Jeremiah 29:20-32

New American Standard Bible 1995

²⁰ You, therefore, hear the word of the Lord, all you exiles, whom I have ^(A)sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon.

²¹ “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who are ^(B)prophesying to you falsely in My name, ‘Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them before your eyes. ²² Because of them a ^(C)curse will be ^[a]used by all the exiles from Judah who are in Babylon, saying, “May the Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon ^(D)roasted in the fire, ²³ because they have ^(E)acted foolishly in Israel, and ^(F)have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives and have ^(G)spoken words in My name falsely, which I did not command them; and I am He who ^(H)knows and am a witness,” declares the Lord.’”

²⁴ To ^(I)Shemaiah the Nehelamite you shall speak, saying, ²⁵ “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Because you have sent ^(J)letters in your own name to all the people who are in Jerusalem, and to ^(K)Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying, ²⁶ “The Lord has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, to be the ^[b](L)overseer in the house of the Lord over every ^(M)madman who ^(N)prophesies, to ^(O)put him in the stocks and in the iron collar, ²⁷ now then, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of ^(P)Anathoth who prophesies to you? ²⁸ For he has ^(Q)sent to us in Babylon, saying, ‘The exile will be ^(R)long; ^(S)build houses and live in them and plant gardens and eat their ^[c]produce.’”’”

^29 (T)Zephaniah the priest read this letter ^[d]to Jeremiah the prophet. ³⁰ Then came the word of the Lord to Jeremiah, saying, ³¹ “Send to ^(U)all the exiles, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord concerning ^(V)Shemaiah the Nehelamite, “Because Shemaiah has ^(W)prophesied to you, although I did not send him, and he has ^(X)made you trust in a lie,” ³² therefore thus says the Lord, “Behold, I am about to ^(Y)punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his ^[e]descendants; he will ^(Z)not have anyone living among this people, ^(AA)and he will not see the good that I am about to do to My people,” declares the Lord, “because he has ^[f](AB)preached rebellion against the Lord.”’”