Jeremiah 44
Complete Jewish Bible
44 This word came to Yirmeyahu concerning all the people from Y’hudah living in the land of Egypt — in Migdol, Tachpanches, Nof and the land of Patros: 2 “Here is what Adonai-Tzva’ot, the God of Isra’el, says: ‘You have seen all the disaster I inflicted on Yerushalayim and all the cities of Y’hudah; there they are today, ruined, with no one living in them. 3 It came about because of the wicked things they did to make me angry — sacrificing to and serving other gods, whom they did not know, neither they, nor you nor your ancestors. 4 I had sent you all my servants the prophets, sent them frequently, with the message, “Don’t do this horrible thing which I hate!” 5 But they neither listened nor obeyed, so as to turn from their wickedness and stop offering to other gods. 6 Hence my fury and anger were poured out and ignited in the cities of Y’hudah and the streets of Yerushalayim; so that they became waste and desolate, as they are today.’
7 “Therefore now, Adonai-Tzva’ot, the God of Isra’el, says this: ‘Why are you committing this great sin against yourselves? The result can only be to cut you off from Y’hudah — men, women, children and babies — so that none of you remain. 8 For you continue provoking me with the products of your own hands, offering to other gods in the land of Egypt, where you have gone to live as aliens. It will lead only to your destruction and becoming an object of curses and reproaches among all the nations of the earth. 9 Have you forgotten the wicked deeds of your ancestors, the wicked deeds of the kings of Y’hudah, the wicked deeds of their wives, your own wicked deeds, and the wicked deeds of your wives, which they committed in the land of Y’hudah and in the streets of Yerushalayim? 10 To this day they remain unhumbled; they have not been afraid, and they have not lived according to my Torah or my regulations that I presented to you and your ancestors.’
11 “Therefore here is what Adonai-Tzva’ot, the God of Isra’el, says: ‘I will decree disaster for you and destroy all of Y’hudah. 12 I will take the remnant of Y’hudah, who determined to go to Egypt and live there as aliens, and they will all perish — in the land of Egypt they will fall and perish by sword and famine. They will die, from the least to the greatest, by sword and famine; and they will become an object of condemnation, astonishment, cursing and reproach. 13 Yes, I will punish those living in the land of Egypt, as I punished Yerushalayim, by sword, famine and plague; 14 so that none of the remnant of Y’hudah who went into the land of Egypt to live as aliens will escape or remain, to be able to return to the land of Y’hudah. They long to return and live there, but none will return except a few refugees.’”
15 Then all the men who knew that their wives were offering incense to other gods, along with all the women standing by, a huge crowd, all the people living in Patros in the land of Egypt, answered Yirmeyahu: 16 “As for the word you have just spoken to us in the name of Adonai, we will not listen to you. 17 Instead, we will certainly continue to fulfill every word our mouths have spoken: we will offer incense to the queen of heaven and pour out drink offerings to her, as we have done, we and our ancestors, our kings and our leaders, in the cities of Y’hudah and the streets of Yerushalayim. For then we had plenty of food; everything was fine, we didn’t experience anything unpleasant. 18 But since we stopped offering to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked everything, and we have been destroyed by sword and famine.” 19 [Then the wives added,] “Are we the ones who offer incense to the queen of heaven? Do we pour out drink offerings to her? And did we make cakes marked with her image for her and pour out drink offerings to her without our husbands’ consent?”
20 Then Yirmeyahu said to all the people — to the men, the women, and all the people who had answered him back: 21 “The incense you offered in the cities of Y’hudah and in the streets of Yerushalayim — you, your ancestors, your kings, your leaders and the people of the land — Adonai kept remembering and taking note of this [insult], 22 until Adonai could no longer bear it, so evil and so detestable were your deeds. This is why your land has become a wasteland, an object for astonishment and cursing, uninhabited, as it is today. 23 It is because you offered incense, sinned against Adonai, didn’t listen to what Adonai said, and didn’t live by his Torah, regulations and instructions that this disaster has befallen you, as it is today.”
24 In addition, Yirmeyahu said to all the people, but especially the women: “Hear the word of Adonai, all Y’hudah who are in the land of Egypt; 25 this is what Adonai-Tzva’ot, the God of Isra’el, says: ‘You and your wives stated your intentions with your mouths and performed them with your hands — you said, “We will certainly fulfill our vows that we made to offer incense to the queen of heaven and pour out drink offerings to her.”’ Without doubt, you will indeed fulfill every point of your vows. 26 Therefore hear the word of Adonai, all Y’hudah living in the land of Egypt: ‘I swear by my own great name,’ says Adonai, ‘that no man of Y’hudah will speak my name again in the land of Egypt, swearing, “As Adonai, God, lives.” 27 I am watching over them for harm, not for good. All the men of Y’hudah in the land of Egypt will be destroyed by sword and famine, until none of them is left. 28 Those who escape the sword will return from the land of Egypt to the land of Y’hudah few in number; and all the remnant of Y’hudah who went into the land of Egypt to live will know whose word will stand — mine or theirs! 29 Moreover, here is a sign for you,’ says Adonai, ‘that I will punish you in this place, so that you can know that my threats of disaster against you will come true.’ 30 Adonai says, ‘I will hand over Pharaoh Hofra king of Egypt to his enemies, to those seeking his life — just as I handed Tzidkiyahu king of Y’hudah over to N’vukhadretzar king of Bavel, his enemy, who sought his life.’”
Jeremiah 44
Modern English Version
Idolatry Leads to Judgment
44 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews which dwell in the land of Egypt, who dwell at Migdol, and Tahpanhes, and Memphis, and in the country of Pathros,[a] saying, 2 Thus says the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel: You have seen all the calamity that I have brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah. Look at them; today they are a desolation, and no man dwells in them, 3 because of their wickedness, which they have committed to provoke Me to anger, in that they went to burn incense and to serve other gods, whom they did not know; they nor you nor your fathers. 4 However, I sent to you all My servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, “Oh, do not do this abominable thing that I hate.” 5 But they did not listen nor incline their ear to turn from their wickedness, not to burn incense to other gods. 6 Therefore My fury and My anger was poured out and was kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; and they are ruined and desolate, as it is this day.
7 Now thus says the Lord God of Hosts, the God of Israel: Why are you committing this great evil against your souls, to cut off from you man and woman, child and infant, out of Judah, leaving you no one to remain, 8 provoking Me to wrath with the works of your hands, burning incense to other gods in the land of Egypt, where you have gone to dwell, so that you might cut yourselves off and become a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth? 9 Have you forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, and the wickedness of the kings of Judah, and the wickedness of their wives, and your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, which they have committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 10 They are not humbled even to this day, nor have they feared, nor have they walked in My law and My statutes that I set before you and before your fathers.
11 Therefore thus says the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel: I will set My face against you for disaster, and to cut off all Judah. 12 I will take the remnant of Judah who have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, and they all will be consumed and fall in the land of Egypt. They will even be consumed by the sword and by the famine. They will die, from the least even to the greatest, by the sword and by the famine; and they will be an execration, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach. 13 For I will punish those who dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem; by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. 14 So none of the remnant of Judah who have gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there will escape or remain, with the result that they return into the land of Judah to which they have a desire to return to dwell there. For no one shall return except those who escape.
15 Then all the men who knew that their wives had burned incense to other gods and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people who lived in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying: 16 “As for the word that you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord, we will not listen to you. 17 But we will certainly do whatever we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings to her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our officials, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For then we had plenty of food, and were well off, and saw no disaster. 18 But since we left off burning incense to the queen of heaven and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have been in want of all things and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine.”
19 The women also said, “When we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings to her, did we make her cakes to worship her and pour out drink offerings to her without our husbands?”
Calamity 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 such an answer: 21 “The incense offerings that you burned in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, you, and your fathers, your kings, and your officials, and the people of the land, did not the Lord remember them and did they not come into His mind? 22 So the Lord could no longer bear it because of the evil of your deeds and because of the abominations which you have committed. Therefore your land is a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as it is this day. 23 Because you have burned incense and because you have sinned against the Lord and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord, nor walked in His law, nor in His statutes, nor in His testimonies, therefore this calamity has happened to you, as it is this day.”
24 Moreover Jeremiah said to all the people and to all the women, “Hear the word of the Lord, all Judah who are in the land of Egypt. 25 Thus says the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel: You and your wives have both spoken with your mouths and fulfilled with your hand, saying, ‘We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings to her.’
“Proceed to accomplish your vows and surely perform your vows! 26 Yet hear the word of the Lord, all Judah who dwells in the land of Egypt: I have sworn by My great name, says the Lord, that My name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, ‘As the Lord God lives.’ 27 I will watch over them for disaster 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 the famine until there is an end of them. 28 Yet a small number who escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, and all the remnant of Judah who have gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there will know whose words will stand, Mine or theirs.
29 “This will be a sign to you, says the Lord, that I will punish you in this place so that you may know that My words shall surely stand against you for disaster. 30 Thus says the Lord: I will give Pharaoh Hophra the 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 sought his life.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 44:1 Upper Egypt.
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.