The elders also united in protesting against the decision of the priests regarding the fate of Jeremiah. They cited the case of Micah, who had prophesied judgments upon Jerusalem, saying, "Zion shall be plowed like a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest." And they asked: "Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him at all to death? did he not fear the Lord, and besought the Lord, and the Lord repented Him of the evil which He had pronounced against them? Thus might we procure great evil against our souls." Verses 18, 19.

De ældste protesterede også imod den beslutning, præsterne havde taget angående Jeremias. De henviste til Mika, som havde profeteret, at Jerusalem ville blive straffet. Han havde sagt: "Zion skal pløjes som en mark, Jerusalem blive til grushobe, tempelbjerget til krathøj." De spurgte nu: "Mon kong Ezekias af Juda og hele Juda dræbte ham? Frygtede de ikke Herren og bad ham om nåde, så Herren angrede det onde, han havde truet dem med? Vi er ved at bringe stor ulykke over vore sjæle." 18-19, vers.