There is a lot more to consider in this chapter than verse 11. For some reason, people have taken that verse and made it a slogan on graduate gifts, coffee mugs, and decor for the home.
The verse comes in the middle of a letter Jeremiah sends to the exiles in Babylon. They are just starting their exile, and Jeremiah is telling them it’s going to be a long time. Build your homes, settle in, pray for Babylon, because you will be living there 70 years. For 70 years, you’ll be displaced, exiled.
70 years.
BUT…when that’s done, God says He will resume His plans with them.
Shemaiah, on the other hand, was telling the people that the exile would be short-lived. His message sounded a lot more like something you would put on a coffee mug if you know what I mean.
Omer Redden 