New King James Version (NKJV)

The Potter and the Clay

1 The word which came to Jeremiah from theLord, saying:

2 “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.”

3 Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel.

4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.

5 Then the word of theLordcame to me, saying:

6 “O house of Israel,can I not do with you as this potter?” says theLord. “Look,as the clayisin the potter’s hand, soareyou in My hand, O house of Israel!

7 The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, topluck up, to pull down, and to destroyit,

8 if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil,I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it.

9 And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plantit,

10 if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.

11 “Now therefore, speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says theLord: “Behold, I am fashioning a disaster and devising a plan against you.Return now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doingsgood.” ’ ”

God’s Warning Rejected

12 And they said,“That is hopeless! So we will walk according to our own plans, and we will every one obey thedictates of his evil heart.”

13 Therefore thus says theLord:

# “Ask now among the Gentiles,

Who has heard such things?

# The virgin of Israel has donea very horrible thing.

14 Willamanleave the snow water of Lebanon,

Whichcomesfrom the rock of the field?

Will the cold flowing waters be forsaken for strange waters?

15 “Because My people have forgottenMe,

They have burned incense to worthless idols.

And they have caused themselves to stumble in their ways,

# Fromtheancient paths,

To walk in pathways and not on a highway,

16 To make their landdesolateanda perpetualhissing;

Everyone who passes by it will be astonished

And shake his head.

17 I will scatter themas with an east wind before the enemy;

# I will show them the back and not the face

In the day of their calamity.”

Jeremiah Persecuted

18 Then they said,“Come and let us devise plans against Jeremiah;for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come and let us attack him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.”

19 Give heed to me, OLord,

And listen to the voice of those who contend with me!

20 Shall evil be repaid for good?

# For they havedug a pit for my life.

# Remember that Istood before You

To speak good for them,

To turn away Your wrath from them.

21 Thereforedeliver up their children to the famine,

And pour out theirblood

By the force of the sword;

Let their wivesbecomewidows

# Andbereaved of their children.

Let their men be put to death,

Their young menbeslain

By the sword in battle.

22 Let a cry be heard from their houses,

When You bring a troop suddenly upon them;

For they have dug a pit to take me,

And hidden snares for my feet.

23 Yet,Lord, You know all their counsel

Which is against me, to slayme.

# Provide no atonement for their iniquity,

Nor blot out their sin from Your sight;

But let them be overthrown before You.

Dealthuswith them

# In the time of Youranger.

The Sign of the Broken Flask

1 Thus says theLord: “Go and get a potter’s earthen flask, andtakesome of the elders of the people and some of the elders of the priests.

2 And go out tothe Valley of the Son of Hinnom, whichisby the entry of the Potsherd Gate; and proclaim there the words that I will tell you,

3 and say, ‘Hear the word of theLord, O kings of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem. Thus says theLordof hosts, the God of Israel: “Behold, I will bring such a catastrophe on this place, that whoever hears of it, his ears willtingle.

4 “Because theyhave forsaken Me and made this an alien place, because they have burned incense in it to other gods whom neither they, their fathers, nor the kings of Judah have known, and have filled this place withthe blood of the innocents

5 (they have also built the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fireforburnt offerings to Baal,which I did not command or speak, nor did it come into My mind),

6 therefore behold, the days are coming,” says theLord, “that this place shall no more be called Tophet orthe Valley of the Son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter.

7 And I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place,and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies and by the hands of those who seek their lives; theircorpses I will give as meat for the birds of the heaven and for the beasts of the earth.

8 I will make this citydesolate and a hissing; everyone who passes by it will be astonished and hiss because of all its plagues.

9 And I will cause them to eat theflesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and everyone shall eat the flesh of his friend in the siege and in the desperation with which their enemies and those who seek their lives shall drive them to despair.” ’

10 “Then you shall break the flask in the sight of the men who go with you,

11 and say to them, ‘Thus says theLordof hosts:“Even so I will break this people and this city, asonebreaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot be made whole again; and they shallburythemin Tophet tillthereisno place to bury.

12 Thus I will do to this place,” says theLord, “and to its inhabitants, and make this city like Tophet.

13 And the houses of Jerusalem and the houses of the kings of Judah shall be defiledlike the place of Tophet, because of all the houses on whoseroofs they have burned incense to all the host of heaven, andpoured out drink offerings to other gods.” ’ ”

14 Then Jeremiah came from Tophet, where theLordhad sent him to prophesy; and he stood inthe court of the Lord’s house and said to all the people,

15 “Thus says theLordof hosts, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I will bring on this city and on all her towns all the doom that I have pronounced against it, becausethey have stiffened their necks that they might not hear My words.’ ”

The Word of God to Pashhur

1 NowPashhur the son ofImmer, the priest whowasalso chief governor in the house of theLord, heard that Jeremiah prophesied these things.

2 Then Pashhur struck Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks thatwerein the highgate of Benjamin, whichwasby the house of theLord.

3 And it happened on the next day that Pashhur brought Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then Jeremiah said to him, “TheLordhas not called your name Pashhur, but Magor-Missabib.

4 For thus says theLord: ‘Behold, I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and your eyes shall seeit.I willgive all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive to Babylon and slay them with the sword.

5 Moreover Iwill deliver all the wealth of this city, all its produce, and all its precious things; all the treasures of the kings of Judah I will give into the hand of their enemies, who will plunder them, seize them, andcarry them to Babylon.

6 And you, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house, shall go into captivity. You shall go to Babylon, and there you shall die, and be buried there, you and all your friends, to whom you haveprophesied lies.’ ”

Jeremiah’s Unpopular Ministry

7 OLord, You induced me, and I was persuaded;

# You are stronger than I, and have prevailed.

# I am in derision daily;

Everyone mocks me.

8 For when I spoke, I cried out;

# I shouted, “Violence and plunder!”

Because the word of theLordwas made to me

A reproach and a derision daily.

9 Then I said, “I will not make mention of Him,

Nor speak anymore in His name.”

# ButHiswordwas in my heart like aburning fire

Shut up in my bones;

I was weary of holdingitback,

# AndI could not.

10 For I heard many mocking:

“Fear on every side!”

“Report,”theysay,“and we will report it!”

# All my acquaintances watched for my stumbling,saying,

“Perhaps he can be induced;

Then we will prevail against him,

And we will take our revenge on him.”

11 But theLordiswith me as a mighty, awesome One.

# Therefore my persecutors will stumble, and will notprevail.

They will be greatly ashamed, for they will not prosper.

# Theireverlasting confusion will never be forgotten.

12 But, OLordof hosts,

# You whotest the righteous,

Andsee the mind and heart,

# Let me see Your vengeance on them;

For I have pleaded my cause before You.

13 Sing to theLord! Praise theLord!

# ForHe has delivered the life of the poor

From the hand of evildoers.

14 Cursedbethe day in which I was born!

Let the day not be blessed in which my mother bore me!

15 Let the manbecursed

Who brought news to my father, saying,

“A male child has been born to you!”

Making him very glad.

16 And let that man be like the cities

# Which theLordoverthrew, and did not relent;

# Let himhear the cry in the morning

And the shouting at noon,

17 Because he did not kill me from the womb,

That my mother might have been my grave,

And her womb always enlargedwithme.

18 Why did I come forth from the womb tosee labor and sorrow,

That my days should be consumed with shame?

Jerusalem’s Doom Is Sealed

1 The word which came to Jeremiah from theLordwhenKing Zedekiah sent to himPashhur the son of Melchiah, andZephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, saying,

2 “Please inquire of theLordfor us, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon makes war against us. Perhaps theLordwill deal with us according to all His wonderful works, thatthekingmay go away from us.”

3 Then Jeremiah said to them, “Thus you shall say to Zedekiah,

4 ‘Thus says theLordGod of Israel: “Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war thatarein your hands, with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who besiege you outside the walls; andI will assemble them in the midst of this city.

5 IMyself will fight against you with anoutstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger and fury and great wrath.

6 I will strike the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence.

7 And afterward,” says theLord,“I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his servants and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence and the sword and the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life; and he shall strike them with the edge of the sword.He shall not spare them, or have pity or mercy.” ’

8 “Now you shall say to this people, ‘Thus says theLord: “Behold,I set before you the way of life and the way of death.

9 He whoremains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes out and defects to the Chaldeans who besiege you, he shalllive, and his life shall be as a prize to him.

10 For I haveset My face against this city for adversity and not for good,” says theLord.“It shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shallburn it with fire.” ’

Message to the House of David

11 “And concerning the house of the king of Judah,say,‘Hear the word of theLord,

12 O house of David! Thus says theLord:

# “Execute judgmentin the morning;

And deliverhimwhoisplundered

Out of the hand of the oppressor,

Lest My fury go forth like fire

And burn so that no one can quenchit,

Because of the evil of your doings.

13 “Behold,Iamagainst you, O inhabitant of the valley,

Androck of the plain,” says theLord,

# “Who say,‘Who shall come down against us?

Or who shall enter our dwellings?’

14 But I will punish you according to thefruit of your doings,” says theLord;

“I will kindle a fire in its forest,

# Andit shall devour all things around it.” ’ ”

1 Thus says theLord: “Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and there speak this word,

2 and say,‘Hear the word of theLord, O king of Judah, you who sit on the throne of David, you and your servants and your people who enter these gates!

3 Thus says theLord:“Execute judgment and righteousness, and deliver the plundered out of the hand of the oppressor. Do no wrong and do no violence to the stranger, thefatherless, or the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place.

4 For if you indeed do this thing,then shall enter the gates of this house, riding on horses and in chariots, accompanied by servants and people, kings who sit on the throne of David.

5 But if you will not hear these words,I swear by Myself,” says theLord, “that this house shall become a desolation.” ’ ”

6 For thus says theLordto the house of the king of Judah:

# “YouareGilead to Me,

The head of Lebanon;

YetI surely will make you a wilderness,

Citieswhichare not inhabited.

7 I will prepare destroyers against you,

Everyone with his weapons;

# They shall cut downyour choice cedars

# And casttheminto the fire.

8 And many nations will pass by this city; and everyone will say to his neighbor,‘Why has theLorddone so to this great city?’

9 Then they will answer,‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of theLordtheir God, and worshiped other gods and served them.’ ”

10 Weep not forthe dead, nor bemoan him;

# Weep bitterly for himwho goes away,

For he shall return no more,

Nor see his native country.

Message to the Sons of Josiah

11 For thus says theLordconcerningShallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father,who went from this place: “He shall not return here anymore,

12 but he shall die in the place where they have led him captive, and shall see this land no more.

13 “Woeto him who builds his house by unrighteousness

And his chambers by injustice,

# Whouses his neighbor’s service without wages

And gives him nothing for his work,

14 Who says, ‘I will build myself a wide house with spacious chambers,

And cut out windows for it,

Panelingitwith cedar

And paintingitwith vermilion.’

15 “Shall you reign because you encloseyourselfin cedar?

Did not your father eat and drink,

And do justice and righteousness?

# Thenitwaswell with him.

16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy;

Thenitwaswell.

Wasnot this knowing Me?” says theLord.

17 “Yetyour eyes and your heartarefor nothing but your covetousness,

For shedding innocent blood,

And practicing oppression and violence.”

18 Therefore thus says theLordconcerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

# “They shall not lament for him,

# Saying,‘Alas, my brother!’ or ‘Alas, my sister!’

They shall not lament for him,

Saying,‘Alas, master!’ or ‘Alas, his glory!’

19 He shall be buried with the burial of a donkey,

Dragged and cast out beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

20 “Go up to Lebanon, and cry out,

And lift up your voice in Bashan;

Cry from Abarim,

For all your lovers are destroyed.

21 I spoke to you in your prosperity,

Butyou said, ‘I will not hear.’

# Thishasbeenyour manner from your youth,

That you did not obey My voice.

22 The wind shall eat up allyour rulers,

And your lovers shall go into captivity;

Surely then you will be ashamed and humiliated

For all your wickedness.

23 O inhabitant of Lebanon,

Making your nest in the cedars,

How gracious will you be when pangs come upon you,

# Likethe pain of a woman in labor?

Message to Coniah

24 “AsI live,” says theLord,“though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah,were the signet on My right hand, yet I would pluck you off;

25 and I will give you into the hand of those who seek your life, and into the handofthosewhose face you fear—the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the hand of the Chaldeans.

26 So I will cast you out, and your mother who bore you, into another country where you were not born; and there you shall die.

27 But to the land to which they desire to return, there they shall not return.

28 “Is this man Coniah a despised, broken idol—

# A vessel in whichisno pleasure?

Why are they cast out, he and his descendants,

And cast into a land which they do not know?

29 O earth, earth, earth,

Hear the word of theLord!

30 Thus says theLord:

# ‘Write this man down aschildless,

A manwhoshall not prosper in his days;

# Fornone of his descendants shall prosper,

Sitting on the throne of David,

And ruling anymore in Judah.’ ”

The Branch of Righteousness

1 “Woeto the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” says theLord.

2 Therefore thus says theLordGod of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: “You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them.Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings,” says theLord.

3 “ButI will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.

4 I will set upshepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking,” says theLord.

5 “Behold,thedays are coming,” says theLord,

“That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness;

A King shall reign and prosper,

# And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.

6 In His days Judah will be saved,

# And Israelwill dwell safely;

# NowthisisHis name by which He will be called:

THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.

7 “Therefore, behold,thedays are coming,” says theLord, “that they shall no longer say, ‘As theLordlives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’

8 but, ‘As theLordlives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north countryand from all the countries where I had driven them.’ And they shall dwell in their ownland.”

False Prophets and Empty Oracles

9 My heart within me is broken

Because of the prophets;

# All my bones shake.

I am like a drunken man,

And like a man whom wine has overcome,

Because of theLord,

And because of His holy words.

10 Forthe land is full of adulterers;

# Forbecause of a curse the land mourns.

# The pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up.

Their course of life is evil,

And their mightisnot right.

11 “Forboth prophet and priest are profane;

# Yes,in My house I have found their wickedness,” says theLord.

12 “Thereforetheir way shall be to them

Like slipperyways;

In the darkness they shall be driven on

And fall in them;

# For Iwill bring disaster on them,

The year of their punishment,” says theLord.

13 “And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria:

# They prophesied by Baal

# Andcaused My people Israel to err.

14 Also I have seen a horrible thing in the prophets of Jerusalem:

# They commit adultery and walk in lies;

# They alsostrengthen the hands of evildoers,

So that no one turns back from his wickedness.

# All of them are likeSodom to Me,

And her inhabitants like Gomorrah.

15 “Therefore thus says theLordof hosts concerning the prophets:

# ‘Behold, I will feed them withwormwood,

And make them drink the water of gall;

For from the prophets of Jerusalem

Profaneness has gone out into all the land.’ ”

16 Thus says theLordof hosts:

“Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you.

They make you worthless;

# They speak a vision of their own heart,

Not from the mouth of theLord.

17 They continually say to those who despise Me,

# ‘TheLordhas said,“You shall have peace” ’;

# Andtoeveryone whowalks according to the dictates of his own heart, they say,

# ‘No evil shall come upon you.’ ”

18 Forwho has stood in the counsel of theLord,

And has perceived and heard His word?

Who has marked His word and heardit?

19 Behold, awhirlwind of theLordhas gone forth in fury—

A violent whirlwind!

It will fall violently on the head of the wicked.

20 Theanger of theLordwill not turn back

Until He has executed and performed the thoughts of His heart.

# In the latter days you will understand it perfectly.

21 “Ihave not sent these prophets, yet they ran.

I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.

22 But if they had stood in My counsel,

And had caused My people to hear My words,

# Then they would haveturned them from their evil way

And from the evil of their doings.

23 “AmI a God near at hand,” says theLord,

“And not a God afar off?

24 Can anyonehide himself in secret places,

So I shall not see him?” says theLord;

# “Do I not fill heaven and earth?” says theLord.

25 “I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in My name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’

26 How long willthisbe in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeedtheyareprophets of the deceit of their own heart,

27 who try to make My people forget My name by their dreams which everyone tells his neighbor,as their fathers forgot My name for Baal.

28 “The prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream;

And he who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully.

Whatisthe chaff to the wheat?” says theLord.

29 “Isnot My word like afire?” says theLord,

“And like a hammerthatbreaks the rock in pieces?

30 “Therefore behold,Iamagainst the prophets,” says theLord, “who steal My words every one from his neighbor.

31 Behold, Iamagainst the prophets,” says theLord, “who use their tongues and say, ‘He says.’

32 Behold, Iamagainst those who prophesy false dreams,” says theLord, “and tell them, and cause My people to err by theirlies and bytheir recklessness. Yet I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall notprofit this people at all,” says theLord.

33 “So when these people or the prophet or the priest ask you, saying, ‘What isthe oracle of theLord?’ you shall then say to them, ‘What oracle?’ I will even forsake you,” says theLord.

34 “Andasforthe prophet and the priest and the people who say, ‘The oracle of theLord!’ I will even punish that man and his house.

35 Thus every one of you shall say to his neighbor, and every one to his brother, ‘What has theLordanswered?’ and, ‘What has theLordspoken?’

36 And the oracle of theLordyou shall mention no more. For every man’s word will be his oracle, for you haveperverted the words of the living God, theLordof hosts, our God.

37 Thus you shall say to the prophet, ‘What has theLordanswered you?’ and, ‘What has theLordspoken?’

38 But since you say, ‘The oracle of theLord!’ therefore thus says theLord: ‘Because you say this word, “The oracle of theLord!” and I have sent to you, saying, “Do not say, ‘The oracle of theLord!’ ”

39 therefore behold, I, even I,will utterly forget you and forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, andwillcastyouout of My presence.

40 And I will bringan everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetualshame, which shall not be forgotten.’ ”

The Sign of Two Baskets of Figs

1 TheLordshowed me, and there were two baskets of figs set before the temple of theLord, after Nebuchadnezzarking of Babylon had carried away captiveJeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah with the craftsmen and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon.

2 One baskethadvery good figs, like the figsthatarefirst ripe; and the other baskethadvery bad figs which could not be eaten, they were sobad.

3 Then theLordsaid to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”

And I said, “Figs, the good figs, very good; and the bad, very bad, which cannot be eaten, they are so bad.”

4 Again the word of theLordcame to me, saying,

5 “Thus says theLord, the God of Israel: ‘Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge those who are carried away captive from Judah, whom I have sent out of this place fortheirowngood, into the land of the Chaldeans.

6 For I will set My eyes on them for good, andI will bring them back to this land;I will build them and not pullthemdown, and I will plant them and not pluckthemup.

7 Then I will give thema heart to know Me, that IamtheLord; and they shall beMy people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Mewith their whole heart.

8 ‘And as the badfigs which cannot be eaten, they are so bad’—surely thus says theLord—‘so will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, theresidue of Jerusalem who remain in this land, andthose who dwell in the land of Egypt.

9 I will deliver them totrouble into all the kingdoms of the earth, fortheirharm,tobea reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse, in all places where I shall drive them.

10 And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them, till they are consumed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.’ ”

Seventy Years of Desolation

1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah,in the fourth year ofJehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (whichwasthe first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon),

2 which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying:

3 “From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, thisisthe twenty-third year in which the word of theLordhas come to me; and I have spoken to you, rising early and speaking,but you have not listened.

4 And theLordhas sent to you all His servants the prophets,rising early and sendingthem,but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear.

5 They said,‘Repent now everyone of his evil way and his evil doings, and dwell in the land that theLordhas given to you and your fathers forever and ever.

6 Do not go after other gods to serve them and worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the works of your hands; and I will not harm you.’

7 Yet you have not listened to Me,” says theLord, “that you mightprovoke Me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt.

8 “Therefore thus says theLordof hosts: ‘Because you have not heard My words,

9 behold, I will send and takeall the families of the north,’ says theLord, ‘and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon,My servant, and will bring them against this land, against its inhabitants, and against these nations all around, and will utterly destroy them, andmake them an astonishment, a hissing, and perpetual desolations.

10 Moreover I will take from them thevoice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride,the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp.

11 And this whole land shall be a desolationandan astonishment, and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventyyears.

12 ‘Then it will come to pass,when seventy years are completed,thatI will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity,’ says theLord;‘and I will make it a perpetual desolation.

13 So I will bring on that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah has prophesied concerning all the nations.

14 (For many nationsand great kings shallbe served by them also;and I will repay them according to their deeds and according to the works of their own hands.)’ ”

Judgment on the Nations

15 For thus says theLordGod of Israel to me: “Take thiswine cup of fury from My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send you, to drink it.

16 Andthey will drink and stagger and go mad because of the sword that I will send among them.”

17 Then I took the cup from theLord’s hand, and made all the nations drink, to whom theLordhad sent me:

18 Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, its kings and its princes, to make thema desolation, an astonishment, a hissing, anda curse, asitisthis day;

19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his princes, and all his people;

20 all the mixed multitude, all the kings ofthe land of Uz, all the kings of the land of thePhilistines (namely, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, andthe remnant of Ashdod);

21 Edom, Moab, and the people of Ammon;

22 all the kings ofTyre, all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the coastlands whichareacross thesea;

23 Dedan, Tema, Buz, and allwhoarein the farthest corners;

24 all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of themixed multitude who dwell in the desert;

25 all the kings of Zimri, all the kings ofElam, and all the kings of theMedes;

26 all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another; and all the kingdoms of the world whichareon the face of the earth. Also the king of Sheshach shall drink after them.

27 “Therefore you shall say to them, ‘Thus says theLordof hosts, the God of Israel:“Drink,be drunk, and vomit! Fall and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you.” ’

28 And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink, then you shall say to them, ‘Thus says theLordof hosts: “You shall certainly drink!

29 For behold,I begin to bring calamity on the citywhich is called by My name, and should you be utterly unpunished? You shall not be unpunished, forI will call for a sword on all the inhabitants of the earth,” says theLordof hosts.’

30 “Therefore prophesy against them all these words, and say to them:

# ‘TheLordwillroar from on high,

# And utter His voice fromHis holy habitation;

# He will roar mightily againstHis fold.

# He will givea shout, as those who treadthegrapes,

Against all the inhabitants of the earth.

31 A noise will come to the ends of the earth—

# For theLordhasa controversy with the nations;

# He will plead His case with all flesh.

He will give thosewhoarewicked to the sword,’ says theLord.”

32 Thus says theLordof hosts:

“Behold, disaster shall go forth

From nation to nation,

# Anda great whirlwind shall be raised up

From the farthest parts of the earth.

33 And at that day the slain of theLordshall be fromoneend of the earth even to theotherend of the earth. They shall not belamented,or gathered, or buried; they shall become refuse on the ground.

34 “Wail,shepherds, and cry!

Roll aboutintheashes,

You leaders of the flock!

For the days of your slaughter and your dispersions are fulfilled;

You shall fall like a precious vessel.

35 And the shepherds will have no way to flee,

Nor the leaders of the flock to escape.

36 A voice of the cry of the shepherds,

And a wailing of the leaders to the flockwillbeheard.

For theLordhas plundered their pasture,

37 And the peaceful dwellings are cut down

Because of the fierce anger of theLord.

38 He has left His lair like the lion;

For their land is desolate

Because of the fierceness of the Oppressor,

And because of His fierce anger.”

Jeremiah Saved from Death

1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from theLord, saying,

2 “Thus says theLord: ‘Stand inthe court of theLord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah, which come to worshipintheLord’s house,all the words that I command you to speak to them.Do not diminish a word.

3 Perhaps everyone will listen and turn from his evil way, that I mayrelent concerning the calamity which I purpose to bring on them because of the evil of their doings.’

4 And you shall say to them, ‘Thus says theLord:“If you will not listen to Me, to walk in My law which I have set before you,

5 to heed the words of My servants the prophetswhom I sent to you, both rising up early and sendingthem(but you have not heeded),

6 then I will make this house likeShiloh, and will make this citya curse to all the nations of the earth.” ’ ”

7 So the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of theLord.

8 Now it happened, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that theLordhad commandedhimto speak to all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, “You will surely die!

9 Why have you prophesied in the name of theLord, saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall bedesolate, without an inhabitant’?” And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of theLord.

10 When the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of theLordand sat down in the entry of the New Gate of theLord’shouse.

11 And the priests and the prophets spoke to the princes and all the people, saying, “This man deserves todie! For he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your ears.”

12 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the princes and all the people, saying: “TheLordsent me to prophesy against this house and against this city with all the words that you have heard.

13 Now therefore,amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of theLordyour God; then theLordwill relent concerning the doom that He has pronounced against you.

14 As for me, hereI am, in your hand; do with me as seems good and proper to you.

15 But know for certain that if you put me to death, you will surely bring innocent blood on yourselves, on this city, and on its inhabitants; for truly theLordhas sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.”

16 So the princes and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, “This man does not deserve to die. For he has spoken to us in the name of theLordour God.”

17 Then certain of the elders of the land rose up and spoke to all the assembly of the people, saying:

18 “Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spoke to all the people of Judah, saying, ‘Thus says theLordof hosts:

# “Zion shall be plowedlikea field,

# Jerusalem shall becomeheaps of ruins,

And the mountain of the temple

Like the bare hills of the forest.” ’

19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah ever put him to death?Did he not fear theLordandseek theLord’s favor? And theLordrelented concerning the doom which He had pronounced against them.But we are doing great evil against ourselves.”

20 Now there was also a man who prophesied in the name of theLord, Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath Jearim, who prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah.

21 And when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty men and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Urijah heardit,he was afraid and fled, and went to Egypt.

22 Then Jehoiakim the king sent men to Egypt: Elnathan the son of Achbor, andothermenwhowentwith him to Egypt.

23 And they brought Urijah from Egypt and brought him to Jehoiakim the king, who killed him with the sword and cast his dead body into the graves of the common people.

24 Neverthelessthe hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death.

Symbol of the Bonds and Yokes

1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah,king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from theLord, saying,

2 “Thus says theLordto me: ‘Make for yourselves bonds and yokes,and put them on your neck,

3 and send them 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 messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.

4 And command them to say to their masters, “Thus says theLordof hosts, the God of Israel—thus you shall say to your masters:

5 ‘I have made the earth, the man and the beast thatareon the ground, by My great power and by My outstretched arm, andhave given it to whom it seemed proper to Me.

6 And now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon,My servant; andthe beasts of the field I have also given him to serve him.

7 So all nations shall serve him and his son and his son’s son,until the time of his land comes;and then many nations and great kings shall make him serve them.

8 And it shall be,thatthe nation and kingdom which will not serve Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation I will punish,’ says theLord, ‘with the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.

9 Therefore do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your soothsayers, or your sorcerers, who speak to you, saying, “You shall not serve the king of Babylon.”

10 For they prophesy alie to you, to remove you far from your land; and I will drive you out, and you will perish.

11 But the nations that bring their necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let them remain in their own land,’ says theLord, ‘and they shall till it and dwell in it.’ ” ’ ”

12 I also spoke toZedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, “Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live!

13 Why will you die, you and your people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as theLordhas spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?

14 Thereforedo not listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, ‘You shall not serve the king of Babylon,’ for they prophesya lie to you;

15 for I havenot sent them,” says theLord, “yet they prophesy a lie in My name, that I may drive you out, and that you may perish, you and the prophets who prophesy to you.”

16 Also I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, “Thus says theLord: ‘Do not listen to the words of your prophets who prophesy to you, saying, “Behold,the vessels of theLord’s house will now shortly be brought back from Babylon”; for they prophesy a lie to you.

17 Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon, and live! Why should this city be laid waste?

18 But if theyareprophets, and if the word of theLordis with them, let them now make intercession to theLordof hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of theLord,inthe house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, do not go to Babylon.’

19 “For thus says theLordof hostsconcerning the pillars, concerning the Sea, concerning the carts, and concerning the remainder of the vessels that remain in this city,

20 which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take, when he carried awaycaptive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem—

21 yes, thus says theLordof hosts, the God of Israel, concerning thevessels that remain in the house of theLord, and in the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem:

22 ‘They shall becarried to Babylon, and there they shall be until the day that Ivisit them,’ says theLord. ‘ThenI will bring them up and restore them to this place.’ ”