Old/New Testament
The Good and Bad Figs
24 Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon ·captured [exiled] ·Jehoiachin [Jeconiah] son of Jehoiakim and king of Judah, his officers, and all the craftsmen and metalworkers of Judah [C 597 bc]. He took them away from Jerusalem and brought them to Babylon. It was then that the Lord showed me two baskets of figs [C a symbol of fruitfulness (Hos. 9:11) and shelter (Mic. 4:4; Zech. 3:10)] arranged in front of the Temple of the Lord. 2 One of the baskets had very good figs in it, like figs that ripen ·early in the season [first]. But the other basket had figs too rotten to eat.
3 The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
I answered, “I see figs. The good figs are very good, but the rotten figs are too rotten to eat.”
4 Then the Lord spoke his word to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I sent the people of Judah out of their country to live in the country of Babylon. I ·think of [regard] those people as good, like these good figs. 6 I will ·look after them [L set my eyes on them for good] and ·bring them back [return them] to this land [C of Judah]. I will not tear them down, but I will build them up. I will not pull them up, but I will plant them [C so they can grow]. 7 I will ·make them want [L give them a heart] to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, because they will return to me with their whole hearts.
8 “‘But the bad figs are too rotten to eat.’ So this is what the Lord says: ‘Zedekiah king of Judah [C ruled 597–586 bc], his officers, and all the people from Jerusalem who are left alive, even those who live in Egypt, will be like those rotten figs. 9 I will make those people ·hated [a horror; abhorrent] as an evil people by all the kingdoms of the earth. ·People will make fun of them and tell jokes about them and point fingers at them and curse them [L …a reproach, a proverb/byword, a taunt, a curse] everywhere I ·scatter [drive] them. 10 I will send ·war [sword], ·hunger [famine], and ·disease [pestilence] against them. ·I will attack them until they have all been killed. Then they will no longer be in [L …until they have been annihilated from] the land I gave to them and their ·ancestors [fathers].’”
A Summary of Jeremiah’s Preaching
25 This is the message that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah. It came in the fourth year that Jehoiakim son of Josiah was king of Judah and the first year Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. 2 This is the message Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and Jerusalem:
3 The Lord has spoken his word to me again and again for these past twenty-three years. I have been a prophet since the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah. I have spoken messages from the Lord to you from that time until today, but you have not listened.
4 The Lord has sent all his servants the prophets [7:25; 2 Kin. 17:13] to you over and over again, but you have not listened or ·paid any attention [L inclined/bent your ear] to them. 5 Those prophets have said, “·Stop [Turn from/Repent of] your evil ways. ·Stop doing [Turn from/Repent of] what is wrong so you can stay in the land that the Lord gave to you and your ·ancestors [fathers] to live in forever. 6 Don’t ·follow [L go after] other gods to serve them or to ·worship [bow down to] them. Don’t make me, the Lord, angry by the work of your own hands [C idols], or I will ·punish [harm] you.”
7 “But you [C people of Judah] did not listen to me,” says the Lord. “You made me angry by the work of your own hands [C idols], so I ·punished [harmed] you.”
8 So this is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says: “Since you have not listened to my messages, 9 I will send for all the ·peoples [clans; families] of the north [C Babylon],” says the Lord, “along with my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. I will bring them all against Judah, those who live there, and all the nations around you, too. I will ·completely destroy [annihilate] all those countries and leave them ·in ruins [desolate] forever. ·People will be shocked when they see how badly I have destroyed those countries [L I will make them a horror and a hissing and an everlasting reproach]. 10 I will ·bring an end to [banish; cause to perish] the sounds of joy and happiness, the sounds of brides and bridegrooms [7:34; 16:9], and the sound of ·people grinding meal [L the millstone]. And I will take away the light of the lamp. 11 That whole ·area [L land] will be an ·empty desert [ruin and desolate], and these nations will ·be slaves of [serve] the king of Babylon [C Nebuchadnezzar] for seventy years [C the exile].
12 “But when the seventy years ·have passed [are completed], I will punish the king of Babylon and his entire nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their ·evil [iniquity],” says the Lord. “I will make that land a ·desert [desolation] forever. 13 I will ·make happen [L bring on this land] all the ·terrible things [L words] I said about it [C Babylonia]—everything Jeremiah prophesied about all those foreign nations, the warnings written in this book [chs. 46–51]. 14 Even they [C Babylonians] will have to serve many nations and many great kings. I will ·give them the punishment they deserve for all their own hands have done [L repay them according to their deeds and according to the work of their hands].”
Judgment on the Nations
15 The Lord, the God of Israel, said this to me: “Take the cup of the wine of my wrath [49:12; 51:7] from my hand and make all the nations, to whom I am sending you, drink from this cup. 16 They will drink and ·stumble about [stagger; or vomit] and act like madmen because of the ·war [L sword] I am going to send among them.”
17 So I took the cup from the Lord’s hand and went to those nations where he sent me and made them drink from it. 18 I served this wine to the people of Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, and the kings and officers of Judah, so they would become a ruin. Then people would be shocked and would ·insult them [hiss] and ·speak evil of [curse] them. And so it has been to this day. 19 I also made these people drink of the Lord’s anger: Pharaoh the king of Egypt, his servants, his officers, all his people, 20 and all the ·foreigners there [mixed crowd]; all the kings of the land of Uz; all the kings of the Philistines (the kings of the cities of Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the people left at Ashdod); 21 the people of Edom, Moab, and ·Ammon [L the sons of Ammon]; 22 all the kings of Tyre and Sidon; all the kings of the coastal countries ·to the west [or across the sea]; 23 the people of Dedan and Tema and Buz; all who ·cut their hair short [L shave their temples; Deut. 14:1]; 24 all the kings of Arabia; and the kings of the ·people [L mixed crowd] who live in the ·desert [wilderness]; 25 all the kings of Zimri, Elam, and Media; 26 and all the kings of the north, near and far, one after the other. I made all the kingdoms on earth drink [C from the cup of wrath] of the Lord’s anger, but the king of ·Babylon [L Sheshak; C a coded reference to Babylon] will drink from this cup after all the others.
27 “Then say to them, ‘This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts], the God of Israel, says: Drink ·this cup [C of my anger]. Get drunk from it and vomit. Fall down and don’t get up because of the ·war [L sword] I am sending among you!’
28 “If they refuse to take the cup from your hand and drink, say to them, ‘The Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says this: You must drink [C from this cup]. 29 Look! I am ·already bringing [beginning to bring] ·disaster [harm; trouble] on this city that is called by my name [C Jerusalem]. Do you think you will not be punished? You will ·be punished [L not go unpunished]! I am ·sending [L calling for] ·war [L a sword] on all the people of the earth, says the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts].’
30 “You [C Jeremiah] will prophesy against them with all these words. Say to them:
‘The Lord will roar [C like a lion] from heaven [Amos 1:2]
and will ·shout [L give forth] from his holy lair [C the Temple].
He will roar loudly against his ·land [L sheepfold].
He will shout like people who walk on grapes [Is. 63:2–6; Rev. 19:15];
he will shout against all who live on the earth.
31 The ·noise [clamor] will spread all over the earth,
because the Lord will accuse all the nations.
He will ·judge and tell what is wrong with [bring an indictment against] all ·people [L flesh],
and he will kill the evil people with a sword,’” says the Lord.
32 This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says:
“Disasters will soon ·spread [L go out]
from nation to nation.
They will come like a powerful storm
from the faraway places on earth.”
33 At that time those killed by the Lord will reach from one end of the earth to the other. No one will ·cry [mourn] for them or gather up their bodies and bury them. They will be left lying on the ground like dung [8:2; 9:22; 16:4].
34 Cry, you ·leaders [L shepherds]! Cry out loud!
Roll around in the ·dust [ashes], ·leaders of the people [L nobles of the flock]!
·It is now time for you to be killed [L Your days are filled for slaughter].
You will fall and be scattered,
like ·pieces of a broken [L a choice/precious] jar.
35 There will be no place for the ·leaders [L shepherds] to ·hide [L flee];
·they [L the nobles of the flock] will not escape.
36 I hear the sound of the ·leaders [L shepherds] shouting.
I hear the ·leaders of the people [L nobles of the flock] crying loudly,
because the Lord is destroying their ·land [L pastureland].
37 Those peaceful pastures will be ·like an empty desert [L devastated],
because the Lord is very angry.
38 Like a lion, he has left his den.
Their land has been ·destroyed [desolated]
because of the terrible ·war [L sword] he brought,
because of his fierce anger.
Jeremiah’s Lesson at the Temple
26 This message came from the Lord ·soon after Jehoiakim son of Josiah became [L at the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim] king of Judah [C ruled 605–597 bc]. 2 This is what the Lord said: “Jeremiah, stand in the courtyard of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. ·Give this message [L Say] to all the people of the towns of Judah who are coming to ·worship [bow down] at the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. Tell them everything I tell you to say; don’t leave out a word. 3 Maybe they will listen and ·stop [return/repent from] their evil ways. If they will, I will ·change my mind [relent] about bringing on them the ·disaster [evil; trouble] that I am planning because of the evil they have done. 4 Say to them: ‘This is what the Lord says: You must ·obey [listen to] me and follow my ·teachings [instructions; laws] that I gave you. 5 You must listen to what my servants the prophets [25:4] say to you. I have sent them to you again and again, but you did not ·listen [obey]. 6 If you don’t obey me, I will ·destroy my Temple in Jerusalem as I destroyed my Holy Tent at [L make this house like] Shiloh [7:12–14; 1 Sam. 4:1–22; Ps. 78:60–64]. When I do, ·people all over the world will curse Jerusalem [L I will make this city a curse].’”
7 The priests, the prophets, and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. 8 When Jeremiah finished speaking ·everything [L all the words] the Lord had commanded him to say, the priests, prophets, and all the people ·grabbed [seized] Jeremiah. They said, “You must die! 9 ·How dare [L Why do…?] you prophesy in the name of the Lord that this ·Temple [L house] will be like the one at Shiloh [C destroyed]! ·How dare [L Why do…?] you say that this city [C Jerusalem] will become a ·desert [ruin] without anyone to live in it!” And all the people ·crowded [assembled] around Jeremiah in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord.
10 Now when the officers of Judah heard ·about what was happening [L these things/words], they came out of the king’s ·palace [L house] and went up to the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord and took their places at the entrance of the New Gate. 11 Then the priests and prophets said to the officers and all the other people, “·Jeremiah [L This man] ·should be killed [L deserves the death sentence]. He prophesied against this city [C Jerusalem], and you heard him ·yourselves [L with your ears].”
12 Then Jeremiah spoke these words to all the officers of Judah and all the other people: “The Lord sent me to ·say [L prophesy] ·everything [L all these words] you have heard about this ·Temple [L house] and this city. 13 Now ·change [improve; mend] your ·lives and start doing good [L ways and your deeds] and ·obey [L listen to the voice of] the Lord your God. Then he will ·change his mind and not bring on you [relent of] the ·disaster [evil; trouble] he has told you about. 14 As for me, I am in your ·power [L hand]. Do to me what you think is good and right in your eyes. 15 But be sure of one thing. If you kill me, you will be ·guilty of killing an innocent person [L placing innocent blood on yourselves; Ex. 23:7; Deut. 19:10, 13]. ·You will make this city and everyone who lives in it guilty, too [L …and on this city and everyone who lives in it]! The Lord truly sent me to ·you to give you this message [L speak this word in your ears].”
16 Then the officers and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, “·Jeremiah must not be killed [L This man does not deserve the death penalty]. ·What he told us comes from [L He has spoken to us in the name of] the Lord our God.”
17 Then some of the elders of the land [C of Judah] stood up and said to all the people, 18 “Micah, from the city of Moresheth [Micah 1:1, 14], was a prophet during the ·time Hezekiah was [L days of Hezekiah] king of Judah. Micah said to all the people of Judah, ‘This is what the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says:
·Jerusalem [L Zion; C the location of the Temple] will be plowed like a field.
·It [L Jerusalem] will become a ·pile of rocks [a heap of ruins],
and the ·hill [L mountain] where the ·Temple [L house] stands will be ·covered with bushes [L a forested high place; Mic. 3:12].’
19 “·Hezekiah king of Judah and the people of Judah did not [L Did Hezekiah king of Judah and people of Judah try to…?] kill Micah. ·You know [L Do you not know…?] that Hezekiah feared the Lord [Prov. 1:7] and ·tried to please [sought the favor of] the Lord. So the Lord ·changed his mind [relented] and did not bring on Judah the ·disaster [evil; harm] he had promised. We will bring a terrible ·disaster [evil; harm] on ourselves [C by hurting Jeremiah]!”
20 (Now there was another man who prophesied in the name of the Lord. His name was Uriah son of Shemaiah from the city of Kiriath Jearim. He ·preached [L prophesied] the same things against this city [C Jerusalem] and this land [C Judah] that Jeremiah did. 21 When King Jehoiakim, all his army officers, and all the leaders of Judah heard ·Uriah preach [L his words], King Jehoiakim ·wanted [sought] to kill Uriah. But Uriah heard about it and was afraid. So he escaped to Egypt. 22 Then King Jehoiakim sent Elnathan son of Acbor and some other men to Egypt, 23 and they brought Uriah back from Egypt. Then they took him to King Jehoiakim, who had Uriah ·killed [L struck] with a sword. His body was thrown into the burial place where ·poor [common] people are buried.)
24 ·Ahikam son of Shaphan supported [L The hand of Ahikam son of Shaphan was with] Jeremiah [2 Kin. 22:3, 8–10]. So Ahikam did not hand Jeremiah over to be killed by the people.
Follow theTrue Teaching
2 But you must tell everyone what ·to do to follow [or is consistent with] ·the true [sound; healthy] teaching. 2 Teach older men to be ·self-controlled [sober], ·serious [dignified; worthy of respect], ·wise [self-controlled], ·strong [sound; healthy] in faith, in love, and in ·patience [endurance].
3 In the same way, teach older women to be ·holy [reverent] in their behavior, not ·speaking against [slandering; gossiping about] others or enslaved to ·too much wine [excessive drinking], but teaching what is good. 4 Then they can ·teach [train] the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 to be ·wise [sensible; self-controlled] and pure, to be ·good workers at home [devoted to home life], to be kind, and to ·yield [submit] to their husbands. Then no one will be able to ·criticize [discredit; malign; blaspheme] the ·teaching God gave us [word of God].
6 In the same way, encourage young men to be ·wise [self-controlled]. 7 In every way be an example of doing good deeds. When you teach, do it with ·honesty [integrity] and ·seriousness [dignity]. 8 Speak ·the truth [a sound message] so that you cannot be ·criticized [condemned]. Then those who are against you will be ashamed because there is nothing bad to say about us.
9 ·Slaves [Bondservants] should ·yield [submit] to their own masters at all times, trying to please them and not ·arguing with [talking back to] them. 10 They should not ·steal [pilfer] from them but should show their masters ·they can be fully trusted [or that their faith is good/productive; L all good faith] so that in everything they do they will ·make attractive [adorn; show the beauty of] the teaching of God our Savior.
11 ·That is the way we should live, because [L For] God’s grace that can save everyone has ·come [appeared; been revealed]. 12 It ·teaches [trains; disciplines] us to ·turn away from [reject; deny] ungodly living and ·the evil things the world wants to do [or worldly desires; sinful pleasures]. Instead, that grace teaches us to live in the present age in a ·wise [self-controlled] and ·right [upright; just] way and in a ·way that shows we serve God [godly manner]. 13 We should live like that while we wait for our ·great [happy; blessed] hope and the ·coming of the glory [glorious appearing/manifestation] of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ. 14 He gave himself for us so he might ·pay the price to free [redeem; ransom] us from all ·evil [wickedness; lawlessness] and to make us pure people who belong only to him—people who are always ·wanting [eager; zealous] to do good deeds.
15 Say these things and ·encourage [exhort] the people and ·tell them what is wrong in their lives [rebuke/admonish them], with all authority. Do not let anyone ·treat you as if you were unimportant [look down on/despise/disregard you].
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