26 Near the beginning of the reign of Yehoyakim (Jehoiakim, Yoshiyah’s/Josiah’s son), this message came from Yahweh: 2 Yahweh says this: Stand in the courtyard of my temple and speak about all of Yehudah’s cities who come to worship at my residence. Proclaim all the messages that I’ve commanded you to say to them—don’t hold anything back. 3 Maybe they’ll listen and everyone will turn from their wicked ways, and then I would turn back the disaster that I’m planning to send to them because of their wicked behaviour, 4 so you need to tell them that Yahweh says this:

If you don’t listen to me so as to follow my instructions that I’ve given to you all, 5 if you don’t listen to the words of my servants the prophets that I’ve been regularly sending to you, and indeed you haven’t listened, 6 then I’ll destroy this house like I did at Shiloh[ref] and I’ll turn this city into a curse to/for all the nations in the world.

7 The priests, the prophets, and all the people heard Yirmeyah proclaiming those words at Yahweh’s temple. 8 Then as soon as Yirmeyah had finished saying everything that Yahweh had commanded him to tell all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him and threatened to kill him, saying: 9 Why have you prophesied in Yahweh’s name and said that this temple will be destroyed like Shiloh, and that this city will become desolate, with no inhabitants?” Then all the people gathered together against Yirmeyah at Yahweh’s residence.

10 Then Yehudah’s officials heard about what was going on, and they went up from the palace to the temple where they sat in the gateway at the New Gate at Yahweh’s residence. 11 Then the priests and the prophets spoke to the officials and to all the people, saying, “It’s right for this man to die, because he prophesied against this city, as you’ve all heard with your own ears.”

12 So Yirmeyah spoke to all the officials and all the people and said, “Yahweh has sent me out to prophesy to say all the words that you have heard, against both this temple and this city. 13 So now, improve your ways and your practices, and listen to the voice of your god Yahweh so that he’ll relent concerning the disaster that he’s proclaimed against you all. 14 As for me, here I am in your hands—do to me whatever you think is right and proper. 15 However, you must surely know that if you kill me, then you’re all bringing innocent blood on yourselves and on this city and its inhabitants, because Yahweh has truly sent me to you to proclaim all these messages for you all to hear.”

16 Then the officials and all the people said to the priests and to the prophets, “This man doesn’t deserve to be sentenced to death, because he’s spoken to us in the name of our god, Yahweh.”

17 Then some of Yehudah’s elders stepped forward and spoke to all the people who were gathered there, 18 “Micah (Heb. Mikah, the Morashtite) prophesied during the lifetime of Yehudah’s King Hizkiyah(Hezekiah), and he told all the people from Yehudah that Commander-in-chief Yahweh says this:

Tsiyyon (Zion), a field will be ploughed,

and Yerushalem will become heaps of ruins,

and the temple hill will become an overgrown forest.[ref]

19 Did Yehudah’s King Hizkiyah or anyone else in Yehudah put him to death? Didn’t Hizkiyah respect and honour Yahweh and ask for his favour, and didn’t Yahweh relent from sending the disaster that he had pronounced against them? It seems that we’re about to bring great harm on ourselves.”

20 Now there was another man prophesying in Yahweh’s name of Yahweh: Uriyah (son of Shemayah from Kiriat-Yearim) who prophesied against this city and against this land with similar messages to Yirmeyah. 21 When King Yehoyakim (Jehoiakim) and all his warriors and all the officials heard his words, the king wanted to put him to death. However when Uriyah heard about it, he became afraid, and he fled and went to Egypt (Heb. Mitsrayim). 22 However, King Yehoyakim sent sent Akbor’s son Elnatan and several other men to Egypt to get Uriyah. 23 They brought Uriyah back from Egypt and took him to King Yehoyakim who ran him through with a sword and threw his corpse into the public graveyard.

24 However, Shafan’s son Ahikam supported Yirmeyah and didn’t allow the people to kill him.