The Faithfulness of the Rechabites
Jeremiah 42
Jeremiah sets wine before the family of the Rechabites in the house of the Lord, but they refuse to drink, explaining that their ancestor Jonadab commanded them never to drink wine, build houses, or sow fields, and that they have kept this command for generations. The Lord holds up their obedience to a human ancestor as a rebuke to Judah's refusal to obey him, and promises that a man of Jonadab's line will always stand in his presence.
About these editions
The Septuagint (LXX) in Greek, with Charles Thomson’s 1808 and Sir Lancelot Brenton’s 1851 English translations, set beside the King James Version and the Jewish Masoretic text (JPS 1917) where they align, so you can compare the Greek and the Hebrew. All public domain; choose which to show with the controls above.
Thomson 1808Septuagint
Brenton 1851Septuagint
Greek · BrentonSeptuagint
KJV 1769Masoretic
JPS 1917Masoretic
1
ThomsonTHE word which came to Jeremias from the Lord in the days of Joakim king of Juda, saying,
BrentonThe Word that came to Jeremias from the Lord in the days of Joakim, king of Juda, saying,
GreekὉ ΛΟΓΟΣ Ὁ ΓΕΝΟΜΕΝΟΣ ΠΡΟΣ ἹΕΡΕΜΙΑΝ παρὰ Κυρίου ἐν ἡμέραις Ἰωακεὶμ βασιλέως Ἰούδα, λέγων,
KJVThe word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, saying,
JPSThe word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying:
2
ThomsonGo to the family of Archabin and thou shalt bring them to the house of the Lord, into one of the court, and give them wine to drink.
BrentonGo 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.
GreekΒάδισον εἰς οἶκον Ἀρχαβεὶν, καὶ ἄξεις αὐτοὺς εἰς οἶκον Κυρίου, εἰς μίαν τῶν αὐλῶν, καὶ ποτιεῖς αὐτοὺς οἶνον.
KJVGo unto the house of the Rechabites, and speak unto them, and bring them into the house of the LORD, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.
JPS’Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and speak unto them, and bring them into the house of the LORD, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.’
3
ThomsonAccordingly I brought Jechonias, the son of Jeremias, son of Chabasin, with his brethren and his sons, even all the family of Archabin,
BrentonSo 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;
GreekΚαὶ ἐξήγαγον τὸν Ἰεχονιαν υἱὸν Ἱερεμὶν υἱοῦ Χαβασὶν, καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτοῦ, καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν οἰκίαν Ἀρχαβεὶν,
KJVThen I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habaziniah, and his brethren, and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites;
JPSThen I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brethren, and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites;
4
Thomsonand took them into the house of the Lord, to the chamber of the sons of Jonan son of Ananias son of Godolias, a man of God, which is near the house of the chiefs who are above the house of Maasias son of Selom, the keeper of the court.
Brentonand 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 dwells near the house of the princes that are over the house of Maasæas the son of Selom, who kept the court.
Greekκαὶ εἰσήγαγον αὐτοὺς εἰς οἶκον Κυρίου εἰς τὸ παστοφόριον υἱῶν Ἰωνὰν, υἱοῦ Ἀνανίου, υἱοῦ Γοδολίου ἀνθρώπου τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅς ἐστιν ἐγγὺς τοῦ οἴκου τῶν ἀρχόντων τῶν ἐπάνω τοῦ οἴκου Μαασαίου υἱοῦ Σελὼμ, τοῦ φυλάσσοντος τὴν αὐλήν.
KJVAnd I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door:
JPSand I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, the man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door;
5
ThomsonAnd having set before them a pot of wine and drinking cups, I said, Drink wine. Thereupon they said, We must not drink wine. For Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, gave us a charge, saying, You shall not drink wine;
BrentonAnd I set before them a jar of wine, and cups, and I said, Drink ye wine.
GreekΚαὶ ἔδωκα κατὰ πρόσωπον αὐτῶν κεράμιον οἴνου, καὶ ποτήρια, καὶ εἶπα, πίετε οἴνον.
KJVAnd I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them, Drink ye wine.
JPSand I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites goblets full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them: ‘Drink ye wine.’
6
Thomsonneither you nor your sons forever;
BrentonBut 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:
GreekΚαὶ εἶπον, οὐ μὴ πίωμεν οἶνον, ὅτι Ἰωναδὰβ υἱὸς Ῥηχὰβ ὁ πατὴρ ἡμῶν ἐνετείλατο ἡμῖν, λέγων, οὐ μὴ πίητε οἶνον ὑμεῖς καὶ οἱ υἱοὶ υμῶν ἕως αἰῶνος,
KJVBut they said, We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying, Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons for ever:
JPSBut they said: ‘We will drink no wine; for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying: Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons, for ever;
7
Thomsonneither shall you build houses, nor sow seed, nor have a vineyard; for you shall dwell in tents all your days, that you may live many days in the land where you sojourn.
Brentonnor 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.
Greekκαὶ οἰκίας οὐ μὴ οἰκοδομήσητε, καὶ σπέρμα οὐ μὴ σπείρητε, καὶ ἀμπελὼν οὐκ ἔσται ὑμῖν, ὅτι ἐν σκηναῖς οἰκήσετε πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ὑμῶν, ὅπως ἂν ζήσητε ἡμέρας πολλὰς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἐφʼ ἧς διατρίβετε ὑμεῖς ἐπʼ αὐτῆς.
KJVNeither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers.
JPSneither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any; but all your days ye shall dwell in tents, that ye may live many days in the land wherein ye sojourn.
8
ThomsonAccordingly, we have hearkened to the voice of Jonadab, our father, so as not to drink wine all our days, neither we nor our wives, nor our sons nor our daughters.
BrentonAnd 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;
GreekΚαὶ ἠκούσαμεν τῆς φωνῆς Ἰωναδὰβ τοῦ πατρὸς ἡμῶν, πρὸς τὸ μὴ πιεῖν οἶνον πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἡμῶν, ἡμεῖς καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες ἡμῶν, καὶ οἱ υἱοὶ ἡμῶν, καὶ αἱ θυγατέρες ἡμῶν,
KJVThus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters;
JPSAnd we have hearkened to the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters;
9
ThomsonAnd we have not built houses here to live in, nor have we vineyard, or field or seed;
Brentonand so as to build no houses to dwell in: and we have had no vineyard, nor field, nor seed:
Greekκαὶ πρὸς τὸ μὴ οἰκοδομεῖν οἰκίας τοῦ κατοικεῖν ἐκεῖ, καὶ ἀμπελὼν καὶ ἀγρὸς καὶ σπέρμα οὐκ ἐγένετο ἡμῖν.
KJVNor to build houses for us to dwell in: neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed:
JPSnor to build houses for us to dwell in, neither to have vineyard, or field, or seed;
10
Thomsonbut have dwelt in tents and have hearkened and done according to all that our father Jonadab commanded us.
Brentonbut we have dwelt in tents, and have hearkened, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.
GreekΚαὶ ᾠκήσαμεν ἐν σκηναῖς, καὶ ἠκούσαμεν, καὶ ἐποιήσαμεν κατὰ πάντα ἃ ἐνετείλατο ἡμῖν Ἰωναδὰβ ὁ πατὴρ ἡμῶν.
KJVBut we have dwelt in tents, and have obeyed, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.
JPSbut we have dwelt in tents, and have hearkened, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.
11
ThomsonSo when Nabuchodonosar came up against the land, we determined upon coming and came to Jerusalem out of the way of the army of the Chaldeans and out of the way of the army of the Assyrians, and here we have made our abode.
BrentonAnd 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.
GreekΚαὶ ἐγενήθη ὅτε ἀνέβη Ναβουχοδονόσορ ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ εἴπαμεν εἰσελθεῖν, καὶ εἰσήλθομεν εἰς Ἱερουσαλὴμ, ἀπὸ προσώπου τῆς δυνάμεως τῶν Χαλδαίων, καὶ ἀπὸ προσώπου τῆς δυνάμεως τῶν Ἀσσυρίων, καὶ ᾠκοῦμεν ἐκεῖ.
KJVBut it came to pass, when Nebuchadrezzar 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 the Syrians: so we dwell at Jerusalem.
JPSBut it came to pass, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up against 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 the Arameans; so we dwell at Jerusalem.’
12
ThomsonUpon this a word of the Lord came to me, saying:
BrentonAnd the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
GreekΚαὶ ἐγένετο λόγος Κυρίου πρὸς μὲ, λέγων,
KJVThen came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying,
JPSThen came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying:
13
ThomsonThus saith the Lord, Go and say to the men of Juda and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you never receive instruction to hearken to My words?
BrentonThus saith the Lord, Go, and say to the men of Juda, and to them that dwell in Jerusalem, Will ye not receive correction to hearken to my words?
Greekοὕτως λέγει Κύριος, πορεύου, καὶ εἰπὸν ἀνθρώπῳ Ἰούδα, καὶ τοῖς κατοικοῦσιν Ἱερουσαλὴμ, οὐ μὴ λάβητε παιδείαν τοῦ ἀκούειν τοὺς λόγους μου;
KJVThus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to my words? saith the LORD.
JPS’Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Go, and say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to My words? saith the LORD.
14
ThomsonThe children of Jonadab son of Rechab have steadfastly observed the command which he gave them not to drink wine: and they have not drunk any. But I have spoken to you, rising early; and you have not hearkened.
BrentonThe 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.
GreekἜστησαν ῥῆμα υἱοὶ Ἰωναδὰβ υἱοῦ Ῥηχὰβ, ὃ ἐνετείλατο τοῖς τέκνοις αὐτοῦ πρὸς τὸ μὴ πιεῖν οἶνον, καὶ οὐκ ἐπίοσαν· καὶ ἐγὼ ἐλάλησα πρὸς ὑμᾶς ὄρθρου, καὶ οὐκ ἠκούσατε.
KJVThe words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons not to drink wine, are performed; for unto this day they drink none, but obey their father’s commandment: notwithstanding I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye hearkened not unto me.
JPSThe words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons, not to drink wine, are performed, and unto this day they drink none, for they hearken to their father’s commandment; but I have spoken unto you, speaking betimes and often, and ye have not hearkened unto Me.
15
ThomsonThough I have sent to you My servants the prophets, saying, Turn ye, every one from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after strange gods to serve them, and you shall dwell in the land which I gave to you and your fathers; yet you have not inclined your ears nor hearkened.
BrentonAnd 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.
GreekΚαὶ ἀπέστειλα πρὸς ὑμᾶς τοὺς παῖδάς μου τοὺς προφήτας, λέγων, ἀποστράφητε ἕκαστος ἀπὸ τῆς ὁδοῦ αὐτοῦ τῆς πονηρᾶς, καὶ βελτίω ποιήσατε τὰ ἐπιτηδεύματα ὑμῶν, καὶ οὐ πορεύεσθε ὀπίσω θεῶν ἑτέρων τοῦ δουλεύειν αὐτοῖς, καὶ οἰκήσετε ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, ἧς ἔδωκα ὑμῖν, καὶ τοῖς πατράσιν ὑμῶν· καὶ οὐκ ἐκλίνατε τὰ ὦτα ὑμῶν, καὶ οὐκ εἰσηκούσατε.
KJVI have sent also unto you all my servants the prophets, rising up early and sending them, saying, Return ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers: but ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto me.
JPSI have sent also unto you all My servants the prophets, sending them betimes and often, saying: Return ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers; but ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto Me.
16
ThomsonThe sons of Jonadab son of Rechab have steadfastly observed the command of their father; but this people have not hearkened to Me.
BrentonBut the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have kept the command of their father; but this people has not hearkened to me.
GreekΚαὶ ἔστησαν υἱοὶ Ἰωναδὰβ υἱοῦ Ῥηχὰβ τὴν ἐντολὴν τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτῶν, ὁ δὲ λαὸς οὗτος οὐκ ἤκουσέ μου.
KJVBecause the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father, which he commanded them; but this people hath not hearkened unto me:
JPSBecause the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father which he commanded them, but this people hath not hearkened unto Me;
17
ThomsonTherefore thus saith the Lord: Behold I will bring upon Juda and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evils which I have denounced against them.
BrentonTherefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will bring upon Juda and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evils which I pronounced against them.
GreekΔιατοῦτο οὕτως εἶπε Κύριος, ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ φέρω ἐπὶ Ἰούδαν καὶ ἐπὶ τοὺς κατοικοῦντας Ἱερουσαλὴμ πάντα τὰ κακὰ ἃ ἐλάλησα ἐπʼ αὐτούς.
KJVTherefore thus saith the LORD 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 pronounced against them: because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard; and I have called unto them, but they have not answered.
JPStherefore thus saith the LORD, 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 pronounced against them; because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard, and I have called unto them, but they have not answered.’
18
ThomsonTherefore thus saith the Lord: Seeing the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab have obeyed the command of their father and have done as he ordered them;
BrentonTherefore 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:
GreekΔιατοῦτο οὕτως εἶπε Κύριος, ἐπειδὴ ἤκουσαν υἱοὶ Ἰωναδὰβ υἱοῦ Ῥηχὰβ τὴν ἐντολὴν τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτῶν ποιεῖν καθότι ἐνετείλατο αὐτοῖς ὁ πατὴρ αὐτῶν,
KJVAnd Jeremiah said unto the house of the Rechabites, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Because ye have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he hath commanded you:
JPSAnd unto the house of the Rechabites Jeremiah said: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Because ye have hearkened to the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he commanded you;
19
Thomsonthere shall never be wanting a man of the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab to stand before Me all the days of this land.
Brentonthere shall never be wanting a man of the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab to stand before my face while the earth remains.
Greekοὐ μὴ ἐκλείπῃ ἀνὴρ τῶν υἱῶν Ἰωναδὰβ υἱοῦ Ῥηχὰβ παρεστηκὼς κατὰ πρόσωπόν μου πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας τῆς γῆς.
KJVTherefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Jonadab the son of Rechab shall not want a man to stand before me for ever.
JPStherefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: There shall not be cut off unto Jonadab the son of Rechab a man to stand before Me for ever.’