Jeremiah 38:17-28 ▼

17 And Jeremiah says to Zedekiah, “Thus said YHWH, God of Hosts, God of Israel: If you certainly go forth to the heads of the king of Babylon, then your soul has lived, and this city is not burned with fire, indeed, you have lived, you and your house.

18 And if you do not go forth to the heads of the king of Babylon, then this city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they have burned it with fire, and you do not escape from their hand.”

19 And King Zedekiah says to Jeremiah, “I am fearing the Jews who have fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they give me into their hand, and they have insulted me.”

20 And Jeremiah says, “They do not give you up; please listen to the voice of YHWH, to that which I am speaking to you, and it is well for you, and your soul lives.

21 And if you are refusing to go forth, this [is] the thing that YHWH has shown me:

22 That, behold, all the women who have been left in the house of the king of Judah are brought forth to the heads of the king of Babylon, and behold, they are saying: Persuaded you, and prevailed against you, || Have your allies, || Your feet have sunk into mire, || They have been turned backward.

23 And all your wives and your sons are brought forth to the Chaldeans, and you do not escape from their hand, for you are caught by the hand of the king of Babylon, and this city is burned with fire.”

24 And Zedekiah says to Jeremiah, “Let no man know of these words, and you do not die;

25 and when the heads hear that I have spoken with you, and they have come to you, and have said to you, Now declare to us what you spoke to the king, do not hide [it] from us, and we do not put you to death, and what the king spoke to you,

26 then you have said to them, I am causing my supplication to fall before the king, not to cause me to return to the house of Jonathan, to die there.”

27 And all the heads come to Jeremiah, and ask him, and he declares to them according to all these words that the king commanded, and they keep silent from him, for the matter was not heard;

28 and Jeremiah dwells in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem has been captured, and he was [there] when Jerusalem was captured.