In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord: 2 “Thus says the Lord: Stand in the court of the Lord's house, and speak to all the cities of Judah that come to worship in the house of the Lord all the words that I command you to speak to them; do not hold back a word. 3 It may be they will listen, and every one turn from his evil way, that I may relent of the disaster that I intend to do to them because of their evil deeds. 4 You shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: If you will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, 5 and to listen to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you urgently, though you have not listened, 6 then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city a curse for all the nations of the earth.’”
7 The priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord. 8 And when Jeremiah had finished speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, then the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him, saying, “You shall die! 9 Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, without inhabitant’?” And all the people gathered around Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.
10 When the officials of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king's house to the house of the Lord and took their seat in the entry of the New Gate of the house of the Lord. 11 Then the priests and the prophets said to the officials and to all the people, “This man deserves the sentence of death, because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.”
12 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and all the people, saying, “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and this city all the words you have heard. 13 Now therefore mend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the Lord your God, and the Lord will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you. 14 But as for me, behold, I am in your hands. Do with me as seems good and right to you. 15 Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood upon yourselves and upon this city and its inhabitants, for in truth the Lord sent me to you to speak all these words in your ears.”
Jeremiah Spared from Death
16 Then the officials and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, “This man does not deserve the sentence of death, for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.” 17 And certain of the elders of the land arose and spoke to all the assembled people, saying, 18 “Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and said to all the people of Judah: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts,
“‘Zion shall be plowed as a field;
Jerusalem shall become a heap of ruins,
and the mountain of the house a wooded height.’
19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the Lord and entreat the favor of the Lord, and did not the Lord relent of the disaster that he had pronounced against them? But we are about to bring great disaster upon ourselves.”
20 There was another man who prophesied in the name of the Lord, Uriah the son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and against this land in words like those of Jeremiah. 21 And when King Jehoiakim, with all his warriors and all the officials, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death. But when Uriah heard of it, he was afraid and fled and escaped to Egypt. 22 Then King Jehoiakim sent to Egypt certain men, Elnathan the son of Achbor and others with him, 23 and they took Uriah from Egypt and brought him to King Jehoiakim, who struck him down with the sword and dumped his dead body into the burial place of the common people.
24 But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah so that he was not given over to the people to be put to death. Jeremiah 26 ESV
Jeremiah 26 Jeremiah Threatened
After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jews were seeking to kill him. 2 Now the Jews' Feast of Booths was at hand. 3 So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. 4 For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 For not even his brothers believed in him. 6 Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil. 8 You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After saying this, he remained in Galilee. John 7: 1-9
1-15. Do not hold back a word - Now there are those hyper dispensationalist that break up the word of God and history in such a way as to pick and choose what they will say, not because Scripture has so instructed them, but because cheap grace keeps them friendly with the world and the apostates. No one hates you if you just say, "Jesus loves you." Under the old covenant of the law God hated sin, and He required for certain sins capital punishment. Now under the new covenant the government is still instructed to not bare the sword in vane, and there are still capital crimes, and though there is grace, God still hates sin, is still calling men everywhere to repent. If you need proof of that in this dispensation of the church look at the story of Ananias and Sapphira. We are not instructed to take the law in our own hands, but rather to confront sin and admonish sinners regardless of their response.
…26Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men. 27For I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole will of God. 28Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.… Acts 20: 26-28
42Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on My own, but He sent Me. 43Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you are unable to accept My message. 44You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out his desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, refusing to uphold the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies.… John 8: 42-44
You shall die - So Jeremiah preached of sin and repentance, and also of the wages of not repenting. We already know from earlier chapters that they put more weight upon ritual, took more comfort in having the temple. Now he is considered a traitor for "he prophesied against this city," and everyone heard it. So you instantly have a mob that does not bother to discern whether he speaks of his own, or is a true prophet. They move quickly, skipping over discernment, comparison to God's word, not interested in fair trial, let's execute him. Why? Well you heard him, and we don't like what he said. It did not feel good like the words of the other prophets. The message follows along with Jeremiah 7, and this seems to be the response, a look back at the aftermath.
…31At this, the Jews again picked up stones to stone Him. 32 But Jesus responded, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone Me?” 33“We are not stoning You for any good work,” said the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, declare Yourself to be God.”… John 10: 31-33
Then the priest and the prophets said to the officials - He deserves to die because he prophesied against the city. That's not what God said about prophets, He never said kill them because what they say is unpopular. Later, Daniel and others will read Jeremiah, looking back and seeing through the eyes of providence, knowing that he did speak for God, and so they will know that the captivity will be 70 years.
…21You may ask in your heart, “How can we recognize a message that the LORD has not spoken?” 22When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD and the message does not come to pass or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. The prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him. Deuteronomy 18: 21-22
The blasphemy would be saying that you spoke for God when he didn't send you, and there were prophets there accusing Jeremiah who were guilty of that very thing, just like Jesus would be a blasphemer if He were not God.
5As some of the disciples were remarking how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and consecrated gifts, Jesus said, 6“As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.” 7“Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”… Luke 21: 5-7
In A.D. 70 the temple was destroyed.
The Lord sent me...now therefore mend your ways - Jeremiah does not recant of the message that God gave him.
John Trapp mentioned an unnamed expositor that noted “five noble virtues” in Jeremiah’s brief defense.
· Prudence in proclaiming his divine mission.
· Love in exhorting his enemies to repent.
· Humility in acknowledging their power over him.
· Courage in telling them God would avenge his death.
· Fearlessness before death. - E W
You will bring innocent blood upon yourselves - This is a very likely possibility, after all, Isaiah and others have been killed for similar calls to repent.
24When Pilate saw that he was accomplishing nothing, but that instead a riot was breaking out, he took water and washed his hands before the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “You bear the responsibility.” 25 All the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” 26So Pilate released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed Him over to be crucified.… Matthew 27: 24-26
16-24. Micah of Moresheth - Some reasoned that this is not the first time a prophet of God has spoken thus, and is it fair to kill the messenger? Jeremiah's words were consistent with the name of God as well, as they were in keeping with the law and the covenants.
It is of interest to note what Micah said right before this portion they quoted: Her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the Lord, and say, “Is not the Lord among us? No harm can come upon us” (Micah 3:11). Micah warned them of judgment specifically in the context of the assurance of false prophets and the sense that no harm could come to Jerusalem. - E W
ii. By most chronologies, Micah carried out his prophetic work more than 100 years before the time of Jeremiah. Their exact quotation of his words is significant. “It shows how the words of the great prophets were treasured, and so remembered that they could be readily quoted.” (Cundall)
Did Hezekiah - Precedent for not killing someone who says what you don't want to hear. Just because you don't like it doesn't make it hate speech. I have done stuff against warning that has proven quite painful at times, but that is a bit pragmatic, if God says not to then that is enough.
Uriah the son of Shemaiah - Another prophet, but one we don't know much about, yet one who spoke in the same vein as Isaiah, Micah and Jeremiah. Here they see possible precedents to kill the messenger. There is a difference between one administration and another. King Hezekiah humbled himself, whereas the wicked king, Jehoiakim, was so arrogant that even when this man had gone to Egypt, yet Jehoiakim hated his words so much that he brought him back from there, just to kill him.
…37They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they were put to death by the sword. They went around in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, oppressed, and mistreated. 38The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground. 39These were all commended for their faith, yet they did not receive what was promised.… Hebrews 11: 37-39
Yet God sees, and He is just.
…14The sky receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved from its place. 15Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16And they said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.… Revelation 6: 14-16
36Truly I tell you, all these things will come upon this generation. 37O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were unwilling! 38Look, your house is left to you desolate.… Matthew 23: 36-38
But the hand of Ahikam -
“Ahikam had been a member of the deputation sent by Josiah to the prophetess Huldah (2 Kings 22:12ff.; 2 Chronicles 34:20), and was the father of Gedaliah, the governor of Judah appointed by Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 25:22; Jeremiah 39:14).” (Harrison)
ii. Jesus had no Ahikam to defend Him. Jesus is our Ahikam, defending us from every accusation of the evil one and delivering us from all condemnation. - E W
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