Jeremiah Saved from Death^(A)

26 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying,

⁴ And you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^(A)“If you will not listen to Me, to walk in My law which I have set before you, ⁵ to heed the words of My servants the prophets ^(B)whom I sent to you, both rising up early and sending them (but you have not heeded), ⁶ then I will make this house like ^(C)Shiloh, and will make this city ^(D)a curse to all the nations of the earth.” ’ ”

⁷ So the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord. ⁸ Now it happened, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, “You will surely die! ⁹ Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be ^(E)desolate, without an inhabitant’?” And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.

¹⁰ When the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of the Lord and sat down in the entry of the New Gate of the Lord’s house. ¹¹ And the priests and the prophets spoke to the princes and all the people, saying, ^[a]“This man deserves to ^(F)die! For he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your ears.”

¹² Then Jeremiah spoke to all the princes and all the people, saying: “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city with all the words that you have heard. ¹³ Now therefore, ^(G)amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the Lord your God; then the Lord will relent concerning the doom that He has pronounced against you. ¹⁴ As for me, here ^(H)I am, in your hand; do with me as seems good and ^[b]proper to you. ¹⁵ But know for certain that if you put me to death, you will surely bring innocent blood on yourselves, on this city, and on its inhabitants; for truly the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.”