Judah to Serve Nebuchadnezzar

27 Early in the reign of Zedekiah^[a](A) son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ² This is what the Lord said to me: “Make a yoke^(B) out of straps and crossbars and put it on your neck. ³ Then send^(C) word to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon,^(D) Tyre and Sidon^(E) through the envoys who have come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah. ⁴ Give them a message for their masters and say, ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Tell this to your masters: ⁵ With my great power and outstretched arm^(F) I made^(G) the earth and its people and the animals^(H) that are on it, and I give^(I) it to anyone I please. ⁶ Now I will give all your countries into the hands of my servant^(J) Nebuchadnezzar^(K) king of Babylon; I will make even the wild animals subject to him.^{(L) 7} All nations will serve^(M) him and his son and his grandson until the time^(N) for his land comes; then many nations and great kings will subjugate^(O) him.

⁸ “‘“If, however, any nation or kingdom will not serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon or bow its neck under his yoke, I will punish^(P) that nation with the sword,^(Q) famine^(R) and plague,^(S) declares the Lord, until I destroy it by his hand. ⁹ So do not listen to your prophets,^(T) your diviners,^(U) your interpreters of dreams,^(V) your mediums^(W) or your sorcerers^(X) who tell you, ‘You will not serve^(Y) the king of Babylon.’ ¹⁰ They prophesy lies^(Z) to you that will only serve to remove^(AA) you far from your lands; I will banish you and you will perish. ¹¹ But if any nation will bow its neck under the yoke^(AB) of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let that nation remain in its own land to till it and to live^(AC) there, declares the Lord.”’”

¹² I gave the same message to Zedekiah king of Judah. I said, “Bow your neck under the yoke^(AD) of the king of Babylon; serve him and his people, and you will live.^{(AE) 13} Why will you and your people die^(AF) by the sword, famine and plague^(AG) with which the Lord has threatened any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? ¹⁴ Do not listen^(AH) to the words of the prophets^(AI) who say to you, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon,’ for they are prophesying lies^(AJ) to you. ¹⁵ ‘I have not sent^(AK) them,’ declares the Lord. ‘They are prophesying lies in my name.^(AL) Therefore, I will banish you and you will perish,^(AM) both you and the prophets who prophesy to you.’”

¹⁶ Then I said to the priests and all these people, “This is what the Lord says: Do not listen to the prophets who say, ‘Very soon now the articles^(AN) from the Lord’s house will be brought back from Babylon.’ They are prophesying lies to you. ¹⁷ Do not listen^(AO) to them. Serve the king of Babylon, and you will live.^(AP) Why should this city become a ruin? ¹⁸ If they are prophets and have the word of the Lord, let them plead^(AQ) with the Lord Almighty that the articles remaining in the house of the Lord and in the palace of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem not be taken to Babylon. ¹⁹ For this is what the Lord Almighty says about the pillars, the bronze Sea,^(AR) the movable stands and the other articles^(AS) that are left in this city, ²⁰ which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take away when he carried^(AT) Jehoiachin^[b](AU) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem— ²¹ yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says about the things that are left in the house of the Lord and in the palace of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem: ²² ‘They will be taken^(AV) to Babylon and there they will remain until the day^(AW) I come for them,’ declares the Lord. ‘Then I will bring^(AX) them back and restore them to this place.’”

The False Prophet Hananiah

28 In the fifth month of that same year, the fourth year, early in the reign of Zedekiah^(AY) king of Judah, the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur, who was from Gibeon,^(AZ) said to me in the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people: ² “This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will break the yoke^(BA) of the king of Babylon. ³ Within two years I will bring back to this place all the articles^(BB) of the Lord’s house that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon removed from here and took to Babylon. ⁴ I will also bring back to this place Jehoiachin^[c](BC) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and all the other exiles from Judah who went to Babylon,’ declares the Lord, ‘for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.’”^(BD)

⁵ Then the prophet Jeremiah replied to the prophet Hananiah before the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of the Lord. ⁶ He said, “Amen! May the Lord do so! May the Lord fulfill the words you have prophesied by bringing the articles of the Lord’s house and all the exiles back to this place from Babylon.^{(BE) 7} Nevertheless, listen to what I have to say in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people: ⁸ From early times the prophets who preceded you and me have prophesied war, disaster and plague^(BF) against many countries and great kingdoms. ⁹ But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the Lord only if his prediction comes true.^(BG)”

¹⁰ Then the prophet Hananiah took the yoke^(BH) off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah and broke it, ¹¹ and he said^(BI) before all the people, “This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon off the neck of all the nations within two years.’” At this, the prophet Jeremiah went on his way.

¹² After the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ¹³ “Go and tell Hananiah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You have broken a wooden yoke, but in its place you will get a yoke of iron. ¹⁴ This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I will put an iron yoke^(BJ) on the necks of all these nations to make them serve^(BK) Nebuchadnezzar^(BL) king of Babylon, and they will serve him. I will even give him control over the wild animals.^(BM)’”

¹⁵ Then the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the prophet, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord has not sent^(BN) you, yet you have persuaded this nation to trust in lies.^{(BO) 16} Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to remove you from the face of the earth.^(BP) This very year you are going to die,^(BQ) because you have preached rebellion^(BR) against the Lord.’”

¹⁷ In the seventh month of that same year, Hananiah the prophet died.^(BS)

A Letter to the Exiles

29 This is the text of the letter^(BT) that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders among the exiles and to the priests, the prophets and all the other people Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.^{(BU) 2} (This was after King Jehoiachin^[d](BV) and the queen mother,^(BW) the court officials and the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the skilled workers and the artisans had gone into exile from Jerusalem.) ³ He entrusted the letter to Elasah son of Shaphan and to Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. It said:

Message to Shemaiah

²⁴ Tell Shemaiah the Nehelamite, ²⁵ “This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: You sent letters in your own name to all the people in Jerusalem, to the priest Zephaniah^(DL) son of Maaseiah, and to all the other priests. You said to Zephaniah, ²⁶ ‘The Lord has appointed you priest in place of Jehoiada to be in charge of the house of the Lord; you should put any maniac^(DM) who acts like a prophet into the stocks^(DN) and neck-irons. ²⁷ So why have you not reprimanded Jeremiah from Anathoth, who poses as a prophet among you? ²⁸ He has sent this message^(DO) to us in Babylon: It will be a long time.^(DP) Therefore build^(DQ) houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce.’”

²⁹ Zephaniah^(DR) the priest, however, read the letter to Jeremiah the prophet. ³⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ³¹ “Send this message to all the exiles: ‘This is what the Lord says about Shemaiah^(DS) the Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, even though I did not send^(DT) him, and has persuaded you to trust in lies, ³² this is what the Lord says: I will surely punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants.^(DU) He will have no one left among this people, nor will he see the good^(DV) things I will do for my people, declares the Lord, because he has preached rebellion^(DW) against me.’”