Discovery BoxJeremiah 27:12 
Context27:12 I told King Zedekiah of Judah the same thing. I said, 1 “Submit 2 to the yoke of servitude to 3 the king of Babylon. Be subject to him and his people. Then you will continue to live.
Jeremiah 27:17
Context27:17 Do not listen to them. Be subject to the king of Babylon. Then you 4 will continue to live. Why should this city be made a pile of rubble?’” 5
1 tn Heb “I spoke to Zedekiah…according to all these words, saying.”
2 sn The verbs in this verse are all plural. They are addressed to Zedekiah and his royal advisers (compare 22:2).
3 tn Heb “put their necks in the yoke of.” See the study note on v. 2 for the figure.
4 tn The imperative with vav (ו) here and in v. 12 after another imperative are a good example of the use of the imperative to introduce a consequence. (See GKC 324-25 §110.f and see Gen 42:18. This is a common verb in this idiom.)
5 tn According to E. W. Bullinger (Figures of Speech, 954) both this question and the one in v. 13 are examples of rhetorical questions of prohibition / “don’t let this city be made a pile of rubble.”
