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.
Send [similar yokes] to the kings of Edom, of Mo'av, of the people of 'Amon, of Tzor, and of Tzidon by means of the envoys they send to Yerushalayim, and to Tzidkiyahu king of Y'hudah.
All the nations will serve him, his son and his grandson, until his own country gets its turn - at which time many nations and great kings will make him their slave.
The nation and kingdom that refuses to serve this N'vukhadnetzar king of Bavel, that will not put their necks under the yoke of the king of Bavel, I will punish," says ADONAI "with sword, famine and plague, until I have put an end to them through him.
"'"You, therefore, don't listen to your prophets, diviners, dreamers, magicians or sorcerers, when they tell you that you won't be subject to the king of Bavel;
But the nation that puts its neck under the yoke of the king of Bavel and serves him, that nation I will allow to remain on their own soil," says ADONAI. "They will farm it and live there."'"
Then I spoke to Tzidkiyahu king of Y'hudah in just the same way: "Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Bavel, serve him and his people, and you will live.
Why would you want to die, you and your people, by sword, famine and plague - which is what ADONAI has decreed for the nation that will not serve the king of Bavel?
'For I have not sent them,' says ADONAI, 'and they are prophesying falsely in my name, with the result that I will drive you out, and you will perish - you and the prophets prophesying to you.'"
I also spoke to the cohanim and to all this people; I said, "This is what ADONAI says: 'Don't listen to the words of the prophets prophesying to you that the articles from ADONAI's house will soon be returned from Bavel; because they are prophesying lies to you.
But if they are in fact prophets, and if the word of ADONAI is with them, then let them now intercede with ADONAI-Tzva'ot that the articles still remaining in the house of ADONAI and in the palace of the king of Y'hudah will not go off to Bavel.
that N'vukhadnetzar, king of Bavel did not seize when he carried off captive Y'khanyahu the son of Y'hoyakim, king of Y'hudah, from Yerushalayim to Bavel, along with all the leading men of Y'hudah and Yerushalayim-
yes, this is what ADONAI Shaddai, the God of Isra'el, says about the things remaining in the house of ADONAI, in the palace of the king of Y'hudah and in Yerushalayim:
'They will be carried to Bavel; and there they will stay until the day I remember them, bring them back and restore them to this place,' says ADONAI."
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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