17 Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Lord God Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you surrendera to the officers of the king of Babylon, your life will be spared and this city will not be burned down; you and your family will live.b 18 But if you will not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, this city will be given into the handsc of the Babylonians and they will burnd it down; you yourself will not escapee from them.’ ”

19 King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraidf of the Jews who have gone overg to the Babylonians, for the Babylonians may hand me over to them and they will mistreat me.”

20 “They will not hand you over,” Jeremiah replied. “Obeyh the Lord by doing what I tell you. Then it will go welli with you, and your lifej will be spared. 21 But if you refuse to surrender, this is what the Lord has revealed to me: 22 All the womenk 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 friendsl of yours.

Your feet are sunk in the mud;m

your friends have deserted you.’

23 “All your wives and childrenn will be brought out to the Babylonians. You yourself will not escapeo from their hands but will be capturedp by the king of Babylon; and this city wille be burned down.”q