Jeremiah 26
26
Jeremiah's Message in the Temple
(Jeremiah 7.1-15)
1 #
2 K 23.36—24.6; 2 Ch 36.5-7. Soon after Jehoiakim#26.1 Jehoiakim: See the note at 1.3. became king of Judah, the Lord said:
2Jeremiah, I have a message for everyone who comes from the towns of Judah to worship in my temple. Go to the temple courtyard and speak every word that I tell you. 3Maybe the people will listen this time. And if they stop doing wrong, I will change my mind and not punish them for their sins. 4Tell them that I have said:
You have refused to listen to me and to obey my laws and teachings. 5Again and again I have sent my servants the prophets to preach to you, but you ignored them as well. Now I am warning you that if you don't start obeying me at once, 6#Js 18.1; Ps 78.60; Jr 7.12-14. I will destroy this temple, just as I destroyed the town of Shiloh.#26.6 Shiloh: The sacred tent had once stood at Shiloh. Then everyone on earth will use the name “Jerusalem” as a curse word.
Jeremiah on Trial
7The priests, the prophets, and everyone else in the temple heard what I said, 8-9and as soon as I finished, they all crowded around me and started shouting, “Why did you preach that the Lord will destroy this temple, just as he destroyed Shiloh? Why did you say that Jerusalem will be empty and lie in ruins? You ought to be put to death for saying such things in the Lord's name!” Then they had me arrested.
10The royal officers heard what had happened, and they came from the palace to the new gate of the temple to be the judges at my trial.#26.10 new gate … trial: Public trials were often held in an open area at a gate of a city, palace, or temple. 11While they listened, the priests and the prophets said to the crowd, “All of you have heard Jeremiah prophesy that Jerusalem will be destroyed. He deserves the death penalty.”
12-13Then I told the judges and everyone else:
The Lord himself sent me to tell you about the terrible things he will do to you, to Jerusalem, and to the temple. But if you change your ways and start obeying the Lord, he will change his mind.
14You must decide what to do with me. Just do whatever you think is right. 15But if you put me to death, you and everyone else in Jerusalem will be guilty of murdering an innocent man, because everything I preached came from the Lord.
16The judges and the other people told the priests and prophets, “Since Jeremiah only told us what the Lord our God had said, we don't think he deserves to die.”
17Then some of the leaders from other towns stepped forward. They told the crowd that 18#Mic 3.12. years ago when Hezekiah#26.18 Hezekiah: Ruled 716–687 b.c. was king of Judah, a prophet named Micah from the town of Moresheth had said:
“I, the Lord All-Powerful, say
Jerusalem will be plowed under
and left in ruins.
Thorns will cover the mountain
where the temple
now stands.”#26.18 Jerusalem … stands: See Micah 3.12.
19Then the leaders continued:
No one put Micah to death for saying that. Instead, King Hezekiah prayed to the Lord with fear and trembling and asked him to have mercy. Then the Lord decided not to destroy Jerusalem, even though he had already said he would.
People of Judah, if Jeremiah is killed, we will bring a terrible disaster on ourselves.
20-24After these leaders finished speaking, an important man named Ahikam son of Shaphan spoke up for me as well. And so, I wasn't handed over to the crowd to be killed.
Uriah the Prophet
While Jehoiakim#26.20-24 Jehoiakim: See the note at 1.3. was still king of Judah, a man named Uriah son of Shemaiah left his hometown of Kiriath-Jearim and came to Jerusalem. Uriah was one of the Lord's prophets, and he was saying the same things about Judah and Jerusalem that I had been saying. And when Jehoiakim and his officials and military officers heard what Uriah said, they tried to arrest him, but he escaped to Egypt. So Jehoiakim sent Elnathan son of Achbor and some other men after Uriah, and they brought him back. Then Jehoiakim had Uriah killed and his body dumped in a common burial pit.
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Jeremiah 26: CEVDCI
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Jeremiah 26
26
Jeremiah’s Speech in the Temple
1At the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim # 2Kg 23:34–24:6; 2Ch 36:4-8 son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord: 2“This is what the Lord says: Stand in the courtyard of the Lord’s temple and speak all the words I have commanded you to speak to all Judah’s cities that are coming to worship there. Do not hold back a word. # Dt 4:2; Ec 3:14 3Perhaps they will listen and return — each from his evil way of life — so that I might relent # Ex 32:12,14; Am 7:3,6; Jnh 3:9-10 concerning the disaster that I plan to do to them because of the evil of their deeds. 4You are to say to them: This is what the Lord says: If you do not listen to Me by living according to My instruction that I set before you # Lv 26:14 5and by listening to the words of My servants the prophets # Jr 25:3-4 I have been sending you time and time again, # Lit you, rising early and sending # Jr 7:13,25; 11:7; 25:3; 29:19; ; 32:33; 35:14,15; 44:4 though you did not listen, 6I will make this temple like Shiloh. # Jos 18:1,8-10; 21:2; 1Sm 1:3 I will make this city an object of cursing for all the nations of the earth.”
Jeremiah Seized
7The priests, the prophets, and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the temple of the Lord. 8He finished the address the Lord had commanded him to deliver to all the people. Then the priests, the prophets, and all the people took hold of him, yelling, “You must surely die! 9How dare you prophesy in the name of Yahweh, ‘This temple will become like Shiloh and this city will become an uninhabited ruin’! ” Then all the people assembled against Jeremiah at the Lord’s temple.
10When the officials of Judah heard these things, they went from the king’s palace to the Lord’s temple and sat at the entrance of the New Gate. # Some Hb mss, Syr, Tg, Vg add of the house # Jr 36:10; Ezk 46:1,3 11Then the priests and prophets said to the officials and all the people, “This man deserves the death sentence because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.” # Jr 38:4
Jeremiah’s Defense
12Then Jeremiah said to all the officials and the people, “The Lord sent me to prophesy all the words that you have heard against this temple and city. 13So now, correct your ways and deeds # Jr 4:18; 7:3-5; 18:11 and obey the voice of the Lord your God so that He might relent concerning the disaster that He warned about. 14As for me, here I am in your hands; do to me what you think is good and right. 15But know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood # Dt 19:10,13; 21:8-9; 2Kg 21:16; 24:4; Jr 7:6; 22:3,17; Mt 27:4 on yourselves, on this city, and on its residents, for it is certain the Lord has sent me to speak all these things directly to you.”
Jeremiah Released
16Then the officials and all the people told the priests and prophets, “This man doesn’t deserve the death sentence, for he has spoken to us in the name of Yahweh our God! ”
17Some of the elders of the land stood up # Ac 5:34 and said to all the assembled people, 18“Micah the Moreshite # Mc 1:1,14 prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah # 2Kg 16:20; 18:4–21:3; Is 36:1–39:8 and said to all the people of Judah, ‘This is what the Lord of Hosts says:
Zion will be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem will become ruins,
and the temple mount a forested hill.’ # Mc 3:12
19Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all the people of Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the Lord and plead for the Lord’s favor, # Or and appease the Lord # 2Ch 32:26 and did not the Lord relent concerning the disaster He had pronounced against them? # Ex 32:14; 2Sm 24:16 We are about to bring great harm on ourselves! ”
The Prophet Uriah
20Another man was also prophesying in the name of Yahweh — Uriah son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim. # Jos 9:17; 1Sm 6:21; 7:2 He prophesied against this city and against this land in words like all those of Jeremiah. 21King Jehoiakim, all his warriors, and all the officials heard his words, and the king tried to put him to death. When Uriah heard, he fled in fear and went to Egypt. 22But King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt: Elnathan son of Achbor # Jr 36:12 and certain other men with him went to Egypt. 23They brought Uriah out of Egypt and took him to King Jehoiakim, who executed him with the sword and threw his corpse into the burial place of the common people. # Lit the sons of the people
24But Ahikam # 2Kg 22:12,14; Jr 39:14; 40:5–43:6 son of Shaphan supported Jeremiah, so he was not handed over to the people to be put to death.
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