God

Nor will there ever be cut off from the cohanim who are L'vi'im a man before me to offer burnt offerings, burn grain offerings and offer sacrifices every day."

This word of ADONAI came to Yirmeyahu:

"Here is what ADONAI says: 'If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that daytime and nighttime no longer come when they are supposed to,

then my covenant with my servant David also can be broken, so that he will not have a descendant to reign from his throne or L'vi'im who are cohanim to minister to me.

To the degree that the armies of heaven are past counting and the sand by the sea past measuring, I will increase the descendants of my servant David and the L'vi'im ministering to me.'"

This word of ADONAI came to Yirmeyahu:

"Haven't you noticed that these people are saying, 'ADONAI has rejected the two families he chose'? Hence they despise my people and no longer look at them as a nation.

Here is what ADONAI says: 'If I have not established my covenant with day and night and fixed the laws for sky and earth,

then I will also reject the descendants of Ya'akov and of my servant David, not choosing from his descendants people to rule over the descendants of Avraham, Yis'chak and Ya'akov. For I will cause their captives to come back, and I will show them compassion.'"

This word came to Yirmeyahu from ADONAI when N'vukhadretzar king of Bavel, his whole army, all his vassal kingdoms and all the peoples fought against Yerushalayim and all its cities:

"ADONAI the God of Isra'el says to go and speak to Tzidkiyahu king of Y'hudah. Tell him that ADONAI says: 'I am going to hand this city over to the king of Bavel, and he will burn it to the ground.

Nevertheless, Tzidkiyahu king of Y'hudah, hear the word of ADONAI. ADONAI says this about you: 'You will not be put to the sword

but will die peacefully; and just as they burned spices for your ancestors, the earlier kings who preceded you, so they will burn spices for you and mourn you, "Oh! Master!" For I have spoken the word,' says ADONAI."

This word came to Yirmeyahu from ADONAI after King Tzidkiyahu had made a covenant with all the people in Yerushalayim to emancipate them.

Therefore this word of ADONAI came to Yirmeyahu from ADONAI:

"Here is what ADONAI the God of Isra'el says: 'When I brought your ancestors out of the land of Egypt, where they lived as slaves, I made this covenant with them:

"At the end of seven years every one of you is to set free his brother Hebrew who has been sold to you and has served you six years. You are to let him go free from you." But your ancestors did not listen to me or pay any attention.

Now you repented, you did what is right from my viewpoint when each of you proclaimed freedom to his fellow; and you made a covenant before me in the house bearing my name.

But then you changed your minds. You profaned my name when each of you took back his male and female slaves, whom you had set free to live as they wished, and brought them back into subjection as your slaves.'

Therefore here is what ADONAI says: 'You did not heed me and proclaim freedom, each to his brother and each to his neighbor; so now I proclaim for you a freedom,' says ADONAI, 'for sword, plague and famine. I will make you an object of horror to all the kingdoms on earth.

As for the men who violated my covenant by not living up to the conditions of the covenant which they made in my presence when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts -

I will hand them over to their enemies, hand them over to those who seek their lives; and their corpses will become food for birds in the air and wild animals.

Tzidkiyahu king of Y'hudah and his officials I will hand over to their enemies, to those who seek their lives and to the army of the king of Bavel, which has withdrawn.

I will give the order,' says ADONAI, 'and cause them to return to this city. They will attack it, capture it and burn it to the ground; and I will make the cities of Y'hudah desolate and uninhabited.'"

This word came to Yirmeyahu from ADONAI during the time of Y'hoyakim the son of Yoshiyahu, king of Y'hudah: