There is no safety in numbers. P>S. The Bible NEVER promoted burning at the stake. That was introduced by pagans who burnt babies as sacrafices, and torched those they didn't like.
Oh my. And your genocidal god? Is he supposed to return LittleNipper? Oh but stakes won't be employed so it's all good right?
Jean Calvin had Servetus burned, the Catholic church had Bruno burned, they burned Joan of Arc, Catholics and Protestants burned and beheaded each other left and right for centuries. Good Christians all. Christianity has never shied away from using pagan stuff when it promoted their power.
Jeremiah was still being held prisoner in the courtyard of the palace guards when the Lord said,
"I am the Lord, and I created the whole world.
Just ask me, and I will inform you of things that you don’t know and can’t find out.
Many of the houses in Jerusalem and some of the buildings at the royal palace have been torn down to be used in shoring up the walls to keep out the Babylonian attackers. Now there are open lots where the buildings once stood. But I'm furious, and these spaces will be filled with the bodies of the people I kill.
The people of Jerusalem will wail to me for help, but they are evil, and I will ignore their prayers.
Someday, I will heal this place and my people as well, and let them enjoy unending peace.
I will hand over this land to Israel and Judah once again, and I will make them as strong as they were before.
They sinned and rebelled towards Me, but I will forgive them and remove their guilt.
When this happens, all nations on earth will see the good things I have done for Jerusalem, and how I provide complete peace. The nations will celebrate and praise and honor Me, but they will also tremble with worry.
Jeremiah, you say that this land is a desert without people or animals, and presently, you are correct. The towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem are empty. Its citizens and amimals are nowhere to be seen. But someday you will hear happy voices and the sounds of parties and wedding celebrations.
And when people come to my temple to offer sacrifices thanking me, you will hear them say: “We praise you, Almighty Lord! You are good to us, and your love is unfailing.” The land will once again be productive.
Now it is devoid of people and livestock. But when that time comes, shepherds will take care of their flocks in pastures near every town in the hill country, in the foothills to the west, in the Southern Desert, in the land of the Benjamin tribe, and around Jerusalem and the towns of Judah.
I, the Lord, have spoken."
The Lord said, "I made a wonderful promise to Israel and Judah, and the days are coming when I will fulfill it.
I promise that the time will come when I will appoint a king from the line of David, a king who will be honest and rule with justice.
In those days, Judah will be secure; Jerusalem will have peace and will be named, “The Lord Gives Justice.”
The king of Israel will be one of David’s descendants, and there will always be priests of Levi serving at My altar and offering sacrifices to please Me and to give thanks."
Then the Lord told me:
I, the Lord, have a timetable for day and night, so they always come at the right time. You can’t break this timetable I designed for them,
and you can’t break the agreements I have made with David’s family and with the priests of Levi who serve at My altar. A descendant of David will always rule as king of Israel.
And there will be more descendants of David and of the priests of Levi than stars in the sky or grains of sand on the beach."
The Lord also said,
"You’ve heard foreigners ridicule my people by saying, “The Lord chose Israel and Judah, but now He has rejected them, and they no longer exist a nation."
Jeremiah, I will never break my command for day and night or let the sky and the earth stop obeying My commands.
In the same way, I will never reject the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob or break my promise that they will always have a descendant of David as their king. I will be kind to my people Israel, and they will succeed again.
Young's Literal Translation (YLT)
1 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah a second time -- and he [is] yet detained in the court of the prison -- saying:
2 Thus said Jehovah its maker, Jehovah its former, at establishing it, Jehovah [is] His name:
3 Call unto Me, and I do answer thee, yea, I declare to thee great and fenced things -- thou hast not known them.
4 For thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, that are broken down for the mounts, and for the tool;
5 they are coming in to fight with the Chaldeans, and to fill them with the carcases of men, whom I have smitten in Mine anger, and in My fury, and [for] whom I have hidden My face from this city, because of all their evil:
6 Lo, I am increasing to it health and cure, And have healed them, and revealed to them The abundance of peace and truth.
7 And I have turned back the captivity of Judah, And the captivity of Israel, And I have built them as at the first,
8 And cleansed them from all their iniquity, That they have sinned against Me, And I have pardoned all their iniquities, That they have sinned against Me, And that they transgressed against Me.
9 And it hath been to Me for a name of joy, For praise, and for beauty, to all nations of the earth, Who hear of all the good that I am doing them, And they have feared, And they have trembled for all the good, And for all the peace, that I am doing to it.
10 Thus said Jehovah: Again heard in this place of which ye are saying, Waste it [is], without man and without beast, In cities of Judah, and in streets of Jerusalem, That are desolated, without man, And without inhabitant, and without beast,
11 Is a voice of joy and a voice of gladness, Voice of bridegroom, and voice of bride, The voice of those saying, Thank Jehovah of Hosts, for Jehovah [is] good, For His kindness [is] to the age, Who are bringing in thanksgiving to the house of Jehovah, For I turn back the captivity of the land, As at the first, said Jehovah.
12 Thus said Jehovah of Hosts: Again there is in this place -- that is waste, Without man and beast, And in all its cities -- a habitation of shepherds, Causing the flock to lie down.
13 In the cities of the hill-country, In the cities of the low country, And in the cities of the south, And in the land of Benjamin, And in the suburbs of Jerusalem, And in the cities of Judah, Again doth the flock pass by under the hands of the numberer, said Jehovah.
14 Lo, days are coming, an affirmation of Jehovah, And I have established the good word That I spake unto the house of Israel, And concerning the house of Judah.
15 In those days, and at that time, I cause to shoot up to David a shoot of righteousness, And he hath done judgment and righteousness in the earth.
16 In those days is Judah saved, And Jerusalem doth dwell confidently, And this [is] he whom Jehovah proclaimeth to her: `Our Righteousness.'
17 For thus said Jehovah: `Not cut off to David is one sitting on the throne of the house of Israel,
18 And to the priests -- the Levites, Not cut off from before Me is one, Causing a burnt-offering to ascend, And perfuming a present, and making sacrifice -- all the days.'
19 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah, saying,
20 `Thus said Jehovah: If ye do break My covenant of the day, And My covenant of the night, So that they are not daily and nightly in their season,
21 Also My covenant is broken with David My servant, So that he hath not a son reigning on his throne, And with the Levites the priests, My ministers.
22 As the host of the heavens is not numbered, Nor the sand of the sea measured, So I multiply the seed of David My servant, And the Levites My ministers.'
23 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah, saying:
24 `Hast thou not considered what this people have spoken, saying: The two families on which Jehovah fixed, He doth reject them, And my people they despise -- So that they are no more a people before them!
25 Thus said Jehovah: If My covenant [is] not daily and nightly, The statutes of heaven and earth I have not appointed --
26 Also the seed of Jacob, and David My servant, I reject, Against taking from his seed rulers For the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, For I turn back [to] their captivity, and have pitied them.'
The message from the Lord came to Jeremiah, coming when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem and all the towns around it. Nebuchadnezzar had with him all his army including armies of all the kingdoms and peoples in the empire he ruled.
Here's that message: “This is what the Lord, God of Israel, says: Jeremiah, go to King Zedekiah of Judah and deliver this message: ‘Zedekiah, the Lord says: I will hand Jerusalem to the king of Babylon very soon, and he will burn it down.
Zedekiah, you will not escape from the king of Babylon. You will be caught and handed to him. You will see the king of Babylon with your own eyes. He will talk to you face to face, and you will be taken to Babylon.
But listen to the promise of the Lord, King Zedekiah of Judah. This is your fate: You will not be killed with a sword.
You will die peacefully. People lit funeral fires to honor your ancestors, the kings who ruled before you. In the same way people will build a funeral fire to honor you. They will cry for you and sadly say, “Oh, master!” I Myself promise you this.’” This message is from the Lord.
So Jeremiah told all this message to Zedekiah in Jerusalem.
This was while the army of the king of Babylon was attacking Jerusalem. The army of Babylon was also fighting against the cities of Judah that had not been captured. These cities were Lachish and Azekah. These were the only fortified cities left in Judah.
King Zedekiah had made an agreement with all the people in Jerusalem to give freedom to all Hebrew slaves. A message from the Lord came to Jeremiah after Zedekiah had made that agreement.
Everyone was supposed to free their Hebrew slaves. All male and female Hebrew slaves were to be freed. No one was supposed to hold another tribal member of Judah in slavery.
So all the leaders of Judah and all the people accepted this agreement. They would free their male and female slaves so that they would no longer serve them. Everyone agreed, and so all the slaves were freed.
However, later, the slave owners changed their minds. So they captured the people they had freed and made them slaves again.
Then this message from the Lord came to Jeremiah:
“The Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I brought your ancestors out of the land of Egypt, where they were slaves. When I did that, I made an agreement with them.
I said to your ancestors, “At the end of every 7 years, everyone must set their Hebrew slaves free. If you have fellow Hebrews who have indentured themselves to you, you must let them go free after they have served you 6 years.” But your ancestors did not listen to Me or pay attention.
A short time ago you changed your hearts to do the right thing. Everyone freed their fellow Hebrew slaves. And you even made this pledge before Me in the Temple named for Me.
But now you recant. You have shown that you do not honor My name because each of you has taken back the male and female slaves that you freed. You have forced them into slavery again."
So the Lord says: "You people have not obeyed me. You have not given freedom to your fellow Hebrews. Because you have not given them freedom, I will give a special kind of freedom—freedom to die in war or by disease or through hunger! This message is from the Lord. When the other nations see what I have done to you, they will all be shocked.
I will hand over those who broke my agreement and have not kept the promises they made before Me. They cut a calf in half before Me and walked between the two pieces.
These are the people who walked between the two halves of the calf when they made the agreement before me: the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the important officials of the court, the priests, and the people of the land.
So I will give them to their enemies and to anyone who wishes to kill them. Their bodies will become food for the birds of the air and for the wild animals of the earth.
I will give King Zedekiah of Judah and his leaders to their enemies and to everyone who wants to kill them. I will give Zedekiah and his citizens to the army of the king of Babylon, even though that army has withdrawn from Jerusalem.
But I will give the order,’ says the Lord, ‘to bring the Babylonian army back to Jerusalem. That army will fight against Jerusalem, capture it, set it ablaze, and burn it down. And I will destroy the towns in the land of Judah. They will become empty deserts. No one will live there.”
Young's Literal Translation (YLT)
1 The word that hath been unto Jeremiah from Jehovah -- and Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his force, and all kingdoms of the land of the dominion of his hand, and all the peoples are fighting against Jerusalem, and against all its cities -- saying:
2 `Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel: Go, and thou hast spoken unto Zedekiah king of Judah, and hast said unto him, Thus said Jehovah: Lo, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he hath burned it with fire,
3 and thou, thou dost not escape out of his hand, for thou art certainly caught, and into his hand thou art given, and thine eyes see the eyes of the king of Babylon, and his mouth with thy mouth speaketh, and Babylon thou enterest.
4 `Only, hear a word of Jehovah, O Zedekiah king of Judah, Thus said Jehovah unto thee: Thou dost not die by sword,
5 in peace thou diest, and with the burnings of thy fathers, the former kings who have been before thee, so they make a burning for thee; and Ah, lord, they lament for thee, for the word I have spoken -- an affirmation of Jehovah.'
6 And Jeremiah the prophet speaketh unto Zedekiah king of Judah all these words in Jerusalem,
7 and the forces of the king of Babylon are fighting against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that are left -- against Lachish, and against Azekah, for these have been left among the cities of Judah, cities of fortresses.
8 The word that hath been unto Jeremiah from Jehovah, after the making by the king Zedekiah of a covenant with all the people who [are] in Jerusalem, to proclaim to them liberty,
9 to send out each his man-servant, and each his maid-servant -- the Hebrew and the Hebrewess -- free, so as not to lay service on them, any on a Jew his brother;
10 and hearken do all the heads, and all the people who have come in to the covenant to send forth each his man-servant and each his maid-servant free, so as not to lay service on them any more, yea, they hearken, and send them away;
11 and they turn afterwards, and cause the men-servants and the maid-servants to return, whom they had sent forth free, and they subdue them for men-servants and for maid-servants.
12 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying:
13 `Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, I -- I made a covenant with your fathers in the day of My bringing them forth from the land of Egypt, from a house of servants, saying,
14 At the end of seven years ye do send forth each his brother, the Hebrew, who is sold to thee, and hath served thee six years, yea, thou hast sent him forth free from thee: and your fathers hearkened not unto Me, nor inclined their ear.
15 `And ye turn back, ye to-day, and ye do that which is right in Mine eyes, to proclaim liberty each to his neighbour, and ye make a covenant before Me in the house over which My name is called.
16 And -- ye turn back, and pollute My name, and ye cause each his man-servant and each his maid-servant, whom he had sent forth free, (at their pleasure,) to return, and ye subdue them to be to you for men-servants and for maid-servants.
17 `Therefore, thus said Jehovah: Ye have not hearkened unto Me to proclaim freedom, each to his brother, and each to his neighbour; lo, I am proclaiming to you liberty -- an affirmation of Jehovah -- unto the sword, unto the pestilence, and unto the famine, and I have given you for a trembling to all kingdoms of the earth.
18 `And I have given the men who are transgressing My covenant, who have not established the words of the covenant that they have made before Me, by the calf, that they have cut in two, and pass through between its pieces --
19 heads of Judah, and heads of Jerusalem, the officers, and the priests, and all the people of the land those passing through between the pieces of the calf --
20 yea, I have given them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those seeking their soul, and their carcase hath been for food to the fowl of the heavens, and to the beast of the earth.
21 `And Zedekiah king of Judah, and his heads, I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those seeking their soul, and into the hand of the forces of the king of Babylon, that are going up from off you.
22 Lo, I am commanding -- an affirmation of Jehovah -- and have brought them back unto this city, and they have fought against it, and captured it, and burned it with fire, and the cities of Judah I do make a desolation -- without inhabitant.'
This word came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Josiah's son Jehoiakim, king of Judah, saying:
Go to the house of the Rekabites and talk to them, and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the back rooms, and offer them wine to drink.
Then I gathered Jaazaniah the son of Habazziniah's son Jeremiah, and his brothers and all his sons and the whole family of the Rekabites,
and I brought them into the temple, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan, the son of Igdaliah, a man of God, which was next to the chamber of the officials, which was above the chamber of Shallum's son Maaseiah, the keeper of the door.
I set before the sons of the family of the Rekabites pots full of wine and cups, and I said to them, “Drink wine.”
But they replied, “We will drink wine. For Rekab's son Jonadab, our father commanded us, saying, ‘You shall not drink wine, neither you nor your sons ever.
You shall not build a house, sow seed, plant a vineyard, nor own one; but for all your days you shall dwell in tents so that you may live many days in the land where you stay.’
So we have obeyed the voice of Rekab's son Jonadab, our father, in all that he has charged us, not drinking wine all our days, including our wives, our sons and daughters,
nor built houses for our dwelling place; and we do not possess vineyards, fields, or seed.
We lived in tents only and have obeyed and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us.
But when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up into the land, we said, ‘Come, and let us flee to Jerusalem before the army of the Chaldeans and the Arameans.’ So we have dwelt in Jerusalem.”
So then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying:
"The Lord of Hosts, God of Israel says: Go and tell the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Will you not receive instruction by listening to My words? says the Lord.
The words of Rekab's son Jonadab, commanding his sons not to drink wine, are performed. For to this day they drink none, but they obey their father’s commandment. However, I have spoken to you early on, but you did not obey Me.
I also have sent to you all My servants the prophets, early on, saying, “Return now every man from his evil behavior and amend your deeds, and do not go after other gods to serve them, and you will dwell in the land that I have given to you and your ancestors.” But you have not listened nor obeyed Me.
Actually, the sons of Jonadab the son of Rekab have performed the commandment of their father, which he commanded them, but this people has not obeyed Me.
Therefore so says the Lord God of Hosts, God of Israel: I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them; because I have spoken to them but they have not listened, and I have called them but they have not answered.
Jeremiah said to the family of the Rekabites: The Lord of Hosts, God of Israel says: Because you have obeyed the commandment of Jonadab your father and kept his precepts and done according to all that he has commanded you, therefore so says the Lord of Hosts, God of Israel, Rekab's son Jonadab the shall always have a man to stand before Me.
Young's Literal Translation (YLT)
1 The word that hath been unto Jeremiah from Jehovah, in the days of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, saying:
2 `Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and thou hast spoken with them, and brought them into the house of Jehovah, unto one of the chambers, and caused them to drink wine.'
3 And I take Jaazaniah son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, and his brethren, and all his sons, and all the house of the Rechabites,
4 and bring them into the house of Jehovah, unto the chamber of the sons of Hanan son of Igdaliah, a man of God, that [is] near to the chamber of the princes, that [is] above the chamber of Maaseiah son of Shallum, keeper of the threshold;
5 and I put before the sons of the house of the Rechabites goblets full of wine, and cups, and I say unto them, Drink ye wine.
6 And they say, `We do not drink wine: for Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, charged us, saying, Ye do not drink wine, ye and your sons -- unto the age;
7 and a house ye do not build, and seed ye do not sow, and a vineyard ye do not plant, nor have ye any; for in tents do ye dwell all your days, that ye may live many days on the face of the ground whither ye are sojourning.
8 `And we hearken to the voice of Jonadab son of Rechab, our father, to all that he commanded us, not to drink wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, and our daughters;
9 nor to build houses for our dwelling; and vineyard, and field, and seed, we have none;
10 and we dwell in tents, and we hearken, and we do according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us;
11 and it cometh to pass, in the coming up of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon unto the land, that we say, Come, and we enter Jerusalem, because of the force of the Chaldeans, and because of the force of Aram -- and we dwell in Jerusalem.'
12 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah, saying: `Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel:
13 `Go, and thou hast said to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Do ye not receive instruction? -- to hearken unto My words -- an affirmation of Jehovah.
14 Performed have been the words of Jonadab son of Rechab, when he commanded his sons not to drink wine, and they have not drunk unto this day, for they have obeyed the command of their father; and I -- I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking, and ye have not hearkened unto Me.
15 And I send unto you all My servants the prophets, rising early and sending, saying: Turn back, I pray you, each from his evil way, and amend your doings, yea, ye do not walk after other gods, to serve them, and dwell ye on the ground that I have given to you and to your fathers; and ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto Me.
16 `Because the sons of Jonadab son of Rechab have performed the command of their father, that he commanded them, and this people have not hearkened unto Me,
17 therefore thus said Jehovah, God of Hosts, God of Israel: Lo, I am bringing in unto Judah, and unto all inhabitants of Jerusalem, all the evil that I have spoken against them, because I have spoken unto them, and they have not hearkened, yea, I call to them, and they have not answered.'
18 And to the house of the Rechabites said Jeremiah: `Thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, Because that ye have hearkened unto the command of Jonadab your father, and ye observe all his commands, and do according to all that he commanded you;
19 therefore, thus said Jehovah of Hosts, God of Israel, Of Jonadab son of Rechab one standing before me is not cut off all the days.'
In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord:
“Take a scroll and write upon it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah and all the other nations from the time I began speaking to you in the reign of Josiah till now.
Perhaps when the people of Judah hear about every disaster I plan to inflict on them, they will each turn from their wicked ways; then I will forgive their wickedness and their sin.”
So Jeremiah called Neriah's son Baruch , and while Jeremiah dictated all the words the Lord had spoken to him, Baruch wrote them on the scroll.
Then Jeremiah told Baruch, “I am restricted; I am not allowed to go to the Lord’s temple.
You go to the house of the Lord on a day of fasting and read to the people from the scroll the words of the Lord that you wrote as I dictated. Read them to all the people of Judah who arrive from their communities. Perhaps they will bring their prayers before the Lord and will each turn from their wicked ways, for the anger and wrath pronounced against this people by the Lord are terrible.”
Baruch son of Neriah did everything Jeremiah the prophet told him to do; at the Lord’s temple he read the words of the Lord from the scroll.
In the 9th month of the 5th year of Josiah's son Jehoiakim king of Judah, a time of fasting before the Lord was proclaimed for all the people in Jerusalem and those who had arrived from the towns of Judah.
From the room of Shaphan's son Gemariah the secretary, which was in the upper courtyard at the entrance of the New Gate to the temple, Baruch read to all the people at the Lord’s temple the words of Jeremiah from the scroll.
When Shaphan's grandson and Gemariah's son Micaiah , heard all the words of the Lord from the scroll,
he went down to the secretary’s room in the royal palace, where all the officials were seated: Elishama the secretary, Shemaiah's son Delaiah , Akbor's son Elnathan , Shaphan's son Gemariah, Hananiah's son Zedekiah , and all the other officials.
After Micaiah told them everything he had heard Baruch read to the people from the scroll,
all the officials sent Jehudi son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to tell Baruch, “Bring the scroll from which you have read to the people and come.” So Baruch son of Neriah went to them with the scroll in his hand.
They said to him, “Be seated, please, and read it to us.”
So Baruch read it to them.
When they heard all these words, they looked at each other in fear and said to Baruch, “We must report all these words to the king.”
Then they asked Baruch, “Tell us, how were you able to write all this? Did Jeremiah dictate it?”
“Yes,” Baruch replied, “he dictated all these words to me, and I wrote them in ink on the scroll.”
Then the officials said to Baruch, “You and Jeremiah, go and hide. Don’t let anyone know where you are.”
After they put the scroll in the room of Elishama the secretary, they went to the king in the courtyard and reported everything to him.
The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and Jehudi retrieved it from the room of Elishama the secretary and read it to the king and all the officials standing beside him.
It was the 9th month and the king was sitting in the winter apartment, with a fire burning in the firepot in front of him.
Whenever Jehudi had read 3 or 4 columns of the scroll, the king cut them off with a scribe’s knife and threw them into the firepot, until the entire scroll was consumed by the fire.
The king and all his attendants who heard all these words showed no concern, nor did they tear their clothes.
Even though Elnathan, Delaiah and Gemariah urged the king not to burn the scroll, he would not listen.
Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, Azriel's son Seraiah and Abdeel's son Shelemiah to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the Lord had hidden them.
After the king burned the scroll containing the words that Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:
“Take another scroll and duplicate all the words that were on the first scroll, which Jehoiakim king of Judah burned.
Also tell Jehoiakim king of Judah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You burned that scroll and said, “Why did you write on it that the king of Babylon would certainly come and destroy this land and strip it of both man and beast?”
Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: He will have no decedents to sit on the throne of David; his body will be tossed out and exposed to the elements.
I will punish him, his children and his attendants for their wickedness; I will bring upon them and those living in Jerusalem and the people of Judah every disaster I pronounced against them, because they have not listened.’”
So Jeremiah took another scroll and handed it to Neriah's son the scribe Baruch , and as Jeremiah dictated, Baruch wrote on it all the words of the scroll that Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire. And many similar words were added to them.
Young's Literal Translation (YLT)
1 And it cometh to pass, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, this word hath been unto Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying:
2 `Take to thee a roll of a book, and thou hast written on it all the words that I have spoken unto thee concerning Israel, and concerning Judah, and concerning all the nations, from the day I spake unto thee, from the days of Josiah, even unto this day;
3 if so be the house of Israel do hear all the evil that I am thinking of doing to them, so that they turn back each from is evil way, and I have been propitious to their iniquity, and to their sin.'
4 And Jeremiah calleth Baruch son of Neriah, and Baruch writeth from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of Jehovah, that He hath spoken unto him, on a roll of a book.
5 And Jeremiah commandeth Baruch, saying, `I am restrained, I am not able to enter the house of Jehovah;
6 but thou hast entered -- and thou hast read in the roll that thou hast written from my mouth, the words of Jehovah, in the ears of the people, in the house of Jehovah, in the day of the fast, and also in the ears of all Judah who are coming in from their cities thou dost read them;
7 if so be their supplication doth fall before Jehovah, and they turn back each from his evil way, for great [is] the anger and the fury that Jehovah hath spoken concerning this people.'
8 And Baruch son of Neriah doth according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, to read in the book the words of Jehovah in the house of Jehovah.
9 And it cometh to pass, in the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, in the ninth month, proclaimed a fast before Jehovah have all the people in Jerusalem, and all the people who are coming in from cities of Judah to Jerusalem;
10 and Baruch readeth in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of Jehovah, in the chamber of Gemariah son of Shaphan the scribe, in the higher court, at the opening of the new gate of the house of Jehovah, in the ears of all the people.
11 And Michaiah son of Gemariah, son of Shaphan, heareth all the words of Jehovah from off the book,
12 and he goeth down [to] the house of the king, unto the chamber of the scribe, and lo, there are all the heads sitting: Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan son of Acbor, and Gemariah son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah son of Hananiah, and all the heads.
13 And declare to them doth Micaiah all the words that he hath heard, when Baruch readeth in the book in the ears of the people;
14 and all the heads send unto Baruch, Jehudi son of Nethaniah, son of Shelemiah, son of Cushi, saying, `The roll in which thou hast read in the ears of the people take in thy hand, and come.' And Baruch son of Neriah taketh the roll in his hand and cometh in unto them,
15 and they say unto him, `Sit down, we pray thee, and read it in our ears,' and Baruch readeth in their ears,
16 and it cometh to pass, when they hear all the words, they have been afraid one at another, and say unto Baruch, `We do surely declare to the king all these words.'
17 And they asked Baruch, saying, `Declare, we pray thee, to us, how didst thou write all these words -- from his mouth?'
18 And Baruch saith to them, `From his mouth, he pronounceth unto me all these words, and I am writing on the book with ink.'
19 And the heads say unto Baruch, `Go, be hidden, thou and Jeremiah, and let no one know where ye [are].'
20 And they go in unto the king, to the court, and the roll they have laid up in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, and they declare in the ears of the king all the words.
21 And the king sendeth Jehudi to take the roll, and he taketh it out of the chamber of Elishama the scribe, and Jehudi readeth it in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the heads who are standing by the king;
22 and the king is sitting in the winter-house, in the ninth month, and the stove before him is burning,
23 and it cometh to pass, when Jehudi readeth three or four leaves, he cutteth it out with the scribe's knife, and hath cast unto the fire, that [is] on the stove, till the consumption of all the roll by the fire that [is] on the stove.
24 And the king and all his servants who are hearing all these words have not been afraid, nor rent their garments.
25 And also Elnathan, and Delaiah, and Gemariah have interceded with the king not to burn the roll, and he hath not hearkened unto them.
26 And the king commandeth Jerahmeel son of Hammelek, and Seraiah son of Azriel, and Shelemiah son of Abdeel, to take Baruch the scribe, and Jeremiah the prophet, and Jehovah doth hide them.
27 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah -- after the king's burning the roll, even the words that Baruch hath written from the mouth of Jeremiah -- saying:
28 `Turn, take to thee another roll, and write on it all the former words that were on the first roll, that Jehoiakim king of Judah burnt,
29 and unto Jehoiakim king of Judah thou dost say: Thus said Jehovah, Thou hast burnt this roll, saying, Wherefore hast thou written on it, saying, The king of Babylon surely cometh in, and hath destroyed this land, and caused to cease from it man and beast?
30 `Therefore, thus said Jehovah, concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: He hath none sitting on the throne of David, and his carcase is cast out to heat by day, and to cold by night;
31 and I have charged on him, and on his seed, and on his servants, their iniquity; and I have brought in on them, and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto the men of Judah, all the evil that I have spoken unto them, and they hearkened not.'
32 And Jeremiah hath taken another roll, and giveth it unto Baruch son of Neriah the scribe, and he writeth on it from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book that Jehoiakim king of Judah hath burnt in the fire; and again there were added unto them many words like these.
Nebuchadnezzar was the king of Babylon. He appointed Josiah's son Zedekiah as the king of Judah in the place of Jehoiakim's son Jehoiachin.
But Zedekiah, his servants, and the people of Judah did not pay attention to the messages the Lord had given to Jeremiah the prophet.
King Zedekiah sent Shelemiah's son Jehucal and Maaseiah's son the priest Zephaniah to Jeremiah the prophet with This was message: “Jeremiah, pray to the Lord our God for us.”
At that time Jeremiah had not yet been imprisoned, so he was free to go anywhere.
Additionally at that time Pharaoh’s army was marching from Egypt towards Judah. The Babylonian army had surrounded the city of Jerusalem in order to defeat it. Then they had heard about the army from Egypt coming towards them. So the army from Babylon left Jerusalem to fight the Egyptian army.
This message from the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet:
“This is what the Lord, the God of the people of Israel, says: ‘Jehucal and Zephaniah, I know that King Zedekiah of Judah sent you to me with questions. Tell King Zedekiah that Pharaoh’s army marched out of Egypt to assist you against the army of Babylon. But Pharaoh’s army will return to Egypt.
After which the Babylon army will head back and attack Jerusalem. Then they will capture and burn it.’
This is what the Lord says: ‘People of Jerusalem, don’t kid yourselves. Don’t imagine that the Babylon army will surely leave you alone. They will not.
Citizen of Jerusalem, even if you could defeat all the Babylonian army that is attacking you, there would still be a few wounded men left in their tents. Those few wounded men would come out of their tents and burn Jerusalem down.’”
When the Babylonian army left Jerusalem to fight the army of the Pharaoh of Egypt,
Jeremiah wanted to travel from Jerusalem to the land of Benjamin. He wanted to be there for a division of some property that belonged to his family.
But when Jeremiah came to the Benjamin Gate of Jerusalem, the captain in charge of the guards arrested him. The captain’s was Shelemiah's son Irijah. Shelemiah was the son of Hananiah. So Irijah the captain arrested Jeremiah and said, “Jeremiah, you are leaving us to join the Babylonian side.”
Jeremiah exclaimed to Irijah, “That is untrue! I am not leaving to join the Babylonians.” But Irijah refused to listen to Jeremiah, but arrested and took him to the royal officials of Jerusalem.
Those officials were very angry with Jeremiah. They ordered Jeremiah beaten. Then they put him in a prison which was in the house of Jonathan, a scribe for the king of Judah. His home had been turned into a prison.
They put Jeremiah into a cell in the cellar of this house. The cell became a dungeon under the ground. Jeremiah was there for a long time.
Then King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah and had him brought to the palace. Zedekiah talked to Jeremiah in private. He asked Jeremiah, “Is there any word from the Lord?”
Jeremiah answered, “Yes, he said that you will be given to the king of Babylon.”
Then Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, “What have I done wrong? What crime have I done against you, your officials or the people of Jerusalem? Why have you thrown me into prison?
King Zedekiah, where are your prophets now? They told you a false message. They said, ‘The king of Babylon will not attack you or this land of Judah.’
But now, my lord, king of Judah, please listen to me. Please let me bring my request to you. This is what I ask: Don’t send me back to the house of Jonathan the scribe. If you send me back, I will die there.”
So King Zedekiah gave orders for Jeremiah to be put under guard in the courtyard. And he ordered that Jeremiah receive bread from the street vendors. He was allotted bread until there was no more bread in the city. So Jeremiah remained under guard in the courtyard.
Young's Literal Translation (YLT)
1 And reign doth king Zedekiah son of Josiah instead of Coniah son of Jehoiakim whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had caused to reign in the land of Judah,
2 and he hath not hearkened, he, and his servants, and the people of the land, unto the words of Jehovah, that He spake by the hand of Jeremiah the prophet.
3 And Zedekiah the king sendeth Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest, unto Jeremiah the prophet, saying, `Pray, we beseech thee, for us unto Jehovah our God.'
4 And Jeremiah is coming in and going out in the midst of the people, (and they have not put him in the prison-house),
5 and the force of Pharaoh hath come out of Egypt, and the Chaldeans, who are laying siege against Jerusalem, hear their report, and go up from off Jerusalem.
6 And there is a word of Jehovah unto Jeremiah the prophet, saying:
7 `Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, Thus do ye say unto the king of Judah, who is sending you unto Me, to seek Me: Lo, the force of Pharaoh that is coming out to you for help hath turned back to its land, to Egypt,
8 and the Chaldeans have turned back, and fought against this city, and captured it, and burnt it with fire.
9 `Thus said Jehovah: Lift not up your souls saying, The Chaldeans surely go from off us, for they do not go;
10 for though ye had smitten all the force of the Chaldeans who are fighting with you, and there were left of them wounded men -- each in his tent -- they rise, and have burnt this city with fire.'
11 And it hath come to pass, in the going up of the force of the Chaldeans from off Jerusalem, because of the force of Pharaoh,
12 that Jeremiah goeth out from Jerusalem to go [to] the land of Benjamin, to receive a portion thence in the midst of the people.
13 And it cometh to pass, he is at the gate of Benjamin, and there [is] a master of the ward -- and his name is Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah -- and he catcheth Jeremiah the prophet, saying, `Unto the Chaldeans thou art falling.'
14 And Jeremiah saith, `Falsehood -- I am not falling unto the Chaldeans;' and he hath not hearkened unto him, and Irijah layeth hold on Jeremiah, and bringeth him in unto the heads,
15 and the heads are wroth against Jeremiah, and have smitten him, and put him in the prison-house -- the house of Jonathan the scribe, for it they had made for a prison-house.
16 When Jeremiah hath entered into the house of the dungeon, and unto the cells, then Jeremiah dwelleth there many days,
17 and the king Zedekiah sendeth, and taketh him, and the king asketh him in his house in secret, and saith, `Is there a word from Jehovah?' And Jeremiah saith, `There is,' and he saith, `Into the hand of the king of Babylon thou art given.'
18 And Jeremiah saith unto the king Zedekiah, `What have I sinned against thee, and against thy servants, and against this people, that ye have given me unto a prison-house?
19 And where [are] your prophets who prophesied to you, saying, The king of Babylon doth not come in against you, and against this land?
20 And now, hearken, I pray thee, my lord, O king, let my supplication fall, I pray thee, before thee, and cause me not to return [to] the house of Jonathan the scribe, that I die not there.'
21 And the king Zedekiah commandeth, and they commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, also to give to him a cake of bread daily from the bakers' street, till the consumption of all the bread of the city, and Jeremiah dwelleth in the court of the prison.
Bible verse by verse, because it can't really be stomached in any other way.
Kolob’s set time is “one thousand years according to the time appointed unto that whereon thou standest” (Abraham 3:4). I take this as a round number. - Gee
LittleNipper wrote:Especially for those who only eat candy.....
There's not much sting in this comment seeing it is coming from Willy Wonka.
Kolob’s set time is “one thousand years according to the time appointed unto that whereon thou standest” (Abraham 3:4). I take this as a round number. - Gee
Now Mattan's son Shephatiah , Malkijah's son Pashhur and grandson Gedaliah, and Shelemiah's son Jukal heard the words that Jeremiah announced to all the people, saying:
So says the Lord, those remaining in this city will either be slain, starve to death, or die of plague. But those who goes out to the Chaldeans shall live, for he shall be enslaved, and shall live.
So says the Lord: This city shall be given to the king of Babylon’s army, and he will capture it.
As a result the officials said to the king, “We beg you to let this man be executed, for he weakens the morale of the warriors remaining in this city and all the people, in speaking sedition; for this man does not want the welfare of our people, but their harm.”
Then Zedekiah the king said, “Here he is; he is in your hand; for the king cannot stop you.”
Then they took Jeremiah and cast him into the water cistern of Hammelech's son Malkijah that was in the court of the prison, and they let Jeremiah down with cords. And in the cistern there was no water, only muck, so Jeremiah sank in this mess.
Now Ebed-Melek the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs of the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the cistern. Now the king was sitting in the Gate of Benjamin.
Ebed-Melek ventured out of the king’s palace and spoke to the king, saying,
“My lord the king, these men have committed evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet whom they have cast into the cistern. And he will die by hunger in the place where he is, for there is no more bread in the city.”
Then the king commanded Ebed-Melek the Ethiopian, saying, “Take 30 men with you from here and pull up Jeremiah the prophet from the cistern before he dies.”
So Ebed-Melek took the men under his authority and went into the palace of the king under the storeroom and gathered worn-out clothes and worn-out rags and let them down by cords into the cistern to Jeremiah.
Then the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Now put these worn-out clothes and rags under your armpits as protection from the cords,” so Jeremiah did accordingly.
Then they drew Jeremiah up with cords and brought him up out of the cistern, and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
Then king Zedekiah had Jeremiah the prophet brought to him at the 1/3 entrance that is in the house of the Lord. And the king said to Jeremiah, “I will ask you a question --- hide nothing from me.”
Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “If I declare it to you, shall you not have me executed? And if I counsel you, you will not listen to me.”
So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, “As the Lord lives, who created our souls, I surely will not put you to death, nor will I hand you to these men who seek your life.”
Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “So says the Lord, the God of Hosts, God of Israel: If you will surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then your soul will survive and this city will not be burned. You and your household will live.
But if you do not surrender to the king of Babylon’s officials, then this city will be handed to the Chaldeans, and they will burn it, and you will not escape from them.”
Zedekiah the king said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Jews who gone over to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand and mock me.”
But Jeremiah said, “They will not deliver you. Please obey the voice of the Lord which I speak to you, so it will be well with you and you will live.
But if you refuse to surrender, this is what the Lord has shown me:
All the women who are left in the palace of Judah's king will be brought out to the officers of the king of Babylon; and those women shall say:
‘Your friends have misled and triumphed over you; while your feet were stuck in the mud, they returned.’
“So they will bring out all your wives and your children to the Chaldeans. And you will not escape from them, but will be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon; and you will cause this city to be burned.”
Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Let no man hear these words, and you will not die.
But if the officials hear that I have talked with you and they come to you and say to you, ‘Tell us now what you said to the king and what the king said to you; do not hide it from us and we will not put you to death,’
say to them, ‘I presented to the king my supplication, that he would not make me return to the house of Jonathan, to die there.’ ”
Then all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him. And he told them only what the king had commanded; so they stopped speaking with him, for the matter was not overheard.
As a result, Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem was captured.
Young's Literal Translation (YLT)
1 And Shephatiah son of Mattan, and Gedaliah son of Pashhur, and Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchiah, hear the words that Jeremiah is speaking unto all the people, saying,
2 `Thus said Jehovah: He who is remaining in this city dieth, by sword, by famine, and by pestilence, and he who is going forth unto the Chaldeans liveth, and his soul hath been to him for a prey, and he liveth.
3 Thus said Jehovah: This city is certainly given into the hand of the force of the king of Babylon, and he hath captured it.'
4 And the heads say unto the king, `Let, we pray thee, this man be put to death, because that he is making feeble the hands of the men of war, who are left in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking unto them according to these words, for this man is not seeking for the peace of this people, but for its evil.'
5 And the king Zedekiah saith, `Lo, he [is] in your hand: for the king is not able for you [in] anything.'
6 And they take Jeremiah, and cast him into the pit of Malchiah son of the king, that [is] in the court of the prison, and they send down Jeremiah with cords; and in the pit there is no water, but mire, and Jeremiah sinketh in the mire.
7 And Ebed-Melech the Cushite, a eunuch who [is] in the king's house, heareth that they have put Jeremiah into the pit; and the king is sitting at the gate of Benjamin,
8 and Ebed-Melech goeth forth from the king's house, and speaketh unto the king, saying,
9 `My lord, O king, these men have done evil [in] all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the pit, and he dieth in his place because of the famine, for there is no more bread in the city.'
10 And the king commandeth Ebed-Melech the Cushite, saying, `Take with thee from this thirty men, and thou hast brought up Jeremiah the prophet from the pit, before he dieth.'
11 And Ebed-Melech taketh the men with him, and entereth the house of the king, unto the place of the treasury, and taketh thence worn-out clouts, and worn-out rags, and sendeth them unto Jeremiah unto the pit by cords.
12 And Ebed-Melech the Cushite saith unto Jeremiah, `Put, I pray thee, the worn-out clouts and rags under thine arm-holes, at the place of the cords,' and Jeremiah doth so,
13 and they draw out Jeremiah with cords, and bring him up out of the pit, and Jeremiah dwelleth in the court of the prison.
14 And the king Zedekiah sendeth, and taketh Jeremiah the prophet unto him, unto the third entrance that [is] in the house of Jehovah, and the king saith unto Jeremiah, `I am asking thee a thing, do not hide from me anything.'
15 And Jeremiah saith unto Zedekiah, `When I declare to thee, dost thou not surely put me to death? and when I counsel thee, thou dost not hearken unto me.'
16 And the king Zedekiah sweareth unto Jeremiah in secret, saying, `Jehovah liveth, He who made for us this soul, I do not put thee to death, nor give thee unto the hand of these men who are seeking thy soul.'
17 And Jeremiah saith unto Zedekiah, `Thus said Jehovah, God of Hosts, God of Israel: If thou dost certainly go forth unto the heads of the king of Babylon, then hath thy soul lived, and this city is not burned with fire, yea, thou hast lived, thou and thy house.
18 And if thou dost not go forth unto the heads of the king of Babylon, then hath this city been given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they have burnt it with fire, and thou dost not escape from their hand.'
19 And the king Zedekiah saith unto Jeremiah, `I am fearing the Jews who have fallen unto the Chaldeans, lest they give me into their hand, and they have insulted me.'
20 And Jeremiah saith, `They do not give thee up; hearken, I pray thee, to the voice of Jehovah, to that which I am speaking unto thee, and it is well for thee, and thy soul doth live.
21 `And if thou art refusing to go forth, this [is] the thing that Jehovah hath shewn me:
22 That, lo, all the women who have been left in the house of the king of Judah are brought forth unto the heads of the king of Babylon, and lo, they are saying: Persuaded thee, and prevailed against thee, Have thine allies, Sunk into mire have thy feet, They have been turned backward.
23 `And all thy wives, and thy sons, are brought forth unto the Chaldeans, and thou dost not escape from their hand, for by the hand of the king of Babylon thou art caught, and this city is burnt with fire.'
24 And Zedekiah saith unto Jeremiah, `Let no man know of these words, and thou dost not die;
25 and when the heads hear that I have spoken with thee, and they have come in unto thee, and have said unto thee, Declare to us, we pray thee, what thou didst speak unto the king, do not hide [it] from us, and we do not put thee to death, and what the king spake unto thee,
26 then thou hast said unto them, I am causing my supplication to fall before the king, not to cause me to return to the house of Jonathan, to die there.'
27 And all the heads come in unto Jeremiah, and ask him, and he declareth to them according to all these words that the king commanded, and they keep silent from him, for the matter was not heard;
28 and Jeremiah dwelleth in the court of the prison till the day that Jerusalem hath been captured, and he was [there] when Jerusalem was captured.
