Jeremiah 29:7

Amplified Bible

'Seek peace and well-being for the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its peace (well-being) you will have peace.'

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Pursue the well-being of the city I have deported you to. Pray to the Lord on its behalf, for when it thrives, you will thrive.”

Hebrew Names Version
Seek the shalom of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the LORD for it; for in the shalom of it shall you have shalom.

King James Version
And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

English Standard Version
But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

New American Standard Bible
'Seek the prosperity of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD in its behalf; for in its prosperity will be your prosperity.'

New Century Version
Also do good things for the city where I sent you as captives. Pray to the Lord for the city where you are living, because if good things happen in the city, good things will happen to you also."

World English Bible
Seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to Yahweh for it; for in the peace of it shall you have peace.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And seeke the prosperitie of the citie, whither I haue caused you to be caried away captiues, and pray vnto the Lorde for it: for in the peace thereof shall you haue peace.

Legacy Standard Bible
Seek the peace of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to Yahweh on its behalf; for in its peace you will have peace.'

Berean Standard Bible
Seek the prosperity of the city to which I have sent you as exiles. Pray to the LORD on its behalf, for if it prospers, you too will prosper.'

Contemporary English Version
Pray for peace in Babylonia and work hard to make it prosperous. The more successful that nation is, the better off you will be.

Complete Jewish Bible
Seek the welfare of the city to which I have caused you to go in exile, and pray to Adonai on its behalf; for your welfare is bound up in its welfare.'

Darby Translation
And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto Jehovah for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

Easy-to-Read Version
Also, do good things for the city I sent you to. Pray to the Lord for the city you are living in, because if there is peace in that city, you will have peace also."

George Lamsa Translation
And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray to the LORD for it; for in the peace thereof shall you have peace.

Good News Translation
Work for the good of the cities where I have made you go as prisoners. Pray to me on their behalf, because if they are prosperous, you will be prosperous too.

Lexham English Bible
And seek the prosperity of the city where I have deported you, and pray on behalf of it to Yahweh, for in its prosperity you will have prosperity.'

Literal Translation
And seek the peace of the city, there where I have caused you to be exiled. And pray to Jehovah for it; for in its peace you shall have peace.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
but seke after peace & prosperite of the cite, where in ye be presoners, & praye vnto God for it. For in the peace there of, shal yor peace be.

American Standard Version
And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto Jehovah for it; for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

Bible in Basic English
And be working for the peace of the land to which I have had you taken away prisoners, and make prayer to the Lord for it: for in its peace you will have peace.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto the LORD for it; for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

King James Version (1611)
And seeke the peace of the citie, whither I haue caused you to be caried away captiues, & pray vnto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall yee haue peace.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Seke after the peace and prosperitie of the citie wherin ye be prisoners, and pray vnto the Lorde for it: for in the peace therof shall your peace be.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
CONCERNING IDUMEA, thus saith the Lord; There is no longer wisdom in Thaeman, counsel has perished from the wise ones, their wisdom is gone,

English Revised Version
And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And seke ye pees of the citees, to whiche Y made you to passe ouer; and preie ye the Lord for it, for in the pees therof schal be pees to you.

Update Bible Version
And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to Yahweh for it; for in the peace thereof you shall have peace.

Webster's Bible Translation
And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray to the LORD for it: for in the peace of it ye shall have peace.

New English Translation
Work to see that the city where I sent you as exiles enjoys peace and prosperity. Pray to the Lord for it. For as it prospers you will prosper.'

New King James Version
And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the LORD for it; for in its peace you will have peace.

New Living Translation
And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare."

New Life Bible
Work for the well-being of the city where I have sent you to and pray to the Lord for this. For if it is well with the city you live in, it will be well with you.'

New Revised Standard
But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And seek the welfare of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray for her unto Yahweh, - For in her welfare, shall ye have welfare.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And seek the peace of the city, to which I have caused you to be carried away captives; and pray to the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall be your peace.

Revised Standard Version
But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

Young's Literal Translation
And seek the peace of the city whither I have removed you, and pray for it unto Jehovah, for in its peace ye have peace.

THE MESSAGE
"Make yourselves at home there and work for the country's welfare. "Pray for Babylon's well-being. If things go well for Babylon, things will go well for you."

New American Standard Bible (1995)
'Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.'

Contextual Overview

¹Now these are the words of the letter which Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the rest of the elders in exile and to the priests, the prophets and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. ²(This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the princes (court officials) of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem.) ³The letter was hand-carried by Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying, ⁴"So says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the captives whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, ⁵'Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. ⁶'Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there and do not decrease [in number]. ⁷'Seek peace and well-being for the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its peace (well-being) you will have peace.'

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

seek: Daniel 4:27, Daniel 6:4, Daniel 6:5, Romans 13:1, Romans 13:5, 1 Peter 2:13-17

pray: Ezra 6:10, Ezra 7:23, Daniel 4:19, 1 Timothy 2:1, 1 Timothy 2:2

Reciprocal: Genesis 37:14 - see whether it be well with Jeremiah 38:4 - welfare

Cross-References

Genesis 29:9
While he was still speaking with them, Rachel came with her father's sheep, for she was a shepherdess.

Genesis 29:10
When Jacob saw [his cousin] Rachel, the daughter of Laban, his mother's brother, and Laban's sheep, he came up and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered the flock of Laban, his uncle.

Ephesians 5:16
making the very most of your time [on earth, recognizing and taking advantage of each opportunity and using it with wisdom and diligence], because the days are [filled with] evil.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And seek the peace of the city,.... The prosperity and happiness of Babylon, or any other city in Chaldea, were they were placed: this they were to do by prayer and supplication to God, and by all other means that might be any ways conducive to the good of the state where they were:

whither I have caused you to be carried away captives; and as long as they continued so; for being under the protection of the magistrates of it, though Heathens, they owed them submission, and were under obligation to contribute to their peace and welfare:

and pray unto the Lord for it; the city, where they dwelt; for the continuance, safety, peace, and prosperity of it; and therefore much more ought the natives of a place to seek and pray for its good, and do all that in them lies to promote it; and still more should the saints and people of God pray for the peace of Jerusalem, or the church of God, where they are born, and brought up in a spiritual sense; see 1 Timothy 2:1;

for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace; which is an argument taken from self-interest; intimating, that while the city in which they were was in safety and prosperity, was in a flourishing condition, as to its health and trade, they would partake more or less with them of the same advantages; and on the other hand, should they be distressed with the sword, famine, or pestilence, or any grievous calamity, they would be involved in the same.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

As the exile was God’s doing for their good, they were to make the best of their position, and acquire wealth and influence; whereas if they were always restlessly looking out for the opportunity of returning home, they would rapidly fall into poverty and dwindle away.

Jeremiah 29:7

Seek the peace of the city ... - Not only because their welfare for seventy years was bound up with that of Babylon, but because it would have degraded their whole moral nature to have lived as conspirators, banded together against the country that was for the time their home.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Jeremiah 29:7. Seek the peace of the city — Endeavour to promote, as far as you can, the prosperity of the places in which ye sojourn. Let no disaffection appear in word or act. Nothing can be more reasonable than this. Wherever a man lives and has his nourishment and support, that is his country as long as he resides in it. If things go well with that country, his interest is promoted by the general prosperity, he lives at comparative ease, and has the necessaries of life cheaper; and unless he is in a state of cruel servitude, which does not appear to have been the case with those Israelites to whom the prophet writes, (those of the first captivity,) they must be nearly, if not altogether, in as good a state as if they had been in the country that gave them birth. And in this case they were much better off than their brethren now in Judea, who had to contend with famine and war, and scarcely any thing before them but God's curse and extermination.