Yeremia 14:12-13

14:12 Even if they fast, I will not hear their cries for help. Even if they offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. ¹  Instead, I will kill them through wars, famines, and plagues.” ² 

14:13 Then I said, “Oh, Lord God, ³  look! ⁴  The prophets are telling them that you said, ⁵  ‘You will not experience war or suffer famine. ⁶  I will give you lasting peace and prosperity in this land.’” ⁷ 

[14:12]  ¹ sn See 6:16-20 for parallels.

[14:12]  ² tn Heb “through sword, starvation, and plague.”

[14:12]  sn These were penalties (curses) that were to be imposed on Israel for failure to keep her covenant with God (cf. Lev 26:23-26). These three occur together fourteen other times in the book of Jeremiah.

[14:13]  ³ tn Heb “Lord Yahweh.” The translation follows the ancient Jewish tradition of substituting the Hebrew word for God for the proper name Yahweh.

[14:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “Behold.” See the translator’s note on usage of this particle in 1:6.

[14:13]  ⁵ tn The words “that you said” are not in the text but are implicit from the first person in the affirmation that follows. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[14:13]  ⁶ tn Heb “You will not see sword and you will not have starvation [or hunger].”

[14:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “I will give you unfailing peace in this place.” The translation opts for “peace and prosperity” here for the word שָׁלוֹם (shalom) because in the context it refers both to peace from war and security from famine and plague. The word translated “lasting” (אֱמֶת, ’emet) is a difficult to render here because it has broad uses: “truth, reliability, stability, steadfastness,” etc. “Guaranteed” or “lasting” seem to fit the context the best.