Jeremiah, 32

1. This message came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah, king of Judah, the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar.

1. The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar.

2. At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and the prophet Jeremiah was imprisoned in the quarters of the guard, at the king's palace.

2. The army of the king of Babylon was then besieging Jerusalem, and the prophet Jeremiah was confined in the Court of the Guard in the king of Judah's palace,

3. Zedekiah, king of Judah, had imprisoned him there, remonstrating: "How dare you prophesy: Thus says the LORD: I am handing over this city to the king of Babylon, who will capture it.

3. where Zedekiah king of Judah had confined him, saying, 'Why do you keep prophesying like this, "Yahweh says this: I am going to hand this city over to the king of Babylon and he will capture it;

4. Neither shall Zedekiah, king of Judah, escape the hands of the Chaldeans; rather shall he be handed over to the king of Babylon. They shall meet and speak face to face,

4. and Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape the clutches of the Chaldaeans, but will certainly be handed over to the king of Babylon, speak to him personally and see him face to face.

5. and Zedekiah shall be taken to Babylon. There he shall remain, until I attend to him, says the LORD; in fighting the Chaldeans, you cannot win!"

5. He will take Zedekiah away to Babylon and there he will stay (until I attend to him, Yahweh declares. If you fight the Chaldaeans you will not succeed!)" '

6. This message came to me from the LORD, said Jeremiah:

6. Jeremiah said, 'The word of Yahweh has been addressed to me as follows,

7. Hanamel, son of your uncle Shallum, will come to you with the offer: "Buy for yourself my field in Anathoth, since you, as nearest relative, have the first right of purchase."

7. "Look, Hanamel the son of your uncle Shallum will come to you and say: Buy my field at Anathoth, for you have the right of redemption to purchase it."

8. Then, as the LORD foretold, Hanamel, my uncle's son, came to me to the quarters of the guard and said, "Please buy my field in Anathoth, in the district of Benjamin; as nearest relative, you have the first claim to possess it; make it yours." I knew this was what the LORD meant,

8. And, as Yahweh had said, my cousin Hanamel came to me, in the Court of the Guard and said, "Buy my field at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin, for you have the right of inheritance and right of redemption; buy it." I knew then that this was Yahweh's order.

9. so I bought the field in Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel, paying him the money, seventeen silver shekels.

9. Accordingly, I bought the field from my cousin Hanamel of Anathoth and weighed him out the money: seventeen silver shekels.

10. When I had written and sealed the deed, called witnesses and weighed out the silver on the scales,

10. I drew up the deeds and sealed it, called in witnesses and weighed out the money on the scales.

11. I accepted the deed of purchase, both the sealed copy, containing title and conditions, and the open one.

11. I then took both the sealed deed of purchase (with its stipulations and clauses) and its open copy

12. This deed of purchase I gave to Baruch, son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and of the witnesses who had signed the deed, and before all the men of Judah who happened to be in the quarters of the guard.

12. and handed over the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel, of the witnesses who had signed the deed of purchase, and of all the Judaeans who then happened to be in the Court of the Guard.

13. In their presence I gave Baruch this charge:

13. In their presence I gave Baruch this order,

14. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds, both the sealed and the open deed of purchase, and put them in an earthen jar, so that they can be kept there a long time.

14. "Yahweh Sabaoth, God of Israel, says this: Take these deeds, the sealed deed of purchase and its open copy, and put them in an earthenware pot, so that they may be preserved for a long time.

15. For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.

15. For Yahweh Sabaoth, God of Israel, says this: Houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this country."

16. After giving the deed of purchase to Baruch, son of Neriah, I prayed thus to the LORD:

16. 'After I had entrusted the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah, I prayed to Yahweh as follows,

17. Ah, Lord GOD, you have made heaven and earth by your great might, with your outstretched arm; nothing is impossible to you.

17. "Ah, Lord Yahweh, you made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. To you nothing is impossible.

18. You continue your kindness through a thousand generations; and you repay the fathers' guilt, even into the lap of their sons who follow them. O God, great and mighty, whose name is LORD of hosts,

18. You show faithful love to thousands but repay the fathers' guilt in full to their children after them. Great and mighty God, whose name is Yahweh Sabaoth,

19. great in counsel, mighty in deed, whose eyes are open to all the ways of men, giving to each according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds:

19. great in purpose, mighty in deed, whose eyes are open on all human ways, rewarding every individual as that person's ways and actions deserve!

20. you have wrought signs and wonders in the land of Egypt and to this day, both in Israel and among all other men, until now you have gained renown.

20. You performed signs and wonders in Egypt, as you still do in Israel and among humanity today. You have won the name for yourself which is yours today.

21. With strong hand and outstretched arm you brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt amid signs and wonders and great terror.

21. You brought your people Israel out of Egypt with signs and wonders, with mighty hand and outstretched arm and fearsome terror.

22. This land you gave them, as you had promised their fathers under oath, a land flowing with milk and honey.

22. Then you gave them this country which you had promised on oath to their ancestors, a country flowing with milk and honey.

23. They entered and took possession of it, but they did not listen to your voice; by your law they did not live, and what you commanded they failed to do. Hence you let all these evils befall them.

23. They then entered it, taking possession of it, but they would not listen to your voice nor follow your Law: they would do nothing you ordered them to do; and so you made this total disaster befall them.

24. See, the siegeworks have arrived at this city to breach it; the city will be handed over to the Chaldeans who are attacking it, amid sword, famine, and pestilence. What you threatened has happened, you see it yourself;

24. Look! The earthworks are already in place to take the city and, by means of sword, famine and plague, the city is now within the clutches of the Chaldaeans attacking it. What you said has now come true, as you see.

25. and yet you tell me, O Lord GOD: Buy the field with money, call in witnesses. But the city has already been handed over to the Chaldeans!

25. Yet you yourself, Lord Yahweh, told me: Buy the field, pay for it, have it witnessed although the city is already in the Chaldaeans' clutches." '

26. Then this word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:

26. The word of Yahweh was addressed to me as follows,

27. I am the LORD, the God of all mankind! Is anything impossible to me?

27. 'Look, I am Yahweh, God of all humanity. Is anything impossible to me?

28. This now is what the LORD says: I will hand over this city to the Chaldeans, for Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, to take.

28. 'So, Yahweh says this, "I shall hand this city over to the Chaldaeans and to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will capture it;

29. The Chaldeans who are attacking it shall enter this city and set fire to it, burning it and its houses, on the roofs of which incense was burned to Baal and libations were poured out to strange gods as a provocation to me.

29. the Chaldaeans attacking this city will enter it, fire it and burn it to the ground, with the houses on whose roofs incense has been offered to Baal and libations poured to other gods, to provoke my anger.

30. The Israelites and the Judeans from their youth have done only what is evil in my eyes; the Israelites did nothing but provoke me with the works of their hands, says the LORD.

30. For the people of Israel and Judah alike have done nothing but what displeases me since they were young. (The people of Israel in fact have done nothing but provoke my anger by their actions, Yahweh declares.)

31. From the day it was built to this day, this city has excited my anger and wrath,

31. Yes, from the day when this city was built until today, it has been such cause of anger and wrath to me that I mean to remove it from my sight,

32. so that I must put it out of my sight for all the wickedness the Israelites and Judeans, with their kings and their princes, their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem, have done to provoke me.

32. on account of all the wickedness the people of Israel and the people of Judah have done to provoke my anger; they, their kings, their chief men, their priests, their prophets, the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

33. They turned their backs to me, not their faces; though I kept teaching them, they would not listen to my correction.

33. They turned to me their backs, never their faces; and though I taught them so urgently, so untiringly, they would not listen and accept correction.

34. They defiled the house named after me by the horrid idols they set up in it.

34. Instead, they set up their Horrors in the Temple that bears my name to defile it,

35. They built high places to Baal in the Valley of Ben-hinnom, and immolated their sons and daughters to Molech, bringing sin upon Judah; this I never commanded them, nor did it even enter my mind that they should practice such abominations.

35. and built the high places of Baal in the Valley of Ben-Hinnom, to burn their sons and daughters alive in honour of Molech: a thing I have never ordered, that had never entered my thoughts -- that they would cause Judah to sin by anything so loathsome!

36. Now, therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this city, which as you say is handed over to the king of Babylon amid sword, famine, and pestilence:

36. "So now, this is what Yahweh, God of Israel, says about this city of which you now say: By means of sword, famine and plague, it is already within the king of Babylon's clutches:

37. Behold, I will gather them together from all the lands to which in anger, wrath, and great rage I banish them; I will bring them back to this place and settle them here in safety.

37. Look, I shall gather them in from all the countries where I have driven them in my anger, my fury and great wrath. I shall bring them back to this place and make them live in safety.

38. They shall be my people, and I will be their God.

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

39. One heart and one way I will give them, that they may fear me always, to their own good and that of their children after them.

39. I shall give them singleness of heart and singleness of conduct so that they will always fear me, for their own good and that of their children after them.

40. I will make with them an eternal covenant, never to cease doing good to them; into their hearts I will put the fear of me, that they may never depart from me.

40. I shall make an everlasting covenant with them, never to cease in my efforts for their welfare, and I shall put respect for me in their hearts, so that they will never turn away from me again.

41. I will take delight in doing good to them: I will replant them firmly in this land, with all my heart and soul.

41. My joy will lie in them and in doing them good, and I shall plant them firmly in this country, with all my heart and soul.

42. For thus says the LORD: Just as I brought upon this people all this great evil, so I will bring upon them all the good I promise them.

42. For Yahweh says this: Just as I have brought this complete and total disaster on this people, so I shall bring them all the good things I have promised them.

43. Fields shall again be bought in this land, which you call a desert, without man or beast, handed over to the Chaldeans.

43. Fields will again be bought in this country of which you now say: It is a wasteland without human or animal, already in the clutches of the Chaldaeans.

44. Fields shall be bought with money, deeds written and sealed, and witnesses shall be used in the land of Benjamin, in the suburbs of Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah and of the hill country, in the cities of the foothills and of the Negeb, when I change their lot, says the LORD.

44. People will buy fields, pay money, draw up deeds, seal them and have them witnessed in the territory of Benjamin, in the districts round Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah, of the highlands, of the lowlands and of the Negeb. For I shall bring back their captives, Yahweh declares."'