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word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord 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 Jeremiah the prophet was confined in the courtyard of the guard, in the palace of the king of Judah. 3 Now Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him there, saying, “Why do you prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Lord says: “Behold, I am about to give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it. 4 Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape from the hand of the Chaldeans, but he will be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon. He will speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye. 5 He will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will remain until I attend to him,” declares the Lord. “Although you will fight with the Chaldeans, you will not succeed” ’?”
6 Jeremiah replied, “The word of the Lord came to me: 7 ‘Behold, Hanamel the son of your uncle Shallum will come to you and say, “Please buy my field that is at Anathoth, for you own the right of redemption to buy it”’.
8 “Then my cousin Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard, in accordance with the word of the Lord, and said to me, ‘Please buy my field that is at Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, for you own the right of inheritance, and the right of redemption; buy it for yourself’. Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord. 9 So I bought the field at Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel, and weighed out the money to him, seventeen shekels of silver. 10 I signed the deed and sealed it, called in witnesses, and weighed out the silver on the scales. 11 Then I took the deed of purchase—the sealed copy containing the terms and conditions, as well as the open copy— 12 and I gave the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the sight of Hanamel my uncle’s son, and in the presence of the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, and all the Judeans sitting in the courtyard of the guard.
13 “Then I instructed Baruch in their presence, saying, 14 ‘This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Take these documents, both the purchase deed that is sealed and this open copy, and put them in an earthenware jar so they will last for a long time”. 15 For this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Houses and fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land”’.
16 “After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord, saying:
17 ‘O Lord God,
You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and Your outstretched arm! There is nothing too difficult for You.
18 You show faithful love to thousands, but lay the iniquity of fathers into the laps of their children after them.
O great and mighty God, whose name is the Lord of Hosts, 19 great in counsel and mighty in deed, whose eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, to reward everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds.
20 You performed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and do so down to this very day, in Israel and among all mankind. You have made a name for Yourself, as it is this day.
21 You brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and with great terror.
22 You gave them this land, which You swore to their forefathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.
23 They came in and took possession of it, but they have not obeyed Your voice or walked in Your law.
They did nothing of all that You commanded them to do; therefore You have caused all this calamity to come upon them.
24 See how siege ramps have been built up against this city to capture it. The city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it, because of the sword, the famine, and the pestilence.
What You have spoken has happened, as You can now see!
25 Yet You have said to me, O Lord God: “Buy the field for money and call in witnesses,”—even though the city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans!’ ”
26 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 27 “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me? 28 Therefore, this is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will capture it. 29 The Chaldeans who are attacking this city will come in, set this city on fire, and burn it, along with the houses where incense has been burned to Baal on the rooftops, and drink offerings have been poured out to other gods to provoke Me to anger’.
30 “The people of Israel and the people of Judah have done nothing but evil in My sight from their youth. The people of Israel have done nothing but provoke Me to anger by the work of their hands,” declares the Lord. 31 “For this city has been to Me only a provocation of My anger and My fury from the day they built it until this day. Therefore I will remove it from before My sight. 32 The people of Israel and the people of Judah have provoked Me to anger with all the evil they have done—they, their kings, their officials, their priests, their prophets, the men of Judah and the people of Jerusalem. 33 They have turned their backs to Me and not their faces. Though I have taught them again and again, yet they would not listen or accept correction. 34 They have set up their abominable idols in the house that is called by My Name and have defiled it. 35 They have built the high places of Baal in the Valley of Ben-Hinnom to make their sons and daughters pass through the fire to Molech, but I did not command them, nor did it come into My mind that they should do this abomination, and cause Judah to sin.”
36 “Now therefore, this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says concerning this city of which you say, ‘It will be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence’: 37 Behold, I am going to gather them from all the lands where I have banished them in My anger, and in My fury, and in great wrath; I will bring them back to this place, and I will cause them to live in safety. 38 They will be My people, and I will be their God. 39 Then I will give them one heart and one way, so that they fear Me for all time, for their own good and for the good of their children after them. 40 I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will not turn away from doing good to them; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts, so that they will never turn away from Me. 41 I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will faithfully planned them in this land with all of My heart and with all of My soul.”
42 For this is what the Lord says: “Just as I have brought all this great calamity upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promised them. 43 Fields will be bought in this land of which you say, ‘It is desolate, without man or beast; it has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans!’ 44 Fields will be purchased with money, and deeds will be signed, sealed, and witnessed in the land of Benjamin, in the area surrounding Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah—in the cities of the hill country, the cities of the Judean foothills, and in the cities of the Negev, for I will restore their fortunes,” declares the Lord.