“This is what the Lord said to me: ‘Make a yoke, and fasten it on your neck with leather straps. Then send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon through their ambassadors who have come to see King Zedekiah in Jerusalem. Give them this message for their masters: ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel says: With my great strength and powerful arm I made the earth and all its people and every animal. I can give these things to anyone I choose. Now I give your countries to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who is my servant. I have put everything in his control. All the nations will serve him, his son, and his grandson until his time is up. Then many nations and great kings will conquer and rule Babylon. So you must submit to Babylon’s king and serve him; put your neck under Babylon’s yoke! I will punish any nation that refuses to be his slave, says the Lord. I will send war, famine, and disease upon that nation until Babylon has conquered it.'” (vv. 2-8, NLT)
Category: Scripture
Jeremia Escapes from Death, Jeremiah Chapter 26
“When the officials of Judah heard what was happening, they rushed over from the palace and sat down at the New Gate of the Temple to hold court. The priests and prophets presented their accusations to the officials and the people. ‘This man should die!’ they said. ‘You have heard with your own ears what a traitor he is, for he has prophesied against this city.’
Then Jeremiah spoke to the officials and the people in his own defense. ‘The Lord sent me to prophesy against this Temple and this city,’ he said. ‘The Lord gave me every word that I have spoken. But if you stop your sinning and begin to obey the Lord your God, He will change His mind about this disaster that He has announced against you. As for me, I am in your hands – do with me as you think is best. But if you kill me, rest assured that your will be killing an innocent man! The responsibility for such a deed will lie on you, on this city, and every person living in it. For it is absolutely true that the Lord sent me to speak every word you have heard.’
Then the officials and the people said to the priests and prophets, ‘This man does not deserve the death sentence, for he has spoken to us in the name of God.'” (vv. 10-16, NLT)
Scriptures on Repentance
[Jesus said] “You will perish, too , unless you repent of your sins and turn to God… I tell you again, that unless you repent, you will perish.” (Luke 13:3-5, NLT)
“Peter replied, ‘Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'” (Acts 2:38, NLT)
Seventy Years of Captivity, Jeremiah Chapter 25
“Jeremiah the prophet said to all the people in Judah and Jerusalem, ‘For the past twenty-three years – from the the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah, son on Amon, king of Judah, until now- the Lord has ben giving me His messages. I have faithfully passed them on to you , but you have. not listened.'”
“Again and again the Lord has sent you His servants, the prophets, but you have not listened or even paid attention. Each time the message was this: ‘Turn from the evil road you are traveling and from the evil things you are doing. Only then will I let you live in this land that the Lord gave to you and your ancestors forever. Do not provoke My anger by worshiping idols you made with your own hands. Then I will not harm you.'” (vv. 2-6, NLT)
The Righteous Descendant, Jeremiah Chapter 23
“For the time is coming”, says the Lord, ‘when I will raise up a righteous descendant from King David’s line. He will be a King who rules with wisdom. He will do what is just and right throughout the land. And this will be his name: ‘The Lord is Our Righteousness. In that day Judah will be saved, and Israel will live in safety.” (vv. 5-6, NLT)
No Deliverance from Babylon, Jeremiah Chapter 21
“Tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: Take your choice of life or death. 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! 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.'” (vv. 8-10, NLT)
Jeremiah’s Complaint, Jeremiah Chapter 20
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. When I speak, the words burst out. “Violence and destruction!’ I shout. So these messages from the Lord have made me a household joke. But if I say I’ll never mention the Lord or speak in His name, His words burn 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! I have heard the many rumors about me. The 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.”
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. 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. Sing to the Lord! Praise the Lord! For though I was poor and needy, He rescued me from my oppressors.” (vv. 7-13, NLT)
The Potter and the Clay, Jeremiah Chapter 18
The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” So I did what He told me and found the potter working at his wheel. But the jar he was making didn’t turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay and started over.
Then the Lord gave me this message: “O Israel, can I not do to you what this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand. If I announce that a certain nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed, but then that nation renounces its evil ways, I will not destroy it as I planned. And if I announce that I will plant and build up a certain nation or kingdom, but then that nation turns to evil and refuses to obey Me, I will not bless it as I said I would.” (vv 1-10, NLT)
Observing the Sabbath, Jeremiah Chapter 17
“This is what the Lord says:’Listen to My warning! Stop carrying on your trade in Jerusalem’s gates on the Sabbath day. Do not do your work on the Sabbath, but make it a holy day. I gave this command to your ancestors, but they did not listen or obey. They stubbornly refused to pay attention or accept My discipline.
But if you do obey Me, says the Lord, and do not carry on your trade at the gates or work on the Sabbath day, and if you keep it holy, then kings and their officials will go in and out of these gates forever. There will always be a descendant of David sitting on the throne here in Jerusalem. Kings and their officials will always ride in and out among the people of Judah in chariots and on horses, and this city will remain forever.” (vv 19-25, NLT)
Jeremiah’s Trust in the Lord, Jeremiah Chapter 17
“Like a partridge that hatches the eggs she has not laid, so are those who get their wealth by unjust means. At midlife they will lose their riches; in the end, they will become poor old fools. But we worship at your throne – eternal, high, and glorious! O Lord, the hope of Israel, all who turn away from You will be disgraced. They will be buried in the dust of the earth, for they have abandoned the Lord, the fountain of living water.
O Lord, if You heal me, I will be truly saved. My praises for You alone! People scoff at me and say, ‘What is this message from the Lord you talk about? Why don’t your predictions come true?’
Lord, I have not abandoned my job as a shepherd for Your people. I have not urged You to send disaster. You have heard everything I’ve said. Lord, don’t terrorize me! You alone are my hope in the day of disaster. Bring shame and dismay on all who persecute me, but don’t let me experience shame and dismay. Bring a day of terror on them. Yes, bring double destruction upon them!” (vv. 11-18, NLT)