The yoke of Nebuchadnezzar
1 In the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, son of Josiah, the word of Yah weh came to Jeremiah in this way,
2 “Make for yourself ropes and a yoke and put them on your neck.
3 Then send word to the kings of Edom, Moab, Am mon, Tyre and Sidon through their ambassadors, who have come to Jerusalem, to see Zedekiah king of Judah.
4 Give them these instructions for their masters:
Yahweh God of hosts tells you what you ought to say to your masters:
5 By means of my great power and mighty deeds I made the earth, as well as the people and animals that inhabit it, and I give them to whom ever I wish.
6 Now I have given all these lands into the hands of my steward Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and I will even make the beasts of the field subject to him.
7 All nations will serve him, his son and his grandson until the time for his land comes and then he will be overpowered by powerful na tions and great kings.
8 As for the nation or kingdom that refuses to serve Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, I will punish it with the sword, famine and plague – word of Yahweh – until I completely wipe it out.
9 Hence you must no longer pay attention to your proph ets, diviners, interpreters of dreams, astrologists or sorcerers who say that you must not submit yourselves to the king of Babylon.
10 For they are prophets of lies which will cause you to be finally driven from your land. I myself will drive you out and you will perish.
11 But the nation that submits to the yoke of the king of Babylon and serves him, that nation I will leave in its own land – word of Yahweh – to till it and live there.”
12 Then I gave the same message to King Zedekiah of Judah, “Place your neck under the yoke of the king of Baby lon. Serve him and his people and you will live.
13 Why should you and your people die by the sword, famine and plague as Yahweh has threatened any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?
14 Do not listen to the prophets when they say, ‘You will not have to serve the king of Babylon.’ For they are deceiving you with their prophesies.
15 I did not send them, says Yahweh, and they falsely use my name in their prophesying. Let it not be that I drive you out of your land and you perish, you and the prophets who have spoken to you.”
16 Then I spoke to the priests and the people, “Yahweh tells you not to listen to your prophets who say: ‘Very soon now the articles from Yah weh’s House will be brought back from Babylon.’ They pro phesy lies.
17 Do not listen to them; instead serve the king of Babylon and survive. Why should this city become a ruins?
18 If they were prophets and if they had Yah weh’s word in their hearts, they would now be praying to Yahweh God of hosts not to allow the objects still remaining in the House of Yah weh and in the royal palace and in Jerusalem to be carried off to Babylon.
19 For, Yahweh says something about the pillars, the Sea, the movable stands and the other objects still in this city
20 which Nebu chadnezzar did not carry off when he deported Jekoniah son of Je hoia kim, king of Judah from Jeru salem to Babylon together with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem.
21 Yes, this is what Yahweh the God of hosts says about the objects remaining in the House of Yahweh and in the royal palace in Jerusalem:
22 “They will be taken to Babylon and there they will remain until the day I deal with them. Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.”