¶ The word¹ which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, when² king Zedekiah sent unto him Pashur³ the son of Melchiah, and Zephaniah⁴ the son of Maaseiah the priest, saying,

Enquire⁵, I pray thee, of the LORD for⁶ us; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon maketh war against us; if so be that the LORD will deal with us according⁷ to all his wondrous works, that he may go up from us.

Then said Jeremiah unto them, Thus shall ye say to Zedekiah:

Thus saith the LORD God of Israel; Behold,⁸ I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye fight against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, which besiege you without the walls, and I⁹ will assemble them into the midst of this city.

And I¹⁰ myself will fight against you with an¹¹ outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath.

And I will¹² smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast: they¹³ shall die of a great pestilence.

And afterward, saith the LORD, I will¹⁴ deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, and his servants, and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence, from the sword, and from the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life: and he shall¹⁵ smite them with the edge of the sword; he shall not spare them, neither have pity, nor have mercy.

¶ And unto this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I set¹⁶ before you the way of life, and the way of death.

He that abideth¹⁷ in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth out, and falleth to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his¹⁸ life shall be unto him for a prey.

¶ For I have¹⁹ set my face against this city for evil, and not for good, saith the LORD: it shall²⁰ be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.

²¹And touching the house of the king of Judah, say, Hear ye the word of the LORD;

O house²² of David, thus saith the LORD; Execute²³ judgment in the morning²⁴, and deliver²⁵ him that is spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor, lest²⁶ my fury go out like fire, and burn that none²⁷ can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

Behold, I am²⁸ against thee, O inhabitant²⁹ of the valley, and rock of the plain, saith the LORD; which say, Who³⁰ shall come down against us? or who shall enter into our habitations?

But I will punish³¹ you according³² to the fruit of your doings, saith the LORD: and I will kindle a fire in the³³ forest thereof, and it shall³⁴ devour all things round about it.