1-3 These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.  This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem.  The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.

It said: 4-7 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will find your welfare. 8-10 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord. For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfil to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 

11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.  12-14 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and  gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the  Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile. Jeremiah 29:1-14 (English Standard Version)

Verse 11 is very popular in Christian circles. It's the sort of verse seen on Church notice boards and on people's fridges. While it does have a general and ultimate truth for all believers, it was originally given to Jews who were taken as captives to Babylon to give them hope during the 70 years of exile that lay ahead of them. It was part of the letter Jeremiah sent to those exiles by messengers of King Zedekiah. (vs 1-3) But as it's fulfilment for them was 70 years away, what were they to do in the meanwhile? (vs 4-7)

They were to get on with living as normally as they could! They were not to let the hard times that had come upon them drive them to despair. God had not forsaken them. In fact, they were to even seek the welfare of the people who had taken them into captivity because that would make their own life better too. What an encouragement this should be for Christians today who may face very difficult situations because of people in power over them. Even in the West, where Christians once had much freedom to speak of Christ to others, things are fast changing and Christians are being arrested, fined or imprisoned for speaking God's truth to society.

Once again, we see Jeremiah had to warn the people of the false preachers who promised all sorts of quick fixes to their problems. (vs 8-10) God's plans for our lives are not essentially about our comfort, our health, and our prosperity. God's plans for those Jews included a long time of exile. But what would His plan for them involve at the end of that exile? (vs 12-14)

He was going to give them the desire to seek Him with all their heart, and then bring them back to their homeland. Part of the reason for the hard times He was sending on them was to humble and change their hearts. As Christians we have the wonderful promise of God's ETERNAL plans for us. Plans that include the resurrection of our bodies and the glory of the new heavens and earth. That's what gives us such hope in these hard times that lay ahead of us.