Jeremiah 42:13-22

13 Forsooth if ye say, We shall not dwell in this land, neither we shall hear the voice of our Lord God, (But if ye say, We shall not live in this land, nor shall we listen to the voice of the Lord our God,)
14 and say, Nay, but we shall go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see battle, and shall not hear the noise, either sound, of trump, and we shall not suffer hunger, and there we shall dwell; (and say, Nay! but we shall go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see battle, and shall not hear the sound of the trumpet, and we shall not suffer hunger, and we shall live there;)
15 for this thing, ye remnants of Judah, hear now the word of the Lord. The Lord of hosts, God of Israel, saith these things, If ye set your face, for to enter into Egypt, and if ye enter, to dwell there (If ye set your face, to enter into Egypt, and if ye go, to live there),
16 the sword which ye dread shall take you there in the land of Egypt, and the hunger for which ye be anguished shall cleave to you in Egypt; and there ye shall die (and ye shall die there).
17 And all the men that setted their face, to enter into Egypt, and to dwell there, shall die by sword, and hunger, and pestilence; no man of them shall dwell still, neither shall escape from the face of [the] evil, which I shall bring on them. (And all those who set their face, to enter into Egypt, and to live there, shall die by the sword, and hunger, and pestilence; not one of them shall still remain, nor shall escape from the face of the evil, which I shall bring upon them.)
18 For why the Lord of hosts, God of Israel, saith these things, As my strong vengeance and mine indignation is welled together on the dwellers of Jerusalem, so mine indignation shall be welled together on you, when ye have entered into Egypt; and ye shall be into swearing, and into wondering, and into cursing, and into shame; and ye shall no more see this place. (For the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saith these things, As my strong vengeance and my indignation is welled together upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my indignation shall be welled together upon you, when ye have entered into Egypt; and ye shall be into swearing, and into wondering, and into cursing, and into shame; and ye shall no longer see this place.)
19 The word of the Lord is on you, ye remnants of Judah; do not ye enter into Egypt; ye (that be) witting shall know, that I have witnessed (against that) to you today; (This word of the Lord is for you, ye remnant of Judah; do not ye enter into Egypt; ye who be witting, or who understand, now know, that I have witnessed against that to you today;)
20 for ye have deceived your souls, for ye sent me to your Lord God, and said, Pray thou for us to our Lord God, and by all things whatever things our Lord [God] shall say to thee, so tell thou to us, and we shall do. (for ye have deceived your own souls, when ye sent me to the Lord your God, and said, Pray thou for us to the Lord our God, and everything that the Lord our God shall say to thee, tell thou to us, and we shall do it.)
21 And I told to you today, and ye heard not the voice of your Lord God, on all things for which he sent me to you. (And so I told it to you today, but ye have not listened to, or obeyed, the voice of the Lord your God, regarding anything for which he hath sent me to you.)
22 Now therefore, ye (that be) witting shall know, for ye shall die by sword, and hunger, and pestilence, in the place to which ye would enter, to dwell there. (And so, ye who be witting now know, or understand, that ye shall die by the sword, and hunger, and pestilence, in the place where ye would go, to live there.)

Jeremiah 42:13-22 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH CAHPTER 42

This chapter contains a request of the Jews to Jeremiah, to pray to the Lord for them to direct them, and the Lord's answer to it. The request is made by the captains and all the people, Jer 42:1-3; which Jeremiah undertook to present to the Lord, Jer 42:4; they promising to go according to the direction that should be given, Jer 42:5,6. After ten days an answer is returned, and the prophet calls the captains and people together to hear it, Jer 42:7,8; the purport of which was, that if they continued in the land of Judah, it would be well with them, and they would be safe, Jer 42:9-12; but if they went into Egypt, they should die by the sword, famine, and pestilence, and be a curse and reproach, and never see their own land more, Jer 42:13-18; they are charged with dissimulation and disobedience, Jer 42:19-21; and the chapter is concluded with an assurance of their perishing by the above judgments in the place they were desirous of dwelling in, Jer 42:22.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.