1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Loʀᴅ, when A2 Kin 25:1; Jer 32:2; 39:1; 52:4Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army, with BJer 1:15; 27:7; Dan 2:37, 38all the kingdoms of the earth that were under his dominion and all the peoples, were fighting against Jerusalem and against all its cities, saying, 2 “Thus says the Loʀᴅ God of Israel, ‘A2 Chr 36:11, 12; Jer 22:1, 2; 37:1, 2Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and say to him: “Thus says the Loʀᴅ, ‘Behold, BJer 21:10; 32:3; 34:22; 37:8-10I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and CJer 32:29he will burn it with fire. 3  ‘A2 Kin 25:4, 5; Jer 21:7; 32:4; 34:21You will not escape from his hand, for you will surely be captured and delivered into his hand; and you will B2 Kin 25:6, 7; Jer 39:6, 7see the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you 1Lit mouth to mouthface to face, and you will go to Babylon.’ ” ’ 4  “Yet hear the word of the Loʀᴅ, O Zedekiah king of Judah! Thus says the Loʀᴅ concerning you, ‘You will not die by the sword. 5  ‘You will die in peace; and as spices were burned for your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so they will A2 Chr 16:14; 21:19burn spices for you; and BJer 22:18they will lament for you, “Alas, lord!” ’ For I have spoken the word,” declares the Loʀᴅ.

6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke A1 Sam 3:18; 15:16-24all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem 7 when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against all the remaining cities of Judah, that is, AJosh 10:3, 5; 2 Kin 14:19; 18:14; Is 36:2Lachish and BJosh 10:10; 2 Chr 11:9Azekah, for they alone remained as C2 Chr 11:5-10fortified cities among the cities of Judah.

8 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Loʀᴅ after King Zedekiah had A2 Kin 11:17; 23:2, 3made a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem to BEx 21:2; Lev 25:10, 39-46; Neh 5:1-13; Is 58:6; Jer 34:14, 17proclaim 1Or libertyrelease to them: 9 that each man should set free his male servant and each man his female servant, a AGen 14:13; Ex 2:6Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman; so that BLev 25:39no one should keep them, a Jew his brother, in bondage. 10 And all the AJer 26:10, 16officials and all the people obeyed who had entered into the covenant that each man should set free his male servant and each man his female servant, so that no one should keep them any longer in bondage; they obeyed, and set them free. 11 But afterward they turned around and took back the male servants and the female servants whom they had set free, and brought them into subjection for male servants and for female servants.

12 Then the word of the Loʀᴅ came to Jeremiah from the Loʀᴅ, saying, 13 “Thus says the Loʀᴅ God of Israel, ‘I AEx 24:3, 7, 8; Deut 5:2, 3, 27; Jer 31:32made a covenant with your forefathers in the day that I BEx 20:2brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, saying, 14 “AEx 21:2; Deut 15:12; 1 Kin 9:22At the end of seven years each of you shall set free his Hebrew brother who 1Or has sold himselfhas been sold to you and has served you six years, you shall send him out free from you; but your forefathers B1 Sam 8:7, 8; 2 Kin 17:13, 14did not obey Me or incline their ear to Me. 15  “Although recently you had turned and AJer 34:8done what is right in My sight, each man proclaiming 1Or libertyrelease to his neighbor, and you had B2 Kin 23:3; Neh 10:29made a covenant before Me CJer 7:10f; 32:34in the house which is called by My name. 16  “Yet you A1 Sam 15:11; Jer 34:11; Ezek 3:20; 18:24turned and BEx 20:7; Lev 19:12profaned My name, and each man 1Lit caused them to returntook back his male servant and each man his female servant whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them into subjection to be your male servants and female servants.” ’

17 “Therefore thus says the Loʀᴅ, ‘You have not obeyed Me in proclaiming 1Or libertyrelease each man to his brother and each man to his neighbor. Behold, I am ALev 26:34, 35; Esth 7:10; Dan 6:24; Matt 7:2proclaiming a 1Or libertyrelease to you,’ declares the Loʀᴅ, ‘to the BJer 32:24; 38:2sword, to the pestilence and to the famine; and I will make you a CDeut 28:25; Jer 29:18terror to all the kingdoms of the earth. 18  ‘I will give the men who have ADeut 17:2; Hos 6:7; 8:1; Rom 2:8transgressed My covenant, who have not fulfilled the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when they BGen 15:10cut the calf in two and passed between its parts— 19 the AJer 34:10; Ezek 22:27; Zeph 3:3, 4officials of Judah and the officials of Jerusalem, the court officers and the priests and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf— 20 I will give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who AJer 11:21; 21:7; 22:25seek their life. And their BDeut 28:26; 1 Sam 17:44, 46; 1 Kin 14:11; 16:4; Ps 79:2; Jer 7:33; 16:4; 19:7dead bodies will be food for the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth. 21  ‘A2 Kin 25:18-21; Jer 32:3, 4; 39:6; 52:10, 24-27; Ezek 17:16Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials I will give into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon which has BJer 37:5-11gone away from you. 22  ‘Behold, I am going to command,’ declares the Loʀᴅ, ‘and I will bring them back to this city; and they will fight against it and AJer 34:2; 39:1, 2, 8; 52:7, 13take it and burn it with fire; and I will make the cities of Judah a BJer 4:7; 9:11desolation CJer 33:10; 44:22without inhabitant.’ ”