Jeremiah\u2019s message to Judah is that the Lord has given the earth into hands of his \u201cservant,\u201d Nebuchadnezzar: \u201cI have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and I have given him also the wild animals of the field to serve him\u201d (27:6). After Hananiah breaks the wooden yoke that Jeremiah wears, Jeremiah repeats the message: \u201cI have put a yoke of iron on the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they shall serve him. And I have also given him the beasts of the field\u201d (28:14).<\/p>\n
As the ruler of the beasts, Nebuchadnezzar is an Adamic figure, taking dominion over every living thing. But he is also a new Noah, who gathers not only nations but animals into the ark of the Babylonian empire. According to Jeremiah, that\u2019s the only safe place \u2013 entering Nebuchadnezzar\u2019s ark. Outside, it\u2019s a flood of fire, sword, pestilence that will kill every living thing and turn the land to formless waste (cf. 4:23-26). But those who take Nebuchadnezzar\u2019s yoke are safe from the storm. (Daniel 4 offers a variation on this; Nebuchadnezzar is an imperial tree in which all the beasts and birds find a place to rest.)<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jeremiah\u2019s message to Judah is that the Lord has given the earth into hands of his \u201cservant,\u201d Nebuchadnezzar: \u201cI have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and I have given him also the wild animals of the field to serve him\u201d (27:6). After Hananiah breaks the wooden […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3021,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[97],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15393","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bible-ot-jeremiah"],"yoast_head":"\n