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In the beginning of the reign of ^[a](a)Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord , saying—

thus says the Lord to me—"Make for yourself ^(b)bonds and ^(c)yokes and put them on your neck,

and send ^[b]word to the king of ^(d)Edom, to the king of ^(e)Moab, to the king of the sons of ^(f)Ammon, to the king of ^(g)Tyre and to the king of ^(h)Sidon ^[c]by the messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.

Command them to go to their masters, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, thus you shall say to your masters,

"⁽ⁱ⁾I have made the earth, the men and the beasts which are on the face of the earth ^(j)by My great power and by My outstretched arm, and I will ^(k)give it to the one who is ^[d]pleasing in My sight.

Now I ^(l)have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, ^(m)My servant, and I have given him also the ⁽ⁿ⁾wild animals of the field to serve him.

^(o)All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson ^(p)until the time of his own land comes; then ^(q)many nations and great kings will ^[e]make him their servant.

"It will be, that the nation or the kingdom which ^(r)will not serve him, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the ^(s)sword, with famine and with pestilence," declares the Lord , "until I have destroyed ^[f]it by his hand.

But as for you, ^(t)do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your ^[g]dreamers, your soothsayers or your sorcerers who speak to you, saying, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon.'

For they prophesy a ^(u)lie to you in order to ^(v)remove you far from your land; and I will drive you out and you will perish.

But the nation which will ^(w)bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will ^(x)let remain on its land," declares the Lord , "and they will till it and dwell in it."'"

I spoke words like all these to ^(y)Zedekiah king of Judah, saying, "Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him and his people, and live!

Why will you ^(z)die, you and your people, by the sword, famine and pestilence, as the Lord has spoken to that nation which will not serve the king of Babylon?

So ^(aa)do not listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon,' for they prophesy a ^(ab)lie to you;

for ^(ac)I have not sent them," declares the Lord , "but they ^(ad)prophesy falsely in My name, in order that I may ^(ae)drive you out and that you may perish, ^(af)you and the prophets who prophesy to you."

Then I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, "Thus says the Lord : Do not listen to the words of your prophets who prophesy to you, saying, ‘Behold, the ^(ag)vessels of the Lord's house will now shortly be brought again from Babylon'; for they are prophesying a ^(ah)lie to you.

Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon, and live! Why should this city ^(ai)become a ruin?

But ^(aj)if they are prophets, and if the word of the Lord is with them, let them now ^(ak)entreat the Lord of hosts that the vessels which are left in the house of the Lord , in the house of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem may not go to Babylon.

For thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the ^(al)pillars, concerning the sea, concerning the stands and concerning the rest of the vessels that are left in this city,

which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take when he ^(am)carried into exile Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem.

Yes, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that are left in the house of the Lord and in the house of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem,

‘They will be ^(an)carried to Babylon and they will be there until the ^(ao)day I visit them,' declares the Lord . ‘Then I will ^(ap)bring them ^[h]back and restore them to this place.'"

Now in the same year, ^(a)in the beginning of the reign of ^(b)Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year, in the fifth month, ^(c)Hananiah the son of Azzur, the prophet, who was from ^(d)Gibeon, spoke to me in the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and all the people, saying,

"^(e)Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.

Within two years I am going to bring back to this place ^(f)all the vessels of the Lord's house, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon.

I am ^(g)also going to bring back to this place ^(h)Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and all the ⁽ⁱ⁾exiles of Judah who went to Babylon,' declares the Lord , ‘for I will break the ^(j)yoke of the king of Babylon.'"

Then the prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and in the presence of all the people who were standing in the ^(k)house of the Lord ,

and the prophet Jeremiah said, "^(l)Amen! May the Lord do so; may the Lord ^[a]confirm your words which you have prophesied to bring back the vessels of the Lord's house and all the exiles, from Babylon to this place.

Yet ^(m)hear now this word which I am about to speak in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people!

The prophets who were before me and before you from ancient times ⁽ⁿ⁾prophesied against many lands and against great kingdoms, of war and of calamity and of pestilence.

The prophet who prophesies of peace, ^(o)when the word of the prophet comes to pass, then that prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent."

Then Hananiah the prophet took the ^(p)yoke from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet and broke it.

Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people, saying, "^(q)Thus says the Lord , ‘Even so will I break within two full years the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all the nations.'" Then the prophet Jeremiah went his way.

The ^(r)word of the Lord came to Jeremiah after Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying,

"Go and speak to Hananiah, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord , "You have broken the yokes of wood, but you have made instead of them ^(s)yokes of iron."

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, "I have put a ^(t)yoke of iron on the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they will ^(u)serve him. And ^(v)I have also given him the beasts of the field."'"

Then Jeremiah the prophet said to Hananiah the prophet, "Listen now, Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, and ^(w)you have made this people trust in a lie.

Therefore thus says the Lord , ‘^(x)Behold, I am about to ^[b]remove you from the face of the earth. This year you are going to ^(y)die, because you have ^[c](z)counseled rebellion against the Lord .'"

So Hananiah the prophet died in the same year in the seventh month.

Now these are the words of the ^(a)letter which Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the rest of the elders of the exile, the priests, the prophets and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.

(This was after King ^(b)Jeconiah and the ^(c)queen mother, the court officials, the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem.)

The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of ^(d)Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying,

"Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have ^(e)sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon,

‘^(f)Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their ^[a]produce.

Take ^(g)wives and ^[b]become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease.

^(h)Seek the ^[c]welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and ⁽ⁱ⁾pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its ^[d]welfare you will have ^[e]welfare.'

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your ^(j)prophets who are in your midst and your diviners ^(k)deceive you, and do not listen to ^[f](l)the dreams which ^[g]they dream.

For they ^(m)prophesy falsely to you in My name; ⁽ⁿ⁾I have not sent them,' declares the Lord .

"For thus says the Lord , ‘When ^(o)seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My ^(p)good word to you, to bring you back to this place.

For I know the ^(q)plans that I ^[h]have for you,' declares the Lord , ‘plans for ^(r)welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a ^(s)hope.

Then you will ^(t)call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will ^(u)listen to you.

You will ^(v)seek Me and find Me when you ^(w)search for Me with all your heart.

I will be ^(x)found by you,' declares the Lord , ‘and I will ^(y)restore your ^[i]fortunes and will ^(z)gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,' declares the Lord , ‘and I will ^(aa)bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.'

"Because you have said, ‘The Lord has raised up ^(ab)prophets for us in Babylon'—

for thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, and concerning all the people who dwell in this city, your brothers who did ^(ac)not go with you into exile—

thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Behold, I am sending upon them the ^(ad)sword, famine and pestilence, and I will make them like ^(ae)split-open figs that cannot be eaten due to rottenness.

I will pursue them with the sword, with famine and with pestilence; and I will ^(af)make them a terror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a ^(ag)curse and a horror and a ^(ah)hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them,

because they have ^(ai)not listened to My words,' declares the Lord , ‘which I sent to them again and again by ^(aj)My servants the prophets; but you did not listen,' declares the Lord .

You, therefore, hear the word of the Lord , all you exiles, whom I have ^(ak)sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon.

"Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who are ^(al)prophesying to you falsely in My name, ‘Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will slay them before your eyes.

Because of them a ^(am)curse will be ^[j]used by all the exiles from Judah who are in Babylon, saying, "May the Lord make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon ^(an)roasted in the fire,

because they have ^(ao)acted foolishly in Israel, and ^(ap)have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives and have ^(aq)spoken words in My name falsely, which I did not command them; and I am He who ^(ar)knows and am a witness," declares the Lord .'"

To ^(as)Shemaiah the Nehelamite you shall speak, saying,

"Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Because you have sent ^(at)letters in your own name to all the people who are in Jerusalem, and to ^(au)Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, and to all the priests, saying,

"The Lord has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, to be the ^[k](av)overseer in the house of the Lord over every ^(aw)madman who ^(ax)prophesies, to ^(ay)put him in the stocks and in the iron collar,

now then, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of ^(az)Anathoth who prophesies to you?

For he has ^(ba)sent to us in Babylon, saying, ‘The exile will be ^(bb)long; ^(bc)build houses and live in them and plant gardens and eat their ^[l]produce.'"'"

^(bd)Zephaniah the priest read this letter ^[m]to Jeremiah the prophet.

Then came the word of the Lord to Jeremiah, saying,

"Send to ^(be)all the exiles, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord concerning ^(bf)Shemaiah the Nehelamite, "Because Shemaiah has ^(bg)prophesied to you, although I did not send him, and he has ^(bh)made you trust in a lie,"

therefore thus says the Lord , "Behold, I am about to ^(bi)punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his ^[n]descendants; he will ^(bj)not have anyone living among this people, ^(bk)and he will not see the good that I am about to do to My people," declares the Lord , "because he has ^[o](bl)preached rebellion against the Lord ."'"