³ But Jeremiah answered, “This is what you are to say to Zedekiah: ⁴ ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to repel the weapons of war in your hands,^(A) those you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans^[a] who are besieging you outside the wall, and I will bring them into the center of this city.^{(B) 5} I myself will fight against you^(C) with an outstretched hand and a strong arm,^(D) with anger, fury, and intense wrath. ⁶ I will strike the residents of this city, both people and animals. They will die in a severe plague. ⁷ Afterward—this is the Lord’s declaration—King Zedekiah of Judah, his officers, and the people—those in this city who survive the plague, the sword, and the famine—I will hand over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon,^(E) to their enemies, yes, to those who intend to take their lives. He will put them to the sword; he won’t spare them or show pity or compassion.’^(F)

²² ‘They will be taken to Babylon and will remain there until I attend to them again.’^(A) This is the Lord’s declaration. ‘Then I will bring them up and restore them to this place.’”^(B)

² “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Go, speak to King Zedekiah of Judah, and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am about to hand this city over to the king of Babylon,^(A) and he will burn it. ³ As for you, you will not escape^(B) from him but are certain to be captured and handed over to him. You will meet the king of Babylon eye to eye and speak face to face;^[a](C) you will go to Babylon.

Jeremiah’s Imprisonment

¹¹ When the Chaldean army withdrew from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh’s army, ¹² Jeremiah started to leave Jerusalem to go to the land of Benjamin to claim his portion there^(A) among the people. ¹³ But when he was at the Benjamin Gate,^(B) an officer of the guard was there, whose name was Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, and he apprehended the prophet Jeremiah, saying, “You are defecting to the Chaldeans.”

¹⁴ “That’s a lie,” Jeremiah replied. “I am not defecting to the Chaldeans!” Irijah would not listen to him but apprehended Jeremiah and took him to the officials.