Chronological
Jeremiah Buys a Field
32 This is the word the Lord spoke to Jeremiah in the tenth year Zedekiah was king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar [C 587 bc; 52:4–5]. 2 At that time the army of the king of Babylon was ·surrounding [besieging] Jerusalem. Jeremiah the prophet was ·under arrest [imprisoned; confined] in the courtyard of the guard, which was at the ·palace [L house] of the king of Judah.
3 Zedekiah king of Judah had ·put Jeremiah in prison there [confined; imprisoned him]. Zedekiah had asked, “Why have you prophesied the things you have?” (Jeremiah had said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I will soon hand this city [C Jerusalem] over to the king of Babylon, and he will capture it. 4 Zedekiah king of Judah will not ·escape [be rescued] from the ·Babylonian [L Chaldean] army, but he will surely be handed over to the king of Babylon. And he will speak to him [C the king of Babylon] face to face and see him with his own eyes. 5 The king will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will stay until I have punished him,’ says the Lord. ‘If you fight against the Babylonians, you will not succeed.’”)
6 Jeremiah said [C while still in prison], “The Lord spoke this word to me: 7 Hanamel, son of your uncle Shallum, will come to you soon. Hanamel will say to you, ‘Buy my field near the town of Anathoth [C Jeremiah’s hometown; 1:1]. It is your right and your duty to buy that field [C because he is a near relative; Lev. 25:23–25].’
8 “Then it happened just as the Lord had said. ·My cousin [L The son of my uncle] Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard and said to me, ‘Buy for yourself my field near Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. It is your right and duty to buy it and own it.’ So I knew this was a ·message [L word] from the Lord.
9 “I bought the field at Anathoth from ·my cousin [L the son of my uncle] Hanamel, weighing out ·seven ounces [L seventeen shekels] of silver for him. 10 I ·signed the record [L wrote in a scroll] and sealed it and had some people witness it. I also weighed out the silver on the scales. 11 Then I took both copies of the ·record [scroll] of ·ownership [purchase]—the one that was sealed that had the demands and ·limits of ownership [terms], and the one that was ·not sealed [L exposed]. 12 And I gave them to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah [36; 43:3, 6; 45:1–2]. My cousin Hanamel, the other witnesses who signed the ·record [scroll] of ·ownership [purchase], and many ·Jews [L Judeans] sitting in the courtyard of the guard saw me give the ·record [scroll] of ·ownership [purchase] to Baruch.
13 “·With all the people watching [L Before their eyes], I ·told [L commanded] Baruch, 14 ‘This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: Take both copies of the ·record [scroll] of ·ownership [purchase]—the sealed copy and the copy that was ·not sealed [L exposed]—and put them in a clay jar so they will ·last [endure; stand] ·a long time [L for many days]. 15 This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: In the future my people will once again buy houses and fields and vineyards in this land [C Israel].’
16 “After I gave the ·record [scroll] of ·ownership [purchase] to Baruch son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord, 17 Oh, Lord God, you made the ·skies [heavens] and the earth with your very great power [Gen. 1] and ·strength [L outstretched arm]. There is nothing too hard for you to do [Ex. 3:20; Job 9:10; 37:5; Mic. 7:15]. 18 You show ·love and kindness [loyalty] to thousands of people, but you also ·bring punishment to children for their parents’ sins [L repay the iniquities of the fathers to the laps of their children after them; Ex. 34:7; Deut. 5:9–10]. Great and powerful God, your name is the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts]. 19 You ·plan [are great in counsel] and ·do great things [mighty in deeds]. ·You see everything that people do [L Your eyes are open to all the ways/paths of people], and you ·reward people for the way they live and for what they do [L give to each according to his way and according to the fruit of his deeds]. 20 You did ·miracles [signs] and wonderful things in the land of Egypt [Ex. 7–15]. You have continued doing them in Israel and among the other nations even until today. So you have ·become well known [L made yourself a name]. 21 You brought your people, the Israelites, out of Egypt using signs and miracles and your ·great power [L strong hand] and ·strength [L outstretched arm]. You brought great terror on everyone. 22 You gave them this land that you promised to their ·ancestors [fathers] long ago, a ·fertile land [land flowing with milk and honey; Gen. 12:1–3]. 23 They came into this land and ·took it for their own [possessed it], but they did not ·obey you [L listen to your voice] or follow your ·teachings [laws; instructions]. They did not do everything you commanded. So you made all these terrible things happen to them.
24 “Look! The ·enemy has surrounded the city and has built roads to the top of the walls [L siege ramps have come to the city] to capture it. Because of ·war [L sword], ·hunger [famine], and ·terrible diseases [plague; pestilence], the city will be handed over to the ·Babylonians [L Chaldeans] who are attacking it. You said this would happen, and now you see it is happening. 25 But now, Lord God, you tell me, ‘Buy the field with silver and call in witnesses.’ You tell me this while the ·Babylonian army is ready to capture the city [L city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans].”
26 Then the Lord spoke this word to Jeremiah: 27 “I am the Lord, the God of ·every person on the earth [L all flesh]. ·Nothing is impossible [L Is anything too hard…?] for me. 28 So this is what the Lord says: I ·will soon hand over the city of Jerusalem to [L am giving this city into the hand of] the ·Babylonian army [L Chaldeans] and ·to [L into the hand of] Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will capture it. 29 The ·Babylonian army [L Chaldeans] is already attacking this city [C Jerusalem]. They will soon enter it and start a fire to burn down the city and its houses. The people of Jerusalem ·offered sacrifices [or burned incense] to Baal [C the chief God of the Canaanites] on the roofs [C flat roofs were living space] of those same houses and poured out drink offerings to other idols to make me angry. 30 From their youth, the ·people [L sons] of Israel and Judah have done only ·the things I said were wrong [L evil] in my eyes. They have made me angry by ·worshiping idols made with [L the works of] their own hands,” says the Lord. 31 “From the day this city was built until now, this city has made me angry, so angry that I must remove it from ·my sight [before me]. 32 I will destroy it, because of all the evil the ·people [L sons] of Israel and Judah have done. The people, their kings and officers, their priests and prophets, all the people of Judah, and the people of Jerusalem have made me angry. 33 They turned their backs to me, not their faces. I tried to teach them again and again, but they wouldn’t listen or ·learn [L receive instruction/discipline]. 34 They put their ·hateful idols [abominations] in the ·place where I have chosen to be worshiped [L house called by my name], so they made it unclean [C in a ritual sense]. 35 In the Valley of Ben Hinnom they built ·places to worship [L high places of; C sites associated with pagan worship or inappropriate worship of God] Baal so they could ·burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices [L make their sons and daughters pass through (the fire)] to Molech. But I never commanded them to do such a ·hateful thing [abomination]. It never entered my ·mind [heart] that they would do such a thing and cause Judah to sin [7:30–34; 19:1–6].
36 “You are saying, ‘Because of ·war [L sword], ·hunger [famine], and ·terrible diseases [plague; pestilence], the city will be handed over to the king of Babylon.’ But the Lord, the God of Israel, says about this city [C Jerusalem]: 37 I ·forced them [drove them out] from their land, because I was furious and very angry with them. But soon I will gather them from all the lands where I ·forced them to go [drove them out], and I will ·bring them back [restore them] to this place, where they may live in ·safety [confidence]. 38 They [C people of Israel and Judah] will be my people, and I will be their God. 39 I will ·make them truly want to be one people with one goal [L give them one heart and one way/path]. They will truly want to ·worship [L fear] me all their ·lives [L days], for their own good and for the good of their children after them.
40 “I will ·make [L cut] an ·agreement with them that will last forever [L eternal covenant with them; 31:31–34; Is. 55:3; 61:8; Ezek. 16:60; 37:27]. I will never turn away from them; I will always do good to them. I will ·make them want to respect me [L place my fear in their hearts] so they will never ·turn away [depart] from me. 41 I will enjoy doing good to them. And with ·my whole being [L all my heart and all my soul] I will ·surely [L in faithfulness] plant them in this land.”
42 This is what the Lord says: “I have brought this great ·disaster [harm; trouble] to this people [C the people of Israel and Judah]. In the same way I will bring the good things that I promise to do for them. 43 You are saying, ‘This land is an ·empty desert [desolation], without people or animals. It has been handed over to the ·Babylonians [L Chaldeans].’ But in the future, people will again buy fields in this land. 44 They will use their ·money [silver] to buy fields. They will ·sign [L write] and seal their ·agreements [scrolls] and call in witnesses. They will again buy fields in the land of Benjamin, in the area around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the mountains, in the ·western hills [L Shephelah], and in ·southern Judah [L the Negev]. I will ·make everything as good for them as it once was [restore their fortunes],” says the Lord.
The Promise of the Lord
33 While Jeremiah was still ·locked up [confined; imprisoned] in the courtyard of the guards, the Lord spoke his word to him a second time: 2 “These are the words of the Lord, who made it [C the earth; Gen. 1], ·shaped [formed; C like a potter] it, and ·gave it order [established it], whose name is the Lord: 3 ‘Pray [L Call] to me, and I will answer you. I will tell you ·important secrets [L great and hidden things] you have never ·heard [L known] before.’ 4 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says about the houses in this city [C Jerusalem] and the ·royal palaces [L houses of the king] of Judah that have been torn down ·to be used in defense of the attack by the Babylonian army [L against the siege ramps and against the sword]: 5 ‘Some people will come to fight against the ·Babylonians [L Chaldeans]. They will fill them [C the houses] with ·the bodies of people [corpses] I ·killed [struck] in my ·hot anger [L anger and my wrath]. I have ·turned away [L hidden my face] from this city because of all the evil its people have done.
6 “‘But then I will bring ·health [recovery] and healing to the people there. I will heal them and ·let them enjoy [L reveal to them] ·great [an abundance of] peace and ·safety [security]. 7 I will ·bring Judah and Israel back from captivity [restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel] and ·make them strong countries [L rebuild them] as in the past. 8 They sinned against me, but I will ·wash away [cleanse them from] that sin. They did ·evil [iniquity] and ·turned away from [transgressed against] me, but I will forgive them. 9 Then it [C Jerusalem] will be to me a name that brings joy! And people from all nations of the earth will praise [L and glorify] it when they hear about the good things I am doing there. They will ·be surprised [fear] and ·shocked [tremble] at all the good things and the ·peace [or prosperity] I will bring to it.’
10 “You are saying, ‘Our country is an ·empty desert [ruin], without people or animals.’ But this is what the Lord says: It is now quiet in the streets of Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah, without people or animals, but ·it will be noisy there soon [L there will once more be heard…]! 11 ·There will be [L …the] sounds of joy and gladness and the happy sounds of brides and bridegrooms. There will be the sounds of people bringing to the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord their offerings of thanks to the Lord. They will say,
‘Praise the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts],
because the Lord is good!
His ·love [loyalty] continues forever!’
They will say this because I will ·again do good things for Judah [restore the fortunes of the land], as I did in the beginning,” says the Lord.
12 This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says: “This place is ·empty [a ruin] now, without people or animals. But there will be shepherds in this place [C Judah] and pastures where they let their flocks rest. 13 ·Shepherds will again count their sheep as the sheep walk in front of them [L Flocks will again pass under the hand of those who count them]. They will count them in the mountains and in the ·western hills [L Shephelah], in ·southern Judah [L the Negev] and the land of Benjamin, and around Jerusalem and the other towns of Judah!” says the Lord.
The Good Branch
14 The Lord says, “The ·time is [L days are] coming when I will do the good thing I promised to the people of Israel and Judah.
15 In those days and at that time,
I will make a ·good [righteous] branch sprout from David’s family [Is. 11:1; Zech. 3:8; 6:12].
He will do ·what is fair [justice] and ·right [righteousness] in the land.
16 ·At that time [L In those days] Judah will be ·saved [rescued],
and the people of Jerusalem will live ·in safety [with confidence].
·The branch will be named [L This one will be called by this]:
The Lord ·Does What Is Right [Our Righteousness].”
17 This is what the Lord says: “·Someone from David’s family will always sit on the throne of the family [L David will never lack a man who will sit on the throne of the house] of Israel [2 Sam. 7:11–16]. 18 And there will always be priests from the family of Levi. They will always stand before me to offer burnt offerings [Lev. 1:1–17] and grain [L gift; tribute] offerings [Lev. 2:1] and sacrifices to me [Num. 25:13].”
19 The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah, saying: 20 “This is what the Lord says: I have an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with day and night that they will always come at the right times [C the covenant with Noah; Gen. 9:8–17]. If you could ·change [L break] that ·agreement [covenant; treaty], 21 only then could you ·change [L break] my ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with David and Levi. Only then would my servant David not have a descendant ruling on his throne. And only then would the family of Levi not be serving me [C in the Temple]. 22 But I will give many ·descendants [L seed] to my servant David and to the family group of Levi who serve me. They will be as many as the stars in the sky that no one can count. They will be as many as the grains of sand on the seashore that no one can measure [Gen. 15:5; 22:17; 26:4].”
23 The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah, saying: 24 “Have you [C Jeremiah] heard what the people are saying? They say: ‘The Lord ·turned away from [rejected] the two ·families [kingdoms; C of Israel and Judah] that he chose.’ Now they [L hold my people in such contempt that they] don’t think of them as a nation anymore!”
25 This is what the Lord says: “If I had not made my ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with day and night [v. 20], and if I had not made the ·laws [statutes; ordinances; requirements] for the ·sky [heavens] and earth, 26 only then would I ·turn away from [reject] Jacob’s ·descendants [L seed]. And only then would I not let the ·descendants [L seed] of David my servant rule over the ·descendants [L seed] of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But I will be ·kind [compassionate] to them and ·cause good things to happen to them [restore their fortunes] again.”
A Warning to Zedekiah
34 The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and all the towns around it. Nebuchadnezzar had with him all his army and the armies of all the kingdoms and peoples ·he ruled [under his hand]. 2 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, said: “Jeremiah, go to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him: ‘This is what the Lord says: I will soon hand this city [C Jerusalem] over to the king of Babylon, and he will burn it ·down [L with fire]! 3 You will not escape from ·the king of Babylon [L his hand]; you will surely be captured and handed over to him. You will see the king of Babylon ·with your own eyes [eye to eye], and he will talk to you face to face. And you will go to Babylon. 4 But, Zedekiah king of Judah, listen to the promise of the Lord. This is what the Lord says about you: You will not be killed with a sword. 5 You will die in a peaceful way. As people ·made funeral fires [or burn spices; L burn] to honor your ·ancestors [fathers], the kings who ruled before you, so people will ·make a funeral fire [or burn spices; L burn] to honor you. They will ·cry for you and sadly [mourn for you and] say, “Ah, master!” I myself make this promise to you, says the Lord [52:8–11].’”
6 So Jeremiah the prophet gave this message to Zedekiah in Jerusalem. 7 This was while the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and the cities of Judah that ·had not yet been taken [remained]—Lachish and Azekah [C fortress cities to the west of Jerusalem]. These were the only ·strong, walled [fortified] cities left in the land of Judah.
Slaves Are Mistreated
8 The Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah. This was after King Zedekiah had ·made [L cut] an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with all the people in Jerusalem to ·free all the Hebrew slaves [L proclaim liberty/emancipation; Ex. 21:1–11; Lev. 25:39–46; Deut. 15:12–18]. 9 Everyone was supposed to free his Hebrew slaves, both male and female. No one was to keep a fellow ·Jew [L Judean] as a slave. 10 All the officers and all the people ·accepted [obeyed] this agreement; they agreed to free their male and female slaves and no longer keep them as slaves. So all the slaves were set free. 11 But after that, they [C the people who owned slaves] ·changed their minds [L turned back]. So they took back the people they had set free and made them slaves again.
12 Then the Lord spoke his word to Jeremiah: 13 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I brought your ·ancestors [fathers] out of Egypt ·where they were slaves [L the house of bondage/slavery] and ·made [L cut] an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with them. 14 I said to your ·ancestors [fathers]: ‘At the end of every seven years, each one of you must set his Hebrew slaves free. If a fellow Hebrew has sold himself to you, you must let him go free after he has served you for six years.’ But your ·ancestors [fathers] did not listen or ·pay attention [L incline their ear] to me. 15 A short time ago you ·changed your hearts [repented] and did what ·I say is right [L was right in my eyes]. ·Each of you gave freedom [L …to proclaim liberty/emancipation] to his fellow Hebrews who were slaves. And you even ·made [L cut] an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] before me in the place ·where I have chosen to be worshiped [L called by my name]. 16 But now you have ·changed your minds [turned around]. You have ·shown you do not honor [profaned; dishonored] me. Each of you has taken back the male and female slaves you had set free, and you have forced them to become your slaves again.
17 “So this is what the Lord says: You have not ·obeyed [listened to] me. You have not ·given freedom [proclaimed liberty/emancipation] to your fellow Hebrews, neither ·relatives [brothers] nor ·friends [neighbors]. But now I will ·give freedom [proclaim liberty/emancipation to you], says the Lord, to ·war [L the sword], to ·terrible diseases [plague; pestilence], and to ·hunger [famine]. I will make you ·hated by [a horror to] all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 I will hand over the men who ·broke [transgressed] my ·agreement [covenant; treaty], who have not kept the ·promises [L terms of the covenant/treaty] they made before me. They cut a calf into two pieces before me and ·walked between [L passed through] the pieces [C an ancient oath ritual saying that if one broke the agreement they would die like the calf; Gen. 15:9–20]. 19 These people made the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] before me by ·walking between [L passing through] the pieces of the calf: the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the ·officers of the court [or eunuchs], the priests, and all the people of the land. 20 So I will hand them over to their enemies and to everyone who ·wants to kill them [L seeks their life]. Their ·bodies [corpses] will become food for the birds of the ·air [heavens] and for the wild animals of the earth. 21 I will hand Zedekiah king of Judah and his officers over to their enemies, and to everyone who ·wants to kill them [L seeks their life], and to the army of the king of Babylon, even though they have ·left Jerusalem [L gone up from you]. 22 I will give the order, says the Lord, to ·bring the Babylonian army back to Jerusalem [L return them to this city]. It will fight against it, capture it, set it on fire, and burn it down. I will ·destroy the towns in Judah so that they become ruins [L make the towns of Judah a desolation] where no one lives!”
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