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          DASV: Jeremiah 44    

1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews living
in the land of Egypt, at Migdol, Tahpanhes, and Memphis, and
in the region of southern Egypt, saying,
2 This is what the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, says:
"You have seen all the disaster that I have brought on
Jerusalem and on all the cities of Judah. Look, even
today they are still in ruins and uninhabited.
3 This is because of their wickedness which they have
done provoking me to anger, in that they went to burn
incense and serve other gods, that neither they, nor
you, nor your forefathers knew.
4 Yet I repeatedly sent to you all my servants the
prophets, saying, 'Please do not do this disgusting
thing that I hate.'
5 But they refused to listen, or incline their ear to
turn from their wickedness and to stop burning incense
to other gods.
6 So my wrath and anger was poured out, and burned in
the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem.
They became the desolate wasteland that they are to
this day.
7 Now this is what the LORD, the God of hosts, the God
of Israel, says: Why are you hurting yourselves? Why
destroy every man, woman, child and infant from the
midst of Judah, leaving you with not even a remnant left?
8 Why provoke me to anger with the idolatrous works
of your hands, burning incense to other gods in the
land of Egypt, where you have settled? You will be
destroyed and become an example used to curse and
ridicule among all the nations of the earth.
9 Have you forgotten the wickedness done by your
forefathers, the kings of Judah and their wives, and
even your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your
wives which they committed in the land of Judah and
in the streets of Jerusalem?
10 They have shown no contrition even to this day.
They have not feared or walked in my law, or in my
statutes, that I set before you and before your
forefathers.
11 Therefore this is what the LORD of hosts, the God
of Israel, says: Look, I am determined to bring
disaster against you, even to destroy Judah completely.
12 I will take the remnant of Judah, who have
determined to go to the land of Egypt and to settle
there, and they will all be consumed. In the land
of Egypt they will fall and die by the sword or famine.
They will die from the least to the greatest by the
sword or famine. They will become an object of
execration, horror, cursing and ridicule.
13 I will punish those who live in the land of Egypt,
just as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword,
famine, and plague.
14 None of the remnant of Judah, who have gone to the
land of Egypt to settle there, will escape or survive
to return to the land of Judah. Even though they
have a desire to return to live there, none will
return except a few refugees."

15 Then all the men who knew that their wives had burned
incense to other gods, and all the women who were
present, a great assembly of all the people who lived
in Pathros in the land of Egypt, answered Jeremiah,
saying,
16 "As for the word that you have spoken to us in the
name of the LORD, we will not listen to you.
17 But we will do everything that we have vowed. We will
burn incense to the Queen of Heaven, and pour out drink
offerings to her, just as we, our forefathers, our
kings and our officials have done in the cities of
Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem. For then we
had plenty of food, were well-off, and had no trouble.
18 But since we stopped burning incense to the Queen
of Heaven, and pouring out drink-offerings to her, we
have lacked everything, and have been consumed by the
sword and famine."
19 The women continued, "When we burned incense to the
Queen of Heaven, and poured out drink offerings to her,
did our husbands not know that we were making cakes to
worship her, and pouring out drink offerings to her?"

20 Then Jeremiah said to all the people, both men and
women, even to all the people who had replied to
him, saying,
21 "The incense that you, your forefathers, your kings
and officials and the people of the land burned
in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem,
did not the LORD remember it? Did it not come into
his mind?
22 At last the LORD could no longer bear your evil
deeds and the disgusting things that you were doing;
that is the reason your land become desolate, an
object of horror, and a curse, uninhabited, as it is
to this day.
23 Because you have burned incense, and because you
have sinned against the LORD, and have not obeyed the
voice of the LORD, or walked in his law, statutes
or testimonies, therefore this evil has happened
to you, as it is to this day."

24 Then Jeremiah said to all the people, especially
to all the women, "Hear the word of the LORD, all
you Judeans who are in the land of Egypt:
25 This is what the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,
says, You and your wives have done what your mouths
have promised when you said, 'We will certainly perform
our vows that we have made to burn incense to the
Queen of Heaven, and to pour out drink offerings
to her.' Alright then, keep your promises and
perform your vows.
26 Therefore hear the word of the LORD, all Judeans
who live in the land of Egypt: 'Look, I have sworn
by my great name, says the LORD, that my name will
no longer be invoked by the mouth of anyone from
Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, 'As the
sovereign LORD lives.'
27 Look, I will watch over them for disaster and not
for good. All the people of Judah who are in the land
of Egypt will perish by the sword and famine, until
not one of them is left.
28 Those who manage to escape the sword, and return
from the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, will
be few in number. All the remnant of Judah, who have
gone into the land of Egypt to settle there will know
whose word will stand, mine or theirs.
29 This will be the sign to you, says the LORD, that
I will punish you in this place, that you may know
that my words will surely stand against you to bring
disaster.
30 This is what the LORD says, 'Look, I will give
Pharaoh Hophra, king of Egypt into the hand of his
enemies, and into the hand of those seeking his
life; just as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into
the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who
was his enemy and sought his life.'"

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