Jeremiah 26:7-19

International Standard Version

Jeremiah Threatened with Death

⁷ The priests, the prophets, and all the people listened as Jeremiah spoke these words at the Lord’s Temple. ⁸ As soon as Jeremiah finished saying everything that the Lord had commanded him to say to all the people, the priests, the prophets, and all the people seized him, telling him as they did: “You must certainly die! ⁹ Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord that this house will be like Shiloh, and this city will be without an inhabitant?” Then all the people gathered around Jeremiah at the Lord’s Temple.

¹⁰ When the Judean officials^[a] heard all these things, they came up from the king’s house to the Lord’s Temple and sat in the doorway of the New Gate of the Lord’s Temple.^{[b] 11} The priests and prophets told the officials and all the people, “A death sentence for this man, because he prophesied against this city, as you heard with your own ears!”

¹² Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and to all the people: “The Lord has sent me to prophesy all the things you heard against this house and against this city. ¹³ Now, change your habits^[c] and your deeds and obey the Lord your God, and the Lord will change his mind about the disaster that he told you about. ¹⁴ Look, I’m in your hands, so do with me what you think is good and right. ¹⁵ But know for certain that if you kill me, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves and on this city and its residents because the Lord really did send me to you to say all these things for you to hear.”

The Elders Remember Micah’s Similar Message

¹⁶ The officials and all the people told the priests and the prophets, “No death sentence for this man because he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.”

¹⁷ Some of the elders of the land got up and told all the assembled people, ¹⁸ “Micah of Moresheth prophesied during the reign^[d] of Hezekiah king of Judah to all the people of Judah, ‘This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says:

¹⁹ “Did Hezekiah king of Judah or anyone in Judah kill him? Didn’t he fear the Lord and seek the Lord’s favor, and so the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he had spoken to them about. We’re bringing great disaster on ourselves.