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Read the Bible

The Holy Bible, Berean Study Bible

Jeremiah 29:6

Take wives and have sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Multiply there; do not decrease.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Israel, Prophecies Concerning;   Marriage;   Thompson Chain Reference - Home;   Marriage;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Babylon;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Government;   Inspiration;   Nation;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Canon of the Old Testament;   Jehoiachin;   Nebuchadnezzar;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Apocrypha;   Future Hope;   Jeremiah;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Greek Versions of Ot;   Hilkiah;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Zedekiah;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Babylonish Captivity, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Bear;   Jehoiachin;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Find wives for yourselves, and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons and give your daughters to men in marriage so that they may bear sons and daughters. Multiply there; do not decrease.
Hebrew Names Version
Take wives, and father sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply you there, and don't be diminished.
King James Version
Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished.
English Standard Version
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.
New American Standard Bible
'Take wives and father sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may give birth to sons and daughters; and grow in numbers there and do not decrease.
New Century Version
Get married and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons, and let your daughters be married so they also may have sons and daughters. Have many children in Babylon; don't become fewer in number.
Amplified Bible
'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].
World English Bible
Take wives, and father sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply you there, and don't be diminished.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Take you wiues, and beget sonnes and daughters, and take wiues for your sonnes, and giue your daughters to husbands, that they may beare sonnes and daughters, that ye may bee increased there, and not diminished.
Legacy Standard Bible
Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease.
Contemporary English Version
Get married and have children, then help your sons find wives and help your daughters find husbands, so they can have children as well. I want your numbers to grow, not to get smaller.
Complete Jewish Bible
Choose women to marry, and have sons and daughters. Choose wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage to men, so that they can have sons and daughters — increase your numbers there, don't decrease.
Darby Translation
Take wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there, and be not diminished.
Easy-to-Read Version
Get married and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons, and let your daughters be married. Do this so that they also may have sons and daughters. Have many children and grow in number in Babylon. Don't become fewer in number.
George Lamsa Translation
Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there, and not decrease.
Good News Translation
Marry and have children. Then let your children get married, so that they also may have children. You must increase in numbers and not decrease.
Lexham English Bible
Take wives and father sons and daughters, and take for your sons wives, and give your daughters to men that they may bear sons and daughters, and multiply there, and you must not be few.
Literal Translation
Take wives, and father sons and daughters. And take wives for your sons; and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters, and multiply there, and do not become few.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
take you wyues, to beare you sonnes and doughters: prouyde wyues for youre sonnes, & hu?bondes for youre doughters: that they maye get sonnes & doughters, and that ye maye multiplie there. Laboure not to be fewe,
American Standard Version
Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters: and multiply ye there, and be not diminished.
Bible in Basic English
Take wives and have sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may have sons and daughters; and be increased in number there and do not become less.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply ye there, and be not diminished.
King James Version (1611)
Take ye wiues, and beget sonnes and daughters, and take wiues for your sonnes, and giue your daughters to husbands, that they may beare sonnes and daughters, that ye may bee increased there, and not diminished.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Take you wiues to beare you sonnes and daughters, prouide wiues for your sonnes, and husbandes for your daughters, that they may get sonnes & daughters: and that ye may multiplie there, and decrease not.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
How long wilt thou smite, O sword of the Lord? how long will it be ere thou art quiet? return into thy sheath, rest, and be removed.
English Revised Version
Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply ye there, and be not diminished.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
take ye wyues, and gendre ye sones and douytris, and yyue ye wyues to youre sones, and yyue ye youre douytris to hosebondis, and bere thei sones and douytris; and be ye multiplied there, and nyle ye be fewe in noumbre.
Update Bible Version
Take wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there, and don't be diminished.
Webster's Bible Translation
Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished.
New English Translation
Marry and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons and allow your daughters to get married so that they too can have sons and daughters. Grow in number; do not dwindle away.
New King James Version
Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters--that you may be increased there, and not diminished.
New Living Translation
Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away!
New Life Bible
Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters. And take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, that they may give birth to sons and daughters. Become many there, and do not let your number become less.
New Revised Standard
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.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Take ye wives and beget sons and daughters, And take wives, for your sons, and, your daughters, give ye to husbands, That they may bear sons and daughters, - And so become ye many there and do not become few;
Douay-Rheims Bible
Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters: and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, and let them bear sons and daughters: and be ye multiplied there, and be not few in number.
Revised Standard Version
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.
Young's Literal Translation
Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take for your sons wives, and your daughters give to husbands, and they bear sons and daughters; and multiply there, and ye are not few;
THE MESSAGE
"Marry and have children. Encourage your children to marry and have children so that you'll thrive in that country and not waste away.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
'Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease.

Contextual Overview

1This is the text of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the rest of the elders among the exiles, the priests, the prophets, and all the others Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2(This was after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the court officials, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metalsmiths had been exiled from Jerusalem.) 3The letter was entrusted to Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah had sent to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. It stated: 4"This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says to all the exiles I carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5'Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat their produce. 6Take wives and have sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Multiply there; do not decrease.7Seek 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.'

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Take ye: Jeremiah 16:2-4, Genesis 1:27, Genesis 1:28, Genesis 9:7, 1 Timothy 5:14

take wives: Genesis 21:21, Genesis 24:3, Genesis 24:4, Genesis 24:51, Genesis 24:60, Genesis 28:1-4, Genesis 29:19, Genesis 34:4, Judges 1:12-14, Judges 12:9, Judges 14:2, 1 Corinthians 7:36-38

Reciprocal: Ezekiel 28:26 - build

Cross-References

Genesis 37:14
Then Israel told him, "Go now and see how your brothers and the flocks are faring, and bring word back to me." So he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron. And when Joseph arrived in Shechem,
Genesis 43:27
He asked if they were well, and then he asked, "How is your elderly father that you told me about? Is he still alive?"
Exodus 18:7
So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down and kissed him. They greeted each other and went into the tent.
1 Samuel 17:22
Then David left his supplies in the care of the quartermaster and ran to the battle line. When he arrived, he asked his brothers how they were doing.
1 Samuel 25:5
So David sent ten young men and instructed them, "Go up to Nabal at Carmel. Greet him in my name
2 Samuel 20:9
"Are you well, my brother?" Joab asked Amasa. And with his right hand Joab grabbed Amasa by the beard to kiss him.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters,.... That is, such as had no wives, who were either bachelors or widowers; not that they were to take wives of the Chaldeans, but of those of their own nation; for intermarriages with Heathens were forbidden them; and this they were to do, in order to propagate their posterity, and keep up a succession:

and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands; or "men" s; preserving and establishing the right of parents to give their children in marriage, and pointing to them their duty to provide suitable yoke fellows for them; and hereby is signified, that not only they, but their children after them, should continue in this state of captivity:

that they may bear sons and daughters, that ye may be increased there;

and not diminished; like their ancestors in Egypt, who grew very numerous amidst all their afflictions and bondage.

s לאנשים "viris", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Schmidt.

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.


 
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