Jeremiah 22
22
Judgment against wicked kings
1This is what the Lord says: ‘Go down to the palace of the king of Judah and proclaim this message there: 2“Hear the word of the Lord to you, king of Judah, you who sit on David’s throne – you, your officials and your people who come through these gates. 3This is what the Lord says: do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place. 4For if you are careful to carry out these commands, then kings who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this palace, riding in chariots and on horses, accompanied by their officials and their people. 5But if you do not obey these commands, declares the Lord, I swear by myself that this palace will become a ruin.” ’
6For this is what the Lord says about the palace of the king of Judah:
‘Though you are like Gilead to me,
like the summit of Lebanon,
I will surely make you like a wasteland,
like towns not inhabited.
7I will send destroyers against you,
each man with his weapons,
and they will cut up your fine cedar beams
and throw them into the fire.
8‘People from many nations will pass by this city and will ask one another, “Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?” 9And the answer will be: “Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshipped and served other gods.” ’
10Do not weep for the dead king or mourn his loss;
rather, weep bitterly for him who is exiled,
because he will never return
nor see his native land again.
11For this is what the Lord says about Shallum#22:11 Also called Jehoahaz son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah but has gone from this place: ‘He will never return. 12He will die in the place where they have led him captive; he will not see this land again.’
13‘Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness,
his upper rooms by injustice,
making his own people work for nothing,
not paying them for their labour.
14He says, “I will build myself a great palace
with spacious upper rooms.”
So he makes large windows in it,
panels it with cedar
and decorates it in red.
15‘Does it make you a king
to have more and more cedar?
Did not your father have food and drink?
He did what was right and just,
so all went well with him.
16He defended the cause of the poor and needy,
and so all went well.
Is that not what it means to know me?’
declares the Lord.
17‘But your eyes and your heart
are set only on dishonest gain,
on shedding innocent blood
and on oppression and extortion.’
18Therefore this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
‘They will not mourn for him:
“Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!”
They will not mourn for him:
“Alas, my master! Alas, his splendour!”
19He will have the burial of a donkey –
dragged away and thrown
outside the gates of Jerusalem.’
20‘Go up to Lebanon and cry out,
let your voice be heard in Bashan,
cry out from Abarim,
for all your allies are crushed.
21I warned you when you felt secure,
but you said, “I will not listen!”
This has been your way from your youth;
you have not obeyed me.
22The wind will drive all your shepherds away,
and your allies will go into exile.
Then you will be ashamed and disgraced
because of all your wickedness.
23You who live in “Lebanon,#22:23 That is, the palace in Jerusalem (see 1 Kings 7:2)”
who are nestled in cedar buildings,
how you will groan when pangs come upon you,
pain like that of a woman in labour!
24‘As surely as I live,’ declares the Lord, ‘even if you, Jehoiachin#22:24 Hebrew Koniah, a variant of Jehoiachin; also in verse 28 son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, were a signet ring on my right hand, I would still pull you off. 25I will deliver you into the hands of those who want to kill you, those you fear – Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the Babylonians.#22:25 Or Chaldeans 26I will hurl you and the mother who gave you birth into another country, where neither of you was born, and there you both will die. 27You will never come back to the land you long to return to.’
28Is this man Jehoiachin a despised, broken pot,
an object no-one wants?
Why will he and his children be hurled out,
cast into a land they do not know?
29O land, land, land,
hear the word of the Lord!
30This is what the Lord says:
‘Record this man as if childless,
a man who will not prosper in his lifetime,
for none of his offspring will prosper,
none will sit on the throne of David
or rule anymore in Judah.’
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Jeremiah 22: NIVUK
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The Holy Bible, New International Version® (Anglicised), NIV®
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Jeremiah 22
22
1This is what the Lord says: Go to the palace of the king of Judah and give this message. 2Tell them: Listen to what the Lord has to say to you, king of Judah, sitting on the throne of David, you and your officials and the people here with you. 3This is what the Lord says: Do what is fair and right. Protect those who are being unjustly treated by corrupt people. Don't do anything wrong to foreigners, orphans, or the widows. Don't use violence against them. Don't kill innocent people.
4If you will honestly do what I tell you, then kings who sit on David's throne will ride on chariots and horses with their officials through the gates of this palace. They'll be accompanied by the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem. 5But if you refuse to obey what I say, then I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that this palace will be turned into rubble.
6This is what the Lord says about the royal family of the king of Judah: You are as dear to me as the forests on Gilead and on the mountains of Lebanon. But I will turn you into a desert, into towns where no one lives. 7I will choose men to come and destroy you, each with his own ax. They will chop down your fine cedars#22:7. The palace was made of many large cedars. See 21:14. and throw them in the fire.
8Foreigners from many nations will pass by this city and ask each another, “Why has the Lord done such terrible things to this great city?”
9People will answer, “Because they broke the agreement of the Lord their God. They went and worshiped other gods.”
10Don't weep over the king that died. Don't mourn for him. Instead weep for the king who is exiled, who will never return, who will never see his homeland again.
11This is what the Lord says about Jehoahaz#22:11. Here called “Shallum.”. of Josiah, king of Judah. He succeeded his father Josiah but was taken away. He will never return. 12He will die in exile; he will never see this country again.
13Trouble is coming to Jehoiakim#22:13. Jehoiakim is not actually mentioned by name until verse 18. because he mistreats others in building his palace, by dealing unfairly with those constructing the upper floors. He makes his own people work for nothing—he doesn't pay them any wages.
14He says to himself, “I'm going to build myself a great palace, with large upper rooms.” He has windows inserted, puts in cedar panels, and paints it bright red with vermilion.
15Does it make you a king just because you have more cedar than anyone else? Your father had food and drink, didn't he? He ruled fairly and honestly, and he had a good life because of this. 16He defended the poor and those in need, and so things went well. Isn't this what knowing me really means? declares the Lord.
17But all you're looking for, all you think about, is getting whatever you want, however dishonestly. You kill the innocent, you violently mistreat and exploit your people.
18So this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim, son of Josiah, king of Judah:
They won't mourn for him, saying: “How sad, my brother! How sad my sister!”
They won't mourn for him, saying: “How sad, my lord! How sad, his majesty!”
19His burial will be that of a donkey. He'll be dragged off and thrown away outside the gates of Jerusalem.
20Go to Lebanon and cry for help! Shout in Bashan! Scream from Abarim! For all your lovers have been destroyed.#22:20. All the places mentioned are mountains, so the image is of a call being shouted out from there. The lovers would most likely refer to those nations with which an alliance had been made. 21I warned you when you thought you were safe and sound. But you replied, “I'm not going to listen!” That's been your attitude since you were young—you never did what I told you.
22The wind will blow away all your “shepherds,”#22:22. “Shepherds”: a reference to the leaders of the nation. and your lovers will go into exile. Then you will be shamed and disgraced because of all the evil things you've done.
23You who live in “Lebanon” in your cedar nest,#22:23. Another reference to Solomon's cedar palace. how much you're going to groan when agonizing pains hit you like a woman in labor.
24The Lord said to Jehoiachin,#22:24. Here called “Coniah.” Also verse 28. son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah: As I live, declares the Lord, even if you were a signet ring on a finger of my right hand, I would pull you off. 25I'm going to hand you over to those who terrify you and who want to kill you, to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and the Babylonians. 26I'm going to throw you out—you and the mother who gave birth to you—sending you to another country. Neither of you were born there, but both of you will die there. 27You won't ever return to the country you love so much.
28Who is this man Jehoiachin? A broken pot that's been thrown away, something nobody wants? Why have he and his children been thrown out, exiled in an unfamiliar country?
29My country, my country, my country! Listen to what the Lord has to say!
30This is what the Lord says: Put this man down as having no children. He's a man who won't ever be successful in his whole life. None of his children will ever be successful either. None of them will sit on David's throne or be king in Judah.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com