Chapter 42

¹ The Word that came to Jeremias from the Lord in the days of Joakim, king of Juda, saying, ² Go to the house of the Archabin, and thou shalt bring them to the house of the Lord, into one of the courts, and give them wine to drink.

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³ So I brought forth Jechonias the son of Jeremin the son of Chabasin, and his brethren, and his sons, and all the family of the Archabin; ⁴ and I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Joanan, the son of Ananias, the son of Godolias, a man of God, who ¹dwells near the house of the princes that are ²over the house of Maasæas the son of Selom, who kept the court. ⁵ And I set before them a jar of wine, and cups, and I said, Drink ye wine.

⁶ But they said, We will on no account drink wine, for our father Jonadab the son of Rechab commanded us, saying, Ye shall on no account drink wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever: ⁷ nor shall ye at all build houses, nor sow any seed, nor shall ye have a vineyard: for ye shall dwell in tents all your days; that ye may live many days upon the land, in which ye sojourn. ⁸ And we hearkened to the voice of Jonadab our father, so as to drink no wine all our days, we, and our wives, and our sons, and our daughters; ⁹ and so as to build no houses to dwell in: and we have had no vineyard, nor field, nor seed: ¹⁰ but we have dwelt in tents, and have hearkened, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us. ¹¹ And it came to pass, when Nabuchodonosor came up against the land, that we said we would come in; and we entered into Jerusalem, for fear of the host of the Chaldeans, and for fear of the host of the Assyrians: and we dwelt there.

¹² And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ¹³ Thus saith the Lord, Go, and say to the ³men of Juda, and to them that dwell in Jerusalem, Will ye not receive ⁴correction to hearken to my words? ¹⁴ The sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have kept the word which he commanded his children, that they should drink no wine; and they have not drunk it: but I spoke to you early, and ye hearkened not. ¹⁵ And I sent to you my servants the prophets, saying, Turn ye every one from his evil way, and amend your practices, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell upon the land which I gave to you and to your fathers: but ye inclined not your ears, and hearkened not. ¹⁶ But the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have kept the command of their father; but this people has not hearkened to me. ¹⁷ Therefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will bring upon Juda and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evils which I pronounced against them.

¹⁸ Therefore thus saith the Lord; Since the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have hearkened to the command of their father, to do as their father commanded them: ¹⁹ there shall never be wanting a man of the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab⁵ to stand before my face ⁶while the earth remains.