¹In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came to Jerusalem, and they laid siege to it.

²In the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth of the month, the city was broken into.

³And all the officials of the king of Babylon came and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-Sharezer, Samgar-Nebo, Sarsekim the Rab-saris, Nergal-Sharezer the Rab-mag, and all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon.

⁴And it happened, when Zedekiah king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, they fled and went out by night from the city, by the way of the garden of the king, through a gate between the two walls; and he went out by the way of the Arabah.

⁵And the army of the Chaldeans pursued after them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and they seized him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, to Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he spoke justices with him.

⁶The king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah at Riblah before his eyes, and the king of Babylon slaughtered all the nobles of Judah.

⁷And he blinded the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in bronze fetters, to bring him to Babylon.

⁸And the Chaldeans burned the house of the king and the house of the people with fire, and they pulled down the walls of Jerusalem.

⁹And Nebuzaradan the chief of the butchers took into exile to Babylon the rest of the people who were left in the city, and those who had fallen away to him, and the rest of the people who were left.

¹⁰But Nebuzaradan the chief of the butchers left some of the poor people who had nothing in the land of Judah, and gave them vineyards and plowed fields on that day.

¹¹And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gave a command concerning Jeremiah by the hand of Nebuzaradan the chief of the butchers, saying,

¹²"Take him, and set your eyes on him, and do him no evil; but as he speaks to you, so do with him."

¹³And Nebuzaradan the chief of the butchers sent, and Nebushazban the Rab-saris, and Nergal-sharezer the Rab-mag, and all the great men of the king of Babylon;

¹⁴And they sent and took Jeremiah from the court of the guard, and gave him over to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, to bring him out to the house. And he dwelled in the middle of the people.

¹⁵And the word of Yahweh had come to Jeremiah while he was held in the court of the guard, saying,

¹⁶"Go, and say to Ebed-Melech the Cushite: 'Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel: Look, I am about to bring my words against this city for evil and not for good; and they will come to pass before your face on that day.

¹⁷But I will deliver you on that day, utterance of Yahweh, and you will not be given into the hand of the men whose faces you dread

¹⁸For I will surely deliver you, and you will not fall by the sword; and your living being will be yours as plunder, because you trusted in me, utterance of Yahweh.'"