Jeremiah 29:6 - Prayer Tents

Jeremiah 29

Plans to Give You the Future You Hope For

29This is the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to what was left of the elders among the exiles, to the priests and prophets and all the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken to Babylon from Jerusalem,H1697H5612H3414H5030H7971H3389H3499H2205H1473H3548H5030H5971H5019H1540H3389H8942including King Jehoiachin, the queen mother, the government leaders, and all the skilled laborers and craftsmen.H310H3204H4428H1377H5631H8269H3063H3389H2796H4525H3318H33893The letter was carried by Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah had sent to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. The letter said:H3027H501H1121H8227H1587H1121H2518H6667H4428H3063H7971H894H5019H4428H894H5594This is the Message from GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel's God, to all the exiles I've taken from Jerusalem to Babylon:H559H3068H6635H430H3478H1473H1540H3389H8945"Build houses and make yourselves at home. "Put in gardens and eat what grows in that country.H1129H1004H3427H5193H1593H398H65296"Marry and have children. Encourage your children to marry and have children so that you'll thrive in that country and not waste away.H3947H802H3205H1121H1323H3947H802H1121H5414H1323H582H3205H1121H1121H7235H45917"Make yourselves at home there and work for the country's welfare. "Pray for Babylon's well-being. If things go well for Babylon, things will go well for you."H1875H7965H5892H1540H6419H3068H7965H79658Yes. Believe it or not, this is the Message from GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel's God: "Don't let all those so-called preachers and know-it-alls who are all over the place there take you in with their lies. Don't pay any attention to the fantasies they keep coming up with to please you.H559H3068H6635H430H3478H5030H7080H7130H5377H8085H2472H24929They're a bunch of liars preaching lies—and claiming I sent them! I never sent them, believe me." GOD's Decree!H5012H8267H8034H7971H5002H306810This is GOD's Word on the subject: "As soon as Babylon's seventy years are up and not a day before, I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home.H559H3068H6310H7657H8141H4390H894H6485H6965H2896H1697H7725H472511I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.H3045H4284H2803H5002H3068H4284H7965H7451H5414H8615H31912"When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I'll listen.H7121H1980H6419H808513"When you come looking for me, you'll find me. "Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else,H1245H4672H1875H382414I'll make sure you won't be disappointed." GOD's Decree. "I'll turn things around for you. I'll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you"—GOD's Decree—"bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it.H4672H5002H3068H7725H7622H7622H6908H1471H4725H5080H5002H3068H7725H4725H154015"But for right now, because you've taken up with these newfangled prophets who set themselves up as 'Babylonian specialists,' spreading the word 'GOD sent them just for us!'H559H3068H6965H5030H89416GOD is setting the record straight: As for the king still sitting on David's throne and all the people left in Jerusalem who didn't go into exile with you, they're facing bad times.H559H3068H4428H3427H3678H1732H5971H3427H5892H251H3318H147317GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies says, 'Watch this! Catastrophe is on the way: war, hunger, disease! They're a barrel of rotten apples.H559H3068H6635H7971H2719H7458H1698H5414H8182H8384H398H745518I'll rid the country of them through war and hunger and disease. The whole world is going to hold its nose at the smell, shut its eyes at the horrible sight. They'll end up in slum ghettosH7291H310H2719H7458H1698H5414H2189H2113H4467H776H423H8047H8322H2781H1471H508019because they wouldn't listen to a thing I said when I sent my servant-prophets preaching tirelessly and urgently. No, they wouldn't listen to a word I said.'" GOD's Decree.H8085H1697H5002H3068H7971H5650H5030H7925H7971H8085H5002H306820"And you—you exiles whom I sent out of Jerusalem to Babylon—listen to GOD's Message to you.H8085H1697H3068H1473H7971H3389H89421As far as Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah are concerned, the 'Babylonian specialists' who are preaching lies in my name, I will turn them over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will kill them while you watch.H559H3068H6635H430H3478H256H1121H6964H6667H1121H4641H5012H8267H8034H5414H3027H5019H4428H894H5221H586922The exiles from Judah will take what they see at the execution and use it as a curse: 'GOD fry you to a crisp like the king of Babylon fried Zedekiah and Ahab in the fire!'H3947H7045H1546H3063H894H559H3068H7760H6667H256H4428H894H7033H78423Those two men, sex predators and prophet-impostors, got what they deserved. They pulled every woman they got their hands on into bed—their neighbors' wives, no less—and preached lies claiming it was my Message. I never sent those men. I've never had anything to do with them." GOD's Decree. "They won't get away with a thing. I've witnessed it all."H6213H5039H3478H6213H5003H7453H802H1696H8267H1697H8034H6680H3045H5707H5002H306824And this is the Message for Shemaiah the Nehelamite:H559H8098H5161H55925"GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel, says: You took it on yourself to send letters to all the people in Jerusalem and to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah and the company of priests. In your letter you told Zephaniah thatH559H3068H6635H430H3478H559H7971H5612H8034H5971H3389H6846H1121H4641H3548H3548H55926GOD set you up as priest replacing priest Jehoiadah. He's put you in charge of GOD's Temple and made you responsible for locking up any crazy fellow off the street who takes it into his head to be a prophet.H3068H5414H3548H3077H3548H6496H1004H3068H376H7696H5012H5414H4115H672927"So why haven't you done anything about muzzling Jeremiah of Anathoth, who's going around posing as a prophet?H1605H3414H6069H501228He's gone so far as to write to us in Babylon, 'It's going to be a long exile, so build houses and make yourselves at home. Plant gardens and prepare Babylonian recipes.'"H7971H894H559H1931H752H1129H1004H3427H5193H1593H398H652929The priest Zephaniah read that letter to the prophet Jeremiah.H6846H3548H7121H5612H241H3414H503030Then GOD told Jeremiah,H1697H3068H3414H55931"Send this Message to the exiles. Tell them what GOD says about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Shemaiah is preaching lies to you. I didn't send him. He is seducing you into believing lies.H7971H1473H559H559H3068H8098H5161H8098H5012H7971H982H826732So this is GOD's verdict: I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his whole family. He's going to end up with nothing and no one. No one from his family will be around to see any of the good that I am going to do for my people because he has preached rebellion against me." GOD's Decree.H559H3068H6485H8098H5161H2233H376H3427H8432H5971H7200H2896H6213H5971H5002H3068H1696H5627H3068