<p class="poetry">But you, <sc>Lordsc>, knowp> <p class="poetry">all their plots to kill me.p> <p class="poetry">Do not pardon their crimes!p> <p class="poetry">Do not ignore their sins as though you had erased them!<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Let them be brought down in defeat before you!p> <p class="poetry">Deal with them while you are still angry!<n id="2" />p>

If you are careful to<n id="1" /> obey these commands, then the kings who follow in David&#8217;s succession and ride in chariots or on horses will continue to come through the gates of this palace, as will their officials and their subjects.<n id="2" />

<p class="bodytext">&#8220;&#8216;For the <sc>Lordsc> has spoken about Shallum son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah but was carried off into exile. He has said, &#8220;He will never return to this land.<n id="1" />

<p class="poetry">So then I, the <sc>Lordsc> who rules over all,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">have something to say concerning the prophets of Jerusalem:<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;I will make these prophets eat the bitter food of sufferingp> <p class="poetry">and drink the poison water of judgment.<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">For the prophets of Jerusalem are the reason<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">that ungodliness<n id="5" /> has spread throughout the land.&#8217;&#8221;p>

How dare you claim the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s authority to prophesy such things! How dare you claim his authority to prophesy that this temple will become like Shiloh and that this city will become an uninhabited ruin!&#8221;<n id="1" /> Then all the people crowded around Jeremiah.p>

But correct the way you have been living and do what is right.<n id="1" /> Obey the <sc>Lordsc> your God. If you do, the <sc>Lordsc> will forgo destroying you as he threatened he would.<n id="2" />

All nations must serve him and his son and grandson<n id="1" /> until the time comes for his own nation to fall.<n id="2" /> Then many nations and great kings will in turn subjugate Babylon.<n id="3" />

He has already spoken about these things that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon did not take away when he carried Jehoiakim&#8217;s son King Jeconiah of Judah and the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem away as captives.<n id="1" />

<p class="poetry">Out of those places you will hear songs of thanksgiving<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and the sounds of laughter and merriment.p> <p class="poetry">I will increase their number and they will not dwindle away.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">I will bring them honor and they will no longer be despised.p>

<p class="poetry">One of their own people will be their leader.p> <p class="poetry">Their ruler will come from their own number.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">I will invite him to approach me, and he will do so.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">For no one would dare approach me on his own.<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">I, the <sc>Lordsc>, affirm it!<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">For after we turned away from you we repented.p> <p class="poetry">After we came to our senses<n id="1" /> we beat our breasts in sorrow.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">We are ashamed and humiliatedp> <p class="poetry">because of the disgraceful things we did previously.&#8217;<n id="3" />p>

For King Zedekiah<n id="1" /> had confined Jeremiah there after he had reproved him for prophesying as he did. He had asked Jeremiah, &#8220;Why do you keep prophesying these things? Why do you keep saying that the <sc>Lordsc> says, &#8216;I will hand this city over to the king of Babylon? I will let him capture it.<n id="2" />

The city is sure to fall into the hands of the Babylonians.<n id="1" /> Yet, in spite of this,<n id="2" /> you, Lord <sc>Godsc>,<n id="3" /> have said to me, &#8220;Buy that field with silver and have the transaction legally witnessed.&#8221;&#8217;&#8221;<n id="4" />p>

I will also hand King Zedekiah of Judah and his officials over to their enemies who want to kill them. I will hand them over to the army of the king of Babylon, even though they have temporarily withdrawn from attacking you.<n id="1" />

We and our wives and our sons and daughters have obeyed everything our ancestor Jonadab commanded us. We have never drunk wine.<n id="1" />

The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. He went and got it from the room of Elishama, the royal secretary. Then he himself<n id="1" /> read it to the king and all the officials who were standing around him.

He also ordered Jerahmeel, who was one of the royal princes,<n id="1" /> Seraiah son of Azriel, and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to arrest the scribe Baruch and the prophet Jeremiah. However, the <sc>Lordsc> hid them.p>

For even if you were to defeat all the Babylonian forces<n id="1" /> fighting against you so badly that only wounded men were left lying in their tents, they would get up and burn this city down.&#8221;&#8217;&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

But the Babylonian<n id="1" /> army chased after them. They caught up with Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho<n id="2" /> and captured him.<n id="3" /> They took him to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon at Riblah<n id="4" /> in the territory of Hamath and Nebuchadnezzar passed sentence on him there.

sent and had Jeremiah brought from the courtyard of the guardhouse. They turned him over to Gedaliah,<n id="1" /> the son of Ahikam and the grandson of Shaphan, to take him home with him.<n id="2" /> But Jeremiah stayed among the people.<n id="3" />p>