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Jeremiah 21-23
The Message
Jeremiah 21-23
The Message
Start Each Day with a Sense of Justice
21 1-2 God’s Message to Jeremiah when King Zedekiah sent Pashur son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to him with this request: “Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has waged war against us. Pray to God for us. Ask him for help. Maybe God will intervene with one of his famous miracles and make him leave.”
3-7 But Jeremiah said, “Tell Zedekiah: ‘This is the God of Israel’s Message to you: You can say good-bye to your army, watch morale and weapons flushed down the drain. I’m going to personally lead the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans, against whom you’re fighting so hard, right into the city itself. I’m joining their side and fighting against you, fighting all-out, holding nothing back. And in fierce anger. I’m prepared to wipe out the population of this city, people and animals alike, in a raging epidemic. And then I will personally deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his princes, and any survivors left in the city who haven’t died from disease, been killed, or starved. I’ll deliver them to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—yes, hand them over to their enemies, who have come to kill them. He’ll kill them ruthlessly, showing no mercy.’
8-10 “And then tell the people at large, ‘God’s Message to you is this: Listen carefully. I’m giving you a choice: life or death. Whoever stays in this city will die—either in battle or by starvation or disease. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who have surrounded the city will live. You’ll lose everything—but not your life. I’m determined to see this city destroyed. I’m that angry with this place! God’s Decree. I’m going to give it to the king of Babylon, and he’s going to burn it to the ground.’
* * *
11-14 “To the royal house of Judah, listen to God’s Message!
House of David, listen—God’s Message to you:
‘Start each day by dealing with justice.
Rescue victims from their exploiters.
Prevent fire—the fire of my anger—
for once it starts, it can’t be put out.
Your evil regime
is fuel for my anger.
Don’t you realize that I’m against you,
yes, against you.
You think you’ve got it made,
all snug and secure.
You say, “Who can possibly get to us?
Who can crash our party?”
Well, I can—and will!
I’ll punish your evil regime.
I’ll start a fire that will rage unchecked,
burn everything in sight to cinders.’”
Walking Out on the Covenant of God
22 1-3 God’s orders: “Go to the royal palace and deliver this Message. Say, ‘Listen to what God says, O King of Judah, you who sit on David’s throne—you and your officials and all the people who go in and out of these palace gates. This is God’s Message: Attend to matters of justice. Set things right between people. Rescue victims from their exploiters. Don’t take advantage of the homeless, the orphans, the widows. Stop the murdering!
4-5 “‘If you obey these commands, then kings who follow in the line of David will continue to go in and out of these palace gates mounted on horses and riding in chariots—they and their officials and the citizens of Judah. But if you don’t obey these commands, then I swear—God’s Decree!—this palace will end up a heap of rubble.’”
* * *
6-7 This is God’s verdict on Judah’s royal palace:
“I number you among my favorite places—
like the lovely hills of Gilead,
like the soaring peaks of Lebanon.
Yet I swear I’ll turn you into a wasteland,
as empty as a ghost town.
I’ll hire a demolition crew,
well-equipped with sledgehammers and wrecking bars,
Pound the country to a pulp
and burn it all up.
8-9 “Travelers from all over will come through here and say to one another, ‘Why would God do such a thing to this wonderful city?’ They’ll be told, ‘Because they walked out on the covenant of their God, took up with other gods and worshiped them.’”
Building a Fine House but Destroying Lives
10 Don’t weep over dead King Josiah.
Don’t waste your tears.
Weep for his exiled son:
He’s gone for good.
He’ll never see home again.
11-12 For this is God’s Word on Shallum son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah: “He’s gone from here, gone for good. He’ll die in the place they’ve taken him to. He’ll never see home again.”
* * *
13-17 “Doom to him who builds palaces but bullies people,
who makes a fine house but destroys lives,
Who cheats his workers
and won’t pay them for their work,
Who says, ‘I’ll build me an elaborate mansion
with spacious rooms and fancy windows.
I’ll bring in rare and expensive woods
and the latest in interior decor.’
So, that makes you a king—
living in a fancy palace?
Your father got along just fine, didn’t he?
He did what was right and treated people fairly,
And things went well with him.
He stuck up for the down-and-out,
And things went well for Judah.
Isn’t this what it means to know me?”
God’s Decree!
“But you’re blind and brainless.
All you think about is yourself,
Taking advantage of the weak,
bulldozing your way, bullying victims.”
18-19 This is God’s epitaph on Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
“Doom to this man!
Nobody will shed tears over him,
‘Poor, poor brother!’
Nobody will shed tears over him,
‘Poor, poor master!’
They’ll give him a donkey’s funeral,
drag him out of the city and dump him.
You’ve Made a Total Mess of Your Life
20-23 “People of Jerusalem, climb a Lebanon peak and weep,
climb a Bashan mountain and wail,
Climb the Abarim ridge and cry—
you’ve made a total mess of your life.
I spoke to you when everything was going your way.
You said, ‘I’m not interested.’
You’ve been that way as long as I’ve known you,
never listened to a thing I said.
All your leaders will be blown away,
all your friends end up in exile,
And you’ll find yourself in the gutter,
disgraced by your evil life.
You big-city people thought you were so important,
thought you were ‘king of the mountain’!
You’re soon going to be doubled up in pain,
pain worse than the pangs of childbirth.
* * *
24-26 “As sure as I am the living God”—God’s Decree—“even if you, Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, were the signet ring on my right hand, I’d pull you off and give you to those who are out to kill you, to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the Chaldeans, and then throw you, both you and your mother, into a foreign country, far from your place of birth. There you’ll both die.
27 “You’ll be homesick, desperately homesick, but you’ll never get home again.”
28-30 Is Jehoiachin a leaky bucket,
a rusted-out pail good for nothing?
Why else would he be thrown away, he and his children,
thrown away to a foreign place?
O land, land, land,
listen to God’s Message!
This is God’s verdict:
“Write this man off as if he were childless,
a man who will never amount to anything.
Nothing will ever come of his life.
He’s the end of the line, the last of the kings.”
An Authentic David-Branch
23 1-4 “Doom to the shepherd-leaders who butcher and scatter my sheep!” God’s Decree. “So here is what I, God, Israel’s God, say to the shepherd-leaders who misled my people: ‘You’ve scattered my sheep. You’ve driven them off. You haven’t kept your eye on them. Well, let me tell you, I’m keeping my eye on you, keeping track of your criminal behavior. I’ll take over and gather what’s left of my sheep, gather them in from all the lands where I’ve driven them. I’ll bring them back where they belong, and they’ll recover and flourish. I’ll set shepherd-leaders over them who will take good care of them. They won’t live in fear or panic anymore. All the lost sheep rounded up!’ God’s Decree.
5-6 “Time’s coming”—God’s Decree—
“when I’ll establish a truly righteous David-Branch,
A ruler who knows how to rule justly.
He’ll make sure of justice and keep people united.
In his time Judah will be secure again
and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name they’ll give him:
‘God-Who-Puts-Everything-Right.’
7-8 “So watch for this. The time’s coming”—God’s Decree—“when no one will say, ‘As sure as God lives, the God who brought the Israelites out of Egypt,’ but, ‘As sure as God lives, the God who brought the descendants of Israel back from the north country and from the other countries where he’d driven them, so that they can live on their own good earth.’”
The “Everything Will Turn Out Fine” Sermon
9 My head is reeling,
my limbs are limp,
I’m staggering like a drunk,
seeing double from too much wine—
And all because of God,
because of his holy words.
10-12 Now for what God says regarding the lying prophets:
“Can you believe it? A country teeming with adulterers!
faithless, promiscuous idolater-adulterers!
They’re a curse on the land.
The land’s a wasteland.
Their unfaithfulness
is turning the country into a cesspool,
Prophets and priests devoted to desecration.
They have nothing to do with me as their God.
My very own Temple, mind you—
mud-spattered with their crimes.” God’s Decree.
“But they won’t get by with it.
They’ll find themselves on a slippery slope,
Careening into the darkness,
somersaulting into the pitch-black dark.
I’ll make them pay for their crimes.
It will be the Year of Doom.” God’s Decree.
* * *
13-14 “Over in Samaria I saw prophets
acting like silly fools—shocking!
They preached using that no-god Baal for a text,
messing with the minds of my people.
And the Jerusalem prophets are even worse—horrible!—
sex-driven, living a lie,
Subsidizing a culture of wickedness,
and never giving it a second thought.
They’re as bad as those wretches in old Sodom,
the degenerates of old Gomorrah.”
15 So here’s the Message to the prophets from God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
“I’ll cook them a supper of maggoty meat
with after-dinner drinks of strychnine.
The Jerusalem prophets are behind all this.
They’re the cause of the godlessness polluting this country.”
* * *
16-17 A Message from God-of-the-Angel-Armies:
“Don’t listen to the sermons of the prophets.
It’s all hot air. Lies, lies, and more lies.
They make it all up.
Not a word they speak comes from me.
They preach their ‘Everything Will Turn Out Fine’ sermon
to congregations with no taste for God,
Their ‘Nothing Bad Will Ever Happen to You’ sermon
to people who are set in their own ways.
18-20 “Have any of these prophets bothered to meet with me, the true God?
bothered to take in what I have to say?
listened to and then lived out my Word?
Look out! God’s hurricane will be let loose—
my hurricane blast,
Spinning the heads of the wicked like tops!
God’s raging anger won’t let up
Until I’ve made a clean sweep,
completing the job I began.
When the job’s done,
you’ll see that it’s been well done.
Quit the “God Told Me This” Kind of Talk
21-22 “I never sent these prophets,
but they ran anyway.
I never spoke to them,
but they preached away.
If they’d have bothered to sit down and meet with me,
they’d have preached my Message to my people.
They’d have gotten them back on the right track,
gotten them out of their evil ruts.
* * *
23-24 “Am I not a God near at hand”—God’s Decree—
“and not a God far off?
Can anyone hide out in a corner
where I can’t see him?”
God’s Decree.
“Am I not present everywhere,
whether seen or unseen?”
God’s Decree.
* * *
25-27 “I know what they’re saying, all these prophets who preach lies using me as their text, saying ‘I had this dream! I had this dream!’ How long do I have to put up with this? Do these prophets give two cents about me as they preach their lies and spew out their grandiose delusions? They swap dreams with one another, feed on each other’s delusive dreams, trying to distract my people from me just as their ancestors were distracted by the no-god Baal.
28-29 “You prophets who do nothing but dream—
go ahead and tell your silly dreams.
But you prophets who have a message from me—
tell it truly and faithfully.
What does straw have in common with wheat?
Nothing else is like God’s Decree.
Isn’t my Message like fire?” God’s Decree.
“Isn’t it like a sledgehammer busting a rock?
30-31 “I’ve had it with the ‘prophets’ who get all their sermons secondhand from each other. Yes, I’ve had it with them. They make up stuff and then pretend it’s a real sermon.
32 “Oh yes, I’ve had it with the prophets who preach the lies they dream up, spreading them all over the country, ruining the lives of my people with their cheap and reckless lies.
“I never sent these prophets, never authorized a single one of them. They do nothing for this people—nothing!” God’s Decree.
33 “And anyone, including prophets and priests, who asks, ‘What’s God got to say about all this, what’s troubling him?’ tell him, ‘You, you’re the trouble, and I’m getting rid of you.’” God’s Decree.
34 “And if anyone, including prophets and priests, goes around saying glibly ‘God’s Message! God’s Message!’ I’ll punish him and his family.
35-36 “Instead of claiming to know what God says, ask questions of one another, such as ‘How do we understand God in this?’ But don’t go around pretending to know it all, saying ‘God told me this . . . God told me that. . . . ’ I don’t want to hear it anymore. Only the person I authorize speaks for me. Otherwise, my Message gets twisted, the Message of the living God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
37-38 “You can ask the prophets, ‘How did God answer you? What did he tell you?’ But don’t pretend that you know all the answers yourselves and talk like you know it all. I’m telling you: Quit the ‘God told me this . . . God told me that . . . ’ kind of talk.
39-40 “Are you paying attention? You’d better, because I’m about to take you in hand and throw you to the ground, you and this entire city that I gave to your ancestors. I’ve had it with the lot of you. You’re never going to live this down. You’re going down in history as a disgrace.”
Jeremiah 21-23
New International Version
Jeremiah 21-23
New International Version
God Rejects Zedekiah’s Request
21 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah(A) sent to him Pashhur(B) son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah(C) son of Maaseiah. They said: 2 “Inquire(D) now of the Lord for us because Nebuchadnezzar[a](E) king of Babylon(F) is attacking us. Perhaps the Lord will perform wonders(G) for us as in times past so that he will withdraw from us.”
3 But Jeremiah answered them, “Tell Zedekiah, 4 ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turn(H) against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babylonians[b] who are outside the wall besieging(I) you. And I will gather them inside this city. 5 I myself will fight(J) against you with an outstretched hand(K) and a mighty arm(L) in furious anger and in great wrath. 6 I will strike(M) down those who live in this city—both man and beast—and they will die of a terrible plague.(N) 7 After that, declares the Lord, I will give Zedekiah(O) king of Judah, his officials and the people in this city who survive the plague,(P) sword and famine, into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon(Q) and to their enemies(R) who want to kill them.(S) He will put them to the sword;(T) he will show them no mercy or pity or compassion.’(U)
8 “Furthermore, tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of life(V) and the way of death. 9 Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague.(W) But whoever goes out and surrenders(X) to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; they will escape with their lives.(Y) 10 I have determined to do this city harm(Z) and not good, declares the Lord. It will be given into the hands(AA) of the king of Babylon, and he will destroy it with fire.’(AB)
11 “Moreover, say to the royal house(AC) of Judah, ‘Hear the word of the Lord. 12 This is what the Lord says to you, house of David:
“‘Administer justice(AD) every morning;
rescue from the hand of the oppressor(AE)
the one who has been robbed,
or my wrath will break out and burn like fire(AF)
because of the evil(AG) you have done—
burn with no one to quench(AH) it.
13 I am against(AI) you, Jerusalem,
you who live above this valley(AJ)
on the rocky plateau, declares the Lord—
you who say, “Who can come against us?
Who can enter our refuge?”(AK)
14 I will punish you as your deeds(AL) deserve,
declares the Lord.
I will kindle a fire(AM) in your forests(AN)
that will consume everything around you.’”
Judgment Against Wicked Kings
22 This is what the Lord says: “Go down to the palace of the king(AO) of Judah and proclaim this message there: 2 ‘Hear(AP) the word of the Lord to you, king of Judah, you who sit on David’s throne(AQ)—you, your officials and your people who come through these gates.(AR) 3 This is what the Lord says: Do what is just(AS) and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor(AT) the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow,(AU) and do not shed innocent blood(AV) in this place. 4 For if you are careful to carry out these commands, then kings(AW) who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this palace, riding in chariots and on horses, accompanied by their officials and their people. 5 But if you do not obey(AX) these commands, declares the Lord, I swear(AY) by myself that this palace will become a ruin.’”
6 For this is what the Lord says about the palace of the king of Judah:
“Though you are like Gilead(AZ) to me,
like the summit of Lebanon,(BA)
I will surely make you like a wasteland,(BB)
like towns not inhabited.
7 I will send destroyers(BC) against you,
each man with his weapons,
and they will cut(BD) up your fine cedar beams
and throw them into the fire.(BE)
8 “People from many nations will pass by this city and will ask one another, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?’(BF) 9 And the answer will be: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshiped and served other gods.(BG)’”
10 Do not weep for the dead(BH) king or mourn(BI) his loss;
rather, weep bitterly for him who is exiled,
because he will never return(BJ)
nor see his native land again.
11 For this is what the Lord says about Shallum[c](BK) son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah but has gone from this place: “He will never return. 12 He will die(BL) in the place where they have led him captive; he will not see this land again.”
13 “Woe(BM) to him who builds(BN) his palace by unrighteousness,
his upper rooms by injustice,
making his own people work for nothing,
not paying(BO) them for their labor.
14 He says, ‘I will build myself a great palace(BP)
with spacious upper rooms.’
So he makes large windows in it,
panels it with cedar(BQ)
and decorates it in red.(BR)
15 “Does it make you a king
to have more and more cedar?
Did not your father have food and drink?
He did what was right and just,(BS)
so all went well(BT) with him.
16 He defended the cause of the poor and needy,(BU)
and so all went well.
Is that not what it means to know(BV) me?”
declares the Lord.
17 “But your eyes and your heart
are set only on dishonest gain,(BW)
on shedding innocent blood(BX)
and on oppression and extortion.”(BY)
18 Therefore this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
“They will not mourn(BZ) for him:
‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’
They will not mourn for him:
‘Alas, my master! Alas, his splendor!’
19 He will have the burial(CA) of a donkey—
dragged away and thrown(CB)
outside the gates of Jerusalem.”
20 “Go up to Lebanon and cry out,(CC)
let your voice be heard in Bashan,(CD)
cry out from Abarim,(CE)
for all your allies(CF) are crushed.
21 I warned you when you felt secure,(CG)
but you said, ‘I will not listen!’
This has been your way from your youth;(CH)
you have not obeyed(CI) me.
22 The wind(CJ) will drive all your shepherds(CK) away,
and your allies(CL) will go into exile.
Then you will be ashamed and disgraced(CM)
because of all your wickedness.
23 You who live in ‘Lebanon,[d](CN)’
who are nestled in cedar buildings,
how you will groan when pangs come upon you,
pain(CO) like that of a woman in labor!
24 “As surely as I live,” declares the Lord, “even if you, Jehoiachin[e](CP) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, were a signet ring(CQ) on my right hand, I would still pull you off. 25 I will deliver(CR) you into the hands of those who want to kill you, those you fear—Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the Babylonians.[f] 26 I will hurl(CS) you and the mother(CT) who gave you birth into another country, where neither of you was born, and there you both will die. 27 You will never come back to the land you long to return(CU) to.”
28 Is this man Jehoiachin(CV) a despised, broken pot,(CW)
an object no one wants?
Why will he and his children be hurled(CX) out,
cast into a land(CY) they do not know?
29 O land,(CZ) land, land,
hear the word of the Lord!
30 This is what the Lord says:
“Record this man as if childless,(DA)
a man who will not prosper(DB) in his lifetime,
for none of his offspring(DC) will prosper,
none will sit on the throne(DD) of David
or rule anymore in Judah.”
The Righteous Branch
23 “Woe to the shepherds(DE) who are destroying and scattering(DF) the sheep of my pasture!”(DG) declares the Lord. 2 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds(DH) who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock(DI) and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil(DJ) you have done,” declares the Lord. 3 “I myself will gather the remnant(DK) of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture,(DL) where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds(DM) over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid(DN) or terrified, nor will any be missing,(DO)” declares the Lord.
5 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will raise up for David[g] a righteous Branch,(DP)
a King(DQ) who will reign(DR) wisely
and do what is just and right(DS) in the land.
6 In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will live in safety.(DT)
This is the name(DU) by which he will be called:
The Lord Our Righteous Savior.(DV)
7 “So then, the days are coming,”(DW) declares the Lord, “when people will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,’(DX) 8 but they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of Israel up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where he had banished them.’ Then they will live in their own land.”(DY)
Lying Prophets
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart(DZ) is broken within me;
all my bones tremble.(EA)
I am like a drunken man,
like a strong man overcome by wine,
because of the Lord
and his holy words.(EB)
10 The land is full of adulterers;(EC)
because of the curse[h](ED) the land lies parched
and the pastures(EE) in the wilderness are withered.(EF)
The prophets follow an evil course
and use their power unjustly.
11 “Both prophet and priest are godless;(EG)
even in my temple(EH) I find their wickedness,”
declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore their path will become slippery;(EI)
they will be banished to darkness
and there they will fall.
I will bring disaster on them
in the year they are punished,(EJ)”
declares the Lord.
13 “Among the prophets of Samaria
I saw this repulsive thing:
They prophesied by Baal(EK)
and led my people Israel astray.(EL)
14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem
I have seen something horrible:(EM)
They commit adultery and live a lie.(EN)
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,(EO)
so that not one of them turns from their wickedness.(EP)
They are all like Sodom(EQ) to me;
the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”(ER)
15 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets:
“I will make them eat bitter food
and drink poisoned water,(ES)
because from the prophets of Jerusalem
ungodliness(ET) has spread throughout the land.”
16 This is what the Lord Almighty says:
“Do not listen(EU) to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions(EV) from their own minds,
not from the mouth(EW) of the Lord.
17 They keep saying(EX) to those who despise me,
‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’(EY)
And to all who follow the stubbornness(EZ) of their hearts
they say, ‘No harm(FA) will come to you.’
18 But which of them has stood in the council(FB) of the Lord
to see or to hear his word?
Who has listened and heard his word?
19 See, the storm(FC) of the Lord
will burst out in wrath,
a whirlwind(FD) swirling down
on the heads of the wicked.
20 The anger(FE) of the Lord will not turn back(FF)
until he fully accomplishes
the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
you will understand it clearly.
21 I did not send(FG) these prophets,
yet they have run with their message;
I did not speak to them,
yet they have prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my council,(FH)
they would have proclaimed(FI) my words to my people
and would have turned(FJ) them from their evil ways
and from their evil deeds.(FK)
23 “Am I only a God nearby,(FL)”
declares the Lord,
“and not a God far away?
24 Who can hide(FM) in secret places
so that I cannot see them?”
declares the Lord.
“Do not I fill heaven and earth?”(FN)
declares the Lord.
25 “I have heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies(FO) in my name. They say, ‘I had a dream!(FP) I had a dream!’ 26 How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions(FQ) of their own minds?(FR) 27 They think the dreams they tell one another will make my people forget(FS) my name, just as their ancestors forgot(FT) my name through Baal worship.(FU) 28 Let the prophet who has a dream(FV) recount the dream, but let the one who has my word(FW) speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain?” declares the Lord. 29 “Is not my word like fire,”(FX) declares the Lord, “and like a hammer(FY) that breaks a rock in pieces?
30 “Therefore,” declares the Lord, “I am against(FZ) the prophets(GA) who steal from one another words supposedly from me. 31 Yes,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, ‘The Lord declares.’(GB) 32 Indeed, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,(GC)” declares the Lord. “They tell them and lead my people astray(GD) with their reckless lies,(GE) yet I did not send(GF) or appoint them. They do not benefit(GG) these people in the least,” declares the Lord.
False Prophecy
33 “When these people, or a prophet or a priest, ask you, ‘What is the message(GH) from the Lord?’ say to them, ‘What message? I will forsake(GI) you, declares the Lord.’ 34 If a prophet or a priest or anyone else claims, ‘This is a message(GJ) from the Lord,’ I will punish(GK) them and their household. 35 This is what each of you keeps saying to your friends and other Israelites: ‘What is the Lord’s answer?’(GL) or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 36 But you must not mention ‘a message from the Lord’ again, because each one’s word becomes their own message. So you distort(GM) the words of the living God,(GN) the Lord Almighty, our God. 37 This is what you keep saying to a prophet: ‘What is the Lord’s answer to you?’ or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 38 Although you claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ this is what the Lord says: You used the words, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ even though I told you that you must not claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord.’ 39 Therefore, I will surely forget you and cast(GO) you out of my presence along with the city I gave to you and your ancestors. 40 I will bring on you everlasting disgrace(GP)—everlasting shame that will not be forgotten.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 21:2 Hebrew Nebuchadrezzar, of which Nebuchadnezzar is a variant; here and often in Jeremiah and Ezekiel
- Jeremiah 21:4 Or Chaldeans; also in verse 9
- Jeremiah 22:11 Also called Jehoahaz
- Jeremiah 22:23 That is, the palace in Jerusalem (see 1 Kings 7:2)
- Jeremiah 22:24 Hebrew Koniah, a variant of Jehoiachin; also in verse 28
- Jeremiah 22:25 Or Chaldeans
- Jeremiah 23:5 Or up from David’s line
- Jeremiah 23:10 Or because of these things
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.