Shemaiah’s Letter to Zephaniah the Priest

24 And to Shemaiah the Nehelamite you shall say, ⌊saying⌋,[fn] 25 “Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, ⌊saying⌋,[fn] ‘Because you yourself sent a letter[fn] in your name to all the people who are in Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, ⌊saying⌋,[fn] 26 “Yahweh made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, so that there are overseers in the house of Yahweh over any mad man who exhibits the behavior of a prophet, and you must put him into the stocks and into the neck iron, 27 and so then why have you not rebuked Jeremiah the Anathothite who exhibits the behavior of a prophet for you? 28 ⌊Because⌋[fn] he has sent to us in Babylon, ⌊saying⌋,[fn] ‘It will be a long time, build houses and live in them,[fn] and plant gardens and eat their fruit.’ ” ’ ” 29 And Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the ⌊hearing⌋[fn] of Jeremiah the prophet.