1. This is the message from the Lord that came to Jeremiah during the tenth year that Zedekiah was king of Judah. The tenth year of Zedekiah was the 18th year of Nebuchadnezzar.
2. At that time the army of the king of Babylon was surrounding the city of Jerusalem, and Jeremiah was under arrest in the courtyard of the guard. This courtyard was at the palace of the king of Judah.
3. King Zedekiah of Judah had put Jeremiah in prison in that place. Zedekiah didn’t like the things Jeremiah prophesied. Jeremiah had said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I will soon give the city of Jerusalem to the king of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar will capture this city.
4. King Zedekiah of Judah will not escape from the army of the Babylonians. But he will surely be given to the king of Babylon. And Zedekiah will speak to the king of Babylon face to face. He will see him with his own eyes.
5. The king of Babylon will take Zedekiah to Babylon. Zedekiah will stay there until I have punished him.’ This message is from the Lord. ‘If you fight against the army of the Babylonians, you will not succeed.’”
6. While Jeremiah was a prisoner, he said, “This message from the Lord came to me. This was the message:
7. ‘Jeremiah, your cousin, Hanamel, will come to you soon. He is the son of your uncle Shallum. Hanamel will say to you, “Jeremiah, buy my field near the town of Anathoth. Buy it because you are my nearest relative. It is your right and your responsibility to buy that field.”’
8. “Then it happened just as the Lord said. My cousin Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard. Hanamel said to me, ‘Jeremiah, buy my field near the town of Anathoth, in the land of the tribe of Benjamin. Buy that land for yourself because it is your right to buy it and own it.’” So I knew that this was a message from the Lord.
9. I bought the field at Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel. I weighed out 17 shekels of silver for him.
10. I signed the deed and had a copy of the deed sealed up. I got some men to witness what I had done, and I weighed out the silver on the scales.
11. Then I took the sealed copy of the deed, which contained the demands and limits of my purchase, and the copy that was not sealed.
12. I gave the deed to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah. I did this while my cousin Hanamel and the other witnesses were there. They also signed the deed. There were also many people of Judah sitting in the courtyard who saw me give the deed to Baruch.
13. With all the people watching, I said to Baruch,
14. “This is what the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says: ‘Take both copies of the deed—the sealed copy and the copy that was not sealed—and put them in a clay jar. Do this so that these deeds will last a long time.’
15. The Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says, ‘In the future my people will once again buy houses, fields, and vineyards in the land of Israel.’”
16. After I gave the deed to Baruch son of Neriah, I prayed to the Lord: