Yirmiyahu 26 | A Death Sentence for Yirmiyahu

Chapter 26 provides us with a fascinating glimpse into the events surrounding Yirmiyahu’s prophecies and the drama they provoked. Our chapter presents the scene in which the prophecy from Chapter 7 was delivered. As we saw in Chapter 7, Yirmiyahu stood before the people, who were convinced that “the Temple of the Lord” could never be destroyed, and warned them that unless they repented, the Temple would indeed be destroyed — just as Shilo had been. In Chapter 7, we saw only the content of the prophecy itself, while in our chapter, we receive additional details about the scene in which it was given and the reactions it sparked.

Yirmiyahu’s prophecy about the destruction of the Temple provoked an outrage: "When Yirmiyahu finished speaking all that the Lord commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, ‘You shall die! Why did you prophesy in the name of the Lord, saying that this House will be like Shilo and that this city will be destroyed, leaving no inhabitant?’ All the people crowded about Yirmiyahu in the House of the Lord” (26:8-9). Yirmiyahu’s words were so inconceivable to the people that they sought to put him to death — perhaps considering him a false prophet. How could he claim, in God’s name, that the Temple could be destroyed?

This passage immerses us in the legal and theological debate over whether Yirmiyahu should be executed for his prophecy. Several key figures emerge in the narrative:
- The priests and prophets (!) are the ones pushing for Yirmiyahu’s execution. This sheds light on the harsh criticism directed at the religious leadership throughout the book of Yirmiyahu — those who were supposed to be the people’s spiritual guides are, in fact, the ones seeking to silence the prophet.
- The officials and the people play a decisive role. Initially, the people appear to be persuaded by the priests and prophets: "The priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, ‘You shall die!’” (26:8). However, a trial-like proceeding unfolds, in which the priests and prophets present their case, followed by Yirmiyahu’s defense, and the officials and the people serve as the judges of the trial: “The priests and the prophets said to the officers and to all the people…” (26:11), “Yirmiyahu said to all the officers and to all the people…” (26:12).

It seems that the officials and the people ultimately side with Yirmiyahu: “The officers and all the people said to the priests and the prophets, ‘This man does not deserve the death penalty, for he spoke to us in the name of the Lord our God’” (26:16). At this point, the elders introduce a historical precedent (which is familiar to us from the prophet Mikha), supporting Yirmiyahu’s case: “Mikha the Morashtite would prophesy in the days of Chizkiyahu, king of Yehuda… saying: ‘This is what the Lord of Hosts said: Zion will be plowed over like a field, Jerusalem will come to be a mound of ruins, and the Temple Mount an overgrown hilltop shrine.’ Did Chizkiyahu, king of Yehuda, and all of Yehuda put him to death? Did he not fear the Lord and beseech the Lord?” (26:18-19).

The chapter then recounts a contrasting case — how Yehoyakim executed Uriya, a prophet who had proclaimed a message similar to Yirmiyahu’s. The chapter ends without a clear resolution: it remains uncertain what final decision the officials and the people reached or what Yehoyakim ultimately intended for Yirmiyahu. However, the final verse suggests that Yirmiyahu remained under serious threat and required the protection of Achikam son of Shafan to escape execution: “But the power of Achikam son of Shafan stood by Yirmiyahu, refusing to surrender him to the hands of the people who would kill him” (26:24).