The Yoke is no Joke Text: Jeremiah 28 I. A Respectable Pretender- Jer 28:1-3 A. An Accusation- Jer 28:1 B. An Anticipation- Jer 28:2-3 C. An Aristocracy- Jer 28:4 II. A Sympathetic Saint- Jer 28:5-6 A. A Scriptural Stance- Jer 28:8 B. A Divine Litmus Test- Jer 28:9 III. An Exaggerated Clarification- Jer 28:10-11 IV. The Persistent Prophet- Jer 28:12-15 A. Authority Exercised- Jer 28:16 B. Acceleration of Expiration- Jer 28:17 1. Who was responsible for the yoke? 2. Who can break a yoke? V. The yoke is no joke, but the proper yoke is easy. • A yoke in your youth is good training for old age.

1. The Yoke is no Joke
Text: Jeremiah 28
Lam 3:27 It is good for a man that he bear the yoke
in his youth.
Jeremiah began his ministry 70 years after the death of
Isaiah and continued for at least 40 years.
No doubt the lack of reception to his message was as much
a burden as the severity of the message.
Jer 20:9 Then I said, I will not make mention of him,
nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in
mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and
I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.
In chapter 27 Jeremiah is told to wear a wooden yoke as a sign
of the coming captivity.
When God has a messenger, the Devil sends an imposter.
In Chapter28 Hananiahappearswith smooth soft words of
comfort.

2. I. A Respectable Pretender- Jer 28:1-3
1 And it came to pass the same year, in the beginning
of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth
year, and in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of
Azur the prophet, which was of Gibeon, spake unto
me in the house of the LORD, in the presence of the
priests and of all the people, saying,
2 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,
saying, I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.
3 Within two full years will I bring again into this place
all the vessels of the LORD'S house, that
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this
place, and carried them to Babylon:
Hananiahwas a probablya priest in Gibeon. Gibeon belonged
to the tribe of Benjaminas one of the allottedcities to the
priest.
Josh 21:17 And out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon
with her suburbs, Geba with her suburbs,
1Kgs 3:4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice
there; for that was the great high place: a thousand
burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar.
He was no doubt a prophet by profession.

3. There had always been those “trained as prophets”, yet not
endued with the gift of prophecy.
Paul’s recommendationto every minister is to “wait on his
ministry”.
Educationis fine but even a false prophet can be educated.The
true prophet must have illumination accompanied bya
command to give a prophecy.
1Sam 19:20 And Saul sent messengers to take David:
and when they saw the company of the prophets
prophesying, and Samuel standing as appointed over
them, the Spirit of God was upon the messengers of
Saul, and they also prophesied.
2Kgs 2:3 And the sons of the prophets that were at
Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him,
Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy
master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I
know it; hold ye your peace.
The scribes of the N.T. seem to be “teaching prophets” as
opposed to John the Baptist who connected O.T. teaching with
a reviled truth to be acted on in the day of his prophecy.
The show down between these two come to a head in Jer 28.

4. The Yoke becomes the bone of contention. Jeremiah claims
God has given a yoke to the nationsto wear in service to
Nebuchadnezzar.
Three times Hananiah claimsthe LORD has broken or will break
the Yoke of Babylon(v.2, 4, 11).
As is the normal method of those in oppositionto Truth,
Hananiahmakes this a personal attack on Jeremiah.
A. An Accusation- Jer 28:1
1 And it came to pass the same year, in the beginning
of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth
year, and in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of
Azur the prophet, which was of Gibeon, spake unto
me in the house of the LORD, in the presence of the
priests and of all the people, saying,
The true prophet of the LORD does not lower his guard and give
in to a personal attack.
Jer 28:7
7 Nevertheless hear thou now this word that I speak
in thine ears, and in the ears of all the people;
Hananiah’shook is “all will be fine in just two short years”.

5. B. An Anticipation- Jer 28:2-3
2 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,
saying, I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon.
3 Within two full years will I bring again into this
place all the vessels of the LORD'S house, that
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this
place, and carried them to Babylon:
But wait there’s more:
C. An Aristocracy- Jer 28:4
4 And I will bring again to this place Jeconiah the
son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, with all the captives
of Judah, that went into Babylon, saith the LORD: for I
will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.
Jeremiah is not sidelinedby an intellectualargument but
retains his hope for the people’sobedienceto God.
II. A Sympathetic Saint- Jer 28:5-6
5 Then the prophet Jeremiah said unto the prophet
Hananiah in the presence of the priests, and in the
presence of all the people that stood in the house of
the LORD,
6 Even the prophet Jeremiah said, Amen: the LORD
do so: the LORD perform thy words which thou
hast prophesied, to bring again the vessels of the

6. LORD'S house, and all that is carried away captive,
from Babylon into this place.
Jeremiah is not preaching a negative message because he has
no hope or is sadistic.
Jer 6:14 They have healed also the hurt of the
daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace;
when there is no peace.
Ezek 13:16 To wit, the prophets of Israel which
prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and which see
visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith
the Lord GOD.
Ps 28:3 Draw me not away with the wicked, and with
the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their
neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts.
Isa 48:22 There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the
wicked.
Isa 59:8 The way of peace they know not; and there is
no judgment in their goings: they have made them
crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not
know peace.

7. Rom 3:11-18 11 There is none that
understandeth, there is none that seeketh after
God.
12 They are all gone out of the way, they are
together become unprofitable; there is none that
doeth good, no, not one.
13 Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their
tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps
is under their lips:
14 Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:
15 Their feet are swift to shed blood:
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways:
17 And the way of peace have they not known:
18 There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Notice the message not said:
 No mention of a broken yoke
 No mention of a returning king
His message is Bible based. He reviews past truth revealed by
God.
A. A Scriptural Stance- Jer 28:8
8 The prophets that have been before me and before
thee of old prophesied both against many countries,

8. and against great kingdoms, of war, and of evil, and
of pestilence.
The truth of God is proved by fulfilledprophecy.
B. A Divine Litmus Test- Jer 28:9
9 The prophet which prophesieth of peace, when the
word of the prophet shall come to pass, then shall the
prophet be known, that the LORD hath truly sent him.
Hananiahis not only a deceiver but he himself is deceived.
Rather than considering Jeremiah’s prophecy he doubles down
on his delusion.
III. An Exaggerated Clarification- Jer 28:10-11
10 Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from off
the prophet Jeremiah's neck, and brake it.
11 And Hananiah spake in the presence of all the
people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Even so will I
break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
from the neck of all nations within the space of two
full years. And the prophet Jeremiah went his way.
Jeremiah is given a further prophecy of the future. And the
iniquityof Hananiahwill reap a speedy recompence.

9. IV. The Persistent Prophet- Jer 28:12-15
12 Then the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah
the prophet, after that Hananiah the prophet had
broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet
Jeremiah, saying,
13 Go and tell Hananiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD;
Thou hast broken the yokes of wood; but thou shalt
make for them yokes of iron.
14 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel;
I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these
nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of
Babylon; and they shall serve him: and I have given
him the beasts of the field also.
15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the
prophet, Hear now, Hananiah; The LORD hath not
sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie.
Regardless of the severity of Gods pronouncedjudgment
against Hananiahwe have no evidence he ever considered the
error of his ways.
A. Authority Exercised- Jer 28:16
16 Therefore thus saith the LORD;
Behold,
I will cast thee from off the face of the earth:
this year thou shalt die,

10. because thou hast taught rebellion against the
LORD.
Most men in rebellionagainst God think they have plenty of
time to amend theirways. Hananiahprobablythought if there
was any truth to Jeremiah’s words he had at least a year to
figure everything out.
B. Acceleration of Expiration- Jer 28:17
17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the
seventh month.
It was only 2months till destruction struck.
Prov 29:1
1 He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck,
shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without
remedy.
The watchmaker shortens his own life as he
measures time for others.
The chemist breathes in death to make a living.
The shoemaker wears out his own life trying to
prolong souls for his customers.
The mason digs his own grave with his trowel.

11. On judgment day it will not matter what was on
your bucket list or how impressive your resume.
The only question then will be are you prepared to
meet God?
Man, never has as much time as he thinks.
The past is a dream,
The future a breath,
The present a gleam
From birth to death. –oriental proverb
Big ben may merrily ring in the hour of self-
delusion but, the final hour is heard distinctly as a
toll.
2Cor 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment
seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done
in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be
good or bad.
Amos 4:12 Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel: and
because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God,
O Israel.

12. Heb 3:7-8 7 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day
if ye will hear his voice,
8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the
day of temptation in the wilderness:
Heb 3:15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice,
harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.
Ps 95:7-8 7 For he is our God; and we are the people of
his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will
hear his voice,
8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in
the day of temptation in the wilderness:
Prov 6:14-15 14 Frowardness is in his heart, he
deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord.
15 Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly;
suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.
2Chr 36:16 But they mocked the messengers of God,
and despised his words, and misused his prophets,
until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people,
till there was no remedy.

13. This was not an easy or popularmessage for Jeremiah to
preach. But that begs the question….
1.Whowasresponsiblefortheyoke?
&
2.Whocanbreak a yoke?
This yoke may have said property of Nebuchadnezzar
and made in Babylon; but this yoke was from none
other than God himself.
Jer 27:2-8
2 Thus saith the LORD to me; Make thee bonds and yokes,
and put them upon thy neck,
3 And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of
Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king
of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the
messengers which come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king
of Judah;
4 And command them to say unto their masters, Thus
saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Thus shall ye
say unto your masters;
5 I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are
upon the ground, by my great power and by my

14. outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed
meet unto me.
6 And now have I given all these lands into the hand of
Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the
beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him.
7 And all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son's
son, until the very time of his land come: and then many
nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him.
8 And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom
which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of
Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of
the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the
LORD, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the
pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.
We see it was God that was responsible for the yoke.
Who can break a yoke? Many times, man can break a wooden
yoke, but only God can remove an iron one.
Jer 2:20 For of old time I have broken thy yoke, and
burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not transgress;
when upon every high hill and under every green tree
thou wanderest, playing the harlot.

15. Jer 5:4-5 4 Therefore I said, Surely these are poor;
they are foolish: for they know not the way of the
LORD, nor the judgment of their God.
5 I will get me unto the great men, and will speak
unto them; for they have known the way of the LORD,
and the judgment of their God: but these have
altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds.
V. The yoke is no joke, but the proper yoke is
easy.
Matt 11:29-30
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am
meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto
your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Phil 4:3-4
3 And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those
women which laboured with me in the gospel, with
Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whose
names are in the book of life.
4 Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

16.  A yoke in your youth is good training for
old age.
Phlm 1:9
9 Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such
an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of
Jesus Christ.
Phlm 1:9
9 Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such
an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of
Jesus Christ.
The Yoke is no Joke
Text: Jeremiah 28
I. A Respectable Pretender- Jer 28:1-3
A. An Accusation- Jer 28:1
B. An Anticipation- Jer 28:2-3
C. An Aristocracy- Jer 28:4
II. A Sympathetic Saint- Jer 28:5-6
A. A Scriptural Stance- Jer 28:8
B. A Divine Litmus Test- Jer 28:9
III. An Exaggerated Clarification- Jer 28:10-11
IV. The Persistent Prophet- Jer 28:12-15

17. A. Authority Exercised- Jer 28:16
B. Acceleration of Expiration- Jer 28:17
1. Who was responsiblefor the yoke?
2. Who can break a yoke?
V. The yoke is no joke, but the proper yoke is
easy.
 A yoke in your youth is good training for old
age.