Jeremiah 26:19

19 Did Ezechias king of Juda, and all Juda, condemn him to death? did they not fear the Lord, and beseech the face of the Lord: and the Lord repented of the evil that he had spoken against them? therefore we are doing a great evil against our souls.

Jeremiah 26:19 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 26:19

Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him at all to
death?
&c.] No, they did not: neither the king, by his own authority; nor the sanhedrim, the great court of judicature, for the nation; they never sought to take away his life, nor sat in council about it; they never arraigned him, and much less condemned him: did he not fear the Lord, and besought the Lord;
that is, Hezekiah; he did, as knowing that Micah was a prophet of the Lord, and sent by him; wherefore he received his prophecy with great awe and reverence, as coming from the Lord, and made his supplications to him that he would avert the judgments threatened: and the Lord repented of the evil which he had pronounced against
them?
the king and his people, the city and the temple; and so the threatened evil came not upon them in their days: thus might we procure great evil against our souls;
should we put Jeremiah to death: it is therefore much more advisable to do as Hezekiah did, pray unto the Lord to avert the threatened evil, or otherwise it will be worse with us. This precedent is urged to strengthen the decree of the council in favour of Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 26:19 In-Context

17 And some of the ancients of the land rose up: and they spoke to all the assembly of the people, saying:
18 Micheas of Morasthi was a prophet in the days of Ezechias king of Juda, and he spoke to all the people of Juda, saying: Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Sion shall be ploughed like a field, and Jerusalem shall be a heap of stones: and the mountain of the house the high places of woods.
19 Did Ezechias king of Juda, and all Juda, condemn him to death? did they not fear the Lord, and beseech the face of the Lord: and the Lord repented of the evil that he had spoken against them? therefore we are doing a great evil against our souls.
20 There was also a man that prophesied in the name of the Lord, Urias the son of Semei of Cariathiarim: and he prophesied against this city, and against this land, according to all the words of Jeremias.
21 And Joakim, and all his men in power, and his princes heard these words: and the king sought to put him to death. And Urias heard it, and was afraid, and fled and went into Egypt.
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