耶和华如此说：“我必将犹大王西底家和他的首领，以及剩在这地耶路撒冷的余民，并住在埃及地的犹大人都交出来，好像那极坏、坏得不可吃的无花果。

耶和华如此说：“我必将犹大王西底家和他的众领袖，以及留在这地耶路撒冷剩余的人，并住在埃及地的犹大人都交出来，好像那极坏、坏得不能吃的无花果。

耶和华如此说：“我必将犹大王西底家和他的众领袖，以及留在这地耶路撒冷剩余的人，并住在埃及地的犹大人都交出来，好像那极坏、坏得不能吃的无花果。

至于那些坏得不能吃的无花果，耶和华这样说，‘犹大王西底迦及其官员，以及留在耶路撒冷和埃及的人在我眼中就像坏得不能吃的无花果。我必丢弃他们，

“但耶和华这样说：‘我怎样处置那些坏到不能吃的坏无花果，我也必照样对待犹大王西底家、他的众领袖和耶路撒冷的余民，不论是余剩在这地的，或是住在埃及地的。

耶和華如此說：「我必將猶大王西底家和他的首領，以及剩在這地耶路撒冷的餘民，並住在埃及地的猶大人都交出來，好像那極壞、壞得不可吃的無花果。

耶和華如此說：「我必將猶大王西底家和他的眾領袖，以及留在這地耶路撒冷剩餘的人，並住在埃及地的猶大人都交出來，好像那極壞、壞得不能吃的無花果。

耶和華如此說：「我必將猶大王西底家和他的眾領袖，以及留在這地耶路撒冷剩餘的人，並住在埃及地的猶大人都交出來，好像那極壞、壞得不能吃的無花果。

至於那些壞得不能吃的無花果，耶和華這樣說，『猶大王西底迦及其官員，以及留在耶路撒冷和埃及的人在我眼中就像壞得不能吃的無花果。我必丟棄他們，

“但耶和華這樣說：‘我怎樣處置那些壞到不能吃的壞無花果，我也必照樣對待猶大王西底家、他的眾領袖和耶路撒冷的餘民，不論是餘剩在這地的，或是住在埃及地的。

『但是永恆主這麼說：我必將猶大王西底家和眾首領、以及耶路撒冷的餘民、剩在這地的、和住在埃及地的、都看像那壞的無花果，壞到喫不得的。

至於無花果之劣而不可食者、耶和華曰、此若猶大王西底家、與其牧伯、及耶路撒冷遺民、居於斯土之眾、與旅於埃及者、

惟彼劣果、不堪適口、可比猶大王西底家、以及牧伯、耶路撒冷居民、斯土之遺眾、暨旅於埃及者。

主如是云、惟猶大王西底家、與其牧伯、及耶路撒冷之遺民、尚遺於斯地者、及旅於伊及者、我必使若此劣甚不可食之劣無花果、

“‘ But like the bad figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the Lord,‘ so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the survivors from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt.

“‘ But there are also bad figs. In fact, they are so bad they can’t be eaten,’ says the Lord.‘ Zedekiah, the king of Judah, is like these bad figs. So are his officials and the people of Jerusalem who are still left alive. I will punish them whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt.

“ But thus says the Lord: Like the bad figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten, so will I treat Zedekiah the king of Judah, his officials, the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.

“ But the bad figs,” the Lord said,“ represent King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, all the people left in Jerusalem, and those who live in Egypt. I will treat them like bad figs, too rotten to eat.

“ But as for the bad figs, so bad they are inedible, this is what the LORD says: In this way I will deal with King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem— those remaining in this land or living in the land of Egypt.

‘ But like the bad figs which cannot be eaten due to rottenness,’ indeed, this is what the Lord says,‘ so will I give up Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and the ones who live in the land of Egypt.

‘ And as the bad figs which cannot be eaten, they are so bad’— surely thus says the Lord—‘ so will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, the residue of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.

And as the bad figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so bad, surely thus saith Jehovah, So will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt,

“ But as for the bad figs, so bad they are inedible, this is what the Lord says: in this way I will deal with king Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem— those remaining in this land and those living in the land of Egypt.

And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt:

“ I, the LORD, also solemnly assert:‘ King Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and the people who remain in Jerusalem or who have gone to live in Egypt are like those bad figs. I consider them to be just like those bad figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten.

“‘ As the bad figs, which can’t be eaten, they are so bad,’ surely Yahweh says,‘ So I will give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the remnant of Jerusalem, who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt.

When Jeremiah had finished telling the people all the words of the Lord their God— everything the Lord had sent him to tell them—Azariah son of Hoshaiah and Johanan son of Kareah and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah,“ You are lying! The Lord our God has not sent you to say,‘ You must not go to Egypt to settle there.’But Baruch son of Neriah is inciting you against us to hand us over to the Babylonians, so they may kill us or carry us into exile to Babylon.”So Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officers and all the people disobeyed the Lord’s command to stay in the land of Judah.Instead, Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officers led away all the remnant of Judah who had come back to live in the land of Judah from all the nations where they had been scattered.They also led away all those whom Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard had left with Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan— the men, the women, the children and the king’s daughters. And they took Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch son of Neriah along with them.So they entered Egypt in disobedience to the Lord and went as far as Tahpanhes.In Tahpanhes the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah:“ While the Jews are watching, take some large stones with you and bury them in clay in the brick pavement at the entrance to Pharaoh’s palace in Tahpanhes.Then say to them,‘ This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I will send for my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and I will set his throne over these stones I have buried here; he will spread his royal canopy above them.He will come and attack Egypt, bringing death to those destined for death, captivity to those destined for captivity, and the sword to those destined for the sword.He will set fire to the temples of the gods of Egypt; he will burn their temples and take their gods captive. As a shepherd picks his garment clean of lice, so he will pick Egypt clean and depart.There in the temple of the sun in Egypt he will demolish the sacred pillars and will burn down the temples of the gods of Egypt.’”This word came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews living in Lower Egypt— in Migdol, Tahpanhes and Memphis— and in Upper Egypt: (niv)

One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early; the other basket had very bad figs, so bad they could not be eaten. (niv)

Even if you were to defeat the entire Babylonian army that is attacking you and only wounded men were left in their tents, they would come out and burn this city down.” (niv)

Therefore this is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the Babylonians and to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will capture it.The Babylonians who are attacking this city will come in and set it on fire; they will burn it down, along with the houses where the people aroused my anger by burning incense on the roofs to Baal and by pouring out drink offerings to other gods. (niv)

“ Therefore this is what the Lord says: You have not obeyed me; you have not proclaimed freedom to your own people. So I now proclaim‘ freedom’ for you, declares the Lord—‘ freedom’ to fall by the sword, plague and famine. I will make you abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth.Those who have violated my covenant and have not fulfilled the terms of the covenant they made before me, I will treat like the calf they cut in two and then walked between its pieces.The leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests and all the people of the land who walked between the pieces of the calf,I will deliver into the hands of their enemies who want to kill them. Their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals.“ I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials into the hands of their enemies who want to kill them, to the army of the king of Babylon, which has withdrawn from you.I am going to give the order, declares the Lord, and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it, take it and burn it down. And I will lay waste the towns of Judah so no one can live there.” (niv)

He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, just as Jehoiakim had done.It was because of the Lord’s anger that all this happened to Jerusalem and Judah, and in the end he thrust them from his presence. Now Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.So in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his whole army. They encamped outside the city and built siege works all around it.The city was kept under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.By the ninth day of the fourth month the famine in the city had become so severe that there was no food for the people to eat.Then the city wall was broken through, and the whole army fled. They left the city at night through the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden, though the Babylonians were surrounding the city. They fled toward the Arabah,but the Babylonian army pursued King Zedekiah and overtook him in the plains of Jericho. All his soldiers were separated from him and scattered,and he was captured. He was taken to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced sentence on him.There at Riblah the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he also killed all the officials of Judah.Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him with bronze shackles and took him to Babylon, where he put him in prison till the day of his death. (niv)

Then the word of the Lord came to me:“ Say to this rebellious people,‘ Do you not know what these things mean?’ Say to them:‘ The king of Babylon went to Jerusalem and carried off her king and her nobles, bringing them back with him to Babylon.Then he took a member of the royal family and made a treaty with him, putting him under oath. He also carried away the leading men of the land,so that the kingdom would be brought low, unable to rise again, surviving only by keeping his treaty.But the king rebelled against him by sending his envoys to Egypt to get horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Will he who does such things escape? Will he break the treaty and yet escape?“‘ As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, he shall die in Babylon, in the land of the king who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised and whose treaty he broke.Pharaoh with his mighty army and great horde will be of no help to him in war, when ramps are built and siege works erected to destroy many lives.He despised the oath by breaking the covenant. Because he had given his hand in pledge and yet did all these things, he shall not escape.“‘ Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: As surely as I live, I will repay him for despising my oath and breaking my covenant.I will spread my net for him, and he will be caught in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon and execute judgment on him there because he was unfaithful to me.All his choice troops will fall by the sword, and the survivors will be scattered to the winds. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken. (niv)

but this is what the Lord says about the king who sits on David’s throne and all the people who remain in this city, your fellow citizens who did not go with you into exile—yes, this is what the Lord Almighty says:“ I will send the sword, famine and plague against them and I will make them like figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten.I will pursue them with the sword, famine and plague and will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth, a curse and an object of horror, of scorn and reproach, among all the nations where I drive them. (niv)

“ This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:‘ Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent away from this place to the land of the Babylonians. (niv)

Then King Zedekiah sent for him and had him brought to the palace, where he asked him privately,“ Is there any word from the Lord?”“ Yes,” Jeremiah replied,“ you will be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon.” (niv)

But hear the word of the Lord, all you Jews living in Egypt:‘ I swear by my great name,’ says the Lord,‘ that no one from Judah living anywhere in Egypt will ever again invoke my name or swear,“ As surely as the Sovereign Lord lives.”For I am watching over them for harm, not for good; the Jews in Egypt will perish by sword and famine until they are all destroyed.Those who escape the sword and return to the land of Judah from Egypt will be very few. Then the whole remnant of Judah who came to live in Egypt will know whose word will stand— mine or theirs.“‘ This will be the sign to you that I will punish you in this place,’ declares the Lord,‘ so that you will know that my threats of harm against you will surely stand.’This is what the Lord says:‘ I am going to deliver Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hands of his enemies who want to kill him, just as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the enemy who wanted to kill him.’” (niv)

But if you will not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, this city will be given into the hands of the Babylonians and they will burn it down; you yourself will not escape from them.’”King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah,“ I am afraid of the Jews who have gone over to the Babylonians, for the Babylonians may hand me over to them and they will mistreat me.”“ They will not hand you over,” Jeremiah replied.“ Obey the Lord by doing what I tell you. Then it will go well with you, and your life will be spared.But if you refuse to surrender, this is what the Lord has revealed to me:All the women left in the palace of the king of Judah will be brought out to the officials of the king of Babylon. Those women will say to you:“‘ They misled you and overcame you— those trusted friends of yours. Your feet are sunk in the mud; your friends have deserted you.’“ All your wives and children will be brought out to the Babylonians. You yourself will not escape from their hands but will be captured by the king of Babylon; and this city will be burned down.” (niv)

I have determined to do this city harm and not good, declares the Lord. It will be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will destroy it with fire.’ (niv)

“ The prince among them will put his things on his shoulder at dusk and leave, and a hole will be dug in the wall for him to go through. He will cover his face so that he cannot see the land.I will spread my net for him, and he will be caught in my snare; I will bring him to Babylonia, the land of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and there he will die.I will scatter to the winds all those around him— his staff and all his troops— and I will pursue them with drawn sword.“ They will know that I am the Lord, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them through the countries.But I will spare a few of them from the sword, famine and plague, so that in the nations where they go they may acknowledge all their detestable practices. Then they will know that I am the Lord.” (niv)

And on the ninth day of the fourth month of Zedekiah’s eleventh year, the city wall was broken through.Then all the officials of the king of Babylon came and took seats in the Middle Gate: Nergal-Sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-Sarsekim a chief officer, Nergal-Sharezer a high official and all the other officials of the king of Babylon.When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled; they left the city at night by way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls, and headed toward the Arabah.But the Babylonian army pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They captured him and took him to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced sentence on him.There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes and also killed all the nobles of Judah.Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with bronze shackles to take him to Babylon.The Babylonians set fire to the royal palace and the houses of the people and broke down the walls of Jerusalem.Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard carried into exile to Babylon the people who remained in the city, along with those who had gone over to him, and the rest of the people. (niv)