Jeremiah 27

1 When Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, first became king this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,

In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, came this word unto Jeremiah, from Yahweh, saying:

2 This is what the Lord has said to me: Make for yourself bands and yokes and put them on your neck;

Thus, said Yahweh unto me, Make thee, bonds and bars, and put them upon thine own neck.

3 And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the children of Ammon, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Zidon, by their servants who come to Jerusalem, to Zedekiah, king of Judah;

Then shalt thou send them unto the king of Edom and unto the king of Moab and unto the king of the sons of Ammon, and unto the king of Tyre and unto the king of Zidon, —by the hand of messengers coming into Jerusalem, unto Zedekiah king of Judah.

4 And give them orders to say to their masters, This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, has said: Say to your masters,

And thou shall give them charge unto their lords saying, —Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts God of Israel, Thus shall ye say unto your lords: —

5 I have made the earth, and man and beast on the face of the earth, by my great power and by my outstretched arm; and I will give it to anyone at my pleasure.

I, made The earth—The man and the beast that are on the face of the earth—By my great power, And by mine outstretched arm, —And gave it to whomsoever was right in mine own eyes.

6 And now I have given all these lands into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant; and I have given the beasts of the field to him for his use.

Now, therefore, I, have given all these lands, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon my servant, —Moreover also, the wild beast of the field, have I given him, to serve him.

7 And all the nations will be servants to him and to his son and to his son's son, till the time comes for his land to be overcome: and then a number of nations and great kings will take it for their use.

Therefore shall all the nations serve him, and his son, and his son’s son, —until the time even of his own land, itself arrive, when many nations and great kings, shall use him as a slave.

8 And it will come about, that if any nation does not become a servant to this same Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and does not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, then I will send punishment on that nation, says the Lord, by the sword and need of food and by disease, till I have given them into his hands.

And it shall come to pass that, the nation or kingdom which will not serve him, even Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and that will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, —with sword and with famine, and with pestilence, will I bring punishment upon that nation, Declareth Yahweh, until I have consumed them by his hand.

9 And you are not to give attention to your prophets or your readers of signs or your dreamers or those who see into the future or those who make use of secret arts, who say to you, You will not become servants of the king of Babylon:

Ye, therefore do not ye hearken unto your prophets, nor unto your diviners, nor unto your dreams, nor unto your users of hidden arts nor unto your mutterers of incantations, —in that, they, are speaking unto you saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon;

10 For they say false words to you, so that you may be sent away far from your land, and so that you may be forced out by me and come to destruction.

for falsehood, are they prophesying unto you, that ye may be far removed from off your own soil, and I drive you out, and ye be destroyed

11 But as for that nation which puts its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and becomes his servant, I will let that nation keep on in its land, farming it and living in it, says the Lord.

But the nation that shall bring its neck into the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let them remain in quietness upon their own soil, Declareth Yahweh, and they shall till it, and dwell therein.

12 And I said all this to Zedekiah, king of Judah, saying, Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and become his servants and his people, so that you may keep your lives.

Also unto Zedekiah king of Judah, spake I, according to all these words saying, -Bring your necks into the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people and live!

13 Why are you desiring death, you and your people, by the sword, and because food is gone, and by disease, as the Lord has said of the nation which does not become the servant of the king of Babylon?

Wherefore, should ye die, thou, and thy people, by sword, by famine, and by pestilence, —as Yahweh hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?

14 And you are not to give ear to the prophets who say to you, You will not become servants of the king of Babylon: for what they say is not true.

Do not, then hearken unto the words of the prophets who are speaking unto you, saying—Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon, —for falsehood, are they prophesying unto you.

15 For I have not sent them, says the Lord, but they are saying what is false in my name, so that I might send you out by force, causing destruction to come on you and on your prophets.

For I have not sent them, Declareth Yahweh, but they are prophesying in my name, falsely, —to the end I may drive you out and ye be destroyed, ye and the prophets who are prophesying unto you.

16 And I said to the priests and to all the people, This is what the Lord has said: Give no attention to the words of your prophets who say to you, See, in a very little time now the vessels of the Lord's house will come back again from Babylon: for what they say to you is false.

Also unto the priests, and unto all this people, spake I, saying, Thus! saith Yahweh, Do not hearken unto the words of your prophets, who are prophesying unto you saying, Lo! the vessels of the house of Yahweh, are to be brought back out of Babylon now, quickly; for falsehood, are they prophesying unto you.

17 Give no attention to them; become servants of the king of Babylon and keep yourselves from death: why let this town become a waste?

Do not hearken unto them, serve the king of Babylon land live! wherefore, should this city become a desolation?

18 But if they are prophets, and if the word of the Lord is with them, let them now make request to the Lord of armies that the vessels which are still in the house of the Lord and in the house of the king of Judah and at Jerusalem, may not go to Babylon.

But, if prophets, they are, and if the word of Yahweh is with them, let them intercede, I pray you, with Yahweh of hosts, that the vessels which are left remaining in the house of Yahweh and the house of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem, come not into Babylon.

19 For this is what the Lord has said about the rest of the vessels which are still in this town,

For Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts—Concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the stands, —and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in this city

20 Which Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, did not take away, when he took Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, a prisoner from Jerusalem to Babylon, with all the great men of Judah and Jerusalem;

which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took not when he carried away captive Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah from Jerusalem to Babylon, —with all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem,

21 For this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, has said about the rest of the vessels in the house of the Lord and in the house of the king of Judah and at Jerusalem:

Yea—Thus, saith Yahweh of hosts God of Israel Concerning the vessels that are left in thee house of Yahweh and the house of the king of Judah, and Jerusalem,

22 They will be taken away to Babylon, and there they will be till the day when I send their punishment on them, says the Lord. Then I will take them up and put them back in their place.

Into Babylon, shall they be taken And there, shall they remain, Until the day that I visit them, Declareth Yahweh, When I will bring them up, and restore them unto this place.