1The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth of his dominion, and all the people, fought against Jerusalem, and against all its cities, saying, 2Thus sayth the Lorde God of Israel, Goe, and speake to Zedekiah King of Iudah, and tell him, Thus sayth the Lord, Beholde, I will giue this citie into the hand of the King of Babel, and he shall burne it with fire, 3And thou shall not escape out of his hand, but shalt surely be taken, and deliuered into his hand, and thine eyes shal beholde the face of the King of Babel, & he shal speake with thee mouth to mouth, and thou shalt go to Babel. 4Yet heare the worde of the Lord, O Zedekiah, King of Iudah: thus sayth the Lord of thee, Thou shalt not dye by the sword, 5[But] thou shalt die in peace: and with the burnings of thy fathers, the former kings who were before thee, so shall they burn [incense] for thee; and they will lament thee, [saying], Ah lord! for I have pronounced the word, saith the LORD. 6Then Ieremiah the Prophet spake all these words vnto Zedekiah King of Iudah in Ierusalem, 7(When the King of Babels hoste fought against Ierusalem, and against all the cities of Iudah, that were left, euen against Lachish, and against Azekah: for these strong cities remained of the cities of Iudah) 8[This is] the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people who [were] at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty to them; 9That every man should release his male servant, and every man his female servant, [being] a Hebrew man or woman; that none should retain them in service, [that is], a Jew his brother. 10Now when all the princes, and all the people which had agreed to the couenant, heard that euery one should let his seruant go free, & euery one his handmaide, and that none should serue them selues of them any more, they obeyed and let them go. 11But afterwarde they repented and caused the seruants and the handmayds, whom they had let go free, to returne, and helde them in subiection as seruants and handmayds. 12Therefore the worde of the Lorde came vnto Ieremiah from the Lord, saying, 13Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I made a couenant with your fathers, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of seruants, saying, 14At the terme of seuen yeres let ye go, euery man his brother an Ebrewe which hath bene solde vnto thee: and when he hath serued the sixe yeres, thou shalt let him go free fro thee: but your fathers obeyed me not, neither inclined their eares. 15And ye had now turned, and had done right in my sight, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name: 16But ye repented, and polluted my Name: for ye haue caused euery man his seruant, and euery man his handmayde, whom ye had set at libertie at their pleasure, to returne, and holde them in subiection to bee vnto you as seruantes and as handmaydes. 17Therefore thus saith the LORD; Ye have not hearkened to me, in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbour: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the LORD, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth. 18And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, who have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in two, and passed between the parts of it, 19The princes of Iudah, and the princes of Ierusalem, the Eunuches, and the Priestes, and all the people of the lande, which passed betweene the partes of the calfe, 20I wil euen giue them into the hand of their enemies, and into the handes of them that seeke their life: and their dead bodies shalbe for meate vnto the foules of the heauen, and to the beastes of the earth. 21And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes I will give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which are gone up from you. 22Beholde, I will commande, saith the Lord, and cause them to returne to this citie, and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burne it with fire: and I will make the cities of Iudah desolate without an inhabitant.