¹¹ But the nations that bring their necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let them remain in their own land,’ says the Lord, ‘and they shall till it and dwell in it.’ ” ’ ”

² “Thus says the Lord: ^(A)‘He who remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes over to the Chaldeans shall live; his life shall be as a prize to him, and he shall live.’

⁸ And it shall be, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation I will punish,’ says the Lord, ‘with the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.

² “Thus says the Lord to me: ‘Make for yourselves bonds and yokes, ^(A)and put them on your neck,

⁹ He who ^(A)remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes out and ^[a]defects to the Chaldeans who besiege you, he shall ^(B)live, and his life shall be as a prize to him.

¹⁰ ‘If you will still remain in this land, then ^(A)I will build you and not pull you down, and I will plant you and not pluck you up. For I ^(B)relent concerning the disaster that I have brought upon you. ¹¹ Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; do not be afraid of him,’ says the Lord, ^(C)‘for I am with you, to save you and deliver you from his hand.

⁹ And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, took an oath before them and their men, saying, “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Dwell in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be ^(A)well with you. ¹⁰ As for me, I will indeed dwell at Mizpah and serve the Chaldeans who come to us. But you, gather wine and summer fruit and oil, put them in your vessels, and dwell in your cities that you have taken.” ¹¹ Likewise, when all the Jews who were in Moab, among the Ammonites, in Edom, and who were in all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah, and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, ¹² then all the Jews ^(B)returned out of all places where they had been driven, and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah, and gathered wine and summer fruit in abundance.

¹² I also spoke to ^(A)Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, “Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live!