Jeremiah 22
22
A Message for Judah’s Kings
1This is what the Lord said to me: “Go over and speak directly to the king of Judah. Say to him, 2‘Listen to this message from the Lord, you king of Judah, sitting on David’s throne. Let your attendants and your people listen, too. 3This is what the Lord says: Be fair-minded and just. Do what is right! Help those who have been robbed; rescue them from their oppressors. Quit your evil deeds! Do not mistreat foreigners, orphans, and widows. Stop murdering the innocent! 4If you obey me, there will always be a descendant of David sitting on the throne here in Jerusalem. The king will ride through the palace gates in chariots and on horses, with his parade of attendants and subjects. 5But if you refuse to pay attention to this warning, I swear by my own name, says the Lord, that this palace will become a pile of rubble.’”
A Message about the Palace
6Now this is what the Lord says concerning Judah’s royal palace:
“I love you as much as fruitful Gilead
and the green forests of Lebanon.
But I will turn you into a desert,
with no one living within your walls.
7I will call for wreckers,
who will bring out their tools to dismantle you.
They will tear out all your fine cedar beams
and throw them on the fire.
8“People from many nations will pass by the ruins of this city and say to one another, ‘Why did the Lord destroy such a great city?’ 9And the answer will be, ‘Because they violated their covenant with the Lord their God by worshiping other gods.’”
A Message about Jehoahaz
10Do not weep for the dead king or mourn his loss.
Instead, weep for the captive king being led away!
For he will never return to see his native land again.
11For this is what the Lord says about Jehoahaz,#22:11 Hebrew Shallum, another name for Jehoahaz. who succeeded his father, King Josiah, and was taken away as a captive: “He will never return. 12He will die in a distant land and will never again see his own country.”
A Message about Jehoiakim
13And the Lord says, “What sorrow awaits Jehoiakim,#22:13a The brother and successor of the exiled Jehoahaz. See 22:18.
who builds his palace with forced labor.#22:13b Hebrew by unrighteousness.
He builds injustice into its walls,
for he makes his neighbors work for nothing.
He does not pay them for their labor.
14He says, ‘I will build a magnificent palace
with huge rooms and many windows.
I will panel it throughout with fragrant cedar
and paint it a lovely red.’
15But a beautiful cedar palace does not make a great king!
Your father, Josiah, also had plenty to eat and drink.
But he was just and right in all his dealings.
That is why God blessed him.
16He gave justice and help to the poor and needy,
and everything went well for him.
Isn’t that what it means to know me?”
says the Lord.
17“But you! You have eyes only for greed and dishonesty!
You murder the innocent,
oppress the poor, and reign ruthlessly.”
18Therefore, this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim, son of King Josiah:
“The people will not mourn for him, crying to one another,
‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’
His subjects will not mourn for him, crying,
‘Alas, our master is dead! Alas, his splendor is gone!’
19He will be buried like a dead donkey—
dragged out of Jerusalem and dumped outside the gates!
20Weep for your allies in Lebanon.
Shout for them in Bashan.
Search for them in the regions east of the river.#22:20 Or in Abarim.
See, they are all destroyed.
Not one is left to help you.
21I warned you when you were prosperous,
but you replied, ‘Don’t bother me.’
You have been that way since childhood—
you simply will not obey me!
22And now the wind will blow away your allies.
All your friends will be taken away as captives.
Surely then you will see your wickedness and be ashamed.
23It may be nice to live in a beautiful palace
paneled with wood from the cedars of Lebanon,
but soon you will groan with pangs of anguish—
anguish like that of a woman in labor.
A Message for Jehoiachin
24“As surely as I live,” says the Lord, “I will abandon you, Jehoiachin#22:24 Hebrew Coniah, a variant spelling of Jehoiachin; also in 22:28. son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah. Even if you were the signet ring on my right hand, I would pull you off. 25I will hand you over to those who seek to kill you, those you so desperately fear—to King Nebuchadnezzar#22:25a Hebrew Nebuchadrezzar, a variant spelling of Nebuchadnezzar. of Babylon and the mighty Babylonian#22:25b Or Chaldean. army. 26I will expel you and your mother from this land, and you will die in a foreign country, not in your native land. 27You will never again return to the land you yearn for.
28“Why is this man Jehoiachin like a discarded, broken jar?
Why are he and his children to be exiled to a foreign land?
29O earth, earth, earth!
Listen to this message from the Lord!
30This is what the Lord says:
‘Let the record show that this man Jehoiachin was childless.
He is a failure,
for none of his children will succeed him on the throne of David
to rule over Judah.’
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Jeremiah 22: NLT
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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