Jeremiah 29-30

The subject matter of Jeremiah surrounds three letters. One was written by Jeremiah and sent to the exiles in Babylon. The second was prepared in Babylon and sent to Jerusalem. This prompted a second letter from Jeremiah's hand specifically to the author in exile. God did not commission the second but he did the first and third. The second letter was written by Shemaiah the Nehelamite. He claimed God's authority and chose Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to lock up Jeremiah to silence his voice. The outcome of this dueling of letters is not detailed. A search of the name Shemaiah reports a number of such men. Yet only one is listed as the Nehelamite. He is mentioned only in Jeremiah 29. The last we hear of this man is that God chosen to punish he and his family for leading a rebellion against God (29:32). And we never hear of him again. There are no Nehelamites listed among the people who returned to Jerusalem after the exile. This outcome tells me that not only did God fulfill his judgment against Shemaiah, it also validates Jeremiah's message to the exiles. A promise that Jeremiah would not live to see.
Stuart