Jer 28, Jer 50 | ESV | STEP | In that same year , at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah , in the fifth month of the fourth year , Hananiah the son of Azzur , the prophet from Gibeon , spoke to me in the house of the Lord , in the presence of the priests and all the people , saying ,

1 In that same year, at the beginning of the reign of ^aZedekiah king of Judah, in the fifth month of the fourth year, Hananiah the son of ^bAzzur, the prophet from ^cGibeon, spoke to me in the house of the Lord, in the presence of the priests and all the people, saying, 2 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: ^dI have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. 3 ^eWithin ^ftwo years I will bring back to this place all the vessels of the Lord’s house, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon. 4 I will also bring back to this place ^gJeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah who went to Babylon, declares the Lord, ^hfor I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.”

5 Then the prophet Jeremiah spoke to Hananiah the prophet in the presence of the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of the Lord, 6 and the prophet Jeremiah said, ⁱ“Amen! May the Lord do so; may the Lord make the words that you have prophesied come true, and bring back to this place from Babylon the vessels of the house of the Lord, and all the exiles. 7 Yet hear now this word that I speak in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people. 8 ^jThe prophets who preceded you and me from ancient times prophesied war, famine, and pestilence against many countries and great kingdoms. 9 ^kAs for the prophet who prophesies peace, when the word of that prophet comes to pass, then it will be known that the Lord has truly sent the prophet.”

10 Then the prophet Hananiah took the ^lyoke-bars from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet and broke them. 11 And Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people, saying, ^m“Thus says the Lord: ⁿEven so will I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of ^oall the nations within two years.” But Jeremiah the prophet went his way.

12 Sometime after the prophet ^pHananiah had broken the yoke-bars from off the neck of Jeremiah the prophet, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 13 “Go, tell Hananiah, ‘Thus says the Lord: You have broken wooden bars, but you have made in their place bars of iron. 14 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I have put upon the neck of all these nations ^qan iron yoke to serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, ^rand they shall serve him, ^sfor I have given to him even the beasts of the field.’” 15 And Jeremiah the prophet said to the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah, ^tthe Lord has not sent you, ^uand you have made this people trust in a lie. 16 Therefore thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I will remove you from the face of the earth. This year you shall die, ^vbecause you have uttered rebellion against the Lord.’”

17 In that same year, in the seventh month, the prophet Hananiah died.

Jeremiah 50

Judgment on Babylon

1 The word that the Lord spoke concerning ^wBabylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, ^xby Jeremiah the prophet:

2 “Declare among the nations and proclaim,
set up a banner and proclaim,
conceal it not, and say:
^y‘Babylon is taken,
^zBel is put to shame,
Merodach is dismayed.
^aaHer images are put to shame,
her idols are dismayed.’
3 “For ^about of the north a nation has come up against her, ^acwhich shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; ^adboth man and beast shall flee away.

4 ^ae“In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, ^afthe people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, ^agweeping as they come, and they ^ahshall seek the Lord their God. 5 ^aiThey shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, ^ajsaying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in an ^akeverlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.’

6 ^al“My people have been lost sheep. ^amTheir shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. 7 All who found them have devoured them, ^anand their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, for ^aothey have sinned against the Lord, ^aptheir habitation of righteousness, the Lord, ^aqthe hope of their fathers.’

8 ^ar“Flee from the midst of Babylon, ^asand go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock. 9 For behold, I am stirring up and bringing against Babylon ^ata gathering of great nations, from the north country. And they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 ^auChaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, declares the Lord.

11 ^av“Though you rejoice, though you exult,
O plunderers of my heritage,
though you frolic like a heifer in the pasture,
and neigh like stallions,
12 your mother shall be utterly shamed,
and she who bore you shall be disgraced.
Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,
^awa wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
13 ^axBecause of the wrath of the Lord she shall not be inhabited
but shall be an utter desolation;
^ayeveryone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,
^azand hiss because of all her wounds.
14 ^baSet yourselves in array against Babylon all around,
^bball you who bend the bow;
shoot at her, spare no arrows,
^bcfor she has sinned against the Lord.
15 ^bdRaise a shout against her all around;
she has surrendered;
her bulwarks have fallen;
^beher walls are thrown down.
For ^bfthis is the vengeance of the Lord:
take vengeance on her;
^bgdo to her as she has done.
16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;
^bhbecause of the sword of the oppressor,
^bievery one shall turn to his own people,
and every one shall flee to his own land.
17 ^bj“Israel is a hunted sheep ^bkdriven away by lions. ^blFirst the king of Assyria ^bmdevoured him, and now at last ^bnNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon ^bohas gnawed his bones. 18 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, ^bpI am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, ^bqas I punished the king of Assyria. 19 ^brI will restore Israel to his pasture, and ^bshe shall feed on ^btCarmel and in ^buBashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in ^bvGilead. 20 In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, ^bwiniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for ^bxI will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.

21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim, ^{▼▼ Merathaim means double rebellion}
and against the inhabitants of Pekod. ^{▼▼ Pekod means punishment}
Kill, ^caand devote them to destruction, ^{▼▼That is, set apart ( devote) as an offering to the Lord (for destruction)}

declares the Lord,
and do all that I have commanded you.
22 ^ccThe noise of battle is in the land,
and great destruction!
23 ^cdHow the hammer of the whole earth
is cut down and broken!
^ceHow Babylon ^cfhas become
a horror among the nations!
24 ^cgI set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,
and ^chyou did not know it;
you were found and caught,
because you opposed the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened his armory
and brought out ^cithe weapons of his wrath,
for the Lord God of hosts has a work to do
in the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come against her from every quarter;
open her granaries;
^cjpile her up like heaps of grain, and devote her to destruction;
let nothing be left of her.
27 Kill all ^ckher bulls;
let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them, for their day has come,
^clthe time of their punishment.
28 “A voice! They ^cmflee and escape from the land of Babylon, ^cnto declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for ^cohis temple.

29 ^cp“Summon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow. ^cqEncamp around her; let no one escape. ^crRepay her according to her deeds; do to her according to all that she has done. For she has ^csproudly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 30 ^ctTherefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, declares the Lord.

31 “Behold, I am against you, O ^cuproud one,
declares the Lord God of hosts,
^cvfor your day has come,
the time when I will punish you.
32 ^cwThe proud one shall stumble and fall,
with none to raise him up,
^cxand I will kindle a fire in his cities,
and it will devour all that is around him.
33 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ^cyThe people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah with them. All who took them captive have held them fast; ^czthey refuse to let them go. 34 ^daTheir Redeemer is strong; ^dbthe Lord of hosts is his name. ^dcHe will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.

35 “A sword against the Chaldeans, declares the Lord,
and against the inhabitants of Babylon,
and against ^ddher officials and her ^dewise men!
36 A sword against the diviners,
that they may become fools!
A sword against her ^dfwarriors,
that they may be destroyed!
37 A sword against her horses and against her chariots,
and against all ^dgthe foreign troops in her midst,
that ^dhthey may become women!
^diA sword against all her treasures,
that they may be plundered!
38 ^djA drought against her waters,
that they may be dried up!
^dkFor it is a land of images,
and they are mad over idols.
39 ^dl“Therefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon, and ostriches shall dwell in her. She shall never again have people, nor be inhabited for all generations. 40 ^dmAs when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring cities, declares the Lord, ^dnso no man shall dwell there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.

41 ^do“Behold, a people comes from the north;
a mighty nation and many kings
are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
42 They lay hold of bow and spear;
they are cruel and have no mercy.
The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;
they ride on horses,
arrayed as a man for battle
against you, O daughter of Babylon!
43 “The king of Babylon heard the report of them,
and his hands fell helpless;
anguish seized him,
pain as of a woman in labor.
44 ^dp“Behold, like a lion coming up from the thicket of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make them run away from her, and I will appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd ^dqcan stand before me? 45 Therefore hear ^drthe plan that the Lord has made against Babylon, ^dsand the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: ^dtSurely the little ones of their flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 ^duAt the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.”