The Seventy-Year Exile

25 This is the word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim^(A) son of Josiah, king of Judah (which was the first year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon). ² The prophet Jeremiah spoke concerning all the people of Judah and all the residents of Jerusalem as follows: ³ “From the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon,^(B) king of Judah, until this very day—twenty-three years—the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you time and time again,^[a](C) but you have not obeyed. ⁴ The Lord sent all his servants the prophets to you time and time again,^[b] but you have not obeyed or even paid attention.^{[c](D) 5} He announced, ‘Turn, each of you, from your evil way of life and from your evil deeds.^(E) Live in the land the Lord gave to you and your ancestors long ago and forever.^{(F) 6} Do not follow other gods to serve them and to bow in worship to them,^(G) and do not anger me by the work of your hands.^(H) Then I will do you no harm.

⁷ “‘But you have not obeyed me’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘with the result that you have angered me by the work of your hands and brought disaster on yourselves.’

⁸ “Therefore, this is what the Lord of Armies says: ‘Because you have not obeyed my words, ⁹ I am going to send for all the families of the north’^(I)—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘and send for my servant^(J) Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and I will bring them against this land, against its residents, and against all these surrounding nations, and I will completely destroy them and make them an example of horror^(K) and scorn, and ruins forever.^{(L) 10} I will eliminate the sound of joy and gladness from them—the voice of the groom and the bride,^(M) the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp. ¹¹ This whole land will become a desolate ruin, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.^{(N) 12} When the seventy years are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, and I will make it a ruin forever.^{(O) 13} I will bring on that land all my words I have spoken against it, all that is written in this book that Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. ¹⁴ For many nations and great kings will enslave them, and I will repay them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.’”^(P)

The Cup of God’s Wrath

¹⁵ This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, said to me: “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from my hand and make all the nations to whom I am sending you drink from it.^{(Q) 16} They will drink, stagger,^[d] and go out of their minds because of the sword I am sending among them.”^(R)

¹⁷ So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink from it.

²⁷ “Then you are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Drink,^(U) get drunk, and vomit. Fall down and never get up again, as a result of the sword I am sending among you.’ ²⁸ If^[g] they refuse to accept the cup from your hand and drink, you are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord of Armies says: You must drink! ²⁹ For I am already bringing disaster^(V) on the city that bears my name,^(W) so how could you possibly go unpunished? You will not go unpunished, for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth. This is the declaration of the Lord of Armies.’^(X)

Judgment on the Whole World

³⁰ “As for you, you are to prophesy all these things to them, and say to them:

³² “This is what the Lord of Armies says:

³³ Those slain by the Lord^(AC) on that day will be scattered from one end of the earth to the other. They will not be mourned,^(AD) gathered, or buried. They will be like manure on the soil’s surface.

The Rechabites’ Example

35 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim^(A) son of Josiah, king of Judah: ² “Go to the house of the Rechabites, speak to them,^(B) and bring them to one of the chambers^(C) of the temple of the Lord to offer them a drink of wine.”

³ So I took Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons—the entire house of the Rechabites— ⁴ and I brought them into the temple of the Lord to a chamber occupied by the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah, a man of God,^(D) who had a chamber near the officials’ chamber, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah son of Shallum the doorkeeper. ⁵ I set jars filled with wine and some cups before the sons of the house of the Rechabites and said to them, “Drink wine!”

⁶ But they replied, “We do not drink wine, for Jonadab,^(E) son of our ancestor Rechab, commanded, ‘You and your descendants must never drink wine. ⁷ You must not build a house or sow seed or plant a vineyard. Those things are not for you. Rather, you must live in tents your whole life, so you may live a long time on the soil where you stay as a resident alien.’^{(F) 8} We have obeyed Jonadab, son of our ancestor Rechab, in all he commanded us. So we haven’t drunk wine our whole life—we, our wives, our sons, and our daughters. ⁹ We also have not built houses to live in and do not have vineyard, field, or seed. ¹⁰ But we have lived in tents and have obeyed and done everything our ancestor Jonadab commanded us. ¹¹ However, when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon marched into the land,^(G) we said, ‘Come, let’s go into Jerusalem to get away from the Chaldean and Aramean armies.’ So we have been living in Jerusalem.”

¹² Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ¹³ “This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Go, say to the men of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem, ‘Will you not accept discipline^(H) by listening to my words?—this is the Lord’s declaration. ¹⁴ The words of Jonadab, son of Rechab, have been carried out. He commanded his descendants not to drink wine, and they have not drunk to this day because they have obeyed their ancestor’s command. But I have spoken to you time and time again,^[a](I) and you have not obeyed me! ¹⁵ Time and time again^[b] I have sent you all my servants the prophets, proclaiming, “Turn, each one from his evil way,^(J) and correct your actions. Stop following other gods to serve them.^(K) Live in the land that I gave you and your ancestors.” But you did not pay attention or obey me.^{(L) 16} Yes, the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab carried out their ancestor’s command he gave them, but these people have not obeyed me. ¹⁷ Therefore, this is what the Lord, the God of Armies, the God of Israel, says: I will certainly bring on Judah and on all the residents of Jerusalem all the disaster I have pronounced against them because I have spoken to them, but they have not obeyed, and I have called to them, but they did not answer.’”

¹⁸ But to the house of the Rechabites Jeremiah said, “This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Because you have obeyed the command of your ancestor Jonadab and have kept all his commands and have done everything he commanded you, ¹⁹ this is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Jonadab son of Rechab will never fail to have a man to stand before me always.’”^(M)

Jeremiah Dictates a Scroll

36 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah,^(A) king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ² “Take a scroll,^(B) and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah, and all the nations from the time I first spoke to you during Josiah’s reign until today. ³ Perhaps when the house of Judah hears about all the disaster I am planning to bring on them, each one of them will turn from his evil way. Then I will forgive their iniquity^(C) and their sin.”

⁴ So Jeremiah summoned Baruch^(D) son of Neriah. At Jeremiah’s dictation,^[a] Baruch wrote on a scroll all the words the Lord had spoken to Jeremiah. ⁵ Then Jeremiah commanded Baruch, “I am restricted;^(E) I cannot enter the temple of the Lord, ⁶ so you must go and read from the scroll—which you wrote at my dictation^[b]—the words of the Lord in the hearing of the people at the temple of the Lord on a day of fasting. Read his words in the hearing of all the Judeans who are coming from their cities. ⁷ Perhaps their petition will come before the Lord,^(F) and each one will turn from his evil way, for the anger and fury that the Lord has pronounced against this people are intense.” ⁸ So Baruch son of Neriah did everything the prophet Jeremiah had commanded him. At the Lord’s temple he read the Lord’s words from the scroll.

Baruch Reads the Scroll

⁹ In the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month,^(G) all the people of Jerusalem and all those coming in from Judah’s cities into Jerusalem proclaimed a fast before the Lord.^{(H) 10} Then at the Lord’s temple, in the chamber of Gemariah son of Shaphan the scribe,^(I) in the upper courtyard at the opening of the New Gate^(J) of the Lord’s temple, in the hearing of all the people, Baruch read Jeremiah’s words from the scroll.

¹¹ When Micaiah son of Gemariah, son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the Lord from the scroll, ¹² he went down to the scribe’s chamber in the king’s palace. All the officials were sitting there—Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor,^(K) Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other officials. ¹³ Micaiah reported to them all the words he had heard when Baruch read from the scroll in the hearing of the people. ¹⁴ Then all the officials sent word to Baruch through Jehudi son of Nethaniah, son of Shelemiah, son of Cushi, saying, “Bring the scroll that you read in the hearing of the people, and come.” So Baruch son of Neriah took the scroll and went to them. ¹⁵ They said to him, “Sit down and read it in our hearing.” So Baruch read it in their hearing.

¹⁶ When they had heard all the words, they turned to each other in fear and said to Baruch, “We must surely tell the king all these things.” ¹⁷ Then they asked Baruch, “Tell us, how did you write all these words? At his dictation?” ^[c]

¹⁸ Baruch said to them, “At his dictation. He recited all these words to me while I was writing on the scroll in ink.”

Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll

¹⁹ The officials said to Baruch, “You and Jeremiah must hide and tell no one where you are.” ²⁰ Then, after depositing the scroll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, the officials came to the king at the courtyard and reported everything in the hearing of the king. ²¹ The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and he took it from the chamber of Elishama the scribe. Jehudi then read it in the hearing of the king and all the officials who were standing by the king. ²² Since it was the ninth month, the king was sitting in his winter quarters^(L) with a fire burning in front of him. ²³ As soon as Jehudi would read three or four columns, Jehoiakim would cut the scroll^[d] with a scribe’s knife and throw the columns into the fire in the hearth until the entire scroll was consumed by the fire in the hearth. ²⁴ As they heard all these words, the king and all his servants did not become terrified^(M) or tear their clothes. ²⁵ Even though Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah had urged the king not to burn the scroll, he did not listen to them. ²⁶ Then the king commanded Jerahmeel the king’s son, Seraiah son of Azriel, and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to seize the scribe Baruch and the prophet Jeremiah, but the Lord hid them.

Jeremiah Dictates Another Scroll

²⁷ After the king had burned the scroll and the words Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation,^[e] the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ²⁸ “Take another scroll, and once again write on it the original words that were on the original scroll that King Jehoiakim of Judah burned.^{(N) 29} You are to proclaim concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You have burned the scroll, asking, “Why have you written on it that^(O) the king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land and cause it to be without people or animals?” ^{(P) 30} Therefore, this is what the Lord says concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah: He will have no one to sit on David’s throne,^(Q) and his corpse will be thrown out to be exposed to the heat of day and the frost of night.^{(R) 31} I will punish him, his descendants, and his officers for their iniquity. I will bring on them, on the residents of Jerusalem, and on the people of Judah all the disaster, which I warned them about but they did not listen.’”

³² Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch son of Neriah, the scribe, and he wrote on it at Jeremiah’s dictation^[f] all the words of the scroll that Jehoiakim,^(S) Judah’s king, had burned in the fire. And many other words like them were added.

The Lord’s Message to Baruch

45 This is the word that the prophet Jeremiah spoke to Baruch son of Neriah^(A) when he wrote these words on a scroll at Jeremiah’s dictation^[a](B) in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah:^{(C) 2} “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to you, Baruch: ³ ‘You have said, “Woe is me, because the Lord has added misery to my pain! I am worn out with^[b] groaning and have found no rest.”’^(D)

⁴ “This is what you are to say to him: ‘This is what the Lord says: “What I have built I am about to demolish, and what I have planted I am about to uproot^(E)—the whole land! ⁵ But as for you, do you pursue great things for yourself? Stop pursuing! For I am about to bring disaster on all humanity”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“but I will grant you your life like the spoils of war^(F) wherever you go.”’”

Psalm 133

Living in Harmony

A song of ascents. Of David.

Controlling the Tongue

3 Not many should become teachers, my brothers,^[a] because you know that we will receive a stricter judgment.^{(A) 2} For we all stumble in many ways.^(B) If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is mature, able also to control the whole body.^{(C) 3} Now if we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us,^(D) we direct their whole bodies. ⁴ And consider ships: Though very large and driven by fierce winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. ⁵ So too, though the tongue is a small part of the body, it boasts great things.^(E) Consider how a small fire sets ablaze a large forest. ⁶ And the tongue is a fire. The tongue, a world of unrighteousness, is placed^[b] among our members. It stains the whole body,^(F) sets the course of life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. ⁷ Every kind of animal, bird, reptile, and fish is tamed and has been tamed by humankind, ⁸ but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.^{(G) 9} With the tongue we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in God’s likeness.^{(H) 10} Blessing and cursing come out of the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way. ¹¹ Does a spring pour out sweet and bitter water from the same opening? ¹² Can a fig tree produce olives, my brothers and sisters, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a saltwater spring yield fresh water.

The Wisdom from Above

¹³ Who among you is wise and understanding? By his good conduct he should show that his works are done in the gentleness that comes from wisdom.^{(I) 14} But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your heart, don’t boast and deny the truth.^{(J) 15} Such wisdom does not come down from above but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.^{(K) 16} For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there is disorder and every evil practice. ¹⁷ But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without pretense.^{(L) 18} And the fruit of righteousness^(M) is sown in peace by those who cultivate peace.