Jeremiah 29

Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the residue of the elders of the captivity, and to the priests, to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon,

(after Jeconiah the king, the queen mother, the eunuchs, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem),

by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon). It said:

The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives whom I have caused to be carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon:

“Build houses and dwell in them. Plant gardens and eat their fruit.

Take wives and father sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters. Multiply there, and don’t be diminished.

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.”

For the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel says: “Don’t let your prophets who are among you and your diviners deceive you. Don’t listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed.

For they prophesy falsely to you in my name. I have not sent them,” says the LORD.

For the LORD says, “After seventy years are accomplished for Babylon, I will visit you and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,” says the LORD, “thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope and a future.

You shall call on me, and you shall go and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

You shall seek me and find me, when you search for me with all your heart.

I will be found by you,” says the LORD, “and I will turn again your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places where I have driven you,” says the LORD. “I will bring you again to the place from where I caused you to be carried away captive.”

Because you have said, “The LORD has raised us up prophets in Babylon,”

the LORD says concerning the king who sits on David’s throne, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your brothers who haven’t gone with you into captivity,

the LORD of Armies says: “Behold, I will send on them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like rotten figs that can’t be eaten, they are so bad.

I will pursue after them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth, to be an object of horror, an astonishment, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them,

because they have not listened to my words,” says the LORD, “with which I sent to them my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but you would not hear,” says the LORD.

Hear therefore the LORD’s word, all you captives whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon.

The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy a lie to you in my name: “Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and he will kill them before your eyes.

A curse will be taken up about them by all the captives of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, ‘The LORD make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire;’

because they have done foolish things in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and have spoken words in my name falsely, which I didn’t command them. I am he who knows, and am witness,” says the LORD.

Concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite you shall speak, saying,

“The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘Because you have sent letters in your own name to all the people who are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying,

“The LORD has made you priest in the place of Jehoiada the priest, that there may be officers in the LORD’s house, for every man who is crazy and makes himself a prophet, that you should put him in the stocks and in shackles.

Now therefore, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who makes himself a prophet to you,

because he has sent to us in Babylon, saying, The captivity is long. Build houses, and dwell in them. Plant gardens, and eat their fruit?”’”

Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the prophet.

Then the LORD’s word came to Jeremiah, saying,

“Send to all of the captives, saying, ‘The LORD says concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: “Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, and I didn’t send him, and he has caused you to trust in a lie,”

therefore the LORD says, “Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his offspring. He will not have a man to dwell among this people. He won’t see the good that I will do to my people,” says the LORD, “because he has spoken rebellion against the LORD.”’”

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview.
This chapter records Jeremiah’s letter to the exiles in Babylon, written during the early years of their captivity under Nebuchadnezzar. The prophet delivers a message of prolonged exile and calls the people to settle temporarily in Babylon, rejecting false hopes of quick deliverance. At the same time, he warns them against false prophets who speak peace contrary to the Lord’s word and affirms God’s sovereign purposes: seventy years of exile, followed by restoration for those who remain faithful.

Flow.

Jeremiah sends a letter to the Judean exiles in Babylon with instructions from the Lord.
The exiles are told to build lives in Babylon—construct homes, plant gardens, marry, and pray for the peace of the city—because their stay will be long.
God warns them not to listen to false prophets or dreamers who promise immediate restoration, for such messages are lies.
The word includes a promise: after seventy years, God will fulfill His promise to bring them back; He knows the plans He has for their future and will respond when they seek Him wholeheartedly.
The Lord then confronts false prophets among the exiles—Ahab, Zedekiah, and Shemaiah—who deceive the people and oppose Jeremiah’s message, pronouncing judgment on them for their rebellion and lies.

Connections.
Following chapter 28, where the false prophet Hananiah dies as Jeremiah’s judgment pronounced comes to pass, chapter 29 extends the theme of true versus false prophecy in the context of exile. Where Hananiah claimed immediate deliverance, Jeremiah now insists God’s plan involves endurance and faithfulness over decades. This prepares the way for chapter 30, which will introduce the “time of Jacob’s trouble” and the eventual restoration beyond the seventy years, holding together divine judgment and future hope in the broader arc of redemption.

What it teaches.
God’s people must live faithfully in exile, neither clinging to false hopes nor abandoning covenant loyalty. Though judgment has come and the exile will last seventy years (WCF 19.3; ), God remains in sovereign control and will fulfill His promise to restore those who seek Him with all their heart (WCF 7.5; HC LD 7). False prophets who speak lies in the Lord’s name, like Ahab and Shemaiah, are under divine judgment (; HC LD 33; WCF 1.10), while the true word of God stands firm. The call to “seek the peace of the city” reflects a divine ordering of life under temporal authorities, consistent with living as sojourners who trust God’s unfolding purpose (WCF 23.3; ).

Apply.
Live faithfully where God has placed you, trusting His promises even when they unfold slowly.

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