So Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth, the sons of Ephai from Netophah, and Jezaniah from Maacah went with their men to Gedaliah at Mizpah.

I finished telling the people everything that the LORD their God had sent me to tell them.

After this, Johanan and the leaders of the soldiers who had not surrendered came to Gedaliah at Mizpah

Then Johanan said privately to him, "Let me go and kill Ishmael, and no one will know who did it. Why should he be allowed to murder you? That would cause all the Jews who have gathered around you to be scattered, and it would bring disaster on all the people who are left in Judah."

Then Johanan and the leaders of the forces with him took charge of the people whom Ishmael had taken away as prisoners from Mizpah after murdering Gedaliah---soldiers, women, children, and eunuchs.

People of Israel, the LORD has spoken! Be humble and listen to him.

"Who is the LORD?" the king demanded. "Why should I listen to him and let Israel go? I do not know the LORD; and I will not let Israel go."

Yet you are still arrogant and refuse to let my people go.

The wicked do not care about the LORD; in their pride they think that God doesn't matter.

The wicked succeed in everything. They cannot understand God's judgments; they sneer at their enemies.

Silence those flattering tongues, O LORD! Close those boastful mouths that say,

You reprimand the proud; cursed are those who disobey your commands.

We have been mocked too long by the rich and scorned by proud oppressors.

(SEE 6:16)

To honor the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil ways and false words.

The LORD hates everyone who is arrogant; he will never let them escape punishment.

Pride leads to destruction, and arrogance to downfall.

It is better to be humble and stay poor than to be one of the arrogant and get a share of their loot.

If I have more, I might say that I do not need you. But if I am poor, I might steal and bring disgrace on my God.

And this is the message: 'Those who are evil will not survive, but those who are righteous will live because they are faithful to God.' "

Wealth is deceitful. Greedy people are proud and restless---like death itself they are never satisfied. That is why they conquer nation after nation for themselves.

All the people of Israel, everyone who lives in the city of Samaria, will know that he has done this. Now they are proud and arrogant. They say,

"The brick buildings have fallen down, but we will replace them with stone buildings. The beams of sycamore wood have been cut down, but we will replace them with the finest cedar."

But the grace that God gives is even stronger. As the scripture says, "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."

In the same way you younger people must submit yourselves to your elders. And all of you must put on the apron of humility, to serve one another; for the scripture says, "God resists the proud, but shows favor to the humble."

The LORD's people have denied him and have said, "He won't really do anything. We won't have hard times; we won't have war or famine."

They have said that the prophets are nothing but windbags and that they have no message from the LORD. The LORD God Almighty said to me, "Jeremiah, because these people have said such things, I will make my words like a fire in your mouth. The people will be like wood, and the fire will burn them up."

Zedekiah rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had forced him to swear in God's name that he would be loyal. He stubbornly refused to repent and return to the LORD, the God of Israel.

Israel is no stronger than Samaria, its capital city, and Samaria is no stronger than King Pekah. "If your faith is not enduring, you will not endure."