42 Then all the army officers, including Johanan^(A) son of Kareah and Jezaniah^[a] son of Hoshaiah,^(B) and all the people from the least to the greatest^(C) approached ² Jeremiah the prophet and said to him, “Please hear our petition and pray^(D) to the Lord your God for this entire remnant.^(E) For as you now see, though we were once many, now only a few^(F) are left. ³ Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do.”^(G)

⁴ “I have heard you,” replied Jeremiah the prophet. “I will certainly pray^(H) to the Lord your God as you have requested; I will tell^(I) you everything the Lord says and will keep nothing back from you.”^(J)

⁵ Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the Lord be a true^(K) and faithful^(L) witness^(M) against us if we do not act in accordance with everything the Lord your God sends you to tell us. ⁶ Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, we will obey the Lord our God, to whom we are sending you, so that it will go well^(N) with us, for we will obey^(O) the Lord our God.”

43 When Jeremiah had finished telling the people all the words of the Lord their God—everything the Lord had sent him to tell them^(A)— ² Azariah son of Hoshaiah^(B) and Johanan^(C) son of Kareah and all the arrogant^(D) men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying!^(E) The Lord our God has not sent you to say, ‘You must not go to Egypt to settle there.’^{(F) 3} But Baruch^(G) son of Neriah is inciting you against us to hand us over to the Babylonians,^[a] so they may kill us or carry us into exile to Babylon.”^(H)

⁴ So Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officers and all the people^(I) disobeyed the Lord’s command^(J) to stay in the land of Judah.^(K)