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Text -- Jeremiah 29:18-32 (NET)
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Strongs On/Off
Context
29:18 I will chase after them with war , starvation , and disease . I will make all the kingdoms of the earth horrified at what happens to them. I will make them examples of those who are cursed , objects of horror , hissing scorn , and ridicule among all the nations where I exile them.
29:19 For they have not paid attention to what I said to them through my servants the prophets whom I sent to them over and over again ,’ says the Lord . ‘And you exiles have not paid any attention to them either,’ says the Lord .
29:20 ‘So pay attention to what I, the Lord , have said, all you exiles whom I have sent to Babylon from Jerusalem .’
29:21 “The Lord God of Israel who rules over all also has something to say about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah , who are prophesying lies to you and claiming my authority to do so. ‘I will hand them over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and he will execute them before your very eyes .
29:22 And all the exiles of Judah who are in Babylon will use them as examples when they put a curse on anyone. They will say , “May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab whom the king of Babylon roasted to death in the fire !”
29:23 This will happen to them because they have done what is shameful in Israel . They have committed adultery with their neighbors ’ wives and have spoken lies while claiming my authority. They have spoken words that I did not command them to speak. I know what they have done. I have been a witness to it,’ says the Lord .”
A Response to the Letter and a Subsequent Letter
29:24 The Lord told Jeremiah, “Tell Shemaiah the Nehelamite
29:25 that the Lord God of Israel who rules over all has a message for him. Tell him, ‘On your own initiative you sent a letter to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah and to all the other priests and to all the people in Jerusalem . In your letter you said to Zephaniah,
29:26 “The Lord has made you priest in place of Jehoiada . He has put you in charge in the Lord’s temple of controlling any lunatic who pretends to be a prophet . And it is your duty to put any such person in the stocks with an iron collar around his neck.
29:27 You should have reprimanded Jeremiah from Anathoth who is pretending to be a prophet among you!
29:28 For he has even sent a message to us here in Babylon . He wrote and told us, “You will be there a long time. Build houses and settle down . Plant gardens and eat what they produce .”’”
29:29 Zephaniah the priest read that letter to the prophet Jeremiah .
29:30 Then the Lord spoke to Jeremiah .
29:31 “Send a message to all the exiles in Babylon. Tell them, ‘The Lord has spoken about Shemaiah the Nehelamite . “Shemaiah has spoken to you as a prophet even though I did not send him. He is making you trust in a lie .
29:32 Because he has done this,” the Lord says , “I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his whole family . There will not be any of them left to experience the good things that I will do for my people . I, the Lord , affirm it! For he counseled rebellion against the Lord .”’”
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Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics
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Names, People and Places:
Dictionary Themes and Topics:
Shemaiah |
Babylon |
JEREMIAH (2) |
EPISTLE |
Jeremiah |
Zephaniah |
Jehoiada |
Maaseiah |
Nehelamite |
NEHELAMITE, THE |
Zedekiah |
Ahab |
Kolaiah |
SUSANNA, THE HISTORY OF |
ZEDEKIAH (1) |
FURNACE |
Adultery |
Wicked |
Fire |
Prophets |
more
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expand allCommentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes -> Jer 29:18; Jer 29:19; Jer 29:19; Jer 29:19; Jer 29:19; Jer 29:20; Jer 29:21; Jer 29:21; Jer 29:21; Jer 29:22; Jer 29:23; Jer 29:23; Jer 29:23; Jer 29:24; Jer 29:24; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:25; Jer 29:26; Jer 29:26; Jer 29:26; Jer 29:26; Jer 29:26; Jer 29:26; Jer 29:27; Jer 29:28; Jer 29:28; Jer 29:29; Jer 29:31; Jer 29:32; Jer 29:32
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NET Notes: Jer 29:20 Heb “pay attention to the word of the Lord.” However, the Lord is speaking in the words just previous to this and in the words which follo...
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NET Notes: Jer 29:21 Heb “prophesying lies in my name.” For an explanation of this idiom see the study notes on 14:14 and 23:27.
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NET Notes: Jer 29:22 Being roasted to death in the fire appears to have been a common method of execution in Babylon. See Dan 3:6, 19-21. The famous law code of the Babylo...
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NET Notes: Jer 29:24 It is unclear whether this is a family name or a place name. The word occurs nowhere else in the Hebrew Bible.
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NET Notes: Jer 29:25 The words “In your letter you said to Zephaniah” are not in the text: Heb “you sent a letter to…, saying.” The sentence ...
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NET Notes: Jer 29:26 This word only occurs here in the Hebrew Bible. All the lexicons are agreed as seeing it referring to a collar placed around the neck. The basis for t...
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NET Notes: Jer 29:27 Heb “So why have you not reprimanded Jeremiah…?” The rhetorical question functions as an emphatic assertion made explicit in the tra...
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