Jeremiah 29:24 (ASV)

Passage

And concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite thou shalt speak, saying,

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 29:22 and of them shall be taken up a curse by all the captives of Judah that are in Babylon, saying, Jehovah make thee like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire;

Jeremiah 29:23 because they have wrought folly in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbors` wives, and have spoken words in my name falsely, which I commanded them not; and I am he that knoweth, and am witness, saith Jehovah.

Jeremiah 29:24 And concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite thou shalt speak, saying,

Jeremiah 29:25 Thus speaketh Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, Because thou hast sent letters in thine own name unto all the people that are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying,

Jeremiah 29:26 Jehovah hath made thee priest in the stead of Jehoiada the priest, that there may be officers in the house of Jehovah, for every man that is mad, and maketh himself a prophet, that thou shouldest put him in the stocks and in shackles.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "concerning", "shemaiah", "nehelamite", "thou", "shalt", "speak", and "saying". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "concerning" and "shemaiah", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 23's "because they have wrought folly in Israel..." into verse 25's "Thus speaketh Jehovah of hosts the God...", so "concerning" and "shemaiah" belong inside that flow. In Jeremiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "concerning" and "shemaiah" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.