Jeremiah 29:3 (YLT)

Passage

By the hand of Eleasah son of Shaphan, and Gemariah son of Hilkijah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon--to Babylon, saying,

Nearby Context

Jeremiah 29:1 And these <FI>are<Fi> words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the remnant of the elders of the removal, and unto the priests, and unto the prophets, and unto all the people--whom Nebuchadnezzar removed from Jerusalem to Babylon,

Jeremiah 29:2 After the going forth of Jeconiah the king, and the mistress, and the officers, heads of Judah and Jerusalem, and the artificer, and the smith, from Jerusalem--

Jeremiah 29:3 By the hand of Eleasah son of Shaphan, and Gemariah son of Hilkijah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon--to Babylon, saying,

Jeremiah 29:4 `Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, to all the removal that I removed from Jerusalem to Babylon,

Jeremiah 29:5 Build ye houses, and abide; and plant ye gardens, and eat their fruit;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hand", "eleasah", "shaphan", "gemariah", "hilkijah", "zedekiah", "king", and "judah". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hand" and "eleasah", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "After the going forth of Jeconiah the..." into verse 4's "Thus said Jehovah of Hosts God of...", so "hand" and "eleasah" 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 "hand" and "eleasah" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.