Jeremiah 29:5 (GNV)

Passage

Buylde you houses to dwell in, and plant you gardens, and eate the fruites of them.

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 29:3 By the hand of Elasah the sonne of Shaphan and Gemariah the sonne of Hilkiah, (whom Zedekiah King of Iudah sent vnto Babel to Nebuchad-nezzar King of Babel) saying,

Jeremiah 29:4 Thus hath the Lord of hostes the God of Israel spoken vnto all that are caryed away captiues, whome I haue caused to be caryed away captiues from Ierusalem vnto Babel:

Jeremiah 29:5 Buylde you houses to dwell in, and plant you gardens, and eate the fruites of them.

Jeremiah 29:6 Take you wiues, and beget sonnes and daughters, and take wiues for your sonnes, and giue your daughters to husbands, that they may beare sonnes and daughters, that ye may bee increased there, and not diminished.

Jeremiah 29:7 And seeke the prosperitie of the citie, whither I haue caused you to be caried away captiues, and pray vnto the Lord for it: for in the peace thereof shall you haue peace.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "buylde", "houses", "dwell", "plant", "gardens", "eate", and "fruites". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "buylde" and "houses", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "Thus hath the Lord of hostes the..." into verse 6's "Take you wiues and beget sonnes and...", so "buylde" and "houses" 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 "buylde" and "houses" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.