The yoke weighed more than Jeremiah had imagined.
Not only because of the rough wood that rested on his shoulders, but because of
what it represented. Every step he took with that instrument of slavery was a
silent declaration that screamed louder than any sermon.
People saw it from afar.
-What are you doing now?
—Has he completely gone mad?
—Why is she wearing that?
Jeremiah walked slowly through the streets of Jerusalem. He didn't speak. He
didn't raise his head.The voice. He didn't need to do it. The yoke spoke for him.
He had obeyed a strange and humiliating order: to make a yoke, to place it on
theneck and walk with it in full view of everyone. Not as a theatrical symbol, but
as a living message.
"That's what you'll be like," he had heard, "if you don't listen."
Each glance was a mixture of mockery, discomfort, and contempt.
"Look at him," some laughed. "The prophet of doom is now playing at being
an ox."Jeremiah gritted his teeth.
The fire burned, but it didn't explode. It remained steady, controlled, like a constant
flame.
He crossed the market. He passed in front of the temple. He crossed the square where
the people gathered.elderly people. In every place, the reaction was the same:
laughter, insults, murmurs.
—Is that what he's preaching now?
—Will we be
slaves?Finally, it stopped.
He looked up.—Thus says the Lord of hosts—he said in a clear voice—:
"I have placed an iron yoke on the neck of all these nations."
The silence was immediate.
"They will serve the king of Babylon," he continued,
"and they will live."The word Babylon fell like
thunder.
"Lies!" someone shouted. "God would never allow
that!"Jeremiah was not disturbed.
"The Lord has determined it," he replied. "Resisting will only bring
destruction." The crowd began to stir.
And then Hananiah appeared.
He was a popular, charismatic, well-dressed prophet. He had followers. He smiled with
Safety. Her voice always brought hope… though not always truth.
"Listen," Hananiah said, raising his voice. "Do not be
afraid." The people turned to him with relief.
—Thus says the Lord —he continued—: "I have broken the yoke of the king of
Babylon."
Faces lit up.
-Amen!
"That is the word of God!"
Hananiah walked forward to
Jeremiah.
"In two years," he proclaimed, "all the temple utensils will be returned, and the
captives will return."
The crowd erupted in
applause.Jeremiah watched in
silence.
"I hope so," he finally said. "I hope the Lord does that."Some were confused.—But—he added—the prophets before me foretold war, famine, and plague
against many nations.
Hananiah frowned.
"The prophet who prophesies peace," Jeremiah continued, "is only recognized when
his word comes true."
Before he could say more, Hananiah stepped forward. With a
swift movement, he ripped the yoke from Jeremiah's neck. The
wood creaked.
Then, with theatrical fury, he broke it in two in front of everyone.
"Thus," he cried, "the Lord will break the yoke of
Babylon." The crowd roared with excitement.
Jeremiah remained motionless.
He did not
respond.He
didn't argue.
He didn't
shout.
He turned around… and left.
Some laughed.
—They defeated him!
—The false prophet fell silent! But
Jeremiah had not been defeated.
He walked until he was alone. His neck ached where the yoke had rested. But
whatWhat hurt the most was the deception she had just witnessed.
"People love words that cost nothing," he thought. "Even if they're lies."
The fire started up again.
Not as an emotion. As
a certainty.
Hours later, the word of the Lord came to him.It wasn't soft.
It wasn't comforting.
"Go," he said, "and tell Hananiah."
Jeremiah took a deep breath.
Return.
He looked for Hananiah among the people. When he found him, his voice was firm,
without anger.
"You have broken wooden yokes," he said, "but in their place will come iron
yokes." Hananiah's face paled.
—For thus says the Lord— Jeremiah continued—:
"I have placed an iron yoke on the necks of these nations."
The silence was absolute.
—And you—he added—have taught rebellion against the
Lord. Hananiah opened his mouth, but no word came out.
"That's why," Jeremiah concluded, "you will die
this year." A murmur rippled through the crowd.
Jeremiah withdrew.
He didn't
celebrate.
He wasn't
happy.
Months later, the news spread like wildfire: Hananiah was dead. The city
was in turmoil.
For the first time, many began to fear.
Jeremiah knew it then:
The truth can be rejected… but it cannot be annulled.
That night, alone, Jeremiah wept again.
"I didn't want this," she whispered. "I never wanted to
be right. But the fire was still there."And now everyone knew that he wasn't speaking for himself.
The yoke had been broken…
But the message remained.