26.1–24 The prose sermon is abbreviated in vv. 1–6; the rest of the chapter is devoted to narrating Jeremiah’s trial for his life.
26.1 The beginning of the reign of King Jehoiakim, probably his accession year, which was 609 BCE. See note on 7.2.
26.6 Shiloh. See note on 7.12–15.
26.7–9 Although Jeremiah’s sermon in vv. 1–6 was in conditional terms (If you will not listen…then I will make this house like Shiloh, vv. 4–6) the priests, the prophets, and all the people hear the sermon as an absolute threat against the temple and the city. They therefore consider Jeremiah’s words to be treasonous.
26.10 The officials of Judah could hear the commotion from their location in the palace, which was nearby (see ch. 36). New Gate. Location unknown.
26.16 Deuteronomy stipulated death for prophets who spoke in the name of a false god or falsely claimed to speak a word in the Lord’s name. In the latter case the only test for authenticity was whether the prophecy came to pass (18.15–22).
26.17–19 Micah’s prophecy against Jerusalem during Hezekiah’s attempt to throw off Assyrian rule (Hezekiah, 715–687/6 BCE) provided a precedent for Jeremiah’s temple sermon (Mic 3.12). Elders of the land, leaders among the citizen landowners in the countryside.
26.20–24 The story of Uriah’s execution illustrates King Jehoiakim’s ruthlessness in dealing with prophets who incurred his disfavor. Jehoiakim sought to take Jeremiah captive (36.26). For the execution of a prophet named Zechariah, see 2 Chr 24.20–22.
26.22 Elnathan son of Achbor. See 36.12, 25.
26.24 Ahikam, an officer who served Josiah (2 Kings 22.12, 14). His father, Shaphan, who was Josiah’s secretary, was involved in reporting the discovery of the law in the temple to the king. According to the story, this law became the basis for Josiah’s reforms. Ahikam also was among the entourage who consulted the prophet Huldah after the discovery of the law (see 2 Kings 22). Ahikam was the father of Gedaliah, the governor of Judah after the fall of Jerusalem; he was later assassinated by a Jewish zealot (ch. 40). The association between Jeremiah and the upright family of Shaphan was an important one.
JEREMIAH 27
The Sign of the Yoke
1In the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiaha son of Josiah of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD. 2Thus the LORD said to me: Make yourself a yoke of straps and bars, and put them on your neck. 3Send wordb to the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of the Ammonites, the king of Tyre, and the king of Sidon by the hand of the envoys who have come to Jerusalem to King Zedekiah of Judah. 4Give them this charge for their masters: Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: This is what you shall say to your masters: 5It is I who by my great power and my outstretched arm have made the earth, with the people and animals that are on the earth, and I give it to whomever I please. 6Now I have given all these lands into the hand of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, my servant, and I have given him even the wild animals of the field to serve him. 7All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson, until the time of his own land comes; then many nations and great kings shall make him their slave.
8But if any nation or kingdom will not serve this king, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, then I will punish that nation with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence, says the LORD, until I have completed itsc destruction by his hand. 9You, therefore, must not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers,d your soothsayers, or your sorcerers, who are saying to you, “You shall not serve the king of Babylon.” 10For they are prophesying a lie to you, with the result that you will be removed far from your land; I will drive you out, and you will perish. 11But any nation that will bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will leave on its own land, says the LORD, to till it and live there.
12I spoke to King Zedekiah of Judah in the same way: Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live. 13Why should you and your people die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, as the LORD has spoken concerning any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? 14Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are telling you not to serve the king of Babylon, for they are prophesying a lie to you. 15I have not sent them, says the LORD, but they are prophesying falsely in my name, with the result that I will drive you out and you will perish, you and the prophets who are prophesying to you.
16Then 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 are prophesying to you, saying, “The vessels of the LORD’s house will soon be brought back from Babylon,” for they are prophesying a lie to you. 17Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon and live. Why should this city become a desolation? 18If indeed they are prophets, and if the word of the LORD is with them, then let them intercede with the LORD of hosts, that the vessels left in the house of the LORD, in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem may not go to Babylon. 19For thus says the LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, the sea, the stands, and the rest of the vessels that are left in this city, 20which King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon did not take away when he took into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon King Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim of Judah, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem—21thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels left in the house of the LORD, in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem: 22They shall be carried to Babylon, and there they shall stay, until the day when I give attention to them, says the LORD. Then I will bring them up and restore them to this place.
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a Another reading is Jehoiakim
b Cn: Heb send them
c Heb their
d Gk Syr Vg: Heb dreams
27.1–28.17 Jeremiah opposes the efforts to persuade King Zedekiah (597–587/6 BCE) to rebel against the Babylonians. The date was probably 594/3 (see 28.1), when emissaries from Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon met in Jerusalem to plan revolution. In the Jewish court, pro-Egyptian conspirators probably looked to Egypt for help, especially with the accession of the new king, Psammetichus II (594–589). Jeremiah opposed rebellion, arguing that Judah’s only hope was to remain a vassal to the Babylonians (see note on 26.1–29.32).
27.1–22 The yoke of Babylon. This prose text centers on a symbolic act: the making and wearing of a yoke, which means submission to Babylon (see 13.1–11, 12–14; 16.1–13; 18.1–12; 19.1–15; 24.1–10). The chapter divides into three sermons: one to foreign kings (vv. 1–11), one to King Zedekiah (vv. 12–15), and one to priests and people (vv. 16–22).
27.1 In the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah (597 BCE) does not fit the chronology for the events in chs. 27–28. Most Hebrew manuscripts read, “In the beginning of the reign of King Jehoiakim,” but this is undoubtedly a scribal error. The events described in chs. 27–28 occurred in the fourth year of Zedekiah (594/3 BCE; see 28.1). Since the verse is absent in the Septuagint (i.e., the short text; see Introduction), it is likely an editorial or scribal error.
27.2 Yoke, used by two oxen to pull a heavy load. Normally, yokes consisted of a crossbar with leather or rope nooses or rods of wood placed around the animals’ necks. Attached to the crossbar was a wooden shaft for pulling the load (see Deut 21.3; 1 Sam 6.7;11.5; 1 Kings 19.19). For the yoke as a symbol of servitude, also see 1 Kings 12.1–11.
27.6 Nebuchadnezzar (see note on 21.2) is God’s servant, i.e., the one who carries out God’s will (see 25.9).
27.7 This verse is absent in the Septuagint. The prediction was not fulfilled, at least literally, since the last king of the Babylonian Empire was Nabonidus (556–539 BCE), the fourth king to succeed Nebuchadnezzar. Also, Nabonidus was not a descendant of Nebuchadnezzar. The reference may be to Nebuchadnezzar, Nabonidus, and Belshazzar (Dan 5.2). Belshazzar was the son of Nabonidus.
27.12–15 Zedekiah receives essentially the same warning delivered to the foreign kings: submit t
o the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar or face destruction. False prophets. See note on 23.9–40.
27.16 Priests, mentioned because they desire the return of the sacred objects carried away to Babylon in 597 BCE.
27.18–22 The sacred objects that remained after 597 BCE will be taken away to Babylon. There were two cast bronze, freestanding pillars (Jachin and Boaz) at the entrance of the temple (1 Kings 7.15–22). A huge basin or tank standing perhaps some ten feet in height, the sea was also cast bronze, perhaps located at the entrance to the temple and before the altar (1 Kings 7.23–26). Its estimated capacity was approximately 12,000 gallons. 2 Chr 4.6 indicates it was used as a basin in which the priests washed. The stands were ornamented bronze wagons upon which were mounted the ten lavers or wash basins (see 1 Kings 7.27–39). The pillars, basin, and stands were broken into pieces, and these and other vessels were taken to Babylon in 587 (see 2 Kings 25.13–17).
JEREMIAH 28
Hananiah Opposes Jeremiah and Dies
1In that same year, at the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah, in the fifth month of the fourth year, the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur, from Gibeon, spoke to me in the house of the LORD, in the presence of the priests and all the people, saying, 2“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. 3Within two years I will bring back to this place all the vessels of the LORD’s house, which King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon. 4I will also bring back to this place King Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah who went to Babylon, says the LORD, for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.”
5Then the prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of the LORD; 6and the prophet Jeremiah said, “Amen! May the LORD do so; may the LORD fulfill the words that you have prophesied, and bring back to this place from Babylon the vessels of the house of the LORD, and all the exiles. 7But listen now to this word that I speak in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people. 8The prophets who preceded you and me from ancient times prophesied war, famine, and pestilence against many countries and great kingdoms. 9As for the prophet who prophesies peace, when the word of that prophet comes true, then it will be known that the LORD has truly sent the prophet.”
10Then the prophet Hananiah took the yoke from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, and broke it. 11And Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people, saying, “Thus says the LORD: This is how I will break the yoke of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon from the neck of all the nations within two years.” At this, the prophet Jeremiah went his way.
12Sometime after the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: 13Go, tell Hananiah, Thus says the LORD: You have broken wooden bars only to forge iron bars in place of them! 14For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: I have put an iron yoke on the neck of all these nations so that they may serve King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and they shall indeed serve him; I have even given him the wild animals. 15And the prophet Jeremiah said to the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah, the LORD has not sent you, and you made this people trust in a lie. 16Therefore thus says the LORD: I am going to send you off the face of the earth. Within this year you will be dead, because you have spoken rebellion against the LORD.”
17In that same year, in the seventh month, the prophet Hananiah died.
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28.1–17 This prose narrative is the best illustration of conflict between two prophets who claim to be spokespersons for God (see 23.9–40). Hananiah (in Hebrew “Yahweh has been gracious”) utters an oracle of salvation: the yoke of Babylon has been broken and within two years God will bring back to Jerusalem King Jehoiachin, the exiles of 597 BCE, and the sacred vessels stolen from the temple. Jeremiah, wearing a yoke that symbolizes submission to Babylon (see ch. 27), opposes Hananiah and his hopeful word. Indeed, he announces an oracle of judgment against Hananiah, a prophecy that comes to pass in his death that same year (v. 17).
28.1 The Septuagint reads only “in the fourth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fifth month” (v. 1a), which must be correct. The Hebrew, which is translated here, is contradictory, for the beginning would be 597 BCE and the fourth year 594/3. Gibeon, modern el-Jib, five and a half miles northwest of Jerusalem. It contained a great high place where Solomon prayed for wisdom (1 Kings 3.4–15).
28.8–9 Although there were occasional oracles of salvation from true prophets, the prophetic tradition was dominated by announcements of punishment. By contrast, false prophets generally promised good fortune (see Deut 18.20–22).
JEREMIAH 29
Jeremiah’s Letter to the Exiles in Babylon
1These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2This was after King Jeconiah, and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. 3The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It said: 4Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. 8For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let the prophets and the diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream,a 9for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, says the LORD.
10For thus says the LORD: Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. 12Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. 13When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, 14I will let you find me, says the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.
15Because you have said, “The LORD has raised up prophets for us in Babylon,”—16Thus says the LORD concerning the king who sits on the throne of David, and concerning all the people who live in this city, your kinsfolk who did not go out with you into exile: 17Thus says the LORD of hosts, I am going to let loose on them sword, famine, and pestilence, and I will make them like rotten figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten. 18I will pursue them with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence, and will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be an object of cursing, and horror, and hissing, and a derision among all the nations where I have driven them, 19because they did not heed my words, says the LORD, when I persistently sent to you my servants the prophets, but theyb would not listen, says the LORD. 20But now, all you exiles whom I sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon, hear the word of the LORD: 21Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying a lie to you in my name: I am going to deliver them into the hand of King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon, and he shall kill them before your eyes. 22And on account of them this curse shall be used by all the exiles from Judah in Babylon: “The LORD make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire,” 23because they have perpetrated outrage in Israel and have committe
d adultery with their neighbors’ wives, and have spoken in my name lying words that I did not command them; I am the one who knows and bears witness, says the LORD.
The Letter of Shemaiah
24To Shemaiah of Nehelam you shall say: 25Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: In your own name you sent a letter to all the people who are in Jerusalem, and to the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, and to all the priests, saying, 26The LORD himself has made you priest instead of the priest Jehoiada, so that there may be officers in the house of the LORD to control any madman who plays the prophet, to put him in the stocks and the collar. 27So now why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth who plays the prophet for you? 28For he has actually sent to us in Babylon, saying, “It will be a long time; build houses and live in them, and plant gardens and eat what they produce.”
29The priest Zephaniah read this letter in the hearing of the prophet Jeremiah. 30Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: 31Send to all the exiles, saying, Thus says the LORD concerning Shemaiah of Nehelam: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, though I did not send him, and has led you to trust in a lie, 32therefore thus says the LORD: I am going to punish Shemaiah of Nehelam and his descendants; he shall not have anyone living among this people to seec the good that I am going to do to my people, says the LORD, for he has spoken rebellion against the LORD.
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a Cn: Heb your dreams that you cause to dream
b Syr: Heb you
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