21 August - Jeremiah 41-45

Jude Tue Aug 14, 2018 3:36 am

My soul doth magnify my YAH, and my spirit hath rejoiced in EL my Saviour; For HE that is mighty hath done to me great things; and Holy is HIS Name. Now unto HIM who is ever present in my helpless estate; who is able to keep me from falling and to present me faultless before the presence of His Glory with exceeding joy, unto the King Eternal, Immortal, Invisible, the only wise EL our Saviour be honour and glory and majesty, dominion and power both now and for ever Halleluyah!

JEREMIAH 41

1And in the seventh month it came to be that Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah, son of Elishama, of the royal seed, and of the officers of the sovereign, came with ten men to Geḏalyahu son of Aḥiqam, at Mitspah. And while they ate bread together there in Mitspah,

2Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah, and the ten men who were with him, arose and smote Geḏalyahu son of Aḥiqam, son of Shaphan, with the sword, and killed him whom the sovereign of Baḇel had made governor over the land.

3And Yishma‛ĕl smote all the Yehuḏim who were with him, with Geḏalyahu at Mitspah, and the Chaldeans who were found there, the men of battle.

4And it came to be, on the second day after he had killed Geḏalyahu, when no one yet knew it,

5that men came from Sheḵem, from Shiloh, and from Shomeron, eighty men with their beards shaved and their garments torn, having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the House of יהוה.

6And Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah went out from Mitspah to meet them, weeping as he walked along. And it came to be, as he met them, that he said to them, “Come to Geḏalyahu son of Aḥiqam!”

7And it came to be, when they came inside the city, that Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah slew them, throwing them into a pit, he and the men who were with him.

8But ten men were found among them who said to Yishma‛ĕl, “Do not kill us, for we have wheat, and barley, and oil, and honey hidden in the field.” So he held back and did not kill them among their brothers.

9And the pit into which Yishma‛ĕl had thrown all the corpses of the men whom he had slain, because of Geḏalyahu, was the same one Asa the sovereign had made for fear of Ba‛asha sovereign of Yisra’ĕl – Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyahu had filled it with the slain.

10Then Yishma‛ĕl took captive all the rest of the people who were in Mitspah, the sovereign’s daughters and all the people who were left in Mitspah, whom Neḇuzaraḏan, chief of the guard, had entrusted to Geḏalyahu son of Aḥiqam. And Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyahu took them captive and went to go over to the Ammonites.

11But Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ and all the commanders of the army that were with him heard of all the evil that Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah had done,

12so they took all the men and went to fight with Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah. And they found him by the great pool that is in Giḇ‛on.

13And it came to be, when all the people who were with Yishma‛ĕl saw Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ, and all the commanders of the army who were with him, that they were glad.

14And all the people whom Yishma‛ĕl had taken captive from Mitspah turned around, and came back, and went to Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ.

15But Yishma‛ĕl the son of Nethanyah escaped from Yoḥanan with eight men and went to the Ammonites.

16Then Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ, and all the commanders of the army that were with him, took from Mitspah all the rest of the people whom he had recovered from Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah after he had murdered Geḏalyah son of Aḥiqam – the mighty men of battle and the women and the children and the eunuchs, whom he had brought back from Giḇ‛on.

17And they set out and dwelt in the lodging place of Kimham, which is near Bĕyth Leḥem, to go to enter Mitsrayim,

18because of the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of them, because Yishma‛ĕl son of Nethanyah had smitten Geḏalyahu son of Aḥiqam, whom the sovereign of Baḇel had made governor in the land.

JEREMIAH 42

1Then all the commanders of the army, and Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ, and Yezanyah son of Hoshayah, and all the people, from the least to the greatest, came near

2and said to Yirmeyahu the prophet, “We beg you, let our petition be acceptable to you, and pray for us to יהוה your Elohim, for all this remnant, for we are few left of many, as your eyes see us.

3“And let יהוה your Elohim show us the way in which we should walk and the word we should do.”

4And Yirmeyahu the prophet said to them, “I have heard. See, I am praying to יהוה your Elohim according to your words, and it shall be that I declare to you all the word יהוה answers you. I withhold not a word from you.”

5And they said to Yirmeyahu, “Let יהוה be a true and steadfast witness between us, if we do not do according to all the word which יהוה your Elohim sends us by you.

6“Whether good or evil, let us obey the voice of יהוה our Elohim to whom we send you, in order that it might be well with us when we obey the voice of יהוה our Elohim.”

7And after ten days it came to be that the word of יהוה came to Yirmeyahu.

8So he called Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ, and all the commanders of the army which were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest,

9and said to them, “Thus said יהוה, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, to whom you sent me to present your petition before Him,

10‘If you would indeed stay in this land, then I shall build you and not pull you down, and I shall plant you and not pluck you up. For I have relented of the evil I have done to you.

11‘Do not be afraid of the sovereign of Baḇel, of whom you are afraid. Do not be afraid of him,’ declares יהוה, ‘for I am with you, to save you and deliver you from his hand.

12‘And I shall show you compassion, so that he has compassion on you and let you return to your own land.’

13“But if you say, ‘We are not staying in this land,’ and so disobey the voice of יהוה your Elohim,

14saying, ‘No, but we are going to the land of Mitsrayim so that we see no fighting, nor hear the sound of the ram’s horn, nor hunger for bread, and there we shall stay,’

15then hear the word of יהוה, O remnant of Yehuḏah! Thus said יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, ‘If you indeed set your faces to enter Mitsrayim, and shall go to sojourn there,

16then it shall be that the sword which you feared overtakes you there in the land of Mitsrayim, and the scarcity of food of which you were afraid clings to you there in Mitsrayim, and you die there.

17‘And so it shall be with all the men who set their faces to go to Mitsrayim to sojourn there: they shall die by the sword, by scarcity of food, and by pestilence, and not one of them shall survive or escape from the evil I am bringing upon them.’

18“For thus said יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, ‘As My displeasure and My wrath have been poured out on the inhabitants of Yerushalayim, so shall My wrath be poured out on you when you enter Mitsrayim. And you shall be an oath, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach, and you shall see this place no more.’

19“יהוה has spoken about you, O remnant of Yehuḏah, ‘Do not go to Mitsrayim!’ Know for certain that I have warned you this day.

20“For you deceived yourselves when you sent me to יהוה your Elohim, saying, ‘Pray for us to יהוה our Elohim, and according to all that יהוה your Elohim says, so declare to us and we shall do it.’

21“So I have declared it to you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of יהוה your Elohim in all which He has sent me to you.

22“And now, know for certain that you shall die by the sword, by scarcity of food, and by pestilence in the place where you have desired to go to sojourn.”

JEREMIAH 43

1And it came to be, when Yirmeyahu had ended speaking all these words to all the people – all the words of יהוה their Elohim, for which יהוה their Elohim had sent him to them –

2that Azaryah son of Hoshayah, and Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ, and all the proud men spoke, saying to Yirmeyahu, “You are speaking a lie! יהוה our Elohim has not sent you to say, ‘Do not go to Mitsrayim to sojourn there.’

3“For Baruḵ son of Nĕriyah is moving you against us, to give us into the hand of the Chaldeans, to put us to death or exile us to Baḇel.”

4So Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ, and all the commanders of the army, and all the people disobeyed the voice of יהוה, to stay in the land of Yehuḏah.

5And Yoḥanan son of Qarĕaḥ and all the commanders of the army took all the remnant of Yehuḏah who had returned to dwell in the land of Yehuḏah, from all nations where they had been driven –

6the men, and the women, and the children, and the sovereign’s daughters, and every being whom Neḇuzaraḏan, chief of the guard, had left with Geḏalyahu son of Aḥiqam, son of Shaphan, and Yirmeyahu the prophet, and Baruḵ son of Nĕriyahu.

7So they went to the land of Mitsrayim, for they disobeyed the voice of יהוה. And they went as far as Taḥpanḥes.

8And the word of יהוה came to Yirmeyahu in Taḥpanḥes, saying,

9“Take large stones in your hand, and you shall hide them before the eyes of the men of Yehuḏah, in the clay in the brick courtyard which is at the entrance to Pharaoh’s house in Taḥpanḥes.

10“Then you shall say to them, ‘Thus said יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, “See, I am sending, and I shall bring Neḇuḵaḏretstsar the sovereign of Baḇel, My servant. And I shall set his throne above these stones that I have hidden. And he shall spread his canopy over them.

11“And he shall come and smite the land of Mitsrayim, bringing death to those appointed for death, and captivity to those for captivity, and the sword to those for the sword.

12“And he shall set fire to the houses of the mighty ones of Mitsrayim. And he shall burn them and take them captive. And he shall cover himself with the land of Mitsrayim, as a shepherd puts on his garment, and he shall go out from there in peace.

13“And he shall break the stone pillars of the House of the Sun which are in the land of Mitsrayim, and he shall burn the houses of the mighty ones of the Mitsrites with fire.” ’ ”

JEREMIAH 44

1The word that came to Yirmeyahu concerning all the Yehuḏim who were dwelling in the land of Mitsrayim – who were dwelling at Mig̅dol, and at Taḥpanḥes, and at Noph, and in the land of Pathros, saying,

2“Thus said יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, ‘You yourselves have seen all the evil that I have brought on Yerushalayim and on all the cities of Yehuḏah. And see, this day they are a ruin, and no one dwells in them,

3because of their evil which they have done to provoke Me, by going to burn incense by serving other mighty ones whom they did not know, they nor you nor your fathers.

4‘And I sent to you all My servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, “Please do not do this abominable matter that I hate!”

5‘But they did not listen or incline their ear, to turn from their evil, not to burn incense to other mighty ones.

6‘So My wrath and My displeasure were poured out and burned in the cities of Yehuḏah and in the streets of Yerushalayim, and they became a ruin and a wasteland, as it is this day.’

7“And now, thus said יהוה, the Elohim of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, ‘Why are you doing this great evil against your lives, to cut off from you man and woman, child and infant, from the midst of Yehuḏah, leaving none to remain,

8by provoking Me with the works of your hands, by burning incense to other mighty ones in the land of Mitsrayim where you have gone to dwell, to cut yourselves off and be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth?

9‘Have you forgotten the evils of your fathers, and the evils of the sovereigns of Yehuḏah, and the evils of their wives, and your own evils, and the evils of your wives, which they have done in the land of Yehuḏah and in the streets of Yerushalayim?

10‘To this day they have not been humbled, nor have they feared, nor have they walked in My Torah and in My laws that I set before you and your fathers.’

11“Therefore thus said יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, ‘See, I am setting My face against you for evil and for cutting off all Yehuḏah.

12‘And I shall take the remnant of Yehuḏah who have set their faces to go into the land of Mitsrayim to sojourn there. And they shall all be consumed in the land of Mitsrayim – fall by the sword, consumed by scarcity of food. From the least to the greatest they shall die, by the sword and by scarcity of food. And they shall be an oath and an astonishment and a curse and a reproach!

13‘And I shall punish those dwelling in the land of Mitsrayim, as I have punished Yerushalayim, by the sword, by scarcity of food, and by pestilence.

14‘And none of the remnant of Yehuḏah who have gone into the land of Mitsrayim to sojourn there shall escape or survive, lest they return to the land of Yehuḏah, to which they are longing to return to dwell there. For they shall not return, except those who escape.’ ”

15Then all the men who knew that their wives had burned incense to other mighty ones, and all the women who stood by, a great assembly, and all the people who dwelt in the land of Mitsrayim, in Pathros, answered Yirmeyahu, saying,

16“We are not going to listen to you in the matter about which you spoke to us in the Name of יהוה!

17“But we shall do whatever has gone out of our own mouth, to burn incense to the sovereigness of the heavens and pour out drink offerings to her, as we have done, we and our fathers, our sovereigns and our heads, in the cities of Yehuḏah and in the streets of Yerushalayim. And we had plenty of food, and were well-off, and saw no evil.

18“But since we ceased burning incense to the sovereigness of the heavens and pouring out drink offerings to her, we have lacked all and have been consumed by the sword and by scarcity of food.

19“And when we burned incense to the sovereigness of the heavens and poured out drink offerings to her, did we make cakes for her, to idolize her, and pour out drink offerings to her, without our husbands?”

20Then Yirmeyahu spoke to all the people – to the men and to the women, and to all the people who had given him that answer, saying,

21“As for the incense that you burned in the cities of Yehuḏah and in the streets of Yerushalayim, you and your fathers, your sovereigns and your heads, and the people of the land, did not יהוה remember them? And it came into His heart!

22“And יהוה could no longer bear it, because of the evil of your deeds and because of the abominations which you did. Therefore your land is a ruin, an object of astonishment, a curse, and without an inhabitant, as it is this day.

23“Because you have burned incense and because you have sinned against יהוה, and did not obey the voice of יהוה or walk in His Torah, in His laws or in His witnesses, therefore this evil did befall you, as at this day.”

24And Yirmeyahu said to all the people and to all the women, “Hear the word of יהוה, all Yehuḏah who are in the land of Mitsrayim!

25“Thus spoke יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, saying, ‘You and your wives have spoken with your mouths, and have filled with your hands, saying, “We shall perform our vows that we have made, to burn incense to the sovereigness of the heavens and pour out drink offerings to her.” Then confirm your vows and perform your vows!’

26“Therefore hear the word of יהוה, all Yehuḏah who are dwelling in the land of Mitsrayim, ‘See, I have sworn by My great Name,’ declares יהוה, ‘My Name shall no longer be called upon by the mouth of any man of Yehuḏah in all the land of Mitsrayim, saying, “As the Master יהוה lives...”

27‘See, I am watching over them for evil and not for good. And all the men of Yehuḏah who are in the land of Mitsrayim shall be consumed by the sword and by scarcity of food, until they come to an end.

28‘And those who escape the sword, few in number, shall return from the land of Mitsrayim to the land of Yehuḏah. And all the remnant of Yehuḏah, who came into the land of Mitsrayim to sojourn there, shall know whose word is established, Mine or theirs.

29‘And this is the sign to you,’ declares יהוה, ‘that I am punishing you in this place, so that you know that My words are certainly established against you for evil.’

30“Thus said יהוה, ‘See, I am giving Pharaoh Ḥophra sovereign of Mitsrayim into the hand of his enemies and into the hand of those who seek his life, as I gave Tsiḏqiyahu sovereign of Yehuḏah into the hand of Neḇuḵaḏretstsar sovereign of Baḇel, his enemy who sought his life.’ ”

JEREMIAH 45

1The word that Yirmeyahu the prophet spoke to Baruḵ son of Nĕriyah, when he had written these words in a book from the mouth of Yirmeyahu, in the fourth year of Yehoyaqim son of Yoshiyahu, sovereign of Yehuḏah, saying,

2“Thus said יהוה, the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, concerning you, Baruḵ:

3‘You have said, “Woe to me now! For יהוה has added grief to my pain. I have been wearied with my sighing, and I have found no rest.” ’

4“Say this to him, ‘Thus said יהוה, “See, what I have built I am breaking down, and what I have planted I am plucking up, that is, the entire land.

5“And do you seek great matters for yourself? Do not seek them, for look, I am bringing evil on all flesh,” declares יהוה. “But I shall give your life to you as a prize in all places, wherever you go.” ’ ”