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¹ In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his force have come to Jerusalem, and they lay siege against it;² in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth of the month, the city has been broken up;³ and all the heads of the king of Babylon come in, and they sit at the middle gate, Nergal-Sharezer, Samgar-Nebo, Sarsechim, Rab-Saris, Nergal-Sharezer, chief magus, and all the rest of the heads of the king of Babylon.⁴ And it comes to pass, when Zedekiah king of Judah and all the men of war have seen them, that they flee and go forth by night from the city, the way of the king's garden, through the gate between the two walls, and he goes forth the way of the plain.⁵ And the forces of the Chaldeans pursue after them, and overtake Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, and they take him, and bring him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, to Riblah, in the land of Hamath, and he speaks with him—judgments.⁶ And the king of Babylon slaughters the sons of Zedekiah, in Riblah, before his eyes, indeed, the king of Babylon has slaughtered all the nobles of Judah.⁷ And he has blinded the eyes of Zedekiah, and he binds him with bronze chains to bring him to Babylon.⁸ And the house of the king, and the house of the people, the Chaldeans have burned with fire, and they have broken down the walls of Jerusalem.⁹ And the remnant of the people who are left in the city, and those defecting who have defected to him, and the remnant of the people who are left, Nebuzar-Adan, chief of the executioners, has removed [to] Babylon.¹⁰ And Nebuzar-Adan, chief of the executioners, has left in the land of Judah the poor people who have nothing, and he gives vineyards and fields to them in that day.

¹¹ And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gives a charge concerning Jeremiah, by the hand of Nebuzar-Adan, chief of the executioners, saying,¹² "Take him, and place your eyes on him, and do no evil thing to him, but as he speaks to you, so do with him."¹³ And Nebuzar-Adan, chief of the executioners, sends, and Nebushazban, chief of the eunuchs, and Nergal-Sharezer, chief magus, and all the chiefs of the king of Babylon,¹⁴ indeed, they send and take Jeremiah out of the court of the prison, and give him to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, to carry him home, and he dwells in the midst of the people.¹⁵ And a word of YHWH has been to Jeremiah—in his being detained in the court of the prison—saying:¹⁶ "Go, and you have spoken to Ebed-Melech the Cushite, saying, Thus said YHWH of Hosts, God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing in My words to this city for calamity, and not for good, and they have been before you in that day.¹⁷ And I have delivered you in that day—a declaration of YHWH—and you are not given into the hand of the men of whose face you are afraid,¹⁸ for I certainly deliver you, and you do not fall by sword, and your life has been to you for a spoil, for you have trusted in Me—a declaration of YHWH."