Jeremiah 26-27

New American Standard Bible

Cities of Judah Warned

26 In the beginning of the reign of ^(A)Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying, ² “This is what the Lord says: ‘^(B)Stand in the courtyard of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah who have ^(C)come to worship in the Lord’s house ^(D)all the words that I have commanded you to speak to them. ^(E)Do not omit a word! ^3 (F)Perhaps they will listen and everyone will turn from his evil way, and ^(G)I will relent of the disaster which I am planning to inflict on them because of the evil of their deeds.’ ⁴ And you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Lord says: “^(H)If you do not listen to Me, to ^(I)walk in My Law which I have set before you, ⁵ to listen to the words of ^(J)My servants the prophets, whom I have been sending to you again and again, but you have not listened; ⁶ then I will make this house like ^(K)Shiloh, and I will make this city a ^(L)curse to all the nations of the earth.”’”

A Plot to Murder Jeremiah

⁷ The ^(M)priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord. ⁸ Yet when Jeremiah finished speaking everything that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, then the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, “^(N)You must die! ⁹ Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘This house will be like Shiloh and this city will be ^(O)in ruins, without inhabitant’?” And ^(P)all the people gathered to Jeremiah at the house of the Lord.

¹⁰ When the ^(Q)officials of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of the Lord and sat at the ^(R)entrance of the New Gate of the Lord’s house. ¹¹ Then the priests and the prophets ^(S)spoke to the officials and to all the people, saying, “A ^(T)death sentence for this man! For he has prophesied ^(U)against this city, just as you have heard with your own ears!”

¹² Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and to all the people, saying, “^(V)The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that you have heard. ¹³ Now then, ^(W)reform your ways and your deeds and obey the voice of the Lord your God; and the Lord will relent of the disaster which He has pronounced against you. ¹⁴ But as for me, behold, ^(X)I am in your hands; do with me as is good and right in your sight. ¹⁵ Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring ^(Y)innocent blood on yourselves, and on this city and its inhabitants; for truly the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words ^[a]so that you hear them.”

Jeremiah Is Spared

¹⁶ Then the officials and all the people ^(Z)said to the priests and the prophets, “No ^(AA)death sentence for this man! For he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.” ¹⁷ Then ^(AB)some of the elders of the land rose up and spoke to all the assembly of the people, saying, ¹⁸ “^[b](AC)Micah of Moresheth used to prophesy in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spoke to all the people of Judah, saying, ‘This is what the Lord of armies has said:

¹⁹ Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah actually put him to death? Did he not ^(AF)fear the Lord and plead for the favor of the Lord, and ^(AG)the Lord relented of the disaster which He had pronounced against them? But we are ^(AH)committing a great evil against our own lives!”

²⁰ Indeed, there was also a man who used to prophesy in the name of the Lord, Uriah the son of Shemaiah from ^(AI)Kiriath-jearim; and he prophesied against this city and against this land words similar to all those of Jeremiah. ²¹ When King Jehoiakim and all his warriors and all the officials heard his words, then the ^(AJ)king sought to put him to death; but Uriah heard about it, and he was afraid, so he ^(AK)fled and went to Egypt. ²² Then King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt: ^(AL)Elnathan the son of Achbor and certain men with him, to Egypt. ²³ And they brought Uriah from Egypt and led him to King Jehoiakim, who ^(AM)killed him with a sword and threw his dead body into the ^[d]burial place of the ^[e]common people.

²⁴ But the hand of ^(AN)Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so that he was ^(AO)not handed over to the people to put him to death.

The Nations to Submit to Nebuchadnezzar

27 In the beginning of the reign of ^[f](AP)Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying— ² this is what the Lord has said to me: “Make for yourself ^(AQ)restraints and ^(AR)yokes and put them on your neck, ³ and send ^[g]word to the king of ^(AS)Edom, the king of ^(AT)Moab, the king of the sons of ^(AU)Ammon, the king of ^(AV)Tyre, and to the king of ^(AW)Sidon ^[h]by the messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah. ⁴ Order them to go to their masters, saying, ‘This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: “This is what you shall say to your masters: ⁵ ‘^(AX)I have made the earth, mankind, and the animals which are on the face of the earth ^(AY)by My great power and by My outstretched arm, and I will ^(AZ)give it to the one who is ^[i]pleasing in My sight. ⁶ And now I ^(BA)have handed all these lands over to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, ^(BB)My servant, and I have also given him the ^(BC)animals of the field to serve him. ^7 (BD)All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson ^(BE)until the time of his own land comes; then ^(BF)many nations and great kings will ^[j]make him their servant.

⁸ ‘And it will be that the nation or the kingdom which ^(BG)will not serve him, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the ^(BH)sword, with famine, and with plague,’ declares the Lord, ‘until I have eliminated ^[k]it by his hand. ⁹ And as for you, ^(BI)do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your ^[l]dreamers, your soothsayers, or your sorcerers who talk to you, saying, “You will not serve the king of Babylon.” ¹⁰ For they are prophesying a ^(BJ)lie to you in order to ^(BK)remove you far from your land; and I will drive you away and you will perish. ¹¹ But the nation that will ^(BL)bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will ^(BM)let remain on its land,’ declares the Lord, ‘and they will cultivate it and live in it.’”’”

¹² I spoke words like all these to ^(BN)Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, “Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him and his people, and live! ¹³ Why should you ^(BO)die, you and your people, by the sword, famine, and plague, as the Lord has spoken to the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? ¹⁴ So ^(BP)do not listen to the words of the prophets who talk to you, saying, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon,’ for they are prophesying a ^(BQ)lie to you; ¹⁵ for ^(BR)I have not sent them,” declares the Lord, “but they are ^(BS)prophesying falsely in My name, so that I will ^(BT)drive you away and that you will perish, ^(BU)you and the prophets who prophesy to you.”

¹⁶ Then I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying: “This is what the Lord says: ‘Do not listen to the words of your prophets who prophesy to you, saying, “Behold, the ^(BV)vessels of the Lord’s house will now shortly be brought back from Babylon”; for they are prophesying a ^(BW)lie to you. ¹⁷ Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon, and live! Why should this city ^(BX)become a place of ruins? ¹⁸ But ^(BY)if they are prophets, and if the word of the Lord is with them, have them now ^(BZ)plead with the Lord of armies that the vessels which are left in the house of the Lord and the house of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem do not go to Babylon. ¹⁹ For this is what the Lord of armies says concerning the ^(CA)pillars, concerning the ^[m]sea, concerning the kettle stands, and concerning the rest of the vessels that are left in this city, ²⁰ which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take when he ^(CB)led into exile Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem— ²¹ Yes, this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, says concerning the vessels that are left in the house of the Lord and in the house of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem: ²² “They will be ^(CC)brought to Babylon and will be there until the ^(CD)day I visit them,” declares the Lord. “Then I will ^(CE)bring them ^[n]back and restore them to this place.”’”