Everyone was supposed to free their male and female Hebrew slaves. No one was supposed to keep a fellow Judean enslaved.

They are like lusty, well-fed stallions. Each of them lusts after his neighbor’s wife.

Kings will come against it with their armies. They will encamp in siege all around it. Each of them will devastate the portion assigned to him.

“Hear the terms of the covenant I made with Israel and pass them on to the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem.

But after I have uprooted the people of those nations, I will relent and have pity on them. I will restore the people of each of those nations to their own lands and to their own country.

I will send men against it to destroy it with their axes and hatchets. They will hack up its fine cedar panels and columns and throw them into the fire.

So I, the Lord, affirm that I am opposed to those prophets who steal messages from one another that they claim are from me.

Rather, each person will die for his own sins. The teeth of the person who eats the sour grapes will themselves grow numb.

Then Zedekiah told Jeremiah, “Do not let anyone know about the conversation we have had. If you do, you will die.

I used you to smash men and women. I used you to smash old men and young men. I used you to smash young men and young women.

“Get out of Babylon, my people! Flee to save your lives from the fierce anger of the Lord!

So now, tell the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem this: The Lord says, ‘I am preparing to bring disaster on you! I am making plans to punish you. So, every one of you, stop the evil things you have been doing. Correct the way you have been living and do what is right.’

At the sound of the approaching horsemen and archers the people of every town will flee. Some of them will hide in the thickets. Others will climb up among the rocks. All the cities will be deserted. No one will remain in them.

You must change the way you have been living and do what is right. You must treat one another fairly.

Everyone must be on his guard around his friends. He must not even trust any of his relatives. For every one of them will find some way to cheat him. And all of his friends will tell lies about him.

They will lay it waste. It will lie parched and empty before me. The whole land will be laid waste. But no one living in it will pay any heed.

And I will smash them like wine bottles against one another, children and parents alike. I will not show any pity, mercy, or compassion. Nothing will keep me from destroying them,’ says the Lord.”

I said, “Oh, mother, how I regret that you ever gave birth to me! I am always starting arguments and quarrels with the people of this land. I have not lent money to anyone and I have not borrowed from anyone. Yet all of these people are treating me with contempt.”

And you have acted even more wickedly than your ancestors! Each one of you has followed the stubborn inclinations of your own wicked heart and not obeyed me.

“‘People from other nations will pass by this city. They will ask one another, “Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?”