The Yoke of Babylon

27 At the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah^[a] son of Josiah, king of Judah,^(A) this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord:^{[b] 2} This is what the Lord said to me: “Make chains and yoke bars^(B) for yourself and put them on your neck.^{(C) 3} Send word to the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of the Ammonites, the king of Tyre, and the king of Sidon^(D) through messengers who are coming to King Zedekiah of Judah in Jerusalem. ⁴ Command them to go to their masters, saying, ‘This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: Tell this to your masters: ⁵ “By my great strength and outstretched arm,^(E) I made the earth,^(F) and the people, and animals on the face of the earth. I give it to anyone I please.^{[c](G) 6} So now I have placed all these lands under the authority of my servant^(H) Nebuchadnezzar,^(I) king of Babylon. I have even given him the wild animals to serve him. ⁷ All nations will serve him, his son, and his grandson until the time for his own land comes, and then many nations and great kings will enslave him.^(J)

⁸ “‘“As for the nation or kingdom that does not serve King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and does not place its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation I will punish by sword, famine, and plague—this is the Lord’s declaration—until through him I have destroyed it. ⁹ So you should not listen to your prophets, diviners,^(K) dreamers, fortune-tellers,^(L) or sorcerers^(M) who say to you, ‘Don’t serve the king of Babylon!’ ¹⁰ They are prophesying a lie^(N) to you so that you will be removed from your land. I will banish you, and you will perish. ¹¹ But as for the nation that will put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will leave it in its own land, and that nation will cultivate^[d] it and reside in it. This is the Lord’s declaration.”’”

Warning to Zedekiah

¹² I spoke to King Zedekiah of Judah^(O) in the same way: “Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, serve him and his people, and live! ¹³ Why should you and your people die^(P) by the sword, famine, and plague as the Lord has threatened against any nation that does not serve the king of Babylon? ¹⁴ Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are telling you, ‘Don’t serve the king of Babylon,’ for they are prophesying a lie to you.^{(Q) 15} ‘I have not sent them’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘and they are prophesying falsely in my name; therefore, I will banish you, and you will perish—you and the prophets who are prophesying to you.’”

¹⁶ Then I spoke to the priests and all these people, saying, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Do not listen to the words of your prophets. They are prophesying to you, claiming, “Look, very soon now the articles of the Lord’s temple will be brought back from Babylon.”^(R) They are prophesying a lie to you. ¹⁷ Do not listen to them. Serve the king of Babylon and live! Why should this city become a ruin?^{(S) 18} If they are indeed prophets and if the word of the Lord is with them, let them intercede with the Lord of Armies not to let the articles that remain in the Lord’s temple, in the palace of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem go to Babylon.’ ¹⁹ For this is what the Lord of Armies says about the pillars, the basin,^[e] the water carts,^(T) and the rest of the articles that still remain in this city, ²⁰ those King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon did not take when he deported Jeconiah^[f] son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon along with all the nobles of Judah^(U) and Jerusalem. ²¹ Yes, this is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says about the articles that remain in the temple of the Lord, in the palace of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem: ²² ‘They will be taken to Babylon and will remain there until I attend to them again.’^(V) This is the Lord’s declaration. ‘Then I will bring them up and restore them to this place.’”^(W)

Hananiah’s False Prophecy

28 In that same year, at the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah,^(A) in the fifth month of the fourth year, the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur from Gibeon^(B) said to me in the temple of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people, ² “This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.^{(C) 3} Within two years I will restore to this place all the articles of the Lord’s temple^(D) that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took from here and transported to Babylon. ⁴ And I will restore to this place Jeconiah^[a] son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah^(E) who went to Babylon’—this is the Lord’s declaration—‘for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.’”

Jeremiah’s Response to Hananiah

⁵ The prophet Jeremiah replied to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the temple of the Lord. ⁶ The prophet Jeremiah said, “Amen!^(F) May the Lord do that. May the Lord make the words you have prophesied come true and may he restore the articles of the Lord’s temple and all the exiles from Babylon to this place! ⁷ Only listen to this message I am speaking in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people. ⁸ The prophets who preceded you and me from ancient times prophesied war, disaster,^[b] and plague against many lands and great kingdoms. ⁹ As for the prophet who prophesies peace—only when the word of the prophet comes true will the prophet be recognized as one the Lord has truly sent.”^(G)

Hananiah Breaks Jeremiah’s Yoke

¹⁰ The prophet Hananiah then took the yoke bar from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah and broke it.^{(H) 11} In the presence of all the people Hananiah proclaimed, “This is what the Lord says: ‘In this way, within two years I will break the yoke of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon from the neck of all the nations.’” The prophet Jeremiah then went on his way.

The Lord’s Word against Hananiah

¹² After the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke bar from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ¹³ “Go say to Hananiah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You broke a wooden yoke bar, but in its place you will make an iron yoke bar. ¹⁴ For this is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: I have put an iron yoke on the neck of all these nations that they might serve King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon,^(I) and they will serve him.^(J) I have even put the wild animals under him.’”^(K)

¹⁵ The prophet Jeremiah said to the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord did not send you, but you have led these people to trust in a lie.^{(L) 16} Therefore, this is what the Lord says: ‘I am about to send you off the face of the earth. You will die this year because you have preached rebellion against the Lord.’”^{(M) 17} And the prophet Hananiah died that year in the seventh month.

Jeremiah’s Letter to the Exiles

29 This is the text of the letter^(A) that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining exiled elders, the priests, the prophets, and all the people Nebuchadnezzar^(B) had deported from Jerusalem to Babylon. ² This was after King Jeconiah,^[a](C) the queen mother, the court officials, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metalsmiths had left Jerusalem. ³ He sent the letter with Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah,^(D) whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. The letter stated:

⁴ This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the exiles I deported from Jerusalem to Babylon: ⁵ “Build houses and live in them.^(E) Plant gardens and eat their produce. ⁶ Find wives for yourselves, and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons and give your daughters to men in marriage so that they may bear sons and daughters. Multiply there; do not decrease.^{(F) 7} Pursue the well-being^[b] of the city I have deported you to. Pray to the Lord on its behalf,^(G) for when it thrives, you will thrive.”

⁸ For this is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Don’t let your prophets who are among you^(H) and your diviners deceive you,^(I) and don’t listen to the dreams you elicit from them, ⁹ for they are prophesying falsely to you in my name. I have not sent them.”^(J) This is the Lord’s declaration.

¹⁰ For this is what the Lord says: “When seventy years for Babylon are complete,^(K) I will attend to you and will confirm my promise concerning you to restore you to this place. ¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you”^(L)—this is the Lord’s declaration—“plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. ¹² You will call to me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.^{(M) 13} You will seek me^(N) and find me when you search for me with all your heart. ¹⁴ I will be found by you”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“and I will restore your fortunes^[c](O) and gather you from all the nations and places where I banished you”—this is the Lord’s declaration. “I will restore you to the place from which I deported you.”^(P)

¹⁵ You have said, “The Lord has raised up prophets for us in Babylon!” ¹⁶ But this is what the Lord says concerning the king sitting on David’s throne^(Q) and concerning all the people living in this city—that is, concerning your brothers who did not go with you into exile. ¹⁷ This is what the Lord of Armies says: “I am about to send sword, famine, and plague against them,^(R) and I will make them like rotten figs that are inedible because they are so bad. ¹⁸ I will pursue them with sword, famine, and plague. I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth—a curse and a desolation, an object of scorn and a disgrace among all the nations^(S) where I have banished them.^{(T) 19} I will do this because they have not listened to my words”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“the words that I sent to them with my servants the prophets time and time again.^[d](U) And you too have not listened.” This is the Lord’s declaration.

²⁰ Hear the word of the Lord, all you exiles I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon.^{(V) 21} This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says about Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, the ones prophesying a lie to you in my name:^(W) “I am about to hand them over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and he will kill them before your very eyes. ²² Based on what happens to them, all the exiles of Judah who are in Babylon will create a curse^(X) that says, ‘May the Lord make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire!’ ^{(Y) 23} because they have committed an outrage^(Z) in Israel by committing adultery with their neighbors’ wives and have spoken in my name a lie, which I did not command them. I am he who knows, and I am a witness.” This is the Lord’s declaration.

²⁴ To Shemaiah the Nehelamite you are to say, ²⁵ “This is what the Lord of Armies, the God of Israel, says: You^[e] in your own name have sent out letters to all the people of Jerusalem, to the priest Zephaniah^(AA) son of Maaseiah, and to all the priests, saying, ²⁶ ‘The Lord has appointed you priest in place of the priest Jehoiada to be the chief officer^(AB) in the temple of the Lord, responsible for every madman^(AC) who acts like a prophet. You must confine him in the stocks^(AD) and an iron collar. ²⁷ So now, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth who has been acting like a prophet among you?^{(AE) 28} For he has sent word to us in Babylon, claiming, “The exile will be long. Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat their produce.”’” ^(AF)

²⁹ The priest Zephaniah read this letter in the hearing of the prophet Jeremiah.

A Message about Shemaiah

³⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ³¹ “Send a message to all the exiles, saying, ‘This is what the Lord says concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite. Because Shemaiah prophesied to you, though I did not send him, and made you trust a lie,^{(AG) 32} this is what the Lord says: I am about to punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants. There will not be even one of his descendants living among these people,^(AH) nor will any ever see the good that I will bring to my people—this is the Lord’s declaration—for he has preached rebellion against the Lord.’”^(AI)

The Good and the Bad Figs

24 After King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had deported Jeconiah^[a] son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, the officials of Judah, and the craftsmen and metalsmiths^(A) from Jerusalem and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs^(B) placed in front of the temple of the Lord. ² One basket contained very good figs, like early figs,^(C) but the other basket contained very bad figs, so bad they were inedible. ³ The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

I said, “Figs! The good figs are very good, but the bad figs are extremely bad, so bad they are inedible.”

⁴ The word of the Lord came to me: ⁵ “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Like these good figs, so I regard as good the exiles from Judah I sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans. ⁶ I will keep my eyes on them for their good^(D) and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not demolish them; I will plant them and not uproot them.^{(E) 7} I will give them a heart to know me,^(F) that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God because they will return to me with all their heart.^(G)

⁸ “But as for the bad figs, so bad they are inedible,^(H) this is what the Lord says: In this way I will deal with King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land or living in the land of Egypt.^{(I) 9} I will make them an object of horror^(J) and a disaster to all the kingdoms of the earth, an example for disgrace, scorn, ridicule,^(K) and cursing, wherever I have banished them.^{(L) 10} I will send the sword, famine, and plague^(M) against them until they have perished from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.”

Proud or Humble

4 What is the source of wars and fights among you? Don’t they come from your passions^(A) that wage war within you?^{[a] 2} You desire and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and wage war.^[b] You do not have because you do not ask. ³ You ask and don’t receive because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.^(B)

⁴ You adulterous people!^[c] Don’t you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? So whoever wants to be the friend of the world becomes the enemy of God.^{(C) 5} Or do you think it’s without reason that the Scripture says: The spirit he made to dwell in us envies intensely?^[d](D)

⁶ But he gives greater grace. Therefore he says:

⁷ Therefore, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.^{(F) 8} Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.^{(G) 9} Be miserable and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.^{(H) 10} Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

¹¹ Don’t criticize one another, brothers and sisters. Anyone who defames or judges a fellow believer^[f] defames and judges the law. If you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.^{(I) 12} There is one lawgiver and judge^[g] who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?^(J)

Our Will and God’s Will

¹³ Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.”^{(K) 14} Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like vapor that appears for a little while, then vanishes.^(L)

¹⁵ Instead, you should say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.^{(M) 17} So it is sin to know the good and yet not do it.^(N)