Jeremiah 21
21
The Lord Will Fight against Jerusalem
1King Zedekiah#21.1 Zedekiah: See the note at 1.3. of Judah sent for Pashhur son of Malchiah and for a priest named Zephaniah son of Maaseiah. Then he told them, “Talk with Jeremiah for me.”
So they came to me and said, 2#2 K 25.1-11; 2 Ch 36.17-21. “King Nebuchadnezzar#21.2 Nebuchadnezzar: Ruled 605–562 b.c. of Babylonia has attacked Judah. Please ask the Lord to work miracles for our people, as he has done in the past, so that Nebuchadnezzar will leave us alone.”
3-7I told them that the Lord God of Israel had told me to say to King Zedekiah:
The Babylonians have surrounded Jerusalem and want to kill you and your people. You are asking me to save you, but you have made me furious. So I will stretch out my mighty arm and fight against you myself. Your army is using spears and swords to fight the Babylonians, but I will make your own weapons turn and attack you. I will send a horrible disease to kill many of the people and animals in Jerusalem, and there will be nothing left to eat. Finally, I will let King Nebuchadnezzar and his army fight their way to the center of Jerusalem and capture everyone who is left alive, including you and your officials. But Nebuchadnezzar won't be kind or show any mercy—he will have you killed! I, the Lord, have spoken.
8 #
4 Macc 15.2. Then I told them that the Lord had said:
People of Jerusalem, I, the Lord, give you the choice of life or death. 9The Babylonian army has surrounded Jerusalem, so if you want to live, you must go out and surrender to them. But if you want to die because of hunger, disease, or war, then stay here in the city. 10I have decided not to rescue Jerusalem. Instead, I am going to let the king of Babylonia burn it to the ground. I, the Lord, have spoken.
The Lord Warns the King of Judah
* 11Pay attention, you that belong
to the royal family.
12Each new day, make sure
that justice is done,
and rescue those
who are being robbed.
Or else my anger will flame up
like a fire that never goes out.
13Jerusalem,
from your mountaintop
you look out over the valleys#21.13 Jerusalem … valleys: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
and think you are safe.
But I, the Lord, am angry,
14and I will punish you
as you deserve.
I'll set your palace#21.14 your palace: The Hebrew text has “the forest”; the largest room in the king's palace was known as Forest Hall (see 1 Kings 7.2,3). on fire,
and everything around you
will go up in smoke.
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Jeremiah 21: CEVDCI
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Yirmeyahu (Jer) 21
21
1This is the word that came to Yirmeyahu from Adonai when King Tzidkiyahu sent to him Pash’chur the son of Malkiyah and Tz’fanyah the son of Ma‘aseiyah with this message: 2“Please consult Adonai for us, because N’vukhadretzar king of Bavel is making war on us. Maybe Adonai will perform a miracle for us and cause him to withdraw.”
3Yirmeyahu answered them, “Here is what you are to tell Tzidkiyahu: 4‘This is what Adonai, the God of Isra’el, says: “I will make the weapons of war that you have in your hands ineffectual in your fight against the king of Bavel and the Kasdim who are outside the walls besieging you. Instead, I will gather them inside this city; 5and I myself will fight against you with my hand stretched out and with a strong arm, in anger, rage and great fury. 6I will strike the inhabitants of this city, humans and animals alike, and they will die of a terrible plague. 7Afterwards,” says Adonai “I will hand over Tzidkiyahu king of Y’hudah, his servants, the people, and anyone remaining alive in this city after the plague, war and famine, to N’vukhadretzar king of Bavel and to their enemies, to those who seek their lives; and he will put them to the sword. He will not spare them; he will have no pity, no compassion.”’
8“And here is what you are to tell this people: ‘Adonai says: “Look! I am presenting you with the way of life and the way of death. 9Anyone who stays in this city will die by sword, famine and plague. But he who leaves and surrenders to the Kasdim besieging you will stay alive; his own life will be his only ‘spoils of war.’ 10For I have determined absolutely that this city will have evil, not good,” says Adonai. “It is going to be handed over to the king of Bavel, and he will burn it to the ground.”’
11“To the royal house of Y’hudah say: ‘Hear the word of Adonai; 12house of David, this is what Adonai says:
“Judge fairly every morning,
rescue the wronged from their oppressors;
or my fury will lash out like fire,
burning so hot that no one can quench it,
because of how evil your actions are.”
13Adonai says, “I am against you, [Yerushalayim,]
situated in a valley like a rock on a plain.
You who say, ‘Who can come down against us?
Who can enter our lairs?’ —
14I will punish you,” says Adonai,
“as your deeds deserve.
I will set its forest on fire,
and it will devour everything around it.”’”
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