1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah came this word unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 2 Thus saith the LORD to me; Make thee bonds and yokes, and put them upon thy neck, 3 And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah; 4 And command them to say unto their masters, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Thus shall ye say unto your masters; 5 I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed meet unto me. 6 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 have I given him also to serve him. 7 And all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son's son, until the very time of his land come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him. 8 And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the LORD, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand. 9 Therefore hearken not ye to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters, nor to your sorcerers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon: 10 For they prophesy a lie unto you, to remove you far from your land; and that I should drive you out, and ye should perish. 11 But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the LORD; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.

It was while Jehoiakim was still king that Jeremiah first received this prophecy. Then, in Zedekiah's reign (who followed Jehoiakim), Jeremiah also preached this prophecy (see verse 12).

Jeremiah was to make "yokes" with "bonds." A yoke ordinarily goes around the neck of an ox or mule. The "bonds" were to make sure the animal could not slip his neck out of the yoke. Particularly, this yoke was for Jeremiah to wear. It was a symbol that he was submissive to the Word of God. God's WORD was that the king of Babylon (Nebuchadnezzar) had been given rule and authority over all nations. And all nations were to be submissive to this WORD from God.

In the 36th chapter of Jeremiah, we find that his prophecy was read before Jehoiakim in the 5th year of Jehoiakim's reign. But Jehoiakim was not submissive to God's Word. In fact, Jehoiakim BURNED the prophecy!

Jehoiakim could burn the prophecy, but he could not stop the power of God's Word. Soon, he became a "vassal" king under the authority of Nebuchadnezzar, just as God had prophesied.

There were other "so-called" prophets in the land who "prophesied a lie" (verse 10). They were telling some of the people that Nebuchadnezzar's authority could be escaped by moving to another land. But God had given the ruling authority of ALL NATIONS over to Nebuchadnezzar.

After three years of subjection to Nebuchadnezzar, Jehoiakim led a rebellion against that king. As a result, Jerusalem was destroyed and Jehoiakim was led away as a captive bound in a yoke! (see 2Chronicles 36:6)

The power of God's Word cannot be denied!

12 I spake also 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. 13 Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? 14 Therefore hearken not unto the words of the prophets that speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon: for they prophesy a lie unto you. 15 For I have not sent them, saith the LORD, yet they prophesy a lie in my name; that I might drive you out, and that ye might perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you. 16 Also I spake to the priests and to all this people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Hearken not to the words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying, Behold, the vessels of the LORD's house shall now shortly be brought again from Babylon: for they prophesy a lie unto you. 17 Hearken not unto them; serve the king of Babylon, and live: wherefore should this city be laid waste? 18 But if they be prophets, and if the word of the LORD be with them, let them now make intercession to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon. 19 For thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in this city, 20 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; 21 Yea, thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem; 22 They shall be carried to Babylon, and there shall they be until the day that I visit them, saith the LORD; then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place.

After Jehoiakim was taken captive, his 8-year-old son, Jehoiachim (or Jeconiah) was made king. He only lasted 3 months and 10 days! (see 2Chronicles 36:10) Then, Nebuchadnezzar made Zedekiah the "vassal" king over Judah. Zedekiah was Jehoiakim's brother, and the son of Josiah.

Jeremiah gave the same prophecy to Zedekiah as he had to Jehoiakim. "Be SUBMISSIVE" to God's Word and the people will live (verse 13).

Some other men, calling themselves prophets, had stated that Zedekiah did not have to submit to the authority of Nebuchadnezzar. Now Nebuchadnezzar had already taken Jehoiakim and Jehoiachin captive. God had SHOWN that His Word was true!

I don't know why some people rebel against God's Word, but they do. Notice that God told Zedekiah (through Jeremiah) that these were false prophets and they prophesied "a lie" in His Name! (see verse 15).

Nebuchadnezzar had taken the golden "vessels" out of the temple and carried them to Babylon. Some of these false prophets were saying that those vessels would soon be returned (verse 16).

But God's message remained the same - submit to the authority He had given to Nebuchadnezzar. And if they did not, the "city" (Jerusalem) would be "laid waste." (Verse 17)

God said if those folk were really prophets of His Word, that they would get on their knees and make "intercession" for Judah! (verse 18)

Friends, the Bible tells us that God has said that ALL NATIONS will suffer His wrath when He comes! Judgment day IS coming one day. And we, as Christians, should be on our knees in "intercession" for the people of the world to repent and be saved before that time!

God said the "vessels" would not return until He returned the people (verse 22). And the TIME had already been stated as SEVENTY YEARS of servitude! (See Jeremiah 25:11)

There is a time SET! God will come, in the Person of Jesus Christ to judge the world. But until that time, we are to serve the Lord's Word submissively!

Be a STUDENT of God's Word.
Be a DOER of God's Word.

JEREMIAH 28

1 And it came to pass the same year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year, and in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of Azur the prophet, which was of Gibeon, spake unto me in the house of the LORD, in the presence of the priests and of all the people, saying, 2 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. 3 Within two full years will I bring again into this place all the vessels of the LORD's house, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place, and carried them to Babylon: 4 And I will bring again to this place Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, with all the captives of Judah, that went into Babylon, saith the LORD: for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.

I once heard Bro. Johnny Miller preach a sermon entitled "Some People Just Don't Get It." Hananiah was one of those people. He was the "son of Azur the prophet." He had grown up with the Word of God in his ears. He was like many "church-goers" of today.

In order to receive the truths of God's Word, one must first be SUBMISSIVE to the God of the Word!

Hananiah had a spirit of rebellion in him, and he denied the truths of God's Word because He denied the authority of God upon his life!

5 Then the prophet Jeremiah said unto the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests, and in the presence of all the people that stood in the house of the LORD, 6 Even the prophet Jeremiah said, Amen: the LORD do so: the LORD perform thy words which thou hast prophesied, to bring again the vessels of the LORD's house, and all that is carried away captive, from Babylon into this place. 7 Nevertheless hear thou now this word that I speak in thine ears, and in the ears of all the people; 8 The prophets that have been before me and before thee of old prophesied both against many countries, and against great kingdoms, of war, and of evil, and of pestilence. 9 The prophet which prophesieth of peace, when the word of the prophet shall come to pass, then shall the prophet be known, that the LORD hath truly sent him.

Jeremiah said, "AMEN!" He would be GLAD to hear this prophecy if it were indeed true. It would be a wonderful thing for the people to be FREE and not under the bondage of Nebuchadnezzar. HOWEVER, the Word of God had been consistent (verse 8). Prophets BEFORE Jeremiah and Hananaiah had prophesied of the impending captivity due to Israel's idolatry.

Friends, anytime someone says something spiritual, it needs to be "lined up" with the measuring rod of God's Word. God's Word is ALWAYS consistent!

When God has SAID that lying is sin, we shouldn't say otherwise.
When God has SAID that stealing is sin, we shouldn't say otherwise.
When God has SAID that murder is sin, we shouldn't say otherwise.
When God has SAID that sex outside of marriage is sin, we shouldn't say otherwise.
When God has SAID that killing babies is wrong, we shouldn't say otherwise.
When God has SAID that homosexuality is an "abomination" to Him, no one should say otherwise!

Let us be SUBMISSIVE to the God of the Word, and then we will "line up" our lives with the Word of God!

10 Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from off the prophet Jeremiah's neck, and brake it. 11 And Hananiah spake in the presence of all the people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Even so will I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all nations within the space of two full years. And the prophet Jeremiah went his way. 12 Then the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the prophet, after that Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying, 13 Go and tell Hananiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Thou hast broken the yokes of wood; but thou shalt make for them yokes of iron. 14 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they shall serve him: and I have given him the beasts of the field also. 15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet, Hear now, Hananiah; The LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie. 16 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will cast thee from off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou hast taught rebellion against the LORD. 17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.

Hananiah could break the wooden yoke Jeremiah had built, but he couldn't break the truth of God.

Friends, no matter how much we would LIKE to change what God says, we cannot!

"For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged." (Romans 3:3-4)

Hananiah was guilty of causing other people to "trust in a lie!!" (Verse 15) God does not take to chaning His Word! Hananiah died that same year!

Let us be careful to be submissive to the God of the Word, and "line up" our words with His!

PLEASE CONTINUE IN BIBLE STUDY WITH US TOMORROW!