Hearken not unto them; serve the king of Babylon, and live: wherefore should this city be laid waste?
The command stands within Jeremiah's letters and the controversy between true and false prophets over the Babylonian captivity, among his testimonies about that captivity whose seventy-year duration and promised end Daniel later understood from the prophecies. It warns Judah not to listen to the false prophets but to serve the king of Babylon and live. Those false prophets opposed by the command were promising that Babylon's rule would end.
Serving the king would preserve life and keep the city from being laid waste, for destruction could be avoided by accepting the period of servitude God had decreed. Rejecting God's decree and resisting Babylon would instead bring harsher punishment and bring Jerusalem to ruin. The warning was part of God's effort to turn the people away from dangerous alliances with Egypt and toward friendly relations with Babylon.
The command stands within Jeremiah's letters and the controversy between true and false prophets over the Babylonian captivity, among his testimonies about that captivity whose seventy-year duration and promised end Daniel later understood from the prophecies. It warns Judah not to listen to the false prophets but to serve the king of Babylon and live. Those false prophets opposed by the command were promising that Babylon's rule would end.
Serving the king would preserve life and keep the city from being laid waste, for destruction could be avoided by accepting the period of servitude God had decreed. Rejecting God's decree and resisting Babylon would instead bring harsher punishment and bring Jerusalem to ruin. The warning was part of God's effort to turn the people away from dangerous alliances with Egypt and toward friendly relations with Babylon.