Jeremiah 33

1 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the guard, saying,

IN THE BEGINNING OF THE REIGN OF KING JOAKIM SON OF JOSIAS THERE CAME THIS WORD FROM THE LORD.

2 Thus saith the LORD that doeth it, the LORD that formeth it to establish it; the LORD is his name:

Thus said the Lord; Stand in the court of the Lord's house, and thou shalt declare to all the Jews, and to all that come to worship in the house of the Lord, all the words which I commanded thee to speak to them; abate not one word.

3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and will shew thee great things, and difficult, which thou knowest not.

Peradventure they will hear, and turn every one from his evil way: then I will cease from the evils which I purpose to do to them, because of their evil practices.

4 For thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are broken down [to make a defence] against the mounts, and against the sword:

And thou shalt say, Thus said the Lord; If ye will not hearken to me, to walk in my statutes which I set before you,

5 they come to fight with the Chaldeans, but it is to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city.

to hearken to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I send to you early in the morning; yea, I sent them, but ye hearkened not to me;

6 Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them; and I will reveal unto them abundance of peace and truth.

then will I make this house as Selo, and I will make [this] city a curse to all the nations of all the earth.

7 And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.

And the priests, and the false prophets, and all the people heard Jeremias speaking these words in the house of the Lord.

8 And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned against me, and whereby they have transgressed against me.

And it came to pass, when Jeremias had ceased speaking all that the Lord had ordered him to speak to all the people, that the priests and the false prophets and all the people took him, saying,

9 And [this city] shall be to me for a name of joy, for a praise and for a glory, before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them, and shall fear and tremble for all the good and for all the peace that I procure unto it.

Thou shalt surely die, because thou hast prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, This house shall be as Selo, and this city shall be made quite destitute of inhabitants. And all the people assembled against Jeremias in the house of the Lord.

10 Thus saith the LORD: Yet again there shall be heard in this place, whereof ye say, It is waste, without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without beast,

And the princes of Juda heard this word, and they went up out of the house of the king to the house of the Lord, and sat in the entrance of the new gate.

11 the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that say, Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, for the LORD is good, for his mercy [endureth] for ever: [and of them] that bring [sacrifices] of thanksgiving into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captivity of the land to return as at the first, saith the LORD.

Then the priests and the false prophets said to the princes and to all the people, The judgment of death [is due] to this man; because he has prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears.

12 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Yet again shall there be in this place, which is waste, without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.

Then Jeremias spoke to the princes, and to all the people, saying, The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city, all the words which ye have heard.

13 In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, and in the cities of the South, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks again pass under the hands of him that telleth them, saith the LORD.

And now amend your ways and your works, and hearken to the voice of the Lord; and the Lord shall cease from the evils which he has pronounced against you.

14 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and concerning the house of Judah.

And behold, I am in your hands; do to me as is expedient, and as it is best for you.

15 In those days, and at that time, will I cause a Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.

But know for a certainty, that if ye slay me, ye bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon them that dwell in it; for in truth the Lord has sent me to you to speak in your ears all these words.

16 In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is [the name] whereby she shall be called, The LORD is our righteousness.

Then the princes and all the people said to the priests and to the false prophets; Judgment of death is not [due] to this man; for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.

17 For thus saith the LORD: David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;

And there rose up men of the elders of the land, and said to all the assembly of the people,

18 neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to burn oblations, and to do sacrifice continually.

Michaeas the Morathite lived in the days of Ezekias king of Juda, and said to all the people of Juda, Thus saith the Lord; Sion shall be ploughed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become a desolation, and the mountain of the house shall be a thicket of trees.

19 And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying,

Did Ezekias and all Juda in any way slay him? Was it not that they feared the Lord, and they made supplication before the Lord, and the Lord ceased from the evils which he [had] pronounced against them? whereas we have wrought great evil against our own souls.

20 Thus saith the LORD: If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, so that there should not be day and night in their season;

And there was [another] man prophesying in the name of the Lord, Urias the son of Samaeas of Cariathiarim; and he prophesied concerning this land according to all the words of Jeremias.

21 then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers.

And king Joakim and all the princes heard all his words, and sought to slay him; and Urias heard [it] and went into Egypt.

22 As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured; so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.

And the king sent men into Egypt;

23 And the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying,

and they brought him thence, and brought him into the king; and he smote him with the sword, and cast him into the sepulchre of the children of his people.

24 Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD did choose, he hath cast them off? thus do they despise my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.

Nevertheless the hand of Achicam son of Saphan was with Jeremias, to prevent his being delivered into the hands of the people, or being killed.

25 Thus saith the LORD: If my covenant of day and night [stand] not, if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth;

26 then will I also cast away the seed of Jacob, and of David my servant, so that I will not take of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and will have mercy on them.