Immerse: Prophets - Flipbook - Page 268
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IMMERSE
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PROPHETS
26:24–27:17
him back to King Jehoiak im. The king then killed Uriah with a sword and
had him buried in an unmarked grave.
Nevertheless, Ahikam son of Shaphan stood up for Jeremiah and per
suaded the court not to turn him over to the mob to be killed.
This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord early in the reign of Zede
kiah son of Josiah, king of Judah.
This is what the Lord said to me: “Make a yoke, and fasten it on your
neck with leather straps. Then send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab,
Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon through their ambassadors who have come to
see King Zedekiah in Jerusalem. Give them this message for their masters:
‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: With
my great strength and powerful arm I made the earth and all its people and
every animal. I can give these things of mine to anyone I choose. Now I
will give your countries to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who is my
servant. I have put everything, even the wild animals, under his control.
All the nations will serve him, his son, and his grandson until his time is
up. Then many nations and great kings will conquer and rule over Bab
ylon. So you must submit to Babylon’s king and serve him; put your neck
under Babylon’s yoke! I will punish any nation that refuses to be his slave,
says the Lord. I will send war, famine, and disease upon that nation until
Babylon has conquered it.
“‘Do not listen to your false prophets, fortune-tellers, interpreters of
dreams, mediums, and sorcerers who say, “The king of Babylon will not
conquer you.” They are all liars, and their lies will lead to your being driven
out of your land. I will drive you out and send you far away to die. But the
people of any nation that submits to the king of Babylon will be allowed
to stay in their own country to farm the land as usual. I, the Lord, have
spoken!’”
Then I repeated this same message to King Zedekiah of Judah. “If you
want to live, submit to the yoke of the king of Babylon and his people. Why
do you insist on dying—you and your people? Why should you choose
war, famine, and disease, which the Lord will bring against every nation
that refuses to submit to Babylon’s king? Do not listen to the false prophets
who keep telling you, ‘The king of Babylon will not conquer you.’ They are
liars. This is what the Lord says: ‘I have not sent these prophets! They are
telling you lies in my name, so I will drive you from this land. You will all
die—you and all these prophets, too.’”
Then I spoke to the priests and the people and said, “This is what the
Lord says: ‘Do not listen to your prophets who claim that soon the gold