Good News Translation (GNT)

Jeremiah and the Prophet Hananiah

1 That same year,in the fifth month of the fourth year that Zedekiah was king, Hananiah son of Azzur, a prophet from the town of Gibeon, spoke to me in the Temple. In the presence of the priests and of the people he told me

2 that the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, had said: “I have broken the power of the king of Babylonia.

3 Within two years I will bring back to this place all the Temple treasures that King Nebuchadnezzar took to Babylonia.

4 I will also bring back the king of Judah, Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim, along with all of the people of Judah who went into exile in Babylonia. Yes, I will break the power of the king of Babylonia. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

5 Then in the presence of the priests and of all the people who were standing in the Temple, I said to Hananiah,

6 “Wonderful! I hope the Lord will do this! I certainly hope he will make your prophecy come true and will bring back from Babylonia all the Temple treasures and all the people who were taken away as prisoners.

7 But listen to what I say to you and to the people.

8 The prophets who spoke long ago, before my time and yours, predicted that war, starvation, and disease would come to many nations and powerful kingdoms.

9 But a prophet who predicts peace can only be recognized as a prophet whom the Lord has truly sent when that prophet’s predictions come true.”

10 Then Hananiah took the yoke off my neck, broke it in pieces,

11 and said in the presence of all the people, “The Lord has said that this is how he will break the yoke that King Nebuchadnezzar has put on the neck of all the nations; and he will do this within two years.” Then I left.

12 Some time after this the Lord told me

13 to go and tell Hananiah: “The Lord has said that you may be able to break a wooden yoke, but hewill replace it with an iron yoke.

14 The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, has said that he will put an iron yoke on all these nations and that they will serve King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia. The Lord has said that he will make even the wild animals serve Nebuchadnezzar.”

15 Then I told Hananiah this, and added, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord did not send you, and you are making these people believe a lie.

16 And so the Lord himself says that he is going to get rid of you. Before this year is over you will die because you have told the people to rebel against the Lord.”

17 And Hananiah died in the seventh month of that same year.

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/28-5e19014e6c092086decf502a0bc8584a.mp3?version_id=68—

Jeremiah’s Letter to the Jews in Babylonia

1 I wrote a letter to the priests, the prophets, the leaders of the people, and to all the others whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken away as prisoners from Jerusalem to Babylonia.

2 I wrote it after King Jehoiachin, his mother, the palace officials, the leaders of Judah and of Jerusalem, the engravers, and the skilled workers had been taken into exile.

3 I gave the letter to Elasah son of Shaphan and to Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah was sending to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia. It said:

4 “The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those people whom he allowed Nebuchadnezzar to take away as prisoners from Jerusalem to Babylonia:

5 ‘Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat what you grow in them.

6 Marry and have children. Then let your children get married, so that they also may have children. You must increase in numbers and not decrease.

7 Work for the good of the cities where I have made you go as prisoners. Pray to me on their behalf, because if they are prosperous, you will be prosperous too.

8 I, the Lord, the God of Israel, warn you not to let yourselves be deceived by the prophets who live among you or by any others who claim they can predict the future. Do not pay any attention to theirdreams.

9 They are telling you lies in my name. I did not send them. I, the Lord Almighty, have spoken.’

10 “The Lord says, ‘When Babylonia’s seventy years are over, I will show my concern for you and keep my promise to bring you back home.

11 I alone know the plans I have for you, plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring about the future you hope for.

12 Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will answer you.

13 You will seek me, and you will find me because you will seek me with all your heart.

14 Yes, I say, you will find me, and I will restore you to your land. I will gather you from every country and from every place to which I have scattered you, and I will bring you back to the land from which I had sent you away into exile. I, the Lord, have spoken.’

15 “You say that the Lord has given you prophets in Babylonia.

16 Listen to what the Lord says about the king who rules the kingdom that David ruled and about the people of this city, that is, your relatives who were not taken away as prisoners with you.

17 The Lord Almighty says, ‘I am bringing war, starvation, and disease on them, and I will make them like figs that are too rotten to be eaten.

18 I will pursue them with war, starvation, and disease, and all the nations of the world will be horrified at what they see. Everywhere I scatter them, people will be shocked and terrified at what has happened to them. People will make fun of them and use their name as a curse.

19 This will happen to them because they did not obey the message that I kept on sending to them through my servants the prophets. They refused to listen.

20 All of you whom I sent into exile in Babylonia, listen to what I, the Lord, say.’

21 “The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, has spoken about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are telling you lies in his name. He has said that he will hand them over to the power of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia, who will put them to death before your eyes.

22 When the people who were taken away as prisoners from Jerusalem to Babylonia want to bring a curse on someone, they will say, ‘May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylonia roasted alive!’

23 This will be their fate because they are guilty of terrible sins—they have committed adultery and have told lies in the Lord’s name. This was against the Lord’s will; he knows what they have done, and he is a witness against them.The Lord has spoken.”

The Letter of Shemaiah

24-25 The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, gave me a message for Shemaiah of Nehelam, who had sent a letter in his own name to all the people of Jerusalem and to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah and to all the other priests. In this letter Shemaiah wrote to Zephaniah:

26 “The Lord made you a priest in place of Jehoiada, and you are now the chief officerin the Temple. It is your duty to see that every crazy person who pretends to be a prophet is placed in chains with an iron collar around the neck.

27 Why haven’t you done this to Jeremiah of Anathoth, who has been speaking as a prophet to the people?

28 He must be stopped because he told the people in Babylonia that they would be prisoners there a long time and should build houses, settle down, plant gardens, and eat what they grow.”

29 Zephaniah read the letter to me,

30 and then the Lord told me

31-32 to send to all the prisoners in Babylon this message about Shemaiah: “I, the Lord, will punish Shemaiah and all of his descendants. I did not send him, but he spoke to you as if he were a prophet, and he made you believe lies. He will have no descendants among you. He will not live to see the good things that I am going to do for my people, because he told them to rebel against me. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/29-0cc1865e416882865d142038d8faa0c5.mp3?version_id=68—

The Lord’s Promises to His People

1 The Lord, the God of Israel,

2 said to me, “Write down in a book everything that I have told you,

3 because the time is coming when I will restore my people, Israel and Judah. I will bring them back to the land that I gave their ancestors, and they will take possession of it again. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

4 The Lord says to the people of Israel and Judah,

5 “I heard a cry of terror,

a cry of fear and not of peace.

6 Now stop and think!

Can a man give birth to a child?

Why then do I see every man with his hands on his stomach

like a woman in labor?

Why is everyone so pale?

7 A terrible day is coming;

no other day can compare with it—

a time of distress for my people,

but they will survive.”

8 The Lord Almighty says, “When that day comes, I will break the yoke that is around their neck and remove their chains, and they will no longer be the slaves of foreigners.

9 Instead, they will serve me, the Lord their God, and a descendant of David, whom I will enthrone as king.

10 “My people, do not be afraid;

people of Israel, do not be terrified.

I will rescue you from that faraway land,

from the land where you are prisoners.

You will come back home and live in peace;

you will be secure, and no one will make you afraid.

11 I will come to you and save you.

I will destroy all the nations

where I have scattered you,

but I will not destroy you.

I will not let you go unpunished;

but when I punish you, I will be fair.

I, the Lord, have spoken.”

12 The Lord says to his people,

“Your wounds are incurable,

your injuries cannot be healed.

13 There is no one to take care of you,

no remedy for your sores,

no hope of healing for you.

14 All your lovers have forgotten you;

they no longer care about you.

I have attacked you like an enemy;

your punishment has been harsh

because your sins are many

and your wickedness is great.

15 Complain no more about your injuries;

there is no cure for you.

I punished you like this

because your sins are many

and your wickedness is great.

16 But now, all who devour you will be devoured,

and all your enemies will be taken away as prisoners.

All who oppress you will be oppressed,

and all who plunder you will be plundered.

17 I will make you well again;

I will heal your wounds,

though your enemies say,

‘Zion is an outcast;

no one cares about her.’

I, the Lord, have spoken.”

18 The Lord says,

“I will restore my people to their land

and have mercy on every family;

Jerusalem will be rebuilt,

and its palace restored.

19 The people who live there will sing praise;

they will shout for joy.

By my blessing they will increase in numbers;

my blessing will bring them honor.

20 I will restore the nation’s ancient power

and establish it firmly again;

I will punish all who oppress them.

21-22 Their ruler will come from their own nation,

their prince from their own people.

He will approach me when I invite him,

for who would dare come uninvited?

They will be my people,

and I will be their God.

I, the Lord, have spoken.”

23-24 The Lord’s anger is a storm, a furious wind that will rage over the heads of the wicked. It will not end until he has done all that he intends to do. In days to come his people will understand this clearly.

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/30-29ed228c9d2a4b71bd492f99056a3ff5.mp3?version_id=68—

Israel’s Return Home

1 The Lord says, “The time is coming when I will be the God of all the tribes of Israel, and they will be my people.

2 In the desert I showed mercy to those people who had escaped death. When the people of Israel longed for rest,

3 I appeared to themfrom far away. People of Israel, I have always loved you, so I continue to show you my constant love.

4 Once again I will rebuild you. Once again you will take up your tambourines and dance joyfully.

5 Once again you will plant vineyards on the hills of Samaria, and those who plant them will eat what the vineyards produce.

6 Yes, the time is coming when sentries will call out on the hills of Ephraim, ‘Let’s go up to Zion, to the Lord our God.’”

7 The Lord says,

“Sing with joy for Israel,

the greatest of the nations.

Sing your song of praise,

‘The Lord has saved hispeople;

he has rescued all who are left.’

8 I will bring them from the north

and gather them from the ends of the earth.

The blind and the lame will come with them,

pregnant women and those about to give birth.

They will come back a great nation.

9 My people will return weeping,

praying as I lead them back.

I will guide them to streams of water,

on a smooth road where they will not stumble.

I am like a father to Israel,

and Ephraim is my oldest son.”

10 The Lord says,

“Nations, listen to me

and proclaim my words on the far-off shores.

I scattered my people, but I will gather them

and guard them as a shepherd guards his flock.

11 I have set Israel’s people free

and have saved them from a mighty nation.

12 They will come and sing for joy on Mount Zion

and be delighted with my gifts—

gifts of grain and wine and olive oil,

gifts of sheep and cattle.

They will be like a well-watered garden;

they will have everything they need.

13 Then the young women will dance and be happy,

and men, young and old, will rejoice.

I will comfort them and turn their mourning into joy,

their sorrow into gladness.

14 I will fill the priests with the richest food

and satisfy all the needs of my people.

I, the Lord, have spoken.”

The Lord’s Mercy on Israel

15 The Lord says,

“A sound is heard in Ramah,

the sound of bitter weeping.

Rachel is crying for her children;

they are gone,

and she refuses to be comforted.

16 Stop your crying

and wipe away your tears.

All that you have done for your children

will not go unrewarded;

they will return from the enemy’s land.

17 There is hope for your future;

your children will come back home.

I, the Lord, have spoken.

18 “I hear the people of Israel say in grief,

‘Lord, we were like an untamed animal,

but you taught us to obey.

Bring us back;

we are ready to return to you,

the Lord our God.

19 We turned away from you,

but soon we wanted to return.

After you had punished us,

we hung our heads in grief.

We were ashamed and disgraced

because we sinned when we were young.’

20 “Israel, you are my dearest child,

the one I love best.

Whenever I mention your name,

I thinkof you with love.

My heart goes out to you;

I will be merciful.

21 Set up signs and mark the road;

find again the way by which you left.

Come back, people of Israel,

come home to the towns you left.

22 How long will you hesitate, faithless people?

I have created something new and different,

as different as a woman protecting a man.”

The Future Prosperity of God’s People

23 The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says, “When I restore the people to their land, they will once again say in the land of Judah and in its towns,

‘May the Lord bless the sacred hillof Jerusalem,

the holy place where he lives.’

24 People will live in Judah and in all its towns, and there will be farmers, and shepherds with their flocks.

25 I will refresh those who are weary and will satisfy with food everyone who is weak from hunger.

26 So then, people will say, ‘I went to sleep and woke up refreshed.’

27 “I, the Lord, say that the time is coming when I will fill the land of Israel and Judah with people and animals.

28 And just as I took care to uproot, to pull down, to overthrow, to destroy, and to demolish them, so I will take care to plant them and to build them up.

29 When that time comes, people will no longer say,

‘The parents ate the sour grapes,

But the children got the sour taste.’

30 Instead, those who eat sour grapes will have their own teeth set on edge; and everyone will die because of their own sin.”

31 The Lord says, “The time is coming when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.

32 It will not be like the old covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and led them out of Egypt. Although I was like a husband to them, they did not keep that covenant.

33 The new covenant that I will make with the people of Israel will be this: I will put my law within them and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

34 None of them will have to teach a neighbor to know the Lord, because all will know me, from the least to the greatest. I will forgive their sins and I will no longer remember their wrongs. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

35 The Lord provides the sun for light by day,

the moon and the stars to shine at night.

He stirs up the sea and makes it roar;

his name is the Lord Almighty.

36 He promises that as long as the natural order lasts,

so long will Israel be a nation.

37 If one day the sky could be measured

and the foundations of the earth explored,

only then would he reject the people of Israel

because of all they have done.

The Lord has spoken.

38 “The time is coming,” says the Lord, “when all of Jerusalem will be rebuilt as my city, from Hananel Tower west to the Corner Gate.

39 And the boundary line will continue from there on the west to the hill of Gareb and then around to Goah.

40 The entire valley, where the dead are buried and garbage is dumped, and all the fields above Kidron Brook as far as the Horse Gate to the east, will be sacred to me. The city will never again be torn down or destroyed.”

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/31-51a1c2835038331159866895181c88bb.mp3?version_id=68—

Jeremiah Buys a Field

1 The Lord spoke to me in the tenth year that Zedekiah was king of Judah, which was also the eighteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia.

2 At that time the army of the king of Babylonia was attacking Jerusalem, and I was locked up in the courtyard of the royal palace.

3 King Zedekiah had imprisoned me there and had accused me of announcing that the Lord had said, “I am going to let the king of Babylonia capture this city,

4 and King Zedekiah will not escape. He will be handed over to the king of Babylonia; he will see him face-to-face and will speak to him in person.

5 Zedekiah will be taken to Babylonia, and he will remain there until I deal with him. Even if he fights the Babylonians, he will not be successful. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

6 The Lord told me

7 that Hanamel, my uncle Shallum’s son, would come to me with the request to buy his field at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin, because I was his nearest relative and had the right to buy it for myself.

8 Then, just as the Lord had said, Hanamel came to me there in the courtyard and asked me to buy the field. So I knew that the Lord had really spoken to me.

9 I bought the field from Hanamel and weighed out the money to him; the price came to seventeen pieces of silver.

10 I signed and sealed the deed, had it witnessed, and weighed out the money on scales.

11 Then I took both copies of the deed of purchase—the sealed copy containing the contract and its conditions, and the open copy—

12 and gave them to Baruch, the son of Neriah and grandson of Mahseiah. I gave them to him in the presence of Hanamel and of the witnesses who had signed the deed of purchase and of the people who were sitting in the courtyard.

13 Before them all I said to Baruch,

14 “The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, has ordered you to take these deeds, both the sealed deed of purchase and the open copy, and to place them in a clay jar, so that they may be preserved for years to come.

15 The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, has said that houses, fields, and vineyards will again be bought in this land.”

Jeremiah’s Prayer

16 After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch, I prayed,

17 “Sovereign Lord, you made the earth and the sky by your great power and might; nothing is too difficult for you.

18 You have shown constant love to thousands, but you also punish people for the sins of their parents. You are a great and powerful God; you are the Lord Almighty.

19 You make wise plans and do mighty things; you see everything that people do, and you reward them according to their actions.

20 Long ago you performed miracles and wonders in Egypt, and you have continued to perform them to this day, both in Israel and among all the other nations, so that you are now known everywhere.

21 By means of miracles and wonders that terrified our enemies, you used your power and might to bring your people Israel out of Egypt.

22 You gave them this rich and fertile land, as you had promised their ancestors.

23 But when they came into this land and took possession of it, they did not obey your commands or live according to your teaching; they did nothing that you had ordered them to do. And so you brought all this destruction on them.

24 “The Babylonians have built siege mounds around the city to capture it, and they are attacking. War, starvation, and disease will make the city fall into their hands. You can see that all you have said has come true.

25 Yet, Sovereign Lord, you are the one who ordered me to buy the field in the presence of witnesses, even though the city is about to be captured by the Babylonians.”

26 Then the Lord said to me,

27 “I am the Lord, the God of all people. Nothing is too difficult for me.

28 I am going to give this city over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia and his army; they will capture it

29 and set it on fire. They will burn it down, together with the houses where people have made me angry by burning incense to Baal on the rooftops and by pouring out wine offerings to other gods.

30 From the very beginning of their history the people of Israel and the people of Judah have displeased me and made me angry by what they have done.

31 The people of this city have made me angry and furious from the day it was built. I have decided to destroy it

32 because of all the evil that has been done by the people of Judah and Jerusalem, together with their kings and leaders, their priests and prophets.

33 They turned their backs on me; and though I kept on teaching them, they would not listen and learn.

34 They even placed their disgusting idols in the Temple built for my worship, and they have defiled it.

35 They have built altars to Baal in Hinnom Valley, to sacrifice their sons and daughters to the god Molech. I did not command them to do this, and it did not even enter my mind that they would do such a thing and make the people of Judah sin.”

A Promise of Hope

36 The Lord, the God of Israel, said to me, “Jeremiah, the people are saying that war, starvation, and disease will make this city fall into the hands of the king of Babylonia. Now listen to what else I have to say.

37 I am going to gather the people from all the countries where I have scattered them in my anger and fury, and I am going to bring them back to this place and let them live here in safety.

38 Then they will be my people, and I will be their God.

39 I will give them a single purpose in life: to honor me for all time, for their own good and the good of their descendants.

40 I will make an eternal covenant with them. I will never stop doing good things for them, and I will make them fear me with all their heart, so that they will never turn away from me.

41 I will take pleasure in doing good things for them, and I will establish them permanently in this land.

42 “Just as I have brought this disaster on these people, so I am going to give them all the good things that I have promised.

43 The people are saying that this land will be like a desert where neither people nor animals live, and that it will be given over to the Babylonians. But fields will once again be bought in this land.

44 People will buy them, and the deeds will be signed, sealed, and witnessed. This will take place in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah, and in the towns in the hill country, in the foothills, and in southern Judah. I will restore the people to their land. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/32-45335ad652c654b5662dbcedb1089dc0.mp3?version_id=68—

Another Promise of Hope

1 While I was still in prison in the courtyard, the Lord’s message came to me again.

2 The Lord, who made the earth, who formed it and set it in place, spoke to me. He whose name is the Lord said,

3 “Call to me, and I will answer you; I will tell you wonderful and marvelous things that you know nothing about.

4 I, the Lord, the God of Israel, say that the houses of Jerusalem and the royal palace of Judah will be torn down as a result of the siege and the attack.

5 Some will fight against the Babylonians, who will fill the houseswith the corpses of those whom I am going to strike down in my anger and fury. I have turned away from this city because of the evil things that its people have done.

6 But I will heal this city and its people and restore them to health. I will show them abundant peace and security.

7 I will make Judah and Israel prosperous, and I will rebuild them as they were before.

8 I will purify them from the sins that they have committed against me, and I will forgive their sins and their rebellion.

9 Jerusalem will be a source of joy, honor, and pride to me; and every nation in the world will fear and tremble when they hear about the good things that I do for the people of Jerusalem and about the prosperity that I bring to the city.”

10 The Lord said, “People are saying that this place is like a desert, that it has no people or animals living in it. And they are right; the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem are empty; no people or animals live there. But in these places you will hear again

11 the shouts of gladness and joy and the happy sounds of wedding feasts. You will hear people sing as they bring thank offerings to my Temple; they will say,

‘Give thanks to the Lord Almighty,

because he is good

and his love is eternal.’

I will make this land as prosperous as it was before. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

12 The Lord Almighty said, “In this land that is like a desert and where no people or animals live, there will once again be pastures where shepherds can take their sheep.

13 In the towns in the hill country, in the foothills, and in southern Judah, in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, and in the towns of Judah, shepherds will once again count their sheep. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

14 The Lord said, “The time is coming when I will fulfill the promise that I made to the people of Israel and Judah.

15 At that time I will choose as king a righteous descendant of David. That king will do what is right and just throughout the land.

16 The people of Judah and of Jerusalem will be rescued and will live in safety. The city will be called ‘The Lord Our Salvation.’

17 I, the Lord, promise that there will always be a descendant of David to be king of Israel

18 and that there will always be priests from the tribe of Levi to serve me and to offer burnt offerings, grain offerings, and sacrifices.”

19 The Lord said to me,

20 “I have made a covenant with the day and with the night, so that they always come at their proper times; and that covenant can never be broken.

21 In the same way I have made a covenant with my servant David that he would always have a descendant to be king, and I have made a covenant with the priests from the tribe of Levi that they would always serve me; and those covenants can never be broken.

22 I will increase the number of descendants of my servant David and the number of priests from the tribe of Levi, so that it will be as impossible to count them as it is to count the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the seashore.”

23 The Lord said to me,

24 “Have you noticed how people are saying that I have rejected Israel and Judah, the two families that I chose? And so they look with contempt on my people and no longer consider them a nation.

25 But I, the Lord, have a covenant with day and night, and I have made the laws that control earth and sky.

26 And just as surely as I have done this, so I will maintain my covenant with Jacob’s descendants and with my servant David. I will choose one of David’s descendants to rule over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will be merciful to my people and make them prosperous again.”

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/33-f1fb1f6ea2bcff44a0a7ce8ff55cce8b.mp3?version_id=68—

A Message for Zedekiah

1 The Lord spoke to me when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia and his army, supported by troops from all the nations and races that were subject to him, were attacking Jerusalem and its nearby towns.

2 The Lord, the God of Israel, told me to go and say to King Zedekiah of Judah, “I, the Lord, will hand this city over to the king of Babylonia, and he will burn it down.

3 You will not escape; you will be captured and handed over to him. You will see him face-to-face and talk to him in person; then you will go to Babylonia.

4 Zedekiah, listen to what I say about you. You will not be killed in battle.

5 You will die in peace, and as people burned incense when they buried your ancestors, who were kings before you, in the same way they will burn incense for you. They will mourn over you and say, ‘Our king is dead!’ I, the Lord, have spoken.”

6 Then I gave this message to King Zedekiah in Jerusalem

7 while the army of the king of Babylonia was attacking the city. The army was also attacking Lachish and Azekah, the only other fortified cities left in Judah.

Deceitful Treatment of Slaves

8 King Zedekiah and the people of Jerusalem had made an agreement to set free

9 their Hebrew slaves, both male and female, so that no one would have an Israelite as a slave.

10 All the people and their leaders agreed to free their slaves and never to enslave them again. They did set them free,

11 but later they changed their minds, took them back, and forced them to become slaves again.

12 Then the Lord,

13 the God of Israel, told me to say to the people: “I made a covenant with your ancestors when I rescued them from Egypt and set them free from slavery. I told them that

14 every seven years they were to set free any Hebrew slave who had served them for six years. But your ancestors would not pay any attention to me or listen to what I said.

15 Just a few days ago you changed your minds and did what pleased me. All of you agreed to set all Israelites free, and you made a covenant in my presence, in the Temple where I am worshiped.

16 But then you changed your minds again and dishonored me. All of you took back the slaves whom you had set free as they desired, and you forced them into slavery again.

17 So now, I, the Lord, say that you have disobeyed me; you have not given all Israelites their freedom. Very well, then, I will give you freedom: the freedom to die by war, disease, and starvation. I will make every nation in the world horrified at what I do to you.

18-19 The officials of Judah and of Jerusalem, together with the palace officials, the priests, and all the leaders, made a covenant with me by walking between the two halves of a bull that they had cut in two. But they broke the covenant and did not keep its terms. So I will do to these people what they did to the bull.

20 I will hand them over to their enemies, who want to kill them, and their corpses will be eaten by birds and wild animals.

21 I will also hand over King Zedekiah of Judah and his officials to those who want to kill them. I will hand them over to the Babylonian army, which has stopped its attack against you.

22 I will give the order, and they will return to this city. They will attack it, capture it, and burn it down. I will make the towns of Judah like a desert where no one lives. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/34-8d6c202088d50a9c8701c581b609aefa.mp3?version_id=68—

Jeremiah and the Rechabites

1 When Jehoiakim son of Josiah was king of Judah, the Lord said to me,

2 “Go to the members of the Rechabite clan and talk to them. Then bring them into one of the rooms in the Temple and offer them some wine.”

3 So I took the entire Rechabite clan—Jaazaniah (the son of another Jeremiah, who was Habazziniah’s son) and all his brothers and sons—

4 and brought them to the Temple. I took them into the room of the disciples of the prophet Hanan son of Igdaliah. This room was above the room of Maaseiah son of Shallum, an important official in the Temple, and near the rooms of the other officials.

5 Then I placed cups and bowls full of wine before the Rechabites, and I said to them, “Have some wine.”

6 But they answered, “We do not drink wine. Our ancestor Jonadab son of Rechab told us that neither we nor our descendants were ever to drink any wine.

7 He also told us not to build houses or farm the land and not to plant vineyards or buy them. He commanded us always to live in tents, so that we might remain in this land where we live like strangers.

8 We have obeyed all the instructions that Jonadab gave us. We ourselves never drink wine, and neither do our wives, our sons, or our daughters.

9-10 We do not build houses for homes—we live in tents—and we own no vineyards, fields, or grain. We have fully obeyed everything that our ancestor Jonadab commanded us.

11 But when King Nebuchadnezzar invaded the country, we decided to come to Jerusalem to get away from the Babylonian and Syrian armies. That is why we are living in Jerusalem.”

12-13 Then the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, told me to go and say to the people of Judah and Jerusalem, “I, the Lord, ask you why you refuse to listen to me and to obey my instructions.

14 Jonadab’s descendants have obeyed his command not to drink wine, and to this very day none of them drink any. But I have kept on speaking to you, and you have not obeyed me.

15 I have continued to send you all my servants the prophets, and they have told you to give up your evil ways and to do what is right. They warned you not to worship and serve other gods, so that you could go on living in the land that I gave you and your ancestors. But you would not listen to me or pay any attention to me.

16 Jonadab’s descendants have obeyed the command that their ancestor gave them, but you people have not obeyed me.

17 So now, I, the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, will bring on you people of Judah and of Jerusalem all the destruction that I promised. I will do this because you would not listen when I spoke to you, and you would not answer when I called you.”

18 Then I told the Rechabite clan that the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, had said, “You have obeyed the command that your ancestor Jonadab gave you; you have followed all his instructions, and you have done everything he commanded you.

19 So I, the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, promise that Jonadab son of Rechab will always have a male descendant to serve me.”

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/35-949e8dda14c7a4ac9569925ba57afc5e.mp3?version_id=68—

Baruch Reads the Scroll in the Temple

1 In the fourth year that Jehoiakim son of Josiah was king of Judah, the Lord said to me,

2 “Get a scroll and write on it everything that I have told you about Israel and Judah and all the nations. Write everything that I have told you from the time I first spoke to you, when Josiah was king, up to the present.

3 Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about all the destruction that I intend to bring on them, they will turn from their evil ways. Then I will forgive their wickedness and their sins.”

4 So I called Baruch son of Neriah and dictated to him everything that the Lord had said to me. And Baruch wrote it all down on a scroll.

5 Then I gave Baruch the following instructions: “I am no longer allowed to go into the Temple.

6 But I want you to go there the next time the people are fasting. You are to read the scroll aloud, so that they will hear everything that the Lord has said to me and that I have dictated to you. Do this where everyone can hear you, including the people of Judah who have come in from their towns.

7 Perhaps they will pray to the Lord and turn from their evil ways, because the Lord has threatened this people with his terrible anger and fury.”

8 So Baruch read the Lord’s words in the Temple exactly as I had told him to do.

9 In the ninth month of the fifth year that Jehoiakim was king of Judah, the people fasted to gain the Lord’s favor. The fast was kept by all who lived in Jerusalem and by all who came there from the towns of Judah.

10 Then, while all the people were listening, Baruch read from the scroll everything that I had said. He did this in the Temple, from the room of Gemariah son of Shaphan, the court secretary. His room was in the upper court near the entrance of the New Gate of the Temple.

The Scroll Is Read to the Officials

11 Micaiah, the son of Gemariah and grandson of Shaphan, heard Baruch read from the scroll what the Lord had said.

12 Then he went to the royal palace, to the room of the court secretary, where all the officials were in session. Elishama, the court secretary, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor, Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other officials were there.

13 Micaiah told them everything that he had heard Baruch read to the people.

14 Then the officials sent Jehudi (the son of Nethaniah, grandson of Shelemiah, and great-grandson of Cushi) to tell Baruch to bring the scroll that he had read to the people. Baruch brought them the scroll.

15 “Sit down,” they said, “and read the scroll to us.” So Baruch did.

16 After he had read it, they turned to one another in alarm and said to Baruch, “We must report this to the king.”

17 Then they asked him, “Tell us, now, how did you come to write all this? Did Jeremiah dictate it to you?”

18 Baruch answered, “Jeremiah dictated every word of it to me, and I wrote it down in ink on this scroll.”

19 Then they told him, “You and Jeremiah must go and hide. Don’t let anyone know where you are.”

The King Burns the Scroll

20 The officials put the scroll in the room of Elishama, the court secretary, and went to the king’s court, where they reported everything to the king.

21 Then the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. He took it from the room of Elishama and read it to the king and all the officials who were standing around him.

22 It was winter and the king was sitting in his winter palace in front of the fire.

23 As soon as Jehudi finished reading three or four columns, the king cut them off with a small knife and threw them into the fire. He kept doing this until the entire scroll was burned up.

24 But neither the king nor any of his officials who heard all this was afraid or showed any sign of sorrow.

25 Although Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah begged the king not to burn the scroll, he paid no attention to them.

26 Then he ordered Prince Jerahmeel, together with Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel, to arrest me and my secretary Baruch. But the Lord had hidden us.

Jeremiah Writes Another Scroll

27 After King Jehoiakim had burned the scroll that I had dictated to Baruch, the Lord told me

28 to take another scroll and write on it everything that had been on the first one.

29 The Lord told me to say to the king, “You have burned the scroll, and you have asked Jeremiah why he wrote that the king of Babylonia would come and destroy this land and kill its people and its animals.

30 So now, I, the Lord, say to you, King Jehoiakim, that no descendant of yours will ever rule over David’s kingdom. Your corpse will be thrown out where it will be exposed to the sun during the day and to the frost at night.

31 I will punish you, your descendants, and your officials because of the sins all of you commit. Neither you nor the people of Jerusalem and of Judah have paid any attention to my warnings, and so I will bring on all of you the disaster that I have threatened.”

32 Then I took another scroll and gave it to my secretary Baruch, and he wrote down everything that I dictated. He wrote everything that had been on the first scroll and similar messages that I dictated to him.

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/36-7c92b860178a47ed743d962b38357800.mp3?version_id=68—

Zedekiah’s Request to Jeremiah

1 King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia made Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah in the place of Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim.

2 But neither Zedekiah nor his officials nor the people obeyed the message which the Lord had given me.

3 King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to ask me to pray to the Lord our God on behalf of our nation.

4 I had not yet been put in prison and was still moving about freely among the people.

5 The Babylonian army had been besieging Jerusalem, but when they heard that the Egyptian army had crossed the Egyptian border, they retreated.

6 Then the Lord, the God of Israel, told me

7 to say to Zedekiah, “The Egyptian army is on its way to help you, but it will return home.

8 Then the Babylonians will come back, attack the city, capture it, and burn it down.

9 I, the Lord, warn you not to deceive yourselves into thinking that the Babylonians will not come back, because they will.

10 Even if you defeat the whole Babylonian army, so that only wounded men are left, lying in their tents, they would still get up and burn this city to the ground.”

Jeremiah Is Arrested and Imprisoned

11 The Babylonian army retreated from Jerusalem because the Egyptian army was approaching.

12 So I started to leave Jerusalem and go to the territory of Benjamin to take possession of my share of the family property.

13 But when I reached the Benjamin Gate, the officer in charge of the soldiers on duty there, a man by the name of Irijah, the son of Shelemiah and grandson of Hananiah, stopped me and said, “You are deserting to the Babylonians!”

14 I answered, “That’s not so! I’m not deserting.” But Irijah would not listen to me. Instead, he arrested me and took me to the officials.

15 They were furious with me and had me beaten and locked up in the house of Jonathan, the court secretary, whose house had been made into a prison.

16 I was put in an underground cell and kept there a long time.

17 Later on King Zedekiah sent for me, and there in the palace he asked me privately, “Is there any message from the Lord?”

“There is,” I answered, and added, “You will be handed over to the king of Babylonia.”

18 Then I asked, “What crime have I committed against you or your officials or this people, to make you put me in prison?

19 What happened to your prophets who told you that the king of Babylonia would not attack you or the country?

20 And now, Your Majesty, I beg you to listen to me and do what I ask. Please do not send me back to the prison in Jonathan’s house. If you do, I will surely die there.”

21 So King Zedekiah ordered me to be locked up in the palace courtyard. I stayed there, and each day I was given a loaf of bread from the bakeries until all the bread in the city was gone.

—https://cdn-youversionapi.global.ssl.fastly.net/audio-bible-youversionapi/363/32k/JER/37-7958f2e0bfe9b6ca126bf10fea919a62.mp3?version_id=68—