Is Jeremiah 29:11 a promise to you?

The evidence

Evidence

Each claim judged on its own, with the limits of the evidence stated.

Supported
Jerusalem and its king were captured in 597 BCE.
The Babylonian Chronicle independently records that Nebuchadnezzar seized the city of Judah and captured its king; Livius dates this to February/March 597 BCE.
Why this verdict
What the text narrates
Confidence: high
The Babylonian Chronicle independently records that Nebuchadnezzar seized the city of Judah and captured its king; Livius dates this to February/March 597 BCE. Identifying the unnamed king as Jehoiachin involves comparison with the biblical account.^{5 sources}5 sources18. 2 Kings 24:10–12 19. 5 20. (Livius.org)15. Jeremiah 29:2 16. 2 Kings 24:12–16
Cross-community agreement · The Babylonian Chronicle records the capture of the city of Judah and its king, and 2 Kings 24 narrates Jehoiachin's deportation; identifying the chronicle's unnamed king as Jehoiachin relies on comparing the two. (as of 2026-11-09)
Open
The promise formed part of the original letter.
Wessels reports that Carroll (1986) regards Jeremiah 29:10-14 as a secondary addition, and explicitly rejects that view.
Why this verdict
Claims about the text
Confidence: medium
Wessels reports that Carroll (1986) regards Jeremiah 29:10-14 as a secondary addition, and explicitly rejects that view. Carroll is known here only through Wessels.^{5 21}
Contested · Carroll (1986), as reported by Wessels, regards 29:10-14 as a secondary addition; Wessels (2016) rejects it. Two named scholars, not a field survey. (as of 2026-11-09)
Mixed
The seventy years for Babylon were fulfilled.
The chronicles date Nebuchadnezzar's accession to 605 BCE and Cyrus' entry into Babylon to 539 BCE, about 66 years apart; that interval does not define every count.
Why this verdict
What the text narrates
Confidence: high
The chronicles date Nebuchadnezzar's accession to 605 BCE and Cyrus' entry into Babylon to 539 BCE, about 66 years apart; that interval does not define every count. Keil counts exactly seventy from 606 to 536 BC on his own dates; Peake thinks seventy more probably a round number; Radak distinguishes Babylon's seventy years from those of Jerusalem's ruins.^{13 sources}13 sources22. Jeremiah 25:1 23. 5)24. Ezra 1:1 25. 7)26. 7)27. 5)28. 7)14. Peake 1910 11. Jeremiah 25:11 12. Keil 1874 13. Jeremiah 27:7 2. Jeremiah 29:10 29. (Radak)
Contested · Keil defends an exact count; Peake favours a round number; Radak counts Babylon's years and Jerusalem's ruins separately. Named interpreters, not a field survey. (as of 2026-11-09)
- Supported Nebuchadnezzar's accession and Cyrus' entry into Babylon are dated by contemporary chronicles.^{5 sources}5 sources22. Jeremiah 25:1 23. 5)24. Ezra 1:1 25. 7)26. 7)
- Open Those or other endpoints make exactly seventy years.^{8 sources}8 sources27. 5)28. 7)14. Peake 1910 11. Jeremiah 25:11 12. Keil 1874 13. Jeremiah 27:7 2. Jeremiah 29:10 29. (Radak)
Against
The Cyrus Cylinder documents the Jews' return from Babylon.
In the cylinder Cyrus says he returned the images of gods, and their inhabitants, to places from Ashur and Susa to Gutium.
Why this verdict
Claims others made
Confidence: high
In the cylinder Cyrus says he returned the images of gods, and their inhabitants, to places from Ashur and Susa to Gutium. Lendering notes that it was once believed to confirm the Bible's account of the Jews' return, but that this is not in the text, which focuses on countries east of the Tigris. The cylinder does not independently document a return of Judeans.^{30 31 32}
Cross-community agreement · The cited translation (after Cogan, adapted to Schaudig's edition) and Lendering's introduction, which says the text focuses on countries east of the Tigris; not a field survey. (as of 2026-11-09)
Outside what evidence can settle
God's promise to the exiles also speaks to believers today.
The letter names exiles in Babylon as its addressees; whether later readers may apply it is a separate interpretive question.
Why this verdict
Theological claims
Confidence: high
The letter names exiles in Babylon as its addressees; whether later readers may apply it is a separate interpretive question. Moore applies it to Christians through God's purposes in Jesus Christ, Jerome to the church, the Watch Tower article to hope in God's Kingdom, and the Latter-day Saint article to believers in any era who return to God through covenants.^{9 sources}9 sources1. Jeremiah 29:1 3. 2 Corinthians 1:20 4. Moore 2020 5. Jeremiah 29:10–14 6. Jerome 7. Jeremiah 29:11 8. Bible 9. Jeremiah 29:11–14 10. Saints 2026

What people get wrong

Text

Things people commonly believe the text says, checked against it.

A common belief among believers
Myth The "you" in this verse singles out each modern reader and their personal plans.
Actually The Hebrew address is plural, and the letter names a community already in exile. Moore, who applies the verse to Christians, also rejects making it about God blessing one's own plans.^{5 sources}5 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 33. this site's data 1. Jeremiah 29:1 3. 2 Corinthians 1:20 4. Moore 2020
A common belief among skeptics
Myth Translating shalom with prosperity invents a meaning the Hebrew word cannot have.
Actually Brown-Driver-Briggs lists "welfare, health, prosperity" among the word's senses. That range does not by itself establish a promise of individual wealth here.³⁴
A common belief among believers
Myth The Cyrus Cylinder records the return of the Jewish exiles.
Actually The cylinder reports returns of gods' images and inhabitants to places from Ashur and Susa to Gutium. Lendering notes that the Jews' return is not in its text, which focuses on countries east of the Tigris.^{30 31 32}

Show 1 more misconceptions

A common belief among skeptics
Myth Applying the letter to Christians began with modern prosperity teachers.
Actually Jerome's commentary applies 29:10-14 to Christians, whom God brings back "to our place, the church" and to an end of their labour, after first reading it as the exiles' return under Cyrus. Holding's objection is to a different use: predicting future prosperity.^{5 sources}5 sources5. Jeremiah 29:10–14 35. Jerome 6. Jerome 7. Jeremiah 29:11 36. Holding 2018

Hard questions

The strongest case, the strongest responses, then a plain assessment of where the logic holds.

Is the promise addressed to readers today, or only to the exiles?

The promise was addressed to the exiles as a community; the traditions cited here carry it to later readers by different theological routes, which the letter's address does not settle.

See the argument

The strongest case

The letter names its recipients, people carried from Jerusalem to Babylon, and both Hebrew pronouns for "you" in verse 11 are plural. Merritt argues that the verse is written "to a we", not "to a me"; Bargerhuff calls it "a corporate promise given to the nation of Israel"; the Watch Tower article calls the idea of a specific plan for each individual a misconception. On this case, a reader who claims the verse as a personal promise reads it as addressed to someone it does not name.^{15 sources}15 sources1. Jeremiah 29:1 7. Jeremiah 29:11 33. this site's data 37. Merritt 2013 38. (interviewer) 2012 8. Bible 3. 2 Corinthians 1:20 4. Moore 2020 39. 1 Peter 2:11 40. Harmon 2021 5. Jeremiah 29:10–14 35. Jerome 6. Jerome 9. Jeremiah 29:11–14 10. Saints 2026

P1. The letter names exiles in Babylon as its recipients, and both pronouns for "you" in verse 11 are plural.^{1 7 33}No listed response challenges this premise
P2. Merritt, Bargerhuff and the Watch Tower article read the promise as made to a community, not to each individual.^{4 sources}4 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 37. Merritt 2013 38. (interviewer) 2012 8. BibleNo listed response challenges this premise

→ Conclusion. Jeremiah 29:11 is not a personal promise to the individual reader today.

Strongest responses

Protestant: evangelical challenges the conclusion

It applies, through Christ. Moore answers that the verse does apply to Christians, but not in the way many "claim" it: Jeremiah and Israel's whole story must be read in the context of God's purposes in Jesus Christ, in whom God's promises find their yes. He rejects readings that make it about God blessing one's own plans.^{3 4}

Protestant: evangelical challenges the conclusion

God still speaks through it. Harmon agrees that in its original context the verse is God's promise to Jews living in exile in Babylon. Read within the whole biblical story, he says, God still speaks to believers through it, as exiles and sojourners awaiting the new creation.^{39 40}

Early church: Latin challenges the conclusion

The exiles first, then the church. Jerome first reads 29:10-14 as the exiles' return under Cyrus once the seventy years ended. He then applies it to Christians, whom God brings back from this world's confusion "to our place, the church" and to an end of their labour (our translation).^{5 35 6}

Latter-day Saints challenges the conclusion

A call to return, through covenants. The Latter-day Saint article says this ancient story has significant application to believers in any era. It reads 29:11-14 as a call for those who have strayed to return to God, and ties the promised blessings to covenants and priesthood authority held by a living prophet.^{9 10}

Jehovah's Witnesses challenges the framing

Not an individual plan, but still a hope. The Watch Tower article, while rejecting a specific plan for each individual, still applies the verse to hope in God's Kingdom.^{7 8}

Plain assessment

The text names the first recipients: exiles in Babylon, addressed in the plural. The disagreement is over the step to later readers. Merritt and the Watch Tower article reject a personal plan for each reader, yet still apply the verse to a community: the Church, or hope in God's Kingdom. Moore, Harmon, Jerome and the Latter-day Saint article carry it to believers through Christ, the whole biblical story, the church or covenants; Harmon and Jerome state the exiles' setting first. Whether that step is sound is an interpretive question that the letter's address does not settle.

What would change this assessment: The letter's audience is not in dispute; only a different judgement about how promises to Israel reach later readers would change this assessment.

Assessment uses: Jer.29.1-Jer.29.3 · you · Protestant: evangelical · Jehovah's Witnesses · Early church: Latin · Latter-day Saints · God's promise to the exiles also speaks to believers today. · God still speaks through it

Does "prosper" mean wealth or success for the reader?

Prosperity is within the word's range, but the verse promises the exiled community restoration; the readers cited here reject treating it as a forecast of personal wealth or success.

See the argument

The strongest case

The wording can carry material flourishing. Brown-Driver-Briggs lists "welfare, health, prosperity" among the senses of shalom, the word used in the verse's promise. The BSB renders it with prosper, and the Steinsaltz Tanakh adds "I want you to prosper and thrive". Holding reports that teachers, especially in the Word of Faith movement, use the verse to predict future prosperity.^{14 sources}14 sources34. this site's data 7. Jeremiah 29:11 41. this site's data 42. Jeremiah 29:10–11 43. Steinsaltz 44. Steinsaltz 36. Holding 2018 33. this site's data 2. Jeremiah 29:10 45. Jeremiah 29:12–14 46. Yates 2006 47. Yates 2006 48. Platt 2019 8. Bible

P1. Shalom's range includes prosperity, and the BSB renders the phrase with prosper.^{7 34 41}No listed response challenges this premise
P2. As the teachers Holding describes use it, the verse forecasts prosperity in the reader's own future.

→ Conclusion. A reader may expect the promised prosperity personally.

Strongest responses

Protestant: evangelical challenges P2

It cannot be used to predict prosperity. Holding argues that the passage cannot be used to predict or call into existence future experiences of prosperity, a use he says the New Testament's own use of Old Testament texts does not justify.^{7 36}

Jehovah's Witnesses challenges P2

Well-being, not wealth. The Watch Tower article says prosper translates a word meaning peace, health and well-being, not wealth, and calls the idea that God has a specific plan for each individual a misconception.^{7 8}

Protestant: evangelical challenges P2

No automatic blessing, even for the exiles. Yates argues that the exiles had to do more than wait out the seventy years: their return would come only when they sought YHWHYHWHGod’s personal name in the Hebrew Bible, written with four consonants called the Tetragrammaton. Sarah Cook describes Jewish avoidance of pronouncing it out of reverence; the HarperCollins Bible Dictionary notes LORD as its rendering in many English Bibles.From: Cook; Cook; Maas; PowellAll terms → with all their heart, so the end of the seventy years would not bring automatic blessing.^{45 46 47}

Protestant: evangelical challenges P2

Through suffering, not exempt from it. Platt argues that the verse teaches not that God wills to keep believers from all suffering, but that he wills to bring them through it.⁴⁸

Plain assessment

Prosperity is within the word's range, and the BSB and the Steinsaltz Tanakh use prosper. The dispute is over the second step. The plural address and the promised return after seventy years place the promised shalom in the exiled community. Holding, Yates, Platt and the Watch Tower article reject reading the verse as a forecast of personal wealth, automatic blessing or exemption from suffering.

What would change this assessment: A proponent's own argument tying the verse's shalom to individual wealth, read and checked for this page, would let the case be stated in its own words.

Assessment uses: shalom — peace, welfare, prosperity · prosper / peace; future / end · Jewish: modern · you · Jer.29.10-Jer.29.14 · Protestant: evangelical · Jehovah's Witnesses · It cannot be used to predict prosperity · No automatic blessing, even for the exiles

Did the seventy years come true?

The dates of Babylon's rise and fall are well attested; whether they make an exact seventy depends on the endpoints chosen and on reading seventy as exact or round.

See the argument

The strongest case

Peake (1910) thinks seventy should more probably be regarded as a round number, comparable to the three generations of Babylonian kings in Jeremiah 27:7. If the first return is dated 536 BC, he says, the captivity lasted less than seventy years, and Babylonian supremacy did not last quite seventy either. On the chronicles' dates, Nebuchadnezzar's accession (605 BCE) and Cyrus' entry into Babylon (539 BCE) are about 66 years apart. Peake adds that a number invented after the exile would have matched history better.^{18 sources}18 sources13. Jeremiah 27:7 14. Peake 1910 22. Jeremiah 25:1 23. 5)24. Ezra 1:1 25. 7)26. 7)27. 5)28. 7)11. Jeremiah 25:11 12. Keil 1874 2. Jeremiah 29:10 29. (Radak)49. Daniel 9:2 50. Rashi 51. David)52. Bible 2011 53. 2 Chronicles 36:21

P1. Jeremiah gives seventy years for Babylon, after which God will bring the exiles back.^{2 54 22}No listed response challenges this premise
P2. On the chronicles' dates, Nebuchadnezzar's accession (605 BCE) and Cyrus' entry into Babylon (539 BCE) are about 66 years apart.^{8 sources}8 sources22. Jeremiah 25:1 23. 5)24. Ezra 1:1 25. 7)26. 7)27. 5)28. 7)14. Peake 1910
P3. As Peake argues, seventy is better read as a round number than as an exact interval.

→ Conclusion. As an exact span of Babylon's rule, the seventy years fall short; they fit as a round number.

Strongest responses

Protestant: Lutheran challenges P2, P3

An exact prediction, with other dates. Keil holds that the seventy years are "not a so-called round number" but a chronologically exact prediction of the duration of Chaldean supremacy over Judah. He counts from Jehoiakim's fourth year, which he dates to 606 BC, to Cyrus' first year of sole rule over Babylon in 536 BC; his dates follow 19th-century chronology.^{11 12}

Jewish: medieval commentator challenges P2

Two counts, not one. Radak says God's visiting after seventy years of Babylon's kingdom was his stirring of Cyrus, while the temple was rebuilt only when seventy years of Jerusalem's ruins, counted from Zedekiah's exile, were complete (our translation). RashiRashiA French commentator on the Bible and Talmud (1040–1105), also named Rabbi Solomon ben Isaac, who was born and died at Troyes, according to the Jewish Encyclopedia.From: JacobsAll terms →, on Daniel 9:2, likewise has Daniel move from counting from Jehoiakim's conquest to counting from Jerusalem's destruction.^{4 sources}4 sources2. Jeremiah 29:10 29. (Radak)49. Daniel 9:2 50. Rashi

Jewish: rabbinic challenges P2

A count from the first conquest. Metzudat David, an eighteenth-century commentary, counts the seventy years from Nebuchadnezzar's first conquest of Jehoiakim in his second year, finds them complete in the first year of Darius, and places the visitation in Cyrus' first year (our translation). It uses traditional reign lengths of 45, 23 and 3 years.^{4 sources}4 sources2. Jeremiah 29:10 51. David)7. Jeremiah 29:11 55. David)

Jehovah's Witnesses challenges P3

A literal seventy years. The Watchtower (2011) holds that the seventy years were a literal period ending in 537 BCE, which places Jerusalem's destruction in 607 BCE. The article quotes a reader noting that 586 or 587 is generally accepted as the year of the destruction.⁵²

Plain assessment

The dates themselves are well attested: the chronicles place Nebuchadnezzar's accession in 605 BCE and Cyrus' entry into Babylon in 539 BCE. Whether that makes seventy depends on the endpoints and on whether seventy is exact. Keil counts 606 to 536 BC on 19th-century dates; the Watchtower ends a literal count in 537 BCE; Radak, Rashi and Metzudat David count from other starting points; Peake reads a round number. Later biblical books that treat the years as fulfilled are reception within the Bible, not independent attestation.

What would change this assessment: Evidence showing which starting and ending events Jeremiah's seventy years were meant to measure.

Assessment uses: The seventy years for Babylon were fulfilled. · Protestant: Lutheran · Jehovah's Witnesses · Jewish: medieval commentator · Jewish: rabbinic · Academic (critical) · Later readings of the seventy years

How could hearers tell Jeremiah from Hananiah before fulfilment?

The book vindicates Jeremiah through Hananiah's reported death; Arena's objection concerns whether waiting for fulfilment helped contemporaries judge distant predictions.

See the argument

The strongest case

Arena (2018) argues that the fulfilment test of Deuteronomy 18:22 was impractical: a prophet could not base his credibility on words, such as Jeremiah's seventy years, that none of his contemporaries could realistically hope to see fulfilled. He also finds no grounds to assume that Hananiah was a shalom prophet: in Jeremiah 28 only Jeremiah uses the word, and Hananiah foretells doom for Babylon. Arena treats true and false as points of view.^{9 sources}9 sources56. Deuteronomy 18:21–22 57. Arena 2018 58. Arena 2018 59. Jeremiah 28:2–11 60. Arena 2018 61. Jeremiah 28:8–9 62. Keil 1874 63. Jeremiah 28:15–17 64. Jeremiah 28:1–4

P1. Hananiah predicts restoration within two years; Jeremiah says a prophet who prophesies peace is recognized as truly sent only when his word comes to pass.^{64 61 56}No listed response challenges this premise
P2. As Arena argues, fulfilment in the distant future cannot give contemporaries a practical way to establish a prophet's credibility.

→ Conclusion. On Arena's account, the fulfilment rule gave hearers no practical test at the time they had to judge.

Strongest responses

Protestant: Lutheran challenges P2

The burden lies on the prophet of peace. Keil reads Jeremiah 28:8-9 as saying that a prophet who predicts only peace, against the earlier prophets' warnings, can make good his claim to be a true prophet only by the fulfilment of his prediction. On this reading the presumption lies with the warnings, and hearers wait for fulfilment.^{61 62}

Tradition unspecified challenges the framing

The book reports a nearer fulfilment. Jeremiah 28 reports that Jeremiah told Hananiah that God had not sent him and that he would die that year, and that Hananiah died in the seventh month. Within the book, his death vindicates Jeremiah.⁶³

No known response in these sources

Academic (critical): No response recorded in the sources checked here.
Academic (critical): Arena supplies the case; no critical reply to him was gathered for this page.

Plain assessment

Keil explains why belief in a prediction of peace should wait for its fulfilment; Arena questions whether that rule helped contemporaries facing distant predictions. Within the book, Hananiah's reported death vindicates Jeremiah within the year. No independent ancient corroboration of it was found in the sources searched for this page, which cannot show that none exists; and it does not remove the difficulty Arena raises about distant predictions.

What would change this assessment: Independent evidence for Hananiah and his death would bear on that episode, leaving the problem of distant predictions unchanged.

Assessment uses: Jer.28.8-Jer.28.9 · A dispute over waiting · Academic (critical) · The burden lies on the prophet of peace · The book reports a nearer fulfilment

What the texts say

Jeremiah 29:1–3 — Jeremiah sends a letter from Jerusalem to elders, priests, prophets and people already taken to Babylon after Jeconiah’s deportation. It travels with envoys whom Zedekiah sends to Nebuchadnezzar.^{4 sources}4 sources1. Jeremiah 29:1 15. Jeremiah 29:2 16. 2 Kings 24:12–16 17. Jeremiah 29:3
Jeremiah 29:5–7 — The exiles are told to build houses, plant gardens and raise families, preparing for a long stay. They must also seek the city’s welfare and pray for it, because their own welfare depends on it.^{65 66}
Jeremiah 29:8–9 — The letter warns the exiles not to let their own prophets and diviners deceive them: those prophets speak falsely in God’s name. Wessels suggests the dispute was about how long the exile would last.⁶⁷

Show 2 more key verses

Jeremiah 29:10–14 — God promises in verse 10 to bring the exiles back when seventy years are complete for Babylon. Verse 11 opens with “for” and explains that promise. Verses 12-14 say they will call on God, find him when they seek him with all their heart, and have their fortunes restored.^{2 7 45}
Jeremiah 28:8–9 — Hananiah promises that the exiles will return within two years. Jeremiah answers by recalling that earlier prophets foretold war and disaster: a prophet who promises peace is recognized as truly sent only when the promise comes true.^{61 56 64}

Background

A favourite verse Evidence

Christianity Today reported that Jeremiah 29:11 was the most-read verse of 2018 on Bible Gateway, and that it or John 3:16 had topped that site's annual list every year. Jonathan Merritt recalls receiving it as a framed graduation gift; Harmon notes it on bumper stickers, signs and cards. Wessels says the verse is usually used in isolation and out of context.^{5 sources}5 sources68. Shellnutt 2018 37. Merritt 2013 40. Harmon 2021 7. Jeremiah 29:11 69. Wessels 2016

A dispute over waiting Scholarship

In the temple, Hananiah announces that within two years God will break Babylon's yoke and bring back the temple vessels, Jeconiah and the exiles. Jeremiah's letter instead gives instructions for a long stay and speaks of seventy years. Wessels argues that read within 29:1-14 the promise gives a totally different picture from the verse used alone, one that seems to centre on a dispute over the exile's length.^{5 sources}5 sources64. Jeremiah 28:1–4 65. Jeremiah 29:5–6 2. Jeremiah 29:10 7. Jeremiah 29:11 69. Wessels 2016

Hope includes the captors' city Scholarship

The city is Babylon, the imperial capital, rather than the empire as a whole. Wessels calls the plea ironic: the peace Jeremiah's opponents promised Judah is now to be sought and prayed for on behalf of the oppressors' city.^{66 70}

Show 1 more background topics (Later readings of the seventy years)

Later readings of the seventy years Text

Jeremiah 25 ties the seventy years to the nations' service to the king of Babylon. Later books treat them as fulfilled or fulfilling: 2 Chronicles ties them to the land's sabbaths, Ezra to Cyrus' decree, Daniel to Jerusalem's desolations. Zechariah, in Darius' second year, still speaks of seventy years of anger against Jerusalem. Athas argues that the author of Daniel 9 was constrained by Jeremiah's schema and by history. JosephusJosephusA Jewish historian (37–after 100 CE), according to Steve Mason and the Jewish Encyclopedia. Mason explains that his Antiquities, completed in 93/94 CE, retells Judean history from creation to the eve of the war against Rome.From: Mason; Mason; Gottheil; Mason; MasonAll terms → counts Cyrus' first year as the seventieth from the removal to Babylon.^{10 sources}10 sources54. Jeremiah 25:11–12 22. Jeremiah 25:1 53. 2 Chronicles 36:21 24. Ezra 1:1 49. Daniel 9:2 71. Zechariah 1:12 72. Zechariah 1:7 73. Zechariah 7:5 74. Athas 2009 75. Josephus

Where translations differ

Text

Where the wording in different Bibles diverges, and why.

Jeremiah 29:11 · “you”

Both second-person pronouns in the Hebrew of the verse are plural, a distinction English "you" hides. The promise addresses a community. Merritt argues that the verse is written "to a we", not "to a me"; Bargerhuff calls it a corporate promise given to the nation of Israel.^{4 sources}4 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 33. this site's data 37. Merritt 2013 38. (interviewer) 2012

Open in compare →

Jeremiah 29:7 · Jeremiah 29:11 · Jeremiah 28:9 · “shalom — peace, welfare, prosperity”

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses shalom as completeness, soundness, welfare and peace, and lists "welfare, health, prosperity" as one of its senses. The same word occurs three times in the instruction about the city's welfare and once in the promise, and again in Jeremiah's test of the prophet who prophesies peace. Its range includes prosperity, but its occurrence here does not by itself establish a promise of individual wealth.^{6 sources}6 sources34. this site's data 66. Jeremiah 29:7 7. Jeremiah 29:11 76. this site's data 77. Jeremiah 28:9 78. this site's data

Open in compare →

Jeremiah 29:11 · “prosper / peace; future / end”

Among the English editions in the database, only the BSB uses prosper here. The KJV, JPS 1917 and seven other editions have thoughts of peace. For the closing words, the BSB and JPS 1917 read a future and a hope, the KJV an expected end, the ASV hope in your latter end, and the YLT posterity and hope. These differences in wording do not rank the translations.^{7 sources}7 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 41. this site's data 79. this site's data 80. this site's data 81. this site's data 82. this site's data 83. this site's data

Compare the versions

BSBFor I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.

KJVFor I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Show all 3 versions

BSBFor I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.

KJVFor I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

JPSFor I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

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Show 1 more translation notes (“the Greek version of the letter”)

Jeremiah 29:11 · “the Greek version of the letter”

In the SeptuagintSeptuagintAn ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, also including books Christians call Apocrypha or deuterocanonical books, according to Jannes Smith.From: Smith; SmithAll terms → the letter is chapter 36. In Brenton's translation, the verse matching 29:11 ends "to bestow upon you these good things" instead of "a future and a hope". Brenton's chapter 36 has 27 verses where the KJV's chapter 29 has 32, with no verses numbered 16 to 20: the Greek lacks the oracle against those left in Jerusalem, and it shortens the verse matching 29:14.^{84 85 86}

Jeremiah 29:11

BSBFor I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.

KJVFor I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.

Open in compare →

How it has been interpreted

Tradition

How different traditions read these texts, in their own terms.

Jewish: medieval commentator · Radak and Rashi — a hoped-for outcome and two counts

Radak (David Kimchi, c. 1200) explains the closing words as "a good end, as you hope" (our translation), reading the two nouns as one hoped-for outcome. He distinguishes the seventy years of Babylon's kingdom, after which God stirred Cyrus, from the seventy years of Jerusalem's ruins, after which the temple was rebuilt. Rashi, on Daniel 9:2, likewise has Daniel move from counting from Nebuchadnezzar's conquest of Jehoiakim to counting from Jerusalem's destruction.^{6 sources}6 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 87. (Radak)2. Jeremiah 29:10 29. (Radak)49. Daniel 9:2 50. Rashi

Jewish: rabbinic · The Targum and the Talmud

Targum Jonathan renders the verse "before me are revealed the thoughts" rather than "I know the thoughts", and the closing pair as "an end and a hope" (our translation). The Babylonian Talmud (Megillah 11b) says Belshazzar calculated Jeremiah's seventy years, wrongly concluded that they had passed without redemption, and brought out the temple vessels for use; it then has Ahasuerus err as well, from a different starting point.^{4 sources}4 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 88. Jonathan 89. Daniel 5:2 90. Talmud

Jewish: rabbinic · Metzudat David — the long wait is for the exiles' good

David Altschuler's eighteenth-century commentary Metzudat David explains that the seventy-year stay in exile is for the exiles' good: it will humble their uncircumcised heart and so lead to a good end and good hope (our translation). It counts the seventy years from Nebuchadnezzar's first conquest of Jehoiakim in his second year, finds them complete in the first year of Darius, and places the visitation in Cyrus' first year.^{4 sources}4 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 55. David)2. Jeremiah 29:10 51. David)

Show 8 more interpretations (Jewish: modern, Early church: Latin, Catholic…)

Jewish: modern · Steinsaltz — Nebuchadnezzar's empire

The Steinsaltz Tanakh glosses the seventy years as belonging to Nebuchadnezzar's empire in Babylon. It renders the end of verse 11 as "a remnant and hope", and adds "I want you to prosper and thrive".^{42 43 44}

Early church: Latin · Jerome and Augustine — the return, then the church

Jerome first reads 29:10-14 as a warning against the false prophets' promise of a near return: there would be none until the seventy years ended and Cyrus released the captives. He then applies the passage to Christians, whom God brings back from this world's confusion "to our place, the church" and to an end of their labour (our translation). AugustineAugustineA North African theologian (354–430), born at Tagaste, who served as bishop of Hippo from 396 until his death, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia.From: Portalié; PortaliéAll terms → places the end of the captivity, on the completion of the seventy years, under Darius king of Persia.^{4 sources}4 sources5. Jeremiah 29:10–14 35. Jerome 6. Jerome 91. Hippo

Catholic · The Introit and Fischer's reading

The Introit Dicit Dominus, drawn from Jeremiah 29:11-14, is sung in the older Roman rite on the final Sundays of the year, from the 23rd after Pentecost, and in the current rite on the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, according to Lumma citing the Graduale Novum. The Jesuit scholar Georg Fischer glosses the promise as thoughts of shalom (peace, salvation, wellbeing) and suggests it may also be a source of confidence for South Africa.^{5 sources}5 sources9. Jeremiah 29:11–14 92. DiPippo 2015 93. Lumma 2019 7. Jeremiah 29:11 94. SJ 2015

Protestant: Lutheran · Keil — an exact prediction, realized through repentance

Keil holds that the seventy years are not a round number but an exact prediction, counting from Jehoiakim's fourth year (606 BC) to Cyrus' first year of sole rule over Babylon (536 BC). These are his 19th-century dates, not the modern dates of the chronicles. He also says the hope can be realized only if the exiles return to God penitent.^{10 sources}10 sources11. Jeremiah 25:11 12. Keil 1874 22. Jeremiah 25:1 23. 5)24. Ezra 1:1 25. 7)26. 7)45. Jeremiah 29:12–14 46. Yates 2006 47. Yates 2006

Protestant: evangelical · A promise to a community, applied through Christ

Merritt says the verse is written "to a we", not "to a me", yet applies it to God's preservation of the Church; Bargerhuff calls it a corporate promise to the nation of Israel. Moore says it does apply to Christians, read through God's purposes in Jesus Christ, and Harmon reads believers as exiles awaiting the new creation. Platt says it teaches that God brings believers through suffering, not that he keeps them from it. BibleProject warns that treating it as a promise of personal success might imitate the false prophets.^{10 sources}10 sources7. Jeremiah 29:11 37. Merritt 2013 38. (interviewer) 2012 3. 2 Corinthians 1:20 4. Moore 2020 39. 1 Peter 2:11 40. Harmon 2021 48. Platt 2019 66. Jeremiah 29:7 95. Team 2025

Jehovah's Witnesses · A group promise and Kingdom hope

A Watch Tower article says the verse was addressed to the Israelites in Babylon as a group, calls the idea of a specific plan for each individual a misconception, and says prosper translates a word meaning peace, health and well-being, not wealth; it applies the verse to hope in God's Kingdom. The Watchtower (2011) counts a literal seventy years ending in 537 BCE, which places Jerusalem's destruction in 607 BCE.^{7 8 52}

Latter-day Saints · Return to God through covenants

A Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints article (2026) applies Jeremiah 29:11-14 to believers today as a call for those who have strayed to return to God. It ties the promised blessings to covenants and to priesthood authority held by a living prophet.^{9 10}

Academic (critical) · Composition, chronology and prophetic tests

Wessels reports and rejects Carroll's view that 29:10-14 is a secondary addition. Peake thinks the seventy years should more probably be regarded as a round number. Arena argues that the fulfilment test of Deuteronomy 18:22 was impractical, partly because prophecies for distant times could not establish a prophet's credibility with his contemporaries; he calls the labels true and false points of view.^{9 sources}9 sources5. Jeremiah 29:10–14 21. Wessels 2016 13. Jeremiah 27:7 14. Peake 1910 56. Deuteronomy 18:21–22 57. Arena 2018 58. Arena 2018 59. Jeremiah 28:2–11 60. Arena 2018

Where else the Bible mentions it

Text

Ezra 1:1 Ezra connects Cyrus' decree with Jeremiah's word; this is a fulfilment reading within the Bible, not outside evidence.
¹In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah, the LORD stirred the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia to send a proclamation throughout his kingdom and to put it in writing as follows:
Read in context →
Zechariah 1:12 In Zechariah, dated to the second year of Darius, an angel asks how long God will withhold mercy from Jerusalem, against which he has been angry these seventy years; Jeremiah 29:10 speaks of seventy years for Babylon.
¹²Then the angel of the LORD said, “How long, O LORD of Hosts, will You withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which You have been angry these seventy years?”
Read in context →
Deuteronomy 18:21–22 The general rule says a word that does not come to pass was not spoken by God; Arena questions its practicality for distant predictions.
^18:21You may ask in your heart, “How can we recognize a message that the LORD has not spoken?” ²²When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD and the message does not come to pass or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him.
Read in context →

Show 2 more passages

Jeremiah 34:4–5 Thomas Paine, in The Age of Reason (1795), set Jeremiah's promise that Zedekiah would die in peace against Zedekiah's blinding and imprisonment (Jeremiah 52:10-11) and called the prophets "impostors and liars". His charge concerns another prophecy, not 29:11.
^34:4Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah. This is what the LORD says concerning you: You will not die by the sword; ⁵you will die in peace. As spices were burned for your fathers, the former kings who preceded you, so people will burn spices for you and lament, ‘Alas, O master!’ For I Myself have spoken this word, declares the LORD.”
Read in context →
2 Corinthians 1:20 Moore points to God's promises finding their yes in Christ as grounds for Christian application of Jeremiah's promise.
²⁰For all the promises of God are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him, our “Amen” is spoken to the glory of God.
Read in context →

Test your understanding

Is the "you" of verse 11 singular or plural in Hebrew?

Plural. Both second-person pronouns in the Hebrew of the verse are tagged masculine plural; the "you" is a community, the exiles the letter names.^{7 33 1}

Jeremiah 29:11

What are the exiles told to do while they wait?

Build houses, plant gardens, marry and have children, and seek and pray for the welfare of the city where they live.^{65 66}

Jeremiah 29:5–7

Does one calculation of about 66 years settle every reading of the seventy years?

No. It uses Nebuchadnezzar's accession in 605 BCE and Cyrus' entry into Babylon in 539 BCE; Keil counts exactly seventy on other dates, and Peake reads a round number.^{6 sources}6 sources27. 5)28. 7)14. Peake 1910 11. Jeremiah 25:11 12. Keil 1874 13. Jeremiah 27:7

Jeremiah 29:10 Jeremiah 25:11–12

Keep going

Daniel and his friends in Babylon

Follow the exile into Daniel, whose later reading of the seventy years concerns Jerusalem's desolations.^{53 24 49}

Daniel 9:2

Cite this page

Plain citation

Is Jeremiah 29:11 a promise to you? Know the Text. Question lens, version 1, revised 2026-11-09, Fact-checked. https://knowthetext.com/question/questions/jeremiah-29-11/

Chicago-style note

Know the Text, “Is Jeremiah 29:11 a promise to you?” Question lens, version 1, revised 2026-11-09, Fact-checked, https://knowthetext.com/question/questions/jeremiah-29-11/.

BibTeX

@misc{knowthetext-jeremiah-29-11,
  author = {{Know the Text}},
  title = {Is Jeremiah 29:11 a promise to you?},
  howpublished = {Know the Text, Question lens},
  url = {https://knowthetext.com/question/questions/jeremiah-29-11/},
  year = {2026},
  note = {Version 1; revised 2026-11-09; Fact-checked}
}

Sources

95 sources from 84 works

1
Jeremiah 29:1↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g
2
Jeremiah 29:10↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g ↩^h ↩ⁱ ↩^j ↩^k ↩^l
3
2 Corinthians 1:20↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f
4
Russell Moore, “Does Jeremiah 29:11 Apply to You? (ChurchLeaders)” (2020)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f
5
Jeremiah 29:10–14↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g ↩^h ↩ⁱ
Jerome, In Hieremiam prophetam libri VI, ed. S. Reiter (CSEL 59, 1913)
- 6
  book 5, §65, p. 355↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f
- 35
  book 5, §65 (on 29:10-14), p. 354↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
7
Jeremiah 29:11↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g ↩^h ↩ⁱ ↩^j ↩^k ↩^l ↩^m ↩ⁿ ↩^o ↩^p ↩^q ↩^r ↩^s ↩^t ↩^u ↩^v ↩^w ↩^x ↩^y ↩^z
8
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, “Jeremiah 29:11: “I Know the Plans I Have for You” (Bible Verses Explained, wol.jw.org)”↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g ↩^h
9
Jeremiah 29:11–14↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f
10
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, “What Does Jeremiah 29:11 Mean? (churchofjesuschrist.org)” (2026)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
11
Jeremiah 25:11↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g
C. F. Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Jeremiah, vol. 1 (1874)
- 12
  on Jer 25:11, pp. 374-375↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g
- 62
  on Jer 28:5-11, p. 406↩^a ↩^b
13
Jeremiah 27:7↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f
14
A. S. Peake, Jeremiah and Lamentations, vol. 2 (The Century Bible) (1910), note on Jer 25:11↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g
15
Jeremiah 29:2↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
16
2 Kings 24:12–16↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
17
Jeremiah 29:3↩^a ↩^b
18
2 Kings 24:10–12↩^a ↩^b
19
Babylonian Chronicle (ABC 5, the Jerusalem Chronicle), tr. after A. K. Grayson (1975) and J.-J. Glassner (2004), ABC 5 (Jerusalem Chronicle), Livius.org, Rev. 11'-13'↩^a ↩^b
20
Jona Lendering (Livius.org), “ABC 5 (Jerusalem Chronicle): introduction”↩^a ↩^b
Wilhelm J. Wessels, “Patience, presence and promise: A study of prophetic realism in Jeremiah 29:4-7” (2016)
- 21
  Verbum et Ecclesia 37(1), n. 6↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
- 69
  Verbum et Ecclesia 37(1), p. 3↩^a ↩^b
- 70
  Verbum et Ecclesia 37(1), p. 4↩
22
Jeremiah 25:1↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g
23
Babylonian Chronicle (ABC 5), tr. after Grayson (1975) and Glassner (2004), ABC 5 (Jerusalem Chronicle), Livius.org, Obv. 1-11 with notes↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
24
Ezra 1:1↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f ↩^g
Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7), tr. after Grayson (1975), ABC 7 (Nabonidus Chronicle), Livius.org
- 25
  iii.5, iii.18↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
- 26
  iii.5 note↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
27
Babylonian Chronicle (ABC 5), ABC 5 (Jerusalem Chronicle), Livius.org, Obv. 11 note↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
28
Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7), ABC 7 (Nabonidus Chronicle), Livius.org, introduction↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
David Kimchi (Radak), Radak on Jeremiah 29:10-11 (Sefaria)
- 29
  on 29:10↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
- 87
  on 29:11↩
30
Ezra 1:1–4↩^a ↩^b
31
Cyrus Cylinder (BM 90920), tr. after M. Cogan (Context of Scripture II, 2003), adapted to H. Schaudig's edition, Cyrus Cylinder Translation, Livius.org, lines 30-32↩^a ↩^b
32
Jona Lendering, “Cyrus Cylinder (introduction), Livius.org”↩^a ↩^b
33
Checked in this site's verse database: Second-person plural suffixes in Jer 29:11 (STEPBible TAHOT morphology)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e ↩^f
How this was derived
select count(*) from tokens where std_ref='Jer.29.11' and morph like '%Sp2mp%'
34
Checked in this site's verse database: BDB entry for shalom (H7965)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
How this was derived
select count(*) from lexicon_links l join lexicon_articles a on a.lexicon=l.lexicon and a.id=l.article_id where l.strong='H7965I' and a.text like '%welfare, health, prosperity%'
36
James Patrick Holding, “Jeremiah, Preacher of Prosperity? (Christian Research Journal 41.2, 2018; equip.org)” (2018)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
37
Jonathan Merritt, “Jeremiah 29:11 Is Not About You (The Aquila Report)” (2013)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
38
Owen Strachan (interviewer), “'God Is Not a Genie in a Bottle': Ways We Misuse the Bible (Christianity Today, April 2012)” (2012)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
39
1 Peter 2:11↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
40
Matthew S. Harmon, “What Does Jeremiah 29:11 Mean? (Crossway)” (2021)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
41
Checked in this site's verse database: Editions of Jer 29:11 containing 'prosper'↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
How this was derived
select group_concat(work_id) from verses where std_ref='Jer.29.11' and text like '%prosper%'
42
Jeremiah 29:10–11↩^a ↩^b
Adin Steinsaltz, The Steinsaltz Tanakh (English), Jeremiah 29:10-11 (Sefaria)
- 43
  Jer 29:10-11↩^a ↩^b
- 44
  Jer 29:10↩^a ↩^b
45
Jeremiah 29:12–14↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
Gary E. Yates, “New Exodus and No Exodus in Jeremiah 26-45: Promise and Warning to the Exiles in Babylon” (2006)
- 46
  Tyndale Bulletin 57.1, pp. 21-22↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
- 47
  Tyndale Bulletin 57.1, p. 22↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
48
David Platt, “Does Jeremiah 29:11 Guarantee Us Health and Prosperity? (ChurchLeaders)” (2019)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
49
Daniel 9:2↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
50
Rashi, Rashi on Daniel 9:2 (Judaica Press, tr. A. J. Rosenberg, Sefaria), on Dan 9:2↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
David Altschuler (Metzudat David), Metzudat David on Jeremiah 29:10-11 (Sefaria)
- 51
  on 29:10↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
- 55
  on 29:11↩^a ↩^b
52
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, “When Was Ancient Jerusalem Destroyed? Part One (The Watchtower, 2011)” (2011)↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
53
2 Chronicles 36:21↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
54
Jeremiah 25:11–12↩^a ↩^b
56
Deuteronomy 18:21–22↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
Francesco Arena, "Peace, Peace, but There is no Peace": Prophetic Conflicts in Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Micah (PhD thesis, University of Edinburgh) (2018)
- 57
  pp. 22-23↩^a ↩^b
- 58
  p. 22↩^a ↩^b
- 60
  p. 111↩^a ↩^b
59
Jeremiah 28:2–11↩^a ↩^b
61
Jeremiah 28:8–9↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
63
Jeremiah 28:15–17↩^a ↩^b
64
Jeremiah 28:1–4↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d
65
Jeremiah 29:5–6↩^a ↩^b ↩^c
66
Jeremiah 29:7↩^a ↩^b ↩^c ↩^d ↩^e
67
Jeremiah 29:8–9↩
68
Kate Shellnutt, “The Most Popular Bible Verse of 2018 (Christianity Today)” (2018)↩
71
Zechariah 1:12↩
72
Zechariah 1:7↩
73
Zechariah 7:5↩
74
George Athas, “In Search of the Seventy 'Weeks' of Daniel 9” (2009), Journal of Hebrew Scriptures 9, art. 2, n. 8↩
75
Flavius Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews (tr. W. Whiston, 1737; Project Gutenberg 2848), 11.1.1↩
76
Checked in this site's verse database: Shalom tokens in Jer 29:7 and 29:11↩
How this was derived
select std_ref, count(*) from tokens where root_strong like 'H7965%' and std_ref in ('Jer.29.7','Jer.29.11') group by std_ref
77
Jeremiah 28:9↩
78
Checked in this site's verse database: Shalom tokens in Jer 28:9, 29:7, 29:11↩
How this was derived
select group_concat(std_ref) from tokens where root_strong like 'H7965%' and std_ref in ('Jer.28.9','Jer.29.7','Jer.29.11')
79
Checked in this site's verse database: Editions of Jer 29:11 containing 'of peace'↩
How this was derived
select group_concat(work_id) from verses where std_ref='Jer.29.11' and text like '%of peace%'
80
Checked in this site's verse database: Editions reading 'a future and a hope'↩
How this was derived
select group_concat(work_id) from verses where std_ref='Jer.29.11' and text like '%a future and a hope%'
81
Checked in this site's verse database: Editions reading 'expected end'↩
How this was derived
select group_concat(work_id) from verses where std_ref='Jer.29.11' and text like '%expected end%'
82
Checked in this site's verse database: BDB entry for acharit (H0319)↩
How this was derived
select count(*) from lexicon_links l join lexicon_articles a on a.lexicon=l.lexicon and a.id=l.article_id where l.strong='H0319' and a.text like '%after-part, end%'
83
Checked in this site's verse database: BDB entry for tiqvah (H8615)↩
How this was derived
select count(*) from lexicon_links l join lexicon_articles a on a.lexicon=l.lexicon and a.id=l.article_id where l.strong='H8615B' and a.text like '%things hoped for, outcome%'
84
Checked in this site's verse database: Brenton LXX Jer 36:11↩
How this was derived
select count(*) from verses where work_id='brenton' and osis_ref='Jer.36.11' and text like '%these good things%'
85
Checked in this site's verse database: Verses in Brenton Jer 36↩
How this was derived
select count(*), group_concat(verse) from verses where work_id='brenton' and book='Jer' and chapter=36
86
Checked in this site's verse database: Verses in KJV Jer 29↩
How this was derived
select count(*) from verses where work_id='kjv' and book='Jer' and chapter=29
88
Targum Jonathan, Targum Jonathan on Jeremiah 29:10-11 (Mikraot Gedolot text, Sefaria), Jer 29:11↩
89
Daniel 5:2↩
90
Babylonian Talmud, Megillah 11b (William Davidson Edition, English, Sefaria), Megillah 11b↩
91
Augustine of Hippo, City of God, Book 18 (tr. M. Dods, NPNF I/2; New Advent), 18.26↩
92
Gregory DiPippo, “The Gregorian Introit for the End of the Year (New Liturgical Movement)” (2015)↩
93
Liborius Lumma, “INTROITUS: 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Pray Tell)” (2019)↩
94
Georg Fischer SJ, “Is there Shalom, or Not? Jeremiah, a Prophet for South Africa” (2015), Old Testament Essays 28/2, 351-370↩
95
BibleProject Scholarship Team, “What Does Jeremiah 29:11 Mean? (BibleProject)” (2025)↩

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The evidence

Jerusalem and its king were captured in 597 BCE.

The promise formed part of the original letter.

The seventy years for Babylon were fulfilled.

The Cyrus Cylinder documents the Jews' return from Babylon.

God's promise to the exiles also speaks to believers today.

What people get wrong

Hard questions

Is the promise addressed to readers today, or only to the exiles?

The strongest case

Strongest responses

Plain assessment

Does "prosper" mean wealth or success for the reader?

The strongest case

Strongest responses

Plain assessment

Did the seventy years come true?

The strongest case

Strongest responses

Plain assessment

How could hearers tell Jeremiah from Hananiah before fulfilment?

The strongest case

Strongest responses

No known response in these sources

Plain assessment

What the texts say

Background

A favourite verse Evidence

A dispute over waiting Scholarship

Hope includes the captors' city Scholarship

Later readings of the seventy years Text

Where translations differ

Jeremiah 29:11 · “you”

Jeremiah 29:7 · Jeremiah 29:11 · Jeremiah 28:9 · “shalom — peace, welfare, prosperity”

Jeremiah 29:11 · “prosper / peace; future / end”

Jeremiah 29:11 · “the Greek version of the letter”

How it has been interpreted

Jewish: medieval commentator · Radak and Rashi — a hoped-for outcome and two counts

Jewish: rabbinic · The Targum and the Talmud

Jewish: rabbinic · Metzudat David — the long wait is for the exiles' good

Jewish: modern · Steinsaltz — Nebuchadnezzar's empire

Early church: Latin · Jerome and Augustine — the return, then the church

Catholic · The Introit and Fischer's reading

Protestant: Lutheran · Keil — an exact prediction, realized through repentance

Protestant: evangelical · A promise to a community, applied through Christ

Jehovah's Witnesses · A group promise and Kingdom hope

Latter-day Saints · Return to God through covenants

Academic (critical) · Composition, chronology and prophetic tests

Where else the Bible mentions it

Test your understanding

Is the "you" of verse 11 singular or plural in Hebrew?

What are the exiles told to do while they wait?

Does one calculation of about 66 years settle every reading of the seventy years?

Keep going

Daniel and his friends in Babylon

Plain citation

Chicago-style note

BibTeX

Sources

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