Jeremiah 32:14

32:14 ‘The Lord God of Israel who rules over all 1  says, “Take these documents, both the sealed copy of the deed of purchase and the unsealed copy. Put them in a clay jar so that they may be preserved for a long time to come.”’ 2 

Jeremiah 32:44

32:44 Fields will again be bought with silver, and deeds of purchase signed, sealed, and witnessed. This will happen in the territory of Benjamin, the villages surrounding Jerusalem, the towns in Judah, the southern hill country, the western foothills, and southern Judah. 3  For I will restore them to their land. 4  I, the Lord, affirm it!’” 5 

Jeremiah 38:16

38:16 So King Zedekiah made a secret promise to Jeremiah and sealed it with an oath. He promised, 6  “As surely as the Lord lives who has given us life and breath, 7  I promise you this: I will not kill you or hand you over to those men who want to kill you.” 8 

1 tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.” For this title see 7:3 and the study notes on 2:19.

2 tn Heb “many days.” See BDB s.v. יוֹם 5.b for this usage.

3 tn Heb “They will buy fields with silver and write in the deed and seal [it] and have witnesses witness [it] in the land of Benjamin, in the environs of Jerusalem, in the towns in Judah, in the towns in the hill country, in the towns in the Shephelah, and in the towns in the Negev.” The long Hebrew sentence has again been restructured to better conform to contemporary English style. The indefinite “they will buy” is treated as a passive. It is followed by three infinitive absolutes which substitute for the finite verb (cf. GKC 345 §113.y) which is a common feature of the style of the book of Jeremiah.

sn For the geographical districts mentioned here compare Jer 17:26.

4 tn Or “I will reverse their fortunes.” For this idiom see the translator’s note on 29:14 and compare the usage in 29:14; 30:3, 18; 31:23.

5 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

6 tn Heb “So King Zedekiah secretly swore an oath to Jeremiah, saying.”

7 tn Heb “who has made this life/soul/ breath [נֶפֶשׁ, nefesh] for us.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ refers to the living, breathing substance of a person which constitutes his very life (cf. BDB 659 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 1; 3).

8 tn Heb “who are seeking your life.”