1. King Zedekiah of Judah sent Pashhur son of Malchiah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah to me with this request:
2. “Please speak to the Lord for us, because King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia and his army are besieging the city. Maybe the Lord will perform one of his miracles for us and force Nebuchadnezzar to retreat.”
3. Then the Lord spoke to me, and I told the men who had been sent to me
4. to tell Zedekiah that the Lord, the God of Israel, had said, “Zedekiah, I am going to defeat your army that is fighting against the king of Babylonia and his army. I will pile up your soldiers' weapons in the centre of the city.
5. I will fight against you with all my might, my anger, my wrath, and my fury.
6. I will kill everyone living in this city; people and animals alike will die of a terrible disease.
7. But as for you, your officials, and the people who survive the war, the famine, and the disease — I will let all of you be captured by King Nebuchadnezzar and by your enemies, who want to kill you. Nebuchadnezzar will put you to death. He will not spare any of you or show mercy or pity to any of you. I, the Lord, have spoken.”