1Herren gav mig følgende budskab, dengang Jojakim, Josias’ søn, var konge i Juda:2„Gå hen i den bydel, hvor rekabitterslægten holder til, og indbyd slægtens overhoveder til at komme op til templet. Når de indfinder sig, skal du føre dem ind i et sideværelse og servere vin for dem.”3Så opsøgte jeg Ja’azanja, Jeremjas søn, sønnesøn af Habazzinja, hvorefter jeg førte ham, hans brødre og sønner til templet som repræsentanter for alle rekabitterne.4Jeg samlede dem i det værelse, hvor profeten Hanan, Jigdaljas søn, underviste sine elever. Det værelse lå ved siden af hofmarskalens værelse, umiddelbart over tempeldørvogteren Ma’asejas, Shallums søns, værelse.5Jeg satte bægre og vinkarafler frem og indbød dem til at drikke.6„Nej tak,” sagde de, „vi drikker ikke vin, for vores forfar Jonadab, Rekabs søn, forbød én gang for alle sine efterkommere at drikke vin.7Ved samme lejlighed advarede han os imod at eje fast ejendom og befalede os at bo i telte i stedet. Han forbød os at bygge huse, plante vinmarker og så korn. Han lovede os, at hvis vi overholdt de regler, ville vi få fremgang i det land, hvor vi bor som nomader.8Indtil nu har vi gjort, som han sagde, så hverken vi selv, vores koner eller børn har nydt vin.9Vi har heller ikke bygget huse eller anskaffet os gårde og marker, og vi har hverken dyrket korn eller vin.10Vi har altid levet som nomader i lydighed mod vores forfar Jonadabs ord.11Den eneste grund til, at vi nu bor i Jerusalem, er, at vi blev bange, dengang kong Nebukadnezar af Babylonien besatte landet. Derfor flygtede vi ind i byen.”12Da sagde Herren til mig:13„Herren, den Almægtige, Israels Gud, siger: Gå ud og sig til Judas og Jerusalems indbyggere: Her har I noget at lære.14Rekabitterne drikker ikke vin, fordi de ønsker at være lydige mod deres forfars befaling. Men hvor er jeres lydighed? Jeg har gang på gang talt til jer, men I nægter at høre efter.15Jeg har sendt den ene profet efter den anden til jer for at få jer til at vende om fra jeres ondskab og afgudsdyrkelse. Og jeg har givet jer det løfte, at I skulle få fred og gode kår i det land, jeg gav til jer og jeres forfædre, hvis I adlød mig.16Men I har nægtet at adlyde mig i modsætning til rekabitterne, der har adlydt deres forfar til punkt og prikke.17Derfor siger Herren, den Almægtige, Israels Gud: Fordi I ikke vil høre på mig og nægter at adlyde mig, vil jeg straffe jer med alle de ulykker, jeg har truet jer med.”18-19Derefter gik jeg tilbage til rekabitterne og sagde: „Herren, den Almægtige, Israels Gud, siger: Fordi I adlød jeres forfar til punkt og prikke, vil Jonadab, Rekabs søn, altid have efterkommere, der tjener mig.”
1The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: (Jer 25,1)2“Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak with them and bring them to the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers; then offer them wine to drink.” (1.Kong 6,5; 1.Krøn 2,55; 1.Krøn 9,26; 1.Krøn 9,33)3So I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah and his brothers and all his sons and the whole house of the Rechabites.4I brought them to the house of the Lord into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, the man of God, which was near the chamber of the officials, above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, keeper of the threshold. (5.Mos 33,1; 2.Kong 12,9; 2.Kong 25,18; Jer 21,1; Jer 29,25; Jer 35,2; Jer 37,3)5Then I set before the Rechabites pitchers full of wine, and cups, and I said to them, “Drink wine.”6But they answered, “We will drink no wine, for Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, commanded us, ‘You shall not drink wine, neither you nor your sons forever. (2.Kong 10,15; 2.Kong 10,23)7You shall not build a house; you shall not sow seed; you shall not plant or have a vineyard; but you shall live in tents all your days, that you may live many days in the land where you sojourn.’ (2.Mos 20,12; Ef 6,2)8We have obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, in all that he commanded us, to drink no wine all our days, ourselves, our wives, our sons, or our daughters,9and not to build houses to dwell in. We have no vineyard or field or seed,10but we have lived in tents and have obeyed and done all that Jonadab our father commanded us.11But when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against the land, we said, ‘Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans and the army of the Syrians.’ So we are living in Jerusalem.” (2.Kong 24,1; 2.Kong 24,2; Jer 35,1; Jer 35,7; Jer 46,2)12Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:13“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Go and say to the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you not receive instruction and listen to my words? declares the Lord. (Jer 5,3)14The command that Jonadab the son of Rechab gave to his sons, to drink no wine, has been kept, and they drink none to this day, for they have obeyed their father’s command. I have spoken to you persistently, but you have not listened to me. (Jer 25,3)15I have sent to you all my servants the prophets, sending them persistently, saying, ‘Turn now every one of you from his evil way, and amend your deeds, and do not go after other gods to serve them, and then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to you and your fathers.’ But you did not incline your ear or listen to me. (2.Kong 17,13; Jer 7,6; Jer 18,11; Jer 34,14; Jer 35,14)16The sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have kept the command that their father gave them, but this people has not obeyed me.17Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing upon Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them, because I have spoken to them and they have not listened, I have called to them and they have not answered.” (Es 50,2)18But to the house of the Rechabites Jeremiah said, “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father and kept all his precepts and done all that he commanded you,19therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Jonadab the son of Rechab shall never lack a man to stand before me.” (Jer 15,1)