Jeremiah:33-36

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* Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time , while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison , saying , * Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof , the LORD that formed it , to establish it ; the LORD is his name ; * Call unto me , and I will answer thee , and shew thee great and mighty things , which thou knowest not . * For thus saith the LORD , the God of Israel , concerning the houses of this city , and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah , which are thrown down by the mounts , and by the sword ; * They come to fight with the Chaldeans , but it is to fill them with the dead bodies of men , whom I have slain in mine anger and in my fury , and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city . * Behold , I will bring it health and cure , and I will cure them , and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth . * And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return , and will build them , as at the first . * And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity , whereby they have sinned against me ; and I will pardon all their iniquities , whereby they have sinned , and whereby they have transgressed against me . * And it shall be to me a name of joy , a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth , which shall hear all the good that I do unto them : and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it . * Thus saith the LORD ; Again there shall be heard in this place , which ye say shall be desolate without man and without beast , even in the cities of Judah , and in the streets of Jerusalem , that are desolate , without man , and without inhabitant , and without beast , * The voice of joy , and the voice of gladness , the voice of the bridegroom , and the voice of the bride , the voice of them that shall say , Praise the LORD of hosts : for the LORD is good ; for his mercy endureth for ever : and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD . For I will cause to return the captivity of the land , as at the first , saith the LORD . * Thus saith the LORD of hosts ; Again in this place , which is desolate without man and without beast , and in all the cities thereof , shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down . * In the cities of the mountains , in the cities of the vale , and in the cities of the south , and in the land of Benjamin , and in the places about Jerusalem , and in the cities of Judah , shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that telleth them , saith the LORD . * Behold , the days come , saith the LORD , that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah . * In those days , and at that time , will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David ; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land . * In those days shall Judah be saved , and Jerusalem shall dwell safely : and this is the name wherewith she shall be called , The LORD our righteousness . * For thus saith the LORD ; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel ; * Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings , and to kindle meat offerings , and to do sacrifice continually . * And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah , saying , * Thus saith the LORD ; If ye can break my covenant of the day , and my covenant of the night , and that there should not be day and night in their season ; * Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant , that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne ; and with the Levites the priests , my ministers . * As the host of heaven cannot be numbered , neither the sand of the sea measured : so will I multiply the seed of David my servant , and the Levites that minister unto me . * Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah , saying , * Considerest thou not what this people have spoken , saying , The two families which the LORD hath chosen , he hath even cast them off ? thus they have despised my people , that they should be no more a nation before them . * Thus saith the LORD ; If my covenant be not with day and night , and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth ; * Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob , and David my servant , so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham , Isaac , and Jacob : for I will cause their captivity to return , and have mercy on them . * The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD , when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon , and all his army , and all the kingdoms of the earth of his dominion , and all the people , fought against Jerusalem , and against all the cities thereof , saying , * Thus saith the LORD , the God of Israel ; Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah , and tell him , Thus saith the LORD ; Behold , I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon , and he shall burn it with fire : * And thou shalt not escape out of his hand , but shalt surely be taken , and delivered into his hand ; and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the king of Babylon , and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth , and thou shalt go to Babylon . * Yet hear the word of the LORD , O Zedekiah king of Judah ; Thus saith the LORD of thee , Thou shalt not die by the sword : * But thou shalt die in peace : and with the burnings of thy fathers , the former kings which were before thee , so shall they burn odours for thee ; and they will lament thee , saying , Ah lord ! for I have pronounced the word , saith the LORD . * Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem , * When the king of Babylon 's army fought against Jerusalem , and against all the cities of Judah that were left , against Lachish , and against Azekah : for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah . * This is the word that came unto Jeremiah from the LORD , after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Jerusalem , to proclaim liberty unto them ; * That every man should let his manservant , and every man his maidservant , being an Hebrew or an Hebrewess , go free ; that none should serve himself of them , to wit , of a Jew his brother . * Now when all the princes , and all the people , which had entered into the covenant , heard that every one should let his manservant , and every one his maidservant , go free , that none should serve themselves of them any more , then they obeyed , and let them go . * But afterward they turned , and caused the servants and the handmaids , whom they had let go free , to return , and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids . * Therefore the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD , saying , * Thus saith the LORD , the God of Israel ; I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt , out of the house of bondmen , saying , * At the end of seven years let ye go every man his brother an Hebrew , which hath been sold unto thee ; and when he hath served thee six years , thou shalt let him go free from thee : but your fathers hearkened not unto me , neither inclined their ear . * And ye were now turned , and had done right in my sight , in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour ; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name : * But ye turned and polluted my name , and caused every man his servant , and every man his handmaid , whom ye had set at liberty at their pleasure , to return , and brought them into subjection , to be unto you for servants and for handmaids . * Therefore thus saith the LORD ; Ye have not hearkened unto me , in proclaiming liberty , every one to his brother , and every man to his neighbour : behold , I proclaim a liberty for you , saith the LORD , to the sword , to the pestilence , and to the famine ; and I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth . * And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant , which have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me , when they cut the calf in twain , and passed between the parts thereof , * The princes of Judah , and the princes of Jerusalem , the eunuchs , and the priests , and all the people of the land , which passed between the parts of the calf ; * I will even give them into the hand of their enemies , and into the hand of them that seek their life : and their dead bodies shall be for meat unto the fowls of the heaven , and to the beasts of the earth . * And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies , and into the hand of them that seek their life , and into the hand of the king of Babylon 's army , which are gone up from you . * Behold , I will command , saith the LORD , and cause them to return to this city ; and they shall fight against it , and take it , and burn it with fire : and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without an inhabitant . * The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah , saying , * Go unto the house of the Rechabites , and speak unto them , and bring them into the house of the LORD , into one of the chambers , and give them wine to drink . * Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah , the son of Habaziniah , and his brethren , and all his sons , and the whole house of the Rechabites ; * And I brought them into the house of the LORD , into the chamber of the sons of Hanan , the son of Igdaliah , a man of God , which was by the chamber of the princes , which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum , the keeper of the door : * And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine , and cups , and I said unto them , Drink ye wine . * But they said , We will drink no wine : for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us , saying , Ye shall drink no wine , neither ye , nor your sons for ever : * Neither shall ye build house , nor sow seed , nor plant vineyard , nor have any : but all your days ye shall dwell in tents ; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers . * Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us , to drink no wine all our days , we , our wives , our sons , nor our daughters ; * Nor to build houses for us to dwell in : neither have we vineyard , nor field , nor seed : * But we have dwelt in tents , and have obeyed , and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us . * But it came to pass , when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up into the land , that we said , Come , and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans , and for fear of the army of the Syrians : so we dwell at Jerusalem . * Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah , saying , * Thus saith the LORD of hosts , the God of Israel ; Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem , Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to my words ? saith the LORD . * The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab , that he commanded his sons not to drink wine , are performed ; for unto this day they drink none , but obey their father 's commandment : notwithstanding I have spoken unto you , rising early and speaking ; but ye hearkened not unto me . * I have sent also unto you all my servants the prophets , rising up early and sending them , saying , Return ye now every man from his evil way , and amend your doings , and go not after other gods to serve them , and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers : but ye have not inclined your ear , nor hearkened unto me . * Because the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father , which he commanded them ; but this people hath not hearkened unto me : * Therefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts , the God of Israel ; Behold , I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them : because I have spoken unto them , but they have not heard ; and I have called unto them , but they have not answered . * And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites , Thus saith the LORD of hosts , the God of Israel ; Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father , and kept all his precepts , and done according unto all that he hath commanded you : * Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts , the God of Israel ; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before me for ever . * And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah , that this word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD , saying , * Take thee a roll of a book , and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel , and against Judah , and against all the nations , from the day I spake unto thee , from the days of Josiah , even unto this day . * It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them ; that they may return every man from his evil way ; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin . * Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah : and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the LORD , which he had spoken unto him , upon a roll of a book . * And Jeremiah commanded Baruch , saying , I am shut up ; I cannot go into the house of the LORD : * Therefore go thou , and read in the roll , which thou hast written from my mouth , the words of the LORD in the ears of the people in the LORD 'S house upon the fasting day : and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities . * It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD , and will return every one from his evil way : for great is the anger and the fury that the LORD hath pronounced against this people . * And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him , reading in the book the words of the LORD in the LORD 'S house . * And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah , in the ninth month , that they proclaimed a fast before the LORD to all the people in Jerusalem , and to all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem . * Then read Baruch in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD , in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe , in the higher court , at the entry of the new gate of the LORD 'S house , in the ears of all the people . * When Michaiah the son of Gemariah , the son of Shaphan , had heard out of the book all the words of the LORD , * Then he went down into the king 's house , into the scribe 's chamber : and , lo , all the princes sat there , even Elishama the scribe , and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah , and Elnathan the son of Achbor , and Gemariah the son of Shaphan , and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah , and all the princes . * Then Michaiah declared unto them all the words that he had heard , when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people . * Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah , the son of Shelemiah , the son of Cushi , unto Baruch , saying , Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people , and come . So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand , and came unto them . * And they said unto him , Sit down now , and read it in our ears . So Baruch read it in their ears . * Now it came to pass , when they had heard all the words , they were afraid both one and other , and said unto Baruch , We will surely tell the king of all these words . * And they asked Baruch , saying , Tell us now , How didst thou write all these words at his mouth ? * Then Baruch answered them , He pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth , and I wrote them with ink in the book . * Then said the princes unto Baruch , Go , hide thee , thou and Jeremiah ; and let no man know where ye be . * And they went in to the king into the court , but they laid up the roll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe , and told all the words in the ears of the king . * So the king sent Jehudi to fetch the roll : and he took it out of Elishama the scribe 's chamber . And Jehudi read it in the ears of the king , and in the ears of all the princes which stood beside the king . * Now the king sat in the winterhouse in the ninth month : and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him . * And it came to pass , that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves , he cut it with the penknife , and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth , until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth . * Yet they were not afraid , nor rent their garments , neither the king , nor any of his servants that heard all these words . * Nevertheless Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had made intercession to the king that he would not burn the roll : but he would not hear them . * But the king commanded Jerahmeel the son of Hammelech , and Seraiah the son of Azriel , and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel , to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet : but the LORD hid them . * Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah , after that the king had burned the roll , and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah , saying , * Take thee again another roll , and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll , which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned . * And thou shalt say to Jehoiakim king of Judah , Thus saith the LORD ; Thou hast burned this roll , saying , Why hast thou written therein , saying , The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land , and shall cause to cease from thence man and beast ? * Therefore thus saith the LORD of Jehoiakim king of Judah ; He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David : and his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat , and in the night to the frost . * And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity ; and I will bring upon them , and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem , and upon the men of Judah , all the evil that I have pronounced against them ; but they hearkened not . * Then took Jeremiah another roll , and gave it to Baruch the scribe , the son of Neriah ; who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire : and there were added besides unto them many like words . * And king Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned instead of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim , whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah .

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