¹ Y reinó el rey Sedequías hijo de Josías, en lugar de Conías hijo de Joacim, al cual Nabucodonosor rey de Babilonia había constituído por rey en la tierra de Judá.

² Mas no obedeció él, ni sus siervos, ni el pueblo de la tierra a las palabras del SEÑOR, que dijo por el profeta Jeremías.

³ Y envió el rey Sedequías a Jucal hijo de Selemías, y a Sofonías hijo de Maasías sacerdote, para que dijesen al profeta Jeremías: Ruega ahora por nosotros al SEÑOR nuestro Dios.

⁴ (Y Jeremías entraba y salía en medio del pueblo; porque no lo habían puesto en la casa de la cárcel.

⁵ Y como el ejército de Faraón hubo salido de Egipto, y vino la noticia de ellos a oídos de los caldeos que tenían cercada a Jerusalén, partieron de Jerusalén.)

⁶ Entonces vino palabra del SEÑOR a Jeremías profeta, diciendo:

⁷ Así dijo el SEÑOR Dios de Israel: Diréis así al rey de Judá, que os envió a mí para que me preguntaseis: He aquí que el ejército de Faraón que había salido en vuestro socorro, se volvió a su tierra en Egipto.

⁸ Y tornarán los caldeos, y combatirán esta ciudad, y la tomarán, y la pondrán a fuego.

⁹ Así dijo el SEÑOR: No engañéis vuestras almas, diciendo: Sin duda los caldeos se han ido de nosotros; porque no se irán.

¹⁰ Porque aunque vosotros hirieseis todo el ejército de los caldeos que pelean con vosotros, y quedasen de ellos hombres alanceados, cada uno se levantará de su tienda, y pondrán fuego a esta ciudad.

¹¹ Y aconteció que, como el ejército de los caldeos se fue de Jerusalén a causa del ejército de Faraón,

¹² Jeremías salió de Jerusalén para irse a tierra de Benjamín, para apartarse de allí en medio del pueblo.

¹³ Y cuando fue a la puerta de Benjamín, estaba allí un capitán que se llamaba Irías, hijo de Selemías hijo de Hananías, el cual prendió a Jeremías profeta, diciendo: Tú te retiras a los caldeos.

¹⁴ Y Jeremías dijo: Falso; no me retiro a los caldeos. Mas él no lo escuchó, antes prendió Irías a Jeremías, y lo llevó delante de los príncipes.

¹⁵ Y los príncipes se airaron contra Jeremías, y le azotaron, y le pusieron en prisión en la casa de Jonatán escriba, porque aquélla la habían hecho casa de cárcel.

¹⁶ Siendo, pues, entrado Jeremías en la casa de la mazmorra, y en las camarillas de la prisión y habiendo estado allá Jeremías por muchos días,

¹⁷ el rey Sedequías envió, y le sacó; y le preguntó el rey secretamente en su casa, y dijo: ¿Es palabra del SEÑOR? Y Jeremías dijo: Es. Y dijo más: En mano del rey de Babilonia serás entregado.

¹⁸ Dijo también Jeremías al rey Sedequías: ¿En qué pequé contra ti, y contra tus siervos, y contra este pueblo, para que me pusieseis en la casa de la cárcel?

¹⁹ ¿Y dónde están vuestros profetas que os profetizaban, diciendo: No vendrá el rey de Babilonia contra vosotros, ni contra esta tierra?

²⁰ Ahora pues, oye, te ruego, mi señor el rey; caiga ahora mi súplica delante de ti, y no me hagas volver a casa de Jonatán escriba, para que no me muera allí.

²¹ Entonces dio orden el rey Sedequías, y depositaron a Jeremías en el patio de la guarda, haciéndole dar una torta de pan al día, de la plaza de los Panaderos, hasta que todo el pan de la ciudad se gastase. Y quedó Jeremías en el patio de la guarda.

¹ The word which came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth that were under his dominion, and all the peoples, were fighting against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of it, saying:

² Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, Go, and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, Thus says Yahweh, Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire:

³ and you shall not escape out of his hand, but shall surely be taken, and delivered into his hand; and your eyes shall see the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with you mouth to mouth, and you shall go to Babylon.

⁴ Yet hear the word of Yahweh, O Zedekiah king of Judah: thus says Yahweh concerning you, You shall not die by the sword;

⁵ you shall die in peace; and with the burnings of your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so shall they make a burning for you; and they shall lament you, [saying], Ah Lord! for I have spoken the word, says Yahweh.

⁶ Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem,

⁷ when the king of Babylon's army was fighting against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and against Azekah; for these [alone] remained of the cities of Judah [as] fortified cities.

⁸ The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty to them;

⁹ that every man should let his male servant, and every man his female servant, who is a Hebrew or a Hebrewess, go free; that none should make bondservants of them, [to wit], of a Jew his brother.

¹⁰ All the princes and all the people obeyed, who had entered into the covenant, that everyone should let his male servant, and everyone his female servant, go free, that none should make bondservants of them any more; they obeyed, and let them go:

¹¹ but afterwards they turned, and caused the servants and the handmaids, whom they had let go free, to return, and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids.

¹² Therefore the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying,

¹³ Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying,

¹⁴ At the end of seven years you shall let go every man his brother who is a Hebrew, who has been sold to you, and has served you six years, you shall let him go free from you: but your fathers didn't listen to me, neither inclined their ear.

¹⁵ You had now turned, and had done that which is right in my eyes, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbor; and you had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name:

¹⁶ but you turned and profaned my name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, whom you had let go free at their pleasure, to return; and you brought them into subjection, to be to you for servants and for handmaids.

¹⁷ Therefore thus says Yahweh: you have not listened to me, to proclaim liberty, every man to his brother, and every man to his neighbor: behold, I proclaim to you a liberty, says Yahweh, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be tossed back and forth among all the kingdoms of the earth.

¹⁸ I will give the men who have transgressed my covenant, who have not performed the words of the covenant which they made before me, when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts;

¹⁹ the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, who passed between the parts of the calf;

²⁰ I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life; and their dead bodies shall be for food to the birds of the sky, and to the animals of the earth.

²¹ Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, who have gone away from you.

²² Behold, I will command, says Yahweh, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire: and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.