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Jeremiah 32
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Jeremiah 32
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 32
Pledge of Restoration.[a] 1 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah,[b] king of Judah, the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. 2 At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, while Jeremiah the prophet was confined to the court of the guard, in the house of the king of Judah.(A) 3 Zedekiah, king of Judah, had confined him there, saying: “How dare you prophesy: Thus says the Lord: I am handing this city over to the king of Babylon that he may capture it.(B) 4 Zedekiah, king of Judah, shall not escape the hands of the Chaldeans: he shall indeed be handed over to the king of Babylon. He shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye.(C) 5 He shall take Zedekiah to Babylon. There he shall remain, until I attend to him—oracle of the Lord. If you fight against the Chaldeans, you cannot win!”(D)
6 [c]Jeremiah said, This word came to me from the Lord: 7 Hanamel, son of your uncle Shallum, will come to you with the offer:(E) “Purchase my field in Anathoth, since you, as nearest relative, have the first right of purchase.”[d] 8 And, just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel came to me in the court of the guard and said, “Please purchase my field in Anathoth, in the territory of Benjamin; as nearest relative, you have the first right of possession—purchase it for yourself.” Then I knew this was the word of the Lord. 9 So I bought the field in Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel, weighing out for him the silver, seventeen shekels of silver.
10 When I had written and sealed the deed, called witnesses and weighed out the silver on the scales, 11 I accepted the deed of purchase, both the sealed copy, containing title and conditions, and the open copy.[e] 12 I gave this deed of purchase to Baruch, son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and the witnesses who had signed the deed of purchase and before all the Judahites sitting around in the court of the guard.(F)
13 In their presence I gave Baruch this charge: 14 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds of purchase, both the sealed and the open deeds, and put them in an earthenware jar,[f] so they can last a long time. 15 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: They shall again purchase houses and fields and vineyards in this land.
16 After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch, son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord: 17 Ah, my Lord God! You made the heavens and the earth with your great power and your outstretched arm; nothing is too difficult for you.(G) 18 You continue your kindness through a thousand generations; but you repay the ancestors’ guilt upon their children who follow them. Great and mighty God, whose name is Lord of hosts,(H) 19 great in counsel, mighty in deed, whose eyes are fixed on all the ways of mortals, giving to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their deeds:(I) 20 you performed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt and to this day, in Israel and among all peoples, you have made a name for yourself as on this day.(J) 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 great terror. 22 And you gave them this land, as you had sworn to their ancestors to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey.(K) 23 They went in and took possession of it, but they did not listen to your voice. They did not live by your law; they did not do anything you commanded them to do. Then you made all this evil fall upon them.(L) 24 See, the siegeworks have arrived at this city to capture it; the city is handed over to the Chaldeans who are attacking it, with sword, starvation, and disease. What you threatened has happened—you can see it for yourself.(M) 25 Yet you told me, my Lord God: Purchase the field with silver and summon witnesses, when the city has already been handed over to the Chaldeans!
26 Then this word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 27 I am the Lord, the God of all the living! Is anything too difficult for me? 28 Therefore the Lord says: I am handing over this city to the Chaldeans and to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and he shall capture it. 29 The Chaldeans who are attacking this city shall go in and set the city on fire, burning it and the houses, on whose roofs incense was burned to Baal and libations were poured out to other gods in order to provoke me.(N) 30 From their youth the Israelites and the Judahites have been doing only what is evil in my eyes; the Israelites have been provoking me with the works of their hands—oracle of the Lord.(O) 31 This city has so stirred my anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, that I must put it out of my sight, 32 for all the evil the Israelites and Judahites have done to provoke me—they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.(P) 33 They turned their backs to me, not their faces; though I taught them persistently, they would not listen or accept correction.(Q) 34 Instead they set up their abominations in the house which bears my name in order to defile it.(R) 35 They built high places to Baal in the Valley of Ben-hinnom to sacrifice their sons and daughters to Molech;[g] I never commanded them to do this, nor did it even enter my mind that they would practice this abomination, so as to bring sin upon Judah.(S)
36 Now, therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city, which you say is being handed over to the king of Babylon by means of the sword, starvation, and disease: 37 See, I am gathering them from all the lands to which I drove them in my rising fury and great anger; I will bring them back to this place and settle them here in safety.(T) 38 They shall be my people, and I will be their God.(U) 39 I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me always, for their own good and the good of their children after them. 40 With them I will make an everlasting covenant, never to cease doing good to them; I will put fear of me in their hearts so that they never turn away from me.(V) 41 I will take delight in doing good to them: I will plant them firmly in this land, with all my heart and soul.(W)
42 For thus says the Lord: Just as I have brought upon this people all this great evil, so I will bring upon them all the good I have promised them.(X) 43 Fields shall be purchased in this land, about which you say, “It is a wasteland, without human beings or animals, handed over to the Chaldeans.”(Y) 44 They will purchase fields with silver, write up deeds, seal them, and have them witnessed in the land of Benjamin, in the neighborhood of Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah and of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah and the Negeb, when I restore their fortunes—oracle of the Lord.(Z)
Footnotes
- 32:1–44 This chapter recounts a prophecy “in action.” At the Lord’s command, Jeremiah fulfills his family duty to purchase the land of his cousin, carrying out all the legal details, even putting the deed away for safekeeping against the day he will have to produce it to verify his ownership of the land. The Lord defines the meaning of this symbolic action: In the future, Judah will be restored and daily life will return to normal.
- 32:1 The tenth year of Zedekiah: 588 B.C. The eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar: dating his reign from his victory at Carchemish; see note on 25:1–14.
- 32:6–9 Jeremiah’s imprisonment by the weak-willed Zedekiah was a technical custody that did not deprive him of all freedom of action.
- 32:7 The first right of purchase: the obligation of the closest relative to redeem the property of a family member in economic distress so that the ancestral land remains within the family (Lv 25:25–28); see note on Ru 2:20.
- 32:11 The sealed copy…and the open copy: the legal deed of sale was written on a scroll, which was then rolled up and sealed; a second scroll containing a copy of the legal deed was then rolled around it and left unsealed so the contents of the legal deed would be accessible without destroying the original seal.
- 32:14 In an earthenware jar: to protect the scroll from drying out and disintegrating. Some of the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in such jars.
- 32:35 Molech: a god to whom human sacrifice was offered in the Valley of Ben-hinnom. Here, as in 19:5, he is called “Baal”; see note on Lv 18:21.
Jeremiah 32
New International Version
Jeremiah 32
New International Version
Jeremiah Buys a Field
32 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth(A) year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth(B) year of Nebuchadnezzar. 2 The army of the king of Babylon was then besieging(C) Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was confined(D) in the courtyard of the guard(E) in the royal palace of Judah.
3 Now Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him there, saying, “Why do you prophesy(F) as you do? You say, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will capture(G) it. 4 Zedekiah(H) king of Judah will not escape(I) the Babylonians[a](J) but will certainly be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and will speak with him face to face and see him with his own eyes. 5 He will take(K) Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will remain until I deal with him,(L) declares the Lord. If you fight against the Babylonians, you will not succeed.’”(M)
6 Jeremiah said, “The word of the Lord came to me: 7 Hanamel son of Shallum your uncle is going to come to you and say, ‘Buy my field at Anathoth,(N) because as nearest relative it is your right and duty(O) to buy it.’
8 “Then, just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard and said, ‘Buy my field(P) at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. Since it is your right to redeem it and possess it, buy it for yourself.’
“I knew that this was the word of the Lord; 9 so I bought the field(Q) at Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel and weighed out for him seventeen shekels[b] of silver.(R) 10 I signed and sealed the deed,(S) had it witnessed,(T) and weighed out the silver on the scales. 11 I took the deed of purchase—the sealed copy containing the terms and conditions, as well as the unsealed copy— 12 and I gave this deed to Baruch(U) son of Neriah,(V) the son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and of the witnesses who had signed the deed and of all the Jews sitting in the courtyard of the guard.
13 “In their presence I gave Baruch these instructions: 14 ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Take these documents, both the sealed(W) and unsealed copies of the deed of purchase, and put them in a clay jar so they will last a long time. 15 For this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land.’(X)
16 “After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch(Y) son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord:
17 “Ah, Sovereign Lord,(Z) you have made the heavens and the earth(AA) by your great power and outstretched arm.(AB) Nothing is too hard(AC) for you. 18 You show love(AD) to thousands but bring the punishment for the parents’ sins into the laps(AE) of their children(AF) after them. Great and mighty God,(AG) whose name is the Lord Almighty,(AH) 19 great are your purposes and mighty are your deeds.(AI) Your eyes are open to the ways of all mankind;(AJ) you reward each person according to their conduct and as their deeds deserve.(AK) 20 You performed signs and wonders(AL) in Egypt(AM) and have continued them to this day, in Israel and among all mankind, and have gained the renown(AN) that is still yours. 21 You brought your people Israel out of Egypt with signs and wonders, by a mighty hand(AO) and an outstretched arm(AP) and with great terror.(AQ) 22 You gave them this land you had sworn to give their ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey.(AR) 23 They came in and took possession(AS) of it, but they did not obey you or follow your law;(AT) they did not do what you commanded them to do. So you brought all this disaster(AU) on them.
24 “See how the siege ramps(AV) are built up to take the city. Because of the sword, famine and plague,(AW) the city will be given into the hands of the Babylonians who are attacking it. What you said(AX) has happened,(AY) as you now see. 25 And though the city will be given into the hands of the Babylonians, you, Sovereign Lord, say to me, ‘Buy the field(AZ) with silver and have the transaction witnessed.(BA)’”
26 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 27 “I am the Lord, the God of all mankind.(BB) Is anything too hard for me?(BC) 28 Therefore this is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the Babylonians and to Nebuchadnezzar(BD) king of Babylon, who will capture it.(BE) 29 The Babylonians who are attacking this city will come in and set it on fire; they will burn it down,(BF) along with the houses(BG) where the people aroused my anger by burning incense on the roofs to Baal and by pouring out drink offerings(BH) to other gods.(BI)
30 “The people of Israel and Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight from their youth;(BJ) indeed, the people of Israel have done nothing but arouse my anger(BK) with what their hands have made,(BL) declares the Lord. 31 From the day it was built until now, this city(BM) has so aroused my anger and wrath that I must remove(BN) it from my sight. 32 The people of Israel and Judah have provoked(BO) me by all the evil(BP) they have done—they, their kings and officials,(BQ) their priests and prophets, the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem. 33 They turned their backs(BR) to me and not their faces; though I taught(BS) them again and again, they would not listen or respond to discipline.(BT) 34 They set up their vile images(BU) in the house that bears my Name(BV) and defiled(BW) it. 35 They built high places for Baal in the Valley of Ben Hinnom(BX) to sacrifice their sons and daughters to Molek,(BY) though I never commanded—nor did it enter my mind(BZ)—that they should do such a detestable(CA) thing and so make Judah sin.(CB)
36 “You are saying about this city, ‘By the sword, famine and plague(CC) it will be given into the hands of the king of Babylon’; but this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 37 I will surely gather(CD) them from all the lands where I banish them in my furious anger(CE) and great wrath; I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety.(CF) 38 They will be my people,(CG) and I will be their God. 39 I will give them singleness(CH) of heart and action, so that they will always fear(CI) me and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them. 40 I will make an everlasting covenant(CJ) with them: I will never stop doing good to them, and I will inspire(CK) them to fear me, so that they will never turn away from me.(CL) 41 I will rejoice(CM) in doing them good(CN) and will assuredly plant(CO) them in this land with all my heart and soul.(CP)
42 “This is what the Lord says: As I have brought all this great calamity(CQ) on this people, so I will give them all the prosperity I have promised(CR) them. 43 Once more fields will be bought(CS) in this land of which you say, ‘It is a desolate(CT) waste, without people or animals, for it has been given into the hands of the Babylonians.’ 44 Fields will be bought for silver, and deeds(CU) will be signed, sealed and witnessed(CV) in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah and in the towns of the hill country, of the western foothills and of the Negev,(CW) because I will restore(CX) their fortunes,[c] declares the Lord.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 32:4 Or Chaldeans; also in verses 5, 24, 25, 28, 29 and 43
- Jeremiah 32:9 That is, about 7 ounces or about 200 grams
- Jeremiah 32:44 Or will bring them back from captivity
Jeremiah 32
King James Version
Jeremiah 32
King James Version
32 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar.
2 For then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem: and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house.
3 For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, Wherefore dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it;
4 And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his eyes;
5 And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him, saith the Lord: though ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye shall not prosper.
6 And Jeremiah said, The word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
7 Behold, Hanameel the son of Shallum thine uncle shall come unto thee saying, Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth: for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.
8 So Hanameel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the prison according to the word of the Lord, and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin: for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord.
9 And I bought the field of Hanameel my uncle's son, that was in Anathoth, and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver.
10 And I subscribed the evidence, and sealed it, and took witnesses, and weighed him the money in the balances.
11 So I took the evidence of the purchase, both that which was sealed according to the law and custom, and that which was open:
12 And I gave the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, in the sight of Hanameel mine uncle's son, and in the presence of the witnesses that subscribed the book of the purchase, before all the Jews that sat in the court of the prison.
13 And I charged Baruch before them, saying,
14 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Take these evidences, this evidence of the purchase, both which is sealed, and this evidence which is open; and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may continue many days.
15 For thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Houses and fields and vineyards shall be possessed again in this land.
16 Now when I had delivered the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed unto the Lord, saying,
17 Ah Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee:
18 Thou shewest lovingkindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them: the Great, the Mighty God, the Lord of hosts, is his name,
19 Great in counsel, and mighty in work: for thine eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of men: to give every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings:
20 Which hast set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, even unto this day, and in Israel, and among other men; and hast made thee a name, as at this day;
21 And hast brought forth thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs, and with wonders, and with a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with great terror;
22 And hast given them this land, which thou didst swear to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey;
23 And they came in, and possessed it; but they obeyed not thy voice, neither walked in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst them to do: therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them:
24 Behold the mounts, they are come unto the city to take it; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans, that fight against it, because of the sword, and of the famine, and of the pestilence: and what thou hast spoken is come to pass; and, behold, thou seest it.
25 And thou hast said unto me, O Lord God, Buy thee the field for money, and take witnesses; for the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying,
27 Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?
28 Therefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he shall take it:
29 And the Chaldeans, that fight against this city, shall come and set fire on this city, and burn it with the houses, upon whose roofs they have offered incense unto Baal, and poured out drink offerings unto other gods, to provoke me to anger.
30 For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have only done evil before me from their youth: for the children of Israel have only provoked me to anger with the work of their hands, saith the Lord.
31 For this city hath been to me as a provocation of mine anger and of my fury from the day that they built it even unto this day; that I should remove it from before my face,
32 Because of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children of Judah, which they have done to provoke me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
33 And they have turned unto me the back, and not the face: though I taught them, rising up early and teaching them, yet they have not hearkened to receive instruction.
34 But they set their abominations in the house, which is called by my name, to defile it.
35 And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.
36 And now therefore thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city, whereof ye say, It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence;
37 Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely:
38 And they shall be my people, and I will be their God:
39 And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them:
40 And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.
41 Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.
42 For thus saith the Lord; Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them.
43 And fields shall be bought in this land, whereof ye say, It is desolate without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.
44 Men shall buy fields for money, and subscribe evidences, and seal them, and take witnesses in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, and in the cities of the mountains, and in the cities of the valley, and in the cities of the south: for I will cause their captivity to return, saith the Lord.
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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