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Jeremiah 28

Hananiahs Falsehood and Doom

1 And it happened in the same year, at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year and in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of Azur the prophet, who was from Gibeon, spoke to me in the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and of all the people, saying,2 Thus speaks the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.3 Within two full years I will bring back to this place all the vessels of the Lords house, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon.4 And I will bring back to this place Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, with all the captives of Judah who went to Babylon, says the Lord, for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.5 Then the prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and in the presence of all the people who stood in the house of the Lord,6 and the prophet Jeremiah said, Amen! The Lord do so; the Lord perform your words which you have prophesied, to bring back the vessels of the Lords house and all who were carried away captive, from Babylon to this place.7 Nevertheless hear now this word that I speak in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people:8 The prophets who have been before me and before you of old prophesied against many countries and great kingdomsof war and disaster and pestilence.9 As for the prophet who prophesies of peace, when the word of the prophet comes to pass, the prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent.10 Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke off the prophet Jeremiahs neck and broke it.11 And Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people, saying, Thus says the Lord: Even so I will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all nations within the space of two full years. And the prophet Jeremiah went his way.12 Now the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, after Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying,13 Go and tell Hananiah, saying, Thus says the Lord: You have broken the yokes of wood, but you have made in their place yokes of iron.14 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: I have put a yoke of iron on the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they shall serve him. I have given him the beasts of the field also.15 Then the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, but you make this people trust in a lie.16 Therefore thus says the Lord: Behold, I will cast you from the face of the earth. This year you shall die, because you have taught rebellion against the Lord.17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.

JEREMIAH 28

Jeremiah Accuses Hananiah //of Being a False Prophet

1  t Later that same year, in the fifth month of the fourth year that Zedekiaht was king, t the prophet Hananiah son of Azzur from Gibeon came up to me in the temple. And while the priests and others in the temple were listening,

2 he told me that the [Lord] had said:
I am the [Lord] All-Powerful, the God of Israel, and I will smash the yoket that Nebuchadnezzart put on the necks of the nations to make them his slaves. 3 And within two years, I will bring back to Jerusalem everything that he took from my temple and carried off to Babylonia.

4 King Jehoiachint and the other people who were taken from Judah to Babylonia will be allowed to come back here as well. All this will happen because I will smash the power of the king of Babylonia!

5 The priests and the others were still standing there, so I said:
6 Hananiah, I hope the [Lord] will do exactly what you said. I hope he does bring back everything the Babylonians took from the temple, and that our people who were taken to Babylonia will be allowed to return home. 7 But let me remind you and everyone else 8 that long before we were born, prophets were saying powerful kingdoms would be struck by war, disaster, and disease.

9 Now you are saying we will have peace. We will just have to wait and see if that is really what the [Lord] has said.t
10 Hananiah grabbed the wooden yoke from my neck and smashed it.

11 Then he said, “The [Lord] says this is the way he will smash the power Nebuchadnezzar has over the nations, and it will happen in less than two years.”
I left the temple, 12 and a little while later, the [Lord] told me

13-14 to go back and say to Hananiah:
I am the [Lord] All-Powerful, the God of Israel. You smashed a wooden yoke, but I will replace it with one made of iron. I will put iron yokes on all the nations, and they will have to do what King Nebuchadnezzar commands. I will even let him rule the wild animals.

15-16 Hananiah, I have never sent you to speak for me. And yet you have talked my people into believing your lies and rebelling against me. So now I will send you—I'll send you right off the face of the earth! You will die before this year is over.
17 Two months later, Hananiah died.