"*** JEREMIAH 17 ****" 
"Jeremiah writes to the exiles A letter proclaiming the word of the Lord that Jeremiah sent to the exiles who had been carried into Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar :"
"Build houses and settle down in Babylon Jehovah the God of Israel says to all whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens andeat what they produce. Marry and have children. Find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage so they toomay have children. Increase in number, do not decrease. Pray for and help prosper Babylon Seek for the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have exiled you. Pray to Jehovah for Babylon, for if Babylon prospers you too will prosper. The false prophets Ahab and Zedekiah will be burnt to death"
"Let not false prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Heed nottheir lies and their dreams. I have not sent them. Ahab and Zedekiah are proph- esying lies to you in my name. Therefore the king of Babylon will put them to death by fire before yourvery eyes. Moreover you will use this as a curse: May the Lord treat you likeAhab and Zedekiah whom the king of Babylon burned in the fire. For they are guilty of outrageous things. They have committed adultery with other mens wives, and in my name they have spoken lies. The fate of those remaining in Judah As for Zedekiah the king and all the"
"people who did not go with you into exile, I will send famine andplague and the sword against them, and make them like rotten figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten. I will make the remnant who survive, objects of cursing and horror among the nations where I drive them.For they did not listen to my words, and you exiles did not listen either. Exiles to return from Babylon in seventy years Nevertheless when the seventy years are fulfilled for Babylon, I willbring you back to Jerusalem. For my plan is to prosper you and not to harm you. To give you hope and afuture. Returned exiles will find"
"the Lord if they seek him with all their heart Then you will pray to me and I shall hear you. Then you will find me, if you seek me with all your heart. Shemaiah a false prophet in exile sends a letter to Jerusalem to have Jeremiah silenced When the prophet Shemaiah who was among the exiles in Babylon read the letterJeremiah had sent , he wrote to Zephaniah the priest in charge of the Temple in Jerusalem , saying : Jehovah has appointed you to be in charge of the Temple , and to put any madman who acts like a prophet into thestocks . Why then have you not punished Jeremiah who poses as a"
"prophet among you? He has sent us a letter saying that we will be exiled here in Babylon a long time, and that we should build houses and settle down and plant gardens . Shemaiah cursed by the Lord to have no descendants Zephaniah however read the letter to Jeremiah . Then this word of the Lord came to Jeremiah : Send a letter to the exiles saying, Jehovah says, Shemaiah has prophesied lies to you. I did not send him. Therefore I will punish Shemaiah. Neither he nor his sons shall live to see the good things I will do for my people, for hehas preached rebellion against me. Jeremiah sends his"
"Babylonian prophecies to Babylon by Seraiah one of Zedekiahs officials In the fourth year of the reign of Zedekiah , the prophet Jeremiah wrote on a scroll all the disasters recorded concerning Babylon . Then he gave the scroll to Seraiah , one of the king s officials who was to accompany the king on a trip to Babylon . Seraiah to read the prophesy in Babylon then throw it into the Euphrates Jeremiah said to him , When you get to Babylon see that you read all these words aloud . 22Then you are to tie a stone to the scroll and throw it into the Euphrates and cryout, So will Babylon sink, to"
"rise no more." 
"*** JEREMIAH 18 ****" 
"Jeremiah commanded to write all his words in a book for future generations The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah : Write in a book these words and all the other words I have spoken to you, for theday shall come when I will restore the fortunes of both Israel and Judah, and bring them back to the land I gave theirforefathers to possess. A message from the Lord to all nations of the earth Hear the word of Jehovah O nations of the earth. The day shall come when I who scattered Israel will gather them again andwatch over my flock like a shepherd. I will ransom"
"Jacob and redeem him from a hand stronger than his. The fearful day of the coming of the Lord In that day cries of fear shall be heard. How terrible that day will be. None will be like it. It shall also be a time of trouble for Israel, but Israel will be rescued. David to be leader of gathered Israel during millennium In that day scattered Israel will no longer be servants to foreigners, instead they willserve Jehovah their God, and David whom I shall raise up for them. They shall be my people and I will be their God. All the wicked to be destroyed from the earth in the last days In that"
"day the storm of Jehovah shall burst upon the heads of the wicked of the earth. My fierce anger will not turn back until I fully accomplish the purposes of myheart. In those days you will understand this. Jerusalem shall be rebuilt on her ruins and the royal palace will stand in its rightful place. Israel to be gathered from the very ends of the earth I will gather Israel from the lands of the north and from the very ends of the earth. The blind, the lame, women with childrenand expectant mothers. A great company shall return. They shall come weeping and praying and I will lead them beside"
"streams of water on level paths where they will not stumble. For I am Israels father, and Ephraim is my firstborn son, the child in whom I delight. Though I often speak against him my heart yearns for him. The people to shout for joy They shall come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion. They shall rejoice in the grain, the new wine and the oil, theyoung of the flocks and herds. Israel shall be like a well-watered garden and will sorrow no more. Dancing and gladness in Israel Maidens will dance and be joyful, the young men and elderly as well. I will turn mourning into gladness. I"
"shall give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. 15Just as I watched over them to uproot and destroy, so shall I watch over them to build and to plant. People to be punished only for own sins In those days people will no longer say, The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the childrens teeth are set on edge. Instead each person will be punished for his ownsins. A new covenant to be made with the house of Israel For the time is coming when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel. It shall not be like the covenant of old that I made with their forefathers when I led them out of"
"Egypt, for they broke thatcovenant. This time I will put my law in their minds and write it upon their hearts. No longer will it be needful for a man to teach another to know the Lord, for they shall all know me, from the least to the greatest. A message from the Lord to scattered Israel O Israel, though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you, I shall not completely destroy you, but will discipline you with justice. I will punish you as do the cruel, for your guilt is great, but all who devour you shall be devoured. 22Then I will at last heal your wounds, for you will"
"have been called outcasts for whom no one cares. Virgin Israel to dance and sing with joy O virgin Israel, again you shall take up your tambourines and go out to dance with joy. Songs of thanksgiving will be heard. Israel no longer to be despised Again you shall plant vineyards on the hills of Samaria and enjoy their fruit. I will bring you honour. You will no longer be despised." 
"*** JEREMIAH 19 ****" 
"Zedekiah rebels agains t the king of Babylon In the ninth year of Zedekiah s reign he hardened his heart and rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar , even though the king of Babylon had made him take"
"an oath in God s name . Nor did he turn to Jehovah the God of Israel . The people of Judah now even more unfaithful Furthermore the leaders of the priests and the people of Judah had become more andmore unfaithful , following all the abominable practices of the nations and defiling the Temple of the Lord .  3The Lord had sent word to them again and again through his prophet Jeremiah , but they mocked him until the wrath of the Lord was soaroused against his people there was no remedy . Nebuchadnezzars armies come and besiege Jerusalem So on the tenth day of the tenth month , Nebuchadnezzar"
"king of Babylon marched against Judah with his armies . They camped outside Jerusalem and built siege works all around the city . Zedekiah sent Zephaniah the priest to Jeremiah to say , Inquire of the Lord for us . Perhaps Jehovah will perform wonders for us as in times past so that Nebuchadnezzar willwithdraw . Only sword, famine and plague lie ahead But Jeremiah answered , Tell Zedekiah , Jehovah the God of Israel says , I will turn against you the very swords you are usingto fight the Babylonians who are outside the wall besieging you. I myself will fight against you in anger and fury. I"
"shall strike both men and animals in this city and they will die of plague. After that I shall hand over Zedekiah and those who survive the sword, famine and plague, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.He shall put the people to the sword and show them no mercy. Those who surrender to the Babylonians will escape with their lives However, even now I set before you a way of life and a way of death. Whoeverstays in this city shall die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians will escapewith his life. I have decreed this city harm. It shall be given"
"into the hands of the king of Babylonand he will destroy it with fire. Zedekiah told he will die peacefully in Babylon During the besieging of Jerusalem by the king of Babylon and the armies of the nationshe ruled , this word of the Lord also came to Jeremiah : Go to Zedekiah king of Judah, and say to him, Jehovah says, I havehanded this city over to the king of Babylon and he will burn it down. You shall not escape but will be captured and handed over to him. You shall see the king of Babylon face to face and he will speak with you, and you will go toBabylon. Yet hear this word O Zedekiah,"
"You shall not die by the sword but will diepeacefully. As people made a funeral fire in honour of your father Josiah, so shall they make a fire in your honour. Two other cities of Judah also being besieged Two other cities of Judah were also holding out against the army of Babylon ; Lachish and Azekah . These were the only fortified cities left in Judah . Egypt comes to help Judah and the Babylonian army temporarily withdraw While the Babylonians were besieging Jerusalem , Pharaoh s army marched out of Egypt to support Judah . The Babylonians heard the report and withdrew from Jerusalem . The"
"Lord reveals that the Babylonians will return and burn Jerusalem Then Zedekiah sent a message to Jeremiah the prophet to inquire of the Lord . Jeremiah sent back this reply : Jehovah says, Pharaohs army which set out to help you shall return to Egypt. Then theBabylonians will return and capture this city and burn it down. Do not deceive yourselves thinking, The Babylonians will surely leave us. For they shall not go away. 20Even if you were to defeat the entire Babylonian army andonly wounded men were left, they would still come and burn this city down. Zedekiah orders all Israelite slaves to"
"be freed Then Zedekiah made this proclamation to the people in Jerusalem : Everyone is to free his Israelite slaves , both male and female . No one is to hold a fellow Israelite in slavery . The people free their slaves with a covenant but later enslave them again So the people agreed to free their slaves and even entered into a covenant in the Temple to do so . But later they changed their minds and took their slaves back again . The Lord curses the slave owners of Jerusalem to become a horror to all nations This word of the Lord came to Jeremiah , Say to the people, When I brought your"
"forefathers out of Egypt I commanded themsaying, Every seventh year you must free any fellow Israelite who has sold himself to you. Your fathers did not pay any attention to me. However recently you repented and did what was right in my sight. You evenmade a covenant before me in the house that bears my name. But now each of you have turned around and mocked my name. You have forced those you released to become your slaves again. As you have not obeyed me, I now proclaim a release for you. A release to fall by the sword, famine and plague. You willbecome a horror to all nations on earth. The"
"dead bodies of the slave owners who violated the covenant to lie unburied And the men who violated the covenant they made, I will hand over to the army of the king of Babylon who has withdrawn fora time. Their dead bodies shall become food for the birds of the air and wild animals of the earth. The Babylonians coming back to burn the cities of Judah I have given the order to bring the Babylonians back to this city. They shallfight against it and burn it down. I will lay waste the towns of Judah so that no one will live in them."