⁹ “Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Will it thrive? Will it not be uprooted and stripped of its fruit so that it withers? All its new growth will wither. It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it up by the roots.^(A)

¹⁵ But the king rebelled^(A) against him by sending his envoys to Egypt^(B) to get horses and a large army.^(C) Will he succeed? Will he who does such things escape? Will he break the treaty and yet escape?^(D)

¹⁶ “‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, he shall die^(E) in Babylon, in the land of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose treaty he broke.^{(F) 17} Pharaoh^(G) with his mighty army and great horde will be of no help to him in war, when ramps^(H) are built and siege works erected to destroy many lives.^(I)

¹⁰ It has been planted,^(A) but will it thrive? Will it not wither completely when the east wind strikes it—wither away in the plot where it grew?^(B)’”

⁷ Then the city wall was broken through, and the whole army fled.^(A) They left the city at night through the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Babylonians^[a] were surrounding the city. They fled toward the Arabah,^{[b] 8} but the Babylonian^[c] army pursued King Zedekiah and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from him and scattered, ⁹ and he was captured.^(B)

He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah^(C) in the land of Hamath,^(D) where he pronounced sentence on him. ¹⁰ There at Riblah the king of Babylon killed the sons^(E) of Zedekiah before his eyes; he also killed all the officials of Judah. ¹¹ Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon, where he put him in prison till the day of his death.^(F)

¹⁰ Even if you were to defeat the entire Babylonian^[a] army that is attacking you and only wounded men were left in their tents, they would come out and burn^(A) this city down.”

⁵ He will take^(A) Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will remain until I deal with him,^(B) declares the Lord. If you fight against the Babylonians, you will not succeed.’”^(C)

⁸ “‘But like the bad^(A) figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the Lord, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah^(B) king of Judah, his officials^(C) and the survivors^(D) from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt.^{(E) 9} I will make them abhorrent^(F) and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword,^(G) a curse^[a](H) and an object of ridicule, wherever I banish^(I) them. ¹⁰ I will send the sword,^(J) famine^(K) and plague^(L) against them until they are destroyed from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.^(M)’”

⁴ ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turn^(A) against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babylonians^[a] who are outside the wall besieging^(B) you. And I will gather them inside this city. ⁵ I myself will fight^(C) against you with an outstretched hand^(D) and a mighty arm^(E) in furious anger and in great wrath. ⁶ I will strike^(F) down those who live in this city—both man and beast—and they will die of a terrible plague.^{(G) 7} After that, declares the Lord, I will give Zedekiah^(H) king of Judah, his officials and the people in this city who survive the plague,^(I) sword and famine, into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon^(J) and to their enemies^(K) who want to kill them.^(L) He will put them to the sword;^(M) he will show them no mercy or pity or compassion.’^(N)