Jeremiah Buys a Field During the Siege

32 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord (A)in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, (B)which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet (C)was shut up in (D)the court of the guard that was in the palace of the king of Judah. For Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him, saying, “Why do you prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord: (E)Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall capture it; (F)Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, (G)but shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye. And (H)he shall take Zedekiah to Babylon, and there he shall remain until I visit him, declares the Lord. (I)Though you fight against the Chaldeans, you shall not succeed’?”

Jeremiah said, “The word of the Lord came to me: Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle will come to you and say, (J)‘Buy my field that is at (K)Anathoth, (L)for the right of redemption by purchase is yours.’ Then Hanamel my cousin came to me in (M)the court of the guard, in accordance with the word of the Lord, and said to me, ‘Buy my field that is at (N)Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, for the right of possession and redemption is yours; buy it for yourself.’ Then I knew that this was the word of the Lord.

“And I bought the field at (O)Anathoth from Hanamel my cousin, and (P)weighed out the money to him, seventeen shekels of silver. 10 (Q)I signed the deed, (R)sealed it, (S)got witnesses, and (T)weighed the money on scales. 11 Then I took the sealed deed of purchase, containing the terms and conditions and the open copy. 12 And I gave the deed of purchase to (U)Baruch the son of Neriah son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel my cousin, in the presence of (V)the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, and in the presence of all the Judeans who were sitting in (W)the court of the guard. 13 I charged (X)Baruch in their presence, saying, 14 ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds, both this sealed deed of purchase and this open deed, and put them in an earthenware vessel, that they may last for a long time. 15 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and (Y)fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.’

Jeremiah Prays for Understanding

16 “After I had given the deed of purchase to (Z)Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord, saying: 17 ‘Ah, Lord God! It is (AA)you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by (AB)your outstretched arm! (AC)Nothing is too hard for you. 18 (AD)You show steadfast love to thousands, (AE)but you repay the guilt of fathers (AF)to their children after them, O great and (AG)mighty God, whose name is the (AH)Lord of hosts, 19 (AI)great in counsel and (AJ)mighty in deed, (AK)whose eyes are open to all the ways of the children of man, (AL)rewarding each one according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds. 20 You have shown (AM)signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and to this day in Israel and among all mankind, (AN)and have made a name for yourself, as at this day. 21 (AO)You brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and wonders, with a strong hand and (AP)outstretched arm, (AQ)and with great terror. 22 And you gave them this land, (AR)which you swore to their fathers to give them, (AS)a land flowing with milk and honey. 23 And they entered and took possession of it. (AT)But they did not obey your voice or walk in your law. They did nothing of all you commanded them to do. Therefore you have made all this disaster come upon them. 24 Behold, (AU)the siege mounds have come up to the city to take it, and (AV)because of sword and famine and pestilence (AW)the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What you spoke has come to pass, and behold, you see it. 25 Yet you, O Lord God, have said to me, (AX)“Buy the field for money (AY)and get witnesses”—though (AZ)the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.’”

26 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 27 “Behold, I am the Lord, (BA)the God of all flesh. (BB)Is anything too hard for me? 28 Therefore, thus says the Lord: (BC)Behold, I am giving this city into the hands of the Chaldeans and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he shall capture it. 29 The Chaldeans who are fighting against this city (BD)shall come and set this city on fire and burn it, (BE)with the houses on whose roofs offerings have been made to Baal (BF)and drink offerings have been poured out to other gods, (BG)to provoke me to anger. 30 For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have done nothing but evil in my sight (BH)from their youth. The children of Israel have done nothing but (BI)provoke me to anger (BJ)by the work of their hands, declares the Lord. 31 This city has aroused my anger and wrath, from the day it was built to this day, (BK)so that I will remove it from my sight 32 because of all the evil of the children of Israel and the children of Judah that they did to provoke me to anger—(BL)their kings and their officials, their priests and their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 33 (BM)They have turned to me their back and not their face. And though I have taught them (BN)persistently, they have not listened (BO)to receive instruction. 34 They set up (BP)their abominations in the house that is called by my name, to defile it. 35 They built the high places of Baal (BQ)in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, (BR)to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, (BS)though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do (BT)this abomination, (BU)to cause Judah to sin.

They Shall Be My People; I Will Be Their God

36 “Now therefore thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, (BV)‘It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, by famine, and by pestilence’: 37 (BW)Behold, I will gather them from all the countries (BX)to which I drove them in (BY)my anger and my wrath and in great indignation. I will bring them back to this place, (BZ)and I will make them dwell in safety. 38 (CA)And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. 39 (CB)I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, (CC)for their own good and the good of their children after them. 40 (CD)I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. (CE)And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. 41 (CF)I will rejoice in doing them good, (CG)and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

42 “For thus says the Lord: (CH)Just as I have brought all this great disaster upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promise them. 43 (CI)Fields shall be bought in this land (CJ)of which you are saying, ‘It is a desolation, without man or beast; (CK)it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’ 44 Fields shall be bought for money, and (CL)deeds shall be signed and (CM)sealed and (CN)witnessed, (CO)in the land of Benjamin, (CP)in the places about Jerusalem, (CQ)and in the cities of Judah, (CR)in the cities of the hill country, (CS)in the cities of the Shephelah, and in the cities of the Negeb; for (CT)I will restore their fortunes, declares the Lord.”

32 The Davar that came to Yirmeyah from Hashem in the tenth year of Tzidkiyah Melech Yehudah, which was the eighteenth year of Nevuchadretzar.

For then the army of Melech Bavel besieged Yerushalayim; and Yirmeyah HaNavi was imprisoned in the Khatzer (courtyard) of the Guard, which was in Bais Melech Yehudah.

For Tzidkiyah Melech Yehudah had imprisoned him, saying, Why dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus saith Hashem, Hineni, I will give this city into the yad Melech Bavel, and he shall capture it;

And Tzidkiyah Melech Yehudah shall not escape out of the yad of the Kasdim (Chaldeans), but shall surely be delivered into the yad Melech Bavel, and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eynayim shall behold his eynayim;

And he shall lead Tzidkiyah to Bavel, and there shall he be until I visit him, saith Hashem; though ye fight against the Kasdim (Chaldeans), ye shall not succeed.

And Yirmeyah said, The Devar Hashem came unto me, saying,

Hinei, Chanam’el Ben Shallum thine dod (uncle) shall come unto thee saying, Buy thee my sadeh that is in Anatot: for the mishpat haGeulah (right of Redemption) is thine to buy it.

So Chanam’el ben dodi came to me in the Khatzer (court) of the Guard according to the Devar Hashem, and said unto me, Buy my sadeh, now, that is in Anatot, which is in Eretz Binyamin; for the mishpat hayerushah (right of possession) is thine, and the geulah (redemption) is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that this was the Devar Hashem.

And I bought the sadeh of Chanam’el ben dodi, that was in Anatot, and weighed him out the kesef, even seventeen shekels of kesef.

10 And I signed the sefer (deed), and sealed it, and took edim (witnesses), and weighed him out the kesef on the scales.

11 So I took the sefer hamikneh (deed of purchase), both that which was sealed according to the mitzvah and chukkim, and that which was the unsealed copy:

12 And I gave the sefer hamikneh unto Baruch Ben Neriyah Ben Ma’aseiyah, in the sight of Chanam’el my cousin, and in the presence of the edim that signed the sefer hamikneh, before all the Yehudim that sat in the khatzer (courtyard) of the prison.

13 And I charged Baruch before their eyes, saying,

14 Thus saith Hashem Tzva’os Elohei Yisroel: Take these sefarim, this sefer hamikneh, both which is sealed, and this sefer which is unsealed; and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may last yamim rabbim.

15 For thus saith Hashem Tzva’os Elohei Yisroel: Batim (houses) and sadot (fields) and kramim (vineyards) shall be bought again in this land.

16 Now when I had delivered the sefer hamikneh unto Baruch Ben Neriyah, I davened unto Hashem, saying,

17 Ah Adonoi Hashem! Hinei, Thou hast made the Shomayim and the Eretz by Thy koach hagadol and Thy outstretched zero’a, and there is nothing too difficult for Thee;

18 Thou showest chesed unto alafim, and recompensest avon avot into the kheyk of their banim after them; HaEl HaGadol HaGibbor Hashem Tzva’os Shmo,

19 Gadol in etzah (counsel), and mighty in deed; for Thine eynayim are open upon all the drakhim of Bnei Adam; to give everyone according to his drakhim, and according to the fruit of his doings;

20 Which hast set otot and mofetim in Eretz Mitzrayim, even unto this day, and in Yisroel, and among adam (mankind); and hast made Thee a Shem, as at this day;

21 And hast brought forth Thy people Yisroel out of Eretz Mitzrayim with otot, and with mofetim, and with a yad chazakah, and with an outstretched zero’a, and with great terror;

22 And hast given them this land, which Thou didst swear to their avot to give them, eretz zavat cholov udevash;

23 And they came in, and possessed it; but they obeyed not Thy voice, neither walked in Thy torah; they have done nothing of all that Thou commandedst them to do; therefore Thou hast caused all this ra’ah to come upon them.

24 Hinei, the siege ramps, they are come unto the Ir to take it; and the Ir is given into the yad of the Kasdim (Chaldeans), that fight against it, because of the cherev, and of the ra’av, and of the dever; and what Thou hast spoken is come to pass; and, behold, Thou seest it.

25 And Thou hast said unto me, O Adonoi Hashem, Buy thee the sadeh for kesef, and take edim (witnesses); for the Ir is given into the yad of the Kasdim (Chaldeans).

26 Then came the Devar Hashem unto Yirmeyah, saying,

27 Hinei, I am Hashem Elohei Kol Basar; is there any thing too difficult for Me?

28 Therefore thus saith Hashem: Hineni, I will give this city into the yad of the Kasdim (Chaldeans), and into the yad of Nevuchadretzar Melech Bavel, and he shall capture it;

29 And the Kasdim (Chaldeans), that fight against this city, shall come and set eish to this city, and burn it with the batim (houses), upon whose gagot (roofs) they have offered ketoret unto Ba’al, and poured out nesakhim (drink offerings) unto elohim acherim, to provoke Me to anger.

30 For the Bnei Yisroel and the Bnei Yehudah have only done rah (evil) before Me from their youth; for the Bnei Yisroel have only provoked Me to anger with the work of their hands, saith Hashem.

31 For this city hath been to Me as a provocation of Mine 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 ra’ah of the Bnei Yisroel and of the Bnei Yehudah, which they have done to provoke Me to anger, they, their melachim, their sarim, their kohanim, and their nevi’im, and the Ish Yehudah, and the inhabitants of Yerushalayim.

33 And they have turned unto Me the oref (back), and not the panim; though I taught them, rising up early and teaching them, yet they have not paid heed to receive musar.

34 But they set their shikkutzim (abominations) in the Beis [Hamikdash], which is called by Shmi, to make it tameh (unclean).

35 And they built the high places of Ba’al, which are in the Gey Ben Hinnom, to cause their banim and their banot to pass through the eish unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into My lev, that they should do this toe’vah (abomination) to cause Yehudah to sin.

36 And now therefore thus saith Hashem Elohei Yisroel, concerning this city, whereof ye say, It shall be delivered into the yad Melech Bavel by the cherev, and by the ra’av and by the dever;

37 Hineni, I will gather them out of all countries, where I have driven them in Mine anger, and in My fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them back unto this makom, and I will cause them to dwell securely;

38 And they shall be My people, and I will be their Elohim;

39 And I will give them lev echad (one heart), and derech echad (one way), that they may fear Me kol hayamim, for the tov of them, and of their banim after them;

40 And I will make a Brit Olam with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from Me.

41 Indeed, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land b’emes with all My lev and with all My nefesh.

42 For thus saith Hashem; Just as I have brought all this ra’ah hagedolah upon this people, so will I bring upon them kol hatovah that I have promised them.

43 And sadeh shall be bought in this land, whereof ye say, It is desolate without adam or behemah; it is given into the yad of the Kasdim (Chaldeans).

44 Sadot (fields) will be bought for kesef, and the sefer (deed) will be signed and sealed and witnessed in Eretz Binyamin, and in the places around Yerushalayim, and in the towns of Yehudah, and the towns of the hill country, and in the towns of the Shephelah, and in the towns of the Negev; for I will cause their captivity to return, saith Hashem.