Bible Reading Plan

The Rechabites' Example

¹ This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim^(a) son of Josiah, king of Judah: ² "Go to the house of the Rechabites, speak to them,^(b) and bring them to one of the chambers^(c) of the temple of the Lord to offer them a drink of wine."

³ So I took Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons—the entire house of the Rechabites— ⁴ and I brought them into the temple of the Lord to a chamber occupied by the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah, a man of God,^(d) who had a chamber near the officials' chamber, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah son of Shallum the doorkeeper. ⁵ I set jars filled with wine and some cups before the sons of the house of the Rechabites and said to them, "Drink wine!"

⁶ But they replied, "We do not drink wine, for Jonadab,^(e) son of our ancestor Rechab, commanded: ‘You and your sons must never drink wine. ⁷ You must not build a house or sow seed or plant a vineyard. Those things are not for you. Rather, you must live in tents your whole life, so you may live a long time on the soil where you stay as a temporary resident.'^{(f) 8} We have obeyed the voice of Jonadab, son of our ancestor Rechab, in all he commanded us. So we haven't drunk wine our whole life—we, our wives, our sons, and our daughters. ⁹ We also have not built houses to live in and do not have vineyard, field, or seed. ¹⁰ But we have lived in tents and have obeyed and done as our ancestor Jonadab commanded us. ¹¹ However, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched into the land,^(g) we said: Come, let's go into Jerusalem to get away from the Chaldean and Aramean armies. So we have been living in Jerusalem."

¹² Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ¹³ "This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: Go, say to the men of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem: Will you not accept discipline^(h) by listening to My words?"—this is the Lord 's declaration. ¹⁴ "The words of Jonadab, son of Rechab, have been carried out. He commanded his sons not to drink wine, and they have not drunk to this very day because they have obeyed their ancestor's command. But I have spoken to you time and time again,^[a](i) and you have not obeyed Me! ¹⁵ Time and time again^[b] I have sent you all My servants the prophets, proclaiming: Turn, each one from his evil way of life,^(j) and correct your actions. Stop following other gods to serve them.^(k) Live in the land that I gave you and your ancestors. But you would not pay attention or obey Me.^{(l) 16} Yes, the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab carried out their ancestor's command he gave them, but these people have not obeyed Me. ¹⁷ Therefore, this is what the Lord , the God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: I will certainly bring to Judah and to all the residents of Jerusalem all the disaster I have pronounced against them because I have spoken to them, but they have not obeyed, and I have called to them, but they would not answer."

¹⁸ Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites: "This is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Because you have obeyed the command of your ancestor Jonadab and have kept all his commands and have done all that he commanded you, ¹⁹ this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: Jonadab son of Rechab will never fail to have a man to always stand before Me.'"^(m)

Jeremiah Dictates a Scroll

¹ In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah,^(a) king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord : ² "Take a scroll,^(b) and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah, and all the nations from the time I first spoke to you during Josiah's reign until today. ³ Perhaps when the house of Judah hears about all the disaster I am planning to bring on them, each one of them will turn from his evil way. Then I will forgive their wrongdoing^(c) and their sin."

⁴ So Jeremiah summoned Baruch^(d) son of Neriah. At Jeremiah's dictation,^[a] Baruch wrote on a scroll all the words the Lord had spoken to Jeremiah. ⁵ Then Jeremiah commanded Baruch, "I am restricted;^(e) I cannot enter the temple of the Lord , ⁶ so you must go and read from the scroll—which you wrote at my dictation^[b]—the words of the Lord in the hearing of the people at the temple of the Lord on a day of fasting. You must also read them in the hearing of all the Judeans who are coming from their cities. ⁷ Perhaps their petition will come before the Lord ,^(f) and each one will turn from his evil way, for the anger and fury that the Lord has pronounced against this people are great." ⁸ So Baruch son of Neriah did everything Jeremiah the prophet had commanded him. At the Lord 's temple he read the Lord 's words from the scroll.

Baruch Reads the Scroll

⁹ In the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month,^(g) all the people of Jerusalem and all those coming in from Judah's cities into Jerusalem proclaimed a fast before the Lord .^{(h) 10} Then at the Lord 's temple, in the chamber of Gemariah son of Shaphan the scribe,⁽ⁱ⁾ in the upper courtyard at the opening of the New Gate^(j) of the Lord 's temple, in the hearing of all the people, Baruch read Jeremiah's words from the scroll.

¹¹ When Micaiah son of Gemariah, son of Shaphan, heard all the words of the Lord from the scroll, ¹² he went down to the scribe's chamber in the king's palace. All the officials were sitting there—Elishama the scribe, Delaiah son of Shemaiah, Elnathan son of Achbor,^(k) Gemariah son of Shaphan, Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the other officials. ¹³ Micaiah reported to them all the words he had heard when Baruch read from the scroll in the hearing of the people. ¹⁴ Then all the officials sent word to Baruch through Jehudi son of Nethaniah, son of Shelemiah, son of Cushi, saying, "Bring the scroll that you read in the hearing of the people, and come." So Baruch son of Neriah took the scroll and went to them. ¹⁵ They said to him, "Sit down and read it in our hearing." So Baruch read it in their hearing.

¹⁶ When they had heard all the words, they turned to each other in fear and said to Baruch, "We must surely tell the king all these things." ¹⁷ Then they asked Baruch, "Tell us—how did you write all these words? At his dictation?"^[c]

¹⁸ Baruch said to them, "At his dictation.^[d] He recited all these words to me while I was writing on the scroll in ink."

Jehoiakim Burns the Scroll

¹⁹ The officials said to Baruch, "You and Jeremiah must hide yourselves and tell no one where you are." ²⁰ Then they came to the king at the courtyard, having deposited the scroll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, and reported everything in the hearing of the king. ²¹ The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and he took it from the chamber of Elishama the scribe. Jehudi then read it in the hearing of the king and all the officials who were standing by the king. ²² Since it was the ninth month, the king was sitting in his winter quarters^(l) with a fire burning in front of him. ²³ As soon as Jehudi would read three or four columns, Jehoiakim would cut the scroll^[e] with a scribe's knife and throw the columns into the blazing fire until the entire scroll was consumed by the fire in the brazier. ²⁴ As they heard all these words, the king and all of his servants did not become terrified^(m) or tear their garments. ²⁵ Even though Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah had urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen to them. ²⁶ Then the king commanded Jerahmeel the king's son, Seraiah son of Azriel, and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet, but the Lord had hidden them.

Jeremiah Dictates Another Scroll

²⁷ After the king had burned the scroll with the words Baruch had written at Jeremiah's dictation,^[f] the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ²⁸ "Take another scroll, and once again write on it the very words that were on the original scroll that Jehoiakim king of Judah burned. ²⁹ You are to proclaim concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: This is what the Lord says: You have burned the scroll, saying, ‘Why have you written on it:⁽ⁿ⁾ The king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land and cause it to be without man or beast?' ³⁰ Therefore, this is what the Lord says concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: He will have no one to sit on David's throne, and his corpse will be thrown out to be exposed to the heat of day and the frost of night.^{(o) 31} I will punish him, his descendants, and his officers for their wrongdoing. I will bring on them, on the residents of Jerusalem, and on the men of Judah all the disaster, which I warned them about but they did not listen."

³² Then Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Baruch son of Neriah, the scribe, and he wrote on it at Jeremiah's dictation^[g] all the words of the scroll that Jehoiakim,^(p) Judah's king, had burned in the fire. And many other words like them were added.

Jerusalem's Last Days

¹ Zedekiah son of Josiah^(a) reigned as king in the land of Judah^(b) in place of Jehoiachin^[a](c) son of Jehoiakim, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made him king. ² He and his officers and the people of the land did not obey the words of the Lord ^(d) that He spoke through Jeremiah the prophet.

³ Nevertheless, King Zedekiah sent Jehucal^(e) son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah^(f) son of Maaseiah, the priest, to Jeremiah the prophet, requesting, "Please pray to the Lord our God for us!" ⁴ Jeremiah was going about his daily tasks^[b] among the people, for they had not yet put him into the prison.^{(g) 5} Pharaoh's army had left Egypt,^(h) and when the Chaldeans, who were besieging Jerusalem, heard the report, they withdrew from Jerusalem.

⁶ The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet: ⁷ "This is what the Lord , the God of Israel, says: This is what you will say to Judah's king,⁽ⁱ⁾ who is sending you to inquire of Me: Watch: Pharaoh's army, which has come out to help you,^(j) is going to return to its own land of Egypt. ⁸ The Chaldeans will then return and fight against this city. They will capture it and burn it down.^{(k) 9} This is what the Lord says: Don't deceive yourselves by saying, ‘The Chaldeans will leave us for good,' for they will not leave. ¹⁰ Indeed, if you were to strike down the entire Chaldean army that is fighting with you,^(l) and there remained among them only the badly wounded^[c] men, each in his tent, they would get up and burn this city down."

Jeremiah's Imprisonment

¹¹ When the Chaldean army withdrew from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh's army, ¹² Jeremiah started to leave Jerusalem to go to the land of Benjamin to claim his portion there^(m) among the people. ¹³ But when he was at the Benjamin Gate,⁽ⁿ⁾ an officer of the guard was there, whose name was Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, and he apprehended Jeremiah the prophet, saying, "You are deserting to the Chaldeans."

¹⁴ "That's a lie," Jeremiah replied. "I am not deserting to the Chaldeans!" Irijah would not listen to him but apprehended Jeremiah and took him to the officials. ¹⁵ The officials were angry at Jeremiah and beat him and placed him in jail in the house of Jonathan^(o) the scribe, for it had been made into a prison. ¹⁶ So Jeremiah went into a cell in the dungeon^(p) and stayed there many days.

Jeremiah Summoned by Zedekiah

¹⁷ King Zedekiah later sent for him and received him, and in his house privately asked him, "Is there a word from the Lord ?"^(q)

"There is," Jeremiah responded, and he continued, "You will be handed over to the king of Babylon."^{(r) 18} Then Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, "How have I sinned against you or your servants or these people that you have put me in prison? ¹⁹ Where are your prophets who prophesied to you, claiming, ‘The king of Babylon will not come against you and this land'?^{(s) 20} So now please listen, my lord the king. May my petition come before you.^(t) Don't send me back to the house of Jonathan the scribe, or I will die there."

²¹ So King Zedekiah gave orders, and Jeremiah was placed in the guard's courtyard.^(u) He was given a loaf of bread each day from the baker's street until all the bread was gone from the city. So Jeremiah remained in the guard's courtyard.

Jeremiah Thrown into a Cistern

¹ Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jucal^[a] son of Shelemiah,^(a) and Pashhur son of Malchijah heard the words Jeremiah was speaking to all the people: ² "This is what the Lord says: ‘Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine, and plague, but whoever surrenders to the Chaldeans will live. He will keep his life like the spoils of war and will live.'^{(b) 3} This is what the Lord says: ‘This city will most certainly be handed over to the king of Babylon's army,^(c) and he will capture it.'"

⁴ The officials then said to the king, "This man ought to die, because he is weakening the morale of the warriors who remain in this city and of all the people by speaking to them in this way. This man is not seeking the well-being of this people, but disaster."^(d)

⁵ King Zedekiah said, "Here he is; he's in your hands since the king can't do anything against you." ⁶ So they took Jeremiah and dropped him into the cistern of Malchiah the king's son, which was in the guard's courtyard, lowering Jeremiah with ropes. There was no water in the cistern, only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud.^(e)

⁷ But Ebed-melech, a Cushite court official employed in the king's palace, heard Jeremiah had been put into the cistern. While the king was sitting at the Benjamin Gate,^{(f) 8} Ebed-melech went from the king's palace and spoke to the king: ⁹ "My lord the king, these men have been evil in all they have done to Jeremiah the prophet. They have dropped him into the cistern where he will die from hunger, because there is no more bread in the city."^(g)

¹⁰ So the king commanded Ebed-melech, the Cushite, "Take from here 30 men under your authority and pull Jeremiah the prophet up from the cistern before he dies."

¹¹ So Ebed-melech took the men under his authority and went to the king's palace to a place below the storehouse.^[b] From there he took old rags and worn-out clothes and lowered them by ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern. ¹² Ebed-melech the Cushite cried out to Jeremiah, "Place these old rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes." Jeremiah did so, ¹³ and they pulled him up with the ropes and lifted him out of the cistern, but he continued to stay in the guard's courtyard.

Zedekiah's Final Meeting with Jeremiah

¹⁴ King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and received him at the third entrance of the Lord 's temple. The king said to Jeremiah, "I am going to ask you something; don't hide anything from me."

¹⁵ Jeremiah replied to Zedekiah, "If I tell you, you will kill me, won't you? Besides, if I give you advice, you won't listen to me anyway."

¹⁶ King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in private,^(h) "As the Lord lives, who has given us this life,⁽ⁱ⁾ I will not kill you or hand you over to these men who want to take your life."

¹⁷ Jeremiah therefore said to Zedekiah, "This is what the Lord , the God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If indeed you surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon,^(j) then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive. ¹⁸ But if you do not surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then this city will be handed over to the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape from them.'"

¹⁹ But King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, "I am worried about the Judeans who have deserted to the Chaldeans. They may hand me over to the Judeans to abuse me."^(k)

²⁰ "They will not hand you over," Jeremiah replied. "Obey the voice of the Lord in what I am telling you, so it may go well for you and you can live. ²¹ But if you refuse to surrender, this is the verdict^[c] that the Lord has shown me: ²² ‘All the women^[d] who remain in the palace of Judah's king will be brought out to the officials of the king of Babylon and will say:

²³ All your wives and sons will be brought out to the Chaldeans.^(l) You yourself will not escape from them, for you will be seized by the king of Babylon and this city will burn down.'"

²⁴ Then Zedekiah warned Jeremiah, "Don't let anyone know about these things or you will die. ²⁵ If the officials hear that I have spoken with you^(m) and come and demand of you, ‘Tell us what you said to the king; don't hide anything from us and we won't kill you. Also, what did the king say to you?' ²⁶ then you will tell them, ‘I was bringing before the king my petition that he not return me to the house of Jonathan to die there.'"^{(n) 27} When all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him, he reported the exact words to them the king had commanded, and they quit speaking with him because nothing had been heard. ²⁸ Jeremiah remained in the guard's courtyard until the day Jerusalem was captured, and he was there when it happened.^[g]