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āāJeremiah 21:1-14 MSGā¬ā¬
[1-2] Godās Message to Jeremiah when King Zedekiah sent Pashur son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to him with this request: āNebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has waged war against us. Pray to God for us. Ask him for help. Maybe God will intervene with one of his famous miracles and make him leave.ā [3-7] But Jeremiah said, āTell Zedekiah: āThis is the God of Israelās Message to you: You can say good-bye to your army, watch morale and weapons flushed down the drain. Iām going to personally lead the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans, against whom youāre fighting so hard, right into the city itself. Iām joining their side and fighting against you, fighting all-out, holding nothing back. And in fierce anger. Iām prepared to wipe out the population of this city, people and animals alike, in a raging epidemic. And then I will personally deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, his princes, and any survivors left in the city who havenāt died from disease, been killed, or starved. Iāll deliver them to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylonāyes, hand them over to their enemies, who have come to kill them. Heāll kill them ruthlessly, showing no mercy.ā [8-10] āAnd then tell the people at large, āGodās Message to you is this: Listen carefully. Iām giving you a choice: life or death. Whoever stays in this city will dieāeither in battle or by starvation or disease. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who have surrounded the city will live. Youāll lose everythingābut not your life. Iām determined to see this city destroyed. Iām that angry with this place! Godās Decree. Iām going to give it to the king of Babylon, and heās going to burn it to the ground.ā * * * [11-14] āTo the royal house of Judah, listen to Godās Message! House of David, listenāGodās Message to you: āStart each day by dealing with justice. Rescue victims from their exploiters. Prevent fireāthe fire of my angerā for once it starts, it canāt be put out. Your evil regime is fuel for my anger. Donāt you realize that Iām against you, yes, against you. You think youāve got it made, all snug and secure. You say, āWho can possibly get to us? Who can crash our party?ā Well, I canāand will! Iāll punish your evil regime. Iāll start a fire that will rage unchecked, burn everything in sight to cinders.āā

