Jeremiah
Chapter 32
1 The message that came to Jeremiah from God in the tenth year of Zedekiah, the king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar.
2 At that time, the Babylonian king’s army surrounded Jerusalem, and the prophet Jeremiah was confined in the prison yard inside the king of Judah’s palace.
3 King Zedekiah of Judah had imprisoned him, asking, “Why do you prophesy and say, ‘God declares, I will give this city to the king of Babylon, and he will capture it’”?
4 Zedekiah, the king of Judah, will not escape from the Chaldeans. He will definitely be given to the king of Babylon. They will talk face to face, and they will look into each other’s eyes.
5 God will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will stay until I deal with him, says God. Even if you battle the Chaldeans, you will not succeed.
6 Jeremiah said, God spoke to me, saying,
7 Look, your uncle Shallum’s son Hanameel will come to you and say, “Buy my field in Anathoth: you have the right to buy it back.”
8 So my cousin Hanameel came to me in the prison yard, just as God had said he would, and he told me, “Please buy my field in Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin, because you have the right to inherit it and to buy it back. Buy it for yourself.” Then I understood that this was truly from God.
9 I bought the field from Hanameel, my cousin in Anathoth, and paid him the money, exactly 17 silver shekels.
10 I signed the document, sealed it, had witnesses watch, and weighed the money on the scales.
11 I took the proof of my purchase, the sealed documents as required by law, and the unsealed copies.
12 I gave the purchase papers to Baruch, Neriah’s son and Maaseiah’s grandson, in front of my cousin Hanameel and the witnesses who signed the papers, with all the Jews in the prison courtyard watching.
13 I gave Baruch orders in front of them, saying,
14 God of Israel says, “Take these documents, the sealed and unsealed copies of the property sale, and place them in a clay jar so they will last a long time.”
15 God, the ruler of everything, says; People will again own houses, land, and vineyards in this place.
16 After giving Baruch son of Neriah the purchase papers, I prayed to God, saying,
17 Oh God, you have created the sky and the earth with your great power and outstretched arm, and nothing is too difficult for you.
18 You show love to thousands, but bring the fathers’ sins onto their children: the Great and Mighty God, God of all, is his name.
19 God is wise in planning and powerful in action: for your eyes see all that humans do: to reward everyone based on their actions and the outcomes of their behavior.
20 You have shown signs and wonders in Egypt to this day, in Israel, and among all people, making a great name for yourself, as seen today.
21 You brought your people Israel out of Egypt with miracles, amazing acts, strong power, an extended arm, and great fear.
22 You gave them this land, which you promised their ancestors, a land filled with milk and honey.
23 They came and took the land, but did not listen to you or follow your laws. They did none of what you told them to do, so you have brought all this trouble on them.
24 Look at the hills, they have come to capture the city; and the city has been handed over to the Chaldeans who are attacking it, because of war, hunger, and disease. What you have said has happened, and you see it.
25 You told me, God, “Buy the field with money and get witnesses, because the city will be handed over to the Chaldeans.”
26 God spoke to Jeremiah, saying,
27 Look, I am God, the God of everyone: is anything too difficult for me?
28 So God says, “Look, I will give this city to the Chaldeans and to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.”
29 The Chaldeans fighting this city will come, set it on fire, and burn it along with the houses where they burned incense to Baal on the roofs and offered drinks to other gods, making me angry.
30 The children of Israel and Judah have been doing bad things before me since they were young; they have made me angry by what they do, says God.
31 This city has made me angry and furious since the day it was built, until now; so I want to get rid of it.
32 Because of all the bad things the people of Israel and Judah have done, making me angry, including their kings, leaders, priests, prophets, the men of Judah, and the people of Jerusalem.
33 They’ve turned their backs on me, not their faces. Even though I taught them early and kept teaching, they did not listen to learn.
34 They put their disgusting idols in the house named after me, to make it unclean.
35 They made altars for Baal in the valley of Hinnom to burn their sons and daughters as offerings to Molech; something I did not command, nor did I think they would do such a horrible thing and make Judah sin.
36 So now, God, the God of Israel, says this about the city you claim will be given to the king of Babylon through war, hunger, and disease:
37 Look, I will bring them back from all the countries where I sent them in my anger, fury, and great wrath; I will return them to this place and they will live in safety.
38 They will be my people, and I will be their God.
39 I will give them one heart and one path so they will respect me always, for their own good and for their children’s good.
40 I will make a forever promise with them that I won’t leave them but do good for them; I will make them respect me so they won’t leave me.
41 Yes, I will celebrate by doing good for them, and I will definitely plant them in this land with all my heart and soul.
42 God says: Just as I caused all this big trouble for these people, I will also give them all the good I promised.
43 People will buy land in this country, even though you say it is empty with no people or animals, because it has been taken over by the Chaldeans.
44 People will buy land with money, sign legal papers, seal them, and have witnesses in the land of Benjamin, around Jerusalem, in the towns of Judah, the mountain towns, the valley towns, and the southern towns, because I will restore their fortunes, says God.