From a Wooden to an Iron Yoke
1-2 Later that same year (it was in the fifth month of King Zedekiah’s fourth year) Hananiah son of Azzur, a prophet from Gibeon, confronted Jeremiah in the Temple ofGodin front of the priests and all the people who were there. Hananiah said:
2-4 “This Message is straight fromGod-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel: ‘I will most certainly break the yoke of the king of Babylon. Before two years are out I’ll have all the furnishings ofGod’s Temple back here, all the things that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon plundered and hauled off to Babylon. I’ll also bring back Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and all the exiles who were taken off to Babylon.’God’s Decree. ‘Yes, I will break the king of Babylon’s yoke. You’ll no longer be in harness to him.’”
5-9 Prophet Jeremiah stood up to prophet Hananiah in front of the priests and all the people who were inGod’s Temple that day. Prophet Jeremiah said, “Wonderful! Would that it were true—thatGodwould validate your preaching by bringing the Temple furnishings and all the exiles back from Babylon. But listen to me, listen closely. Listen to what I tell both you and all the people here today: The old prophets, the ones before our time, preached judgment against many countries and kingdoms, warning of war and disaster and plague. So any prophet who preaches that everything is just fine and there’s nothing to worry about stands out like a sore thumb. We’ll wait and see. If it happens, it happens—and then we’ll know thatGodsent him.”
10-11 At that, Hananiah grabbed the yoke from Jeremiah’s shoulders and smashed it. And then he addressed the people: “This isGod’s Message: In just this way I will smash the yoke of the king of Babylon and get him off the neck of all the nations—and within two years.”
Jeremiah walked out.
12-14 Later, sometime after Hananiah had smashed the yoke from off his shoulders, Jeremiah received this Message fromGod: “Go back to Hananiah and tell him, ‘This isGod’s Message: You smashed the wooden yoke-bars; now you’ve got iron yoke-bars. This is a Message fromGod-of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel’s own God: I’ve put an iron yoke on all these nations. They’re harnessed to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. They’ll do just what he tells them. Why, I’m even putting him in charge of the wild animals.’”
15-16 So prophet Jeremiah told prophet Hananiah, “Hold it, Hananiah!Godnever sent you. You’ve talked the whole country into believing a pack of lies! And soGodsays, ‘You claim to be sent? I’ll send you all right—right off the face of the earth! Before the year is out, you’ll be dead because you fomented sedition againstGod.’”
17 Prophet Hananiah died that very year, in the seventh month.
—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/JER/28-9e0316c14bc3b7a795814e337171c1d8.mp3?version_id=97—