| Holman Christian Standard Bible | NET Bible |
| 1At the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD: | 1The LORD spoke to Jeremiah early in the reign of Josiah's son, King Zedekiah of Judah. |
| 2"This is what the LORD said to me: Make chains and yoke bars for yourself and put them on your neck. | 2The LORD told me, "Make a yoke out of leather straps and wooden crossbars and put it on your neck. |
| 3Send word to the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of the Ammonites, the king of Tyre, and the king of Sidon through messengers who are coming to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem. | 3Use it to send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon. Send them through the envoys who have come to Jerusalem to King Zedekiah of Judah. |
| 4Command them to go to their masters, saying: This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: This is what you must say to your masters: | 4Charge them to give their masters a message from me. Tell them, 'The LORD God of Israel who rules over all says to give your masters this message. |
| 5By My great strength and outstretched arm, I made the earth, and the people, and animals on the face of the earth. I give it to anyone I please. | 5"I made the earth and the people and animals on it by my mighty power and great strength, and I give it to whomever I see fit. |
| 6So now I have placed all these lands under the authority of My servant Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. I have even given him the wild animals to serve him. | 6I have at this time placed all these nations of yours under the power of my servant, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. I have even made all the wild animals subject to him. |
| 7All nations will serve him, his son, and his grandson until the time for his own land comes, and then many nations and great kings will enslave him. | 7All nations must serve him and his son and grandson until the time comes for his own nation to fall. Then many nations and great kings will in turn subjugate Babylon. |
| 8"As for the nation or kingdom that does not serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and does not place its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation I will punish by sword, famine, and plague"--this is the LORD's declaration--"until through him I have destroyed it. | 8But suppose a nation or a kingdom will not be subject to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Suppose it will not submit to the yoke of servitude to him. I, the LORD, affirm that I will punish that nation. I will use the king of Babylon to punish it with war, starvation, and disease until I have destroyed it. |
| 9But as for you, do not listen to your prophets, diviners, dreamers, fortune-tellers, or sorcerers who say to you, 'Don't serve the king of Babylon!' | 9So do not listen to your prophets or to those who claim to predict the future by divination, by dreams, by consulting the dead, or by practicing magic. They keep telling you, 'You do not need to be subject to the king of Babylon.' |
| 10for they prophesy a lie to you so that you will be removed from your land. I will banish you, and you will perish. | 10Do not listen to them, because their prophecies are lies. Listening to them will only cause you to be taken far away from your native land. I will drive you out of your country and you will die in exile. |
| 11But as for the nation that will put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will leave it in its own land, and that nation will cultivate it and reside in it." This is the LORD's declaration. | 11Things will go better for the nation that submits to the yoke of servitude to the king of Babylon and is subject to him. I will leave that nation in its native land. Its people can continue to farm it and live in it. I, the LORD, affirm it!"'" |
| 12I spoke to Zedekiah king of Judah in the same way: "Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, serve him and his people, and live! | 12I told King Zedekiah of Judah the same thing. I said, "Submit to the yoke of servitude to the king of Babylon. Be subject to him and his people. Then you will continue to live. |
| 13Why should you and your people die by the sword, famine, or plague as the LORD has threatened against any nation that does not serve the king of Babylon? | 13There is no reason why you and your people should die in war or from starvation or disease! That's what the LORD says will happen to any nation that will not be subject to the king of Babylon. |
| 14Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are telling you, 'You must not serve the king of Babylon,' for they are prophesying a lie to you. | 14Do not listen to the prophets who are telling you that you do not need to serve the king of Babylon. For they are prophesying lies to you. |
| 15 'I have not sent them--this is the LORD's declaration-- 'and they are prophesying falsely in My name; therefore, I will banish you, and you will perish--you and the prophets who are prophesying to you.'" | 15For I, the LORD, affirm that I did not send them. They are prophesying lies to you. If you listen to them, I will drive you and the prophets who are prophesying lies out of the land and you will all die in exile." |
| 16Then I spoke to the priests and all these people, saying, "This is what the LORD says: 'Do not listen to the words of your prophets. They are prophesying to you, claiming, "Look, very soon now the articles of the LORD's temple will be brought back from Babylon." They are prophesying a lie to you. | 16I also told the priests and all the people, "The LORD says, 'Do not listen to what your prophets are saying. They are prophesying to you that the valuable articles taken from the LORD's temple will be brought back from Babylon very soon. But they are prophesying a lie to you. |
| 17Do not listen to them. Serve the king of Babylon and live! Why should this city become a ruin? | 17Do not listen to them. Be subject to the king of Babylon. Then you will continue to live. Why should this city be made a pile of rubble?'" |
| 18If they are indeed prophets and if the word of the LORD is with them, let them intercede with the LORD of Hosts not to let the articles that remain in the LORD's temple, in the palace of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem go to Babylon.' | 18I also told them, "If they are really prophets and the LORD is speaking to them, let them pray earnestly to the LORD who rules over all. Let them plead with him not to let the valuable articles that are still left in the LORD's temple, in the royal palace, and in Jerusalem be taken away to Babylon. |
| 19For this is what the LORD of Hosts says about the pillars, the sea, the water carts, and the rest of the articles that still remain in this city, | 19For the LORD who rules over all has already spoken about the two bronze pillars, the large bronze basin called 'The Sea,' and the movable bronze stands. He has already spoken about the rest of the valuable articles that are left in this city. |
| 20those Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take when he deported Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon along with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem. | 20He has already spoken about these things that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon did not take away when he carried Jehoiakim's son King Jeconiah of Judah and the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem away as captives. |
| 21Yes, this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says about the articles that remain in the temple of the LORD, in the palace of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem: | 21Indeed, the LORD God of Israel who rules over all has already spoken about the valuable articles that are left in the LORD's temple, in the royal palace of Judah, and in Jerusalem. |
| 22 'They will be brought to Babylon and will remain there until I attend to them again.' This is the LORD's declaration. 'Then I will bring them up and restore them to this place.'" | 22He has said, 'They will be carried off to Babylon. They will remain there until it is time for me to show consideration for them again. Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.' I, the LORD, affirm this!" |
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