• 7. Jeremiah 16:2-4
• 8. Daniel 4:27; Daniel 6:4, 5
• 9. Ezra 6:10; Ezra 7:23; Daniel 4:19; 1 Timothy 2:1, 2
• 10. Jeremiah 27:9; Jeremiah 29:1
• 11. Jeremiah 14:14; Jeremiah 23:21; Jeremiah 27:14, 15; Jeremiah 28:15; Ephesians 5:6
• 12. Jeremiah 23:25, 27
• 13. Jeremiah 27:15; Jeremiah 29:21
• 14. Jeremiah 29:31
• 15. 2 Chronicles 36:21-23; Jeremiah 25:12; Jeremiah 27:22; Daniel 9:2; Zechariah 7:5
• 16. Jeremiah 24:6, 7; Zephaniah 2:7
• 17. Psalms 40:5; Jeremiah 23:5, 6; Jeremiah 30:9, 10
• 18. Isaiah 40:9-11; Jeremiah 30:18-22
• 19. Jeremiah 31:17; Hosea 2:15
• 20. Psalms 50:15; Jeremiah 33:3; Daniel 9:3
• 21. Psalms 145:19
• 22. Deuteronomy 4:29; Psalms 32:6; Matthew 7:7
• 23. 1 Chronicles 22:19; 2 Chronicles 22:9; Jeremiah 24:7
• 24. Deuteronomy 30:1-10; Psalms 32:6; Isaiah 55:6
• 25. Jeremiah 30:3; Jeremiah 32:37-41
• 26. Isaiah 43:5, 6; Jeremiah 23:8; Jeremiah 32:37
• 27. Jeremiah 3:14; Jeremiah 12:15; Jeremiah 16:15
• 28. Jeremiah 29:21, 24
• 29. Jer 38:2, 3, 17-23
• 30. Jeremiah 27:8; Jeremiah 29:18; Jeremiah 32:24
• 31. Jer 24:3, 8-10
• 32. Deuteronomy 28:25; 2 Chronicles 29:8; Jeremiah 15:4; Jeremiah 24:9; Jeremiah 34:17; Ezekiel 12:15
• 33. Isaiah 65:15; Jeremiah 42:18
• 34. Jeremiah 25:9; Lamentations 2:15, 16
• 35. Jeremiah 6:19
• 36. Jeremiah 25:4; Jeremiah 26:5; Jeremiah 35:15

Footnotes

• [a] Lit "fruit"
• [b] Lit "beget"
• [c] Or "peace"
• [d] Or "peace"
• [e] Or "peace"
• [f] Lit "your"
• [g] Lit "you"
• [h] Lit "am planning"
• [i] Or "captivity"