Jeremiah is commanded by the LORD to make yokes, symbolizing submission, and send them to various kings, including Judah's Zedekiah. The LORD declares He has given all nations into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, His servant, and warns that those who resist Babylon will face divine punishment. He urges Judah and other nations to submit to Babylon to avoid destruction, cautioning against false prophets who counsel otherwise.
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 Sidon, by the hand of the messengers that come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah:
I have made the earth, the men and the beasts that are upon the face of the earth, by my great power and by my outstretched arm; and I give it unto whom it seemeth right unto me.
And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field also have I given him to serve him.
And all the nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son’s son, until the time of his own land come: and then many nations and great kings shall make him their bondman.
And it shall come to pass, that the nation and the kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith Jehovah, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.
But as for you, hearken ye not to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreams, nor to your soothsayers, nor to your sorcerers, that speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon:
But the nation that shall bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, that nation will I let remain in their own land, saith Jehovah; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.
And I spake to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.
Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as Jehovah hath spoken concerning the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?
For I have not sent them, saith Jehovah, but they prophesy falsely in my name; that I may drive you out, and that ye may perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you.
Also I spake to the priests and to all this people, saying, Thus saith Jehovah: Hearken not to the words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying, Behold, the vessels of Jehovah’s house shall now shortly be brought again from Babylon; for they prophesy a lie unto you.
But if they be prophets, and if the word of Jehovah be with them, let them now make intercession to Jehovah of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of Jehovah, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon.
For thus saith Jehovah of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that are left in this city,
which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took not, when he carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem;
yea, thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that are left in the house of Jehovah, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem:
They shall be carried to Babylon, and there shall they be, until the day that I visit them, saith Jehovah; then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place.
Study Notes for Jeremiah 27
Verse 1
The dating of this event is highly disputed. Contextual evidence (vv. 3, 12, 20) and ancient versions strongly suggest this occurred during the reign of Zedekiah (597–586 BC), not Jehoiakim (609–598 BC).
Verse 2
The Lord instructs Jeremiah to perform a symbolic act by wearing a wooden yoke, representing the burden of servitude and political submission that God demanded of Judah and the surrounding nations.
Verse 5
Jeremiah grounds God’s political control in His role as Creator. Because Yahweh made the earth, He has the absolute sovereign right to appoint rulers and determine the fate of nations.
Verse 6
God refers to the pagan king Nebuchadnezzar as 'my servant.' This designation underscores that the Babylonian empire is not merely a political power, but a divinely ordained instrument of judgment against disobedient nations.
Verse 7
The length of Babylonian dominance is explicitly limited to three generations (likely Nebuchadnezzar, his son, and his grandson). This specific time limit offers a prophetic assurance that the judgment is temporary.
Verse 9
God warns against relying on foreign or local religious practitioners who offered false assurances of peace and independence. These diviners spoke what the people wanted to hear, not God’s truth.
Verse 11
Obedience to God's command—even when it involves submission to a hostile foreign power—is the path to survival and continued dwelling in the land.
Verse 12
Jeremiah now applies the general message directly to King Zedekiah, who was installed by Nebuchadnezzar but was constantly pressured by surrounding nations and internal factions to plot rebellion.
Verse 15
The severe consequence of listening to false prophets is emphasized: God will ensure that both the people and the lying prophets are destroyed and exiled together.
Verse 16
False prophets were specifically promising that the sacred vessels taken in the 597 BC deportation would soon be returned. This prophecy provided false hope and encouraged resistance to Babylon.
Verse 18
Jeremiah challenges the false prophets: if they truly speak for God, they should pray that the *remaining* vessels in the temple and palace be spared from future capture, rather than predicting the return of the lost items.
Verse 20
Jeconiah (or Jehoiachin) was carried away during the first major wave of deportation in 597 BC, along with the first set of temple treasures (2 Kings 24:13).
Verse 22
This final verse confirms that the remaining temple treasures will indeed be taken in the final destruction of Jerusalem (586 BC), but promises that they will be brought back upon God’s appointed day of restoration (cf. Ezra 1:7–11).
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