1Then all the commanders of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, came near (Jer 6:13; Jer 40:8; Jer 40:13; Jer 41:11; Jer 43:2)2and said to Jeremiah the prophet, “Let our plea for mercy come before you, and pray to the Lord your God for us, for all this remnant—because we are left with but a few, as your eyes see us— (Le 26:22; 1Sa 7:8; 1Sa 12:19; Isa 37:4; Jer 36:7; Jer 40:15; Jer 42:20)3that the Lord your God may show us the way we should go, and the thing that we should do.” (Ezr 8:21; Jer 37:17)4Jeremiah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you. Behold, I will pray to the Lord your God according to your request, and whatever the Lord answers you I will tell you. I will keep nothing back from you.” (Nu 22:18; 1Sa 3:18)5Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act according to all the word with which the Lord your God sends you to us. (Ge 31:50; Jud 11:10; Jer 42:21; Re 1:5; Re 3:14)6Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God to whom we are sending you, that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.” (Jer 7:23)7At the end of ten days the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah. (Eze 3:16)8Then he summoned Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest, (Jer 42:1)9and said to them, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your plea for mercy before him: (Jer 42:2)10If you will remain in this land, then I will build you up and not pull you down; I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I relent of the disaster that I did to you. (Ge 6:6; De 32:36; Jer 18:8; Jer 24:6)11Do not fear the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid. Do not fear him, declares the Lord, for I am with you, to save you and to deliver you from his hand. (Jer 22:25; Jer 30:10; Jer 41:18; Ro 8:31)12I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you and let you remain in your own land. (Ne 1:11)13But if you say, ‘We will not remain in this land,’ disobeying the voice of the Lord your God (Jer 43:4; Jer 44:16)14and saying, ‘No, we will go to the land of Egypt, where we shall not see war or hear the sound of the trumpet or be hungry for bread, and we will dwell there,’ (Jer 4:19; Jer 37:21; Jer 41:17)15then hear the word of the Lord, O remnant of Judah. Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: If you set your faces to enter Egypt and go to live there, (De 17:16; Jer 42:19; Jer 44:1; Jer 44:12; Jer 44:27)16then the sword that you fear shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine of which you are afraid shall follow close after you to Egypt, and there you shall die. (Jer 42:22; Jer 44:12; Eze 11:8)17All the men who set their faces to go to Egypt to live there shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. They shall have no remnant or survivor from the disaster that I will bring upon them. (La 2:22)18“For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: As my anger and my wrath were poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so my wrath will be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You shall become an execration, a horror, a curse, and a taunt. You shall see this place no more. (Jer 7:20; Jer 18:16)19The Lord has said to you, O remnant of Judah, ‘Do not go to Egypt.’ Know for a certainty that I have warned you this day (Jer 42:14; Jer 43:2; Eze 2:5)20that you have gone astray at the cost of your lives. For you sent me to the Lord your God, saying, ‘Pray for us to the Lord our God, and whatever the Lord our God says, declare to us and we will do it.’ (Jer 42:2; Jer 42:3)21And I have this day declared it to you, but you have not obeyed the voice of the Lord your God in anything that he sent me to tell you. (Jer 42:5)22Now therefore know for a certainty that you shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence in the place where you desire to go to live.” (Jer 42:16)
Jeremiah 42
New International Version
1Then all the army officers, including Johanan son of Kareah and Jezaniah[1] son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest approached2Jeremiah the prophet and said to him, ‘Please hear our petition and pray to the Lord your God for this entire remnant. For as you now see, though we were once many, now only a few are left.3Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do.’4‘I have heard you,’ replied Jeremiah the prophet. ‘I will certainly pray to the Lord your God as you have requested; I will tell you everything the Lord says and will keep nothing back from you.’5Then they said to Jeremiah, ‘May the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act in accordance with everything the Lord your God sends you to tell us.6Whether it is favourable or unfavourable, we will obey the Lord our God, to whom we are sending you, so that it will go well with us, for we will obey the Lord our God.’7Ten days later the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.8So he called together Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officers who were with him and all the people from the least to the greatest.9He said to them, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition, says:10“If you stay in this land, I will build you up and not tear you down; I will plant you and not uproot you, for I have relented concerning the disaster I have inflicted on you.11Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, whom you now fear. Do not be afraid of him, declares the Lord, for I am with you and will save you and deliver you from his hands.12I will show you compassion so that he will have compassion on you and restore you to your land.”13‘However, if you say, “We will not stay in this land,” and so disobey the Lord your God,14and if you say, “No, we will go and live in Egypt, where we will not see war or hear the trumpet or be hungry for bread,”15then hear the word of the Lord, you remnant of Judah. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “If you are determined to go to Egypt and you do go to settle there,16then the sword you fear will overtake you there, and the famine you dread will follow you into Egypt, and there you will die.17Indeed, all who are determined to go to Egypt to settle there will die by the sword, famine and plague; not one of them will survive or escape the disaster I will bring on them.”18This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “As my anger and wrath have been poured out on those who lived in Jerusalem, so will my wrath be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You will be a curse[2] and an object of horror, a curse[3] and an object of reproach; you will never see this place again.”19‘Remnant of Judah, the Lord has told you, “Do not go to Egypt.” Be sure of this: I warn you today20that you made a fatal mistake when you sent me to the Lord your God and said, “Pray to the Lord our God for us; tell us everything he says and we will do it.”21I have told you today, but you still have not obeyed the Lord your God in all he sent me to tell you.22So now, be sure of this: you will die by the sword, famine and plague in the place where you want to go to settle.’