Jeremiah 44
Expanded Bible
Disaster in Egypt
44 Jeremiah received a message from the Lord for all the ·Jews [L Judeans] living in Egypt—in the cities of Migdol [C a city in the Nile Delta], Tahpanhes [43:7], Memphis [C a capital city in central Egypt], and in ·southern Egypt [L the land of Pathros]. This was the message: 2 “The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: You saw all the ·terrible things [disasters; evil; troubles] I brought on Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, which are ruins today with no one living in them. 3 It is because the people who lived there did evil. They made me angry by burning incense and ·worshiping [serving] other gods that neither they nor you nor your ·ancestors [fathers] ever knew. 4 I sent all my servants, the prophets, to you again and again. By them I said to you, ‘Don’t do this ·terrible [abominable] thing that I hate.’ 5 But they did not listen or ·pay attention [L incline their ear]. They did not ·stop doing [turn back from] evil things and burning incense to other gods. 6 So I showed my great anger against them. I poured out my anger in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem so they are only ruins and ·piles of stones [a desolation] today.
7 “Now the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: Why are you doing such great ·harm [damage; evil] to yourselves? You are cutting off the men and women, children and ·babies [suckling infants] from the ·family [L midst] of Judah, leaving yourselves without ·anyone from the family of Judah [L a remnant]. 8 Why do you want to make me angry by ·making idols [L the work of your hands]? Why do you ·burn incense [make offerings] to the gods of Egypt, where you have come to ·live [sojourn; wander]? You will ·destroy [L cut off] yourselves. Other nations will ·speak evil of [curse] you and ·make fun of [reproach] you. 9 Have you forgotten about the evil things your ·ancestors [fathers] did? And have you forgotten the evil the kings and ·queens [L their wives] of Judah did? Have you forgotten about the evil you and your wives did? These things were done in the country of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. 10 Even to this day the people of Judah ·are still too proud [have shown no remorse]. They have not ·learned to respect [feared] me or ·to follow [L walked in] my ·teachings [laws; instructions]. They have not obeyed the ·laws [statutes; requirements; ordinances] I gave you and your ·ancestors [fathers].
11 “So this is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: I am ·determined [L setting my face against you] to bring ·disasters [evil; trouble] on you. I will ·destroy [L cut off] ·the whole family of [L all] Judah. 12 The ·few who were left alive [remnant] from Judah ·were determined [L set their face] to go to Egypt and ·settle [sojourn; wander] there, but they will all die in Egypt. They will be killed ·in war [L by the sword] or ·die from hunger [L by famine]. From the least important to the greatest, they will be killed ·in war [L by sword] or ·die from hunger [L by famine]. Other nations will ·speak evil about [L curse] them. People will be shocked by what has happened to them. They will become a curse word, and people will ·insult [reproach] them. 13 I will punish those people who have gone to live in Egypt, just as I punished Jerusalem, using swords, ·hunger [famine], and ·terrible diseases [plague; pestilence]. 14 Of the ·people of Judah who were left alive [remnant of Judah] and have gone to ·live [wander; sojourn] in Egypt, none will escape ·my punishment [L or survive]. They want to return to Judah and live there, but none of them will live to return to Judah, except a few people who will escape.”
15 A large group of the people [C of Judah] who lived in ·southern Egypt [L Pathros] were ·meeting [assembling] together. Among them were many women who were ·burning incense [or making offerings] to other gods, and their husbands knew it. All these people said to Jeremiah, 16 “We will not listen to the ·message from [L the word in the name of] the Lord that you spoke to us. 17 We promised to make sacrifices to the Queen Goddess [C a female astral deity, probably Ashtart or Asherah], and we will certainly do everything ·we promised [L that came out of our mouths]. We will ·burn incense [or make offerings] and pour out drink offerings to worship her, just as we, our ·ancestors [fathers], kings, and officers did in the past. All of us did these things in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. At that time we had plenty of food and were ·successful [fine], and ·nothing bad happened to us [L we saw/experienced no evil]. 18 But since we stopped ·making sacrifices [or offering incense] to the Queen Goddess and stopped pouring out drink offerings to her, we have ·had great problems [L lacked everything]. Our people have also been killed ·in war [L by sword] and by ·hunger [famine].”
19 The women said, “Our husbands knew what we were doing. We had their permission to ·burn incense [or make offerings] to the Queen Goddess and to pour out drink offerings to her. Our husbands knew we were making cakes ·that looked like her [with her image] and were pouring out drink offerings to her.”
20 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the people—men and women—who answered him. 21 He said to them, “·The Lord remembered [L Did not the Lord remember…?] that you and your ·ancestors [fathers], kings and officers, and the people of the land ·burned incense [or made offerings] in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. He remembered and ·thought [set/L lifted up his mind/heart] about it. 22 Then he could not be patient with you any longer. He hated the ·terrible things [abominations] you did. So he made your country an ·empty desert [desolation and a ruin], where no one lives. Other people curse that country. And so it is today. 23 All this happened because you ·burned incense to other gods [or made offerings]. You sinned against the Lord. You did not ·obey him [L listen to the voice of the Lord] or follow his ·teachings [laws; instructions; L Torah] or the ·laws [statutes; requirements; ordinances] he gave you. You did not ·keep your part of the agreement with him [L walk in his testimonies]. So this ·disaster [evil; trouble] has happened to you. ·It is there for you to see [L …according to this day].”
24 Then Jeremiah said to all those men and women, “People of Judah who are now in Egypt, hear the word of the Lord: 25 The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: You and your wives did what you said you would do. You said, ‘We will certainly keep the ·promises [vows] we made. We ·promised [vowed] to ·make sacrifices [or offer incense] to the Queen Goddess and to pour out drink offerings to her.’ So, go ahead. Do the things you ·promised [vowed], and keep your ·promises [vows]. 26 But hear the word of the Lord. Listen, all you ·Jews [L Judeans] living in Egypt. The Lord says, ‘I have sworn by my great name: The people of Judah now living in Egypt will never again ·use [pronounce] my name to make promises. They will never again say in Egypt, “As surely as the Lord God lives…” 27 I am watching over them, not ·to take care of them, but to hurt them [L for good but for evil/harm]. The ·Jews [L Judeans] who live in Egypt will die from swords or ·hunger [famine] until they are all ·destroyed [annihilated]. 28 A few will escape being killed by the sword and will come back to Judah from Egypt. Then, of the people of Judah who came to ·live [sojourn; wander] in Egypt, ·those who are left alive [the remnant] will know ·if my word or their word came true [L whose word will stand, theirs or mine]. 29 I will give you a sign that I will punish you here in this place [C Egypt],’ says the Lord. ‘When you see it happen, you will know that my ·promises to hurt you will really happen [L words for you will be carried out for harm/evil].’ 30 This is what the Lord says: ‘Hophra king of Egypt [C also known as Apries, ruled 587–570 bc] has enemies who ·want to kill him [L seek his life]. Soon I will hand him over to his enemies just as I handed Zedekiah king of Judah over to Nebuchadnez-zar king of Babylon, who ·wanted to kill him [L sought his life; 39:5–7].’”
Jeremiah 44
Amplified Bible
Conquest of Egypt Predicted
44 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who were living in the land of Egypt—at Migdol, at Tahpanhes, at Memphis, and in the land of Pathros, saying, 2 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘You have seen all the disaster that I have brought on Jerusalem and on all the cities of Judah; and see, this day they are desolated and no one lives in them 3 because of the wickedness which they committed, provoking Me to anger by continuing to burn sacrifices and incense to serve other gods that they had not known, neither they, nor you, nor your fathers. 4 Yet I sent to you all My servants the prophets, again and again, saying, “Oh, do not do this shamefully vile thing which I hate.” 5 But they did not listen or turn [obediently] from their wickedness, and stop burning sacrifices and incense to other gods. 6 Therefore My wrath and My anger were poured out and burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; so they have become a ruin and a desolation, as it is this day. 7 Therefore now thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, “Why did you commit this great evil against yourselves [bringing disaster] that will cut off from you man and woman, child and infant, out of Judah, leaving yourselves without a remnant? 8 Why do you [deliberately] provoke Me to anger with the works (idols) of your hands, burning sacrifices and incense to [make-believe] gods in the land of Egypt, where you [of your own accord] have come to live [as temporary residents], that you might be cut off and become a curse and a disgrace [an object of taunts] among all the nations of the earth? 9 Have you forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, the wickedness of the kings of Judah, the wickedness of their wives [who served their foreign gods], your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives [who imitated the sin of the queens], which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 10 They have not become apologetic [for their guilt and sin] even to this day; they have not feared [Me with reverence] nor walked in My law or My statutes, which I have set before you and before your fathers.”’(A)
11 “Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am going to set My face against you for woe—even to cut off (destroy) all Judah [from the land]. 12 And I will take the remnant of Judah who have decided to go into the land of Egypt to live there [instead of surrendering to the Chaldeans as directed], and they will all fall and die in the land of Egypt; they will fall by the sword or perish by famine. From the least to the greatest, they will die by the sword or by famine; and they will become detestable, an object of horror, a curse, and a disgrace. 13 For I will punish all the inhabitants of the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, with the sword, with famine, and with virulent disease; 14 so none of the survivors from the remnant of Judah who have entered the land of Egypt to live there will survive, even though they lift up their souls in longing to return to the land of Judah, [the place] to which they long to return to live; none will return except a few refugees.’”
15 Then all the men who knew that their wives were burning [a]sacrifices to other gods, and all the women who were standing by, a large group, including all the people who were living in Pathros in the land of Egypt, answered Jeremiah, saying, 16 “As for the word (message) that you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord, we are not going to listen to you. 17 But rather we will certainly perform every word of the vows we have made: to burn sacrifices to the [b]queen of heaven (Ishtar) and to pour out drink offerings to her, just as we ourselves and our forefathers, our kings and our princes did in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; for [then] we had plenty of food and were prosperous and saw no misfortune. 18 But since we stopped burning sacrifices to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked everything and have been consumed by the sword and by famine.” 19 And said the wives, “When we were burning sacrifices to the queen of heaven and were pouring out drink offerings to her, was it without [the knowledge and approval of] our husbands that we made cakes [in the shape of a star] to represent her and pour out drink offerings to her?”
Tragedy for the Jews
20 Then Jeremiah said to all the people, to the men and to the women and to all the people who had given him that answer, 21 “The smoking sacrifices (incense) that you burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem—you and your forefathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land—did not the Lord remember [in detail your idolatry] and did it not all come into His mind? 22 The Lord could no longer endure it, because of the evil of your acts and the repulsive acts which you have committed; because of them your land has become a ruin, an object of horror and a curse, without inhabitant, as it is this day. 23 Because you have burned sacrifices [to idols] and because you have sinned against the Lord and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord or walked in His law and in His statutes and in His testimonies, therefore this tragedy has fallen on you, as it has this day.”
24 Then Jeremiah said to all the people, including all the women, “Hear the word of the Lord, all [you of] Judah who are in the land of Egypt, 25 thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, as follows: ‘You and your wives have both declared with your mouth and fulfilled it with your hand, saying, “We will certainly perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn sacrifices to the queen of heaven (Ishtar) and to pour out drink offerings to her.” Surely then confirm your vows and go ahead and perform your vows! [If you intend to defy all My warnings, proceed!]’ 26 Therefore hear the word of the Lord, all [you people of] Judah who are living in the land of Egypt, ‘Behold, I have sworn [an oath] by My great Name,’ says the Lord, ‘that My Name shall never again be invoked by the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, “As the Lord God lives.” 27 Behold, I am watching over them for harm and not for good; and all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by famine until they are all destroyed. 28 Yet a small number [of My choosing] who escape the sword will return from the land of Egypt to the land of Judah; and all the remnant of Judah who have gone to the land of Egypt to reside there will know whose words will stand, Mine or theirs. 29 And this will be the sign to you,’ says the Lord, ‘that I am going to punish you in this place, so that you may know that My words will surely stand against you for harm.’ 30 Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I will give [c]Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies and into the hand of those who seek his life, just as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who was his enemy and was seeking his life.’”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 44:15 Or incense.
- Jeremiah 44:17 See note 7:18.
- Jeremiah 44:30 Hophra ruled 588-570 b.c. He was murdered in a coup led by his successor the Pharaoh Amasis.
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