“Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying to you falsely in My name, ‘Behold, I will give them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will strike them down before your eyes.
Jeremiah 29:19 because they have not listened to My words,’ declares Yahweh, ‘which I sent to them by My slaves the prophets, rising up early and sending; but you did not listen,’ declares Yahweh.
Jeremiah 29:20 You, therefore, hear the word of Yahweh, all you exiles, whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon.
Jeremiah 29:21 “Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying to you falsely in My name, ‘Behold, I will give them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will strike them down before your eyes.
Jeremiah 29:22 And because of them a curse will be used by all the exiles from Judah who are in Babylon, saying, “May Yahweh make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire
Jeremiah 29:23 because they have acted with wicked foolishness in Israel and have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives and have spoken words in My name falsely, which I did not command them; and I am He who knows and am a witness,” declares Yahweh.’”
The verse centers on "thus", "says", "yahweh", "hosts", "israel", "concerning", "ahab", and "kolaiah". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "thus" and "says", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 20's "You therefore hear the word of Yahweh..." into verse 22's "And because of them a curse will...", so "thus" and "says" 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 "thus" and "says" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.