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Jeremiah Confronted by a False Prophet
28 The following events occurred in that same year, early in the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah. To be more precise, it was the fifth month of the fourth year of his reign.[a] The prophet Hananiah son of Azzur, who was from Gibeon, spoke to Jeremiah[b] in the Lord’s temple in the presence of the priests and all the people:[c] 2 “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[d] says, ‘I will break the yoke of servitude[e] to the king of Babylon. 3 Before two years are over, I will bring back to this place everything that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took from it and carried away to Babylon. 4 I will also bring back to this place Jehoiakim’s son King Jeconiah of Judah and all the exiles who were taken to Babylon.’ Indeed, the Lord affirms,[f] ‘I will break the yoke of servitude to the king of Babylon.’”
5 Then the prophet Jeremiah responded to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the Lord’s temple. 6 The prophet Jeremiah said, “Amen! May the Lord do all this! May the Lord make your prophecy come true! May he bring back to this place from Babylon all the valuable articles taken from the Lord’s temple and the people who were carried into exile. 7 But listen to what I say to you and to all these people.[g] 8 From earliest times, the prophets who preceded you and me invariably[h] prophesied war, disaster,[i] and plagues against many countries and great kingdoms. 9 So if a prophet prophesied[j] peace and prosperity, it was only known that the Lord truly sent him when what he prophesied came true.”
10 The prophet Hananiah then took the yoke off the prophet Jeremiah’s neck and broke it. 11 Then he spoke up in the presence of all the people. “The Lord says, ‘In the same way I will break the yoke of servitude of all the nations to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon[k] before two years are over.’” After he heard this, the prophet Jeremiah departed and went on his way.[l]
12 But shortly after the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke off the prophet Jeremiah’s neck, the Lord’s message came to Jeremiah. 13 “Go and tell Hananiah that the Lord says,[m] ‘You have indeed broken the wooden yoke. But you have[n] only succeeded in replacing it with an iron one![o] 14 For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[p] says, “I have put an irresistible yoke of servitude on all these nations[q] so they will serve King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. And they will indeed serve him. I have even given him control over the wild animals.”’”[r] 15 Then the prophet Jeremiah told the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord did not send you! You are making these people trust in a lie.[s] 16 So the Lord says, ‘I will most assuredly remove[t] you from the face of the earth. You will die this very year because you have counseled rebellion against the Lord.’”[u]
17 In the seventh month of that very same year[v] the prophet Hananiah died.
Jeremiah’s Letter to the Exiles
29 The prophet Jeremiah sent a letter to the exiles Nebuchadnezzar had carried off from Jerusalem to Babylon. It was addressed to the elders who were left among the exiles, to the priests, to the prophets, and to all the other people who were exiled in Babylon.[w] 2 He sent it after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the palace officials,[x] the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had been exiled from Jerusalem.[y] 3 He sent it with Elasah son of Shaphan[z] and Gemariah son of Hilkiah.[aa] King Zedekiah of Judah had sent these men to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.[ab] The letter said:
4 “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[ac] says to all those he sent into exile[ad] to Babylon from Jerusalem, 5 ‘Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Marry and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons and allow your daughters to get married so that they too can have sons and daughters. Grow in number; do not dwindle away. 7 Work to see that the city where I sent you as exiles enjoys peace and prosperity. Pray to the Lord for it. For as it prospers you will prosper.’
8 “For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[ae] says, ‘Do not let the prophets among you or those who claim to be able to predict the future by divination[af] deceive you. And do not pay any attention to the dreams that you are encouraging them to dream. 9 They are prophesying lies to you and claiming my authority to do so.[ag] But I did not send them. I, the Lord, affirm it!’[ah]
10 “For the Lord says, ‘Only when the seventy years of Babylonian rule[ai] are over will I again take up consideration for you.[aj] Then I will fulfill my gracious promise to you and restore[ak] you to your homeland.[al] 11 For I know what I have planned for you,’ says the Lord.[am] ‘I have plans to prosper you, not to harm you. I have plans to give you[an] a future filled with hope.[ao] 12 When you call out to me and come to me in prayer,[ap] I will hear your prayers.[aq] 13 When you seek me in prayer and worship, you will find me available to you. If you seek me with all your heart and soul,[ar] 14 I will make myself available to you,’[as] says the Lord.[at] ‘Then I will reverse your plight[au] and will regather you from all the nations and all the places where I have exiled you,’ says the Lord.[av] ‘I will bring you back to the place from which I exiled you.’
15 “You say, ‘The Lord has raised up prophets of good news[aw] for us here in Babylon.’ 16 But just listen to what the Lord has to say about[ax] the king who occupies David’s throne and all your fellow countrymen who are still living in this city of Jerusalem[ay] and were not carried off into exile with you. 17 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies[az] says, ‘I will bring war,[ba] starvation, and disease on them. I will treat them like figs that are so rotten[bb] they cannot be eaten. 18 I will chase after them with war,[bc] starvation, and disease. I will make all the kingdoms of the earth horrified at what happens to them. I will make them examples of those who are cursed, objects of horror, hissing scorn, and ridicule among all the nations where I exile them. 19 For they have not paid attention to what I said to them through my servants the prophets whom I sent to them over and over again,’[bd] says the Lord.[be] ‘And you exiles[bf] have not paid any attention to them either,’ says the Lord.[bg] 20 ‘So pay attention to the Lord’s message,[bh] all you exiles whom I have sent to Babylon from Jerusalem.’
21 “The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[bi] also has something to say about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you and claiming my authority to do so.[bj] ‘I will hand them over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and he will execute them before your very eyes. 22 And all the exiles of Judah who are in Babylon will use them as examples when they put a curse on anyone. They will say, “May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab whom the king of Babylon roasted to death in the fire!”[bk] 23 This will happen to them because they have done what is shameful[bl] in Israel. They have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives and have spoken lies while claiming my authority.[bm] They have spoken words that I did not command them to speak. I know what they have done. I have been a witness to it,’ says the Lord.”[bn]
A Response to the Letter and a Subsequent Letter
24 The Lord told Jeremiah, “Tell[bo] Shemaiah the Nehelamite[bp] 25 that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[bq] has a message for him.[br] Tell him,[bs] ‘On your own initiative[bt] you sent a letter[bu] to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah[bv] and to all the other priests and to all the people in Jerusalem. In your letter you said to Zephaniah,[bw] 26 “The Lord has made you priest in place of Jehoiada.[bx] He has put you in charge in the Lord’s temple of controlling[by] any lunatic[bz] who pretends to be a prophet.[ca] And it is your duty to put any such person in the stocks[cb] with an iron collar around his neck.[cc] 27 You should have reprimanded Jeremiah from Anathoth who is pretending to be a prophet among you![cd] 28 For he has even sent a message to us here in Babylon. He wrote and told us,[ce] ‘You will be there a long time. Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat what they produce.’”’”[cf]
29 Zephaniah the priest read that letter to the prophet Jeremiah.[cg] 30 Then the Lord’s message came to Jeremiah: 31 “Send a message to all the exiles in Babylon. Tell them, ‘The Lord has spoken about Shemaiah the Nehelamite: “Shemaiah has spoken to you as a prophet even though I did not send him. He is making you trust in a lie.[ch] 32 Because he has done this,”[ci] the Lord says, “I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his whole family. There will not be any of them left to experience the good things that I will do for my people. I, the Lord, affirm it! For he counseled rebellion against the Lord.”’”[cj]
Salutation
1 From Paul,[a] an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior[b] and of Christ Jesus our hope, 2 to Timothy, my genuine child in the faith. Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord!
Timothy’s Task in Ephesus
3 As I urged you when I was leaving for Macedonia, stay on in Ephesus to instruct[c] certain people not to spread false teachings,[d] 4 nor to occupy themselves with myths and interminable genealogies.[e] Such things promote useless speculations rather than God’s redemptive plan[f] that operates by faith. 5 But the aim of our instruction[g] is love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith.[h] 6 Some have strayed from these and turned away to empty discussion. 7 They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not understand what they are saying or the things they insist on so confidently.[i]
8 But we know that the law is good if someone uses it legitimately, 9 realizing that law[j] is not intended for a righteous person, but for lawless and rebellious people, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10 sexually immoral people, practicing homosexuals,[k] kidnappers, liars, perjurers—in fact, for any who live contrary to sound teaching. 11 This[l] accords with the glorious gospel of the blessed God[m] that was entrusted to me.[n]
12 I am grateful to the one who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he considered me faithful in putting me into ministry, 13 even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor, and an arrogant[o] man. But I was treated with mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief, 14 and our Lord’s grace was abundant, bringing faith and love in Christ Jesus.[p] 15 This saying[q] is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them![r] 16 But here is why I was treated with mercy: so that[s] in me as the worst,[t] Christ Jesus could demonstrate his utmost patience, as an example for those who are going to believe in him for eternal life. 17 Now to the eternal king,[u] immortal, invisible, the only[v] God, be honor and glory forever and ever![w] Amen.
18 I put this charge[x] before you, Timothy my child, in keeping with the prophecies once spoken about you,[y] in order that with such encouragement[z] you may fight the good fight. 19 To do this[aa] you must hold firmly to faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and so have suffered shipwreck in regard to the faith. 20 Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I handed over to Satan[ab] to be taught not to blaspheme.
Psalm 86[a]
A prayer of David.
86 Listen,[b] O Lord. Answer me.
For I am oppressed and needy.
2 Protect me,[c] for I am loyal.
You are my God; deliver your servant who trusts in you.
3 Have mercy on me,[d] O Lord,
for I cry out to you all day long.
4 Make your servant[e] glad,
for to you, O Lord, I pray.[f]
5 Certainly,[g] O Lord, you are kind[h] and forgiving,
and show great faithfulness to all who cry out to you.
6 O Lord, hear my prayer.
Pay attention to my plea for mercy.
7 In my time of trouble I cry out to you,
for you will answer me.
8 None can compare to you among the gods, O Lord.
Your exploits are incomparable.[i]
9 All the nations, whom you created,
will come and worship you,[j] O Lord.
They will honor your name.
10 For you are great and do amazing things.
You alone are God.
11 O Lord, teach me how you want me to live.[k]
Then I will obey your commands.[l]
Make me wholeheartedly committed to you.[m]
12 O Lord, my God, I will give you thanks with my whole heart.
I will honor your name continually.[n]
13 For you will extend your great loyal love to me,[o]
and will deliver my life[p] from the depths of Sheol.[q]
14 O God, arrogant men attack me;[r]
a gang[s] of ruthless men, who do not respect you, seek my life.[t]
15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and merciful God.
You are patient[u] and demonstrate great loyal love and faithfulness.[v]
16 Turn toward me and have mercy on me.
Give your servant your strength.
Deliver this son of your female servant.[w]
17 Show me evidence of your favor.[x]
Then those who hate me will see it and be ashamed,[y]
for you, O Lord, will help me and comfort me.[z]
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