Jeremiah 35
The LORD commanded Jeremiah to bring the Rechabites into the temple and offer them wine. They refused, saying their ancestor Jonadab had commanded them never to drink wine, build houses, or plant vineyards. The LORD held up the Rechabites as an example of obedience that shamed Judah, for Judah would not listen to the LORD though He spoke to them persistently.
| v | King James Version | Modern English |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying, | This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD during the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: |
| 2 | Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and speak unto them, and bring them into the house of the LORD, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink. | "Go to the community of the Rechabites and invite them to come to the house of the LORD into one of the side rooms. Then offer them wine." |
| 3 | Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habaziniah, and his brethren, and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites; | So I went to get Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all His sons — the whole community of the Rechabites. |
| 4 | And I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door: | I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the room of the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah the man of God. This room was next to the room of the officials and directly above the room of Maaseiah son of Shallum the doorkeeper. |
| 5 | And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them, Drink ye wine. | Then I set bowls full of wine and some cups before the Rechabites and said, "Drink some wine." |
| 6 | But they said, We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever: | But they replied, "We do not drink wine, because our ancestor Jonadab son of Rechab gave us this command: 'Neither You nor Your descendants must ever drink wine. |
| 7 | Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers. | Also You must never build houses, sow seed, or plant vineyards. You must never have any of these things. Instead You must always live in tents. Then You will live a long time in the land where You are strangers.' |
| 8 | Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters; | We have obeyed everything Jonadab son of Rechab our ancestor commanded us. Neither we nor our wives nor our sons nor our daughters have ever drunk wine |
| 9 | Nor to build houses for us to dwell in: neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed: | or built houses or had vineyards, fields, or crops. |
| 10 | But we have dwelt in tents, and have obeyed, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us. | We have lived in tents and have fully obeyed everything our ancestor Jonadab commanded us. |
| 11 | But it came to pass, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, that we said, Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans, and for fear of the army of the Syrians: so we dwell at Jerusalem. | But when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon invaded this land, we said, 'Come, we must go to Jerusalem to escape the Babylonian and Aramean armies.' So we have been living in Jerusalem." |
| 12 | Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying, | Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: |
| 13 | Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to my words? saith the LORD. | "This is what the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, says: Go and tell the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, 'Will You not learn a lesson and obey My words?' says the LORD. |
| 14 | The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons not to drink wine, are performed; for unto this day they drink none, but obey their father's commandment: notwithstanding I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye hearkened not unto me. | Jonadab son of Rechab ordered His descendants not to drink wine, and this command has been kept. To this day they do not drink wine, because they obey their ancestor's command. But I have spoken to You again and again, yet You have not obeyed Me. |
| 15 | I have sent also unto you all my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, Return ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers: but ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto me. | Again and again I sent all My servants the prophets to You. They said, "Each of You must turn from Your wicked ways and reform Your actions. Do not follow other gods to serve them. Then You will live in the land I have given to You and Your ancestors." But You have not paid attention or listened to Me. |
| 16 | Because the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father, which he commanded them; but this people hath not hearkened unto me: | The descendants of Jonadab son of Rechab have carried out the command their ancestor gave them, but this people has not obeyed Me.' |
| 17 | Therefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them: because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard; and I have called unto them, but they have not answered. | Therefore this is what the LORD God of hosts, the God of Israel, says: 'Listen! I am going to bring on Judah and on everyone living in Jerusalem every disaster I pronounced against them. I spoke to them, but they did not listen. I called to them, but they did not answer.'" |
| 18 | And Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he hath commanded you: | Then Jeremiah said to the family of the Rechabites, "This is what the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, says: 'You have obeyed the command of Your ancestor Jonadab and have followed all His instructions and have done everything He ordered.' |
| 19 | Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before me for ever. | Therefore this is what the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, says: 'Jonadab son of Rechab will never fail to have a descendant to serve Me.'" |