1Efter at kong Nebukadnezar af Babylonien havde taget kong Jekonja af Juda til fange og sendt ham i landflygtighed til Babylon sammen med Judas ledende mænd og håndværkerne, gav Herren mig følgende syn: Jeg så to kurve med figner, der stod foran templet i Jerusalem.2I den ene kurv var der modne figner af højeste kvalitet, mens fignerne i den anden kurv var så dårlige, at de ikke kunne spises.3Så spurgte Herren mig: „Hvad ser du, Jeremias?” „Figner,” svarede jeg. „Nogle er flotte, men andre er elendige og uspiselige.”4-5Da sagde Herren: „De gode figner repræsenterer den del af Judas befolkning, der blev ført i eksil til Babylonien.6Jeg vil sørge for, at de bliver behandlet godt, og jeg vil føre dem tilbage hertil engang. Derefter vil jeg give dem fremgang og beskytte dem. Jeg vil plante dem i deres eget land og ikke rykke dem op.7Jeg vil give dem et nyt hjerte, så de kan forstå, at jeg er Herren. Når de vender sig til mig af hele deres hjerte, skal de være mit folk, og jeg vil være deres Gud.8Men de dårlige figner repræsenterer kong Zidkija af Juda, hans embedsmænd og de tilbageblevne indbyggere i Jerusalem tillige med dem, der er flygtet til Egypten. Jeg betragter dem som dårlige og uspiselige figner.9Jeg vil sørge for, at alle folkeslag på jorden vil afsky dem. De vil blive hånet og spottet, hadet og forbandet overalt, hvor jeg jager dem hen.10Jeg sender krig og hungersnød og epidemier over dem, indtil de er helt udryddet fra det land, jeg gav deres forfædre.”
1After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken into exile from Jerusalem Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, together with the officials of Judah, the craftsmen, and the metal workers, and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me this vision: behold, two baskets of figs placed before the temple of the Lord. (2.Kong 24,12; 2.Kong 24,14; 2.Krøn 36,10; Jer 22,18; Jer 22,24; Jer 22,28; Jer 29,2; Amos 8,1; Matt 1,11)2One basket had very good figs, like first-ripe figs, but the other basket had very bad figs, so bad that they could not be eaten. (Es 28,4; Jer 29,17)3And the Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” I said, “Figs, the good figs very good, and the bad figs very bad, so bad that they cannot be eaten.”4Then the word of the Lord came to me:5“Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Like these good figs, so I will regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans. (Jer 29,20)6I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up, and not tear them down; I will plant them, and not pluck them up. (Jer 1,10; Jer 12,15; Jer 29,10; Jer 31,28; Jer 42,10; Amos 9,4; Amos 9,15)7I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart. (5.Mos 30,6; Jer 29,13; Jer 30,22; Jer 31,33; Jer 32,39; Ez 11,19; Ez 36,26; Joel 2,12)8“But thus says the Lord: Like the bad figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten, so will I treat Zedekiah the king of Judah, his officials, the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt. (Jer 21,1; Jer 24,2; Jer 29,17)9I will make them a horror[1] to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a reproach, a byword, a taunt, and a curse in all the places where I shall drive them. (5.Mos 28,37; 2.Kong 22,19; 2.Krøn 7,20; Neh 2,17; Es 43,28; Jer 15,4; Jer 25,18; Jer 26,6; Jer 29,18; Jer 29,22; Jer 49,13)10And I will send sword, famine, and pestilence upon them, until they shall be utterly destroyed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.” (Jer 14,12)