1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar;
2 for then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem; and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard, which was in the king of Judah's house.
3 For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, Why dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus hath the LORD said, Behold, I give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it?
4 And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his eyes;
5 and he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him, said the LORD; if ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye shall not prosper?
6 And Jeremiah said, The word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
7 Behold, Hanameel the son of Shallum thine uncle comes unto thee, saying, Buy my field that is in Anathoth, for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.
8 So Hanameel my uncle's son came to me in the court of the guard according to the word of the LORD and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the country of Benjamin; for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of the LORD.
9 And I bought the field of Hanameel my uncle's son, that was in Anathoth and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver.
10 And I subscribed the evidence and sealed it and took witnesses and weighed him the money in the balances.
11 So I took the evidence of the purchase, both that which was sealed according to the law and custom, and that which was open.
12 And I gave the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, in the sight of Hanameel my uncle's son and in the presence of the witnesses that subscribed the book of the purchase before all the Jews that were in the court of the guard.
13 And I charged Baruch before them, saying,
14 Thus hath the LORD of the hosts, the God of Israel, said: Take these evidences, this evidence of the purchase, both that which is sealed, and this evidence which is open; and put them in an earthen vessel that they may continue many days.
15 For thus hath the LORD of the hosts the God of Israel said: Houses and fields and vineyards shall be bought and sold again in this land.
16 Now when I had delivered the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed unto the LORD, saying,
17 Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing hidden from thee;
18 that thou dost show mercy in thousands and recompense the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their sons after them, the Great, the Mighty God, the LORD of the hosts, is his name,
19 great in counsel and magnificent in works: for thine eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of men to give unto each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his doings;
20 who hast set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, even unto this day, and in Israel, and in the man, and hast made thee a name, as at this day;
21 and hast brought forth thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and with wonders, and with a strong hand and with a stretched out arm and with great terror;
22 and hast given them this land, which thou didst swear to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey;
23 and they came in and possessed it; but they did not hear thy voice, neither did they walk in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou didst command them to do, therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them.
24 Behold the siege engines are come unto the city to take it; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans that fight against it because of the sword and of the famine and of the pestilence, and what thou hast spoken is come to pass; and, behold, thou dost see it.
25 And thou hast said unto me, O Lord GOD, Buy the field for money and take witnesses; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying,
27 Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: peradventure shall any thing be covered unto me?
28 Therefore thus hath the LORD said; Behold, I give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he shall take it:
29 and the Chaldeans, that fight against this city, shall come and set fire on this city, and burn it with the houses, upon whose roofs they have offered incense unto Baal, and poured out drink offerings unto other gods, to provoke me to anger.
30 For the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah have done only evil before me from their youth: for the sons of Israel have only provoked me to anger with the work of their hands, said the LORD.
31 For this city has been unto me as a provocation of my anger and of my fury from the day that they built it even unto this day; that I should remove it from before my face
32 because of all the evil of the sons of Israel and of the sons of Judah, which they have done to provoke me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
33 And they have turned unto me the back and not the face: when I taught them, rising up early and teaching them, yet they did not hearken to receive chastisement;
34 but they set their abominations in the house, which is called by my name, to defile it.
35 And they built altars unto Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I did not command them, neither did it come into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.
36 And now therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto this city, of which ye say, It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, and by the famine and by the pestilence;
37 behold, I will gather them out of all countries where I have driven them in my anger, in my fury and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely:
38 and they shall be my people, and I will be their God:
39 and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me for ever for the good of them and of their sons after them:
40 and I will make an eternal covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good, and I will put my fear in their hearts that they shall not depart from me.
41 And, I will rejoice with them doing them good, and I will plant them in this land with truth, with my whole heart and with my whole soul.
42 For thus hath the LORD said; Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I speak regarding them.
43 And they shall possess inheritance in this land, of which ye say, It is desolate without man or beast; it is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.
44 Men shall buy fields for money and subscribe evidences and seal them and take witnesses in the land of Benjamin and in the places about Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah and in the cities of the mountains and in the cities of the valley and in the cities of the south; for I will cause their captivity to turn, saith the LORD.