God warns Zedekiah
1 The Lord spoke to Jeremiah again, while King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his army were attacking Jerusalem. Soldiers from all the kingdoms that King Nebuchadnezzar ruled joined with Babylon's own soldiers to make a large army. They were attacking Jerusalem and the towns around it. 2 The Lord, Israel's God, said to Jeremiah, ‘Go to Zedekiah, king of Judah, and give him this message: The Lord says, “I will put this city under the power of the king of Babylon. He will burn it down. 3 You will not be able to escape. Babylon's soldiers will certainly take hold of you. They will take you to the king of Babylon. You will have to stand in front of the king of Babylon and answer his questions. Then you will go to Babylon as his prisoner.
4 But listen to the promise that the Lord makes to you, Zedekiah, king of Judah. I, the Lord, promise you that you will not die in a battle. 5 Instead, you will die with peace in your mind. People will burn incense to give you honour when they bury you. They did that for your ancestors who ruled as kings before you. They will do it for you too. When you die, people will weep because they are sad. They will say, ‘This is terrible! Our king has died!’ That is my promise to you, says the Lord.” ’
6 The prophet Jeremiah told all this to King Zedekiah of Judah, in Jerusalem. 7 This happened when the king of Babylon's army were attacking Jerusalem and the cities of Lachish and Azekah. Those were the only strong cities in Judah that were not yet under his power.
