Jeremias 21

¹ The worde which came vnto Ieremiah from the Lord, when king Zedekiah sent vnto him Pashur, the sonne of Malchiah, and Zephaniah, the sonne of Maaseiah the Priest, saying,

² Not that the king was touched with repentance of his sins and so sought God, as did Hezekiah when he sent for Isaiah, (2Ki_19:1; Isa_37:2) but because the prophet might pray to God to take this present plague away, as Pharaoh sought Moses (Exo_9:28).Enquire, I pray thee, of the LORD for us; for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon maketh war against us; it may be that the LORD will deal with us according to all his wondrous works, that he may go up from us.

³ Then said Ieremiah, Thus shall you say to Zedekiah,

⁴ Thus saith the LORD God of Israel; Behold, I willThat is, from your enemies to destroy yourselves.turn back the weapons of war that [are] in your hands, with which ye fight against the king of Babylon, and [against] the Chaldeans, who besiege you outside the walls, and I will assemble them into the midst of this city.

⁵ And I my selfe will fight against you with an outstretched hand, & with a mighty arme, eue in anger and in wrath, and in great indignation.

⁶ And I will smite the inhabitants of this citie, both man, and beast: they shall die of a great pestilence.

⁷ And after this, sayeth the Lorde, I will deliuer Zedekiah the King of Iudah, and his seruants, and the people, and such as are left in this citie, from the pestilence, from the sworde and from the famine into the hande of Nebuchad-nezzar King of Babel, and into the hande of their enemies, and into the hande of those that seeke their liues, and he shall smite them with the edge of the sworde: he shall not spare them, neither haue pitie nor compassion.

⁸ And to this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I set before you theBy yielding yourselves to Nebuchadnezzar.way of life, and the way ofBy resisting him.death.

⁹ He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth out, and falleth to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be to him for aAs a thing recovered from extreme danger, (Jer_37:2, Jer_39:18, Jer_45:5).prize.

¹⁰ For I haue set my face against this citie, for euill and not for good, saith the Lorde: it shalbe giuen into the hande of the King of Babel, and he shall burne it with fire.

¹¹ And say vnto the house of the King of Iudah, Heare ye the worde of the Lorde.

¹² O house of David, thus saith the LORD; Execute judgmentBe diligent to do justice.in the morning, and deliver [him that is] made desolate out of the hand of the oppressor, lest my fury go out like fire, and burn that none can quench [it], because of the evil of your doings.

¹³ Behold, I [am] against thee,Meaning, Jerusalem which was built part on the hill and part in the valley and was compassed about with mountains.O inhabitant of the valley, [and] rock of the plain, saith the LORD; who say, Who shall come down against us? or who shall enter into our habitations?

¹⁴ But I will punish you according to the fruit of your doings, saith the LORD: and I will kindle a fireThat is, in the houses of it, which stood as thick as trees in the forest.in its forest, and it shall devour all things around it.