Jeremiah 32-34 - Prayer Tents

Jeremiah’s Land Purchase

32The following message came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah. This was also the eighteenth year of the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar.H1697H3414H3068H6224H8141H6667H4428H3063H8083H6240H8141H8141H5019 2Jerusalem was then under siege from the Babylonian army, and Jeremiah was imprisoned in the courtyard of the guard in the royal palace.H4428H894H2428H6696H3389H3414H5030H3607H2691H4307H4428H3063H1004 3King Zedekiah had put him there, asking why he kept giving this prophecy: “This is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to hand this city over to the king of Babylon, and he will take it.H6667H4428H3063H3607H559H5012H559H559H3068H5414H5892H3027H4428H894H3920 4King Zedekiah will be captured by the Babylonians and taken to meet the king of Babylon face to face.H6667H4428H3063H4422H3027H3778H5414H5414H3027H4428H894H1696H6310H6310H5869H7200H5869 5He will take Zedekiah to Babylon, and I will deal with him there,’ says the Lord. ‘If you fight against the Babylonians, you will never succeed.’”H3212H6667H894H6485H5002H3068H3898H3778H6743 6At that time the Lord sent me a message. He said,H3414H559H1697H3068H559 7“Your cousin Hanamel son of Shallum will come and say to you, ‘Buy my field at Anathoth. By law you have the right to buy it before it is offered to anyone else.’”H2601H1121H7967H1730H935H559H7069H7704H6068H4941H1353H7069 8Then, just as the Lord had said he would, my cousin Hanamel came and visited me in the prison. He said, “Please buy my field at Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. By law you have the right to buy it before it is offered to anyone else, so buy it for yourself.” Then I knew that the message I had heard was from the Lord.H2601H1730H1121H935H2691H4307H1697H3068H559H7069H7704H6068H776H1144H4941H3425H1353H7069H3045H1697H3068 9So I bought the field at Anathoth, paying Hanamel seventeen pieces of silver for it.H7069H7704H2601H1730H1121H6068H8254H3701H7651H6235H8255H3701 10I signed and sealed the deed of purchase before witnesses, weighed out the silver, and paid him.H3789H5612H2856H5749H5707H8254H3701H3976 11Then I took the sealed deed and an unsealed copy of the deed, which contained the terms and conditions of the purchase,H3947H5612H4736H2856H4687H2706H1540 12and I handed them to Baruch son of Neriah and grandson of Mahseiah. I did all this in the presence of my cousin Hanamel, the witnesses who had signed the deed, and all the men of Judah who were there in the courtyard of the guardhouse.H5414H5612H4736H1263H1121H5374H1121H4271H5869H2601H1730H5869H5707H3789H5612H4736H5869H3064H3427H2691H4307 13Then I said to Baruch as they all listened,H6680H1263H5869H559 14“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Take both this sealed deed and the unsealed copy, and put them into a pottery jar to preserve them for a long time.’H559H3068H6635H430H3478H3947H5612H5612H4736H2856H5612H1540H5414H2789H3627H5975H7227H3117 15For this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘Someday people will again own property here in this land and will buy and sell houses and vineyards and fields.’”H559H3068H6635H430H3478H1004H7704H3754H7069H776

Jeremiah’s Prayer

16Then after I had given the papers to Baruch, I prayed to the Lord.H310H5414H5612H4736H1263H1121H5374H6419H3068H559 17“O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you!H162H136H3069H6213H8064H776H1419H3581H5186H2220H1697H6381 18You show unfailing love to thousands, but you also bring the consequences of one generation’s sin upon the next. You are the great and powerful God, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.H6213H2617H505H7999H5771H1H2436H1121H310H1419H1368H410H3068H6635H8034 19You have all wisdom and do great and mighty miracles. You see the conduct of all people, and you give them what they deserve.H1419H6098H7227H5950H5869H6491H1870H1121H120H5414H376H1870H6529H4611 20You performed miraculous signs and wonders in the land of Egypt—things still remembered to this day! And you have continued to do great miracles in Israel and all around the world. You have made your name famous to this day.H7760H226H4159H776H4714H3117H3478H120H6213H8034H3117 21“You brought Israel out of Egypt with mighty signs and wonders, with a strong hand and powerful arm, and with overwhelming terror.H3318H5971H3478H776H4714H226H4159H2389H3027H5186H248H1419H4172 22You gave the people of Israel this land that you had promised their ancestors long before—a land flowing with milk and honey.H5414H776H7650H1H5414H776H2100H2461H1706 23Our ancestors came and conquered it and lived in it, but they refused to obey you or follow your word. They have not done anything you commanded. That is why you have sent this terrible disaster upon them.H935H3423H8085H6963H1980H8451H6213H6680H6213H7451H7122 24“See how the siege ramps have been built against the city walls! Through war, famine, and disease, the city will be handed over to the Babylonians, who will conquer it. Everything has happened just as you said.H5550H935H5892H3920H5892H5414H3027H3778H3898H6440H2719H7458H1698H1696H7200 25And yet, O Sovereign Lord, you have told me to buy the field—paying good money for it before these witnesses—even though the city will soon be handed over to the Babylonians.”H559H136H3069H7069H7704H3701H5749H5707H5892H5414H3027H3778

A Prediction of Jerusalem’s Fall

26Then this message came to Jeremiah from the Lord:H1697H3068H3414H559 27“I am the Lord, the God of all the peoples of the world. Is anything too hard for me?H3068H430H1320H1697H6381 28Therefore, this is what the Lord says: I will hand this city over to the Babylonians and to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and he will capture it.H559H3068H5414H5892H3027H3778H3027H5019H4428H894H3920 29The Babylonians outside the walls will come in and set fire to the city. They will burn down all these houses where the people provoked my anger by burning incense to Baal on the rooftops and by pouring out liquid offerings to other gods.H3778H3898H5892H935H3341H784H5892H8313H1004H1406H6999H1168H5258H5262H312H430H3707 30Israel and Judah have done nothing but wrong since their earliest days. They have infuriated me with all their evil deeds,” says the Lord.H1121H3478H1121H3063H6213H7451H5869H5271H1121H3478H3707H4639H3027H5002H3068 31“From the time this city was built until now, it has done nothing but anger me, so I am determined to get rid of it.H5892H639H2534H3117H1129H3117H5493H6440 32“The sins of Israel and Judah—the sins of the people of Jerusalem, the kings, the officials, the priests, and the prophets—have stirred up my anger.H7451H1121H3478H1121H3063H6213H3707H4428H8269H3548H5030H376H3063H3427H3389 33My people have turned their backs on me and have refused to return. Even though I diligently taught them, they would not receive instruction or obey.H6437H6203H6440H3925H7925H3925H8085H3947H4148 34They have set up their abominable idols right in my own Temple, defiling it.H7760H8251H1004H7121H8034H2930 35They have built pagan shrines to Baal in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, and there they sacrifice their sons and daughters to Molech. I have never commanded such a horrible deed; it never even crossed my mind to command such a thing. What an incredible evil, causing Judah to sin so greatly!H1129H1116H1168H1516H1121H2011H1121H1323H5674H4432H6680H5927H3820H6213H8441H3063H2398

A Promise of Restoration

36“Now I want to say something more about this city. You have been saying, ‘It will fall to the king of Babylon through war, famine, and disease.’ But this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:H559H3068H430H3478H5892H559H5414H3027H4428H894H2719H7458H1698 37I will certainly bring my people back again from all the countries where I will scatter them in my fury. I will bring them back to this very city and let them live in peace and safety.H6908H776H5080H639H2534H1419H7110H7725H4725H3427H983 38They will be my people, and I will be their God.H5971H430 39And I will give them one heart and one purpose: to worship me forever, for their own good and for the good of all their descendants.H5414H259H3820H259H1870H3372H3117H2896H1121H310 40And I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good for them. I will put a desire in their hearts to worship me, and they will never leave me.H3772H5769H1285H7725H310H3190H5414H3374H3824H5493 41I will find joy doing good for them and will faithfully and wholeheartedly replant them in this land.H7797H2895H5193H776H571H3820H5315 42“This is what the Lord says: Just as I have brought all these calamities on them, so I will do all the good I have promised them.H559H3068H935H1419H7451H5971H935H2896H1696 43Fields will again be bought and sold in this land about which you now say, ‘It has been ravaged by the Babylonians, a desolate land where people and animals have all disappeared.’H7704H7069H776H559H8077H120H929H5414H3027H3778 44Yes, fields will once again be bought and sold—deeds signed and sealed and witnessed—in the land of Benjamin and here in Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the hill country, in the foothills of Judah and in the Negev, too. For someday I will restore prosperity to them. I, the Lord, have spoken!”H7069H7704H3701H3789H5612H2856H5749H5707H776H1144H5439H3389H5892H3063H5892H2022H5892H8219H5892H5045H7622H7725H5002H3068

Promises of Peace and Prosperity

33While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the Lord gave him this second message:H1697H3068H3414H8145H6113H2691H4307H559 2“This is what the Lord says—the Lord who made the earth, who formed and established it, whose name is the Lord:H559H3068H6213H3068H3335H3559H3068H8034 3Ask me and I will tell you remarkable secrets you do not know about things to come.H7121H6030H5046H1419H1219H3045 4For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: You have torn down the houses of this city and even the king’s palace to get materials to strengthen the walls against the siege ramps and swords of the enemy.H559H3068H430H3478H1004H5892H1004H4428H3063H5422H5550H2719 5You expect to fight the Babylonians, but the men of this city are already as good as dead, for I have determined to destroy them in my terrible anger. I have abandoned them because of all their wickedness.H935H3898H3778H4390H6297H120H5221H639H2534H7451H5641H6440H5892 6“Nevertheless, the time will come when I will heal Jerusalem’s wounds and give it prosperity and true peace.H5927H724H4832H7495H1540H6283H7965H571 7I will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel and rebuild their towns.H7622H3063H7622H3478H7725H1129H7223 8I will cleanse them of their sins against me and forgive all their sins of rebellion.H2891H5771H2398H5545H5771H2398H6586 9Then this city will bring me joy, glory, and honor before all the nations of the earth! The people of the world will see all the good I do for my people, and they will tremble with awe at the peace and prosperity I provide for them.H8034H8342H8416H8597H1471H776H8085H2896H6213H6342H7264H2896H7965H6213 10“This is what the Lord says: You have said, ‘This is a desolate land where people and animals have all disappeared.’ Yet in the empty streets of Jerusalem and Judah’s other towns, there will be heard once moreH559H3068H8085H4725H559H2720H120H929H5892H3063H2351H3389H8074H120H3427H929 11the sounds of joy and laughter. The joyful voices of bridegrooms and brides will be heard again, along with the joyous songs of people bringing thanksgiving offerings to the Lord. They will sing, ‘Give thanks to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, for the Lord is good. His faithful love endures forever!’ For I will restore the prosperity of this land to what it was in the past, says the Lord.H6963H8342H6963H8057H6963H2860H6963H3618H6963H559H3034H3068H6635H3068H2896H2617H5769H935H8426H1004H3068H7725H7622H776H7223H559H3068 12“This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: This land—though it is now desolate and has no people and animals—will once more have pastures where shepherds can lead their flocks.H559H3068H6635H4725H2720H120H929H5892H5116H7462H6629H7257 13Once again shepherds will count their flocks in the towns of the hill country, the foothills of Judah, the Negev, the land of Benjamin, the vicinity of Jerusalem, and all the towns of Judah. I, the Lord, have spoken!H5892H2022H5892H8219H5892H5045H776H1144H5439H3389H5892H3063H6629H5674H3027H4487H559H3068 14“The day will come, says the Lord, when I will do for Israel and Judah all the good things I have promised them.H3117H935H5002H3068H6965H2896H1697H1696H1004H3478H1004H3063 15“In those days and at that time I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line. He will do what is just and right throughout the land.H3117H6256H6780H6666H6779H1732H6213H4941H6666H776 16In that day Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this will be its name: ‘The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’H3117H3063H3467H3389H7931H983H7121H3072 17For this is what the Lord says: David will have a descendant sitting on the throne of Israel forever.H559H3068H1732H3808H3772H376H3427H3678H1004H3478 18And there will always be Levitical priests to offer burnt offerings and grain offerings and sacrifices to me.”H3548H3881H3772H376H6440H5927H5930H6999H4503H6213H2077H3117 19Then this message came to Jeremiah from the Lord:H1697H3068H3414H559 20“This is what the Lord says: If you can break my covenant with the day and the night so that one does not follow the other,H559H3068H6565H1285H3117H1285H3915H3119H3915H6256 21only then will my covenant with my servant David be broken. Only then will he no longer have a descendant to reign on his throne. The same is true for my covenant with the Levitical priests who minister before me.H1285H6565H1732H5650H1121H4427H3678H3881H3548H8334 22And as the stars of the sky cannot be counted and the sand on the seashore cannot be measured, so I will multiply the descendants of my servant David and the Levites who minister before me.”H6635H8064H5608H2344H3220H4058H7235H2233H1732H5650H3881H8334 23The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said,H1697H3068H3414H559 24“Have you noticed what people are saying?—‘The Lord chose Judah and Israel and then abandoned them!’ They are sneering and saying that Israel is not worthy to be counted as a nation.H7200H5971H1696H559H8147H4940H3068H977H3988H5006H5971H1471H6440 25But this is what the Lord says: I would no more reject my people than I would change my laws that govern night and day, earth and sky.H559H3068H1285H3119H3915H7760H2708H8064H776 26I will never abandon the descendants of Jacob or David, my servant, or change the plan that David’s descendants will rule the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Instead, I will restore them to their land and have mercy on them.”H1571H3988H2233H3290H1732H5650H3947H2233H4910H2233H85H3446H3290H7622H7725H7725H7355

A Warning for Zedekiah

34King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came with all the armies from the kingdoms he ruled, and he fought against Jerusalem and the towns of Judah. At that time this message came to Jeremiah from the Lord:H1697H3414H3068H5019H4428H894H2428H4467H776H3027H4475H5971H3898H3389H5892H559 2“Go to King Zedekiah of Judah, and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to hand this city over to the king of Babylon, and he will burn it down.H559H3068H430H3478H1980H559H6667H4428H3063H559H559H3068H5414H5892H3027H4428H894H8313H784 3You will not escape his grasp but will be captured and taken to meet the king of Babylon face to face. Then you will be exiled to Babylon.H4422H3027H8610H8610H5414H3027H5869H7200H5869H4428H894H1696H6310H6310H935H894 4“‘But listen to this promise from the Lord, O Zedekiah, king of Judah. This is what the Lord says: You will not be killed in warH8085H1697H3068H6667H4428H3063H559H3068H4191H2719 5but will die peacefully. People will burn incense in your memory, just as they did for your ancestors, the kings who preceded you. They will mourn for you, crying, “Alas, our master is dead!” This I have decreed, says the Lord.’”H4191H7965H4955H1H7223H4428H6440H8313H5594H1945H113H1696H1697H5002H3068 6So Jeremiah the prophet delivered the message to King Zedekiah of Judah.H3414H5030H1696H1697H6667H4428H3063H3389 7At this time the Babylonian army was besieging Jerusalem, Lachish, and Azekah—the only fortified cities of Judah not yet captured.H4428H894H2428H3898H3389H5892H3063H3498H3923H5825H4013H5892H7604H5892H3063

Freedom for Hebrew Slaves

8This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah made a covenant with the people, proclaiming freedom for the slaves.H1697H3414H3068H310H4428H6667H3772H1285H5971H3389H7121H1865 9He had ordered all the people to free their Hebrew slaves—both men and women. No one was to keep a fellow Judean in bondage.H376H5650H376H8198H5680H5680H7971H2670H5647H3064H251 10The officials and all the people had obeyed the king’s command,H8269H5971H935H1285H8085H376H5650H376H8198H7971H2670H5647H8085H7971 11but later they changed their minds. They took back the men and women they had freed, forcing them to be slaves again.H310H7725H5650H8198H7971H2670H7725H3533H3533H5650H8198 12So the Lord gave them this message through Jeremiah:H1697H3068H3414H3068H559 13“This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I made a covenant with your ancestors long ago when I rescued them from their slavery in Egypt.H559H3068H430H3478H3772H1285H1H3117H3318H776H4714H1004H5650H559 14I told them that every Hebrew slave must be freed after serving six years. But your ancestors paid no attention to me.H7093H7651H8141H7971H376H251H5680H4376H5647H8337H8141H7971H2670H1H8085H5186H241 15Recently you repented and did what was right, following my command. You freed your slaves and made a solemn covenant with me in the Temple that bears my name.H3117H7725H6213H3477H5869H7121H1865H376H7453H3772H1285H6440H1004H7121H8034 16But now you have shrugged off your oath and defiled my name by taking back the men and women you had freed, forcing them to be slaves once again.H7725H2490H8034H376H5650H376H8198H7971H2670H5315H7725H3533H5650H8198 17“Therefore, this is what the Lord says: Since you have not obeyed me by setting your countrymen free, I will set you free to be destroyed by war, disease, and famine. You will be an object of horror to all the nations of the earth.H559H3068H8085H7121H1865H376H251H376H7453H7121H1865H5002H3068H2719H1698H7458H5414H2189H2113H4467H776 18Because you have broken the terms of our covenant, I will cut you apart just as you cut apart the calf when you walked between its halves to solemnize your vows.H5414H582H5674H1285H6965H1697H1285H3772H6440H3772H5695H8147H5674H1335 19Yes, I will cut you apart, whether you are officials of Judah or Jerusalem, court officials, priests, or common people—for you have broken your oath.H8269H3063H8269H3389H5631H3548H5971H776H5674H1335H5695 20I will give you to your enemies, and they will kill you. Your bodies will be food for the vultures and wild animals.H5414H3027H341H3027H1245H5315H5038H3978H5775H8064H929H776 21“I will hand over King Zedekiah of Judah and his officials to the army of the king of Babylon. And although Babylon’s king has left Jerusalem for a while,H6667H4428H3063H8269H5414H3027H341H3027H1245H5315H3027H4428H894H2428H5927 22I will call the Babylonian armies back again. They will fight against this city and will capture it and burn it down. I will see to it that all the towns of Judah are destroyed, with no one living there.”H6680H5002H3068H7725H5892H3898H3920H8313H784H5414H5892H3063H8077H3427