Here is what I thought about Jerusalem.‘ Surely you will have respect for me. Surely you will accept my warning.’ Then the city you think is safe would not be destroyed. And I would not have to punish you so much. But they still wanted to go on sinning in every way they could.

我说：你只要敬畏我，领受训诲；如此，你的住处不致照我所拟定的除灭。只是你们从早起来，就在一切事上败坏自己。”

我说：‘只要你敬畏我，领受训诲；其住处就不会照我原先所定的被剪除。’然而，他们从早起来就在各样事上败坏自己。

我说：‘只要你敬畏我，领受训诲；其住处就不会照我原先所定的被剪除。’然而，他们从早起来就在各样事上败坏自己。

我以为这城一定会敬畏我，接受管教，这样我就不必照所定的毁灭她。然而，他们却更加热衷于犯罪作恶。

我说：“她定要敬畏我，接受管教。”这样，她的住所必不会照着我原定对她的惩罚被剪除。可是他们殷勤行恶，败坏了自己一切所作的。

我說：你只要敬畏我，領受訓誨；如此，你的住處不致照我所擬定的除滅。只是你們從早起來就在一切事上敗壞自己。

我說：『只要你敬畏我，領受訓誨；其住處就不會照我原先所定的被剪除。』然而，他們從早起來就在各樣事上敗壞自己。

我說：『只要你敬畏我，領受訓誨；其住處就不會照我原先所定的被剪除。』然而，他們從早起來就在各樣事上敗壞自己。

我以為這城一定會敬畏我，接受管教，這樣我就不必照所定的毀滅她。然而，他們卻更加熱衷於犯罪作惡。

我說：“她定要敬畏我，接受管教。”這樣，她的住所必不會照著我原定對她的懲罰被剪除。可是他們殷勤行惡，敗壞了自己一切所作的。

我心裏想着說：她一定會敬畏我，會接受管教；對我所發給她的一切命令一定會目不轉睛而注視的，哪知他們卻變本加厲使他們一切行為都腐化呢！』

我曾曰、爾惟寅畏我、受我訓誨、爾之第宅、則不依我所定被毀、但爾黎明而起、自敗厥行、

我告斯民曰、爾當寅畏我躬、承我教誨、則不降罰、絶爾居所、然爾惟惡是作、靡有已時、

我諭斯民曰、爾當敬畏我、承受教誨、則在我降諸罰之際、爾之居所尚不致絕、則在我降諸罰之際爾之居所尚不致絕或作如此爾之居宅不致於循我所欲降之罰而毀滅然於凡所為、惟惡是務、惟惡是務或作仍殷勤自敗自壞

Of Jerusalem I thought,‘ Surely you will fear me and accept correction!’ Then her place of refuge would not be destroyed, nor all my punishments come upon her. But they were still eager to act corruptly in all they did.

I said,‘ Surely you will fear me; you will accept correction. Then your dwelling would not be cut off according to all that I have appointed against you.’ But all the more they were eager to make all their deeds corrupt.

I thought,‘ Surely they will have reverence for me now! Surely they will listen to my warnings. Then I won’t need to strike again, destroying their homes.’ But no, they get up early to continue their evil deeds.

I said: You will certainly fear me and accept correction. Then her dwelling place would not be cut off based on all that I had allocated to her. However, they became more corrupt in all their actions.

I said,‘ You will certainly revere Me, You will accept discipline.’ So her dwelling will not be eliminated In accordance with everything that I have stipulated for her. Instead, they were eager to corrupt all their deeds.

I said,‘ Surely you will fear Me, You will receive instruction’— So that her dwelling would not be cut off, Despite everything for which I punished her. But they rose early and corrupted all their deeds.

I said, Only fear thou me; receive correction; so her dwelling shall not be cut off, according to all that I have appointed concerning her: but they rose early and corrupted all their doings.

I thought: You will certainly fear Me and accept correction. Then her dwelling place would not be cut off based on all that I had allocated to her. However, they became more corrupt in all their actions.

I said, Surely thou wilt fear me, thou wilt receive instruction; so their dwelling should not be cut off, howsoever I punished them: but they rose early,[ and] corrupted all their doings.

I thought,‘ Certainly you will respect me! Now you will accept correction!’ If she had done so, her home would not be destroyed by all the punishments I have threatened. But they eagerly sinned in everything they did.

I said,“ Just fear me. Receive correction, so that her dwelling won’t be cut off, according to all that I have appointed concerning her.” But they rose early and corrupted all their doings.

You have sunk very deep into sin, just as your people did at Gibeah long ago. God will remember the evil things they have done. He will punish them for their sins.

The people of Judah will hear about all the trouble I plan to bring on them. Maybe then each of them will turn from their evil ways. If they do, I will forgive their sins and the evil things they have done.”

If you obey me, I will let you live in this place. It is the land I gave your people of long ago. It was promised to them for ever and ever.

They said,‘ Each of you must turn from your evil ways and practices. Then you can stay in the land forever. It’s the land the Lord gave you and your people of long ago.

They don’t obey anyone. They don’t accept the Lord’ s warnings. They don’t trust in him. They don’t ask their God for his help.

So Jeremiah said to Zedekiah,“ The Lord God who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says,‘ Give yourself up to the officers of the king of Babylon. Then your life will be spared. And this city will not be burned down. You and your family will remain alive.

What more could I have done for my vineyard? I did everything I could. I kept looking for a crop of good grapes. So why did it produce only bad ones?

He said,“ I wish you had known today what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden from your eyes.The days will come when your enemies will arrive. They will build a wall of dirt up against your city. They will surround you and close you in on every side.You didn’t recognize the time when God came to you. So your enemies will smash you to the ground. They will destroy you and all the people inside your walls. They will not leave one stone on top of another.”

Then kings who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this city. They and their officials will come riding in chariots and on horses. The people of Judah and Jerusalem will come along with them. And this city will always have people living in it.Some will come from the towns of Judah. And some will come in from the villages around Jerusalem. Others will come from the territory of Benjamin. And others will come in from the western hills. Still others will come from the central hill country and the Negev Desert. All of them will bring burnt offerings and sacrifices. They will come bringing grain offerings, incense and thank offerings. They will take all these offerings to my house.But what if you do not obey me? Suppose you do not keep the Sabbath day holy. And suppose you carry a load through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. Then I will start a fire that can’t be put out. It will begin at the gates of Jerusalem. It will destroy its mighty towers.” ’ ”

The king of Egypt removed him from his throne in Jerusalem. The king of Egypt made the people of Judah pay him a huge tax. The tax was almost four tons of silver and 75 pounds of gold.Necho, the king of Egypt, made Eliakim king over Judah and Jerusalem. Eliakim was a brother of Jehoahaz. Necho changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. But Necho took Eliakim’s brother Jehoahaz with him to Egypt.Jehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 11 years. He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord his God.Nebuchadnezzar attacked him. Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He put Jehoiakim in bronze chains. And he took him to Babylon.Nebuchadnezzar also took to Babylon objects from the Lord’ s temple. He put them in his own temple there.The other events of Jehoiakim’s rule are written in the records of the kings of Israel and Judah. He did things the Lord hated. Those things and everything that happened to him are also written in those records. Jehoiakim’s son Jehoiachin became the next king after him.Jehoiachin was 18 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for three months and ten days. He did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord.In the spring, King Nebuchadnezzar sent for him. He brought him to Babylon. He also brought things of value from the Lord’ s temple. He made Zedekiah king over Judah and Jerusalem. Zedekiah was Jehoiachin’s uncle.

Make sure you don’t commit a horrible sin. Don’t make for yourselves a statue of a god. Don’t make a god that looks like a man or woman or anything else.

In one day Pekah, the son of Remaliah, killed 120,000 soldiers in Judah. That’s because Judah had deserted the Lord, the God of their people.Zikri was a fighting man from Ephraim. He killed Maaseiah, Azrikam and Elkanah. Maaseiah was the king’s son. Azrikam was the officer who was in charge of the palace. And Elkanah was next in command after the king.The men of Israel captured 200,000 wives, sons and daughters from their relatives in Judah. They also took a large amount of goods. They carried all of it back to Samaria.

How terrible it will be for those who plan to harm others! How terrible for those who make evil plans before they even get out of bed! As soon as daylight comes, they carry out their plans. That’s because they have the power to do it.If they want fields or houses, they take them. They cheat people out of their homes. They rob them of their property.

I have listened carefully. But they do not say what is right. They refuse to turn away from their sins. None of them says,‘ What have I done?’ Each of them goes their own way. They are like horses charging into battle.

The Lord is not slow to keep his promise. He is not slow in the way some people understand it. Instead, he is patient with you. He doesn’t want anyone to be destroyed. Instead, he wants all people to turn away from their sins.

God saw how sinful the earth had become. All its people were living very sinful lives.

In the past he said,“ They are my people. They are children who will be faithful to me.” So he saved them.

So the Lord brought the army commanders of the king of Assyria against them. They took Manasseh as a prisoner. They put a hook in his nose. They put him in bronze chains. And they took him to Babylon.

Hezekiah had been completely faithful to the Lord. However, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and marched into Judah. Sennacherib surrounded the cities that had high walls around them. He got ready to attack them. He thought he could win the battle over them. He thought he could take them for himself.Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come to Jerusalem to fight against it.