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Jeremiah 27

Jeremiah announces God’s rule over nations and exposes promises of escape from Babylon as lies that lead toward destruction.

God tells Jeremiah to wear bonds and bars on his neck and send them to neighboring kings through their envoys in Jerusalem. The sign announces that God has given their lands to Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Jeremiah urges Zedekiah, the priests, and the people to submit and live, warning against prophets who promise freedom from Babylon and a quick return of temple vessels. The opening names Jehoiakim, though the events that follow place the message under Zedekiah.

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1In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
2the LORD says to me: “Make bonds and bars, and put them on your neck.
3Then send them to the king of Edom, to the king of Moab, to the king of the children of Ammon, to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Sidon, by the hand of the messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.
4Give them a command to their masters, saying, ‘The LORD of Armies, the God of Israel says, “You shall tell your masters:
5‘I have made the earth, the men, and the animals that are on the surface of the earth by my great power and by my outstretched arm. I give it to whom it seems right to me.
6Now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant. I have also given the animals of the field to him to serve him.
7All the nations will serve him, his son, and his son’s son, until the time of his own land comes. Then many nations and great kings will make him their bondservant.
8“‘“‘It will happen that I will punish 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,’ says the LORD, ‘with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.
9But as for you, don’t listen to your prophets, to your diviners, to your dreams, to your soothsayers, or to your sorcerers, who speak to you, saying, “You shall not serve the king of Babylon;”
10for they prophesy a lie to you, to remove you far from your land, so that I would drive you out, and you would perish.
11But the nation that brings their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serves him, that nation I will let remain in their own land,’ says the LORD; ‘and they will till it and dwell in it.’”’”
12I spoke 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.
13Why will you die, you and your people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD has spoken concerning the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?
14Don’t listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, ‘You shall not serve the king of Babylon;’ for they prophesy a lie to you.
15For I have not sent them,” says the LORD, “but they prophesy falsely in my name; that I may drive you out, and that you may perish, you, and the prophets who prophesy to you.”
16Also I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, the LORD says, “Don’t listen to the words of your prophets who prophesy to you, saying, ‘Behold, the vessels of the LORD’s house will now shortly be brought again from Babylon;’ for they prophesy a lie to you.
17Don’t listen to them. Serve the king of Babylon, and live. Why should this city become a desolation?
18But if they are prophets, and if the LORD’s word is with them, let them now make intercession to the LORD of Armies, that the vessels which are left in the LORD’s house, in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, don’t go to Babylon.
19For the LORD of Armies says concerning the pillars, concerning the sea, concerning the bases, and concerning the rest of the vessels that are left in this city,
20which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon didn’t take 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—
22‘They will be carried to Babylon, and there they will be, until the day that I visit them,’ says the LORD; ‘then I will bring them up, and restore them to this place.’”
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Key verses
Jeremiah 27:5God’s claim as Creator grounds his authority to give lands and kingdoms to whomever he chooses.
Jeremiah 27:6Naming Nebuchadnezzar as God’s servant explains why submission to Babylon is the command Jeremiah must deliver.
Jeremiah 27:7Babylon’s dominion has a limit: the empire that subdues other nations will itself come under foreign rule.
Where this chapter reaches

Genesis shares the claim that God made the earth and its creatures, while Daniel shares the theme of God granting dominion to human rulers. The accounts in 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles share the events of Babylon’s conquest and the removal of temple treasures.

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Notice

After reading the whole chapter

What makes the rival prophets’ promises appealing, and how does Jeremiah challenge their claims?

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How does God’s stated limit on Babylon’s rule shape your reading of the command to submit?

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Questions people ask about Jeremiah 27

Why does Jeremiah 27 mention both Jehoiakim and Zedekiah?

Verse 1 dates the message to Jehoiakim’s reign, while verse 3 names envoys coming to Zedekiah, and verse 12 addresses Zedekiah himself. This creates a dating difficulty in the supplied text. The body of the chapter places Jeremiah’s message in Zedekiah’s reign; the opening wording remains in tension with that setting.

Why does God call Nebuchadnezzar his servant in Jeremiah 27?

God calls Nebuchadnezzar “my servant” because the Babylonian king carries out God’s announced purpose of bringing these nations under Babylon’s rule. The title describes his role in this judgment. It does not establish his faithfulness to God or approve all his actions. Verse 7 also places a limit on Babylon’s power.

What does the yoke mean in Jeremiah 27?

The bonds and bars on Jeremiah’s neck portray subjection to Babylon. God commands these particular nations, including Judah, to accept Nebuchadnezzar’s rule so they can remain alive and, for submitting nations, remain in their land. The sign concerns a specific announced judgment; it supplies no general command to endure abuse.

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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).