20 Jeremiah 21-36: A Translation(^5) Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their fruit. (^6) Take
wives and beget sons and daughters, and take for your sons wives, and your
daughters give to husbands, and let them bear sons and daughters. Yes,
multiply there, and do not decrease.^7 And seek the welfare of the city
where I have exiled you, and pray on its behalf to Yahweh, for in its welfare
will be welfare for you.
(^8) For thus said Yahweh of hosts, God of Israel:
Do not let your prophets who are in your midst or your diviners deceive
you; also do not listen to your dreamers whom you cause to dream.^9 For
by a lie they are prophesying to you in my name. I have not sent them-
oracle of Yahweh.
(^10) For thus said Yahweh:
When Babylon has completed seventy years before me, I will attend to you
and confirm upon you my good word to bring you back to this place.^11 For
I, I know the plans that I am planning concerning you-oracle of Yah-
weh-plans of welfare and not for evil, to give to you a future and a hope.
(^12) And you will call me and will come and pray to me, and I will listen to
you.^13 And you will search for me and will find if you seek me with your
whole heart.
(^14) And I will be found by you
-oracle of Yahweh-
and I will restore your fortunes.
And I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I
have dispersed you-oracle of Yahweh-and I will bring you back to the
place from which I exiled you.
(^15) Because you have said, 'Yahweh has raised up for us prophets in Babylon':
(^16) For thus said Yahweh concerning the king who sits on the throne of David
and concerning all the people who sit in this city-your brothers who did
not go out with you into exile:
(^17) Thus said Yahweh of hosts:
Look I am sending against them sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will
make them like horrid figs, which cannot be eaten they are so bad.^18 And I
will pursue them by sword, by famine, and by pestilence, and I will make
them a fright to all the kingdoms of the earth-a curse, and a desolation,
and an object of hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have
dispersed them -^19 inasmuch as they have not listened to my words-oracle
of Yahweh-which I sent to them by my servants the prophets-constantly
I sent-and you did not listen-oracle of Yahweh.
(^20) Now you! Hear the word of Yahweh, all the exiles whom I sent away from
Jerusalem to Babylon: