Jeremiah 42:13
New International Version
“However, if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ and so disobey the LORD your God,

New Living Translation
“But if you refuse to obey the LORD your God, and if you say, ‘We will not stay here;

English Standard Version
But if you say, ‘We will not remain in this land,’ disobeying the voice of the LORD your God

Berean Standard Bible
But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ and you thus disobey the voice of the LORD your God,

King James Bible
But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the voice of the LORD your God,

New King James Version
“But if you say, ‘We will not dwell in this land,’ disobeying the voice of the LORD your God,

New American Standard Bible
But if you are going to say, “We will not stay in this land,” so as not to listen to the voice of the LORD your God,

NASB 1995
‘But if you are going to say, “We will not stay in this land,” so as not to listen to the voice of the LORD your God,

NASB 1977
‘But if you are going to say, “We will not stay in this land,” so as not to listen to the voice of the LORD your God,

Legacy Standard Bible
But if you are going to say, “We will not stay in this land,” so as not to listen to the voice of Yahweh your God,

Amplified Bible
But if you are going to say, “We will not stay in this land,” and [in so doing] do not listen to the voice of the LORD your God,

Christian Standard Bible
“But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ in order to disobey the LORD your God,

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ so as not to obey the voice of the LORD your God,

American Standard Version
But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land; so that ye obey not the voice of Jehovah your God,

Contemporary English Version
But you might keep on saying, "We won't stay here in Judah, and we won't obey the LORD our God.

English Revised Version
But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land; so that ye obey not the voice of the LORD your God;

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"But suppose you say, 'We won't stay in this land,' and you disobey the LORD your God.

International Standard Version
But if you disobey the LORD your God by saying, "We won't stay in this land,"

Majority Standard Bible
But if you say, ?We will not stay in this land,? and you thus disobey the voice of the LORD your God,

NET Bible
"You must not disobey the LORD your God by saying, 'We will not stay in this land.'

New Heart English Bible
But if you say, 'We will not dwell in this land'; so that you do not obey the voice of the LORD your God,

Webster's Bible Translation
But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the voice of the LORD your God,

World English Bible
“‘But if you say, “We will not dwell in this land,” so that you don’t obey Yahweh your God’s voice,
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And if you are saying, We do not dwell in this land—not to listen to the voice of your God YHWH,

Young's Literal Translation
'And if ye are saying, We do not dwell in this land -- not to hearken to the voice of Jehovah your God,

Smith's Literal Translation
And if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, not hearing to the voice of Jehovah your God,
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
But if you say: We will not dwell in this land, neither will we hearken to the voice of the Lord our God,

Catholic Public Domain Version
But if you say: ‘We will not live in this land, nor will we heed the voice of the Lord our God,’

New American Bible
But if you keep saying, “We will not stay in this land,” thus disobeying the voice of the LORD, your God,

New Revised Standard Version
But if you continue to say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ thus disobeying the voice of the LORD your God
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
But if you say, We will not dwell in this land, because you would not obey the voice of the LORD your God,

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And if you say, ‘We will not dwell in this land!”, because you will not listen to the voice of LORD JEHOVAH your God
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
But if ye say: We will not abide in this land; so that ye hearken not to the voice of the LORD your God;

Brenton Septuagint Translation
But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, that we may not hearken to the voice of the Lord;

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Warning Against Going to Egypt
12And I will show you compassion, and he will have compassion on you and restore you to your own land.’ 13But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ and you thus disobey the voice of the LORD your God, 14and if you say, ‘No, but we will go to the land of Egypt and live there, where we will not see war or hear the sound of the ram’s horn or hunger for bread,’…

Cross References
Jeremiah 43:2-7
Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah, and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying! The LORD our God has not sent you to say, ‘You must not go to Egypt to reside there.’ / Rather, Baruch son of Neriah is inciting you against us to deliver us into the hands of the Chaldeans, so that they may put us to death or exile us to Babylon!” / So Johanan son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces disobeyed the command of the LORD to stay in the land of Judah. ...

Jeremiah 44:12-14
And I will take away the remnant of Judah who have resolved to go to the land of Egypt to reside there; they will meet their end. They will all fall by the sword or be consumed by famine. From the least to the greatest, they will die by sword or famine; and they will become an object of cursing and horror, of vilification and reproach. / I will punish those who live in the land of Egypt, just as I punished Jerusalem, by sword and famine and plague, / so that none of the remnant of Judah who have gone to reside in Egypt will escape or survive to return to the land of Judah, where they long to return and live; for none will return except a few fugitives.”

Deuteronomy 17:16
But the king must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire more horses, for the LORD has said, ‘You are never to go back that way again.’

Isaiah 30:1-3
“Woe to the rebellious children,” declares the LORD, “to those who carry out a plan that is not Mine, who form an alliance, but against My will, heaping up sin upon sin. / They set out to go down to Egypt without asking My advice, to seek shelter under Pharaoh’s protection and take refuge in Egypt’s shade. / But Pharaoh’s protection will become your shame, and the refuge of Egypt’s shade your disgrace.

Isaiah 31:1
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in their abundance of chariots and in their multitude of horsemen. They do not look to the Holy One of Israel; they do not seek the LORD.

Ezekiel 17:15
But this king rebelled against Babylon by sending his envoys to Egypt to ask for horses and a large army. Will he flourish? Will the one who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and yet escape?’

2 Kings 25:26
Then all the people small and great, together with the commanders of the army, arose and fled to Egypt for fear of the Chaldeans.

Hosea 7:11
So Ephraim has become like a silly, senseless dove—calling out to Egypt, then turning to Assyria.

Numbers 14:3-4
Why is the LORD bringing us into this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and children will become plunder. Would it not be better for us to go back to Egypt?” / So they said to one another, “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt.”

2 Chronicles 36:13
He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God. But Zedekiah stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the LORD, the God of Israel.

Acts 7:39
But our fathers refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt.

Hebrews 3:12
See to it, brothers, that none of you has a wicked heart of unbelief that turns away from the living God.

Hebrews 3:18-19
And to whom did He swear that they would never enter His rest? Was it not to those who disobeyed? / So we see that it was because of their unbelief that they were unable to enter.

Acts 7:51
You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.

Romans 10:21
But as for Israel he says: “All day long I have held out My hands to a disobedient and obstinate people.”


Treasury of Scripture

But if you say, We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the voice of the LORD your God,

Jeremiah 42:10
If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up: for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you.

Jeremiah 44:16
As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee.

Exodus 5:2
And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go.

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Abide Desire Disobey Disobeying Dwell Ear Hearken However Obey Voice
Jeremiah 42
1. Johanan desires Jeremiah to enquire of God, promising obedience to his will.
7. Jeremiah assures him of safety in Judea;
13. and destruction in Egypt.
19. He reproves their hypocrisy.














But if you say
This phrase introduces a conditional statement, setting the stage for a choice that the people of Judah must make. The Hebrew word for "if" (אִם, 'im) often introduces a hypothetical situation, emphasizing the potential for human decision and the consequences that follow. This reflects the biblical theme of free will and the responsibility that comes with it. The phrase "you say" indicates a verbal declaration, highlighting the importance of spoken words in covenant relationships with God. In the ancient Near Eastern context, words were powerful and binding, often seen as a reflection of one's heart and intentions.

We will not stay in this land
The decision "not to stay" in the land of Judah is significant. The Hebrew verb for "stay" (יָשַׁב, yashav) means to dwell or settle, implying a sense of permanence and commitment. Historically, the land of Judah was the promised land, a gift from God to the Israelites, symbolizing His covenant and faithfulness. Choosing not to stay reflects a rejection of God's provision and protection. This decision is rooted in fear and distrust, as the people were anxious about the Babylonian threat. It serves as a reminder of the Israelites' recurring struggle with faith and obedience throughout their history.

disobeying the voice of the LORD your God
"Disobeying" here is a translation of the Hebrew verb (מָרָה, marah), which means to rebel or resist authority. This rebellion is not just against a command but against "the voice of the LORD your God," emphasizing the personal and relational aspect of God's communication with His people. The "voice" (קוֹל, qol) of the LORD is a recurring motif in Scripture, representing divine guidance and revelation. Historically, the Israelites were expected to heed God's voice as a sign of their covenant relationship. Disobedience, therefore, is not merely a legal infraction but a breach of trust and relationship with God.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
But if
וְאִם־ (wə·’im-)
Conjunctive waw | Conjunction
Strong's 518: Lo!, whether?, if, although, Oh that!, when, not

you
אַתֶּ֔ם (’at·tem)
Pronoun - second person masculine plural
Strong's 859: Thou and thee, ye and you

say,
אֹמְרִ֣ים (’ō·mə·rîm)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine plural
Strong's 559: To utter, say

‘We will not
לֹ֥א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

stay
נֵשֵׁ֖ב (nê·šêḇ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common plural
Strong's 3427: To sit down, to dwell, to remain, to settle, to marry

in this
הַזֹּ֑את (haz·zōṯ)
Article | Pronoun - feminine singular
Strong's 2063: Hereby in it, likewise, the one other, same, she, so much, such deed, that,

land,’
בָּאָ֣רֶץ (bā·’ā·reṣ)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776: Earth, land

and so disobey
שְׁמֹ֔עַ (šə·mō·a‘)
Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 8085: To hear intelligently

the voice
בְּק֖וֹל (bə·qō·wl)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 6963: A voice, sound

of the LORD
יְהוָ֥ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

your God,
אֱלֹהֵיכֶֽם׃ (’ĕ·lō·hê·ḵem)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative


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OT Prophets: Jeremiah 42:13 But if you say We will not (Jer.)
Jeremiah 42:12
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