Jeremiah 22
1 This is what Yahweh says, “Go down to the house of the king of Judah and proclaim this word there.
Thus said YHWH: “Go down [to] the house of the king of Judah, and you have spoken this word there, and have said,
2 Say, 'King of Judah, listen to the word of Yahweh—you who sit on David's throne—you, and your servants, and your people who come through these gates.
Hear a word of YHWH, O king of Judah, who are sitting on the throne of David, you, and your servants, and your people, who are coming in at these gates,”
3 Yahweh says this, “Perform justice and righteousness, and anyone who has been robbed—rescue him from the hand of the oppressor. Do not mistreat any foreigner in your land, or any orphan or widow. Do not commit violence or pour out innocent blood in this place.
Thus said YHWH: “Do judgment and righteousness, And deliver the plundered from the hand of the oppressor, And sojourner, orphan, and widow, you do not oppress nor wrong, And innocent blood you do not shed in this place.
4 For if you truly do these things, then kings sitting on David's throne will enter the gates of this house riding in a chariot and on horses, he, his servants, and his people!
For if you certainly do this thing, Then kings sitting for David on his throne Have come in by the gates of this house, Riding on chariot, and on horses, He, and his servants, and his people.
5 But if you do not listen to these words from me that I have announced—this is Yahweh's declaration—then this royal house will become a ruin.”'
And if you do not hear these words, I have sworn by Myself,” A declaration of YHWH, “That this house is for a desolation.”
6 For Yahweh says this concerning the house of the king of Judah, 'You are like Gilead, or like the summit of Lebanon to me. Yet I will turn you into a wilderness, into cities with no inhabitants.
For thus said YHWH concerning the house of the king of Judah: “You [are] Gilead to Me—head of Lebanon, If not—I make you a wilderness, Cities [that] are not inhabited.
7 For I have designated destroyers to come against you! Men with their weapons will cut off the best of your cedars and let them fall into the fire.
And I have separated destroyers for you, Each with his weapons, And they have cut down the choice of your cedars, And have cast them on the fire.”
8 Then many nations will pass by this city. Each person will say to the next, “Why has Yahweh acted in this way toward this great city?”
And many nations have passed by this city, And they have each said to his neighbor, “Why has YHWH done thus to this great city?”
9 Then the other will answer, “Because they abandoned the covenant of Yahweh their God and bowed down to other gods and worshiped them.”
And they have said, “Because that they have forsaken The covenant of their God YHWH, And bow themselves to other gods, and serve them.”
10 Do not weep for the one who is dead or mourn for him; but weep bitterly for him who is about to go away, because he will never return and see his native land again.'
You do not weep for the dead, nor bemoan for him, Weep severely for the traveler, For he does not return again, Nor has he seen the land of his birth.
11 For Yahweh says this about Jehoahaz son of Josiah king of Judah, who served as king instead of Josiah his father, 'He has gone from this place and will not come back.
For thus said YHWH concerning Shallum son of Josiah king of Judah, who is reigning instead of his father Josiah, who has gone forth from this place: “He does not return here again;
12 He will die there in the place to where they have exiled him, and he will never again see this land.'
For he dies in the place to where they have removed him, And he does not see this land again.
13 Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, his upper rooms by injustice, who makes his neighbor work for him for nothing, and he does not give him his wages;
Woe to him who is building his house by unrighteousness, And his upper chambers by injustice, He lays service on his neighbor for nothing, And he does not give his wage to him.
14 he says, 'I will build for myself a large house with spacious upper rooms.' So he cuts out large windows for it, and he panels it with cedar, and he paints it red.
Who is saying, I build a large house for myself, And airy upper chambers, And he has cut out its windows for himself, Covered with cedar, and painted with vermillion.
15 Is this what makes you a good king, that you wanted to have boards of cedar? Did not your father also eat and drink, yet do justice and righteousness? Then things went well for him.
Do you reign, because you are fretting yourself in cedar? Your father—did he not eat and drink? Indeed, he did judgment and righteousness, Then [it is] well with him.
16 He judged in favor of the poor and needy. It was good then. Is this not what it means to know me?—this is Yahweh's declaration.
He decided the cause of the poor and needy, Then [it is] well—is it not to know Me?” A declaration of YHWH.
17 But there is nothing in your eyes and heart except worry for your unjust profit and for pouring out innocent blood, for producing oppression and crushing of others.
“But your eyes and your heart are not, Except on your dishonest gain, And on shedding of innocent blood, And on oppression, and on doing of violence.”
18 Therefore this is what Yahweh says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah: They will not lament for him, saying, 'Woe, my brother!' or 'Woe, my sister!' They will not lament for him, saying, 'Woe, master!' or 'Woe, majesty!'
Therefore, thus said YHWH concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: “They do not lament for him, Oh, my brother! And, Oh, my sister! They do not lament for him, Oh, lord! And, Oh, his splendor!
19 He will be buried with a donkey's burial, dragged away and thrown out beyond the gates of Jerusalem.
He is buried [with] the burial of a donkey, Dragged and cast out there to the gates of Jerusalem.
20 Go up Lebanon's mountains and shout. Lift your voice in Bashan. Shout from the Abarim mountains, for all of your friends will be destroyed.
Go up to Lebanon, and cry, And give forth your voice in Bashan, And cry from Abarim, For all loving you have been destroyed.
21 I spoke to you when you were safe, but you said, 'I will not listen.' This was your custom since your youth, for you have not listened to my voice.
I have spoken to you in your ease, You have said, I do not listen, This [is] your way from your youth, For you have not listened to My voice.
22 The wind will shepherd away all your shepherds, and your friends will go into captivity. Then you will certainly be ashamed and humiliated by all of your evil deeds.
Wind consumes all your friends, And your lovers go into captivity, Surely then you are ashamed, And have blushed for all your wickedness.
23 You who live in 'Lebanon,' who is nestled in cedar buildings, how you will be pitied when the labor pains come upon you, pain like that of a woman in labor!”
O dweller in Lebanon, making a nest among cedars, How gracious have you been when pangs come to you, Pain—as of a travailing woman.”
24 “As I live—this is Yahweh's declaration—even if you, Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet on my right hand, I would tear you off.
“[As] I live,” A declaration of YHWH, “Though Coniah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah was a seal on My right hand, surely there I draw you away,
25 For I have given you to the hand of the ones seeking your life and to the hand of those before whom you are afraid, even to the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the Chaldeans.
And I have given you into the hand of those seeking your life, And into hands of which you are afraid, Into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, And into the hand of the Chaldeans.
26 I will throw you and your mother who bore you into another land, a country where you were not born, and there you will die.
And I have cast you, And your mother who bore you, to another country, Where you were not born, and you die there.
27 About this land to which they will want to return, they will not come back here.
And to the land to where they are lifting up their soul to return, They do not return there.”
28 Is this a despised and shattered vessel? Is this man Jehoiachin a pot that pleases no one? Why have they thrown him and his descendants out, and have poured them out into a land that they did not know?
A grief—a despised broken thing—is this man Coniah? A vessel in which there is no pleasure? Why have they been cast up and down, He and his seed, Indeed, were they cast on to a land that they did not know?
29 Land, Land, Land! Hear the word of Yahweh!
Earth, earth, earth, hear a word of YHWH!
30 Yahweh says this, 'Write about this man Jehoiachin: He will be childless. He will not prosper during his days, and no one among his descendants will achieve success or ever again sit on David's throne and rule over Judah.'”
Thus said YHWH: “Write this man down [as] childless, A man—he does not prosper in his days, For none of his seed prospers, Sitting on the throne of David, And ruling in Judah again!”
