Add parallel Print Page Options

22 ¶ Thus hath the LORD said: Go down to the house of the king of Judah and speak there this word,

and say, Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, that doth sit upon the throne of David, thou, and thy slaves and thy people that enter in by these gates:

Thus hath the LORD said: Execute judgment and righteousness and deliver the oppressed out of the hand of the oppressor and do not deceive, neither steal from the stranger nor from the fatherless nor from the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place.

For if ye effectively obey this word, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house the kings seated by David upon his throne, riding in chariots and on horses, he and his slaves and his people.

But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by myself, said the LORD, that this house shall become a desolation.

For thus hath the LORD said regarding the house of the king of Judah: Thou art Gilead unto me and the head of Lebanon: yet surely I will make thee a wilderness and cities which are not inhabited.

And I will appoint destroyers against thee, each one with his weapons, and they shall cut down thy choice cedars and cast them into the fire.

And many Gentiles shall pass by this city, and each man shall say to his neighbour, Why has the LORD done thus unto this great city?

Then they shall answer, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD their God and worshipped other gods and served them.

10 ¶ Do not weep for the dead nor bemoan him, but weep sore for him that goes away, for he shall return no more nor see his native country.

11 For thus hath the LORD said of Shallum the son of Josiah king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, He who went forth out of this place shall not return there any more;

12 but he shall die in the place where they have led him captive and shall see this land no more.

13 Woe unto him that builds his house and not in righteousness and his chambers and not in judgment, using his neighbour’s service without wages and not giving him the wages of his work!

14 That saith, I will build me a wide house and large chambers, and cuts out windows in it and covers it with cedar and anoints it with vermilion.

15 Shalt thou reign, because thou dost enclose thyself in cedar? did not thy father eat and drink and do judgment and righteousness, and then it was well with him?

16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well with him. Is this not to know me? said the LORD.

17 But thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy covetousness and for to shed innocent blood and for oppression and for violence, to do it.

18 Therefore thus hath the LORD said concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah; They shall not lament for him, saying, Ah my brother! and Ah sister! they shall not lament for him, saying, Ah lord! or, Ah his glory!

19 He shall be buried with the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

20 ¶ Go up to Lebanon and cry; and lift up thy voice in Bashan and cry unto all parts: for all thy lovers are destroyed.

21 I spoke unto thee in thy prosperity, but thou didst say, I will not hear. This has been thy way from thy youth, that thou hast never heard my voice.

22 The wind shall eat up all thy pastors, and thy lovers shall go into captivity; surely then shalt thou be ashamed and confound thyself because of all thy malice.

23 Thou didst inhabit Lebanon, thou didst make thy nest in the cedars. How shalt thou cry out when pangs come upon thee, the pain as of a woman in travail!

24 As I live, saith the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon my right hand, yet I would pluck thee from there;

25 and I will give thee into the hand of those that seek thy soul and into the hand of those whose face thou dost fear, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of the Chaldeans.

26 And I will cast thee out and thy mother that bore thee into another country, where ye were not born, and there ye shall die.

27 But to the land unto which they de sire to return, they shall not return there.

28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken idol? Is he a vessel in which there is no pleasure? Why are they cast out, he and his generation, and are cast into a land which they know not?

29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.

30 Thus hath the LORD said, Write what shall be of this man deprived of a generation, a man unto whom nothing shall prosper in all the days of his life, for no man of his seed who sits upon the throne of David and rules over Judah shall prosper.

Judgment Against Wicked Kings

22 This is what the Lord says: “Go down to the palace of the king(A) of Judah and proclaim this message there: ‘Hear(B) the word of the Lord to you, king of Judah, you who sit on David’s throne(C)—you, your officials and your people who come through these gates.(D) This is what the Lord says: Do what is just(E) and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor(F) the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow,(G) and do not shed innocent blood(H) in this place. For if you are careful to carry out these commands, then kings(I) who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this palace, riding in chariots and on horses, accompanied by their officials and their people. But if you do not obey(J) these commands, declares the Lord, I swear(K) by myself that this palace will become a ruin.’”

For this is what the Lord says about the palace of the king of Judah:

“Though you are like Gilead(L) to me,
    like the summit of Lebanon,(M)
I will surely make you like a wasteland,(N)
    like towns not inhabited.
I will send destroyers(O) against you,
    each man with his weapons,
and they will cut(P) up your fine cedar beams
    and throw them into the fire.(Q)

“People from many nations will pass by this city and will ask one another, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?’(R) And the answer will be: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshiped and served other gods.(S)’”

10 Do not weep for the dead(T) king or mourn(U) his loss;
    rather, weep bitterly for him who is exiled,
because he will never return(V)
    nor see his native land again.

11 For this is what the Lord says about Shallum[a](W) son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah but has gone from this place: “He will never return. 12 He will die(X) in the place where they have led him captive; he will not see this land again.”

13 “Woe(Y) to him who builds(Z) his palace by unrighteousness,
    his upper rooms by injustice,
making his own people work for nothing,
    not paying(AA) them for their labor.
14 He says, ‘I will build myself a great palace(AB)
    with spacious upper rooms.’
So he makes large windows in it,
    panels it with cedar(AC)
    and decorates it in red.(AD)

15 “Does it make you a king
    to have more and more cedar?
Did not your father have food and drink?
    He did what was right and just,(AE)
    so all went well(AF) with him.
16 He defended the cause of the poor and needy,(AG)
    and so all went well.
Is that not what it means to know(AH) me?”
    declares the Lord.
17 “But your eyes and your heart
    are set only on dishonest gain,(AI)
on shedding innocent blood(AJ)
    and on oppression and extortion.”(AK)

18 Therefore this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:

“They will not mourn(AL) for him:
    ‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’
They will not mourn for him:
    ‘Alas, my master! Alas, his splendor!’
19 He will have the burial(AM) of a donkey—
    dragged away and thrown(AN)
    outside the gates of Jerusalem.”

20 “Go up to Lebanon and cry out,(AO)
    let your voice be heard in Bashan,(AP)
cry out from Abarim,(AQ)
    for all your allies(AR) are crushed.
21 I warned you when you felt secure,(AS)
    but you said, ‘I will not listen!’
This has been your way from your youth;(AT)
    you have not obeyed(AU) me.
22 The wind(AV) will drive all your shepherds(AW) away,
    and your allies(AX) will go into exile.
Then you will be ashamed and disgraced(AY)
    because of all your wickedness.
23 You who live in ‘Lebanon,[b](AZ)
    who are nestled in cedar buildings,
how you will groan when pangs come upon you,
    pain(BA) like that of a woman in labor!

24 “As surely as I live,” declares the Lord, “even if you, Jehoiachin[c](BB) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, were a signet ring(BC) on my right hand, I would still pull you off. 25 I will deliver(BD) you into the hands of those who want to kill you, those you fear—Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the Babylonians.[d] 26 I will hurl(BE) you and the mother(BF) who gave you birth into another country, where neither of you was born, and there you both will die. 27 You will never come back to the land you long to return(BG) to.”

28 Is this man Jehoiachin(BH) a despised, broken pot,(BI)
    an object no one wants?
Why will he and his children be hurled(BJ) out,
    cast into a land(BK) they do not know?
29 O land,(BL) land, land,
    hear the word of the Lord!
30 This is what the Lord says:
“Record this man as if childless,(BM)
    a man who will not prosper(BN) in his lifetime,
for none of his offspring(BO) will prosper,
    none will sit on the throne(BP) of David
    or rule anymore in Judah.”

Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 22:11 Also called Jehoahaz
  2. Jeremiah 22:23 That is, the palace in Jerusalem (see 1 Kings 7:2)
  3. Jeremiah 22:24 Hebrew Koniah, a variant of Jehoiachin; also in verse 28
  4. Jeremiah 22:25 Or Chaldeans