20. 1 Now
Pashhur son of Immer, the priest in charge of the Temple of the Lord, heard
what Jeremiah was prophesying. 2 So he
arrested Jeremiah the prophet and had him whipped and put in stocks at the
Benjamin Gate of the Lord's Temple. 3 The
next day, when Pashhur finally released him, Jeremiah said, "Pashhur, the
Lord has changed your name. From now on you are to be called 'The Man Who Lives
in Terror.' 4 For
this is what the Lord says£º 'I will send terror upon you and all your friends,
and you will watch as they are slaughtered by the swords of the enemy. I will
hand the people of Judah over to the king of Babylon. He will take them captive
to Babylon or run them through with the sword. 5 And I
will let your enemies plunder Jerusalem. All the famed treasures of the city -
the precious jewels and gold and silver of your kings - will be carried off to
Babylon. 6 As for
you, Pashhur, you and all your household will go as captives to Babylon. There
you will die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you prophesied
that everything would be all right.'" 7 O Lord,
you misled me, and I allowed myself to be misled. You are stronger than I am,
and you overpowered me. Now I am mocked every day; everyone laughs at me. 8 When I
speak, the words burst out. "Violence and destruction!" I shout. So
these messages from the Lord have made me a household joke. 9 But if
I say I'll never mention the Lord or speak in his name, his word burns in my
heart like a fire. It's like a fire in my bones! I am worn out trying to hold
it in! I can't do it! 10 I have
heard the many rumors about me. They call me "The Man Who Lives in
Terror." They threaten, "If you say anything, we will report
it." Even my old friends are watching me, waiting for a fatal slip.
"He will trap himself," they say, "and then we will get our
revenge on him." 11 But
the Lord stands beside me like a great warrior. Before him my persecutors will
stumble. They cannot defeat me. They will fail and be thoroughly humiliated.
Their dishonor will never be forgotten. 12 O Lord
of Heaven's Armies, you test those who are righteous, and you examine the
deepest thoughts and secrets. Let me see your vengeance against them, for I
have committed my cause to you. 13 Sing
to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For though I was poor and needy, he rescued me from
my oppressors. 14 Yet I
curse the day I was born! May no one celebrate the day of my birth. 15 I
curse the messenger who told my father, "Good news - you have a son!" 16 Let
him be destroyed like the cities of old that the Lord overthrew without mercy. Terrify
him all day long with battle shouts, 17
because he did not kill me at birth. Oh, that I had died in my mother's womb,
that her body had been my grave! 18 Why
was I ever born? My entire life has been filled with trouble, sorrow, and
shame. 21. 1 The Lord
spoke through Jeremiah when King Zedekiah sent Pashhur son of Malkijah and
Zephaniah son of Maaseiah, the priest, to speak with him. They begged Jeremiah,
2
"Please speak to the Lord for us and ask him to help us. King
Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon is attacking Judah. Perhaps the Lord will be gracious
and do a mighty miracle as he has done in the past. Perhaps he will force
Nebuchadnezzar to withdraw his armies." 3
Jeremiah replied, "Go back to King Zedekiah and tell him, 4 This is
what the Lord, the God of Israel, says£º I will make your weapons useless
against the king of Babylon and the Babylonians who are outside your walls
attacking you. In fact, I will bring your enemies right into the heart of this
city. 5 I
myself will fight against you with a strong hand and a powerful arm, for I am
very angry. You have made me furious! 6 I will
send a terrible plague upon this city, and both people and animals will die. 7 And
after all that, says the Lord, I will hand over King Zedekiah, his staff, and
everyone else in the city who survives the disease, war, and famine. I will
hand them over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and to their other enemies. He
will slaughter them and show them no mercy, pity, or compassion.' 8
"Tell all the people, 'This is what the Lord says£º Take your choice of
life or death! 9
Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die from war, famine, or disease, but
those who go out and surrender to the Babylonians will live. Their reward will
be life! 10 For I
have decided to bring disaster and not good upon this city, says the Lord. It
will be handed over to the king of Babylon, and he will reduce it to ashes.' 11
"Say to the royal family of Judah, 'Listen to this message from the Lord! 12 This
is what the Lord says to the dynasty of David£º "'Give justice each
morning to the people you judge! Help those who have been robbed; rescue them
from their oppressors. Otherwise, my anger will burn like an unquenchable fire
because of all your sins. 13 I will
personally fight against the people in Jerusalem, that mighty fortress - the
people who boast, "No one can touch us here. No one can break in
here." 14 And I
myself will punish you for your sinfulness, says the Lord. I will light a fire
in your forests that will burn up everything around you.'" 22. 1 This is
what the Lord said to me£º "Go over and speak directly to the king of
Judah. Say to him, 2 Listen
to this message from the Lord, you king of Judah, sitting on David's throne.
Let your attendants and your people listen, too. 3 This is
what the Lord says£º Be fair-minded and just. Do what is right! Help those who
have been robbed; rescue them from their oppressors. Quit your evil deeds! Do
not mistreat foreigners, orphans, and widows. Stop murdering the innocent! 4 If you
obey me, there will always be a descendant of David sitting on the throne here
in Jerusalem. The king will ride through the palace gates in chariots and on
horses, with his parade of attendants and subjects. 5 But if
you refuse to pay attention to this warning, I swear by my own name, says the
Lord, that this palace will become a pile of rubble.'" 6 Now
this is what the Lord says concerning Judah's royal palace£º "I love you
as much as fruitful Gilead and the green forests of Lebanon. But I will turn
you into a desert, with no one living within your walls. 7 I will
call for wreckers, who will bring out their tools to dismantle you. They will
tear out all your fine cedar beams and throw them on the fire. 8
"People from many nations will pass by the ruins of this city and say to
one another, 'Why did the Lord destroy such a great city?' 9 And the
answer will be, 'Because they violated their covenant with the Lord their God
by worshiping other gods.'" 10 Do not
weep for the dead king or mourn his loss. Instead, weep for the captive king
being led away! For he will never return to see his native land again. 11 For
this is what the Lord says about Jehoahaz, who succeeded his father, King
Josiah, and was taken away as a captive£º "He will never return. 12 He
will die in a distant land and will never again see his own country." 13 And
the Lord says, "What sorrow awaits Jehoiakim, who builds his palace with
forced labor. He builds injustice into its walls, for he makes his neighbors
work for nothing. He does not pay them for their labor. 14 He
says, 'I will build a magnificent palace with huge rooms and many windows. I
will panel it throughout with fragrant cedar and paint it a lovely red.' 15 But a
beautiful cedar palace does not make a great king! Your father, Josiah, also
had plenty to eat and drink. But he was just and right in all his dealings.
That is why God blessed him. 16 He
gave justice and help to the poor and needy, and everything went well for him.
Isn't that what it means to know me?" says the Lord. 17
"But you! You have eyes only for greed and dishonesty! You murder the
innocent, oppress the poor, and reign ruthlessly." 18
Therefore, this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim, son of King Josiah£º
"The people will not mourn for him, crying to one another, 'Alas, my
brother! Alas, my sister!' His subjects will not mourn for him, crying, 'Alas,
our master is dead! Alas, his splendor is gone!' 19 He
will be buried like a dead donkey - dragged out of Jerusalem and dumped outside
the gates! 20 Weep
for your allies in Lebanon. Shout for them in Bashan. Search for them in the
regions east of the river. See, they are all destroyed. Not one is left to help
you. 21 I
warned you when you were prosperous, but you replied, 'Don't bother me.' You
have been that way since childhood - you simply will not obey me! 22 And
now the wind will blow away your allies. All your friends will be taken away as
captives. Surely then you will see your wickedness and be ashamed. 23 It may
be nice to live in a beautiful palace paneled with wood from the cedars of
Lebanon, but soon you will groan with pangs of anguish - anguish like that of a
woman in labor. 24
"As surely as I live," says the Lord, "I will abandon you,
Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah. Even if you were the signet ring on
my right hand, I would pull you off. 25 I will
hand you over to those who seek to kill you, those you so desperately fear - to
King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and the mighty Babylonian army. 26 I will
expel you and your mother from this land, and you will die in a foreign
country, not in your native land. 27 You
will never again return to the land you yearn for. 28
"Why is this man Jehoiachin like a discarded, broken jar? Why are he and
his children to be exiled to a foreign land? 29 O
earth, earth, earth! Listen to this message from the Lord!
30 This
is what the Lord says£º 'Let the record show that this man Jehoiachin was
childless. He is a failure, for none of his children will succeed him on the
throne of David to rule over Judah.'