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And all the officials and all the people obeyed who had entered into the covenant that each man should let his male slave go free and each man his female slave, so that no one should enslave them any longer; they obeyed and let them go free.

"At the end of seven years each of you shall let his Hebrew brother go who has been sold to you and has served you six years, and you shall let him go to be free from you; but your fathers did not obey Me or incline their ear to Me.

Although recently you had turned and done what is right in My sight, each man proclaiming release to his neighbor, and you had cut a covenant before Me in the house which is called by My name.

Yet you turned and profaned My name, and each man returned to themselves his male slave and each man his female slave whom you had let go as free according to their desire, and you subdued them to be your male slaves and female slaves."'

"Therefore thus says Yahweh, ‘You have not obeyed Me in proclaiming release each man to his brother and each man to his neighbor. Behold, I am proclaiming a release to you,' declares Yahweh, ‘to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you a terror to all the kingdoms of the earth.

And as for Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials, I will give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their life and into the hand of the military force of the king of Babylon which has gone away from you.

Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons and the whole house of the Rechabites,

"The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, which he commanded his sons, not to drink wine, are established. So they do not drink wine to this day, for they have listened to their father's command. But I have spoken to you, rising up early and speaking; yet you have not listened to Me.

Also I have sent to you all My slaves the prophets, rising up early and sending, saying: ‘Turn now every man from his evil way and make good your deeds, and do not walk after other gods to serve them. Then you will inhabit the land which I have given to you and to your fathers; but you have not inclined your ear or listened to Me.

Then Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, "Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Because you have listened to the command of Jonadab your father, kept all his commands, and done according to all that he commanded you,

Perhaps the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I devise to bring on them, in order that every man will turn from his evil way; then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin."

Perhaps their supplication will come before Yahweh, and everyone will turn from his evil way, for great is the anger and the wrath that Yahweh has spoken against this people."

Then all the officials sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, "Take in your hand the scroll from which you have read in the hearing of the people and come." So Baruch the son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand and went to them.

And they asked Baruch, saying, "Declare to us, please, how did you write all these words? Was it at his dictation?"

Yet the king and all his servants who heard all these words were not in dread, nor did they tear their garments.

Therefore thus says Yahweh concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah, "He shall have no one to sit on the throne of David, and his dead body shall be cast out to the heat of the day and the frost of the night.

And I will also punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity, and I will bring on them and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the men of Judah all the evil that I have spoken about to them—but they did not listen."'"

But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land listened to the words of Yahweh which He spoke through Jeremiah the prophet.

For even if you had struck down the entire military force of the Chaldeans who were fighting against you, and there were only wounded men remaining among them, each man in his tent, they would rise up and burn this city with fire.'"

that Jeremiah went out from Jerusalem to go to the land of Benjamin in order to obtain his portion of some property there among the people.