Jeremiah 35

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah: “Go to the family of the Rechabites and speak with them. Bring them to the house of the LORD, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.” So I took Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, his brothers, all his sons, and the entire family of the Rechabites. I brought them into the house of the LORD, to the chamber of the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah, the man of God. It was beside the chamber of the officials, above the chamber of Maaseiah son of Shallum, the keeper of the threshold. I set pitchers full of wine and cups before the members of the Rechabite family and said to them, “Drink some wine.” But they said, “We will not drink wine, for Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, commanded us, ‘Neither you nor your sons shall ever drink wine. You shall not build a house, sow seed, or plant or own a vineyard. Instead, you shall live in tents all your days, so that you may live a long time in the land where you reside as foreigners.’ We have obeyed Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, in everything he commanded us. We have drunk no wine all our days, neither we nor our wives, our sons, or our daughters. We have built no houses to live in, and we have no vineyard, field, or seed. We have lived in tents and have obeyed and done everything Jonadab our father commanded us. But when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against the land, we said, ‘Come, let us go to Jerusalem to escape the army of the Chaldeans and the army of Aram.’ So we have been living in Jerusalem.” The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Go and say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, “The LORD declares: Will you not accept correction and listen to my words? The words of Jonadab son of Rechab, who commanded his sons not to drink wine, have been carried out. They have drunk none to this day, for they obey their father’s command. But I have spoken to you, early and persistently, and you have not listened to me. I have sent you all my servants the prophets, sending them early and persistently, saying, ‘Turn now, each of you, from your evil way. Make your deeds right, and do not follow other gods to serve them. Then you will dwell in the land I gave to you and your fathers.’ But you have not inclined your ear or listened to me. The sons of Jonadab son of Rechab have carried out their father’s command to them, but these people have not listened to me. Therefore thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Look, I am bringing on Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster I have spoken against them, because I spoke to them and they did not listen; I called to them and they did not answer.” Jeremiah said to the family of the Rechabites, “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father, kept all his commands, and done everything he commanded you, therefore thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab son of Rechab will never lack a man to stand before me.”

Rights and attribution