43 When Yirmiyah (Jeremiah) had finished passing on Yahweh’s messages that their god Yahweh had told him to say, 2 Hoshayah’s son Azaryah, Kareah’s son Yohanan, and all the arrogant men told Yirmiyah, “You’re lying to us. Our god Yahweh didn’t send you to tell us not to go and live in Mitsrayim (Egypt). 3 It’s because Neriyah’s son Baruk is inciting you against us so that we’ll stay here and get captured by the Babylonians to be either put to death or be taken as exiles to Bavel (Babylon).”

4 So Kareah’s son Yohanan, all the army officers, and all the rest of the people, refused to take notice of Yahweh’s instructions to remain living in the Yehudah (Judah) region. 5 Then Yohanan and all the army commanders gathered all those remaining Yehudi (Jew) people together, who’d come from all the other countries that they’d previously been driven away to and returned to live in Yehudah.[ref] 6 That included men and women, children, the king’s daughters, and all the people that Nevuzar-Adan, the king’s chief bodyguard Nevuzar-Adan had left with Gedalyah (son of Ahikam, son of Shafan), and including the prophet Yirmiyah and Neriyah’s son Baruk. 7 Then they went to Mitsrayim because they took no notice of Yahweh’s instructions and they arrived at Tahfanhes.

8 In Tahfanhes, Yahweh gave Yirmiyah a message: 9 Get some large stones and while the people from Yehudah are watching, push them into the mortar in the pavement at the entrance to Par’oh’s (Pharaoh’s) palace at Tahfanhes. 10 Then tell the Yehudim (Jews) that Yisrael’s (Israel’s) god, Commander-in-chief says: Listen, I’m about to send messengers to my servant the Babylonian King Nevukadnetsar (Nebuchadnezzar), to summon him here. I’ll place his throne over the top of those hidden stones, and he’ll spread his royal tent over them. 11 He’ll come here to attack Mitsrayim and he’ll kill those that I’ve assigned to die, and similarly for those to be taken captive or run through with a sword. 12 Then he’ll light a fire in the temples of Mitsrayim’s gods. Nevukadnetsar will either burn them or carry them away. He’ll clean Mitsrayim out just like shepherds pick lice off their clothes, and then he’ll quietly leave 13 after smashing the stone pillars at Beyt-Shemesh (Heliopolis) and burning the temples of Mitsrayim’s gods.