When you finish reading this scroll aloud, tie a stone to it and throw it into the middle of the Euphrates River.<n id="1" />

<p class="bodytext">What follows is a record of what happened to Jerusalem and Judah because of the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s anger when he drove them out of his sight.<n id="1" /> Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

But the Babylonian army chased after the king. They caught up with Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho,<n id="1" /> and his entire army deserted him.

He had Zedekiah&#8217;s eyes put out and had him bound in chains.<n id="1" /> Then the king of Babylon had him led off to Babylon and he was imprisoned there until the day he died.p>

The whole Babylonian army that came with the captain of the royal guard tore down the walls that surrounded Jerusalem.

He was given daily provisions by the king of Babylon for the rest of his life until the day he died.p>

<t /><p class="bodytext">The <sc>Lordsc> showed me two baskets of figs sitting before his temple. This happened after King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon deported Jehoiakim&#8217;s son, King Jeconiah of Judah. He deported him and the leaders of Judah, along with the craftsmen and metal workers, and took them to Babylon.<n id="1" />

Once again there will be sounds<n id="1" /> of joy and gladness and the glad celebrations of brides and grooms.<n id="2" /> Once again people will bring their thank offerings to the temple of the <sc>Lordsc> and will say, &#8220;Give thanks to the <sc>Lordsc> who rules over all. For the <sc>Lordsc> is good and his unfailing love lasts forever.&#8221;<n id="3" /> For I, the <sc>Lordsc>, affirm<n id="4" /> that I will restore the land to what it was<n id="5" /> in days of old.&#8217;<n id="6" />p>

I sent all my servants the prophets to warn you over and over again. They said, &#8220;Every one of you, stop doing the evil things you have been doing and do what is right.<n id="1" /> Do not pay allegiance to other gods<n id="2" /> and worship them. Then you can continue to live in this land that I gave to you and your ancestors.&#8221; But you did not pay any attention or listen to me.

All the officials sent Jehudi, who was the son of Nethaniah and the grandson of Cushi, to Baruch. They ordered him to tell Baruch, &#8220;Come here and bring with you<n id="1" /> the scroll you read in the hearing of the people.&#8221;<n id="2" /> So Baruch son of Neriah went to them, carrying the scroll in his hand.<n id="3" />

From the city he took an official who was in charge of the soldiers, seven of the king&#8217;s advisers who were discovered in the city, an official army secretary who drafted citizens<n id="1" /> for military service, and sixty citizens who were discovered in the middle of the city.

<p class="poetry">&#8220;Do so because my people have committed a double wrong:p> <p class="poetry">they have rejected me,p> <p class="poetry">the fountain of life-giving water,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and they have dug cisterns for themselves,p> <p class="poetry">cracked cisterns which cannot even hold water.&#8221;p>

<p class="poetry">Your own wickedness will bring about your punishment.p> <p class="poetry">Your unfaithful acts will bring down discipline on you.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Know, then, and realize how utterly harmful<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">it was for you to reject me, the <sc>Lordsc> your God,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">to show no respect for me,&#8221;<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">says the Lord <sc>Godsc> who rules over all.<n id="5" />p>

She also saw<n id="1" /> that I gave wayward Israel her divorce papers and sent her away because of her adulterous worship of other gods.<n id="2" /> Even after her unfaithful sister Judah had seen this,<n id="3" /> she still was not afraid, and she too went and gave herself like a prostitute to other gods.<n id="4" />

<t /><p class="bodytext">&#8220;Go and shout this message to my people in the countries in the north.<n id="1" /> Tell them,p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;Come back to me, wayward Israel,&#8217; says the <sc>Lordsc>.p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;I will not continue to look on you with displeasure.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">For I am merciful,&#8217; says the <sc>Lordsc>.p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;I will not be angry with you forever.p>

<p class="poetry">However, you must confess that you have done wrong,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and that you have rebelled against the <sc>Lordsc> your God.p> <p class="poetry">You must confess<n id="2" /> that you have given yourself to<n id="3" /> foreign gods under every green tree,p> <p class="poetry">and have not obeyed my commands,&#8217; says the <sc>Lordsc>.p>

<p class="poetry">I will go to the leaders<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and speak with them.p> <p class="poetry">Surely they know what the <sc>Lordsc> demands.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Surely they know what their God requires of them.&#8221;<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">Yet all of them, too, have rejected his authorityp> <p class="poetry">and refuse to submit to him.<n id="4" />p>

<p class="bodytext">Because of that,<n id="1" /> the <sc>Lordsc>, the God who rules over all,<n id="2" /> said to me,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Because these people have spoken<n id="4" /> like this,<n id="5" />p> <p class="poetry">I will make the words that I put in your mouth like fire.p> <p class="poetry">And I will make this people like woodp> <p class="poetry">which the fiery judgments you speak will burn up.&#8221;<n id="6" />p>

<p class="poetry">&#8220;You should fear me!&#8221; says the <sc>Lordsc>.p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;You should tremble in awe before me!<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">I made the sand to be a boundary for the sea,p> <p class="poetry">a permanent barrier that it can never cross.p> <p class="poetry">Its waves may roll, but they can never prevail.p> <p class="poetry">They may roar, but they can never cross beyond that boundary.&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

&#8220;Stand in the gate of the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple and proclaim<n id="1" /> this message: &#8216;Listen, all you people of Judah who have passed through these gates to worship the <sc>Lordsc>.<n id="2" /> Hear what the <sc>Lordsc> has to say.