Jeremiah 29:5 (YLT)

Passage

Build ye houses, and abide; and plant ye gardens, and eat their fruit;

Nearby Context

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;

Jeremiah 29:6 Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take for your sons wives, and your daughters give to husbands, and they bear sons and daughters; and multiply there, and ye are not few;

Jeremiah 29:7 And seek the peace of the city whither I have removed you, and pray for it unto Jehovah, for in its peace ye have peace.

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "Thus said Jehovah of Hosts God of..." into verse 6's "Take ye wives and beget sons and...", so "build" 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 "build" and "houses" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.