CHAPTER 21
Fate of Zedekiah and Jerusalem.
Oracles Regarding the Kings*
Hear the word of the LORD,
Thus says the LORD:
Each morning dispense justice,
rescue the oppressed from the hand of the oppressor,
Or my fury will break out like fire
and burn with no one to quench it
because of your evil deeds.f
Rock of the Plain*—oracle of the LORD.
You say, “Who will attack us,
who can storm our defenses?”
as your deeds deserve!
I will kindle a fire in its forest*
that shall devour all its surroundings.g
* [21:1] Zedekiah: brother of Jehoiakim, appointed king by Nebuchadnezzar after he had carried Jehoiachin away to captivity (2 Kgs 24:17). Pashhur: different from the one in 20:1–3 but also one of Jeremiah’s enemies; cf. 38:1, 4.
* [21:10] Jeremiah consistently pointed out the uselessness of resistance to Babylon, since the Lord had delivered Judah to Nebuchadnezzar (27:6). Because of this the prophet was denounced and imprisoned as a traitor (37:13–14).
* [21:11–23:8] This section contains an editor’s collection of Jeremiah’s oracles against the kings of Judah. They are placed in the chronological order of the kings, and are prefaced by oracles against the kings of Judah in general (21:11–22:9).
* [21:13] Ruler of the Valley, Rock of the Plain: Mount Zion, surrounded by valleys, was regarded by the royal house as impregnable. Despite this natural fortification, God derides it as no more than a rock rising from the plain, useless against the attack of his fury.
* [21:14] Its forest: probably the royal palace, built of cedar wood; cf. 22:14; in 1 Kgs 7:2 the palace is called “the house of the forest of Lebanon.”
b. [21:5] Is 63:10; Lam 2:4–5.
d. [21:7] Jer 24:8–10; Dt 28:49–50.
e. [21:8] Jer 21:9; Dt 30:15, 19.
f. [21:12] Jer 4:4; 22:3; Zec 7:9.
g. [21:14] 2 Kgs 25:9; 2 Chr 36:19.
Copyright 2019-2025 USCCB, please review our Privacy Policy