1 ARST While Jeremiah was still being guarded in the courtyard of the palace, Yahweh gave him this second message: BSB BSB: While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the LORD came to him a second time:
2 ARST “This is what I, the one who made the earth, who formed it and put it in its place, say to the people of Jerusalem:‘My name is Yahweh. BSB BSB: “Thus says the LORD who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it, the LORD is His name:
3 ARST Call out to me, and then I will tell you great and wonderful things that you have not known before.’ BSB BSB: Call to Me, and I will answer and show you great and unsearchable things you do not know.
4 ARST This is what I, Yahweh, the God of Israel, say:‘The men in this city have torn down some of their houses, and even parts of the king’ s palace, to get materials to strengthen the walls around the city, in order that the soldiers of Babylonia would not be able to break through the walls after they climb up the ramps that they have built against the walls, and kill the inhabitants with their swords. BSB BSB: For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says about the houses of this city and the palaces of the kings of Judah that have been torn down for defense against the siege ramps and the sword:
5 ARST You are expecting to fight against the army from Babylonia, but what will happen is that the houses of this city will be filled with the corpses of the men of this city whom I will allow to be killed because I am extremely angry with them. I have abandoned them because of all the wicked things that they have done. BSB BSB: The Chaldeans are coming to fight and to fill those places with the corpses of the men I will strike down in My anger and in My wrath. I have hidden My face from this city because of all its wickedness.
6 ARST However, there will be a time when I will cause the people in this city to be healthy and strong again. I will enable them to be prosperous and have peace. BSB BSB: Nevertheless, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal its people and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth.
7 ARST I will bring the people of Judah and Israel back from the lands to which they were exiled. I will enable them to rebuild their towns. BSB BSB: I will restore Judah and Israel from captivity and will rebuild them as in former times.
8 ARST I will get rid of their guilt for all the sins that they have committed against me, and I will forgive them for their sin of rebelling against me. BSB BSB: And I will cleanse them from all the iniquity they have committed against Me, and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against Me.
9 ARST When that happens, all the nations of the world will rejoice, and they will praise me and honor me. They will hear about all the good things that I have done for this city and, because of that, they will revere me, and they will tremble because I have caused the people in this city to have peace and to prosper.’ BSB BSB: So this city will bring Me renown, joy, praise, and glory before all the nations of the earth, who will hear of all the good I do for it. They will tremble in awe because of all the goodness and prosperity that I will provide for it.
10 ARST And this is also what I, Yahweh, say:‘You people have said that this is a land where there are no longer any people or animals. But in the streets of Jerusalem that are now completely empty, and in the other towns in Judah, BSB BSB: This is what the LORD says: In this place you say is a wasteland without man or beast, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted—inhabited by neither man nor beast—there will be heard again
11 ARST some day people will again be happy and laugh. Brides and bridegrooms will again sing joyfully. And many other people will also sing joyfully as they bring their offerings to me to thank me for what I have done for them. They will sing this song:“We thank you, Yahweh, commander of the angel armies, because you are good to us. You faithfully hold to your covenant with us forever.” They will sing that because I will cause the people of this land to be as prosperous as they were before.’ BSB BSB: the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of the bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those bringing thank offerings into the house of the LORD, saying: ‘Give thanks to the LORD of Hosts, for the LORD is good; His loving devotion endures forever.’ For I will restore the land from captivity as in former times, says the LORD.
12 ARST This land is now desolate. There are no people or animals living here. But I, Yahweh, commander of the angel armies, say this:‘In this land there will again be pastures where shepherds will lead their sheep BSB BSB: This is what the LORD of Hosts says: In this desolate place, without man or beast, and in all its cities, there will once more be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.
13 ARST Shepherds will again count their sheep as the sheep walk by, outside the towns in the hill country, in the western foothills, in the southern Judean wilderness, in the land where the descendants of Benjamin live, around Jerusalem, and outside all the other towns in Judah.’ That will surely happen because I, Yahweh, have said it. BSB BSB: In the cities of the hill country, the foothills, and the Negev, in the land of Benjamin and the cities surrounding Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, the flocks will again pass under the hands of the one who counts them, says the LORD.
14 ARST Listen to this! I, Yahweh, say that there will be a time when I will do for the people of Israel and Judah all the good things that I promised to do for them. BSB BSB: Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will fulfill the gracious promise that I have spoken to the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
15 ARST At that time I will appoint a righteous man who will be a descendant of King David. Throughout the land, he will do what is just and right. BSB BSB: In those days and at that time I will cause to sprout for David a righteous Branch, and He will administer justice and righteousness in the land.
16 ARST At that time, the people of Judah will be rescued from their enemies, and the people of Jerusalem will be safe. And people will say that the name of the city is‘Yahweh is the one who does right for us.’ BSB BSB: In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely, and this is the name by which it will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.
17 ARST And this is also what I, Yahweh, say:‘There will be descendants of King David ruling Israel forever. BSB BSB: For this is what the LORD says: David will never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel,
18 ARST And there will always be priests who are descendants of Levi who stand in front of me and offer sacrifices that will be completely burned on the altar and who will burn food offerings and other sacrifices.’” BSB BSB: nor will the priests who are Levites ever fail to have a man before Me to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to present sacrifices.”
19 ARST Then Yahweh gave Jeremiah this message: BSB BSB: And the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
20 ARST “This is what I, Yahweh, say:‘You certainly cannot annul my promise to cause nighttime to follow daytime each day. BSB BSB: “This is what the LORD says: If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that day and night cease to occupy their appointed time,
21 ARST Similarly, you cannot annul the promise that I made with King David, who served me well, that there will always be descendants of his who will rule Judah. The same is true for my agreement with the descendants of Levi who are priests who do work for me. BSB BSB: then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant and with My ministers the Levites who are priests, so that David will not have a son to reign on his throne.
22 ARST No one can count the stars in the sky, and no one can count the grains of sand at the seashore. Similarly, I will cause there to be a huge number of descendants of David and descendants of Levi who will work for me.’” BSB BSB: As the hosts of heaven cannot be counted and as the sand on the seashore cannot be measured, so too will I multiply the descendants of My servant David and the Levites who minister before Me.”
23 ARST Yahweh gave another message to me. He said, BSB BSB: Moreover, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah:
24 ARST “Surely you know that some people are saying,‘Yahweh chose two groups, the people of Judah and the people of Israel, and later abandoned them.’ The people who are saying this are despising my people; they are saying that Israel no longer deserves to be considered a nation. BSB BSB: “Have you not noticed what these people are saying: ‘The LORD has rejected the two families He had chosen’? So they despise My people and no longer regard them as a nation.
26 ARST Similarly, I will never abandon the descendants of David or the other descendants of Jacob, and I will always allow descendants of David to rule the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will bring them back to their land, and I will act mercifully toward them.’” BSB BSB: then I would also reject the descendants of Jacob and of My servant David, so as not to take from his descendants rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore them from captivity and will have compassion on them.”
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