1 Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon;
2 (After that Jeconiah the king, and the queen, and the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the carpenters, and the smiths, were departed from Jerusalem;)
3 By the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon) saying,
4 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, to all that are carried away captives, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon;
5 Build you houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them;
6 Take you wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that you may be increased there, and not diminished.
7 And seek the completeness of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray to Jehovah for it: for in the completeness shall you have completeness.
8 For thus says Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that are in the midst of you, deceive you, neither listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed.
9 For they prophesy falsely to you in my name: I have not sent them, says Jehovah.
10 For thus says Jehovah, That after seventy years is accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.
11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says Jehovah, thoughts of completeness, and not of evil, to give you hope and a future.
12 Then shall you call upon me, and you shall go and pray to me, and I will listen to you.
13 And you shall seek Me, and find Me, when you shall search for Me with all your mind.
14 And I will be found of you, says Jehovah: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places where I have driven you, says Jehovah; and I will bring you again into the place from which I caused you to be carried away captive.
15 Because you have said, Jehovah has raised us up prophets in Babylon;
16 Know that thus says Jehovah of the king that sits upon the throne of David, and of all the people that dwells in this city, and of your brothers that are not gone forth with you into captivity;
17 Thus says Jehovah of hosts; I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
18 And I will persecute them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be removed to all the kingdoms of the Earth, to be a curse, and an astonishment, and a hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations where I have driven them:
19 Because they have not listened to my words, says Jehovah, which I sent to them by my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but you would not hear, says Jehovah.
20 Hear you therefore the word of Jehovah, all you of the captivity, whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon:
21 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, of Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and of Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, which prophesy a lie to you in my name; I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall slay them before your eyes;
22 And of them shall be taken up a curse by all the captivity of Judah which are in Babylon, saying, Jehovah make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire;
23 Because they have committed disgraceful folly in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives, and have spoken lying words in my name, which I have not commanded them; even I know, and am a witness, says Jehovah.
24 Thus shall you also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying,
25 Thus speaks Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, Because you have sent letters in your name to all the people that are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying,
26 Jehovah has made you priest instead of him Jehoiada the priest, that you should be officers in the house of Jehovah, for every man that is mad, and makes himself a prophet, that you should put him in prison, and in the stocks.
27 Now therefore why have you not reproved Jeremiah of Anathoth, which makes himself a prophet to you?
28 For therefore he sent to us in Babylon, saying, This captivity is long: build you houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them.
29 And Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the ears of Jeremiah the prophet.
30 Then came the word of Jehovah to Jeremiah, saying,
31 Send to all them of the captivity, saying, Thus says Jehovah concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite; Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, and I sent him not, and he caused you to trust in a lie:
32 Therefore thus says Jehovah; I will correct Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and his seed: he shall not have a man to dwell among this people; neither shall he see the good that I will do for my people, says Jehovah; because he has taught rebellion against Jehovah.