Jeremias 35

¹ The Word which came unto Jeremiah from Jehovah in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying,

² Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak to them, and bring them into the house of Jehovah, into one of the rooms, and give them wine to drink.

³ Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habaziniah, and his brothers, and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites.

⁴ And I brought them into the house of Jehovah, into the room of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was near the room of the rulers, above the room of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door.

⁵ And I set pots full of wine, and cups, before the sons of the house of the Rechabites. And I said to them, Drink wine!

⁶ But they said, We will drink no wine, for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, You shall drink no wine, you nor your sons forever.

⁷ Nor shall you build houses, nor sow seed, nor plant a vineyard, nor have any of these; but all your days you shall live in tents, so that you may live many days in the land where you sojourn.

⁸ So we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he has commanded us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters;

⁹ nor to build houses for us to live in. Nor do we have vineyard, nor field, nor seed.

¹⁰ But we have lived in tents, and have obeyed and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.

¹¹ But it came to pass when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, that we said, Come and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans, and for fear of the army of Syria. So we are living at Jerusalem.

¹² Then came the Word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah, saying,

¹³ Thus says Jehovah of Hosts, the God of Israel: Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you not receive instruction to heed My Words? says Jehovah.

¹⁴ The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, which he commanded his sons not to drink wine, are done. For to this day they do not drink, but obey their father’s commandment. But I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking, but you have not heeded Me.

¹⁵ I have also sent to you all My servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, Turn back now each man from his evil way, and do good, and do not go after other gods to serve them, and you shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers. But you have not extended your ear, nor heeded Me.

¹⁶ Because the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have done the commandment of their father, which He commanded them; but this people has not heeded Me;

¹⁷ therefore thus says Jehovah the God of Hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have spoken against them. Because I have spoken to them, but they have not given heed; and I have called to them, but they have not answered.

¹⁸ And Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, Thus says Jehovah of Hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father, and have kept all his precepts, and have done according to all that he has commanded you;

¹⁹ therefore thus says Jehovah of Hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not lack a man to stand before Me forever.