Jeremiah
Chapter 43
1 When Jeremiah finished telling the people everything that God had sent him to say to them,
2 Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah, and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying: God has not sent you to tell us, ‘Do not go to live in Egypt.’”
3 But Baruch, son of Neriah, is turning you against us to hand us over to the Chaldeans, so they can kill us or take us as prisoners to Babylon.
4 So Johanan, Kareah’s son, and all the army leaders, and all the people, did not follow God’s command to live in the land of Judah.
5 Johanan, Kareah’s son, and all the military leaders took all the remaining people of Judah who had come back from the countries where they were scattered to live in the land of Judah.
6 Men, women, children, the king’s daughters, and everyone that the captain of the guards, Nebuzaradan, left with Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, along with Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch, son of Neriah.
7 They entered Egypt because they did not listen to God, and so they reached Tahpanhes.
8 Then God spoke to Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying,
9 Carry large stones in your hand and bury them in the mud at the brick-making place near the entrance of the king’s palace in Tahpanhes, where the men of Judah can see you.
10 Tell them this: God, the God of Israel, says, “Look, I will send and bring King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, my servant. I will place his throne on these hidden stones, and he will set up his royal tent over them.”
11 When he comes, he will strike the land of Egypt, and those marked for death will die, those marked for captivity will be taken captive, and those marked for the sword will fall by the sword.
12 I will start a fire in the Egyptian gods’ temples; it will burn them and take them as prisoners. He will take over Egypt as easily as a shepherd puts on his coat, and then he will leave there safely.
13 He will also destroy the statues in Bethshemesh in Egypt; he will burn down the Egyptian temples.