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Jeremiah 32
Legacy Standard Bible

Jeremiah Imprisoned

32 The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh in the (A)tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. 2 Now at that time the military force of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the (B)court of the guard, which was in the house of the king of Judah, 3 because Zedekiah king of Judah had (C)shut him up, saying, “Why do you (D)prophesy, saying, ‘(E)Thus says Yahweh, “Behold, I am about to (F)give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it; 4 and Zedekiah king of Judah will (G)not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but he will surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will (H)speak with him [a]face to face and see him eye to eye; 5 and he will (I)lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and he will be there until I [b]visit him,” declares Yahweh. “If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will (J)not succeed”’?”

6 And Jeremiah said, “The word of Yahweh came to me, saying, 7 ‘Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle is coming to you, saying, “Buy for yourself my field which is at (K)Anathoth, for you have the (L)legal judgment for redemption to buy it.”’ 8 Then Hanamel my uncle’s son came to me in the (M)court of the guard according to the word of Yahweh and said to me, ‘Buy my field, please, that is at (N)Anathoth, which is in the land of Benjamin; for you have the legal judgment for possession, and the redemption is yours; buy it for yourself.’ Then I knew that this was the (O)word of Yahweh.

9 “I bought the field which was at Anathoth from Hanamel my uncle’s son, and I (P)weighed out the silver for him, seventeen [c](Q)shekels of silver. 10 And I [d](R)signed and (S)sealed the deed and (T)called in witnesses and weighed out the silver on the scales. 11 Then I took the deeds of purchase, both the sealed copy containing the (U)commandment and statutes and the open copy, 12 and I gave the deed of purchase to (V)Baruch the son of (W)Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the sight of Hanamel my uncle’s son and in the sight of the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, in the sight of all the Jews who were sitting in the court of the guard. 13 And I commanded Baruch in their sight, saying, 14 ‘Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, “Take these deeds—this deed of purchase—that is the sealed one as well as this open deed, and put them in an earthenware jar, that they may [e]last a long time.” 15 For thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, “(X)Houses and fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land.”’

Jeremiah Prays, Yahweh Responds

16 “After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, then I (Y)prayed to Yahweh, saying, 17 ‘(Z)Ah Lord Yahweh! Behold, You have (AA)made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! (AB)Nothing is too difficult for You, 18 who (AC)shows lovingkindness to thousands, but (AD)repays the iniquity of fathers into the bosom of their children after them, O (AE)great and (AF)mighty God. (AG)Yahweh of hosts is His name, 19 (AH)great in counsel and abundant in deeds, whose (AI)eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, (AJ)giving to everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds, 20 who has (AK)set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and even to this day both in Israel and among mankind; and You have (AL)made a name for Yourself, as at this day. 21 You (AM)brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and with wonders, and with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm and with great terror 22 and gave them this land, which You (AN)swore to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey. 23 They (AO)came in and took possession of it, but they (AP)did not listen to Your voice and did not (AQ)walk in Your law. They have not done anything that You commanded them to do; therefore You have made (AR)all this harmful evil come upon them. 24 Behold, the (AS)siege ramps have come to the city to capture it; and the city is (AT)given into the hand of the Chaldeans, who fight against it, because of the (AU)sword, the famine, and the pestilence; and what You have spoken has (AV)happened; and behold, You see it. 25 And You have said to me, O Lord Yahweh, “Buy for yourself the field with money and call in witnesses”—but the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’”

26 Then the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, saying, 27 “Behold, I am Yahweh, the (AW)God of all flesh; is anything (AX)too difficult for Me?” 28 Therefore thus says Yahweh, “Behold, I am about to (AY)give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will capture it. 29 And the Chaldeans who are fighting against this city will enter and (AZ)set this city on fire and burn it, with the (BA)houses where people have burned incense to Baal on their roofs and poured out drink offerings to other gods to provoke Me to anger. 30 Indeed the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah have been doing only (BB)evil in My sight from their youth; for the sons of Israel have been only (BC)provoking Me to anger by the work of their hands,” declares Yahweh. 31 “Indeed this city has been to Me a (BD)provocation of My anger and My wrath from the day that they built it, even to this day, so that it should be (BE)removed from before My face 32 because of all the evil of the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah which they have done to provoke Me to anger—they, their (BF)kings, their princes, their priests, their prophets, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 33 And they have turned their back to Me and not their face; though I taught them, (BG)rising up early and teaching, they would not listen [f]and receive discipline. 34 But they (BH)put their detestable things in the house which is called by My name, to defile it. 35 And they built the (BI)high places of Baal that are in the valley of Ben-hinnom to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to (BJ)Molech, which I had not commanded them, nor had it come upon My heart that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.

36 “So now, therefore thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you are saying, ‘It is (BK)given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, by famine, and by pestilence.’ 37 Behold, I will (BL)gather them out of all the lands to which I have banished them in My anger, in My wrath, and in great indignation; and I will cause them to return to this place and (BM)make them inhabit it in safety. 38 And they shall be (BN)My people, and I will be their God; 39 and I will (BO)give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me always, for their own (BP)good and for the good of their children after them. 40 And I will cut an (BQ)everlasting covenant with them that I will (BR)not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will (BS)put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me. 41 And I will (BT)rejoice over them to do them good and will truly (BU)plant them in this land with (BV)all My heart and with all My soul. 42 For thus says Yahweh, ‘(BW)Just as I brought all this great evil on this people, so I am going to (BX)bring on them all the good that I am promising them. 43 (BY)Thus fields will be bought in this land of which you all are saying, “(BZ)It is a desolation, without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.” 44 Men will buy fields for money, [g](CA)sign and seal deeds, and call in witnesses in the (CB)land of Benjamin, in the surroundings of Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the [h]Shephelah, and in the cities of the [i]Negev; for I will [j](CC)return their [k]fortunes,’ declares Yahweh.”

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 32:4 Lit mouth to mouth
  2. Jeremiah 32:5 Same Heb root as “punish” in Jer, cf. 5:9; 9:8; 29:32; 30:20
  3. Jeremiah 32:9 A shekel was approx. 0.4 oz. or 11 gm
  4. Jeremiah 32:10 Or wrote...on the document
  5. Jeremiah 32:14 Lit stand many days
  6. Jeremiah 32:33 Lit to
  7. Jeremiah 32:44 Lit write on the document and seal
  8. Jeremiah 32:44 Or lowland
  9. Jeremiah 32:44 South country
  10. Jeremiah 32:44 Or restore
  11. Jeremiah 32:44 Or captivity
Close NABRE

Jeremiah 32
New American Bible (Revised Edition)

Chapter 32

Pledge of Restoration.[a] 1 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah,[b] king of Judah, the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. 2 At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, while Jeremiah the prophet was confined to the court of the guard, in the house of the king of Judah.(A) 3 Zedekiah, king of Judah, had confined him there, saying: “How dare you prophesy: Thus says the Lord: I am handing this city over to the king of Babylon that he may capture it.(B) 4 Zedekiah, king of Judah, shall not escape the hands of the Chaldeans: he shall indeed be handed over to the king of Babylon. He shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye.(C) 5 He shall take Zedekiah to Babylon. There he shall remain, until I attend to him—oracle of the Lord. If you fight against the Chaldeans, you cannot win!”(D)

6 [c]Jeremiah said, This word came to me from the Lord: 7 Hanamel, son of your uncle Shallum, will come to you with the offer:(E) “Purchase my field in Anathoth, since you, as nearest relative, have the first right of purchase.”[d] 8 And, just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel came to me in the court of the guard and said, “Please purchase my field in Anathoth, in the territory of Benjamin; as nearest relative, you have the first right of possession—purchase it for yourself.” Then I knew this was the word of the Lord. 9 So I bought the field in Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel, weighing out for him the silver, seventeen shekels of silver.

10 When I had written and sealed the deed, called witnesses and weighed out the silver on the scales, 11 I accepted the deed of purchase, both the sealed copy, containing title and conditions, and the open copy.[e] 12 I gave this deed of purchase to Baruch, son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and the witnesses who had signed the deed of purchase and before all the Judahites sitting around in the court of the guard.(F)

13 In their presence I gave Baruch this charge: 14 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds of purchase, both the sealed and the open deeds, and put them in an earthenware jar,[f] so they can last a long time. 15 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: They shall again purchase houses and fields and vineyards in this land.

16 After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch, son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord: 17 Ah, my Lord God! You made the heavens and the earth with your great power and your outstretched arm; nothing is too difficult for you.(G) 18 You continue your kindness through a thousand generations; but you repay the ancestors’ guilt upon their children who follow them. Great and mighty God, whose name is Lord of hosts,(H) 19 great in counsel, mighty in deed, whose eyes are fixed on all the ways of mortals, giving to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their deeds:(I) 20 you performed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt and to this day, in Israel and among all peoples, you have made a name for yourself as on this day.(J) 21 You brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and great terror. 22 And you gave them this land, as you had sworn to their ancestors to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey.(K) 23 They went in and took possession of it, but they did not listen to your voice. They did not live by your law; they did not do anything you commanded them to do. Then you made all this evil fall upon them.(L) 24 See, the siegeworks have arrived at this city to capture it; the city is handed over to the Chaldeans who are attacking it, with sword, starvation, and disease. What you threatened has happened—you can see it for yourself.(M) 25 Yet you told me, my Lord God: Purchase the field with silver and summon witnesses, when the city has already been handed over to the Chaldeans!

26 Then this word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 27 I am the Lord, the God of all the living! Is anything too difficult for me? 28 Therefore the Lord says: I am handing over this city to the Chaldeans and to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and he shall capture it. 29 The Chaldeans who are attacking this city shall go in and set the city on fire, burning it and the houses, on whose roofs incense was burned to Baal and libations were poured out to other gods in order to provoke me.(N) 30 From their youth the Israelites and the Judahites have been doing only what is evil in my eyes; the Israelites have been provoking me with the works of their hands—oracle of the Lord.(O) 31 This city has so stirred my anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, that I must put it out of my sight, 32 for all the evil the Israelites and Judahites have done to provoke me—they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.(P) 33 They turned their backs to me, not their faces; though I taught them persistently, they would not listen or accept correction.(Q) 34 Instead they set up their abominations in the house which bears my name in order to defile it.(R) 35 They built high places to Baal in the Valley of Ben-hinnom to sacrifice their sons and daughters to Molech;[g] I never commanded them to do this, nor did it even enter my mind that they would practice this abomination, so as to bring sin upon Judah.(S)

36 Now, therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city, which you say is being handed over to the king of Babylon by means of the sword, starvation, and disease: 37 See, I am gathering them from all the lands to which I drove them in my rising fury and great anger; I will bring them back to this place and settle them here in safety.(T) 38 They shall be my people, and I will be their God.(U) 39 I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me always, for their own good and the good of their children after them. 40 With them I will make an everlasting covenant, never to cease doing good to them; I will put fear of me in their hearts so that they never turn away from me.(V) 41 I will take delight in doing good to them: I will plant them firmly in this land, with all my heart and soul.(W)

42 For thus says the Lord: Just as I have brought upon this people all this great evil, so I will bring upon them all the good I have promised them.(X) 43 Fields shall be purchased in this land, about which you say, “It is a wasteland, without human beings or animals, handed over to the Chaldeans.”(Y) 44 They will purchase fields with silver, write up deeds, seal them, and have them witnessed in the land of Benjamin, in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah and of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah and the Negeb, when I restore their fortunes—oracle of the Lord.(Z)

Footnotes

  1. 32:1–44 This chapter recounts a prophecy “in action.” At the Lord’s command, Jeremiah fulfills his family duty to purchase the land of his cousin, carrying out all the legal details, even putting the deed away for safekeeping against the day he will have to produce it to verify his ownership of the land. The Lord defines the meaning of this symbolic action: In the future, Judah will be restored and daily life will return to normal.
  2. 32:1 The tenth year of Zedekiah: 588 B.C. The eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar: dating his reign from his victory at Carchemish; see note on 25:1–14.
  3. 32:6–9 Jeremiah’s imprisonment by the weak-willed Zedekiah was a technical custody that did not deprive him of all freedom of action.
  4. 32:7 The first right of purchase: the obligation of the closest relative to redeem the property of a family member in economic distress so that the ancestral land remains within the family (Lv 25:25–28); see note on Ru 2:20.
  5. 32:11 The sealed copy…and the open copy: the legal deed of sale was written on a scroll, which was then rolled up and sealed; a second scroll containing a copy of the legal deed was then rolled around it and left unsealed so the contents of the legal deed would be accessible without destroying the original seal.
  6. 32:14 In an earthenware jar: to protect the scroll from drying out and disintegrating. Some of the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in such jars.
  7. 32:35 Molech: a god to whom human sacrifice was offered in the Valley of Ben-hinnom. Here, as in 19:5, he is called “Baal”; see note on Lv 18:21.
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