Jeremiah 28

₁The prophet Hananiah, son of Azzur, from the town of Gibeon, came to me in the temple and he talked to me. It was in the 4th year after Zedekiah had become king_of_Judah, in the 5th month. The priests and all the people heard what Hananiah said to me. He said: ₂‘The Lord who rules over all, the God of Israel, says: “I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon, and I will make your people free. ₃Before 2 years are over, I will bring back the temple tools that King Nebuchadnezzar took away to Babylon. I will bring them back to Jerusalem. ₄And I will also bring back Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim, king_of_Judah, and everyone from Judah who had to go to Babylon. I will bring them back to this place. Yes, I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.” This is what the Lord said.’

₅The prophet Jeremiah answered Hananiah, and the priests and all the people who worked in the temple heard what he said. ₆The prophet Jeremiah said: ‘I wish that you were right. I wish that the Lord would do what you have said. I wish that the message that you have given was true, and that the temple tools would come back to this place with the people who had to go to Babylon. ₇But listen to what I am going to say to you and all the people. ₈Hananiah, there were prophets who lived long before you and me, who gave messages about a lot of important lands and said there would be war and people would suffer and die from diseases. ₉But if a prophet brings a message and he says there will be peace, and it happens, then the people will know that the Lord has really sent that prophet.’

₁₀Then the prophet Hananiah took the yoke from Jeremiah's neck and he broke it, ₁₁and he talked loudly so that all the people could hear him. He said: ‘The Lord said: “That is how I will take the yoke of the king of Babylon off the necks of this nation and I will break it.” ’

₁₂The prophet Jeremiah walked away. But after the prophet Hananiah had taken off the yoke from the prophet Jeremiah's neck and broken it, the Lord said to Jeremiah: ₁₃‘Go and tell Hananiah that the Lord says: “You have broken the yoke made of wood, but I will now make an iron yoke, ₁₄because the Lord who rules over all, the God of Israel, says: I will put an iron yoke on the necks of all these people. They will be slaves of the king of Babylon and they will work for him. I also give all the animals to him.” ’

₁₅The prophet Jeremiah also told the prophet Hananiah: ‘Hananiah, listen carefully. The Lord did not send you, but you have made these people believe that your lies can help them. ₁₆The Lord said: “Because you have done this, I will sweep you off the earth. You will die before the year is over, because you have made these people rebellious_against the Lord.” ’

₁₇The prophet Hananiah died in that year, in the 7th month.