1 And this was done in the same year: even in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah. But in the fourth year of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fifth Month, it happened, that Hananiah the son of Azzur, the prophet of Gibeon, spake to me in the house of the LORD, in the presence of the priests and of all the people, and said,
2 "Thus sayeth the LORD of Hosts the God of Israel: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon,
3 and after two years will I bring again into this place all the ornaments of the LORD's house, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon carried away from this place unto Babylon.
4 Yea, I will bring again Jechoniah the son of Jehoiakim the king of Judah himself, with all the prisoners of Judah that are carried unto Babylon even into this place, sayeth the LORD, for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon."
5 Then the prophet Jeremiah gave answer unto the prophet Hananiah, before the priests and before all the people that were present in the house of the LORD.
6 And the prophet Jeremiah said, "Amen, the LORD do that, and grant the thing which thou hast prophesied: that he may bring again all the ornaments of the LORD's house, and restore all the prisoners from Babylon into this place.
7 Nevertheless, hearken thou also what I will say, that thou and all the people may hear.
8 The prophets that were before us in times past, which prophesied of war, or trouble, or pestilence -
9 either of peace, upon many nations and great kingdoms - were proved by this, if God had sent them in very deed: when the thing came to pass, which that prophet told before."
10 And Hananiah the prophet took the chain from the prophet Jeremiah's neck, and brake it;
11 and with that said Hananiah, that all the people might hear, "Thus hath the LORD spoken: Even so will I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, from the neck of all nations; yea, and that within this two years." And so the prophet Jeremiah went his way.
12 Now after that Hananiah the prophet had taken the chain from the prophet Jeremiah's neck, and broken it, the word of the LORD came unto the prophet Jeremiah saying,
13 "Go, and tell Hananiah these words, 'Thus sayeth the LORD: Thou hast broken the chain of wood, but instead of wood thou shalt make chains of iron.
14 For thus sayeth the LORD of Hosts the God of Israel: I will put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all this people, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, yea and so shall they do. And I will give him the beasts in the field.'"
15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto the prophet Hananiah, "Hear me, I pray thee, Hananiah: The LORD hath not sent thee, but thou bringest this people into a false belief.
16 And therefore thus sayeth the LORD: behold, I will send thee out of the land, and within a year thou shalt die because thou hast falsely spoken against the LORD."
17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh Month.